Burial Rites (Patreon)

Sahash cut off the antlers of the dead before the burial, so that their Shang could not leave the body. Securely locked inside, it gradually decomposes along with the remains and disappears without a trace.

According to Parbian funeral traditions, the body is wrapped in a luxurious hand-woven shroud and decorated with colorful strings with tassels. The deceased is tied to a milestone and placed in a vertical grave under the ground. The top of the milestone is crowned with the skull of any horned animal and the personal belongings of the deceased.

If the deceased doesn't have their antlers cut off, their Shang will definitely use them to get out of the body. First, the antlers will sprout to the surface as a low, gnarled bush with almost no leaves. After 16 nights, the bush will blossom and Shang will become a ghost.

Ghosts are impersonal, they silently wander around, stealing Shang from the living or even tsourai. After having accumulated enough souls, they take on a personality and become Moroi, or, as they call themselves, the Lords of Breath. Their domain can be located both in the Flat and in the Stream, where unlucky travelers often wander and remain there forever as Moroi servants.