Chapter 60: The Mystery of the Nightmare Method (Two-in-One)

Xu Jia listened to the original soul's explanation and said bluntly: "You were not wronged by being schemed against!"

"How could you easily tell others your Eight Characters? The Eight Characters hide one's innate destiny; if others know them, there is no telling how many ways they have to harm you."

"This person is from an Evil Sect; he killed you to refine a ghost, and his next step was to have you enter your home to kill your blood relatives, making you achieve the status of a fierce, malevolent ghost. If I hadn't performed Jieshi Huanhun, cutting off his ritual procedures and severing the connection between the corpse and the soul, your power would have become water without a source, and you would have already committed a grave mistake!"

Taking advantage of the fact that the soul had intelligence, Xu Jia frantically cultivated its sense of guilt, making it feel grateful and indebted to him.

"Fortunately, I am now fulfilling filial piety to your parents on your behalf and have resolved the danger. You should focus on dissolving the baleful energy here, and listen for my good news in a couple of days!"

The original soul remained silent.

Xu Jia then climbed down from the roof beam like a monkey and entered the study.

Just as he entered the study, he used the method of "Qi Observation" and saw Xu Fu's little head smoking...

This was not his brain burning, but a sign of "Literary Qi steaming," indicating that Xu Fu's inspiration was currently erupting.

The study's Literary Prosperity Array continued to exert its power; although it was only a minor "Feng Shui" technique, it was still an excellent means to boost luck and stimulate progress.

The cultivation world says: First is destiny, second is luck, third is Feng Shui, fourth is accumulating Merit, and fifth is reading.

Xu Fu's destiny was decent; after all, his grandfather had donated for an Eighth-Rank Scattered Official position and, coming from a merchant background, had left behind much family wealth. Xu Mu was even more Virtuous and gentle, and the family was harmonious, already much better than the average household in this world.

It was just that their resources for study were lacking, and without a famous teacher to guide him, he had failed the exams several times, losing his spirit. Now, with Xu Jia's slight guidance, he had reorganized his efforts.

Xu Jia looked at the essay Xu Fu was currently writing; although it was not "brilliant and flowery," it did possess a trace of Literary Qi.

An essay with such Literary Qi had at least gained some essential meaning.

One could clearly see the Literary Qi on this essay merging with the Feng Shui array, forming a Literary Prosperity array base that benefited Xu Fu himself.

Xu Jia did not disturb his studies and left the room.

"Very good! Very good! He is on the right track. He has gained something from his studies, proving himself step by step. The sense of achievement and satisfaction is even more addictive than eating delicious food. He looks at essays as if looking at a beautiful woman; he has become addicted to learning."

Xu Jia could see that Xu Fu's face was glowing, which was exactly the manifestation of "great luck at the door."

Maintaining this state, passing the exam to become a Ju Ren would not be a problem, but... the nutrition was insufficient.

It was not just nutritional food, but also nutritional essays. Those Ju Ren essays, or the old essays Xu Fu had written that Xu Jia helped revise, or the essays copied from others, all had limited Literary Qi and literary thought.

Therefore, Xu Jia planned that after some time, once he had dealt with that Evil Sect Daoist, he would go to the county seat to find families with book collections or bookstores. With his quantum reading speed, he would record the superior essays and historical allusions to bring back and "force-feed" Xu Fu.

At this time, Xu Mu, along with Xiao Hong, brought in the meal. There were many mushrooms in season, so there was a plate of fresh mushrooms stir-fried with lamb, a bowl of water shield soup, a steamed lake fish, and a dish of bean sprouts with ham.

"You two eat together," Xu Mu said. "And have a chat."

Xu Jia shook his head: "Father is writing an essay and must not have his train of thought interrupted. Just send the food in; I'll eat something casual."

He then comforted Xu Mu: "My body is much better now, and I can eat normally, so there is no need to prepare things so delicately."

He immediately changed the subject: "Xiao Hong, how are those things I ordered you to process coming along?"

Xiao Hong was a bit startled; why was it her turn? She could only respond: "Young Master, it's not that we don't have work to do; we can only do it in our spare time. These things are truly cumbersome, and I'm too busy to keep up."

The Xu family did not have many servants, and it was not like in *Dream of the Red Chamber* where one master had two or three servants serving them delicately, with seven or eight rough-work servants, and the young pages counted separately.

Aside from Xiao Hong, Xu Fu had three older maids who handled laundry, tending the fire, cooking, and watering the flowers. There were also two long-term laborers who did the rough work, including carrying water, chopping wood, moving things, and guarding the gate and courtyard.

To say there was nothing to do in the manor was not true, but to say they were busy, it wasn't very tiring either.

Xu Jia warned Xiao Hong: "It's fine if they have work, but didn't I tell you? You should prioritize my affairs first; if others ask you to do things, just push them back!"

"I'll spare you this time, but remember it carefully. This is in front of my mother, who is the head of the household. Can you not even handle this small matter I entrusted to you? It's just steaming and drying; do it well. With such a craft to learn, how many apprentices have to serve their masters for three years and another three years, and still might not get the real skills!"

Xiao Hong shrank her head and lowered it.

Xu Mu smoothed things over: "Why are you scaring her? I've been asking her to help me make a string of soapberry beads for the past two days."

Only then did Xu Jia say: "Xiao Hong, do your work well, and I promise you a great fortune." This was, however, just painting a pie in the sky.

Xiao Hong murmured an acknowledgment, not knowing if she had taken it to heart.

Xu Jia was not deceiving her; when one person achieves Didao, their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven, but her character was not even as good as a fox's; it needed to be polished.

Xu Jia carried the food into the study. Xu Fu had already stopped his brush, clearly having heard what happened outside: "Where did you go last night again?"

Xu Jia coaxed him: "I went to hunt down that Daoist!"

Xu Fu: "Huh?"

Xu Jia served him the food, fulfilling his filial duty: "Eat first, let's not talk about that."

He himself picked up the essay Xu Fu had just written to read it.

The title was "Restraining Oneself and Returning to Propriety is Benevolence."

Xu Jia looked at it, and the beginning read:

"To restrain oneself and return to the constancy of Heavenly Principle is what the sages and Virtuous ones call benevolence."

"In the learning of a gentleman, there is nothing greater than restraining oneself. The reality of restraining oneself lies in returning to propriety. For propriety is the universal Dao of the world, and something that human sentiment cannot be without... it merely leads one back to a place of impartiality, uprightness, and peace."

Xu Jia nodded and praised: "This piece is steady and balanced; although it has no highlights, it also has no obvious flaws."

Xu Fu snorted: "Are you acting like an official of the Education Bureau?"

After Xu Fu's confidence rose, he carried an air of arrogance, and his self-satisfaction with having written a "superior" essay was fully revealed.

Xu Jia smiled and coaxed him, as if coaxing a child: "It is a great improvement; I spoke wrongly, I apologize to you!"

"But Father, you are meant to be a Virtuous person; what is such a small achievement?"

"Essays are ultimately things on paper. Understanding government decrees, understanding the general trend of the world, and writing good policy papers are also essential."

"I think you should go out more often to relax, find three or five friends to discuss essays, and inquire about current politics. Building a cart behind closed doors is not the way to go."

Xu Fu also agreed very much, but he had his own concerns: "I went to ask for advice on essays a few days ago; going again now, I'm afraid it's not appropriate."

"But what you said makes some sense. In two or three days, I will go find Ju Ren Lu to chat, and I might even go find the local magistrate to ask about essays; after all, we can be considered students of the magistrate." Xu Fu seemed to have truly become puffed up.

Xu Jia smiled without a word, not disturbing his beautiful dream. He served himself food and began to eat slowly, chewing carefully.

Yesterday he had eaten coarse farm rice and wild fruits from the mountains, which were not very delicate or tasty. Now, eating his own family's food, he clearly felt it was much better.

It was just that it was still insufficient for his own "Hundred Days Foundation Establishment"; he had to wait until the Five Elements Pill was refined.

After all, the family's financial resources were limited. He had bought ten catties of each ingredient, but when it came to processing them, one could see that the quantity was small and the time was slow.

Now that Niu Congcong is helping of his own accord, it will surely be much faster; one batch steamed nine times and dried nine times, another batch steamed six times and dried six times, and I estimate the first batch of Five Elements Pill will be produced in a month or two, to be used as a meal replacement for Bigu, to nourish the essence and store the Yuan.

Xu Jia is not in a rush either; if he has no Dharma Power to refine internally, he will borrow Dharma Power from his past life, but past-life Dharma Power is hard to borrow, and there is also Hu Jinhua's Dharma Power, or perhaps he should borrow the Dharma Power of Luejue Shen?

Having established the hall and recruited these Protectors, there is no way a living person will be suffocated to death by urine.

Now, he must properly manage the Out-Horse Immortal hall.

After all, Wish Power Dharma Coin is a type of cultivation resource, belonging to the class of "spirit stones," and can be used directly to improve one's Dharma Power cultivation.

After finishing his meal, Xu Jia discussed some scholarly articles with Father Xu again, then came out of the study.

Gui Linggao had already become familiar with Xiao Pang, and was being fed a piece of fresh fish meat there, eating with great relish.

Xu Jia beckoned to Xiaopangdun and said, "Hui Zhuo, come to my room; I will teach you some more things."

Niu Congcong was very happy; although Xu Jia had already taught him many things, who wouldn't be willing to learn more?

Arriving at the room, he closed the door, for the Dharma is not transmitted to six ears.

"What is Brother Xu going to teach me this time?"

Xu Jia said, "What I taught you before were the methods of Shamanism, and I also held the mountain-calling ceremony for you, opened your spiritual aperture for Ten Thousand Things Have Spirits, and the Heaven and Earth Bridge, allowing you to borrow Dharma and techniques from Hu Jinhua and Spirit General Luejue."

"Their techniques mostly lack any offensive power; it was only after I taught them to refine the Chang that they had some real ability."

"What I am going to teach you now are harmful techniques, also known as Nightmare Technique, suppression techniques, and witchcraft curses; they are the spellcraft of the Witch Sect."

Lushan is itself a combination of Taoism and local Witch Sects; in his past life, Xu Jia went to America to establish a sect, set up his own Zongtan, and swept away Evil Sects, among which was the American "Voodoo."

Therefore, Xu Jia's witchcraft is a synthesis of local, Western, Nanyang, Miao border, and Shamanic traditions—the great achievement of the five directions.

"Because these are harmful methods, I require you to take a great oath before you practice these techniques: you must not strike against innocent ordinary people, and you must not pass them on casually; otherwise, you shall die in fulfillment of the oath."

Xu Jia spoke very seriously.

Because strictly speaking, this is "Black Witchcraft," nearly "Demonic Path," and is extremely sinister among the heterodox paths.

Hearing Xu Jia being so severe, Niu Congcong immediately raised his hand and swore: "If I, Niu Congcong, use these techniques to oppress the good or harm the innocent, may I be cut in half at the waist and die!"

Being cut in half at the waist is the most cruel punishment; beheading takes only three or four seconds before the eyes close, with little pain, but being cut at the waist allows one to live for about ten minutes, waiting until the blood drains away before dying.

Xu Jia nodded, then began to explain the "Nightmare Technique" to him.

He took out a Talisman from his hand, wrapping a strand of Liu Wenpo's hair.

"This old woman has already followed my instructions and set off for Yushan, but there has been no movement; I fear she is already in grave danger. Now I will teach you an introductory application of the Nightmare Technique: the method of Water Mirror Manifestation."

There was a basin of water in Xu Jia's room; he burned the Talisman wrapped around the hair and chanted: "Heaven is round and Earth is square, the world is boundless; the bright moon is in the sky, illuminating all phenomena. I obey the order of the Lunar Method Dharma Lord, command the light to manifest the image, nothing shall escape, Jijiru Luling!"

This is the "borrowing the moon to manifest images" method, taking the meaning from "The bright moon rises above the sea, we share this moment at the ends of the earth."

Although there is no moon at this time, in Taoist terminology, the moon also represents a person's "Primordial Spirit and spiritual nature."

Having obtained Liu Wenpo's hair and knowing her appearance, Xu Jia could use this as an anchor to project an image in this water mirror.

In his past life on Blue Star, everyone used video calls; who would need this kind of thousand-mile-distance water-moon manifestation technique? Furthermore, the conditions for casting it are harsh, and it doesn't work for ordinary people.

In fact, it is not "real manifestation," but "Dharma Realm manifestation."

It is not seen by the eyes, but by the "thought."

Therefore, mortals see the water mirror as just a water mirror, but a practitioner who moves their thought can observe the scene they wish to see.

They saw that in the water basin, the first-person perspective of Liu Wenpo appeared; it was an Underground Palace.

The surroundings were pitch black, with some candles and Talismans vaguely visible, arranged as if in some kind of array.

Xu Jia waved his hand again, and the water mirror began to backtrack the events involving Liu Wenpo.

This is mental manifestation, not real-time monitoring; as long as it was experienced by the owner of the hair, whether living or dead, it can be backtracked within seven days.

It turned out that Liu Wenpo, threatened by Xu Jia, was to lure that evil Daoist out; thus, after the Infant Ghost affair last night, she set off as soon as the sky brightened.

She first went to the gathering place of the Evil Sect, but this place changed locations every time they held a meeting, so she gained nothing.

Thus, she changed her route to search for the evil Daoist at Shanju Guan.

Unfortunately, her acting was too poor, and she was quickly discovered; immediately, a hairy-faced Daoist came out to see her, just as Xu Jia had seen through the Wood Sha spirit communication.

Hearing Liu Wenpo say that the Ying Ta had been toppled, this Daoist flew into a rage; without waiting for Liu Wenpo to lead him out, a streak of Black Qi shot directly at her face.

By the time Liu Wenpo regained consciousness, she was already imprisoned in the Underground Palace.

Niu Congcong looked at the manifestation and asked doubtfully, "This technique isn't very dangerous; it just shows some light and shadows."

Xu Jia smiled: "Watch my methods!"

Xu Jia took out a piece of paper, cut it into a human shape, wrote a Talisman directly on it, and dropped it into the water; the Talisman did not get wet, but stood on the surface of the water and began to move and walk, and the perspective of Liu Wenpo on the other side began to shift.

This Liu Wenpo had been struck by the technique but was not bound, perhaps because she was "unworthy" of such treatment; Xu Jia controlled her physical body to walk around the Underground Palace and discovered a gloomy Dharma Altar, straw dolls, small coffins... it was clearly an evil altar.

He then controlled Liu Wenpo to search for an exit; this Underground Palace was locked by a door, and Xu Jia cast a "Lock-Breaking Curse" from a distance; this type of technique is very common in Lushan—Lock-Breaking Curse, Clothes-Removing Curse, Infatuation Curse, Soul Detention Curse, and one can even conjure food; the principle is unknown, but the use is clear at a glance, and it doesn't look like the righteous path.

The lock opened in response to the curse, and Liu Wenpo pushed the door open, only to find there were stairs spiraling upward, and a wooden top; with a slight push, she saw daylight; it turned out this was a large tomb in Yushan, and this was a grave-robber's tunnel, but it had been repaired, and there was even grave grass specifically planted on this wooden top outside.

Looking from here, one could see Dizang An, Shanju Guan...

(End of this chapter)