During this period, I was shuttling between the shop and the hospital.
Life was relatively leisurely.
I deal with ghosts every day.
When I'm bored, I think of my old friends.
Luo Tianhe, Jin Ye, Ying Niang, Xiao Mi, etc.
Of the four people, three have passed away, and the other is Luo Tianhe.
Since our last parting, I have never seen Luo Tianhe again, nor have we even spoken on the phone.
I asked Liu Sandao to pull some strings and help me find Luo Tianhe.
However, the only news they received in the past two weeks was that Luo Tianhe was not in prison.
It seems they've been transferred to another prison, but it's unclear where.
He even said mysteriously that my friend was no ordinary person, and that I didn't need to worry too much.
If we are destined to meet, then we will meet again.
My most important task now is to improve my strength and then go to Sanjiapo to seek revenge on Wu Zhiguo.
So every day, I was tediously drawing talismans and looking at the various documents that Yuan Ying and Liu Sandao had left for me.
The weaknesses of ghosts and monsters, how to subdue them, how to deal with various difficulties, and simple formations.
Every day when I grind ink and draw talismans on Xuan paper, I always think of the book "Yunji Qiqian: Fulu Jiyao" that Yuan Ying gave me before his death.
Tucked between the yellowed pages were notes added by Liu Sandao later.
According to the book, talismans are divided into three levels: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Each level is further subdivided into nine categories according to their uses.
Basic talismans are mostly made of yellow paper, such as the "ghost-suppressing talisman," which is used to suppress low-level evil spirits.
The "purification talisman" cleanses away negative energy.
The "guiding lamp talisman" is used to determine the orientation of a haunted house.
The seemingly simple act of outlining with cinnabar actually involves the "three tremors and three stops".
The so-called "three tremors and three stops" means that the pen tip should touch the paper with a three-tenths of a tremor, imitating the natural texture of lightning-struck wood.
The brushstroke should stop at the core of the talisman to lock in the spiritual power.
I once drew an extra wavy line on a guiding lamp talisman because I was not controlling the pen well, and the talisman spontaneously combusted on the spot.
Intermediate-level talismans require the addition of special materials.
Yuan Ying's notes detail that the "Blood River Talisman" must be mixed with black chicken blood.
The "evil-repelling talisman" needs to be mixed with aged glutinous rice wine, while the most troublesome is the "soul-returning talisman".
Those who need talismans drawn should outline the talisman with their fingertip blood at midnight, while reciting the "Supreme Mysterious Treasure Sutra for Saving from Suffering and Removing Sins".
Liu Sandao wrote in the margin of this page: "Back then, I mistakenly used rooster blood, and as a result, when the talisman was completed, it attracted the crowing of the whole village. Remember, female and male chickens must not be mixed up!"
The handwriting was crooked and trembling, suggesting it was written after he suffered a serious injury.
As for advanced talismans, the book mostly uses star charts and hidden patterns to indicate them, and rarely records specific drawing methods.
On the blank space of the title page, Yuan Ying drew half a fragmented lightning strike talisman in cinnabar, with the following words in small print: "The creation of a high-level talisman requires the right timing, favorable location, and harmonious human relations. The right timing refers to drawing upon the spiritual energy of heaven and earth on the day of the lightning tribulation."
"Those with geographical advantage must find the corresponding earth vein nodes; those with human advantage..."
The writing at the back was blurred by water stains, leaving only the four characters "以身为引" (to use one's own body as a guide) clearly visible.
Considering Liu Sandao's use of his own blood to activate the talisman in the pipe, I gradually understood.
The difficulty of high-level talismans is no longer just about technique.
That's gambling with a cultivator's essence, energy, and spirit; the slightest mistake could result in their soul being scattered.
What alarmed me most was the book's account of talismans failing to work.
If the basic symbol is drawn incorrectly, it will at most become ineffective.
If the materials used in an intermediate-level talisman are incorrect, it may backfire on the person who created it.
Once a high-level talisman shatters, it can cause minor damage such as broken meridians or even trigger a calamity in the heavens and earth.
Looking at the pile of discarded talismans on my desk now, some have charred edges and others have cinnabar seeping into them.
I suddenly remembered what Liu Sandao said in the hospital.
"The way of talismans is like rowing against the current. The beginner level talismans trains a steady hand, the intermediate level talismans trains a calm mind, and the advanced level talismans... train a tough life."
...
As a self-taught practitioner, I often found myself bewildered by the candlelight when faced with volumes of obscure talisman diagrams and ancient annotations.
Those winding vermilion lines sometimes resemble a child's scribbles, and sometimes seem as elusive as a book written in the heavens.
The deductions about Yin and Yang and the Five Elements in ancient books left me scratching my head in the middle of the night.
My mind is filled with the thought that this is so difficult.
But when I drew the intermediate talisman for the third time on my desk...
As I watched the talisman paper warm up slightly and glow faintly, I suddenly understood the sentence in Yuan Ying's notes: "The way of talismans begins with form and ends with mind."
Perhaps it was this burning desire for revenge that made me force myself to continue studying late into the night, when I was so sleepy I could barely keep my eyes open.
I desperately want to become powerful, to personally eradicate the evil spirits that have torn countless families apart.
But as my understanding of magic deepened, I gradually realized that I was no longer just pursuing revenge.
These seemingly dry and boring talismanic texts contain the operating rules of another world.
The trembling of the wrist and the pressure of the brushstrokes when drawing talismans imply the perception and guidance of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
Interpreting the records of ghosts and monsters in ancient books is actually an analysis of the darkness and obsessions of human nature.
As Liu Sandao often said, "Evil spirits are easy to eliminate, but the human heart is hard to fathom."
Those evil spirits that cling to old things are taking advantage of people's greed, fear, and wishful thinking.
I began to understand that what attracted me was not only the mysterious magic, but also the process of seeking the truth.
I gradually came to see the delicate balance between humanity and all things, life and death, good and evil.
...
That day, I was drawing a talisman when I heard the clear sound of a wind chime outside the door.
I thought it was a guest, so I subconsciously looked up and almost dropped the pen.
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