Desolate mountain, Ghost Cave.
Just as Meng Sizhong, a distant member of the Meng family who had experienced a stroke of luck, kowtowed, a faint laugh seemed to emerge from the depths of the cave.
When the wind blew over Meng Sizhong, he was utterly enthralled. His body turned rigid, and slowly, he began to rise.
It seemed an unknown force was mysteriously guiding him. He was led to a village at the foot of the mountain, where in a farmer's sheep pen, a ewe had just given birth to a lamb. Born dead, it lay abandoned in the pen, yet this lifeless lamb slowly stood up again.
Its pupils were brown and horizontal—bizarre and stiff.
Meng Siliang arrived in the village and walked directly to the lamb. Slowly, he extended his arms and embraced the strange creature.
