Chapter 59: Capturing Ghosts with Dharma

"The time for me to subdue the insects has finally come!" Brother Qian Chen opened his eyes after waiting for three days in front of the Dharma altar. The two gold and silver boys who were dozing off against the red gourd heard the sound and their little heads knocked together, waking up. They tried hard to lift the spirit light treasure mirror and aimed it at the direction of the Wei estate in Jiao Bu Town.

And the ear-god only lifted its eyelids, hugged the spirit talisman covering its body, and continued to sleep.

"It's okay... you guys sleep! It's not time yet!" Brother Qian Chen comforted them.

This Dharma altar could borrow the power of heaven, earth, ghosts, and gods, using the laws of the divine path, but it was actually quite hard. Brother Qian Chen waited for three full days when casting the spell to make Daoist Zhen think that this spell was only aimed at Wei Wei Taiping.

In these three days, Brother Qian Chen had already used the hundred ghosts' qi to turn into a spell, infecting the entire Wei estate.

Although Daoist Zhen protected himself tightly, he didn't notice that the qi of the entire Wei estate was becoming obscure and gloomy.

If someone had Brother Qian Chen's keen spiritual sense, they would be able to detect strands of strange primordial qi, like insects, lurking in every servant of the Wei estate. Only the few elders with profound cultivation, the family head Wei Wei Lecheng, and Daoist Zhen, who were protected by magic treasures, isolated this kind of qi.

Just when Daoist Zhen thought everything was perfect...

The steward of the Wei estate, holding Wei Wei Lecheng's pardon, opened the secret treasury. When the heavy dragon-patterned gate opened, all the restrictions of the secret treasury were activated. The steward waved his hand, and a few servants holding trays entered to pick the medicinal herbs needed for today's Pill Assembly. These processed medicinal herbs were all stored in cool and dry places and preserved by restrictions.

The old steward selected seven sets of medicinal herbs according to the pill formula. Brown aromatic herbs were processed with their roots, thick purple mushrooms emitted a sweet fragrance, and dried spirit cicada sloughs were sealed in special medicinal ointments. After being stored in a cellar for fifty years, about one in ten spirit cicada sloughs would grow a small blue flower at the shell-breaking place. This was a special spirit fungus—ice cicada flower. 【5

Once the imperial decree is issued, heaven and earth respond...

In the Wei Chenghuang Temple of Jiao Bu Town, Wei Chenghuang Wei heard the report from the night-wandering ghost messenger and was just about to continue with his official duties when he heard this decree-like sound of the Dao. He sighed: "It truly is a true disciple of the Daoist sects!" He summoned the ghost messenger and said: "A Daoist disciple is setting up an altar to perform rites; all ghosts and gods of this road must provide convenience. Go and release the evil ghosts detained in the Yin soil!"

Behind that Wei Chenghuang Temple... headless ghosts, hanging ghosts, gluttonous ghosts, swift-running ghosts, cat ghosts, fox ghosts, pipa ghosts, blood-eating ghosts, disheveled ghosts, powerful ghosts, single-horned ghosts, drowning ghosts, poverty-stricken ghosts, and other groups of ghosts walked the night. They were instantly snatched away by an invisible, powerful force to a place dozens of miles away, kneeling beneath Brother Qian Chen's dharma altar.

The jade dust scattered by Brother Qian Chen turned into essence, which the groups of ghosts scrambled to eat.

"The malevolent qi of the groups of ghosts!"

Brother Qian Chen led with his peach wood sword, intercepting a wisp of aura from the groups of ghosts and sealing it into the token.

At this moment, a 'chiu-chiu' sound was heard; the bean-sized Ear-Dao Shen secretly climbed onto the dharma altar to pick up the jade dust to eat. It looked at Brother Qian Chen timidly, hugging a bit of jade dust in a very pitiful manner. Brother Qian Chen said helplessly: "Consider it a merit for reporting the news; guard the dharma altar with me!" Only then did the Ear-Dao Shen become joyful, picking up two pieces of jade dust and standing beside the red gourd on the stone platform, head held high and chest out, belly protruding, putting on a majestic appearance.

It was just that it was too small in stature; it didn't look like a divine general guarding a dharma altar at all, but rather like a tiny doll.

At this time, two more little spirits ran out; they were the Gold and Silver Boys Brother Qian Chen had seen before. They also looked expectantly at the spiritual elixir jade dust, and Brother Qian Chen had no choice but to say: "You two shall serve as attendant boys..."

Soon, white snakes, gray rats, hedgehogs, foxes, weasels, and other demonic spirits came rushing from the distant mountains and forests, sniffing the scent of the spiritual elixir. There were many other demonic spirits, but Brother Qian Chen dismissed them with a bit of talisman water, leaving only these five animals with the most spiritual nature.

Brother Qian Chen pointed his peach wood sword at them, drawing out a wisp of their life-force and sealing it into the second token.

"The evil and strange qi of the groups of demons!"

The Gold and Silver Boys carried the red gourd and the spiritual light treasure mirror, standing on both sides of the dharma altar. Brother Qian Chen used his peach wood sword to trigger the Five Poisons Incarnation, using the Five Poisons as a sacrifice to draw out a bit of the Yin-malevolent spirit between heaven and earth, sealing it into the final token.

Brother Qian Chen let out a final shout: "The Five Poisons Demonic Malevolent Qi!"

"Five Poisons and Five Demons, all gods and hundred ghosts, obey my command! The qi of the Yin-soul turbid corpse lies in the form and soul, and the spirit must always be guarded. Following the soul of the Yin corpse, consuming the essence of the Yang spirit, losing the righteous qi, easily leading to death... The external qi of heaven and earth turns into groups of ghosts, sensing the hundred insects... Begone!"

This final shout was like thunder, shaking the minds of the surrounding Yin spirits and ghostly creatures.

Under the diligent lifting of the Silver-Clothed Boy, the spiritual light treasure mirror faced the direction of the Wei Fu in Jiao Bu Town, firmly locking onto a point of life-force. The token sealing the malevolent qi of the hundred ghosts turned into flying ash first, and an invisible life-force, following the lock of the spiritual light mirror, fled toward the Wei family...

At this moment, the gatekeeper of the Wei family heard two lion roars coming from outside the main gate, followed immediately by the white tiger bronze ring on the gate vibrating on its own.

Wei Wei Taiping, who had suddenly fallen into a coma after returning to the Wei family, spat out a mouthful of black blood on the bed. The family members guarding the bedside were terrified and hurriedly ran to report to the head of the family, Wei Wei Lecheng.

At this time, the retainers and thugs who had gone out with Wei Wei Taiping also felt something was wrong; some scratched their backs unconsciously, but it became itchier and itchier.

Instantly, everyone felt pain and itching on their skin, scratching each other. Before long, the places they scratched broke open and festered into sores, which were even itchier. The itchier it got, the more they couldn't help but scratch. Soon, the sores were a bloody mess, with pus flowing all over their bodies. Wherever it reached, there were malignant sores, ringworm, hemorrhoids, maggots, and damp itching...

Their gums were swollen, causing intense pain, and when they opened their mouths, decayed teeth were visible, with a foul odor pressing in.

Wei Wei Lecheng rushed over and asked about Wei Wei Taiping's whereabouts. The family members dared not hide anything and told him everything about Wei Wei Taiping taking people to Sanyang Village. Wei Wei Lecheng sneered upon hearing this, turned his head and said: "Call Daoist Zhen over for me!"

Daoist Zhen rushed over, saw Wei Wei Taiping lying on the bed in a coma, and feigned great shock: "Disciple... what has happened to my disciple?"

Wei Wei Lecheng had long since ordered the interrogation of the retainers who had gone to Sanyang Village with Wei Wei Taiping. At this moment, his face was cold and grim. Looking at Daoist Zhen with unkind intentions, he said: "Can Master Zhen not see what has happened to my son?"

His tone faintly carried the intention of a falling out...

Daoist Zhen had no choice but to step forward to examine him. He kept his long banner on his back to avoid the pestilential qi, took Wei Wei Taiping's pulse, checked his tongue coating, and flipped open his eyelids to look at his pupils. Daoist Zhen carefully investigated Wei Wei Taiping's body aura, pondered for a long time, and then said: "Master Wei, my disciple must have been harmed by a treacherous person. We only need to investigate who he met today and who cast the nightmare spell on him. Then we can find the culprit... and then seize the suppression object to break the spell!"

Wei Wei Lecheng said calmly: "I asked the servants, and they said Master Zhen ordered my son to go to Sanyang Village to cut down a plum tree. Perhaps it ruined someone's geomancy, attracting the backlash of the earth's energy. This is heaven's will, not human doing. Please, fellow Daoist, break the spell for my son first!"

Daoist Zhen showed a look of hesitation, but three elders of the Wei clan arrived outside the room with dharma artifacts.

Wei Wei Lecheng sneered: "Why, can Master not even break this minor trick of an evil person?"

Daoist Zhen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said: "Allow me to take another look..." After checking again, he said to Wei Wei Lecheng: "Master Wei, may I ask my disciple about what happened when he went out today?"

Wei Wei Lecheng summoned a retainer covered in sores and let Daoist Zhen ask him himself.

Daoist Zhen carefully avoided the pestilential qi, protecting himself so thoroughly that no one could cast a Gu or nightmare spell on him. The retainer was covered in festering sores; seeing the immortal master worshipped by the family, how could he hide anything? He immediately told everything that happened today, one by one.

Hearing that the young Daoist who had visited the day before had used a spiritual elixir he had dismissed as a 'fake elixir', turned it into water, and poured it on the cut-down plum tree, instantly causing the plum tree to be reborn, bloom with a tree full of plum blossoms, and bear fruit in an instant...

Daoist Zhen's face was truly unbearable.

He could only force a laugh: "It must be a minor trick of illusion, deceiving the naked eye of mortals."

Wei Wei Lecheng said slowly: "I have already sent people to investigate. The servants took horses to Sanyang Village, and now that big plum tree is still growing well behind Sanyang Village! Next to it is the old tree my stupid son cut down. The servant touched the fruit and even climbed up to pick an unripe plum; his teeth are still sour now!"

"Just now, there was also news from the Wei Chenghuang Temple, saying that not long ago, a high-level expert planted a tree and the plums ripened. That tree full of plums can heal bones and flesh for the injured, turn white hair black for the elderly, and even allow a sixty-year-old to regrow teeth. Now it has been worshipped as a divine object by the villagers... even the medicine merchants in the town have sent people down to purchase them at high prices."

"They say these plums have already become a kind of spiritual medicine!"

"Now a plum in Sanyang Village is worth a hundred coins... The medicine merchants collect green plums and pickle them with fragrant herbs to make medicinal plums. One piece has now been bid at a high price of fifty taels of silver. By the time it is sent to the Central Plains, I'm afraid it will rise to several hundred taels or more."

"This spiritual elixir turned into water, reborn the plum tree, and the plums on the tree can still heal bone and flesh wounds and break evil magic... I heard that the Jiang family child took a green plum, spat out a toad, and woke up. My son brought this upon himself, hurt many innocent people, and suffered heaven's punishment... That's why he swallowed that toad and fell into a coma."

"I wonder if Master's elixir can save my son and wake him up?"

Daoist Zhen hesitated: "That toad is not the main cause. The young master fell into a coma as soon as he entered the door, and it only flared up now. There must be a left-leaning evil person casting a spell to harm him. To save him, we must first destroy the dharma altar!"

"This is heaven's punishment!" Wei Wei Lecheng stared straight at Daoist Zhen, repeating word for word.

Daoist Zhen groaned inwardly: "Clearly you are afraid to provoke that person, yet you talk about heaven's punishment? Forget it, forget it. It seems that little Daoist really has some background. Fortunately, I didn't make a move, but instead tricked this cheap disciple into taking the lead. Although the flying sword is good, the life of a cultivator is the most important. Without the flying sword, it's just losing an external object; without life, everything is gone!"

"I'll admit defeat in this round, clean up the aftermath, and prepare to slip away!"