Chapter 8: The Great Way is All-Encompassing

  At this time, the mountain wind was blowing gently and the stars were shining brightly, completely unaware of the strange events we had experienced before. It was already past 3 o'clock in the morning, and none of us three people felt any sleepiness. The little factory owner also told us his name during dinner, he was called Zhu Du, with "Zhu" meaning red and "Du" meaning to enlighten the masses.

  It sounds like a strange name, how come there are so many strange people around me? Zhū Duō? And Zhu Pú as well, I didn't have the nerve to say it out loud, of course calling him by his name directly still feels inappropriate to me. I simply address him as "Director Zhu". These days, officials with some power who manage others under them all like being called honorific titles.

  He was also very happy, probably because he saw that it was safe now and the ghost was gone. He chatted with us happily, of course, after eating his fill, we couldn't forget that Wang Luli was still missing. I went to pack things up, Old Zhao went to wake up Xia Xue, we were about to set off. If we didn't get any results tonight, we would have no choice but to go down the mountain and report to the police.

  Xia Xue walked out of the tent, still rubbing her sleepy eyes. How capable she was! Outside, it was chaotic and resentful spirits were roaming around, but my lady was able to sleep so soundly? If we hadn't arrived, would she have been able to sleep until dawn?

  Lao Zhao didn't say much either. Xia Xue had just woken up and was still a bit dazed, looking at Zhu Changzhang and asking: "Who is this? Just arrived?"

  I hastily handed over a cup of water: "Sister Xia, drink some water to sober up, Wang Liuli is lost, it's already mid-night and he hasn't come back yet. We have to hurry up and find him. If we can't find him, we'll have to go down the mountain to report to the police."

  Xia Xue finally became a normal person, and upon hearing this, she woke up with some anxiety: "Okay, let's hurry up and go find her. Oh right, why don't we call the police first?" As she said that, she took out her phone from her pocket to make a call. I was stunned - her phone was perfectly fine, which means she probably didn't encounter anything unusual. The strange event earlier seemed like a dream, could it be that only those of us who believed in it were affected?

  Lao Zhao was behind him and didn't ask anything, could it be that there's something I don't know about here?

  Xia Xue finished reporting the alarm and looked around after saying the address. At this time, everyone should have woken up, but some were puzzled: "Who is this gentleman? Why do I feel so strange? Didn't we start with a thick fog?"

  "I'm a small factory owner, named Zhu Du. Nice to meet you, nice to meet you. I was also coincidentally trapped in the mountain and luckily rescued by these two brothers. So I followed them here. You guys didn't lose a friend or something? Whatever I say, I can help out a bit."

  "Oh, thank you, I've called the police, they should be here soon. Wait, isn't the fog gone? Why hasn't Ruri come back yet?" Xia Xue was still a bit scared, but since she said she had called the police, we all breathed a sigh of relief, this kind of thing is better left to the police uncle anyway."

  But we can't stop here, it's better to go out and take a look, who knows, maybe we'll find something.

  The four of us traveled together, and Xia Xue was still a bit puzzled: "Isn't it better to split up when searching for someone?"

  "We still don't know how Old Wang disappeared, who knows what danger there is, the four of us are safer together." I quickly explained, also afraid of being exposed.

  The four of us shouted and called out while walking around, but even when the police came, nothing was achieved. We had no choice but to hand it over to the police, and Director Zhu also reported the case. The few of us went to the police station together to make a statement, but of course, we didn't find anything special. After all, we were just students going up the mountain for tourism.

  After that, by the time the sun rose the next morning, we had all returned to our respective homes. The first thing I did was sleep soundly, and then I went to the hospital. As soon as I woke up, I had a high fever and felt like I couldn't move at all. I almost called an ambulance. At that time, what I wanted most was for my master to be by my side, but unfortunately, my master was still outside wandering around, it seemed like he had really abandoned me.

  Things didn't end there, I don't know where I heard a sentence before "Sometimes when you walk on a road, there's no turning back, whether you choose it yourself or fate chooses it for you, you can only face it calmly." After I was in the hospital for two days with an IV drip and medication, I went home and rested behind closed doors for two days. It wasn't until then that I realized I had run out of money.

  It seems I can only reopen tomorrow, otherwise I will have no choice but to close down.

  I finally got a few days off, planning to open the door on the second day, when Old Zhao came. He has been running around the police station for several days, and I haven't contacted him for several days either. After all, my phone was broken before, and I didn't have time to buy a new one, of course, I also didn't have money to buy it. I only had some cash on hand, and my savings were with Master.

  I saw Old Zhao had arrived, so I went to the small shop outside and bought a bottle of Er Guo Tou, also ordering two cheap dishes, then sat down with him for a good chat.

  "Does Old Wang have any news? Has that murderer been caught?" I still asked my two most pressing questions first.

  "Old Wang was found, and the search started early the next morning. A plaid shirt was also found beside him, which Director Zhu confirmed belonged to the murderer who had fled. The police have filed a case, but we can't control that much."

  "How is Old Wang doing now? Nothing serious, I hope?"

  "It's okay, he was sent to the hospital and when he woke up, he said that he was knocked unconscious while going to find firewood, so there are no leads. By the way, do you still have money? Old Wang's medical expenses in the hospital are like flowing water now, we don't have many friends, if the medical expenses aren't covered again, we'll be kicked out."

  "I'm so broke now that even if I pawned my pants, I still couldn't come up with the money. My tea shop is opening tomorrow and it only makes a hundred or two hundred yuan per day. I still need to eat and buy stock, and who knows when my master will be back? This is really tough for me. Hey, why don't you go find that Director Zhu? Didn't he promise all sorts of benefits on the mountain? Is he not going to make good on his promises now?"

  "That's not it, I just didn't want to go look for it, can you bear to?"

  "What's there to be ashamed of? Old Zhao, you're just being stubborn. We need that money to save lives, this isn't a joke."

  Old Zhao stopped talking, with a look of distress on his face. I reckon he's also feeling uncomfortable in his heart. Relying on that Director Zhu is not as good as relying on ourselves. I patted Old Zhao's shoulder: "Old Zhao, how about this? You're free anyway, why don't you go talk to Director Zhu and ask him to introduce some business to us, like fortune-telling or exorcism?"

  Lao Zhao was taken aback and put his hand on my forehead, asking: "Lao Jiang, have you gone crazy? Exorcising evil spirits is one thing, but fortune-telling? Reading the wind and water? I don't know how to do those things either!"

  "Look what you said, won't you let me not know? I'll tell you, Old Zhao, these past few days I've been diligently studying this book. If it's about master-level stuff, I'm not enough, but drawing a symbol or reading the feng shui of a house is absolutely no problem." I raised the book that my master gave me and told him with a smug face.

  Lao Zhao flipped through the pages casually and smiled: "Old Jiang, since you're confident, I'll support you. You can open your small teahouse here. I'll go find Director Zhu. Those who do business must have many connections. We'll definitely have a market. The only thing is, are we likely to be suspected of being cheaters?"

  "What's with all the meddling? Those who come to see the feng shui or have evil spirits, don't they all have some hidden agenda? Simply put, if we just execute them first without trial, there wouldn't be any miscarriage of justice. Isn't Buddhism about karma and retribution? We're just carrying out heavenly justice, what's there to cheat or not cheat about? Besides, we're doing it for the sake of saving people." I said disdainfully to Old Zhao.

  "You're right, you have a good argument, why don't you become a lawyer? Even prostitutes need to put up a signboard, if it wasn't for Old Wang's urgent need for money, I wouldn't be helping you with these things." Lao Zhao could only helplessly refuse.

  A penny can be a hero's downfall, Old Zhao left and I started making preparations, who knows what dangers lie ahead? I need to draw some talismans first, make some ritual tools. Only then did I realize that the book Master gave me is quite different from orthodox Taoist teachings. Like drawing talismans, usually you have to choose an auspicious time, set up an altar, use a seal, and open the ink, it's all very complicated.

  This book requires, first to fast and bathe, respectfully recite scriptures, concentrate one's mind, quiet one's intention, finally worship heaven and earth, then borrow energy. Most of the forms are different from Taoism. The orthodox talisman of Taoism needs a master to transmit it, and only after receiving the talisman can it be effective. But this book is not so troublesome, it just says one sentence: dare to take responsibility for what you do, and you can do it.

  It's roughly saying that using magic is possible, as long as one dares to take responsibility for the consequences of their actions. Why bother worshiping heaven and earth? Because you can deceive people, but it's hard to deceive heaven, let alone your own heart. Only when your heart is not chaotic and has no guilt can you calmly draw out a talisman or conjure up a symbol that truly opens up heaven and earth, imbued with divine power.

  Of course, I still have a lot of unknowns about this book. I'm not sure where it came from or if it's even mentioned in history, but judging by what my master said, if it was praised by someone who is half-immortal, then it must be effective. The past few days I've been practicing drawing talismans and have finally mastered two types, although I don't feel like they have much effect. Today I'll try to do one for real.

  The two talismans I know, one is called "Zheng Ling Fu", the main effect of which is to match the scriptures for purifying the mind, and then calm the mind and concentrate the spirit. This is what is meant by Zheng Ling, making the spirit return to its normal state, and when the heart is normal, it will not be chaotic. What I said above, the most fearful thing about ghosts and evil spirits is that they use illusions, and this talisman can help people calm their minds.

  The second is called "Nan Gong Li Huo Fu". The method of the symbol does not match the hexagrams, most of which use the name of the god or the cloud as the content of the symbol to drive out evil. There is a strange symbol here, this symbol takes fire as the main element, and needs to be mixed with rooster blood and cinnabar, then draw the symbol, taking the yang fire of Li Gong as the main element, dispersing the yin clouds.

  These two talismans are not very effective, the reason I drew them first is because they are too rare and I don't know how to do it, so I can only practice my hand, and it's very suitable for me to experiment whether the talismans I draw have an effect. The first talisman, combined with a hand seal, allows me to feel refreshed quickly, replacing the effect of coffee. If the second one is successful, combined with incantations, I won't need to buy lighters anymore, and it's also the yang fire from Nangong, which some arrays say ordinary fire can't do, this yang fire is necessary, and it's also the most basic one.

  I successfully drew the talismans, and looking at the two mysterious symbols, I picked up the positive spirit symbol. With one hand pinching my fingers to make a decision, and the other hand holding the sword gesture, I recited the incantation: "Mysterious Heaven's Righteous Energy, the Essence of Huang Lao. Spewing water thousands of feet high, washing away evil spirits. Three souls guarding, seven spirits at peace. Body and spirit both wonderful, merging with the truth." As soon as I finished reciting it, I slapped it onto my forehead, and in an instant, I felt a refreshing sensation from the top of my head to the soles of my feet, extremely comfortable. Suddenly, I felt very refreshed, no wonder they say it can replace coffee! If I had this on the mountain, I wouldn't have been bullied like that.

  I'll try the second one. I stepped into the Nine Palaces, standing firm in the middle palace. My left foot reached the Li Palace, and my left hand presented a flame-like gesture in front of my chest. My right hand pointed to the symbol head with my middle finger, silently reciting: "The momentum of Zhu Rong, opening the spiritual mang, Li fire rising, Yangming sweeping away, evil spirits fleeing, souls flying and gallbladders losing, Zhengyang Li Palace, Nanming getting prosperous, I obey the supreme order, urgently like a law." In an instant, this symbol turned into a flame, and when I drew it on the ground, it became a line of fire. Although it didn't last long, the power of Zhengyang Li Fire was evident. Ordinary little ghosts and monsters saw it and ran away in fear. The more powerful ones... haha, I was the one who ran away in fear.

  These two symbols, even if not accompanied by hand gestures and incantations, are still effective when simply worn. The first symbol can be used to calm the mind, dispel illusions, and break curses. The second symbol can be used to enhance yang energy, ward off evil spirits, and drive out demons. Most importantly, successful use of these symbols allows one to directly touch the spiritual body.

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