Chapter 281 Jinjiang (1)
Because Baizhi Lake is located in a remote area, the signal stability cannot be guaranteed.
Therefore, when there was a situation where the official leader and his group entered the deserted village but lost contact, Taoist Li and others made sufficient preparations in advance and explained to the abbot all the things that needed attention, in order to avoid being unable to find anyone when the blood medicine was needed.
The Taoist priests just told the abbot not to worry about them and to focus on protecting the people in danger in Southwest and Binhai City.
But the Supervisory Yuan would rather they talk more about their own topics.
If an accident really happened, this phone call might be the last one they would have in this life.
But the man who was about to go to the battlefield did not even leave any last words or instructions for his afterlife.
“Eh…”
Hearing that the other party was about to hang up, the abbot spoke in a hurry. But when the Taoist priest on the other side asked in confusion, the abbot suddenly fell silent again.
After a moment, he just sighed, said that both of them should do their jobs well and not worry about each other, and then hung up the phone.
The Haiyun Temple was already crowded with people seeking refuge and the wounded.
The noise in the yard made the dean's eyes firm again. He strode over and with a few words arranged the anxious little Taoist boy properly. In a few minutes, the yard became tidy again.
The little Taoist boy blinked and looked up at the abbot with eyes full of admiration.
But some people were worried. They were dragged by their families from the foot of the mountain into the Haiyun Temple, but they were still worried and looked everywhere for "weapons" to defend themselves. They held on to the huge brooms used to sweep fallen leaves in the temple. They saw enemies everywhere and looked up in surprise at the slightest noise.
"Mom, is this okay? Let's go somewhere else."
The young white-collar worker used a broom to block his family members and asked his mother worriedly, "I thought you were taking me somewhere, why did you come to the temple fair? It's already this time and you're still thinking about asking for divination and marriage? Even if it's customary to urge marriage during the New Year, can't we wait until we're safe first?"
He was still wearing his commuting clothes, but his shirt was wrinkled and covered in dust, and his hair, which had been styled with gel, was sticking up and hanging in the air in a mess.
It seemed that he had just returned home from get off work when he encountered the crisis of the wooden puppet. He encountered many dangers on the way from home to Haiyun Temple to protect his family.
When his mother heard this, she was stunned at first, then she didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and she laughed in good-natured laughter along with the people around her.
"Silly child, you don't think that Haiyun Temple is for seeking marriage, do you?"
The mother gently hit him in a complaining manner, but the smile in her eyes could not be stopped: "When I was a child, I was saved by the Taoist priest of Haiyun Temple. Haiyun Temple is very famous. Otherwise, why do you think summer typhoons often have loud thunder but little rain, and do not cause much harm?"
The young white-collar worker asked in confusion and surprise: "What else could it be? The typhoon was affected by the weather and ran away. Could it be that you want to say that this is also because of Haiyun Temple?"
"What era are we in now, Mom? Stop talking about those superstitious things. We have to believe in science."
The mother was both angry and amused: "You are as stubborn as a donkey, kid. You said your mother can't accept science, so why can't you accept theology?"
Even though Haiyun Temple covers a large area, it was quickly packed with people as it opened its doors wide and did not refuse anyone seeking help, much like a subway during rush hour.
People were so crowded that there wasn't much space between each other.
Although the mother and son spoke in low voices, they were still clearly heard by the people around them.
They all saw the caring looks between the mother and son. Most of those who chose Haiyun Temple as their first choice for refuge in times of crisis were older people who had experienced things in the past, so they would bring their younger generations with them to come here.
Therefore, they also empathized with the mother.
For a moment, there was a mixture of light laughter.
The old man and the old woman smiled and pulled the young white-collar worker, saying, "Don't worry, young man, you will be absolutely safe in Haiyun Temple."
"Oh, young people nowadays don't know this. Haiyun Temple was not famous for being a tourist attraction back then. There were also fortune-telling and praying to Yue Lao for marriage... The Haiyun Temple I know is famous for its formations and efficacy. When it comes to spiritual practice, it has to be Haiyun Temple."
"That's right. It was Haiyun Temple that first became famous. Later, the children noticed the existence of this place and started to travel there."
"Alas, young people nowadays at least know to come here to seek marriage. I guess by the time my grandson grows up, he will only remember to visit temple fairs and markets, which are lively and fun."
“Do you have stone sculptures at home?”
There was also an old man who pulled the sleeve of a white-collar worker and couldn't help but complain: "Ah, it's the same at my house. The day before yesterday, we just brought back a stone statue and wanted to make a fountain, but today this happened. My wife ran away and beat me... Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, it hurts."
Before he could finish his words, the elegant old lady, who had just found her old sister in the crowd and confirmed that she was safe, squeezed back and heard what the old man said. She immediately rolled up her sleeves and grabbed the other person's ear. The old man immediately stopped complaining and became as obedient as a rabbit being held in someone's hand.
He also gently persuaded the old lady to let go, otherwise her new manicure would fall off.
The old lady snorted, rolled her eyes gracefully, pulled her shawl closer, and looked at the still confused young white-collar worker with concern.
"Don't worry. My mother and my brother were both saved by the Taoist priests of Haiyun Temple when they were young. As long as Haiyun Temple is here, we just need to not cause trouble for the Taoist priests."
"Don't be afraid of ghosts. People are three parts afraid of ghosts, and ghosts are seven parts afraid of people. If you are not afraid of ghosts, no ghost can harm you."①
Seeing that the young white-collar worker looked so full of views that his grandmother's worldview was about to be shattered, his mother burst out laughing.
The young white-collar worker scratched his head awkwardly and nodded, "I see. What I mean is that Haiyun Temple is not the kind of internet-famous landscape with pink bubbles, and it is not famous for taking photos and checking in. It is the kind of Shaolin Temple-like monks?"
Everyone nodded with satisfaction.
Only the little Taoist boy who was standing on tiptoe and listening curiously said that the Taoist priests in the Taoist temple were martial monks... Are you friends with the director Zhang Wubing? He also said that Haiyun Temple is a Buddhist temple where all monks are single. Are you all here to mess things up?
With this episode, people who had never met each other before quickly became closer and began to talk about each other's situations.
"I had a fashion piece in my living room, how could I have imagined it would come to life?"
Speaking of this, the mother was still horrified: "If my son hadn't worked overtime and got off work in the middle of the night, he would have been sleeping soundly according to our family's sleep schedule of 9pm, and no one would have noticed it."
The young white-collar worker also recalled the scene he saw when he just returned home.
He was originally tiptoeing towards the kitchen in the dark, not wanting to disturb his parents who were sleeping soundly, and wanted to make a bowl of noodles because he was hungry. Unexpectedly, when he passed his parents' bedroom, he saw a figure standing at the head of his parents' bed.
With the colorful light coming in from outside, the young white-collar worker was shocked to find that the blurry figure was holding a kitchen knife high in his hand, ready to swing it down.
He thought there was a thief in the house, so he yelled and rushed over to knock the man down, trying to grab the knife regardless of anything.
It was then that he suddenly realized that the figure was not a thief at all.
It was a plastic statue he had just bought a few months ago and placed in his living room.
The young white-collar worker suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.
The plastic statue is not afraid of pain at all. Even if one of its arms or head is chopped off, it can still chase people. It seems that all means are ineffective against it.
Although the young white-collar worker was wondering what this thing was, he quickly pulled his parents outside.
However, I found that the street, which was just quiet, was now filled with crying and calls for help. The sounds of broken windows and fighting could be heard one after another, and the red and blue changing lights on the street made people even more nervous.
The young white-collar worker originally wanted to drag his parents to the jurisdiction to seek help, but when he saw someone asking for help along the way, he didn't care and just offered to help, and unknowingly went in the direction of Haiyun Temple.
So his parents waved their hands and simply dragged him to Haiyun Temple. It was at that time that he was shocked to find that there were so many people running to Haiyun Temple.
After everyone started talking about their own family affairs, they compared the information with each other and found that the ones who had problems were all those who had human-shaped statues in their homes.
This made the young white-collar worker, who was originally an atheist, unable to help but waver.
Could it be that a ghost was haunting the place? Otherwise, how else could we explain the statue moving?
Just when the young white-collar worker was looking confused, he saw a child struggling to squeeze in from the crowd, with a difficulty comparable to getting off the subway during rush hour.
The child was so angry that his cheeks puffed up, becoming round and white, and he clenched his fists stubbornly.
However, the miniature Taoist robe he wore still revealed his identity.
At first, because the little Taoist boy was not even as tall as everyone’s waist, many people didn’t notice him.
When they found him, everyone quickly made way for him, put their hands together and bowed to thank the little Taoist boy, expressing their gratitude to Haiyun Temple for still helping everyone at this time.
"Need not."
The little Taoist boy pursed his lips. Although his expression was serious, his chubby cheeks still made him look cute as if he was trying to be an adult, which made everyone laugh.
"The temple is short-staffed now, and the chef in the kitchen has also gone out. There is not much food in the temple, so we cooked some porridge and rice for the New Year. If anyone needs it later, they can go to the kitchen and queue up to get it."
The little Taoist boy was a little shy when talking about this: "The people in the kitchen are not here, so we are the only ones cooking. If it doesn't taste good..."
He lowered his head and said embarrassedly: "Then don't tell me."
Everyone was surprised at first, and then they burst into laughter at the amusing little Taoist boy.
Even the young white-collar workers gradually let down their guard and loosened their grip on the brooms.
The little Taoist boy noticed the young white-collar worker's behavior, so he asked him to return the broom expressionlessly, and asked curiously: "What are you doing with the broom that we use to clean the toilet in our temple?"
Young white-collar worker: “!!!”
Everyone around: Oh wow!
The crowd dispersed immediately, and the young white-collar worker quickly threw away his broom.
The little Taoist nodded calmly, picked up the broom that was taller than himself, and after seeing the young white-collar worker was startled, he said with satisfaction: "Oh, I was mistaken, this is used to sweep fallen leaves."
He stuck out his tongue: Who told you to say we are monks, huh.
While the warden was making the call, he also noticed that the tense atmosphere in the courtyard was gradually easing.
He looked at the laughter and joy over there, and was also infected by the good mood. He smiled and asked the people around him: "This child...how come he has become more like Fellow Daoist Yan after meeting him twice?"
The other person touched his chin and said thoughtfully, "It seems that he is a little bit similar. I was wondering why his temper is becoming less and less like his master."
"Friend Daoist Yan."
Others shook their heads and laughed: "What is this? Personality charm?"
Speaking of Yan Shixun, the dean was a little worried: "Daoyou Yan and his companions were the first to disappear in Baizhi Lake, and no news has come out. As for Daoist Master Ma and Daoist Master Wang... I don't know what their current situation is. I hope they are safe and sound."
"The Three Pure Ones above, may misfortune turn into fortune."
Others sighed and sincerely hoped that those who were on the front line of Baizhi Lake at this moment could resolve all this as soon as possible.
The Taoist priests in the entire Haiyun Temple were so busy that they had no time to rest. Even the secular disciples who were in charge of miscellaneous affairs in the temple were so busy that they didn't even have time to drink water.
The mother and son, the pilgrims who were originally left in the temple, were naturally left unattended.
While no one was paying attention, the young man climbed through the rear window with his mother, and tiptoed out like thieves, fearing they would be discovered and unable to leave.
Fortunately, there were many people in the temple at that time and no one noticed them.
When the people around saw the mother and son, they were just wondering why everyone was running towards Haiyun Temple, but these two were doing the opposite and running away from Haiyun Temple?
However, with their own safety at stake, everyone ignored their curiosity and just muttered a few words in their hearts before turning their gaze back.
The mother and son were able to easily leave Haiyun Temple and return to the Binhai city area.
The streets were deserted, with occasional debris scattered on the ground, as if someone had dropped something while running in a panic and had no time to pick it up.
After the initial chaos passed, with the help of people from the special departments and the Taoist priests of Haiyun Temple, order was quickly restored, and everyone was organized in an orderly manner to stay away from danger.
In an open area like the street, with no cover at all, the place is no different from a sitting duck, so naturally no one wants to stay there.
The mother and son had no idea what had happened before. When they saw this scene, although it was inexplicably desolate, it was not at all the dangerous scene that the abbot had described. They couldn't help but feel that "I was definitely being lied to."
The young man opened his arms, took deep breaths, and felt the joy of regaining his freedom.
He was thinking that he must buy some snacks when he got home, and then play games all night long to get rid of the disgusting bad luck of Haiyun Temple.
At this time, the Taoist priests who were sent out of Haiyun Temple were still rescuing people in various communities and streets, and Haiyun Temple was busy again.
No one discovered where the mother and son had gone.
Although the mother felt inexplicably uneasy, it was still early in the morning and it made sense that there was no one on the street, so she didn't care.
"My son is really smart, otherwise we would still have to endure the wrath of those people in Haiyun Temple. When I went to burn incense and worship the gods before, I never realized that they were such morally corrupt people."
"I have finally seen their true colors. Don't even think of asking me to pay a penny from now on! The several hundred dollars I donated before should be considered as giving to beggars."
After the mother finished her angry scolding, she turned around and praised him, "You are worthy of being my son."
The young man puffed out his chest and said proudly, "Don't worry, Mom. I recorded the video of the little Taoist boy beating me. I will post it online tomorrow and let everyone see the true face of Haiyun Temple."
"What kind of internet celebrity Taoist temple is this? Pah! A bunch of bastards who cheat people out of their money and harm them."
The young man said proudly: "I am doing a good deed, clearing the way for everyone, haha."
“My son is awesome!”
The mother and son walked home happily.
However, he did not notice that in the shadow of the street corner, there was a stiff face hidden in the darkness, with a pale complexion and red cheeks, and lifeless eyes staring at the mother and son.
In the shadows behind every turn in the alley, human figures are blurry and looming.
…
"Master, the dean is calling."
The Taoist priest said respectfully to Taoist Priest Li: "I have already told the abbot everything that needs to be told. You don't need to worry about what's happening outside."
Taoist Priest Li nodded casually, his attention never leaving the southwestern ghost exorcist beside him.
Although Taoist Li is the most accomplished among the group, his understanding of the southwest is not as good as that of the ghost exorcist who learned from the southwest.
What's more, this exorcist who took the initiative to find them and was allowed to enter the high-risk area with them as an exception had personally witnessed two major events in the southwest in modern times.
One is to reconstruct the technique based on the art of Yan Sheng, so that the ghosts in the southwest, who are too numerous to be accommodated because they cannot be reincarnated, are put into puppets with living mouths and eyes, making the ghosts tangible, and then get rid of the ghosts that are about to endanger the lives of ordinary people in one fell swoop.
Another thing is that the master of this ghost exorcist assisted Li Chengyun in suppressing Baizhi Lake that year.
No matter which one it is, it is of great significance to the current situation.
The southwestern exorcist saw that everyone around him was looking at him - they were all the Taoist priests from the Haiyun Temple who were said to be extremely powerful and could call the wind and rain and turn beans into soldiers. He suddenly felt ashamed and even his voice became weaker.
Looking left and right at this line of people, all of them are the kind of people that could only be seen in Taoist conferences or important rituals in the past. They are famous and well-known.
Even the leaders of other sects in the southwest would be extremely respectful when meeting any of these Taoist priests.
But now, these big guys appeared beside him so easily, not only surrounded him, but also looked at him...
The Southwestern Ghost Exorcist somehow felt like he was a rookie who had infiltrated a group of big guys.
Noticing the panic of the southwestern ghost exorcist, Taoist Li snorted, raised his hand and slapped him hard on the back. With a loud "pop", his back, which had been bent due to shyness, was straightened.
"Stand still, be confident!"
Taoist Priest Li said disdainfully, "I should have brought out my disciple to show you. You two complement each other - he knows nothing but is so confident all day long, while you have already graduated and are a good enough exorcist, but you are still not confident. Tsk."
Taoist Li felt that if Lu Xingxing had this man's abilities, his tail would probably have gone straight to the sky.
Still hunched over?
Lu Xingxing could go order eighteen flags, write on them what he could do, then tie them up behind his back and go out on the street proudly - he could also hang a loudspeaker on his waist and loudly announce his achievements and how great and awesome he is.
Taoist Priest Li: How could I have such a confident disciple? He might as well learn to sing Peking Opera.
The southwestern ghost exorcist was stunned at first, then his face turned red and tears welled up in his eyes.
Because his master left early and he was young and not yet a master at that time, he was always looked down upon and ignored by other exorcists. No one had ever taken him seriously.
Not to mention that Taoist Priest Li, a figure that all exorcists could only dream of, actually noticed his emotions carefully and comforted him...
The southwestern ghost exorcists felt bitter, but their fighting spirit was high.
He felt that he suddenly understood why his master was willing to die to help Mr. Chengyun, and he also understood the saying "A gentleman will die for his friend."
Back then, Master followed without hesitation even though he knew it was dangerous, because of Master Chengyun's trust and solemn entrustment to him.
After all, he is the hermit Chengyun who travels around the world and has friends all over the world.
Even after he disappeared for many years, there are still countless respected people who are concerned about his situation. Even now, if anyone seeks help in the name of Master Chengyun, they will surely receive a hundred responses.
This is the personal charm of Master Chengyun that once left a mark in everyone’s heart.
The Southwestern Ghost Exorcist remembered that he did not understand that sentence when he read it before. It was not until now that he felt that just for the care and comfort from Taoist Li at this moment, he must try his best tonight!
If you don't succeed, you will die! ①
"Later, I reviewed my master's past. Mr. Chengyun came here for the wood carvings with live mouths and eyes. My master's notes recorded that one of the carpenters who was proficient in this art was named Zheng."
The Southwest Ghost Exorcist said sincerely: "When the person in charge asked me about it before, I only knew that the last person who could make wood carvings with living mouths and eyes was Carpenter Zheng. But he moved away later, and no one knows where his home is anymore."
The more Taoist Li and the others listened, the more they frowned.
According to southwestern ghost exorcists, the reason why wood carvings were originally made with movable mouths and eyes was because this was more similar to the image of a living person and was more attractive to wandering ghosts. Sometimes, seven or eight ghosts could possess a wood carving, which also improved the efficiency of the ghost exorcists.
Secondly, it is also to control the wood carving.
The mechanism for the movable mouth and eyes is built into the wood carving, but can be operated by someone else - such as a ghost exorcist.
That way, there's no need to worry about the wood carving getting filled with ghosts and getting out of control.
However, the control backdoor that was opened for the exorcists in the past has now made it easier for the ghosts to control these wood carvings when ghosts are in power.
The Taoist priest couldn't help but worry: "Since your master's last stop was at Baizhi Lake, and Monk Chengyun has also been here, it seems that Carpenter Zheng who has lost his trace is in the village next to Baizhi Lake."
However, back then, the evil spirit was already strong enough to kill the master of the exorcist. Now, many years later, coupled with the ghost way...
Even though the Taoist priest was well prepared, he still couldn't help but feel frightened.
As they were talking, they had already arrived at the deserted village next to Baizhi Lake.
The outline of the village was vaguely revealed in the darkness, although according to the archives, the village had been abandoned for many years because all the villagers had died.
But when everyone actually walked into the village, they found that it did not seem to be too dilapidated. At most, it was a little deserted because no one took care of it, and some brick walls and roofs had collapsed.
It was similar to the poor villages the Taoist had visited before, but it was much better than he had expected.
"It doesn't look like there's no one living here."
A Taoist priest lowered his head and observed carefully, pointing to the remaining marks on the sandy ground under his feet and said: "There are still shoe prints left, and it is obvious that they were not left by the person in charge."
The Taoist priest knew very well that official leaders usually chose boots that were easy to move in when they went out on field trips, but the shoe prints he saw looked very much like old-fashioned cloth shoes.
It’s not the kind sold outside, but the style we make at home.
This village was massacred decades ago, and among the people coming today, no one would wear old-fashioned cloth shoes.
The Taoist priest suspected that either the people in the village died and were still "alive" thanks to the wood carvings with movable mouths and eyes, or that they were people from other villages visiting.
No matter which one it was, the Taoist priest had to be fully alert to deal with it.
After entering the world covered by the ghost path, everyone clearly felt that the power in their bodies was suppressed, and they felt as if they had difficulty breathing.
It's like a fish being thrown onto land.
A Taoist priest joked: "I never thought that in my lifetime, I would be able to experience the feeling of being a 'ghost'. Is this how ghosts felt when they hid in the human world?"
The Taoist priest next to him smiled bitterly: "I'm afraid even the effect of the talisman will be greatly reduced. We must be careful and cautious."
"Master, you said before that a young man saw my master's bones in an abandoned temple?"
The Southwest Exorcist asked cautiously with tears in his voice, "After things here are settled, can I go to the temple? Taoist priest, don't worry, I will definitely not delay your business."
"I just..."
He lowered his head and said sullenly, "I just want to take my master home."
Taoist Priest Li paused as he was about to push the door of the house next door.
He turned his back to the crowd and suddenly thought of his junior fellow apprentice.
The most gifted disciple in Haiyun Temple's recorded history.
Too many people died.
At that time, all of Taoist Li's senior brothers went down the mountain to the battlefield to provide rescue and medicine to ordinary people. In the end, only a few of them came back.
It was at that time that Taoist Li's master picked up a young child.
"There will be a great disaster on earth."
The master looked at the youngest child and sighed, "Unparalleled talent will also bring disasters that are difficult for ordinary people to resist. The Great Dao must have seen the future and made preparations in advance. This child... will bring vitality to the world."
Because Li Chengyun was so talented, his master was afraid that the God would take the child away, so he called him "Goudan" before he grew up to balance his fate.
At that time, the young Taoist Priest Li didn’t understand.
It was not until now that he understood what his master had meant by his calculations a hundred years ago.
Li Chengyun picked up the evil ghost in his bones and carefully trained Yan Shixun to be a good enough ghost exorcist.
Before the opportunity comes, Li Chengyun peeks into the secrets of heaven in order to avert disaster.
His junior fellow apprentice...also died alone in Baizhi Lake that year.
When he died, there were no relatives or friends around him and no one cried for him.
Only the path under your feet is always there.
Taoist Priest Li stood there silently, his palm on the door panel slowly clenched into a fist.
He thought that after more than a hundred years of life, he had long been accustomed to separation and death. But when the Southwestern Ghost Exorcist mentioned the incident at Baizhi Lake, he realized that he had never forgotten the death of his youngest fellow apprentice.
"rest assured."
Taoist Priest Li snorted, "Would I let a martyr's body be exposed in the wilderness? Your master is a man of great merit. He guarded Baizhi Lake for many years. Even if I have to search the entire mountain, I will bring back his remains."
The southwestern exorcist thanked him repeatedly and burst into tears.
The other Taoist priests were also affected by his actions and felt heavy-hearted.
They sighed and patted the young ghost exorcist, but they knew in their hearts that what Taoist Li said was already a comfort.
All of them were very likely to die here, using their bodies to fill in the gaps in the formation that had been destroyed when the ebony statue was taken away, and trying their best to re-suppress or even expel the evil spirits from White Paper Lake.
No one can be distracted to pay attention to what happens after their death.
How can I bring back the remains of his master for this child?
However, seeing the crying face of the southwestern ghost exorcist, the Taoist priests still couldn't bear to reveal the cruel reality to him.
They shook their heads and dispersed to check the situation in the village.
"strangeness."
A Taoist priest turned his head to look at the calm Baizhi Lake not far behind him, then turned back to look at the house in front of him again, and muttered in confusion: "It's obviously so humid, why is there no moss or anything like that?"
Just looking at the environment, the houses should have been corroded by the perennial humidity.
But the houses here are just dusty and a little dilapidated. Not only are there no mosses that grow in humid areas, even the wood is still intact.
This made the Taoist priest wonder:
Is this really the Bai clan village in reality?
When Taoist Priest Li pushed open the door of another house, he raised his eyes and suddenly met a pair of eyes in the darkness.
The outline of a human figure loomed in the darkness.
As the door was pushed open, faint light shone in from outside, casting a layer of light around the human-shaped figure.
Taoist Li was caught off guard and startled, then he saw clearly what it was.
The man was sitting in the hall facing the main door. He was wearing outdated clothing. He sat upright on a chair with one hand on the table. His wrinkled face showed the vicissitudes of life.
But if you look closely, you'll find that this is not a human at all.
It is an extremely exquisitely crafted wooden puppet.
The craftsman was so meticulous that he paid attention to every wrinkle, and the carving knife accurately portrayed the appearance of the person being used as a model. It was exactly the same as the real person, so there would be no problem even if he was mistaken for the real person.
Taoist Priest Li was not frightened. His eyes slid down and fell on the clothes of the wooden sculpture.
This style from the last century, coupled with the tragedy that happened in Bai’s village itself...
Is it a puppet with a living mouth and eyes carved according to the appearance of the villagers back then?
Sure enough, they found the right place.
As Taoist Priest Li was thinking this, he saw the wooden sculpture looking directly at his eyes, and suddenly it rolled over, with an eerie sense of liveliness.
It was like a dead body suddenly sat up in the morgue and said it was still alive.
The mouth of the wood carving made a slight "clicking" sound, and then its mouth opened into an arc that reached all the way to the ears, and its smile was stiff and malicious.
"welcome……"
The sound came out of the wooden sculpture's mouth, it was hoarse and unpleasant, like a broken gong.
It seemed like it was adapting to this body, and it took a long time to find its vocal cords, from stumbling at the beginning to being able to speak smoothly.
"Welcome, come to Baijia Village as a guest."
The woodcarver grinned and said slowly, "Now that you're here, don't leave."
At the same time, a warning sound came from the village behind Taoist Li.
The Taoist priests’ exclamations and reminders came one after another.
"I saw a wood carving with a living mouth and eyes!"
"Me too, everyone be careful!"
"The carpenter back then probably carved the entire village, so everyone should be careful to avoid being besieged."
"I have some in my house over here!"
"Is this the end of the ghosts taking over the world?..."
A Taoist priest looked at the wooden sculpture that pounced on him and murmured, "Ghosts are human beings, but human beings are ghosts. The Taoist priests who exorcise ghosts are just rats crossing the street."
But when the wooden sculpture approached him, he still instinctively raised his sword to fight back, and his eyes were firm and unwavering as he swung at the wooden sculpture.
The sound of wood colliding, mixed with the words of the Taoist priests, broke the silence of the village.
Every household seemed to be woken up.
Lights were turned on in the house, and shadows of people were cast on the windows.
But when every household opened their doors, they saw wood carvings similar to the ones the Taoist priests encountered.
There were also many wooden puppets sitting up from the beds in the houses.
All his behaviors are no different from those of living people.
They were wearing the clothes that once belonged to the villagers, as if they were the villagers themselves.
I work from sunrise to sunset and sleep soundly at home, but I was awakened by the noise outside, so I went out to check.
Those Taoist priests outside are the evil ones who broke into the village and destroyed the peace.
When the Taoist priests saw this scene, they could not help but stand there in shock, looking around in disbelief.
There was even a moment when they seemed to forget their own identities.
Are they really the Taoist priests of Haiyun Temple, who have practiced for decades to catch ghosts and exorcise evil spirits to protect peace on earth?
Or are they actually evil spirits who have forgotten that they had died long ago and have been blinded by false memories, so that over time, even they themselves have forgotten the truth?
The Taoist priest felt a sharp pain on his head, and he quickly raised his hand to support his head. However, his eyes were in chaos, and he could not find a point to steady himself.
The rest of the people also began to experience similar symptoms. Some Taoist priests even felt burning and stinging pain in their hands while holding the peach wood swords. A black patch spread, and their skin and flesh rolled up with sparks, just like what happened when evil spirits encountered pure and righteous energy in the past.
The Taoist priest looked at the palm of his hand, shocked and confused.
What he is doing... To the ghosts, Taoist priests are the evil ghosts who should be killed!
All the magic skills they had learned in the past were now turned into methods to deal with themselves, but they could not hurt the wooden sculpture in front of them or the evil spirit in their eyes at all.
Taoist Priest Li saw all of this, his eyes were gloomy and his white beard fluttered.
…
"Door, how come the door opened by itself!"
A scream caught everyone's attention.
Bai Shuang looked at the door slowly opening in front of her in shock, her finger pointing over there trembling, and even her voice changed in tone out of fear.
Although the program crew did not wait for Yan Shixun, they successfully met Taoist Master Wang and Taoist Master Ma. They followed the two Taoist masters and found a village.
Although many houses here are dilapidated, some are still habitable, so everyone cleaned them up and used them as temporary shelter from the wind and rain.
Everyone gathered in one place, ready to take a nap and rest for a while before setting off again.
After all, everyone was shocked and tired. Although the logistics staff of the program team had food in their backpacks so that they would not go hungry, it was difficult to recover from the mental fatigue.
Seeing that everyone was in low spirits, Taoist Master Ma decided to let everyone take a short rest and adjust their condition before setting off again.
The same is true for white frost.
She was originally lying on the bed to rest, but between half asleep and half awake, she suddenly felt a cold wind blowing down her neck.
As a result, when she looked up, she found that the door of the house opened automatically, but no one entered or left.
But... Bai Shuang remembered very clearly that in order to prevent anything from happening to everyone, Taoist Ma carefully checked the door lock and locked it before letting everyone rest.
It shouldn't be the wind that blew the door open.
Could it be that there is a ghost?
Bai Shuang was very frightened.
Because of her exclamation, the others who were half asleep rubbed their eyes and looked in the direction that Bai Shuang was pointing tremblingly.
"Eh? Who went out to the bathroom and forgot to close the door?"
"It's so cold, sneeze!"
Sitting on the Eight Immortals Chair in the hall, Ma
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