Chapter 139 Chapter 139 Taolin Village
Class B prisons are usually used to detain supernatural creatures above level five. This guy is just an unlucky guy whose body was taken over by a low-level ghost. Why make such a fuss?
The mastermind behind the Taolin Village case, Peach Blossom Demon, was only at the second level.
Ning Shiran turned to look at Section Chief Wen, waiting for her to give a reasonable explanation. However, Section Chief Wen's gaze fell on He Junxia, and her meaning was very clear.
He Junxia didn't ignore her hint. Just as she was about to find an excuse to leave, she heard Ning Shiran say, "He's my junior apprentice and a victim of the Taolin Village case. Just tell me what you want to say."
After receiving Ning Shiran's assurance, Section Chief Wen said solemnly, "This person has the aura of the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron."
Before he finished speaking, He Junxia keenly noticed that the atmosphere in the room suddenly became serious, and even the impatience on Xie Qi's face disappeared.
As its name suggests, the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron is a large cauldron capable of suppressing spirits. As a national treasure and a ritual vessel used in sacrificial ceremonies, it symbolizes both royal legitimacy and divine authority...
He Junxia's mind raced, a flurry of information about bronze tripods flashing through his mind. Combined with Section Chief Wen's words, he had no doubt Taolin Village was implicated in something major.
As expected.
After the initial shock, Xie Qi kindly explained to He Junxia, "The Soul-Suppressing Cauldron is one of the sacred artifacts handed down from ancient times. It's located at the junction of yin and yang. It's responsible for maintaining the balance of yin and yang, allowing the turbid to flow out the clear, and suppressing the evil spirits in the Eighteen Layers of Hell."
"But three years ago, the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron suddenly disappeared, disrupting the balance between yin and yang. Some of the evil spirits suppressed in Hell took the opportunity to escape into the world of the living. Because the foul air produced in the world of the living couldn't be absorbed by the underworld, it gradually gathered in the underworld, giving rise to many ghosts and monsters."
"In the past year, ghosts and demons have been causing chaos frequently. The already dwindling metaphysical world has suffered heavy losses and urgently needs young people like you to replenish their blood."
When he said the last sentence, the smile on Xie Qi's face became more and more weird, and the corners of his mouth almost reached his ears, making people unconsciously drawn into the bloody scenes imagined in their minds by his words.
He Junxia: ...
No wonder a weird and funny guy like Xie Qi would be so kind as to explain to him the origin of the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron. It turned out that he intended to scare him in the end.
He Junxia reached out and touched his nose.
To be honest, he was still a little afraid of ghosts, especially those evil ghosts that liked to open the door and kill people in the face, and whose appearance was not very satisfactory.
Xie Qi pressed on: "To become our junior disciple, you must be prepared to face evil spirits, zombies, monsters, and even death at all times."
"I remember you are the only son in your family?"
"Before you officially perform the apprenticeship ceremony, you still have a chance to regret. Once you complete the ceremony and learn the Daoist teachings of Guiyi Temple, you must take it upon yourself to slay demons and monsters."
"There is no exit except death."
Ning Shiran and Section Chief Wen did not refute. The three of them looked at He Junxia, waiting for him to give a positive or negative answer.
Xie Qi's words were harsh, but they were the truth.
Even if he didn't say it, Ning Shiran would tell Ji Zhou after dealing with Liu Gaoge's matter, and formally and solemnly ask for his thoughts and opinions.
He Junxia said decisively: "I'm not afraid."
If he encountered such a thing in his native world, he would probably choose to refuse and become an ordinary busy doctor and live an ordinary life.
After all, he was a bit afraid of ghosts and was the only son in the family. He had to consider not only himself but also his parents.
But now, the danger is as light as a cloud.
After completing the main goal set by the wisher, he can only stay in the mission world for a maximum of five years using the wisher's body, so why should he be afraid of zombies and ghosts?
However, Xie Qi's words reminded him of another thing.
The wisher's parents are very loving and not too old, one is 42 and the other is 43, which is a good age to have a second child.
Otherwise, if I lose my only son five years later, I will probably be heartbroken and find it difficult to get over the pain of seeing my son die before me.
Ning Shiran was very satisfied with He Junxia's decisiveness.
The reason why she wanted to accept him as a disciple on behalf of her master was not only because he was protected by a golden body of merit and his bones seemed to be good, but also because of his performance in the Taolin Village case.
An ordinary person would be scared out of their wits if they encountered such a thing, but he was able to quickly remain calm, using his acting skills and eloquence to deal with the evil spirits and get them to let his two roommates down the mountain.
And when he learned that his other roommate was ungrateful and left him alone after being rescued, he did not get angry or deeply hurt.
This is enough to show that he has a stable and non-extreme character, is brave and resourceful, values friendship and loyalty, and is a good candidate for Taoism.
If it was someone with a personality like his junior brother Xie Qi, Ning Shiran would never accept him as his disciple, no matter how talented or strong his physique was.
She smiled and said, "Since you have made your decision, I will take you back to the temple on an auspicious day in three days to hold a formal ceremony of becoming your disciple."
Section Chief Wen also congratulated him, saying, "If Taoist Master Yiyuan were still alive, he would be overjoyed to know that you have found him such a good disciple."
He Junxia bowed and said, "What do I need to prepare for the apprenticeship gift? Senior Sister, can you give me a list? I'll prepare it immediately after I get back."
Xie Qi yawned. "Little Junior Brother, no need to prepare anything. Just don't disappear. Your Senior Sister Ning will prepare all the things. Just wait to receive the gifts."
He Junxia looked at Ning Shiran, and Ning Shiran nodded slightly. He didn't say anything else, but just quickly thought of a suitable gift for becoming a disciple.
A gift of goose feathers from a thousand miles away is worth more than its value.
Some things can't be without.
…
A series of clanging metal sounds suddenly rang out, interrupting everyone's gradually drifting thoughts.
Several people quickly came to their senses and looked at Liu Gaoge who had been ignored for a while. The red bloodshot and fierce look in the boy's eyes seriously ruined his bookish face.
Ning Shiran said in a serious tone, "The Peach Blossom Demon has been killed, and the remaining 23 little ghosts have also been captured by me. If you answer the questions truthfully, I can send you to reincarnate with them."
"Otherwise, you'll be killed."
He Junxia frowned slightly.
How come there are only 23 little ghosts? Excluding the little peach girl transformed by the peach blossom demon and the old village chief who has been torn into pieces by him, there should be 24 people left in the village.
Which one is missing?
But now is not a good time to ask, He Junxia kept his doubts in his heart and planned to talk about it after leaving this room.
The fierce light in the boy's eyes faded a little after hearing Ning Shiran's words, but he still refused to admit it and said stubbornly: "I don't understand what you are saying, let me out, you are kidnapping me!"
"If you don't accept my toast, I'll drink the wine for you."
Xie Qi rolled his eyes: "Senior Sister, if you can't do it, let me do it, so as not to delay my sleep time."
Section Chief Wen seemed accustomed to their relationship, his expression unchanged and silent. Ning Shiran ignored Xie Qi and waved a talisman, which was fixed between Liu Gaoge's eyebrows.
In an instant, a faint gray-black smoke emerged from Liu Gaoge's body, and he opened his mouth and let out a shrill scream and beg for mercy.
"It hurts, it hurts, stop burning."
"I'll tell you, I'll tell you, I'll tell you everything."
The screams and wails from their own kind could easily arouse sympathy, but the four people present had no expression on their faces.
Observing the calmness on He Junxia's face, Xie Qi raised his eyebrows slightly, with a hint of interest flashing in his eyes. It seemed that this junior brother was not a pushover either.
But it's much better than the stupid idiot with a saintly heart.
He Junxia did not ignore Xie Qi's undisguised gaze, but his attention was now on Ning Shiran and Liu Gaoge.
Faced with Liu Gaoge who was screaming for mercy, or rather the evil spirit hidden in Liu Gaoge's body, Ning Shiran remained indifferent, and even his eyes did not change.
She is now completely different from Senior Sister Ning who used to speak gently and with a smile.
Only after the invisible flames burned the talisman between Liu Gaoge's eyebrows into powder did Ning Shiran slowly speak, "Name?"
"Wu, Wu Dachui."
The evil ghost, who had been tortured for a long time, no longer dared to pretend to be stubborn. Not only was there no murderous look in his eyes, but even the light was gone.
"Gender and age."
"Male, 17 years old, no no no, 117."
"Um?"
"I mean, I was 17 when I died, and now I'm 117."
"When did you know you had become a ghost?"
"Three years ago."
Ning Shiran and Section Chief Wen exchanged a glance and asked, "Who helped you occupy this living body?"
The yang energy in a living person will condense into a fire at the top of the head and shoulders. As long as the person is not dead, the fire will not be completely extinguished.
Even if the fire is weakened by fear and a person is unfortunately possessed by a ghost, the ghost cannot stay in the body of a living person for a long time unless it is prepared to consume the person to death.
When a living person dies, he or she can become a ghost, but when a ghost dies, its soul will be scattered and it will never have the chance to be reincarnated.
Therefore, unless there is a deep hatred or you are unlucky enough to meet a mentally ill evil ghost, generally speaking, the ghost will not stay in the human body for a long time.
But it has been almost two months since Liu Gaoge went to the next city to climb the mountain. Normally, humans who were possessed would have long since died of inexplicable weakness due to being infected by the evil spirit.
But now his body is alive and well, and the evil spirit in his body is also alive and well. This technique of balancing yin and yang is very likely related to the missing Soul-Suppressing Cauldron.
The evil ghost trembled: "He is the village chief of our village."
Ning Shiran took out a yellow gourd that looked familiar to He Junxia. The gourd looked ordinary at first glance. There was no decoration or pattern on the gourd body. It was no different from the ordinary gourds in the shopping mall.
But as soon as Ning Shiran opened the cork blocking the mouth of the gourd, little ghosts came out one after another, and they were all ghosts from Taolin Village.
Before these ghosts could steady themselves, they started cursing at He Junxia standing at the back, saying that he was untrustworthy and deliberately cheated people. They kept speaking in dialect, which was so noisy that it hurt people's eyes and ears.
"Shut up!"
Ning Shiran scolded harshly.
All the ghosts, big and small, quieted down instantly.
The ghosts were deeply terrified of this powerful female Taoist priest who killed the Little Peach Fairy and locked them in a gourd.
Ning Shiran asked: "Who is the village chief? Stand up."
The ghosts, big and small, looked at each other, took a step back tacitly, and pushed out the father of the little ghost who was attached to Liu Gaoge.
The fat uncle immediately threw his head to the ground and said, "Master, you are being unfair. I am not the village chief. I am the candidate village chief. No, no, no, I have nothing to do with the village chief. I am just an ordinary villager."
The male ghost knelt on the ground and cried out to the sky.
Ning Shiran's tone was cold and hard: "Where is the former village chief?"
The fat uncle subconsciously looked at He Junxia. His eyes were not concealed at all, or it could be said that he was trying to divert the trouble away.
The three people standing in front of He Junxia turned around instantly, with a hint of vigilance, suspicion and uncertainty in their eyes.
He Junxia touched his nose.
"Senior Sister, this is what happened. After you broke the illusion, the old village chief of Taolin Village suddenly grabbed my neck..."
For the sake of his own safety and life, He Junxia told the whole story between him and the old village chief without taking a breath.
Ning Shiran nodded.
She continued, "Did you see the old village chief casting a spell in his memory?"
He Junxia shook his head: "No, his memory is incomplete, just missing that part. By the time he regained consciousness, the possession ritual had already ended."
Seeing this, the little ghost in Liu Gaoge's body immediately said, "Sir, I didn't lie to you. I really didn't lie to you. It was the old village chief who helped me possess him. If you don't believe me, ask them."
It seemed that it had been frightened by the previous punishment. Ning Shiran, fearing that he would not get any results, took out another talisman and stuck it on its forehead.
The fat ghost kneeling on the ground also hurriedly excused his son: "Master Taoist, we really didn't lie. The old village chief is the only one in the whole village who knows about the possession ceremony."
"uncertain."
He Junxia glanced at the ghosts, big and small: "Do you still remember the Grandpa Zhang who lived at the entrance of the village?"
For a moment, all the ghosts looked confused.
He Junxia looked at Ning Shiran: "Senior Sister, Ning Siyuan, Song Chengli and I were tricked by him into Taolin Village, and we have never left the village since then, but he is not among these ghosts now."
All the people and ghosts present realized that something was wrong.
Ning Shiran frowned.
She did not doubt the truthfulness of He Junxia's words. The name "Grandpa Zhang" appeared many times in Ning Siyuan and Song Chengli's oral accounts.
After a moment's contemplation, the head of the literature department asked, "Student Ji, does the old village chief remember anything about this Grandpa Zhang's origins?"
He Junxia closed her eyes and began to recall.
"In the old village chief's memory, the method of possessing a living person automatically appeared in his mind after he woke up three years ago. Grandpa Zhang also suddenly appeared three years ago."
"But he subconsciously recognized Grandpa Zhang as one of his own in the village and had no doubts about his appearance."
The expressions of several people became solemn, and He Junxia also vaguely sensed that something was wrong.
He hesitated and said, "If Grandpa Zhang was the mastermind behind this, why did he let us go?"
He Junxia knew very well that his words could at most fool people from a hundred years ago, but they could not fool a ghost with such ability.
Questions came one after another, and the few people felt that there was a thick fog in front of them. Although they had clearly found traces of the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron, they had no clue and it was difficult to see the light.
Ultimately, it all comes down to this secretive Grandpa Zhang.
Unfortunately, by now, he must have run away long ago and would not stay there for someone to catch him.
"Perhaps Senior Liu Gaoge could know some information?"
The senior Liu Gaoge that He Junxia mentioned was not a little ghost, but the real Liu Gaoge. Although his body was occupied by the little ghost, he was not dead, but his soul was suppressed by the little ghost, and someone needed to release him.
Ning Shiran nodded, she also had the same idea.
Ning Shiran raised the gourd and took back all the ghosts, then turned to look at the man trapped in the chains: "Do you want to get out by yourself, or do you want me to help you out?"
The little ghost smiled flatteringly at Liu Gaoge's face: "Sir, I, I, I, I will come out by myself, I will come out right away."
Not long after, a figure floated out of Liu Gaoge's body, still wearing a rat-tail braid.
Ning Shiran reached out and tapped Liu Gaoge's eyebrows, then patted his head and shoulders, and finally took out a yellow talisman and stuck it on his heart.
After a while, the real Liu Gaoge slowly woke up.
He habitually reached out to rub his eyes, but found that his hands and feet were tied up with thick chains, completely losing the ability to move.
The young boy's expression changed constantly, his eyes went from surprise to confusion to horror, and finally he looked at the other four people in the room in fear, trying to make his presence less noticeable.
It's over, he's going to die.
Wait, that person is Ji Zhou? !
Liu Gaoge suddenly raised his head and looked at the young man standing at the end of the crowd. He swallowed hard and said, "Ji, Ji Zhou, I haven't offended you, have I? We're all students of the same major. If you have any conflicts, you can talk it out openly."
He Junxia took the initiative to walk forward and took out her cell phone and put it in front of him.
"I didn't kidnap you. It's May 2nd now. Do you remember what happened before you lost consciousness?"
Liu Gaoge looked at the calendar display on his mobile phone, his eyes widened and he felt a headache, as if an invisible big hand was stirring up the situation in his head.
"Huff," "Huff," "Huff."
For a moment, the only sound in the room was the heavy, wild-animal-like panting. A moment later, Liu Gaoge opened his eyes again. "I took the advice of an online friend and went hiking in the neighboring Jiang City. I took a route no one had ever taken before."
"After I went up the mountain, I saw the peach blossom forest that netizens had mentioned. Suddenly, it started to rain heavily. An old man who said his surname was Zhang... Then I lay on the ground and fainted."
He Juanxia grasped the key point: "Did the netizen who recommended you that route mention there was a peach orchard on the mountain?"
Liu Gaoge nodded and said, "It was because he said we could see a wild peach forest that I decided to go hiking."
Section Chief Wen immediately asked, "Where did you meet that online friend? Do you still have their contact information?"
"Uh, I met him on my phone, on Tieba."
"Where's your phone?"
Liu Gaoge was at a loss: "Shouldn't I ask you?"
Section Chief: ...
Section Chief Wen coughed lightly to hide his embarrassment. "I'll have the technical department check it out now. By the way, can we release him now?"
Liu Gaoge is a victim, there is no reason to keep him locked up.
"Can."
Ning Shiran nodded and said, "Section Chief Wen, could you please check the birth dates of the four victims in the Taolin Village case? This matter is very complicated, and I need to report it to several elders of the Xuanmen."
"Okay, I'll give you the news this afternoon. I'll also explain this situation to the director. Please keep this ghost."
Section Chief Wen turned on the display screen embedded in the wall, and after conducting facial recognition and video call verification, the chains that bound Liu Gaoge were finally opened.
He Junxia looked at this scene curiously. Isn't it afraid of being destroyed by unscientific energy if modern technology is used as a switch?
Seeing the confusion on his face, Section Chief Wen enthusiastically explained, "These chains and this room are all from a huge formation. Every time they are used, someone needs to manipulate the formation disk."
I see.
He Juanxia knew she had misunderstood: "Thank you, Aunt Wen, for clearing up my confusion."
Ning Shiran retrieved the floating imp back into the gourd. Having regained his freedom, Liu Gaoge shook his stiff limbs and said cautiously, "Can I leave now?"
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone else what happened here. If you need anything in the future, I will fully cooperate with you."
Ning Shiran woke up the person who was sleeping against the wall with his eyes squinting. "Xie Qi, go back to school with them. During this time, help me teach my junior brother the basics and register an account for him."
"Junior brother, I might be busy for a while recently. If you have anything, just look for Xie Qi. You can also contact me on the software."
He Junxia nodded repeatedly.
Senior Sister Ning must be busy with the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron. Unless it is a huge trouble, he will not disturb her easily.
…
Three days later
He Junxia brought a jar of ten-year-old peach blossom wine and followed Ning Shiran to an ancient temple in the mountains to hold a formal apprenticeship ceremony.
Ning Shiran accepted his apprenticeship gift and introduced to him in detail the origin of the Guiyi Can and his master, Taoist Yiyuan.
"If you're interested, you can also give yourself a Taoist name as your identity in the metaphysical world."
He Junxia understood.
Just like people in the entertainment industry usually give themselves a stage name.
He asked, "Big Sister, what are your and Senior Brother Xie's Daoist names? I want to choose a similar one with you."
Ning Shiran smiled: "Xie Qi and I don't have Taoist names."
He Junxia: "Then I don't want it either. We need to keep everything neat and tidy at Guiyi Temple."
Ning Shiran chuckled, and Xie Qi snorted, "You're quite good at flattering me. Hurry up and open the peach blossom wine. I can smell it."
The three of them sat under the old ginkgo tree in the courtyard and drank the entire jar of peach wine. Of course, He Junxia and Ning Shiran didn't drink much, as most of it was consumed by Xie Qi.
After the apprenticeship ceremony, Ning Shiran took out a peach wood sword and an open three-layer lacquered wooden box and handed them to He Junxia. At a glance, the box contained yellow talismans, inkstones, cinnabar, and jade beads...
Just from the surface value of the items, you can tell that they are very expensive. That string of jade beads alone costs at least hundreds of thousands.
Ning Shiran looked at He Junxia and said, "This peach wood sword is my gift to you as your disciple. I hope you can use it to slay demons and monsters, protect the peace of this area, and live up to the reputation of my Guiyi Temple."
"As for the items in the box, they are all gifts sent by others after they learned the news. The corresponding person and their identity are in the booklet at the bottom. Remember to take a look."
"Thank you, Senior Sister."
"Ji Zhou will definitely live up to your teachings."
This thanks came entirely from He Junxia's heart.
He and Ning Shiran had only known each other for a short time and had not spent much time together, but Ning Shiran was so nice to him that he even considered such a small matter. It was hard not to be moved.
Ning Shiran chuckled: "I believe you."
The three of them rested for one night at Guiyi Temple. The next day, Ning Shiran took the high-speed train to Kyoto, while He Junxia and Xie Qi returned to school.
That’s right, as a newly promoted junior apprentice, He Junxia still needs the protection of Senior Brother Xie Qi.
It is said that this is because all the disciples of Guiyi Temple take it as their mission to slay demons and monsters, and are well-known in the metaphysical world and among ghosts and monsters. They are afraid that some evil ghosts and monsters may want to kill them before they have completed their studies.
Another reason was to monitor Liu Gaoge, Ning Siyuan, and Song Chengli. (P.S. He Junxia guessed this was also intended to monitor him.)
After all, the old man surnamed Zhang deliberately let them go down the mountain and let the matter of Taolin Village leak out. He must have his own calculations.
But these have nothing to do with He Junxia.
What he needs to do now is to work hard to practice the Guiyi Heart Method passed down from his ancestors in Guiyi Temple and start the talisman-making technique as soon as possible.
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