Southeast Asian Kuman Thong is indeed sinister. To break this curse, you must use black magic—our Yin-related magic isn't potent enough to counter it. However, Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts is different. As long as there's a corresponding tattoo, it can be resolved!
From what Chloe said, her boss Hames might have been hit by a love curse. I've heard that women in Southeast Asia who practice Kuman Thong will cast it on their men, and those affected cannot touch other women.
Hames is relatively fortunate in this regard. In some cases, if the man betrays the woman, he will die a violent death—or even perish in excruciating agony.
In Southeast Asia, you mustn't mess around with things like Buddha amulets, spirit-raising, or Kuman Thong. Each of these is more sinister than the last. If you encounter one, you won't even know how you died. Sometimes, money can't solve everything.
I asked Chloe to introduce me to Hames. This Kuman Thong curse might be something I can resolve, but first, I needed to confirm whether it was indeed a love curse and understand Hames' symptoms.
Chloe said it wouldn't be a problem. She sent a few messages on WeChat and then told me Hames would arrive soon, urging me not to leave. Clearly, he was in a great hurry.
Men like him are everywhere. Now that he can't touch any women, of course he's desperate—it's practically like having his life on the line.
About twenty minutes later, a large car pulled up at the entrance of the alley. A man with a buzz cut walked in, flanked by two younger men. He looked about thirty years old. Chloe said this was Hames.
As soon as Hames entered, he shook my hand and said, "Brother, your Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts is famous all over Vervecity now. If I'd known you and Chloe were acquainted, I would've come sooner. If this isn't fixed, my life is over—I'll become a eunuch. But eunuchs aren't as bad off as me. At least they can still… I can't even use mine."
Hames looked frantic, clearly terrified. And rightly so—Kuman Thong is truly malevolent. Those afflicted are always fearful, especially when it affects such… vital areas.
But one thing surprised me: Hames had actually heard of Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts. It seems that the matter of me altering the Feng Shui of the Dai family's ancestral graves really boosted my reputation. Maybe my tattoo parlor is just too remotely located, making it hard to find. Otherwise, I'd have far more customers. Looks like I'll have to get Stein to step up the promotion.
I told Hames not to panic and to first explain what had happened. From what Chloe mentioned earlier, she'd only heard rumors. I didn't know how much was true or false, and that could affect my judgment. It'd be more reliable to hear it directly from Hames himself.
Hames smacked his head in frustration and said this was all his fault. He'd met a Southeast Asian girl who was stunningly beautiful and seemed pure and loving. He was smitten, so he used every trick to win her over. After a month of fun, he was about to return home. But since he had a wife and kids, he couldn't bring her back—so he abandoned her.
But on the plane back to China, he realized something was wrong. Whenever he stared at the stewardess, he'd feel discomfort down there. Later, he couldn't touch any other women without feeling as if his thing had been slashed by a knife—agonizing pain. He couldn't even be with his wife. Strangest of all, he'd find himself constantly thinking about that Southeast Asian girl for no reason.
Hames considered seeing a doctor—maybe he had some disease? But when he got examined at the hospital, they found nothing wrong. Puzzled, Hames immediately suspected he'd been cursed by Kuman Thong.
He went back to look for that Southeast Asian girl, but she was gone. No matter how hard he searched, he couldn't find her. Left with no choice, Hames returned to China to seek out a master. But Kuman Thong is notoriously difficult to break—only someone skilled in black magic can undo it. No ordinary person could help. He hoped my Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts would work; he didn't want to end up a eunuch.
I asked if anything unusual had happened while he was with that girl.
After thinking for a moment, Hames recalled that at one point, he'd noticed his cigarettes seemed to have been switched. When he smoked one, it had a strange smell, so he stubbed it out halfway and never touched that pack again, leaving it in his bag.
I told him the cigarettes might be the problem and asked Hames to bring them to me.
He drove back to get them and returned half an hour later with a pack of Huazi. I took one out and sniffed it—it smelled unusually fragrant, much more so than regular cigarettes.
Just then, Stein warned me not to touch it. "Those cigarettes might contain Kuman Thong," he said. "One contact, and you'll be cursed."
I already suspected as much, so I put on gloves before carefully dismantling the cigarette. At first, it seemed fine—nothing out of the ordinary. Then it struck me: maybe the curse required the cigarette to be lit.
I grabbed a lighter and lit it. As smoke curled up, we coughed violently—then something horrifying happened. The smoke revealed countless tiny squirming worms, densely packed together. Individually, they were too small to see clearly, but in such numbers, they were unmistakable. Anyone with trypophobia would've been sickened by the sight.
Stein explained, "This is a crucial component of Kuman Thong. Many curses use insects in black magic. Lighting the cigarette activates the bugs—once inhaled, they enter the body, and the curse takes hold."
So-called love curses are actually insect curses, using horrifying bugs to achieve their effects.
"Fuck, that woman is ruthless!" Hames cursed.
This Southeast Asian girl wasn't stupid at all—she had set a trap for Hames by giving him Kuman Thong. If Hames betrayed her, he wouldn't be able to touch another woman for the rest of his life.
I told him, "You can't blame others for this—only yourself. Who told you to fool around with women so casually? This is your retribution."
The two younger men behind Hames immediately got angry. "How dare you talk to Hames like that?" they shouted. "Do you know who you're speaking to? Do you want us to smash your shop sign?"
Just then, Antonio cracked his knuckles loudly, his eyes turning fierce in an instant. The two men were startled by Antonio's intimidating presence, but they still tried to act tough. Hames quickly slapped each of them to silence them, and the two didn't dare make another sound.
"What useless idiots!" Hames scolded. "How dare you shout in front of the Master?" Then he apologized to me, glancing at Antonio with admiration in his eyes. This Hames wasn't simple—he could immediately recognize Antonio's superior skills.
"Little brother," Hames said sincerely, "I've truly learned my lesson this time. I swear I'll never do it again. Please help me out this once—money is no issue." He also gave Chloe a pleading look, hoping she'd put in a good word for him since he'd been her boss.
Chloe decided to give him face—after all, Hames had taken good care of her before—so she said a few kind words and asked me to help him.
Well, even though this was Hames' own fault, it wasn't right for evil witchcraft like Kuman Thong to be used to harm people. So I decided to use Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts to break the curse for now.
Since this Kuman Thong used bugs, I'd tattoo bugs on him too—fighting poison with poison. I'd give him the Five Poisons tattoo. I refused to believe it couldn't suppress those Kuman Thong bugs.