I told my aunt the truth, and she agreed to help me keep it from my parents.

"When your grandmother passed, a spiritual fox cried at the grave. The villagers all say our family is blessed! Xiao Mo, don't be afraid! The old lady will protect you!"

She hurriedly lit three incense sticks for the household deities, muttering all the while that they had to keep me safe.

That night, when my aunt brought back the effigy, I started to run a fever.

The paper doll leaned against the table, its face pointing towards the door.

In my daze, I watched as its head slowly turned to look at me.

Blood seeped from that face, resembling Sun Xue's face, mangled in the car accident.

"Su Mo... go back..."

The paper doll let out a low growl, it was Sun Xue's voice!

"Su Mo... go back quickly! Go back to the city!" she shouted at me in pain.

I jolted awake, drenched in cold sweat.

Maybe it was because of the fever, that I had such a nightmare...

Clutching my chest, still scared, I glanced towards the table.

But the paper doll was no longer there.

I pushed open the door and walked out.

The courtyard was filled with villagers my aunt had invited. They smiled and laughed, yet played funeral music loudly. It was quite lively.

My funeral had begun...

A bright red coffin sat in the courtyard, and inside it lay my effigy.

That face was peaceful and calm, its features looked like they had been peeled right off mine.

Yes, just overnight, it had "grown" a pair of eyes!

I didn't have much time to think before Mr. Wang cut a lock of my hair and placed it in the paper doll's hand.

"Seal the coffin! Begin the rites!"

The funeral procession was grand, with wailers and those throwing paper money. It was just like I had truly died.

Mr. Wang donned a Taoist robe and led the way, while I followed behind, feeling dizzy.

As we were crossing a bridge, the people in front suddenly stopped, and someone exclaimed, "There are foxes!"

The surrounding bushes rustled, and five fox cubs darted out.

They ran to the middle of the road, blocking the coffin, and started bowing to it.

Mr. Wang frowned deeply at the sight, waving his hand.

"Five foxes bowing to the coffin, calamities will follow! Quickly kill them!"

The villagers were reluctant, saying the foxes had spirits and doing so would bring retribution. Why not take a detour?

"We are running out of time. If the foxes truly had spirits, they shouldn't be causing trouble now!"

As the argument deadlocked, one fox cub suddenly stood up like a human, pointing at the old man with a sly smirk. The small fox face, as big as a palm, showed a mocking expression.

"Vile creature! How dare you be so impudent!"

Mr. Wang shouted angrily, his demeanor as majestic as a god descending to earth.

He grabbed a shovel and struck the fox fiercely.

Blood gushed everywhere, and the five little foxes vanished like an illusion. There were no fox corpses on the ground, only a pool of blood.

Mr. Wang wiped the blood splattered on his face. I noticed that his gourd also had blood spots, and as I was about to warn him, the blood spots directly seeped in and disappeared without a trace.

"A demonic fox blocking the way is a bad omen! We must hurriedly bury the coffin!"

The villagers said no more and followed his orders.