The floor is strewn with yellowed newspapers. Moths flutter around the lampshade in endless circles.
The nearby wooden ladder creaks, and the doors and windows shudder with the wind.
Despite the fragility of the house, a single door is all it takes to keep her at bay.
She has long since lost count of how long she's been coming here.
An-an Lee: Sifu, I-I'm serious! I want to be your student!
An-an Lee: Ever since I picked up your book at that street market, I've been reading it nonstop!
An old, wonky iron pot filled with leftover vegetables thrown out by stall vendors and unprocessed frozen meat from the butcher's shop is boiling nearby.
The man is sprawled across a pile of papers. He tears a few small strips, crumples them into a ball, and jams them into his ears.
An-an Lee: I'll come tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that! I'll come find you, no matter when, no matter what!
An-an Lee: I'll become the most badass Tianshi in Kowloon, I swear it!
As the rain falls even harder outside, her voice grows increasingly faint.
He gets up and starts walking.
An-an Lee: Sifu!
Demi-Divine Chen: Rain's too hard out there. Just come in, alright? Can't have you dying on my doorstep, or you'll get me in trouble with the cops.
An-an Lee: Ah ... Ah-choo!
Rolls of toilet paper lay piled on the floor like bandages torn from a mummy.
Demi-Divine Chen: Now listen, I can't take you on as a student, alright? You don't respect fear. You're like a baby—ain't got a clue what a cliff is, so you're happy to walk right up to the edge of it. I ain't gonna be stuck cleaning up the mess when some clueless kid ends up going splat.
Demi-Divine Chen: You need to learn what fear is first. No one can teach you that, especially not me.
An-an Lee: Huh? But Sifu, that's the whole reason why I wanna be your apprentice. I wanna find something that can actually make me feel scared.
An-an Lee: I ... I just wanna know what fear feels like! That's why I'm so into exorcizing.
Her words hang cold in the air.
Demi-Divine Chen: Kiddo, quit trying to make it sound so innocent when you're really just here for kicks.
Demi-Divine Chen: Admit it, you're just another one of those little rich girls sneaking out of your fancy apartment to get a kick out of this place, ain't ya?
Demi-Divine Chen: You wanna ''know what fear feels like''? Listen to yourself. What a joke!
An-an Lee: Tch, fine. If you don't wanna teach me, then don't. But don't start acting like those lame teachers who lecture me all the time.
She drops her head as she continues to mutter to herself.
Chen doesn't utter a word. Instead, he just keeps stirring the bubbling food in the pot.
The rain patters outside while the fire hisses and crackles.
An-an Lee, curled up in a corner wrapped in old clothes, drifts into sleep. Before long, her rhythmic snoring fills the room.
Demi-Divine Chen: Yo, kiddo, this ain't some daycare, you know.
He shakes her arm in an attempt to wake her.
Then, he notices a birthmark on it—or, no, a burn.
Demi-Divine Chen: ...!
Demi-Divine Chen: Ain't no way this is just a coincidence. Damn it.
...
...
Radio: "... Sources report that the fire on Xing Street has left four dead and three critically injured. Authorities have apprehended the suspects, and the survivors are currently under police protection."
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: Turn that off. Don't wake the girl.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: If it weren't for her special eyes, this arcane case would've been dead in the water, and we'd be back on patrol duty.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer II: But we can't just keep the kid here like this. Doesn't she have any other family besides her parents? Are we gonna have to send her into foster care?
He glances at the girl on the couch. She's lying still with her back to them.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: She has a distant aunt. Says she's on her way.
Unseen by the officers, her eyes remain open, blank, and glued to the wall.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: This kid's something else. Stared right at her parents' burned corpses and didn't even flinch—not even a tear.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: Word is, when the officer showed up, there were dozens of ghosts closing in on her. But she was just huddled completely still with those burns on her hands. Wasn't trying to get away or anything.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: She didn't come in for a statement until we'd cleared her parents' bodies.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: The bodies were alright, but man, the way her eyes are always just ... staring like that. I dunno, it creeps me out. I swear I haven't seen her blink.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer II: Yeah. Doesn't cry, doesn't laugh, just has that blank, dead expression on her face. She doesn't act like a kid at all.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: They say that only the "possessed" don't get scared like that.
The officer adopts a deliberate, grim frown.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: Maybe this kid isn't even human anymore.
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer II: ...?!
Division of Arcane Affairs Officer I: Hahaha, you should see the look on your face! Relax. I'm just messing with you.
Sunlight creeps in through a crack in the door.
Chen holds her arm, inspecting it from all sides, as though it's some sort of specimen.
An-an Lee: You done yet, Sifu? My arm's getting stiff.
Demi-Divine Chen: You said this scar was from the big fire on Xing Street a year ago, right?
He lowers her arm, but his eyes repeatedly flick back to it, as if needing further confirmation.
Demi-Divine Chen: Does that mean you're the girl who was on the news? Your parents ...
An-an Lee: Oh, so you know about all that, Sifu? Guess I'm pretty famous, huh? Hah hah.
An-an rubs her arm, her demeanor unexpectedly composed for someone so young.
She makes it seem as though the tragedy was just another everyday occurrence.
Demi-Divine Chen: I never thought Lady Luck would find me this fast.
Demi-Divine Chen: The heavens have smiled upon me! Haha! You don't know how wrong you were, you blind old fool!
An-an Lee: Huh? What are you talking about, Sifu?
He stamps out the fire, a cryptic grin curling at the corners of his mouth.
A mix of relief and intense satisfaction washes over him, like when you tear open a scab to savor the pain.
Demi-Divine Chen: Hahahahaha!
Demi-Divine Chen: You're really dying to be my student, huh? Then, alright, kiddo, let's do this!
He flings the door open in an almost mad frenzy, grabbing the girl's hand as he charges out.
An-an Lee: Whoa, Sifu! Where are we going now?
Demi-Divine Chen: Under the Bridge.
Cars rush over the bridge above, their thunderous roars reverberating through the arches and rumbling beneath their feet.
Beneath, a crowd of customers bustles, each of them seeking to know their fortune. One merchant, who was previously on the verge of tears, beams with joy as his fortune is told. Meanwhile, a group of foreign tourists' smiles fade as a palm reader issues them a solemn warning.
Each customer dreams of seeing what lies beyond destiny's veil. Though some spend their last coin here, others strike it rich with destiny's ultimate jackpot.
And that is how this location, known only as "Under the Bridge," has earned its infamous reputation.
Blind Fortune Teller: Here. Crush this talisman into pieces and eat a little three times a day after meals for three days, and all will be well.
Tourist: Thank you, master! You're a lifesaver!
Blind Fortune Teller: Wait!
The blind fortune teller sniffs the air, detecting a familiar odor.
An-an Lee: Whoa, Sifu, I didn't know there was such a big place down here! Could open a new office down here! You don't wanna live here?
Demi-Divine Chen: Hurry it up, kid. Ain't nothing worth seeing here.
He pulls An-an as she tries to take in her surroundings, her head swiveling as she tries to see it from every angle.
A hand grabs his collar.
Blind Fortune Teller: Well, well, heh-heh. If it isn't Demi-Divine Chen! I thought you'd already made it big. What are you still doing walking around Under the Bridge, eh?
An-an Lee: Huh? Aren't you supposed to be blind, mister?
She waves her hand in front of the fortune teller's sunglasses.
Blind Fortune Teller: Even a blind man can light a lamp. Blind eyes don't make for a blind heart, missy. I had already foreseen his return.
Blind Fortune Teller: As for you, little lady.
He snatches An-an's waving hand and grips it tight.
Blind Fortune Teller: Remarkable bones. Heh-heh. What a fine specimen you are. Your destiny is in perfect balance after surviving such a calamity. Certainly not one to be confined by anything.
Blind Fortune Teller: But ... your parents ...
Blind Fortune Teller: sigh It's too soon. Far too soon. You shouldn't have brought her here.
Demi-Divine Chen: Hey! Let go, you blind old fool.
Chen's expression turns dark as he drags An-an off.
An-an Lee: Sifu?
He continues to pull her without a word, barging through the crowd.
As they go, An-an's eyes remain fixed on the blind fortune teller under the bridge, as if holding a non-existent gaze.
Blind Fortune Teller: There's no escaping it! Accept your destiny!
A bottomless well yawns before them. Chen stands at the edge and takes a deep breath.
Demi-Divine Chen: Listen up, kiddo. This well, they call it Destiny. It's been here since long before this bridge even existed.
Demi-Divine Chen: If you wanna be an exorcist and study under me, you're gonna have to dive into this well and pull your own calamity hexagram out of the muck at the bottom of it.
Demi-Divine Chen: This is the first karmic trial for any exorcist. Once you pass this test, you'll be worthy of calling yourself an exorcist.
He loosens the dirt around the well's edge and pulls out a rusty copper chain.
Demi-Divine Chen: Otherwise, it ends here. You go your way, I go mine, and you don't come bothering me anymore, you hear?
An-an Lee: For real? Too easy! Let me take a look.
She clutches the rim of the well as she leans over to stare into the abyss below.
The well's walls are thick with complex yellow talismans, as if they've grown from the bottom like ivy.
The deeper it goes, the more tightly packed the talismans become, until not a single ray of light can be seen.
An-an Lee: Tch ...
A cold wind rushes from the bottom of the well, sending a shiver down her spine.
Demi-Divine Chen: Alright, listen up. I'm gonna wrap this chain around you. Then, you get in the bucket, and I'll lower you down to the bottom, nice and slow. Now—
He unfastens the Three-Clarities Bell from his belt and secures it around the girl's waist.
Demi-Divine Chen: Keep this bell on. If you run into any trouble, ring it three times, and I'll pull you up in a flash.
Demi-Divine Chen: Got it? You want out, you ring the bell.
An-an Lee: Got it, Sifu! You know I'm a night owl. Darkness doesn't scare me. I can handle it. I'll pull that calamity hexagram right out. Just don't go back on your word, okay?
She climbs into the bucket, and he slowly lowers her into the well.
At first, she feels like a stone sinking into the ocean, the light still caught in her eyes, but then darkness envelops her, and she is left in complete darkness.
In the blink of an eye ...
The stone hits the bottom.
...
Blind Fortune Teller: She doesn't know, does she? That you've never been to the bottom of that well—never faced your own trial.
Blind Fortune Teller: She doesn't know that you were the one who performed an unlicensed exorcism and burned down those buildings a year ago. Oh yes, heh-heh, I know she's the orphan who made the headlines!
Blind Fortune Teller: The cops might not have pinned it on you, but the karma you've sown ... Hah! You'll reap it in time!
Blind Fortune Teller: And no Tianshi has ever let anyone so young go down the well! Even if she does come back, she'll be in a trance for days. Some of her three souls and seven spirits are bound to be lost forever.
Blind Fortune Teller: You're totally unfit to be an exorcist. You realize that, don't you? You've already hurt so many people, and now you're going to hurt her too?
Demi-Divine Chen: You blind fool, just wait and see.
Demi-Divine Chen: One calamity cancels out another. I brought her here. If she doesn't survive, her calamity will bury mine, and I'll finally have peace.
Demi-Divine Chen: Once she rings the bell, our karmic connection will end, and we'll both be safe. We'll part ways, at peace, and there'll be nothing owed between us.
Blind Fortune Teller: My Sifu up in the heavens, I shouldn't have given you my eyes! It's not too late. There's still time to make this right!
The blind man lunges forward and tries to lift the chain with his bare hands. The tremendous force carving bloody gashes into his palms.
But the chain remains unmoved.
Demi-Divine Chen: It's pointless. This is her trial to bear. No one intervenes unless that bell rings.
Blind Fortune Teller: Heavens, this is terrible! If her trial leads to her end down there, you won't get away with it!
Demi-Divine Chen: It's worth the risk. Who knows? Even a bicycle could turn into a motorcycle.
...
