Chapter 21: Unwilling to accept this as their final destination
"But you're here."
Ye Yangjia felt somewhat gloating.
"As long as you hold on and don't drop out, and don't give up, who knows who will be the strongest in the future."
Shi Can turned around and said:
"Why are you nagging me behind my back? Why don't you just chat in a group privately about this?"
"Okay, let's create a group."
Ye Yangjia took out his cell phone, sneered, and said,
"Don't come crying and say we're isolating you."
Shi Chan shrugged it off: "Who would cry over something like this?"
They went downstairs, through the fire escape of the teaching building, and headed to the back of the building. Behind the building was the playground. On the northernmost side of the playground was a cypress forest, a favorite place for young couples to go during physical education class.
Shi Chan entered the grove, closed his eyes and felt it for a while, then opened his eyes helplessly:
"It's hidden pretty well."
He extended his hand to Ye Yangjia:
"Give me the bag of eight trigrams containing the living souls. I want to take a wisp of soul fire."
At such a close distance, using soul fire to find the soul would be very useful. However, Fan Taotao's soul is a little weak, so taking soul fire is not a good option for her.
Lin Zhuyue walked towards a tree as if he had sensed something.
"I think I know where..."
She stood by the tree and pointed to the spot under the tree:
"It should be here. Let's dig it up and see."
Shi Chan clicked his tongue and pulled a folding shovel from his bag.
Ye Yangjia also started to help dig, while Wen Miyan and Lin Zhuyue handed their shovels to Director Shang and Secretary Wang. The four of them concentrated on digging holes in the grove.
Director Shang wiped the sweat from his head:
"Is it really here? Why haven't we dug it up yet?"
There was a drought in Qianniu City, and the grove was full of tree roots. Digging holes was really not easy for a middle-aged, overweight man who often sat in an office.
Shi Can is very confident in Lin Zhuyue's inspiration:
"Dig a little deeper."
After digging for more than ten minutes and breaking many tree roots, they finally found what they were looking for. The pattern of ceramics came into view. After digging carefully again, they dug the porcelain out of the soil.
Shi Chan took out the ceramic jar:
"An urn? Hiding the living soul in his own urn, he's really something."
He opened the can, and a wisp of translucent white smoke floated out and wrapped around Shi Chan's fingertips.
Ye Yangjia quickly opened the Bagua bag, and the smoke flowed from his fingertips into the Bagua bag and merged with other souls.
Shi Chan covered the urn, put it back in the pit, and filled it with soil.
Lin Zhuyue asked doubtfully, "When was this buried?"
“It’s probably something from a long time ago.”
Director Shang helped fill the soil while answering questions.
"This cypress forest has been planted for more than ten years, and the school has been established for more than forty years."
Filling a hole was easier than digging it, and they quickly filled it up.
Shi Can burned a talisman right above the pit.
"After digging up someone's grave, according to the rules, you have to burn some paper money to make amends."
Wen Miyan shook her head and sighed.
"But the original owner can't receive it, so it's useless to burn it."
After the talisman paper burned, Shi Can covered the ash with three shovels of soil. He folded the shovels, put them into a black brocade bag, and put it back into his travel bag.
"That's all, let's go."
They packed up their things, crossed the playground again, walked into the teaching building, and exited through the main entrance.
Chu Hongyu and Yu Xiaoyan did not leave, but were waiting for them in the business car.
Although it was a business car, it couldn't accommodate many people, so Director Shang and Secretary Wang took a patrol car to the school gate.
After arriving at the school gate, Wen Miyan directly handed Chu Hongyu a stack of documents.
"Confidentiality agreement."
Wen Miyan said to Chu Hongyu,
"You don't have to sign it, but everyone who knows about this matter, whether they participated or not, must sign a confidentiality agreement, including the principal. If the principal is not on a business trip, have him sign a paper version; if he is, have him sign an electronic version."
"Let's take care of it tonight. We'll be returning to Sky City tomorrow with these confidentiality agreements."
This was not the first time Chu Hongyu had come into contact with a spiritual master. He knew their complicated procedures and nodded in agreement.
"I'll see to it."
Yu Xiaoyan, Director Shang and Secretary Wang were asked to sign a confidentiality agreement on the spot.
After pressing his fingerprints and handing back the confidentiality agreement, Director Shang wiped his fingers with the tissue Lin Zhuyue handed over, then asked with a bit of worry:
"I talk in my sleep, is that okay?"
"Don't worry so much."
Shi Chan replied slowly,
"It's such an outrageous thing. Even if someone heard me talking in my sleep, it would just be considered a dream."
Director Shang scratched his head and said, "...That's right."
"Send this child home. If you're worried, take her back to the mental health center for a checkup. Or, have her stay for a few more days. If she's fine, get her discharged."
Shi Can pushed Yu Xiaoyan to the school and said,
"We have to deal with Fan Taotao's problem."
Secretary Wang took the initiative to take the job: "Okay, I'll take her back."
After parting with Yu Xiaoyan, Chu Hongyu drove a business car and took Lin Zhuyue and his group back to Qianniu People's Hospital. After putting on isolation clothing, he met Fan Taotao who was lying in the ICU again under the guidance of the vice president.
They had only been gone for a few hours when clouds of fog gathered in the ward again. The damaged souls wanted to enter this living but soulless body.
Ye Yangjia opened the Bagua bag containing the living soul.
A translucent white soul floated out from inside. Unlike the soul of the dead, the living soul looked very pure. Although it was not warm, it did not feel cold either.
The soul floated towards Fan Taotao and began to enter the body from the feet, but it entered the body very slowly, as if it was blocked by something.
Lin Zhuyue stretched out his hand and accurately grabbed a black thread, which was "fate". Its two ends were connected to Fan Taotao's soul at one end and to another Bagua bag that contained the Pen Fairy at the other end.
Lin Zhuyue said to Shi Can:
"This is what's pulling at her soul, not letting her go back."
Shi Can did not hesitate, summoned the absolute blade, and severed the "fate" that Lin Zhuyue had pulled out.
The moment the "fate" was severed, the speed at which Fan Taotao's soul entered her body became much faster.
Lin Zhuyue was a little confused: "Why did it enter from the feet?"
"The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine says: 'Man is born from the energy of heaven and earth, and is formed by the laws of the four seasons.'"
Wen Miyan stood at the end of the bed and said,
"Earth energy is our roots and foundation, and the parts of our bodies that touch the ground and absorb it are primarily our feet. The feet are more likely to absorb what the body lacks, so when we return to the spirit, we generally let it return through the feet."
"Prick your toes and let some blood out. The body will lose blood and energy, and there will be more space. The soul will flow back even faster."
Her soul gradually returned, and Fan Taotao, who had been in a coma for many days, began to show signs of improvement. She moved her eyelids and slowly opened her eyes, but her eyes were still lifeless and empty.
But the godless emptiness is only temporary.
The more souls returned, the brighter those eyes became. When the souls had completely returned to the body, Fan Taotao's eyes trembled, revealing a somewhat confused look.
She didn't know what was wrong with her.
As a self-protection mechanism, her brain had probably completely forgotten about the car accident.
She opened her eyes for a moment, then quickly fell back asleep. However, her vital signs did not decline, but became increasingly vigorous and stable.
"She probably didn't have much energy, so she fell asleep again."
Dean Zhang pressed the call button and explained to everyone,
"We need to examine her. If there's nothing wrong, she can be transferred out of the ICU."
The doctors came in quickly. Dean Zhang handed the examination over to them and led everyone out of the ICU glass ward to the office to sign a confidentiality agreement.
Shi Can took the confidentiality agreement and said:
"When she can write again, have her fill out the confidentiality agreement. Also, be sure to criticize her severely."
"Part of the pancreas was removed."
Ye Yangjia leaned against the wall with his arms folded and said,
“Even if you don’t criticize me, I’ll remember the lesson for the rest of my life.”
Shi Chan emphasized: "If you don't do it, you will die."
This mission was completed very quickly and efficiently. Everyone involved survived, and as for the price Fan Taotao would have to pay for this car accident in the future, that had nothing to do with Tiancheng.
Lin Zhuyue thought of another pitiful person who was involved:
"Um, the driver's side..."
Chu Hongyu said: "We will take care of it."
Chu Hongyu drove Lin Zhuyue and his group away from the hospital.
Lin Zhuyue and others have completed their mission perfectly, but Chu Hongyu still has to clean up the mess. So after sending the trainee spiritualists to the booked hotel, Chu Hongyu said goodbye to Lin Zhuyue and his party for the time being and will come back to take them to catch the plane tomorrow.
Originally, Chu Hongyu wanted to treat them to dinner.
However, Shi Can, Wen Miyan and Ye Yangjia did not want to sit at the dinner table with unfamiliar people. Even though Chu Hongyu knew about the existence of spiritual masters, their worldviews were too different, and it was difficult for them to chat freely.
After dropping off their belongings at the hotel, they took a larger car to the yakitori restaurant Wen Miyan had wanted to visit. This yakitori restaurant was a popular online favorite and was bustling with customers. They hadn't originally been able to get a private room that day, but someone canceled their reservation at the last minute, allowing them to snag a bargain.
Although the food at the Yakitori restaurant is a bit expensive, they don't charge a private room fee, which is much more generous than the coffee shop I went to during the day that used instant coffee powder to make Blue Mountain coffee.
While waiting for their meal, the four people turned on their mobile phones.
Wen Miyan asked in surprise: "Huh?"
Shi Chan asked, "What happened? Did Tiancheng explode?"
"The Sky City was not bombed."
Wen Miyan said,
"A tomb was dug up. It was a large tomb."
Ye Yangjia asked: "Tomb robber?"
Wen Miyan shook her head:
"It's not accurate to say they were tomb robbers. Tomb robbers usually go for valuables, right? Not much valuables were lost in this tomb, but the bodies of the tomb owner and the deceased are gone."
Lin Zhuyue couldn't help but say:
"...Who would steal a corpse?"
"Insider."
Shi Chan replied,
"Cultivating corpses requires a very high level of integrity. Cremation is definitely not an option these days, and even back in the day, if you couldn't afford a coffin, burying directly in the ground wouldn't work either... so you'd have to look for bodies in burial chambers."
Lin Zhuyue was speechless for a moment, then said, "Isn't this illegal?"
Is the Spiritual Master Certificate some kind of golden ticket to innocence? Does using a Spiritual Master Certificate mean tomb robbing isn't illegal?
"It's definitely illegal."
Shi Chan poured himself a cup of barley tea and said,
"There used to be quite a few people who raised corpses in Tiancheng, but now most of them have abandoned their family traditions and learned other things. I don't know who is so persistent in this family tradition that they would rather raise corpses than rob tombs."
Ye Yangjia said, "Maybe he's not from Tiancheng, maybe he's from the Kunlun branch, or maybe he's a metaphysical person who hasn't been accepted by the Spiritual Master House... Although there are many charlatans in the world, there are also some who have real skills."
"It's good to have real skills."
Shi Chan took a sip of tea, but the instant it entered his mouth, he felt so hot that he put the cup down and said sarcastically,
"I'm afraid he'll be half-baked and make things worse, causing a lot of trouble and leaving others to clean up the mess."
Wen Miyan said disdainfully:
"We're eating, can you please not mention wiping your butt?"
"Isn't the food served yet?"
Ye Yangjia tore open the packaging of the chopsticks and said:
"It's hard to even wipe one's butt. How many people in Tiancheng know how to treat corpses now?"
Wen Miyan: "Why are you also lifting your buttocks..."
Lin Zhuyue kept hearing "butt" in his left ear and "butt" in his right ear. He didn't think it was a big deal at first, but when Wen Miyan said that, he suddenly felt a little disgusted.
The order was served promptly.
The yakitori skewers, lanterns and eel rice in this restaurant are must-orders. They also have salmon and tuna sashimi, and the candied cherry tomatoes are also delicious. There is also sukiyaki, and the beef used is at least M5 grade. It tastes very good when dipped in the sterilized egg liquid.
Lin Zhuyue tasted the lantern and said, "It's not fishy."
Shi Can was skeptical about the lantern and waved his hand:
"I won't eat it if it doesn't fishy. Eat it quickly and don't let me see it."
Lin Zhuyue thought: What kind of lantern did I experience to have such a degree of PTSD?
The food in this restaurant is almost unstoppable.
They had a big meal and some drinks, and when they came out of the store, it was already eleven o'clock in the evening.
Qianniu City is a small city in the north, and after nine o'clock at night, there are very few people outside. However, taxis are still easy to get, and taxis are usually picked up in seconds using ride-hailing apps.
They quickly returned to the hotel, bought some disposable items downstairs, and went straight back to their room.
Chu Hongyu booked two executive suites for them, and the two boys and two girls naturally lived separately.
Lin Zhuyue and Wen Miyan each took a bath.
Wen Miyan sat in front of the mirror and went through a complicated skin care routine.
Lin Zhuyue blow-dried her hair, applied some lotion to her face, and then went to bed. She admitted she was a bit rough, but that's typical of high school students living under the pressure of classes and homework. Time is squeezed, and it's impossible to put any effort into their appearance. She only started taking skincare and makeup seriously after graduation.
Lin Zhuyue lay there, thinking:
I have to consider buying a skincare set...
Which brand is better to buy?
Wen Miyan took the initiative to invite:
"Zhuyue, do you want to put on a face mask?"
Lin Zhuyue sat up and asked:
"Aren't we on an emergency mission? We haven't even packed yet, so why are you still carrying a face mask?"
"I carry face masks in all my bags. Whether it's an emergency or a long-planned mission, I always bring a box of face masks."
Wen Miyan couldn't help sighing as she spoke.
"But sometimes I'll be tasked with staying in the mountains for a month. Not only will I run out of face masks, but I'll also miss the Spiritual Master Academy exams. After returning, I'll have to submit reports and retake exams..."
Lin Zhuyue sighed:
"Being a spiritual master is no easier than being a high school senior..."
"Although the higher education department of the Spiritual Master Academy corresponds to high schools and universities outside, they are still very different, right?"
Wen Miyan asked Lin Zhuyue,
"You guys have a club, right?"
"I'll get in my first year of high school, but I'll quit the club and become invisible in the second semester of my second year because of my studies."
"And a school trip?"
Lin Zhuyue replied expressionlessly:
"I stayed in the county for a week. I found steel wool in my food, a used umbrella under my mattress, and when I tried Sprite, I ended up buying Sprite..."
Wen Miyan took a breath: "Hiss——"
"My middle school and high school were pretty hellish."
Lin Zhuyue lay on the bed and said,
"That private school with the same ranking as ours is said to be quite good. Everyone basically gets recommended or goes abroad, and doesn't take the college entrance exam, so it's pretty relaxing. Sometimes we take time off to travel... But the students who got in say that the competition for recommended spots is incredibly fierce, and those who go abroad have to go to study centers to take IELTS and TOEFL. Some even take a year off to study English."
Wen Miyan nodded: "That is indeed quite hellish."
At Wen Miyan's invitation, Lin Zhuyue applied a facial mask, washed her face, applied some moisturizing cream, and lay down on the bed ready to go to sleep.
Wen Miyan asked Lin Zhuyue:
"Speaking of which, you'll go to a good university, right?"
"My grades are pretty good, and I have a Yuancheng hukou."
Lin Zhuyue turned over and faced Wen Miyan.
"It's possible to get into a good university, but don't even think about getting into the top two. My mom and grandparents might not approve of the school I choose and might send me abroad."
Wen Miyan said, "Your family seems to be a famous family."
"Well, my family is said to have a rich background. Both my grandparents studied abroad. We met abroad."
You can imagine how great it was to be able to study abroad in that era.
"Both of them are very strict."
Lin Zhuyue's tone was a little depressed.
"But maybe it's just me. To my sister, they might be very kind old people."
When the video of fighting ghosts in the toilet was leaked, Tiancheng had already investigated Lin Zhuyue's background, and Wen Miyan was quite clear about Lin Zhuyue's family situation.
Lin Zhuyue's mother was the daughter of a wealthy family. She was in love with Lin Zhuyue's father. When she was about to announce her relationship to her parents, she unexpectedly became pregnant. Then, Lin Zhuyue's biological father died abroad.
The Lin family investigated this man but found no useful information. My mother's grandparents urged her to abort the child, but she remained steadfast and gave birth to Lin Zhuyue, raising her for three years. Then, she married a man of equal status, had a child, and sent Lin Zhuyue away.
Lin Zhuyue was raised by a nanny.
The Lin family didn't mistreat her. They had more than one nanny, a driver, and a chef, and her bank account balance never dipped below six figures. She didn't live on her own until high school, when she secretly moved from the dorm into a rental apartment. She had a conflict with her family, but they weren't too insistent on disciplining her. After the dispute, they gave her an apartment near the school and more money was transferred to her bank account, but that was all.
Wen Miyan was silent for a while and then said:
"Your family hasn't been notified of your transfer to the Spiritual Master Academy yet. Since the transfer was mandatory and you were already eighteen years old, we were able to take you directly without your guardians, but we still had to notify everyone."
This should have been announced long ago.
However, Lin Zhuyue's situation was somewhat complicated. If this were to be brought to light before the Lin family, it would involve Lin Zhuyue's father and the family behind him, revealing matters that the Lin family shouldn't know. Therefore, the Spiritual Master's Mansion wasn't even ready to disclose these matters to Lin Zhuyue, let alone her mother and grandparents, who had no connection to the Spiritual Master's Mansion.
Lin Zhuyue had no expectations for his family and said calmly:
"Let's wait until they find out. There will definitely be a fight, and I don't want to argue."
The Lin family was unable to win the fight with the Spiritual Master House, so they could only cut off her living expenses and let her go as a Spiritual Master. However, Spiritual Masters received high bonuses for completing missions, and Lin Zhuyue already had the ability to survive, so she didn't care too much about the living expenses her family gave her.
"We will handle this matter as smoothly as possible."
Wen Miyan said to Lin Zhuyue,
"Go to sleep. We'll get up early tomorrow morning and have a buffet before heading to the airport. It's Cantonese style. I'm not sure if it's authentic, but the reviews are pretty good."
Lin Zhuyue nodded and soon fell asleep.
Early the next morning, Wen Miyan pulled Lin Zhuyue up.
Ye Yangjia and Shi Can next door also got up.
"Can't I not go?"
Shi Chan squinted his eyes and yawned.
"I played games until after three o'clock, and I don't like morning tea. Wake me up after you finish eating."
Ye Yangjia held his forehead and asked, "With your work and rest schedule...didn't your family scold you?"
"They thought I was secretly studying in the middle of the night and told me not to get too tired."
Shi Can squeezed toothpaste onto his toothbrush and said,
“Although I do learn things in the middle of the night.”
Ye Yangjia: "...Aren't you sleepy?"
Shi Can put the toothbrush in his mouth and said incoherently:
"I'm sleepy, but I'd rather be sleepy than be a fool with little knowledge."
In a sense, Shi Chan was really annoying. Not only was he talented, but he also secretly took exams in the middle of the night. If the full score on the exam wasn't 100, he would definitely get 250 to be satisfied.
Shi Can said: "By the way, Chu Hongyu..."
"I've been here, and the confidentiality agreement has been delivered."
Ye Yangjia replied,
"I've looked at it and signed everything that needs to be signed."
Shi Chan replied, “That’ll do.”
Once during a mission, he forgot to sign a confidentiality agreement. As punishment, Tiancheng sent him out again - specifically to sign confidentiality agreements.
After washing up, they waited for Lin Zhuyue and the others downstairs for a while. When the two girls arrived, they checked out at the front desk and went to have morning tea together.
This morning tea is not very authentic, but it still tastes good.
After finishing their morning tea, they headed to the airport and quickly boarded their return flight. The return trip wasn't as rushed as the Spiritual Master's House had sent a helicopter to pick them up. Instead, they had to take a bus to the nearest bus station to Tiancheng, and then board the car sent by the Spiritual Master's House.
After returning to Tiancheng, the Pen Fairy was handed over to the Spiritual Master's Mansion.
Lin Zhuyue watched with his own eyes as the Pen Fairy was released from the Bagua bag, put into heavy shackles, and sunk into an octagonal well in front of a tower in the city.
After sinking the Pen Fairy into the well, several spiritual masters stood by the well and chanted spells. Runes on the eight sides of the well lit up, and then a heavy lid pressed down the well mouth.
"This is usually the final resting place of evil spirits."
Shi Can stood beside Lin Zhuyue and said,
"The well contains a spell that will wear down the soul. Eventually, the soul will give up and scatter. However, due to the belief that 'those who make mistakes should suffer,' it takes many years from the moment one is trapped in the well until the soul scatters."
"Don't act like a demon..."
Shi Can said to Lin Zhuyue,
"If a spiritual master did a lot of bad things in his life, he will go to hell after his death."
Lin Zhuyue turned his head and said, "What about those who haven't done anything bad?"
"Enter the ancestral hall and receive incense and offerings."
Shi Chan replied,
"Some of the ancestors in the ancestral hall have already ascended to heaven, but with the current spiritual energy, it is quite difficult to achieve this."
Shi Chan added as if to persuade:
"There's nothing good about ascending to heaven. It's just flying to the sky to work. It smells like work. It might even be harder than being alive."
Lin Zhuyue asked: "You really want to ascend, right?"
Shi Can was silent for a long time and said:
"You can be quite annoying sometimes."
The Demon-Suppressing Well is a place where no one is allowed to enter without permission. After the work of sealing the evil spirits in the Demon-Suppressing Well is completed, spiritual masters who are not responsible for guarding the Demon-Suppressing Well are not allowed to stay near the Demon-Suppressing Well.
Shi Can and Lin Zhuyue were soon asked to leave.
"I don't want to end up with the same fate as other spiritual masters after working hard all my life."
Shi Can stroked the flowers and plants by the roadside and said,
"I'll be worshipped in the ancestral hall to clean up the mess for the younger generation. If the family falls into decline, there will be no one to worship me. I can't bear this."
He was born a genius, he wanted to stand at the top, and even when his life ended, he didn't want to fall into mediocrity.
Shi Can said to Lin Zhuyue as if it was a prophecy:
"One day in the future, you will also be unwilling to accept it."
Lin Zhuyue asked: "Will it?"
Shi Chan confirmed, “I will.”
After Lin Zhuyue and Shi Can separated, he met Wen Miyan and Ye Yangjia at the academy the next day and discussed briefly the question of where to go after death.
Wen Miyan said, "Let's go into the ancestral hall."
Ye Yangjia thought for a moment and said:
"There's no other choice but to enter the ancestral hall."
Lin Zhuyue asked: "Don't you want to ascend to heaven?"
"To ascend to heaven these days, even the most talented genius can't do it unless the spiritual energy is revived."
Wen Miyan patted Lin Zhuyue's shoulder and said,
"One should be content with what one has. If one is too obsessed with such things, there will be no good end after death."
Ye Yangjia nodded: "Go wherever you can, and don't have any thoughts that you shouldn't have."
Lin Zhuyue looked at Wen Miyan and Ye Yangjia.
She discovered that Shi Chan seemed quite different from the others. Even if this person turned out to be a gifted villain, it wouldn't seem strange.
Will she really be unwilling to accept this one day in the future?
Will she understand Shi Chan?
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