Chapter 52: Spell Prohibition and Communicating with Spirits

"About this kind of thing..."

After listening, the old Daoist showed a thoughtful expression: "It sounds like a Luo Sha bird."

"Luo Sha bird?"

"A kind of yin evil born in death energy. It is not a real bird, but often transforms into the appearance of a bird. Its claws and teeth are sharp, it is good at transformation and deception, and it often comes out at dusk and dawn to harm people." The old Daoist was still sitting on the steps, his posture very casual. "I haven't seen it either, just when I was young, before I went up the mountain to be a Daoist, I heard that someone in the neighboring village was harmed by it. Later, when I became a Daoist, I heard about the roots of this thing from my Master's mouth.

"This thing can fly because it is energy itself, but it doesn't fly high because it is death energy itself. Death energy is turbid and can only sink to the ground. Knife, weapon, arrow, and arrow cause little damage to it. Only when it transforms into a form does it have greater damage.

"Death energy is also related to human corpses. It obtained transformation arts from people and obtained the ability to peek into people's hearts from people."

The old Daoist paused as he spoke, and couldn't help but sigh:

"In the past, when there was war and chaos, this thing was slightly more common, but I haven't heard of it for many years. I didn't expect it to pop up again now."

"So that's how it is."

Lin Jue understood his sigh.

Daoist Yunhe should have lived for several decades, although not as long as most dynasties, it was enough to see some ups and downs. The changes in the world might be faster and more concrete in his eyes than in the eyes of young people.

"Being able to detect something wrong counts as you being smart. You have only been cultivating for a few days, and you have only learned these few spells, so being able to fight this yin evil is also some ability." The old Daoist was like an ordinary villager chatting at home. "Your Xiao Shimei is about the same. Don't look at her being young; she is actually very clear in her heart. She has great talent in the five elements and is suitable for learning five-element spells, and five-element spells are the best at spell fighting... This is good, this is good. This way, when you go down the mountain and leave in a few years, I don't have to worry about you too much."

"Xiao Shimei is indeed smart." Lin Jue didn't hesitate to praise her.

"It's a pity, we cultivate Yin-Yang Spiritual Arts, and Five-Element Spiritual Arts are the most suitable for her. If there were Five-Element Spiritual Arts, combined with Five-Element spells, with her state of mind and this chaotic world, she would likely have some achievements in the future."

"Five-Element Spiritual Arts..."

Lin Jue repeated it in a low voice.

The spiritual arts of the world are different but connected. Cultivating Yin-Yang Spiritual Arts can also use Five-Element spells, and cultivating Five-Element Spiritual Arts can also use Yin-Yang spells. However, the two correspond, so naturally, it is the best.

It is just that now the Lingfa Sect is like the Danding Sect of the past, gradually declining and being replaced by the Fulu Sect. The spells of the world are scattered on the earth, and they are all rare. Even the tricksters who travel the world from generation to generation only got two-thirds of a Fire-Aversion Art. How many fools yearn for the immortal Dao and seek it hard but cannot get it? It is good to have a spiritual art to cultivate and a spell to learn, so how can one choose the spiritual art that suits oneself?

At most, in the future, when walking the world, if one is lucky, one can seek a spiritual art that suits oneself and then change the cultivation.

Losing some Dao-attainment doesn't matter.

"By the way—"

The old Daoist finally stood up: "Before you went down the mountain, I told you that besides removing yin energy and residual souls, I would teach you another simple and useful spell. I will teach you now."

"What spell?"

"Have you heard of 'Spell Prohibition'?"

"I have heard of it."

How could he not have heard of the method of Spell Prohibition?

In this era, the few spells with the most legends among the people are nothing more than various fortune-telling and physiognomy, spirit-writing, trickery, drawing talismans, and spell prohibition. The reason is either that they are simple and universal, or that it is difficult to distinguish between true and false, and more are both simple and universal and make people difficult to distinguish between true and false.

No matter where, one can hear which fortune-teller is accurate, where someone can invite a spirit-writer, and where someone relies on spell prohibition to exorcise demons and treat diseases. Lin Jue often heard this kind of legend from the village elders when he was in Shu Village.

It is truly difficult to distinguish between true and false.

Among these few, spell prohibition is the only one that can be invited into the public gate by the imperial court and the royal family.

Fortune-telling is half, occasionally someone can mix into an official position in the imperial court by fortune-telling and physiognomy, and even become a national teacher, but there is no specific position.

Spell prohibition is different.

The imperial court has the official position of "Spell Prohibition Doctor," belonging to the Imperial Medical Office, from the ninth grade, and there are also "Spell Prohibition Students" under his command, which shows its universality.

"The imperial court set up Spell Prohibition Doctors and students because this skill is simple and easy to learn. Many people can learn it, and it has almost no lethality to people. Exorcising demons and evil spirits mostly can only be used as an auxiliary, and it poses no threat to the royal nobles in the palace. However, don't underestimate it. Many 'high-level people' down the mountain rely on it to exorcise demons and evil spirits. If you say that it protects the peace of the common people, hehe, if you count it, I'm afraid it is more than those legendary supernatural spells that reach the sky and penetrate the earth.

"What I teach you is called the Manifestation Spell, which can make monsters manifest. After you go down the mountain in the future, you will definitely be able to use it.

"First remember the incantation, then learn the trick.

"Listen well—

"The world is vast, the spirits of this place listen to my command, the spiritual light is like washing, illuminating the ancient dark realm. Monsters and ghosts come, do not hide your shadows and avoid the light, Yin and Yang in the three realms, my spell appears to reveal your form.

"Come again..."

It is the one the Third Shixiong chanted that night.

Lin Jue immediately repeated it.

"The world is vast, the spirits of this place listen to my command..."

Returning to the room, Lin Jue was still muttering, wanting to remember this incantation deeply.

Now he already knew that the common monsters and ghosts in the world were not that powerful. If powerful great demons and great ghosts harmed people in the world, they would have already set off monstrous waves. So the spirits and monsters that people often encounter are not necessarily more powerful than people, and may not even be stronger than people. It's just that they are either treacherous and unpredictable, difficult to grasp, or changeable, difficult to distinguish, or good at hiding, difficult to touch and see.

He could roughly guess how those folk high-level people used the method of spell prohibition to exorcise demons.

If they didn't use spells to urge them to leave, they used spells to make them manifest, or trapped them, and then handed them over to knives, guns, sticks, bows, and fire. It didn't matter if it was simple and rough; if it was useful, it was a good prescription.

And this spell was truly simple—

In front of his Master, Lin Jue only chanted it for the third time, and he had already achieved the unity of incantation and spirit. At this time, the incantation already had an effect, but the effect depended on the depth of the cultivation.

Returning to the room, he took out the ancient book.

He still didn't know the origin of this ancient book, but he became more and more clear about some of its characteristics.

The ancient book is not afraid of being lost, and even no matter where it is placed, as long as he needs it, he can call it with his intention, and it can appear beside him, as if it has spirituality. Naturally, he can also let it not come. At the same time, after groping for so long, he gradually mastered the knack of listening to the "words" of the ancient book, and he didn't have to listen from the beginning every time. All these control methods are like the treasure dharma implements controlled by the mind in legends.

At this time, he opened this book again and turned to a new page:

Spell Prohibition, also medicine.

Medicine and witchcraft have the same origin. There are many methods of spell prohibition, all of which are skills to exorcise evil and treat diseases, remove yin and catch ghosts with talismans and incantations. It cannot directly harm monsters and ghosts, nor can it harm people.

Counting the many incantations, they can be roughly divided into several categories: urging treatment, exorcising evil, removing yin, manifesting, trapping, and attaching to objects. Incantations often change with time, and every dynasty has different ones.

Lin Jue pinched the paper.

A voice sounded in his mind, explaining the essential principles of the method of spell prohibition, and there were also some cultivation points and insights.

It just didn't record the incantations.

Probably because there were too many incantations to remember, or because they often changed, so they weren't recorded.

It seems there is a page before?

Lin Jue turned forward—

Communicating with Spirits, program rituals.

Spirits have existed since ancient times, and later gradually formed the spirit Dao. Those who serve spirits can communicate with spirits through fixed program rituals, or report to spirits, or seek divine power.

Lin Jue pinched the page again.

Suddenly another voice sounded.

He knew almost everything—

The method of communicating with spirits originated from the ceremonies of ancient princes and nobles praying to heaven. Later, there were more and more spirits in the world, and there were many believers. The spirits imitated the ceremonies of praying to heaven and created their own exclusive program rituals. Later, the orthodox immortals gathered in the Nine Heavens Immortal Realm, built palaces, and formed a system, so there were standard program rituals, which were the ceremonies and processes of inviting spirits.

But it was not only in heaven that there were spirits.

There were also in the mortal world.

Some were Earth Spirits and Society Gods, and some were recognized by the imperial court. Some were gods sealed by the people themselves, and some were simply monsters and ghosts, calling themselves spirits, and it was difficult to determine good or evil.

These spirits also had believers, also had servants, and even had temples and temple keepers, and they also needed to communicate with each other.

Therefore, they referred to the rituals of orthodox spirits.

Some changes were large, and some changes were negligible.

Lin Jue also knew the reason why the Master warned him not to learn the incense table and divine altar of the Fulu Sect at will.

"The newly risen Fulu Sect cultivators have learned strict dharma altar rituals and will naturally not make mistakes. Most of the Fulu Sect cultivators with Dao-attainment have 'registers' and are recognized by the heavenly immortals, so they can naturally accurately invite their own spirits. But if ordinary people also set up divine altars and incense tables, it may not be so.

"If you are not careful, the rituals will go wrong.

"Most of them cannot invite spirits.

"This is a good thing.

"If you really invite them—

"You must know that orthodox gods are busy and will never respond to mortals at will.

"Some people have dealt with which evil god before and have items related to it, so they may invite it; some people are in the incense place of a certain evil god, so they may also invite it; some people invite nearby monsters and ghosts with this supernatural power, and some people invite their own ancestors who have not rested in peace;

"Most are not good things.

"..."

The words in the ancient book said so.

The "evil god" mentioned here refers to spirits not recognized by the imperial court and heaven, and does not necessarily refer to evil gods.

"These words... this ancient book... seems to come from when the Fulu Sect just rose."

Lin Jue thought silently in his heart.

This method of communicating with spirits is not very useful to him, a Daoist who cultivates Lingfa and learns spells, but it also helped him understand a lot of knowledge, making the images of spirits in his mind gradually clear and rich.

Originally, spirits were extremely illusory in his mind.

Lin Jue went to check on Divine Lord Yili by the way.

It seems to be a True Lord under Divine Lord Emperor Yu Jian, and Divine Lord Emperor Yu Jian is a widely believed spirit in this area, and there is a statue of him in the Tianweng Hall of Fuqiu Temple. Thinking about it this way, the main spirit worshiped by Mount Qiyun besides Tianweng might be this Divine Lord Emperor Yu Jian. ===== CHAPTER 53 =====