“At last, we get to see the Great Immortal!” The woman’s eyes lit up, her hands rubbing together excitedly. She stepped forward and bowed. “This humble woman greets White True Man, Great Immortal Bai!” The middle-aged man behind her also followed with a salute.
“Mm.” The old man slightly lifted his chin, face full of aloof superiority. “What is it that brings you here?”
“Great Immortal Bai…” The woman suddenly remembered her purpose, speaking even more anxiously, “We are villagers from Li Family Village at the foot of the mountain. Please, Immortal, save my son! He… he can’t hold on any longer.” As she spoke, tears burst out all at once.
“What has happened? Why seek my help to save him?” the old man pressed.
“He… he’s been possessed!” The woman wept uncontrollably, snot and tears all over. “Seven days ago, he suddenly fell ill. At first, it was only headaches and trouble breathing, but then it worsened. Now he can’t speak, can’t move. And on his body… black corpse… corpse spots have appeared!”
“Corpse spots?” The old man was startled. Stroking his grizzled beard, he pondered for a moment before putting on an inscrutable air. “From your words, there is indeed something strange. But since I have not seen it with my own eyes, I cannot be sure of the cause. Unfortunately, there are urgent matters in the temple, it is truly inconvenient for me to…”
“Great Immortal!” The woman panicked, dropping to her knees. Crying bitterly, she begged, “My son must have been entangled by unclean things. This is about human life. Within a hundred miles, only you can save him. I beg you, please save him!”
The man beside her also knelt. “Yes, Immortal, please come down the mountain to save my second brother! We are willing to donate thirty… no! Forty taels of silver incense money to the temple!” He tightened his grip on the money pouch and, gritting his teeth, offered it up.
“This…” The old man looked conflicted, but his eyes suddenly lit up. Stroking his beard, he finally nodded. “Ah, very well, very well. I shall go with you.” He said this as he directly accepted the pouch.
Yun Jiao: “…” Did she just witness a fraud in action? And the type where the customer throws themselves at the con? She suddenly thought of her bank account with zero balance. Was scamming a basic skill that came automatically with age?“Thank you, Great Immortal, thank you!” The two of them beamed with gratitude, thanking him profusely.
“You two wait here a moment. Girl, come back to the temple with me. Count the tools, and prepare to descend the mountain to drive away the evil!” The old man tugged her back inside.
“…He’s really going? If he can’t cure the boy, won’t they beat him to death?”
Meanwhile, the old man was rummaging through trunks and cupboards. While doing so, he shoved a pile of talisman papers into her hands. “Here, girl, take these.”
“You’re really going?” Yun Jiao glanced at the papers in her hand.
“Of course.” He nodded confidently, patting his chest. “Rest assured, in these ten miles around, no one drives out evil better than me.”
“…Because you’re the only Daoist in ten miles, right?”
The old man had already packed up and dragged her quickly outside, eager to demonstrate the so-called profound mysteries of Daoist arts.
“Great Immortal, this way, please!” The mother and son hurried to lead them down the path.
The fierce mountain wind had completely stopped, but large sections of the forest had toppled. Oddly, the trees didn’t look blown down, but cut cleanly in half, as though with sharp blades. The cuts were so neat that Yun Jiao gained a new understanding of those so-called winds—so they really had been blades.
Yun Jiao couldn’t help feeling relieved. Luckily she had run into the old man that day and hidden in the temple. Otherwise, she might be lying there like those trees. The temple may have been shabby, but somehow the cutting winds hadn’t touched it.
The old man had said this mountain was called Kui Mountain, and the mother and son lived in the village at its base. But Kui Mountain was vast; descending it would take an hour or two. Perhaps worried about the son’s condition, they hurried along anxiously.
Yet even so, they couldn’t help glancing back at Yun Jiao again and again, their eyes filled with suspicion and even surprise, as though they couldn’t understand why the old man had brought her along.
Even the middle-aged man kept looking at her, though his gaze held some other meaning.
Yun Jiao grew more annoyed, her hand itching to reach for her scalpel.
“Daoist Bai, we’re almost there.” As they neared the base, the woman finally couldn’t resist asking, “By the way, may I ask, this young lady is your…”
The old man didn’t notice their strange expressions. “This is my newly accepted disciple. Her surname is Yun.”
“What?!” The woman froze, eyes wide with disbelief. After a moment she forced an awkward smile. “So she is also a Daoist.” Quickly she withdrew her scrutinizing gaze and didn’t look back again.
The four of them walked for two hours before arriving at Li Family Village. The village had only a dozen or so households, scattered far apart, often two or three miles between neighbors.
Li Mother and Li Da lived right at the foot of the mountain, in a small mud house with a yard in front, cluttered with all sorts of things strewn everywhere as though untouched for years.
Worried about the son, they rushed Bai Yu and Yun Jiao straight to the right-hand room. “Great Immortal, my second son is inside.”
“Mm.” The old man nodded and went straight in without delay.
The room was dim, with little daylight even at noon. On the bed lay a thin figure, straight as a stick. His breathing was rapid, labored like he couldn’t get enough air, the whole room filled with the wheezing, bellows-like sound.
“My son!” Li Mother cried, rushing over in tears. “I’ve brought the Great Immortal. You are saved! You are saved!”
The old man quickened his steps as well, wanting to take a closer look.
But Yun Jiao had just stepped inside when she froze, the corner of her mouth twitching hard.
…
What the hell!
“Daoist Bai, please examine my son quickly. What exactly is wrong with him?” The moment they entered, Li Mother pressed anxiously, though she didn’t dare go too close to the bed, as though fearful of something.
The old man stepped closer and glanced at the man on the bed. Perhaps because of prolonged illness, he was emaciated, skin clinging to bones. His cheeks were sunken, faintly tinged blue, making him look truly pitiful.
The old man looked only briefly before turning his gaze away. Instead, he glanced around the room, then stroked his snowy beard, his demeanor growing ever more lofty. After a long silence, he spoke gravely. “This place is indeed heavy with yin energy. It seems there is truly an evil spirit at work.”
“I knew there must be something unclean!” Li Mother and Li Da exchanged looks of joy, then quickly asked, “Does the Great Immortal have a way to resolve it?”
The old man frowned, feigning difficulty. After a pause, he said, “I can attempt a ritual. But driving out evil is dangerous. You two have no spiritual protection. You should withdraw for now, and do not come close, lest you be harmed.”
The mother and son hesitated only briefly before nodding. They backed out of the room, even closing the door behind them.
Once they left, the old man’s lofty manner vanished at once. He rummaged in his pack, pressing something into Yun Jiao’s hands. “Girl, take this! I’ll chant the spell, you shake this. Louder the better, just make sure those two outside can hear.” Then he pulled out a book and began reading aloud in a booming voice.
Yun Jiao blinked and looked down. In her hand was a palm-sized copper bell, the kind you’d see sold three for ten yuan at a street stall.
“Shake it!” The old man nudged her when she didn’t move. “Don’t worry, won’t take long. Forty taels for a ritual like this—shake it for a quarter of an hour and it’s done. Two people, quick work!”
“….”
So… he brought her here just to be the bell-shaker?
Yun Jiao’s mouth twitched. She took a deep breath, looked forward, and couldn’t help but ask, “Can this really drive away evil?”
“Of course! I’ve always done it this way.”
“You’re sure?”
(End of this chapter)