vncnus Chapter 43 Crossing the Yin Life, the Resources of an Old Friend
Chapter 43 Crossing the Yin Life, the Resources of an Old Friend
"The Taoist Immortals..."
Huang Bai was somewhat surprised.
What is meant by "immortal Taoist priests"?
He had never heard of this before.
Seeing that he wasn't pretending to be stupid, Ayou slowly began to explain.
"This term is rarely used now; it's generally used to refer to cultivators from before the Eastern Jin Dynasty."
He paused here, as if organizing his thoughts.
Nowadays, Taoist priests generally fall into a few categories: Zhengyi, Quanzhen, and folk lineages.
Contemporary Taoist priests, besides their own spiritual practice, also emphasize paying homage to the Heavenly Emperor and receiving ordination. Only in this way can they legitimately use magic and talismans, and perform rituals and ceremonies.
"To put it bluntly, it's about borrowing the methods of the patriarchs, the methods of the deities, and the methods of the altar."
Huang Bai listened and nodded slightly.
This is somewhat similar to the spirit mediums and divine interventions he had encountered before, except that Maoshan is more systematic.
Ah-you continued:
"Among these Taoist priests, Zhang Daoling, Ge Hong, Sa Shoujian, and Xu Xun were all very famous figures."
"There is another type called Taoist immortals."
Zhong Jiu stood to the side, unusually not interrupting, but just squinting at Huang Bai.
"These kinds of Taoist priests take elixirs, refine pills, and cultivate their spiritual energy to gradually increase their Taoist cultivation."
"Guang Chengzi, Peng Zu, Lü Shang, and Chi Songzi all belong to this category."
"Because such figures are recorded in the ancient book 'Biographies of Immortals,' later generations simply called them 'Immortal Taoists.' To be precise, they should actually be called Qi Refiners."
Huang Bai finally understood.
"I see."
However, he didn't really agree with this way of dividing things.
In his view, anything that is useful to him is worth learning.
The three chatted as they walked out.
As they were about to part ways, Huang Bai suddenly glanced at the haunted building and said:
"I will investigate this matter of the hanging ghost thoroughly."
Because this matter is definitely not as simple as a hanged ghost suddenly going mad.
As for who it was, Huang Bai already knew.
Upon returning to the Taoist temple, Huang Bai did not rest immediately. Instead, he sat down cross-legged, first breathing in the medicinal power of the inner elixir, and then summoned the Yaksha to stand beside him as a protector.
Since the ancient temple recognized him as its master, he has been able to communicate directly with the altar in the temple, and no longer needs to carry the altar of soldiers and horses with him wherever he goes.
Huang Bai slowly opened his eyes, but his mind was preoccupied with other matters.
"If we kill Zhong Jiu now, will that count as completing the Heavenly Decree's mission?"
The edict gave two conditions.
One is to kill the zombies.
Secondly, obtain the Maoshan Dharma Register.
According to the original story, Zhong Jiu is naturally an unavoidable element. If they were to eliminate him first, wouldn't the story be completed ahead of time?
Huang Bai thought about it for a moment, but then suppressed the thought.
"No rush, let's check 2442 first and confirm whether it was Zhong Jiu's doing."
The madwoman's husband was supposedly originally a well-behaved teacher.
It's impossible for such a person to suddenly change his personality and assault the twin female students without a reason.
Even if you really want to do something like that, you shouldn't do it at home.
The only plausible explanation is that he was influenced by something.
The twins eventually transformed into conjoined vengeful ghosts, their resentment far exceeding that of ordinary ghosts. This didn't seem to be a natural occurrence; it was more as if someone had given them a push.
Thinking this through, Huang Bai became even more certain. Zhong Jiu was definitely involved in this matter.
Meanwhile, in another corner of the public housing estate.
The room where Zhong Jiu lived was dimly lit, and a gaudy altar was placed in the center of the hall.
On the altar were unidentified animal bones, old memorial tablets, and a pile of crookedly drawn, sinister-looking talismans.
Zhong Jiu stood in front of the altar, shaking a bell in one hand and pricking his fingertip with a silver needle in the other, squeezing out a drop of blood, and slowly drawing a talisman on the yellow paper.
After finishing the painting, he walked to a black jar next to him and slowly turned over the white ashes buried inside.
The ashes emitted wisps of black smoke, which lingered and coalesced into grotesque human faces, creating an indescribably eerie scene.
"Imperial Edict!"
Zhong Jiu's eyes flashed with anger, and he slapped down a talisman, instantly shattering the ghost masks.
Immediately afterwards, he took a deep breath and inhaled the wisp of ashes and black smoke into his nose.
After a short while, his previously sallow and ashen complexion gradually improved, and even his breathing became much more steady than before.
"It's about time to make a move."
Zhong Jiu wiped his mouth and muttered to himself.
"That Taoist priest from Tiandao Temple doesn't know any Maoshan magic, so he can't ruin my plans."
The technique he used was called "extending the lifespan of a ghost," which involved using the lifespan of a ghost to forcibly extend his own life.
The ashes in the black jar were the remains of an infant. He used evil magic to refine them into "ghost cigarettes," which he inhaled daily to prolong his dying breath.
This method becomes less effective if used too often.
Once one's lifespan ends, the ghost messengers will eventually come knocking and take away this person who is destined to die but hasn't.
He has stolen too much lifespan over the years. When he really reaches that point, he might not even have the chance to be reincarnated.
Therefore, Zhong Jiu knew very well what was going on.
To continue living, he had to raise an even bigger demon.
"The twin vengeful spirits are almost gone."
"What we're missing now is a shell that can contain the evil spirits."
As Zhong Jiu stood before the altar, an even grander plan slowly took shape in his mind.
In the dimly lit, secret room, the candlelight flickered.
A tiny, snow-white ghost kept running past Zhong Jiu. The ghost had no pupils, its steps were as light as the wind, and it would occasionally glance back at him, creating a chilling and eerie scene.
…………
During the day, downstairs at the public housing estate.
A haggard-looking middle-aged man carrying luggage slowly walked in.
The man's name was Qian Hao.
He used to be a household name as an action star. Now, however, he is just a disillusioned middle-aged man whose career has been ruined, whose wife and children have left him, and whose eyes have lost all light.
He stood downstairs in the public housing building, looking up at the dilapidated and desolate old buildings, his expression blank.
It wasn't until his gaze inadvertently swept over the newly erected Taoist temple that a slight ripple appeared in his eyes, as if he were recalling something from long ago.
"Are you a new tenant?"
Security guard Uncle Yan walked over from behind and greeted him with a smile.
"I'm the security guard here, just call me Uncle Yan."
Qian Hao snapped out of his daze and forced a smile.
"Thank you for your help, Uncle Yan."
Uncle Yan led him upstairs, explaining things as they went.
"You rented room 2442."
At this point, his expression became noticeably unnatural, as if he wanted to say more, but he held back in the end, quickly handed over the keys, and then made an excuse to leave.
Qian Hao didn't care.
He carried his meager belongings into the house and slowly tidied them up.
The room was empty, with nothing of value. The only thing he had carefully placed away was an old, faded Qing Dynasty official's robe.
That was a symbol of his glorious past.
Now, only this faint remnant remains.
Qian Hao sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the official robe, his face expressionless.
The past glory, family, marriage, children, reputation... all have vanished completely.
He got up, hung the rope on the fan, tied a knot, slowly put it around his neck, and finally kicked the stool away.
As the feeling of suffocation gradually rose, my consciousness began to blur.
Past scenes flashed before my eyes like a revolving lantern.
The film sets, the lights, the applause, the cheers, the smiling faces of my colleagues from my youth... scene after scene, it all feels like they're separated by a layer of water.
Just then, the temperature inside the room suddenly dropped.
On the snow-white ceiling, streaks of crimson blood slowly seeped out.
The jet-black hair spread out from the corners of the walls and the roof, covering the entire room like a spider web.
Two figures slowly emerged from the shadows.
They were two female ghosts dressed in blood-stained white dresses, their faces pale and distorted, their eyes completely black with no whites.
They walked side by side, their resentment as heavy as a churning sea of blood. The moment they appeared, the entire room seemed to be dragged into another world.
Qian Hao hung in mid-air, his breath nearly stopped, but looking at the two ghosts, he didn't feel much fear.
He smiled instead.
"A ghost...?"
In a daze, he felt as if he had returned to twenty years ago.
It began with ghosts, and it ended with ghosts.
This ending isn't too bad.
Just as the twin demons were about to pounce on him, a furious shout suddenly rang out from outside the door.
"You audacious monster!"
The door was suddenly flung open.
A Taoist priest in a yellow robe rushed in, sword in hand. His sword flashed through the air as he performed a series of magical steps, his robes fluttering in the wind.
Qian Hao's consciousness was blurred, and his vision suddenly became blurry.
He seemed to see the figure of an old friend.
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