Cataclysm Chapter 90: Tomino’s Hell 08

Chapter 90: Tomino’s Hell 08

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

 

Feng Ping grabbed his hair, his face filled with despair. “There were four or five fallen trees blocking the road, completely blocking our way. Without ropes, especially in heavy rain, there was no way to move them. One wrong move could cause an accident. It was like they didn’t want us to leave. I had told you not to come, but you insisted on coming!” He suddenly pointed at Wei Mianmian and shouted, “Now you’re crying?! It’s all your Wei family’s fault! It has nothing to do with me! I didn’t do anything, I was only dragged into this because I’m your husband. I’ve had enough!!”

Wei Mianmian screamed and lunged at him, using her bright red nails to scratch Feng Ping’s cheek. Soon, several bloodied scratches appeared. “Feng Ping, you have no conscience! When you were chasing me, what did you say? And now, what are you doing? Don’t think I don’t know about the woman you’re keeping outside and that bastard child!”

Feng Ping shoved Wei Mianmian away violently, impatiently cursing, “You can’t even bear children, you’re so evil. You think I don’t know what’s going on at home? A ghost child! You’re actually keeping a ghost child! That wicked thing, you dare keep it? A house like that, cold and gloomy, is it even a home? Would I dare go back? You and your father, your whole Wei family are all terrifying and perverted!”

Wei Guangming tapped his cane, making a ‘tap-tap’ sound, and scolded, “Quiet!” His cold gaze fell on Feng Ping, who immediately shrank back, causing Wei Mianmian to look at him with contempt and disdain. Wei Guangming spoke to Feng Ping, “You’re exhausted, and the shock made you talk nonsense. Go back to your room and rest. Once you sleep, everything will be fine.”

Feng Ping swallowed nervously, “But the road is blocked, this is a sign—”

“Heavy rain and lightning causing trees to fall and block the road is a normal occurrence. Don’t be paranoid,” Wei Guangming interrupted him in a calm voice. “To borrow a saying from Master Chen, if you don’t do anything wrong, you won’t fear ghosts knocking on your door.”

Feng Ping hesitated, but then remembered something and swallowed his words, clinging to Wei Guangming’s words as if they were a lifeline. “You’re right, if you don’t do anything wrong, you won’t fear ghosts knocking on your door. I haven’t wronged anyone, so of course, I’m not afraid.” He nervously comforted himself, then, with Wei Mianmian’s help, went back to his room to rest.

Wei Guangming turned to Chen Yang and the others and said, “Sorry for the inconvenience.”

Chen Yang asked, “Mr. Wei, is there something you’re still hiding from us?”

Wei Guangming remained calm. “We haven’t committed any immoral acts, so there’s nothing to hide. If Master Chen is referring to these matters, I can clearly tell you that I’ve never done anything wrong, it’s just—” His tone shifted, and his expression grew somber. “I regret what happened with my ex-wife.”

“Mr. Wei’s ex-wife?”

Wei Guangming sighed. “My ex-wife has passed away. Publicly, it was said that she died of illness. But the truth is, one time she came back to visit our child at the collection hall, and on her way back that night, she unfortunately encountered some criminals… and was… raped and murdered in a small grove.” A trace of guilt flashed across his face. “If I hadn’t argued with her that time, if I had just let her be a little, we wouldn’t have parted on bad terms. She wouldn’t have been upset and gone back at night, and she wouldn’t have—sigh.”

Wei Xiaoxiao, now calm, thanked Mao Xiaoli and walked over to Wei Guangming’s side. She said to Chen Yang and the others, “Sorry, my dad has always carried the regret of what happened with my mom. If you’re sure that digging into past wounds will help capture the vengeful spirit, we will tell you. But if you’re not sure, then please let my dad return to the study. He can’t stand for too long.”

Chen Yang cleared the way as Wei Xiaoxiao supported Wei Guangming to the study. When they passed by Dr. Hao’s body, Wei Guangming seemed to casually glance at the old hemp rope that had been used to hang Dr. Hao, and his expression changed. “This hemp rope?”

Chen Yang noticed Wei Guangming’s reaction. “It’s the rope that Dr. Hao used to hang himself, and it’s also the direct cause of the vengeful spirit’s death. In other words, it’s possible that Dr. Hao used this same rope to hang the vengeful spirit back then, and now the spirit is using the same rope to hang Dr. Hao.”

Wei Guangming almost lost his balance. “My ex-wife died from asphyxiation. There was an old hemp rope wrapped around her neck. The forensic expert confirmed that the rope had been tied to a tree in the woods by someone, and the murderer used it as the weapon.” He thought of a possibility, his face darkening. “Master Chen once said that vengeful spirits use the same items that killed them to kill their enemies?”

Chen Yang nodded. “Yes.”

“So my ex-wife was killed by Dr. Hao?” Upon realizing this, Wei Guangming was furious. “I trusted him all along, hired him as our family’s private doctor, and even introduced him to many customers! This is how he repays me?! Fine, he deserves to die!” He jabbed his cane and ordered the body of Dr. Hao to be moved out. His house couldn’t keep such a beast. Unfortunately, in the living room, only Wei Xiaoxiao and Qi Yin, two weak women, were too afraid of Dr. Hao’s body to move it. Wei Guangming glared at the two of them and then asked Chen Yang and the others for help.

Chen Yang shook his head. “Throwing a dead body into the sand, whether it’s in the pouring rain or under the scorching sun, is an insult to the corpse. No matter how wicked the person was in life, we should not vent our anger on a body.”

Seeing no one willing to help him, Wei Guangming threw his cane aside. “I’ll do it myself.” With that, he grabbed Dr. Hao by one leg and limped as he dragged him. Wei Xiaoxiao and Qi Yin quickly came forward to help.

Chen Yang lowered his gaze and said, “Mr. Wei, Dr. Hao died because of the vengeful spirit’s curse. His body still holds some warmth, and his soul hasn’t fully departed yet. If you insult the corpse, it might bear a grudge.”

Upon hearing this, Qi Yin hurriedly released Dr. Hao’s leg and stepped back, constantly wiping her hands behind her. Wei Guangming coldly asked her, “Aren’t you an atheist?”

Qi Yin, embarrassed, replied, “I—I’m just afraid of corpses. The person is already dead, and it’s true that we shouldn’t just throw the body outside. Also, the rainwater will ruin the traces on the body. What if the police come and see that the body was moved and then thrown into the sand? How are we going to explain that?”

“Where would the police come from?”

Qi Yin was confused. “Dr. Hao was the murderer. Why wouldn’t the police be called?”

Wei Guangming’s eyes turned cold. “No one is to call the police. I’ve said it before, no one is allowed to call the police. We can’t let outsiders ruin my collection. Master Chen, you understand, right?”

Chen Yang crossed his arms in front of his stomach. “Vengeful spirits exact their revenge, and the living should avoid them. They have the Fengdu pardoning token, and we won’t interfere.” His words were implied, but Wei Guangming either didn’t understand, didn’t care, or perhaps understood but wasn’t bothered. In any case, Chen Yang had done his part. He sighed. “Sorry, Mr. Wei. We’re only responsible for dealing with malevolent ghosts that harm others, but when it comes to vengeful spirits, we have no authority to interfere.”

With that, he turned and left with Kou Xuanling and the others. Wei Xiaoxiao suddenly called after them, her tone sharp and almost accusatory, “Are you going to stand by and do nothing, not help us?” At that moment, she lost her usual silence and became like a true member of the Wei family. Even if her appearance was well-maintained, the soul within was still foul and corrupt.

Mao Xiaoli responded, “Miss Wei, if you haven’t done anything wrong, you have nothing to fear. As Master Chen said, we don’t intervene in vengeful spirits’ revenge. We step in when malevolent ghosts harm people. So, as long as you’ve done no wrong, you have nothing to worry about.” She skipped cheerfully behind Zhang Qiudao as they headed upstairs.

After they went upstairs, Wei Guangming tossed aside Dr. Hao’s leg and suddenly slapped Wei Xiaoxiao across the face. The sharp, ear-splitting sound echoed through the empty living room, startling even Qi Yin, whose heart skipped a beat. She bit her lip, afraid to breathe, not daring to make a sound.

Wei Guangming’s face was filled with disdain. “Foolish!” He then cast a disgusted glance at Dr. Hao’s tragic corpse. After thinking for a moment, he decided not to move the body, letting it lie on the floor. He leaned on his cane and walked toward the study. As he walked, he instructed Qi Yin, “Prepare dinner and bring it to my study. Also, go and bring Ning Ning here. I need to ask him something.”

Qi Yin hesitated. “Ning Ning is still napping—”

Wei Guangming suddenly turned his head and looked at Qi Yin. She immediately fell silent, and only after his figure disappeared from view did she feel a sharp pain in her chest. She gasped for breath, realizing she had forgotten to breathe in her fear. The look in Wei Guangming’s eyes was too terrifying.

Seeing that Wei Xiaoxiao was still standing there, staring at Dr. Hao’s body, Qi Yin quickly decided to avoid her. After all, the relationship between stepmother and stepdaughter was never close, and there was no need to make small talk now. Wei Guangming always ignored Wei Xiaoxiao, and Wei Xiaoxiao’s gloomy, unsettling presence made her nervous.

Soon, the living room was left with only Wei Xiaoxiao. She stood there for a long while, then slowly smiled at Dr. Hao’s corpse. The smile was devoid of any emotion, cold to the core, yet it held a silent terror. She grabbed one of Dr. Hao’s legs and, with her frail body, dragged his roughly 150-pound corpse.

Step by step, she dragged the body toward the stairs.

When Qi Yin brought Wei Ning out, she made sure not to disturb Wei Zhizhi, fearing that she might wake up. That would mean having to comfort her again, which felt like dealing with a little tyrant. However, she didn’t know that, as she closed the door to the children’s room, Wei Zhizhi suddenly opened her eyes.

Chen Yang and the others returned to their respective rooms. Mao Xiaoli followed Zhang Qiudao as they playfully entered their room. Once the door was closed, Mao Xiaoli asked, “Brother Chen, are you really going to ignore this?”

Chen Yang stared at the darkening sky. “We can’t interfere.”

Mao Xiaoli pressed on, “Does the other party really have the Fengdu Pardoning Token? There’s only one token issued each year by the Fengdu Emperor himself. It’s only given to those who have suffered the greatest injustices, and the soul must be one that even the Earth Store Bodhisattva cannot save. Could Wei Guangming’s ex-wife have died in such an unjust way? But she’s already taken her revenge, hasn’t she?”

Chen Yang replied, “The vengeful spirit with the Fengdu Pardoning Token is not her.”

“Then who is it?” Mao Xiaoli was genuinely surprised.

Outside, the rain poured relentlessly, having fallen for almost two days and nights, leaving everyone wondering if it would flood the entire collection hall. Dr. Hao’s assistant quietly walked up to the second floor. Seeing no one, he proceeded to the third floor. As he reached the stairs, he saw Wei Zhizhi, wearing a nightgown and holding a clown doll. He was startled and immediately felt murderous intent.

Wei Zhizhi tilted her head, her childish voice sweet and clear. “Brother, are you going to the fifth floor to see the paintings?”

The assistant’s eyes lit up. “What paintings?”

“The people in the paintings upstairs are so ugly and fierce. I don’t like them.”

That must be The Grotesque, the assistant thought. He had overheard Wei Guangming talking about it on the phone, and one painting was worth millions. Although Dr. Hao was dead, the Taoist priests had said it was because of a vengeful spirit. As long as one didn’t do anything wrong, there was nothing to fear. He hadn’t done anything wrong. Thinking this, the assistant forced a friendly smile. “I want to see that painting. Will you take me there, little sister?”

Wei Zhizhi’s eyes lit up. “Will you play with me, then?”

“Of course, I will.” The assistant dismissed her question.

Wei Zhizhi beamed with happiness. “Then follow me! I’ll show you the way.”

The assistant hurried to follow behind Wei Zhizhi, watching her bounce along happily. He steeled himself, thinking he would kill her later.

Wei Zhizhi stopped in front of the door to the fifth-floor collection room, calmly stating, “We’re here.”

The assistant, unaware of anything amiss, approached and said, “Come inside with me, little sister.”

“No, I’m scared of the painting.”

The assistant’s face twisted with anger. “Whether you’re scared or not, you’re going in!” He lunged at her, but she slipped away from under his arm, sticking her tongue out mockingly and running down the stairs. The assistant chased after her but lost sight of her in the blink of an eye. After a moment’s thought, he decided to take advantage of the moment when no one was around to sneak in and steal the painting.

He turned and went back to the collection room, pushing the door open. He didn’t think it odd that the door was unlocked. Once inside, he was initially shocked by the grotesque collection but quickly spat in disgust before searching for the painting.

Suddenly, he heard a faint, disturbing chewing sound—like a beast gnawing on flesh and crunching bones. It sent a chill down his spine. The assistant followed the noise, only to find the floor covered in blood, entrails, and scattered limbs. He spotted Dr. Hao’s shoes and his gold watch, then looked up and saw a terrifying sight that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Dr. Hao’s severed head, now only the upper half of his body, was being slowly consumed by a painting. The chewing sounds were coming from inside the painting itself.

 

 

 

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