Chapter 4: The Nine-Character Gate

  That mountain is on the edge of Ma Kou City and can be considered as the boundary between rural and urban areas.

  The old man led me to the middle of the mountain, where I saw patches of bamboo forests and lush greenery. Among these bamboo groves stood a small cottage made of bamboo.

  "Come in." The old man led me to the front of the hall, and I saw that the whole house had a kind of ancient charm. In the hall, there was an old painting hanging on the wall, depicting an old man sitting on a mountain, while in the sky not far away, an incomprehensible animal appeared, looking a bit like a monster, with two horns and a body resembling a lion.

  "This is a Qilin." A Qilin? The old man seemed to sense my confusion and told me. Are there really Qilins in the world? Aren't those all just legends? It turned out that I had seen too few at that time, and only later did I know that things in this world were too legendary.

  "Hmm, the time hasn't come yet." From the old man's mouth I learned that becoming an apprentice also requires a auspicious timing. He told me that the elderly person in the painting is our sect's ancestor, who was Ge Hong from the Eastern Jin Dynasty! And what is our sect called? It's called Jiuzi Gate!

  "The time has come, Zichuan, kneel down." I heard the old man say this and followed suit. Then I saw him hold three incense sticks in his hand and kowtow to the portrait several times:

  Today, I, Ge San, humbly request the great ancestors to reveal their divine spirit and inspect my mortal body. I wish to accept Li Zichuan as a disciple in our lineage, please inform me of this, great ancestors.

  It turned out that the old man was called Ge San. I saw him take out two twisted stones from his waist, and upon closer inspection, they were yin-yang stones with each half representing taiji. He tossed them into the air, and I don't know how, but then I heard the old man say: "The disciple understands."

  The old man turned around and helped me up, "Zi Chuan, you have officially joined my Jiuzi Gate."

  "Hmm, old man, isn't there anyone else in our school?" I looked around and found it a bit quiet, so I asked this question.

  "No, our sect is actually very powerful! Not like those that widely accept disciples, but our Jiuzi Gate only accepts one person to inherit the legacy! I was afraid that I would cut off the inheritance, didn't expect you to appear!" I was about to interrupt, "Right, and another thing, stop calling me old man all the time, you should call me Master!"

  It's awkward, I was just about to say to the old man, "Hey, Master, it seems like you knew I would show up?"

  "That's because you are..."

  "What is it?"

  "It doesn't matter. Anyway, I want to tell you, Zikawa, that you are destined for greatness, and everyone in the Jiuzi Gate is destined for greatness!"

  "That, that master, actually I still want to ask is, why we call it Jiǔ Zì Mén?"

  "Don't worry, I'll tell you all about the history of these sects. The Jiǔzìmén (Nine Character Gate) is named after the nine-character mantra: 'Lín bīng dòu zhě jiē zhèn liè zài qián!' It was founded by our ancestors and ultimately ascended to Lófú Mountain."

  "Molt?"

  "It's just becoming an immortal..." He said it more and more mysteriously, isn't it just farting? But I only dared to mutter in my heart, who dares to say it out loud.

  "And our nine-character mantra each has its own function, the Lin character key is to solidify your soul's power so that your body bursts out with a kind of energy from the inside out, making it impossible for people to get close. The Bing character key can enhance your reaction and speed, allowing you to pass through a sea of flowers unscathed, without a single leaf touching your body. The Dou character key can calm your inner fears, maintaining a fierce and untamed power."

  "Hey, Master, maybe you mean that the Lin character is used for self-defense, the Bing character is used for escaping, and the Dou character is used for exerting force..." I interrupted Master's words.

  "Don't talk nonsense! Keep listening to me, and you'll only understand their power when you use them in the future. The 'Zhe' character mantra can prevent you from being bewitched by spirits. The 'Jie' character mantra is a medium for communicating with spirits; if your skills are high enough, you can control all kinds of ghosts, including fierce ones. The 'Zhen' character mantra, as its name suggests, is the Qimen Dunjia technique. I hope you don't use the 'Lie' character mantra often, because it's a technique for turning injuries around. The 'Zuan' character mantra is an infinitely changing technique of our school and also the only attacking technique. It can control the five elements!"

  The master paused for a moment, seemingly tired from saying so much at once, but soon started talking again.

  "You've seen both the character talisman and the listed character talisman, are you still going to say they're used for escaping with one's life?"

  "No, no more." It seemed like something was left unsaid. "Master, what about the first character's rhyme?"

  "The previous character's mantra... I don't know the previous character's mantra either. However, it is said that those who comprehend the previous character's mantra will become immortal... and possess a power that transcends time."

  "Don't think I'm deceiving you, this is true. Since the establishment of Jiumen, only one person has grasped the first character mantra, and the technique of our sect's nine-character mantra is mutually complementary. Even I suspect that each character in the nine-character mantra contains an ununderstood power. Every time I cast it, I feel a strange power filling me up, and I can't comprehend it either. Maybe if I grasp the first character mantra, I'll be able to use those powers."

  "Eh, Master, who is the one person who has achieved enlightenment?"

  "Who is it? Who else could it be, of course it's our ancestor!" I took a look at the painting and it seemed to be depicting him ascending to immortality with a qilin by his side. This can't be real, right? Who knows, anyway all I know is that Ge Hong was from the Eastern Jin dynasty and has been dead for ages...

  "Zi Chuan, stay here with me tonight, there are still some basic techniques I haven't taught you yet." The master glanced at the sky outside the window, which had also darkened.

  "No way, I still have to go pick her up." I remembered that I had promised Zhang Ting that I would go pick her up. I refused the master.

  "Ah, another lovesick one." The master chuckled and shook his head, feeling like the smile was forced, wondering if he knew something. "Right, Zikawa, take this with you. Although I stopped Mengmeng yesterday, she'll definitely come find you again tonight. This will help her get through the night, come find me tomorrow."

  I saw the master hand me a piece of jade, I looked at the shape of the jade, there was no regularity to speak of, but when I held it in my hand, I felt a warm and soothing sensation that penetrated into my bones.

  I held the jade in my pocket and went down the mountain. I hailed a taxi back to school, hey, just in time, the little girl hasn't finished class yet. I waited for her early at the teaching building, during which I took out the jade and played with it in my hand, saying that it's also strange, although the surface of the jade is uneven, but holding it in my hand feels exceptionally smooth.

  And what's most important is that when holding it in your hand, you feel a surge of vitality as if your blood has been refreshed.

  Class is over, I saw Zhang Ting's figure from afar. This girl saw me and ran very quickly, immediately holding my hand, "Zi Chuan, I'm hungry!"

  "How can you eat so much?" This girl seemed to say this sentence the most.

  Took her out for dinner, and at night she didn't stay in school either, because since the incident in that dormitory building, the school has not allowed students to live there. They are currently allocating them to other dormitories, so during this period most people either live in their friends' dormitories or rent houses outside.

  After dinner, I took her to change another hotel. The previous one looked scary, let alone the dream that would come tonight. After entering the room, I gave Zhang Ting the jade in my pocket.

  "What's the point? Where did you buy it?" Zhang Ting saw that Yu seemed quite happy, but didn't want it. "I don't want it, you go return it, what a waste of money."

  I was quite moved after listening, it's worth it, even if I had bought it myself, I'd be willing to go hungry for a few days...

  "Take good care of it! This is our family heirloom, passed down only to the daughter-in-law!" I opened the red cord of the jade and put it around Zhang Ting's neck.

  Zhang Ting heard me say that I was only passing on the daughter-in-law's words, and she said with a smile, "Well, I'll just keep it to myself then."

  This little girl.

  I called the counselor, haven't been to class for several days, need to ask for leave! Because I thought about going to find the master tomorrow, so I was more afraid that the school would come up with something. I took my phone to the window and said a few words, just saying there's something at home, it's done.

  After finishing, I subconsciously locked all the windows and checked them three times inside and out.

  I hope this jade is really useful as Master said.

  I sat on the edge of the bed watching Zhang Ting sleep.

  "Do you always sleep on the stool?"

  "Uh-huh."

  "Why don't you all lie down on the bed?"

  "Hehe, I'm afraid of doing bad things." Actually, I wasn't thinking about those things, but rather hoping to watch Zhang Ting fall asleep and spend the night by her side.

  "Hmph! You dare!" Just like this, chatting and chatting, Zhang Ting finally fell asleep.

  I sat on the edge of the bed and didn't dare sleep, keeping an eye on her all the time, because I was afraid that if I fell asleep, something would happen to her!

  I don't know how long I sat there, but my body felt stiff. I lit a cigarette to stay awake and suddenly felt the temperature in the room drop. Subconsciously, I sensed something was off - it's winter, so it's impossible for the air conditioner to be on, and all my windows were closed too.

  I carefully looked around to see if there was anything unusual, and then I heard a cracking sound. I ran to the bedside and looked at Zhang Ting, the jade on her neck was shining exceptionally brightly, even the red string was emitting light. The jade completely absorbed my attention, I stared at it, and found that there was a crack on its surface.

  And I stared at this mark more and more absent-mindedly.

  Here it comes again!

  I feel like I've gone somewhere again, and when the scene appeared, I was on top of a mountain. What's going to happen this time? Is my life in danger again?

  I was walking aimlessly on that mountain top, slowly making my way through a grassy thicket, and saw in front of me two large boulders standing upright, with a precipice behind them. What surprised me was that wisps of blue smoke were rising from the top of the rocks, and it seemed as though there was a human figure in the smoke, but it was indistinct.

  Suddenly, a golden light appeared on the horizon, very dazzling, like the sun getting closer and closer to this mountain. I couldn't see clearly...... until that golden light got closer, I could vaguely see some outline, this... isn't this the monster in the painting from today?

  Qilin!