Chapter 248: Soul Guidance

Li Yan asked, "Daoist, do we need to make a soul-summoning banner?"

Back in Gushui Village, he had seen Wang Daoxuan summon souls before. Back then, he had set up a ritual altar while someone waved a soul-summoning banner.

Wang Daoxuan shook his head. "This time is different. That time, it was an ordinary person, and the thing causing trouble did not have much cultivation. This fellow practitioner is herself a member of the mystic sects. Even if her soul has left her body, she knows how to return.

"Look at how tightly her fists are clenched, and her locked jaw. She used the Soul Firming Art to stabilize her physical body. She clearly sensed danger, and used this technique to stop wandering ghosts from possessing her. What we need to do is build her a road back!"

With that, he turned toward Guan Peide. "Master Guan, please help me find a large rooster, preferably one that is five years old."

"Very well!" Guan Peide did not waste any words and immediately turned to leave. Every household in their village raised chickens, so a five year old rooster was hardly rare.

Then, Wang Daoxuan began arranging everything with the others. First, he took out several coins for warding off evil and invoking blessings, placing them respectively on the old woman's forehead, chest, lower abdomen, both hands, and both feet. Then he tied a red cord around her head and drew it backward, extending it all the way into the courtyard.

They were far wealthier now, so naturally they were much more generous with their supplies. Those red cords had all been purchased from the City God Temple.

Yu Lingzi had given them a discount, so they had stocked up on plenty of materials.

Wang Daoxuan then took out his compass and walked around the courtyard until he found an open patch of ground. He instructed a maidservant to bring an earthenware basin used for burning paper offerings and place it there. Then, he planted twenty or thirty red chopsticks into the ground around the basin. He wound the red cord around them, faintly forming an Eight Trigram, with a one chi wide path left between the trigrams.

As he worked, he explained everything to the others.

"What a yin soul sees is completely different from what we living people see. At night, everything is pitch-black and shrouded in dense fog, like an icy hell where they endure endless suffering. That is why most wandering ghosts remain where they are. Only those with greater cultivation dare roam about.

"In their eyes, a living person is like a warm furnace, like a boat crossing through a freezing night. They will endure every hardship imaginable just to crawl inside.

"But during the day, there is blazing sunlight. To them, it is like a hell of fire. Staying exposed for even one extra second could reduce them to ash, so they can only find some place heavy with yin killing qi to hide.

“That is why wandering ghosts are not actually that frightening. They were once human too. They were simply unlucky enough to remain trapped in the mortal world, filled with resentment and suffering greatly. That is why Buddhist temples and Daoist monasteries periodically perform rites to feed the hungry ghosts and help them pass on.

"But if someone loses their soul and spirit, those souls must be retrieved quickly. What we need to do is not capture them, but rather 'guide' and 'summon' them. After all, what yin souls see the world very differently from us. If we make too much noise, we may only frighten them into running all over the place..."

Among the group, Li Yan excelled at fighting, and Lu San was skilled at controlling beasts. Sha Lifei was also a complete outsider when it came to ritual matters. Whenever they encountered folk rites or ceremonies, Wang Daoxuan was still the one who had to take charge.

Of course, Wang Daoxuan was never one to hoard his knowledge. Whenever they encountered something, he would explain everything he knew. Even if the others could not learn it, he still wanted them to understand what was happening.

After finishing the formation of the Eight Trigram, Wang Daoxuan finally looked back toward the room. "The soul this fellow practitioner lost was probably taken away by something. It is not inside the village. This Eight Trigram formation is essentially a bridge to guide it back.

"The rooster corresponds to the wood and wind, and it lies in the southeast direction, where the Ghost Gate lies. Moreover, the rooster belongs to Wood among the Five Elements, while the liver stores the soul. It will serve as the guide that brings her back."

"Brother Yan, give me one of your straw effigies."

Without hesitation, Li Yan took out a straw effigy.

At just that moment, Guan Peide returned with a large rooster. Its feathers were red and green; its comb was enormous; and its legs were pale gold. It looked exceptionally active.

Wang Daoxuan nodded in satisfaction. He took the rooster and inspected it carefully before saying, "We'll begin summoning the soul at midnight. Brother Yan, your straw effigy will serve as the vessel for that fellow cultivator's soul. As long as the rooster makes its way out of the Eight Trigram, and the straw effigy follows the red cord back onto her body, the ritual will be complete!"

After his explanation, his expression turned solemn. "When the time comes, something may try to stop us. I will be occupied with the ritual and unable to spare attention elsewhere. Brother Yan, protect the ritual. Whatever appears, just smash it apart!"

Li Yan nodded seriously. "Understood!"

Sha Lifei, however, looked puzzled. "Didn't we scatter those wood ashes outside the village? Can something still get in?"

Wang Daoxuan sighed. "That is a different matter. The wood ashes are not meant to block anything. They are meant to confuse things that wander by. This Tomb Blood Beam was something I read about in the Discussions of the Mysterious and Profound. It is a vicious secret art left behind by the Fangxian Dao.

"To create one, forty nine people must be killed. Their blood is used to fill a pool, and the wooden beam is soaked inside it before being refined with evil arts. The resentful souls of those people then attach themselves to the blood beam and become forty nine blood ghosts.

“Once grave robbers enter the tomb, the blood ghosts will confuse them and cause them to hang themselves from the beam. Their vital blood will then be completely drained by the Tomb Blood Beam. It was originally a method for preventing grave robbery."

No one found the fact particularly surprising. Since the Fangxian Dao had once served the Qin and Han nobility, they naturally had needs of their own as well. The anti-theft methods they devised back then were strange beyond imagination. Even the Crimson Hair Bloody Face of the Guanzhong Plains had eventually become part of local folklore.

Wang Daoxuan continued, "Those blood ghosts will be drawn toward the Tomb Blood Beam. Even if only ashes remain, they will circle around the same place. Once daylight comes, all of them will turn to flying ash. I have a feeling that whatever we are dealing with is probably not on the same side as the owner of that tomb. So the wood ashes will not stop it."

Li Yan and the others were already accustomed to hearing such things, but Guan Peide and his son, along with the maids, servants, and clansmen who had come to watch the excitement, all felt their skin crawl. A chill seemed to rise from the depths of their hearts.

Guan Peide asked gravely, "Daoist, then what should we..."

"Don't worry." Wang Daoxuan smiled reassuringly. "This has nothing to do with you. Just stay inside and sleep. No matter what sounds you hear, do not come outside."

"Good, good." Guan Peide hurriedly nodded, then instructed his son, "Go tell everyone. Tonight, all doors and windows are to be locked tight. No matter what happens, no one is allowed outside. Even if you need to use the latrine, hold it in!"

"Yes, Father."

The Guan Clan hurried about for a while before everyone returned to their rooms and locked the doors. They had been told to stay inside, but who could possibly sleep? Everyone remained fully dressed, curled up on their beds and staring at the windows, hardly daring to breathe.

Li Yan and the others, naturally, felt no fear whatsoever. They prepared their weapons and equipment, and stood guard in the courtyard.

Before they knew it, midnight finally arrived. Wang Daoxuan opened his eyes and began the ritual before the altar. He stepped through astral formations, sprayed ritual water from his mouth, and waved his coin sword as he chanted, "Wandering souls adrift, where do you remain? Soul, descend swiftly; spirit, come forth...

"Let the Gate of Heaven open; let the Gate of Earth open! Let the child who travels a thousand li escort the soul back! By command of Divine Lord Chen, Manifesting Might through the Primordial Qi, swiftly, swiftly, in accordance with the law!"

After completing the incantation, he swung the coin sword and slapped it directly against the ritual altar. He took up a yellow talisman while forming hand seals, then folded strands of the spirit medium's hair into it.

Following his instructions, Sha Lifei hurriedly picked up the large rooster. A straw effigy had been tied to the rooster's back with a red cord. Wang Daoxuan quickly stuffed the strip of yellow talisman paper into the rooster's beak.

Strangely enough, once the rooster swallowed the talisman, its demeanor immediately changed. It looked even more magnificent and spirited, no longer struggling or moving about restlessly at all.

Li Yan could smell the additional trace of divine astral qi that had appeared around the rooster. The aura of incense offerings lingered around it. Although it was not strong, it carried a clear and righteous quality.

He knew that it was a strand of divine astral qi Wang Daoxuan had borrowed. He had then attached it to the yellow talisman through the rite of forming baleful seals and entering the sacred name.

As he put it together with everything he had seen recently, Li Yan finally understood. The founding patriarch of Wang Daoxuan's western mystic lineage was also a God Ascendant, and one who had succeeded at that. That was why they could still borrow divine astral qi even though the incense offerings at their ancestral altar were not particularly abundant.

Sha Lifei carried the rooster over and quickly placed it on the path formed between the red cords. He immediately backed away and joined Lu San in protecting Wang Daoxuan during the ritual.

The rooster stood on the path but did not move. Instead, it looked left and right, seemingly unable to recognize the road around it.

However, Wang Daoxuan was not impatient. He picked up the Soul-Calming Bell and shook it gently while silently reciting the soul-guiding incantation.

Meanwhile, Li Yan took sheets of yellow ritual paper and lit them in the brazier.

No one noticed exactly when it began, but a cold yin wind had risen within the courtyard. The flames inside the brazier flickered wildly, sending paper ash spiraling through the air, yet it never left the boundaries of the Eight Trigrams. The firelight was like a beacon tower.

The large rooster immediately found its target. Bobbing its head from side to side, it finally stepped forward and entered the formation. It constantly looked left and right, seemingly searching for something, while the straw effigy tied to its back remained completely still.

Li Yan and the others were in no hurry and waited quietly. They knew that although the rooster appeared to be merely circling through the formation, it was actually bridging yin and yang, searching for the old woman's soul.

The sound of the wind and the ringing bell stood out sharply in the silent night. Everyone in the Guan household remained inside their rooms, not daring to come out. Old Master Guan, however, had some courage. Carrying a large saber, he sat alone in a chair in the main hall, quietly waiting.

***

Following Wang Daoxuan's instructions, every household in Guan Family Village had already hung peachwood talismans and shut their doors and windows tightly, hiding inside their homes.

As midnight came and went, nothing had happened. Reassured, some people could no longer stay awake and had fallen soundly asleep.

Inside Wu Laosi's house, the candlelight remained dim. The man was rummaging through boxes and cupboards. Then he moved aside a wardrobe, pried open the gaps between the floor bricks, and dug a bundle of silver out of the earth.

His wife and child sat helplessly on the bed.

After taking out the silver, Wu Laosi turned and saw that his wife still had not moved. He immediately became angry. "Why haven't you started packing yet?"

His wife's face was somewhat pale. "Husband... If we leave, the authorities will put out a warrant for us, and Qing'er won't be allowed into the ancestral hall either. Didn't that Daoist also say there are evil things outside? We absolutely mustn't leave the house."

Wu Laosi cursed, "You're just a woman. What the hell do you know? This is more than five hundred taels of silver! I couldn't earn that much even if I worked myself to death for an entire lifetime, yet Guan Peide wants to take it away to repair the Earth God Temple. I risked my life to find that money. Why should I hand it over?!

"We're outsiders to this clan anyway. Whoever wants to enter the ancestral hall can go ahead. Once we have money, we'll eat well and live well. Who gives a damn about any of that?!

"I've already thought it through. Once we leave, we'll head into the mountains and mix in with the mountain people's forces. When they lose, the imperial court will definitely redistribute land. It'll be in prosperous Yunyang Prefecture too. By then, our family can change our names and identities, take the silver back out, and live comfortably for the rest of our lives. What would we have left to worry about?"

"No! I'm not leaving!" The woman hurriedly shook her head and clutched the child tightly, trembling as she said, "There are evil spirits outside. Once you're dead, nothing matters anymore. I won't let Qing'er risk his life with you."

Wu Laosi glared. "You dare defy me now?!"

He grabbed a stick, preparing to beat her. Unexpectedly, the woman was equally strong-willed.

She immediately pulled out a pair of scissors she had hidden and pressed them against her own throat, crying, "Don't force me! I'd rather die than go with you!"

Their child was still young and immediately burst into terrified sobs. "Mother! Mother!"

Wu Laosi glanced outside, afraid of alerting the neighbors, then gritted his teeth. "Ungrateful bitch. Once I have money, do you think I'll have trouble getting another son?!"

After cursing her, he grabbed a woodcutting axe, slung the silver over his back, and fled the courtyard in a panic, running toward the edge of the village.

The houses in Guan Family Village stood fairly close together, so the neighbors had naturally heard such a commotion long ago. However, everyone was frightened and had no intention of going outside at a time like this.

Wu Laosi ran wildly through the darkness. Before long, he had already left the village. Although fear lingered in his heart, he only quickened his pace, muttering curses under his breath.

"Every last one of them is a damned bastard. Guan Peide, just you wait. Once I join the mountain people's army, I'll come back with men and wipe out your entire Guan Family Village!"

Cripple Liu had never been a good man. Someone who could call him brother and dare profit from the dead was naturally not a decent person either. Now that Wu Laosi had taken the silver and abandoned his wife and child, he suddenly felt as though the sky were high and the world vast.

Thinking about the luxurious life he would enjoy in the future, his fear gradually disappeared. But at that moment, he stiffened. He felt like an icy hand had just descended on his shoulder. At the same time, a pungent odor of blood forced its way into his nostrils. He tried to move, but his whole body began trembling, and his trousers quickly grew wet.

Soon, icy, blood-soaked hands seemed to appear on his right shoulder, his head, and even over both of his eyes. Wu Laosi's gaze gradually turned vacant.

Clatter!

The bundle of silver fell from his back and scattered over the ground. His body rigid, he rose onto the tips of his toes and walked toward the depths of the forest...

Li Yan and the others naturally had no idea what was happening outside the village. They were all watching the large rooster, anxiety beginning to show in their eyes. Midnight was almost over. If they still could not find the missing soul before then, their opportunity would be completely lost.

They didn’t notice the yin wind around them growing stronger and stronger. Li Yan sniffed the air and frowned slightly. He could smell the rank, musky odor of an animal.

At the same time, Lu San's little white fox suddenly raised its head. It crouched low against the ground and bared its teeth threateningly at the Eight Trigram formations.

Then, with a flick of its large tail, it leaped straight into Lu San's arms and began trembling.

Lu San frowned and said gravely, "It's a Mountain Lord!"

Li Yan immediately understood.

A Mountain Lord means a tiger. The thing causing trouble is a tiger spirit!

At the same time, the large rooster also seemed to have discovered something. It began hopping repeatedly in place and turning around in circles.

Seeing this, Wang Daoxuan suddenly shouted, "Fellow cultivator, the guiding envoy has arrived! Why aren't you fleeing at once?!"

As he spoke, he vigorously shook the Soul-Calming Bell in his hand.

Jingle, jingle, jingle!

The clear ringing of the bell was exceptionally distinct amid the yin wind. Suddenly, the straw effigy on the rooster's back moved. The large rooster reacted as though badly startled. It kicked out with both legs, flapped its wings, and began racing rapidly around the formation.

At the same time, that cold stench grew stronger and stronger.

At last, the rooster ran out of the formation and sprinted rapidly along the path formed by the red cord, reaching the steps. The straw effigy then rose into the air as well. Hanging from the red cord, it slowly floated toward the old woman's body on the bed.

Just then, Li Yan's eyes widened.

Clang!

He drew Earth Breaker and pointed it toward a dark corner of the courtyard.

"ROAR!"

A deep growl sounded in everyone's ears. In the corner, a pitch-black shadow seemed to be staring straight at them.