Chapter 657: Wu Song Temple

The people of Shenzhou, when building houses, observe the principle that "the beam must not be empty."

This means nothing must be left atop the beam, or else "the home lacks a central pillar."

There are also customs regarding what to place atop the beam.

A red thread strung with copper coins, nailed to the beam, symbolizes "pressing the beam to pacify the dwelling, ensuring stable wealth…"

But the coins must be genuine; ghost money or damaged coins are forbidden…

A Bagua mirror hung at the center of the beam can neutralize feng shui curses; if the house faces a crossroad or graveyard, the mirror's surface must face outward to reflect away the "impact curse."

Placing a "pacifying talisman" or a small peachwood sword is used to expel ghosts and avert disaster…

A red cloth wrapped around five grains, placed in the beam's seam, symbolizes "bountiful harvests and household prosperity…"

Sprinkling sorghum and sesame atop the beam carries the meaning of "steady upward progress."

Placing a writing brush represents literary fortune, praying for descendants to study and succeed…

In short, the varieties are numerous, and the customs are many.

Some are purely for blessing; others are conservative arrangements to suppress feng shui.

After all, the beam is the core of the structure.

And those who wish to harm others through sorcery often choose the beam.

Hearing Zhao Lizi's words, many inn staff quickly spoke up.

"That's right, we've been plagued by nightmares every night!"

"Same here, but I was afraid the boss would scold me, so I didn't dare say anything…"

"I often dream of a black-clad old man who stands on my chest at night, staring at me with fixed eyes—I've nearly choked to death several times…"

"Yes, me too—I was just thinking of quitting after the big market ends…"

Listening to the clamor, Shi Heilong's face darkened.

He clenched his fist tightly, "This is Lu Ban sorcery—who the hell is trying to ruin me?"

He immediately rose, bowed deeply, "Thank you all for saving me—how do we resolve this? Please advise."

Zhao Lizi shook his head silently, "Your house is already compromised—I'm not skilled in this art."

Sha Lifei, upon hearing this, immediately turned to Long Yan'er.

He understood none of this, and Wu Ba even less—his only hope lay with Long Yan'er.

Unfortunately, Long Yan'er knew only Gudu techniques and was no expert in this field.

To avoid tarnishing the reputation of the Twelve Zodiacs, Sha Lifei sent a Caobang disciple back to fetch Wang Daoxuan.

When the immortal-like Wang Daoxuan arrived, the staff of Jingyanggang Inn immediately felt more at ease.

He circled the Luo Pan a few times, then stroked his beard and smiled, "This is simple."

He then instructed Shi Heilong to gather various objects.

He set up the altar, opened the ritual, burned incense, swept the area…

He snapped ink lines onto the beam, then wrapped the main beam in red cloth, hanging copper bells at both ends…

As he worked, he explained, "That 'eternal lamp' is an ancient tomb artifact. The one who harmed you is only a half-baked practitioner—he tried to ruin Jingyanggang Inn's fortune, but his method was flawed, and the inn keeps several cats, so you narrowly escaped disaster."

"The placement of the 'eternal lamp' determines its effect."

"Placed before the coffin, with its base aligned to the Big Dipper, it guides the soul upward—the Book of Burial says, 'Light before the coffin, like the rising sun, ensures the dead do not lose their way to heaven.'"

"The side chamber symbolizes 'the mortal dwelling'—placing it there signifies 'eternal light in the mortal world.'"

"If placed in the northeast corner of your room, the occupant will die within three days!"

Shi Heilong's scalp prickled at this, "Master Daoist, please save me."

"Rest easy."

Wang Daoxuan smiled and said, "The main beam symbolizes 'the heavens.' Hanging the lamp beneath it implies 'illuminating the path to the underworld.' The Great Han Secret Burial Classic states, 'Lamp hung beneath heaven's vault, soul returns to the Purple Microcosm.' Thus, at midnight, yin and yang blur, drawing forth evil spirits."

"This method appears to dominate the central position, but actually scatters its power. Combined with the cats' cries, which repel evil, your situation is not dire—just expose yourselves to sunlight daily at noon, and you'll recover in three days."

"Also, this 'eternal lamp' is no ordinary object—the beam has already absorbed yin energy and will continue to attract evil spirits."

"The ink line wards off wood spirits; the red cloth and copper bells, being festive, can also scare off yin entities. For these three nights, if you hear the bells ring without wind, do not fear—they will settle after three days."

Wang Daoxuan was truly an expert.

After his explanation, though the Jingyanggang Inn staff still didn't fully understand, they felt a sense of clarity and were much more at ease.

Shi Heilong exhaled, his inner rage rising, and bowed respectfully, "Master Daoist, do you know who is targeting me?"

Wang Daoxuan gave a cool glance, "We handle only xuanmen sorcery—not Jianghu conflicts."

This matter was simple: both the victim and the attacker were fools.

Jianghu disputes almost always stem from profit—Wang Daoxuan had seen too many.

"Thank you, Master Daoist."

Shi Heilong was no fool—he stopped asking, but privately pondered who his enemy might be.

He thought of several people but wasn't sure, so he glanced at the hunters and asked, "Master Daoist, is the 'tiger demon' on the mountain an impostor, deliberately sabotaging my business?"

"No."

Wang Daoxuan, having heard the story on the way, shook his head, "It is truly a tiger demon at work."

"That evil entity carries yin poison—hence their armor froze, and the black-clad old man they saw was a hallucination. But this matter has oddities."

"What oddities?" Shi Heilong asked quickly.

Wang Daoxuan glanced at the craftsmen beside him and stroked his beard, "With the tiger demon's power, if it truly meant to kill, not one of them would be alive."

Shi Heilong was confused, "Master Daoist, you mean the tiger demon is… suspicious?"

"Hard to say."

Wang Daoxuan gazed thoughtfully toward distant Jingyanggang, "Find someone to guide us. We'll take over this matter—you needn't worry. Better to quickly uncover who wants you dead."

"Yes, yes—thank you, Master Daoist."

Shi Heilong's attitude had changed completely.

He could tell Wang Daoxuan and his companions' abilities far surpassed local shamans and witch doctors.

No wonder his senior brother treated them with such respect…

With this settled, he dared not slack off—he quickly summoned an uninjured hunter, prepared food and wine, and personally escorted Wang Daoxuan and the others to the foot of the mountain path.

Watching them depart, Shi Heilong returned to the inn.

The moment he stepped inside, his face turned grim:

"Investigate! The Beggar's Gang, and those Jijiawuhang —find out who's behind this!"

…………

Early spring at Jingyanggang was bathed in warm sunlight.

The rolling dunes bore scattered sprouts; gnarled old pines bore dew on their branches.

The place was neither mountainous nor densely wooded, but its rolling hills held waist-high patches of dead grass, and twisted, ancient pines that had grown for centuries—perfect for hiding wild beasts and tigers.

Among the pines lay many ancient graves, their origins unknown.

Withered vines coiled around tombstones; fallen leaves covered the mounds, hiding beneath the trees with an eerie chill.

"This… isn't right."

The guide was a young hunter.

He circled the area several times, urgently saying, "The ancient graves we encountered before were much larger—right here, how have they vanished?"

"Obviously, you were fooled by illusion."

Sha Lifei sneered, turning to Wang Daoxuan, "Master Daoist, any findings?"

Wang Daoxuan shook his head slightly, "There's some yin qi here, but it's normal. Long Miss, what do you sense?"

Beside him, Long Yan'er had spread her pale palm.

A large moth fluttered through the woods, circled a few times, then landed in her hand.

Long Yan'er frowned slightly, "It's cautious—the scent has been wiped clean."

Sha Lifei sighed helplessly, "Too bad—Lu San is still guarding Li Yan. If he were here, he'd find the thing for sure."

As he spoke, he glanced toward the distance, "Huh, Zhao Brother, you found something?"

Zhao Lizi crouched beside a patch of grass, gesturing for everyone to come over.

He muttered, "I'm no match for Lu Brother, but I know these woods well."

He pushed aside the grass, revealing many broken stems and footprints on the ground.

The young hunter said, "Those are ours—but they don't look like a tiger chased us."

"That's not what I want you to see…"

Zhao Lizi muttered, then brushed away the loose soil.

Beneath lay a dead mass of ants, and two frost-rimed tiger paw prints.

"It's a yin spirit wandering!"

Wang Daoxuan's face darkened instantly.

Yin spirit wandering was an ability only attainable at the fourth or fifth level.

In Ezhou, they had seen Liu Gang's yin spirit possess the tiger demon and leave such footprints in the courtyard.

"Prepare yourselves—this thing won't be easy to handle…"

Wang Daoxuan warned, then pulled a cloth doll from his robe.

To confront an entity of this level, only the Seven Arrow Secret Incantation would suffice.

The others swiftly prepared as well.

None of them had reached the Fourth Floor of cultivation, yet they were utterly unfazed.

After all, they had faced even more troublesome foes before and had long gained experience.

Whether Wu Ba's tiger-crouching cannon or Wang Daoxuan's spellcraft, both were lethal techniques.

The others merely needed to hold off the guardians.

With a lead, everything became easier.

Long Yaner summoned her Guchong again, sniffed out the yin qi, and led the group onward.

Not long after, they reached the highest point of Shagang.

There stood a small temple on the mountain, long abandoned.

On the faded vermilion door lintel, the golden plaque reading "Taming the Tiger's Divine Power" was chipped and cracked.

Clusters of pale yellow spring flowers sprouted from cracks in the stone steps; vines clung to the broken stone carvings of beasts, swaying gently in the wind.

"It's the Wu Song Temple!"

The young hunter, leading the way, grew uneasy, "Could that demon be hiding inside the temple…?"

"Let's find out."

Without hesitation, Wang Daoxuan grabbed a handful of incense ash from his waist pouch.

He formed a hand seal, chanted a spell, and blew sharply toward the ruined temple.

The incense ash surged forth, drifting unimpeded through the air and settling slowly upon the temple's front steps.

"Nothing amiss—let's go inside and take a look…"

Wang Daoxuan shook his head slightly and led the group toward the Wu Song Temple.

Outside the faded blue-brick courtyard wall, several hunting spears were thrust diagonally into the ground, their shafts wrapped in faded red cloth strips.

Seeing Wang Daoxuan examine them, the young hunter quickly explained: "It's an old custom of ours—when we pay respects at the temple, we pray for safety."

Pushing open the door, they found a small courtyard overgrown with weeds reaching half a person's height.

Entering the front hall, the sweet, resinous scent of pine mingled with the odor of incense struck them.

The clay statue of Wu Song had been repainted with fresh gold lacquer by the hunters; across its muscular arms lay three tanned yellow wolf pelts.

Before the altar lay several overturned empty wine jars; the incense burner was packed with stubs of varying lengths.

In the corner piled loose straw bedding; the embers of a former fire had scorched black circles into the blue-brick floor.

"We used to sleep here in the temple."

The young hunter glanced warily around, "This temple was built long ago, funded by wealthy gentry of Yanggu County. But because it's on the mountain, wild beasts frequently appeared. After the original temple keeper was killed by wolves, no villagers dared come to burn incense anymore—it gradually fell into ruin."

"Only we hunters occasionally come to tidy up…"

Wang Daoxuan listened as he formed hand seals and observed.

His eyes gleamed with sharp light—he was clearly using divine perception to scan.

Soon, his gaze fixed on the Wu Song statue.

"Wu Ba, move the statue."

At Wang Daoxuan's order, Wu Ba stepped forward and easily toppled the statue aside.

Only then did the group realize the statue had been pressed tightly against the wall.

Inside the statue's hollowed-out body, a large hole opened into the wall behind.

Through the hole, they could see vast stretches of wild grass and forest.

A few tufts of yellow fur clung to the edges of the hole's brick seams.

The young hunter saw it and his back chilled instantly: "This hole was dug recently—that thing was here last night!"

"Mm."

Sha Lifei stepped forward to inspect, tapped the edge once, then mused, "This tiger demon must have dug the hole while you were here. Whatever was stored inside the statue is gone—likely its target."

Hearing this, the young hunter turned pale: "We burned incense to Wu Song Ye, praying for more tiger hunts. That tiger demon must have heard and grown angry—this is its way of scaring us."

"Fascinating…"

Sha Lifei rubbed his bald head. "Master Dao, what do you normally place inside a statue's hollow?"

Wang Daoxuan replied: "For Buddhist statues, they place scriptures and mantras—like the Heart Sutra, the Great Compassion Mantra, the Shurangama Mantra—rolled into cylinders to symbolize the Dharma residing within. They also add the Five Treasures, Five Medicines, Five Incenses…"

"For Daoist statues, they place scriptures, talismans, the Five Peaks True Form Diagrams, divine names or secret characters written in cinnabar, and objects representing the Five Elements—metal, wood, water, fire, earth—to symbolize their full harmony."

"Wu Song is famous, but he's never been enshrined in state rites—he's a local deity. In Jiangnan and Zhejiang, he's called 'Righteous, Heroic, Manifestly Protective Marquis'; in Luzhou, he's known as 'Taming the Tiger God'—usually used to guard mountains…"

"Master Dao has such profound knowledge!"

The young hunter quickly flattered: "We all call him 'Taming the Tiger Ye.'"

"Mm."

Wang Daoxuan, unmoved, mused: "Local deities rarely have fine scriptures or elemental items stored inside. Could something special have been hidden there originally?"

As they spoke, Long Yaner and Zhao Lüzi had also searched the wild land beyond the hole and returned shaking their heads: "We couldn't find it—the scent and traces have been completely erased."

"I have a way!"

The young hunter hurried to say: "In our region, there's a rule: every house built must be registered with the yamen, and temples too. The yamen should have records."

"Let's go back and look!"

Wang Daoxuan immediately ordered them to return.

This tiger demon had reached the Fourth Floor of cultivation—rarely seen even as a demon king in the mountains—yet it had come here to steal. The group was deeply curious…

……

Ordinary people could not access the yamen's archives.

But the Chen family in Zhangqiu was no ordinary household.

The old steward Chen Fu arranged everything, and finally they found the records.

"In the third year of Xianhua, Yanggu County donated funds to build the Wu Song Temple, oriented north-facing south, constructed according to the 'front hill, back water' layout, five-beam hard-eave roof, three bays wide, two bays deep, total height two zhang six chi…"

When they reached the final line, Wang Daoxuan leapt to his feet, face filled with disbelief.

"The Bao Hua Bookstore donated a fragmentary bamboo slip scroll of Xu Fu as the temple's treasure, stored within the hollow of the Wu Song statue…"

(End of Chapter)