The ghost of the snake tells Dr. Manette that the snake has stopped running and that it is very dangerous for him. He tells her that he will die anytime. She tells him that she is pregnant and that she cannot tell if it is a ghost fetus or a man's. She says that she can feel the cold touch of the cold snake crawling in her stomach. The ghost says that snakes are very spiritual creatures and very vengeful. He says that he has never offended any snake deity and that they must think of a way to make the snake talk. The pen spirit says that after he has written the truth, it will come out. He also says that ten years ago, a snake was killed by the ghost because of him. The snake had to pass the "tongzi mission" before it could move freely. The child who killed the snake must be under ten, and that is the first step in killing a snake. If the child kills the snake, the snake will not actually die, but the child's mission is considered to have been completely failed. This means that if a child kills a snake that is trying to cultivate spiritual energy, the child will be considered a failure, but if the child attacks the snake and kills it, its mission is actually complete. This is the mark of snake deity, he says.