Chapter 189

Hu Agui said this: "That old beggar is right in the back, oh, no, that's not right, Daoist Wang Mintong is right in the back laundry room. If the True Person wants to see him, he has to come in somehow."

Xu Jia said: "I am afraid of dirty things sticking to my feet. Your place is filled with filth; where is there a place to set foot?"

Hu Agui tutted: "Is the True Person looking down on my place for being dirty? That is having a discriminatory mind. Among these prostitutes, which one is here voluntarily, which one is Joyous?"

Hu Agui was quite glib and made a "please" gesture: "It is impossible for me to personally send out that guy who owes money and won't pay. Business is business."

Xu Jia nodded: "That makes some sense, but not much." He then entered the Cuichun Pavilion.

Cuichun Pavilion is said to be a building, but in reality, it only looks like one from the street. The large neighborhood behind it is all territory of the Cuichun Pavilion, with seven or eight courtyards opened up and meticulously decorated.

Even a single door of the Cuichun Pavilion was exquisitely carved, with copper rings embedded in the door and carvings of lotus flowers and phoenixes.

Xu Jia told Zhang Zhenji to wait outside the door. His realm was not high enough to see through the appearance of skin and flesh, and this nest of foxes was skilled at charm and harvesting; he feared that if he went in, he wouldn't be able to come out. Xu Jia was different; Xu Jia could see through it.

As he followed Hu Agui across the threshold, a scent mixed with the aura of men and women copulating rushed toward him, making one's face flush and heart race.

The front hall was decorated in a magnificent and luxurious style, with several large red mahogany tables placed in the center, surrounded by carved wooden chairs. Famous calligraphy and Mountain and Water Paintings hung on the walls, and there was a stage in the corner.

The second floor had more private booths and elegant rooms, decorated even more exquisitely. Some were partitioned by light gauze curtains, while others were set with screens, giving a sense of allure.

At a glance, there were also brocade cushions, carved beds, and all kinds of porcelain and jade ware.

The girls in each room, fox spirits, whether human or demon, or the pimps and thugs, all poked their heads out to watch Hu Agui—a fox spirit who was both the madam and the top performer—leading in such a handsome young man.

Their eyes turned green one by one, wishing they could strip Xu Jia's clothes off immediately, sit on his waist and hips, and have a quick, pleasurable time.

Xu Jia only then discovered that there were not only fox demons here, but also cat demons and dog demons.

That girl licking her hand, who looked less than fourteen with double buns and a blood-colored skirt, was a cat demon; that pimp who looked honest and loyal was actually a big yellow dog turned into a demon.

To turn into a human, a cat demon must eat the eyes of a dead person, and it is best if they are the eyes of its owner.

A cat demon can possess the power of illusion by eating the eyes of the owner who raised it, just like foxes wearing skull caps or rats eating fingernails; the parts are different, but they all borrow human spirituality to cultivate into human form.

It is much easier for a dog to transform into a human; it only needs to put on its owner's clothes.

Folklore tells stories of a pet dog that, while its male owner was out, put on his clothes and turned into the male owner, subsequently copulating with the female owner, only to be caught and killed later. These illusions could deceive the eyes of ordinary people, but they could not deceive Xu Jia. Viewing it from the Dharma Realm, this place was entirely a cave, and it did not look like a place for people to live; it looked more like a Yao Cave.

Hu Agui said: "These are all here to earn a living. I also teach them not to do evil, and they have never harmed anyone. The True Person does not need to look at them with such a direct gaze. If they get scared later and turn back into their original forms, it won't be good; we still have to do business tonight."

He led Xu Jia through the building courtyards, and suddenly it opened up. Surprisingly, there was a garden in this place, with a pond, flowers of the four seasons, and rockeries and flowing water. In the higher places all around, lanterns were hung; one can imagine that at night, with light and shadow interweaving, it would be quite atmospheric for guests to have wild encounters here.

Past this garden and through a moon gate, they arrived at the "dormitory" where the girls and pimps lived. The atmosphere of daily life was much heavier here, with bamboo poles hanging with stomach protectors, underpants, silk socks, and menstrual cloths.

Menstrual cloths are the filthiest of filth, and even more so when they are the menstrual cloths of prostitutes. Passing underneath them would stain one's fortune with filth.

Yet Hu Agui just walked through them, calling out loudly: "Wang Mintong, someone is here to see you, come out quickly!"

Xu Jia recited an Avoidance of Filth Incantation and used the Earth-Shrinking Daoism to bypass the Filth Blood Light Array. He then saw Wang Mintong washing menstrual cloths by a small ditch. The cloths were fishy and smelly, and for some reason, a pile had accumulated, with flies buzzing everywhere.

Wang Mintong's hair was even whiter, his complexion was sallow, and his eye sockets were bruised.

Seeing Xu Jia, he jumped up and said to Hu Agui: "That's him, he owes me three thousand taels of silver. You go find him for the money, don't torture this old man anymore. This old man really has no money, but I have one life to give."

Xu Jia said: "Daoist Wang, are you truly playing among mortals, or do you have no Dharma Power at all? The Longevity Sect is wreaking havoc in Dexing, and an Outer Path Dharma King who has cultivated an Intermediate Yin Body has come, which is very formidable. The Xinzhou City God asked Longhu Mountain for reinforcements, and Longhu Mountain said you had already arrived here. Why not reveal your Divine Ability?"

"You are from Longhu Mountain?" Hu Agui looked surprised.

At the same time, he became vigilant. Longhu Mountain's Talisman is famous throughout the world, especially the Ancestral Heavenly Master, who slays demons and eliminates evil. The current Thirty-Sixth Generation Heavenly Master is said to be a Heavenly Immortal Seed, ranking in the top five among all past Heavenly Masters, possessing incredible Dharma Power. He once cured a fox demon in the capital—not an ordinary fox demon, but a thousand-year-old fox demon that had infiltrated the harem and become a True Dragon concubine, an Great Demon with cultivation above the Earth Immortal level.

"Hey? I'm not, I don't have any, don't talk nonsense." This Wang Mintong refused to admit it to the death: "I am just an ordinary old man, where would I have any Divine Ability or Dharma Power?"

Xu Jia was helpless: "I will definitely return these three thousand taels of silver to the True Person, so please teach me a method."

"Returning the money is fine, but I really cannot teach you. Besides, I have no Divine Ability or Dharma Power, so you don't need to look for me. I am just an ordinary old man. If you don't believe me, I'll draw a Talisman for you. My Talisman drawing is just for show; only when stamped with the Heavenly Master's seal can it be effective. Moreover, I have not followed the precepts and rules for many years, so I have even less Dharma Power."

Xu Jia listened and felt it did indeed make some sense. It is often said that the Complete Perfection precepts are strict, but in fact, some of the Orthodox One precepts are truly perverted. It is just that many Daoists ignore them, and only a few follow them. These precepts are actually the rules of the gods they serve; only by following them can they listen to you, and if you don't follow them, they ignore you. The essence is the same as the gods of Esoteric Buddhism, only after being reformed by the Ancestral Heavenly Master, many bloody rituals were changed to conform to the Rites. The essence is still derived from ancient Shamanic Daoism, the act of serving gods. However, Shamanic Daoism is humble, while the Talisman Sect is tough; one is begging, the other is commanding.

(End of this chapter)