Both Luo Tianhe and Zhang Qiang's eyes lit up when they heard the name of Taoist Master Zhang Qingxiao.
After all, he's a big shot from the Bureau of Abnormal Investigations, and he knows far more than a young guy like me.
"Okay, I won't go. I still have some things to deal with. Let Zhou Wenxiu stay at the police station for now. I'll try my best to keep her calm. There shouldn't be any problems."
Zhang Qiang made the final decision.
He must have a lot to deal with, but the most urgent matter is Zhang Wei's parents' situation.
The plan is set for now, and we won't stay in the scenic area any longer.
When I got home, it was already two or three in the morning. I was exhausted after a whole night of tossing and turning, but my mind was a jumbled mess and I couldn't fall asleep at all.
I really can't understand it; it's so illogical.
As dawn broke, I quickly washed up and changed into clean clothes.
Without even having breakfast, I took a taxi directly to Luo Tianhe's house, intending to go with him to find Master Zhang Qingxiao.
This kid and Li Huai slept quite well; neither of them seemed to care about anything.
Luo Tianhe and Li Huai didn't understand why I got up so early.
I'm too lazy to talk to them anymore.
We were already quite familiar with the way to Master Zhang Qingxiao's house, and soon we arrived at his secluded courtyard.
At this moment, Taoist Master Zhang Qingxiao was meditating on a futon.
Seeing my anxious expression, Master Zhang Qingxiao frowned slightly:
"What's wrong? You seem to be in a hurry?"
"Master, the case of the mutilation and mutilation of living beings that I told you about before has encountered a major problem!"
I gave a wry smile and bowed.
Then, everything that has happened since last night, starting with Zhang Wei's murder case and the series of murders over the years, the connection between their birth charts, their underground hideouts, Zhou Fuquan's obsession and evil magic,
The story recounts in detail the bizarre resurrection of Zhou Wenxiu and her unusual behavior.
Luo Tianhe and Li Huai added details from the side.
Master Zhang listened quietly, a glint of shrewdness occasionally flashing in his eyes.
After a long silence, Daoist Zhang Qingxiao finally spoke, his voice carrying a hint of solemnity:
"The practice of harvesting and dismembering living beings to create puppets is indeed recorded sporadically in Taoist canons, unofficial histories, and folk tales. It is mostly classified as unorthodox and evil arts, extremely insidious, and only one in ten thousand succeeds, all because it goes against the will of Heaven, violates the nature of things, goes against human ethics, and confuses Yin and Yang."
What the Taoist priest said was exactly what I was thinking, so I nodded repeatedly.
He paused, then continued:
“Chen Yan, as the successor of the Second Cobbler, you should also know that respecting the dead and ensuring their burial is the true principle of heaven and earth. Forcibly piecing together the remains of different deceased is like forcibly kneading soil and rocks from different mountains into a lump. Even if it looks decent on the outside, the inside will be completely disorganized, the energy channels will be blocked, and the soul will have nowhere to rest.”
"Master, I know all of this. That's why I decided to ask you and see what your insights are."
If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never have believed that such a thing could happen.
“Grandmaster, you don’t know, Zhou Wenxiu, she’s too normal. Apart from some strange details, she seems like a living, breathing person, even learning how to adapt to modern society!”
Upon hearing this, Daoist Zhang Qingxiao nodded slightly, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.
“This matter is far too strange. According to you, seven lives lost in violent deaths were used as materials, and the soul of a close relative driven mad was used as fuel. Such a massive amount of evil power and obsession would make it reasonable to create a chaotic monster. But the current situation is extremely abnormal.”
Zhang Qingxiao is indeed very knowledgeable, but he has never seen anything like this before. It was really difficult for him to ask him such a question.
He pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked:
"By the way, did you guys notice? Did that girl have the death aura and yin energy that are typical of corpses?"
The three of us thought about it carefully, and then we all shook our heads.
"No!" Luo Tianhe will definitely receive it.
"Moreover, she seemed to have a faint, pleasant fragrance about her, which was completely different from the deathly aura and yin energy emanating from those ghosts."
Li Huai scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, and added.
I couldn't help but glance at him. Actually, I could smell that fragrance too, but I was too embarrassed to say it. Li Huai is quite honest, isn't he?
“In that case,” Daoist Zhang Qingxiao stroked his beard, a hint of hesitation in his eyes, indicating uncertainty, “the transformation of Yin and Yang, the turning of adversity into prosperity, the birth of Yang from the extreme of Yin. Those people gathered an immense amount of Yin energy, death energy, and resentment energy; perhaps some kind of extreme change has occurred that we cannot comprehend!”
"Extreme change?" I asked, puzzled. I had never heard of this term before.
"Yes, it's similar to how two negatives make a positive; extreme yin energy can also generate vitality."
"Just like the underworld is the place with the heaviest yin energy in the entire world, it also bears the responsibility of reincarnation. All living people come from there. In a sense, the underworld is also the place with the heaviest life energy in the world!"
I nodded thoughtfully; the Taoist priest's explanation did make some sense.
He looked at us, his tone becoming increasingly serious:
"To be honest, in all my years of cultivation, this is the first time I've encountered such a situation. What I'm saying may not be correct; it's just my guess."
"It's alright, Daoist Master. Your performance was much better than Chen Yan's. When Chen Yan first saw this scene, it was as if the sky had fallen. He couldn't believe it at all. But you, Daoist Master, at least gave a possible reason."
Although the Taoist priest didn't completely answer our questions, he did offer a general direction, Li Huai said with a smile, not at all worried about me losing face in front of the Taoist priest.
I couldn't help but glare at him. This kid, he can't keep his mouth shut.
"Master, is she still alive? Does she have a soul? How should we treat her?"
She did pester us after all; if she hadn't, we could have pretended not to see her.
But now, I really don't know how to face her.
Every time I see her, I feel a little scared, even though she looks like a beautiful girl.
Upon hearing me ask the most crucial question, Master Zhang Qingxiao remained silent for a long time before slowly shaking his head:
"To be honest, I can't say for sure whether she was neither alive nor dead. The traditional concept of the three souls and seven spirits had become meaningless to her."
"Let's take the underworld as an example. If there were a Book of Life and Death, her name would have been removed from it long ago."
"Then let her live like this. I feel like she's a ticking time bomb."
Li Huai couldn't help but say.
“Of course not,” the Taoist priest said solemnly. “Its very existence is contrary to human ethics, and if left to its own devices, it will likely cause a great disaster. But it is also not appropriate to rashly destroy it with swift and decisive measures.”
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