The Young Girl's Chronicles of Demon-Slaying

Chapter 2: The Hospital

Fang Heng had a dream in which he found himself transformed into a small child with thin arms and legs. The dream felt so incredibly real that it wasn’t until he opened his eyes and smelled the scent of disinfectant that he realized he was lying in a hospital bed. He stared blankly for quite a while. When he finally came to his senses, he pulled his hand out from under the covers; it was a very small hand, just as slender as the one in his dream. A dream? He pinched his flesh—it hurt; it was real. He closed his eyes, slipped his hand back under the covers, and began to feel his way around his body beneath them. His chest wasn’t flat—it was slightly raised, with a faint lump that hurt a little when he pressed on it. What the hell is this? A tumor? His hand moved lower. His body felt so small and thin, and his stomach was soft and flabby—where had his abs, built from years of exercise, gone? He continued downward, placing his hand between his legs, and froze instantly. His little stick was gone—in its place was… a tiny slit… It’s over! Fang Heng lay limp on the hospital bed. Even with his eyes closed, he realized this wasn’t a dream—it was reality. He had turned into her—he had become a little girl! Aaaah! What the hell is going on?! He silently hugged the blanket, curling up into a ball on the bed, burying his face in the sheets, and repeatedly banging his head against the pillow. How did things turn out like this?! What exactly went wrong? It wasn’t actually that hard to recall—after all, how much time had passed? The image of that beautiful face in the water, suddenly contorting into a hideous, grotesque expression, seemed as if it were right before his eyes. That upturned corner of the mouth, that eerie smile—even now, thinking back on it, it sent a chill down his spine. Those crimson eyes were like a festering sore clinging to his bones, following him everywhere; as soon as he closed his eyes, they would emerge from the darkness. And that feeling of being unable to breathe underwater, of consciousness gradually slipping away, of life ebbing out—it was as if it were happening all over again… Suddenly, he pulled his face out from under the blanket, gasping for air, and it took him a while to calm down—he’d held his breath for so long just now that he’d almost experienced that near-death sensation again. He had once read a book about people who had survived suicide attempts or been resuscitated after cardiac arrest, describing their experiences on the threshold of life and death. Some said they saw an endless light shining upon them; others said they found themselves running through a pitch-black tunnel; still others described it as returning to their mother’s embrace, feeling a profound sense of peace. However, during this near-drowning, although Fang Heng had also hovered between life and death, he hadn’t experienced any of that. It felt as if he’d simply fallen asleep and then woken up—sure, there was the joy of having escaped death, but why had he woken up as a little girl? That made absolutely no sense! Fang Heng felt emotionally drained. After settling back down, he began to carefully recall the scenes from earlier. In fact, he hardly needed to recall them, because the scenes he’d witnessed after falling into the water were so bizarre that they were etched deeply into his memory. He realized that nine times out of ten, he must have seen a ghost—this wasn’t just venting; it was a statement of fact. He wasn’t the type to deceive himself into believing what he’d clearly seen was just a hallucination. Since he’d seen it, he would admit it—especially given his current situation: a perfectly healthy grown man suddenly turning into a little girl. That was even stranger than seeing a ghost, for heaven’s sake! With something like this laid bare before him as reality, what else could he possibly deny? So, he admitted that he’d seen a ghost, and that something science couldn’t explain had happened to him. But as the saying goes, every cause has its effect—if he could transform from a grown man into a little girl, surely he should be able to transform back from a little girl into a grown man, right? Lying in bed, he carefully analyzed the sequence of events—from the moment he first saw the girl standing by the lake, all the way through his dive to save her, the girl’s transformation into a vengeful spirit, and then… the prayer beads?! He suddenly remembered the Buddhist prayer beads he’d been wearing all along. He quickly raised his right hand to check and found that the bracelet was still on his wrist—and, miraculously, it fit perfectly! This was clearly impossible. After all, when he was still a grown man, his wrist was much thicker than his current slender arm—it had fit perfectly back then. Now that he’d turned into a little girl, his wrist had shrunk by more than a full size, yet the prayer beads still fit perfectly… He counted them carefully—there were still fifteen beads, not a single one missing, and even the size hadn’t changed; they were still 1. 5 centimeters in diameter. Clearly, this was yet another instance of something unscientific. But there are plenty of things that defy science, so a minor detail like this is nothing out of the ordinary. He clearly remembered that while he was in the water, the prayer beads had radiated a golden glow, and in the end, just as his consciousness was about to fade, it seemed to be the golden light from these very beads that drove the female ghost away—otherwise, he wouldn’t have heard that piercing, agonizing scream while he was in the water. In other words, this highly unscientific transformation from a grown man into a little girl most likely occurred just as his consciousness plunged into darkness and he entered a near-death state. Perhaps he had already died, and the prayer beads had unleashed their miraculous power to save him? Just as he was thinking this, the ward door suddenly swung open quietly. A female nurse carrying a bowl walked in, quietly closed the door behind her, and was about to tiptoe over to the bedside when—to her surprise—she looked up and saw a pair of bright, wide eyes blinking at her. “You’re awake, young lady? Does anything feel wrong?” The nurse didn’t seem surprised at all; she smiled and asked with concern. “No.” Hearing her called “little sister,” Fang Heng felt a chill run down his spine. He had no desire to speak and merely mumbled a vague reply. The nurse assumed he was just shy and didn’t think much of it. She set the bowl of congee on the nightstand, fetched a wooden stool, placed it by the bed, sat down, picked up the bowl, and began gently blowing on it to cool it. “You’ve been sleeping all day—you must be hungry, right? This is the preserved egg and lean pork congee that Director Song brought from home. It smells delicious!” The nurse treated Fang Heng as if he were a little girl, which really got under his skin. Although this was indeed the reality, no matter how he heard it, it felt awkward and embarrassing to him. Yet the nurse didn’t seem to notice at all; on the contrary, she was very gentle and considerate, scooping up some congee with a wooden spoon and feeding it to Fang Heng. “It’s been sitting out for a while, so it should have cooled down by now. Give it a try, little girl.” If it weren’t for the words “little girl” at the end, Fang Heng would have been quite happy to be fed by such a pretty nurse. However, the fact that the nurse used that term so casually made him feel uneasy. Still, he had to admit she was right—he’d slept all day, from yesterday afternoon until the next morning, without eating dinner. It was now breakfast time, and his stomach had long been empty; in fact, hunger was partly what had woken him up. After a moment’s internal struggle, he ultimately couldn’t resist his ravenous hunger. He opened his mouth and swallowed the spoonful of porridge. “Fine, I’ll just pretend she wasn’t calling me!” Fang Heng sighed inwardly with resignation, gave up his resistance, and began eating the food the nurse was feeding him, one spoonful at a time. He was absolutely starving; he’d never imagined that this congee with preserved egg and lean pork could be so delicious, so flavorful—though, of course, it was also possible that the person who cooked it was simply a master chef. In any case, he quickly polished off the entire bowl of congee. He licked his lips, still craving more, but the fullness in his stomach made him realize he was already full; even if another bowl were offered, he probably wouldn’t be able to finish it—which was a bit of a shame. The bowl the female nurse was holding had thick rims, and the portion was a bit smaller than that of an ordinary bowl. She had probably estimated a little girl’s appetite and served just this much—enough to fill her up and finish it all, without leaving any leftovers. “Looks like you have a good appetite,” the nurse said with a smile, pinching Fang Heng’s cheek. “You’re such a cute little girl—you’re sure to grow up to be a real beauty!” After saying that, without waiting for Fang Heng’s reaction, she stood up, took the empty bowl, and was about to leave: “All right! Get some rest, little girl. The police officers will be here soon to help you find your mom!” Find my mom? Like hell! Fang Heng felt a wave of exasperation wash over him. Never mind how he looked right now—even before he turned into a little girl, he’d been an orphan. He’d lived for over twenty years and still hadn’t found his parents. He’d given up long ago. And now, in his current state—as a little girl who’d appeared out of thin air—where on earth was he supposed to find a mom? …… Wait, maybe—what if he’d actually possessed this body!? As a young man, he was a big fan of novels and had read plenty of them. He knew all about body-snatching. Could it be that he’d turned into a little girl because the original body had already died, and the prayer beads had unleashed a power that allowed him to take over the body of a dying little girl? If that were the case, she might actually have relatives or something. But on second thought, it’s hard to say. Buddhism doesn’t seem to have a concept of “body-snatching”—it’s usually about reincarnation. Or maybe the prayer beads are just prayer beads, and the power they unleashed isn’t some Buddhist power at all, but some other kind of weird, random force? After mulling it over, she got a headache from all the thinking. Feeling flustered, she ran her hands through her hair, leaving it a complete mess. It was only then that she realized her hair was actually quite long—it reached her ears. “I’m going to cut it off as soon as I get outside!” Fang Heng thought bitterly. Just as she was about to lie back down, she suddenly felt an urgent need to pee, and froze in place—talk about bringing up the worst possible thing at the worst possible time! Of all times, she had to go to the bathroom. Although it felt awkward, she had to take care of it. She pulled back the blanket and saw she was wearing a pink-and-white-striped hospital gown. She was speechless again, but the swelling in her lower abdomen left her no time to linger. She got out of bed, slipped on her slippers, and headed toward the private bathroom in her room. She was staying in a regular ward, so the bathroom was naturally just an ordinary squat toilet. After entering, she faced the squat toilet and was just about to pull down her pants when she suddenly remembered she couldn’t pee standing up anymore. With a blank expression, she turned around, squatted over the toilet, and listened to the rustling sound of running water. When she was done, she casually grabbed a tissue, reached down to wipe herself off, then pulled up her pants and flushed the toilet—all in one fluid motion. Thinking that he might have to live like this for the rest of his life, Fang Heng felt it would be better to just die.