Chapter 6: The Ordeal of Returning to Life

Xu Jia, following the old woman transformed by the Miscellaneous Fur Fox, bowed toward the Big Dipper.

Yet, a whirlwind of yin wind rose from the flat ground, and black shadows pressed in like a thousand armies and ten thousand horses, wanting to crush this wild temple.

Ghostly, demonic sounds reached his ears: "... Step aside... Let me return the soul for you and take care of your parents, wife, and children..."

Another voice, identical to his own, scolded: "You are a heavenly demon from outside the realm; I am the true Xu Jia. Return my physical body to me..."

There were even more resentful voices: "Why should he be the one to return to life! We have to endure these wind blades, frost swords, moon freezes, and sun refinings~~ Don't you dare succeed! Blow out the fire on his head!" Xu Jia turned a deaf ear and used all his strength to speak: "The disciple has set his heart on bowing to the Origin, respectfully worshipping the Big Dipper..."

The lamp flame flickered, black shadows swarmed outside the temple, and the fox Protectors had already bristled their fur.

The Miscellaneous Fur Fox had never experienced such a situation either, only feeling that something had gone wrong.

The ghosts, demons, and spirits within a radius of several dozen miles had all caught the scent of an opportunity to occupy a human body, thereby escaping the sinking of a ghost body and achieving Jieshi Huanhun.

The Miscellaneous Fur Fox already regretted it, but the Worship the Dipper had already begun; stopping or failing would both bring backlash upon him. Moreover, the person and the fox had already formed a Karmic Connection, and if Xu Jia were gone, he would also suffer great damage to his primordial Qi.

Thus, he gritted his teeth and continued to kowtow and Worship the Dipper.

"Praise the Great Saint of the Seven Origins of the Big Dipper, who is good at eliminating sins and karma, washing away disasters and faults, providing for life with fortune and longevity, and perfecting the body with good fruits. The disciple now has an urgent difficulty, burning incense and chanting scriptures, to be safe and peaceful within the appointed time..."

The incense at the corner of the wall burned rapidly, and the rice began to turn black, grow hair, and sprout mold and black spots, as if something were sucking on it.

The barrier set up by the Miscellaneous Fur Fox by urinating outside could not withstand them.

The little fox Protectors kicked their limbs and went stiff.

Subsequently, the two candles at the temple entrance were extinguished.

A powerful shadow of aura invaded from within.

It was a hanged evil ghost half a zhang tall.

As soon as it entered the temple, frost appeared everywhere.

Its face was pale and blue, and a rope hung around its neck.

Its eyes stared fixedly at Xu Jia, who was performing the ritual to return his soul inside.

The next moment, a hemp rope was looped around the neck of the Miscellaneous Fur Fox.

But the Miscellaneous Fur Fox leaped up, dodging the hemp rope, and suddenly changed his posture, no longer bowing to the Big Dipper, but bowing toward Xu Jia.

Xu Jia sat cross-legged there, with three bowls in front of him containing rice, with incense stuck in the rice, clearly looking like a deity.

And this wild temple was Xu Jia's physical Daochang.

With just this bow from the fox, a large mass of Life Fire transferred from the fox's body to Xu Jia's.

At the same time, Xu Jia also sensed the "Incense Fire Golden Body" of his previous life.

On Blue Star, Xu Jia's disciples had erected a "Xu Shigong Temple" for him.

After he passed away, his physical body was gilded, placed on an altar, and the Incense Fire was prosperous.

Although separated by two worlds, the soul and body sensed each other across the boundary with the help of the same Big Dipper.

The next moment, golden light suddenly appeared on Xu Jia, illuminating the entire temple! This golden light protecting the body was the authentic power of Daoism, a Divine Ability Xu Jia had cultivated in his previous life; the golden light scorched like the sun, scaring the hanged ghost away from the temple Daochang.

Xu Jia ignored it and, using this Dharma Power and spirit, continued to complete the Worship the Dipper ritual. "Great Saint of the Seven Origins of the Big Dipper, able to resolve the calamity of the three disasters, able to resolve the calamity of the four evils, able to resolve the calamity of the Five Elements, able to resolve the calamity of the six harms, able to resolve the calamity of the seven injuries..."

In an instant, the dark clouds in the sky dispersed, starlight appeared, and the seven stars were like a dipper, as if there were truly seven such Great Saints shining and protecting him.

Only, after the Miscellaneous Fur Fox bowed to him, he used his life to save a life, helping Xu Jia successfully cultivate his life, but he suffered a backlash and could no longer maintain his transformed human form.

"Thus the Seven Origin Lords, Great Saints are good at communicating with spirits. Saving from all calamities, transcending suffering for all living beings.

If there are those who chant with diligence, holding the scriptures to ensure peace. Relying entirely on the birth of a hundred blessings, forming a contract with the Five Elements."

The ritual was officially completed. The soul of Xu Jia, which had the quality of a yin ghost, had all its yin Qi dispersed, used as oil by the lamp flame to be ignited. Without the yin Qi entangling his body, he felt immensely warm, and his Soul became increasingly compatible with his physical body; the Three Souls and Seven Souls each returned to their proper places.

Blood began to flow, his body was no longer stiff, and even his heart began to beat. The sound of this heartbeat was incredibly real, giving one infinite Joyousness.

The three sticks of incense in front had burned out, and the beans and rice in the bowls were completely charred and shriveled.

After Xu Jia regained control of his body, he immediately formed the Big Dipper Seal. With the bit of Dharma Power obtained from sensing the Golden Body statue of his previous life, he drove away the evil ghost that still refused to give up, was surrounding the temple, spying on his physical body, and wanting to perform Possession to roam the human world freely.

The hanged ghost was outside the temple and had not gone far. Seeing Xu Jia casting spells to drive it away, it looked resentful and glared fiercely.

Immediately after, it disappeared from the temple entrance, and the black shadow also dispersed like the tide.

It seemed this matter was not over.

The Miscellaneous Fur Fox was worthy of being the noble person Xu Jia had calculated; he actually possessed the beautiful quality of sacrificing himself for others. Having suffered the backlash and great damage to his primordial Qi, he had already dissipated most of his Daoist Practice.

He previously had fifty years of Daoist Practice; with this life-extension for Xu Jia, at least thirty years of Daoist Practice were gone.

The other foxes came to their senses and immediately surrounded them, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws at Xu Jia. This person was a liar who had tricked their uncle into a spin.

Xu Jia pacified them: "Rest assured, he has a kindness toward me, and I will not harm him. He just leaped up to protect me and suffered a backlash, causing great damage to his primordial Qi. I have a way to treat him."

Quetui Hu, Single-Testicle Fox, and Bald-Tail Fox whispered to each other and reached an understanding. Although they still stared fixedly at Xu Jia, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws, they still cleared a path.

Xu Jia had received a bow and, by a stroke of luck, sensed his Golden Body from his previous life, borrowing the Dharma Power from the Golden Body.

However, this physical body had not undergone cultivation and was a "leaky vessel." This bit of Dharma Power was constantly dissipating; in less than three hours, it would all be gone. It was better to gift it to this fox, which could be considered a small compensation.

He immediately pointed at the center of the Miscellaneous Fur Fox's brow, and a bit of golden light escaped into it.

The next moment, an orange-red fur mark grew on the center of the Miscellaneous Fur Fox's brow.

This bit of Dharma Power circulated within the Miscellaneous Fur Fox's body. Even if it was just a little, it was the Huan Dan Dharma Power cultivated by Xu Jia in his previous life combined with the Incense God's divine intent, of extremely high quality, far superior to whatever Wild Fox Zen the old fox had cultivated himself.

It quickly replenished his lost Daoist Practice and also caused Xu Jia to form a seal contract with him, allowing for a certain degree of mental communication.

It was precisely because of this mental communication that Xu Jia understood at this moment that the Miscellaneous Fur Fox had formed a Karmic Connection with him the moment he accepted his Pressing Money.

This connection was helping him achieve Jieshi Huanhun; it was planting a good cause and bearing a good fruit. By bestowing this strand of Divine Path Dharma Power, the good fruit had already fallen, but because he had established a new contract, a new cause was planted between the two, which would bear new fruit.

The Miscellaneous Fur Fox, nourished by the Divine Path Dharma Power, quickly woke up. Sensing the connection and the falling fruit, his Daoist Practice did not decrease but increased, growing by a full thirty years. He now had eighty years of Daoist Practice and was extremely Joyous.

For a moment, he danced with joy, emitting "ying ying" sounds.

The remaining three ugly foxes also began to yelp and cry out together.

(End of chapter)