Chapter 114: The Delivery

You've seen A Chinese Ghost Story, right? In Lanruo Temple, the beautiful Nie Xiaoqian was controlled by the ghost crone, luring strong men to absorb their yang energy to feed her master. What I encountered tonight was no different.

Between man and woman, intimacy is yin-yang fusion—balancing and nourishing. But with a ghost? It's a one-way drain. That's what we call yang depletion. So when a man frequently has erotic dreams, his body often deteriorates—most likely due to entanglement with lecherous spirits. (A rare one-off doesn't count.)

Take this ghost girl, for instance—burning with seductive passion, clearly aiming to "punish" me on the spot. But as she leaned in for a kiss, I sealed all nine orifices and, without hesitation, struck with a Thunder Seal using my left hand—straight at her head.(You can look up what a Thunder Seal is—no words can fully describe it.)

She let out a sharp scream and stumbled back, her form starting to blur.She tried to flee.I knew from karma: every person killed by these evil spirits became another debt I'd have to repay. Killing her would've been easy—but would only deepen my burden.

Instead, I pulled out four copper coins and flung them to the ground.They landed in a grid, trapping the ghost within.Then I took out "lady's thread" and swiftly wrapped her up, tying her tight.

The ghost's illusion shattered. No longer seductive and beautiful, her face now appeared charred, arms oozing with rot.She shrieked, "Why are you catching me? What did I do wrong? All men deserve to die!"

I thought to myself: right now, every life you take chips away at my virtue.As someone walking the path between yin and yang, I deeply believe in karma and retribution.Even if this wasn't connected to me, I couldn't stand by and do nothing.

"I refuse! You can't kill me! I died wrongfully—my grievance is unresolved—I won't vanish!"Her hair shed like rotting bark, pulling off strips of bloody scalp. It was a grotesque sight.

I didn't argue.I took out a snake skin soaked in dragon saliva.This thing was spiritual—once activated with a ritual, not even a ghost king could resist.

As soon as I drew it out, pure yang energy burst forth like heat from a furnace.The surrounding alley echoed with the howls of stray cats—some perched on rooftops, others watching from trash piles.

Animals sense energy better than humans.They, too, were drawn by the sudden surge of intense yang.

The ghost dropped to her knees in terror, sobbing and begging:"Master, spare me! I was killed with sulfuric acid, my soul trapped in torment. I hurt others because my pain has no release. Without venting my grievance, I can't reincarnate! And this yang fire burns me constantly—it's not fair! I'm innocent!"

Her wails echoed through the dark alley.If anyone had passed by, they'd have been struck by the deathly aura—and likely bedridden for days.

She continued crying, telling her story.

Her name was Luo Xue, once a university student.She met her boyfriend at a bar, lost her virginity in a moment of passion, and they dated for a while.Later, she discovered she was pregnant.

As a student, she never intended to keep the baby—she just wanted some money from the guy for an abortion.Instead, he accused her of trying to scam him, claiming the child wasn't his.

Heartbroken, she decided to accept the loss—maybe she had been too careless.But on the way to the hospital, she saw that same boyfriend supporting a very pregnant woman—who called him "husband."

Her world shattered.In a fit of rage, she confronted them at the hospital. He claimed not to know her—and even hit her.

The gentle lover had turned into a monster.She wanted revenge.

That same day, he invited her to his rented apartment, apologizing, promising to divorce his wife.Naive and hopeful, she went—only to walk straight into the underworld.

He strangled her, dismembered the body, soaked her in a large sulfuric acid barrel, and finally dumped her into the sewer.To this day, her remains had never been found.

With no body, her spirit lingered, gathering resentment until she became a fierce ghost.Yet ghosts—no matter how vengeful—can find protection under Buddhist stupas, so she prayed daily at White Pagoda Temple.That's why she never got revenge.

Then one day, she absorbed frost filth, which awakened her violent nature.But just as she was ready to kill—she discovered her ex had emigrated overseas.

With her revenge thwarted, she returned to the place where it all began—the bar.

After hearing her story, I folded a yellow talisman paper into a triangle and said:

"I walk the path of Dao—not one to destroy without cause.If you follow my guidance and enter this talisman, you'll serve by helping people—resolve a hundred disasters.When the tally is complete, you'll be released from the paper, allowed to return to the underworld and resume your ghostly life.When the time is right, you'll reincarnate."

With that, I added spiritual intent into the charm and chanted the Rebirth Mantra.

Daoist rituals differ from Buddhist ones.Buddhist rites send souls directly to the Pure Land, bypassing hell. It's transactional—pay karma, skip suffering.

Daoist rebirth is tied to heaven's cycle.You pay your karmic debts. Only then are you reborn.

Whether Luo Xue truly repented or just feared the dragon-saliva snake skin, she chose to enter the talisman.Once fused, I ran lady's thread through it and completed a basic protective charm.

Afterward, I thought about what to do with this talisman.I had to deal with the Nine Dragon Gate—no time to monitor a ghost's good deeds.But every life she saved would add merit to my name and extend my lifespan.Clearly, this had to be done.

About the mysterious Nine Dragon Gate, I had pondered—why did the higher powers choose me?Was it really due to the yellow weasel reducing my lifespan?

But my shortened life came from a lack of merit—wouldn't repaying it solve the issue?

Instead, they handed me Nine Dragon Gate—a whole mystery box.As a Feng Shui master, I understood "dragons" as mountain ranges.

In geomantic terms: Dragon, Acupoint, Sand, Water, Direction.

Dragon is the mountain vein.

Soil is dragon's flesh.

Rocks are bones.

Plants are dragon's hair.

Perhaps they want me to find nine true dragon veins? Or maybe some have been disrupted?Maybe it refers to Nine Sons of the Dragon, symbolic of power, transformation…?

Too many possibilities. My head ached.

Even the most enlightened grandmasters wouldn't dare leak such a heavenly secret.Still, as a Feng Shui practitioner, my first step had to be geomancy.

China has 24 great dragon veins, representing the rise and fall of dynasties.And beyond that, countless small and medium ones crisscross the land.

That's why foreign politicians often call China a sleeping dragon.

But for now, first things first.

By the time I returned to the hotel, it was late.I unplugged the landline—didn't want any weird "services" calling—and went to bed.

Next morning, my phone rang.

Jiang Shiyu.

I sighed. Didn't answer.Every word between us could stir karma.Until this was all resolved, I had to stay away.

I washed my face, got dressed, and stepped out.As I passed a delivery company, an idea struck me.

I called the village chief of Zuo Heqi.

He was overjoyed to hear from me.Before I could even speak, he rambled on—inviting me to visit, saying how effective the Sanqing Temple had become.Now everyone in ten miles knew an old Daoist lived there who could predict anything.

"Uncle," I said, "just give me your address—I want to mail you something."

He immediately refused."No, no! No need to be polite! Ever since you left, those two wells really started working. Our pigs and orchards are thriving! We've got everything city folks do! Just come visit us sometime, that's enough!"

He was flustered but sincere.Still, I steered back to the point:"Uncle, I've got something important to send. Give it directly to Old Daoist. No one else can touch it—or there'll be disaster."

The moment he heard that, he got serious and promised to handle it personally.

Once I got the address, I wrote a note:

"This talisman contains a ghost, Luo Xue. Wrongfully killed. Highly dangerous. She must save 100 people to redeem her karma. After that, help guide her to the underworld. Infinite blessings, Heavenly Lord of Longevity."

I mailed the charm to the old village.

With the old Daoist guarding the temple, and incense worship keeping him strong in merit, the ghost's deeds would benefit us both.

A win-win situation—he wouldn't refuse.

After mailing the package, I took a cab to the wholesale market and bought various Feng Shui items for setting up a ritual altar.

I wrapped everything in black plastic bags and returned to the hotel.Why not go home?

Because I was afraid Jiang Shiyu might be waiting at my door.If she showed up, I'd have no choice but to run—I couldn't explain too much.And revealing too much might become a sin.

Loaded with supplies, I returned to the hotel and called Zhou Han to confirm Kun Ji's location.

Turns out, he never left Shenyang.Clearly, after the battle with Wang Yi, the Shangqing Five Thunder Sword Incantation had seriously injured him.

With his address in hand, I boarded a bus to a hotel in Da Dong District.

I took a deep breath.

If I don't avenge Wang Yi, I'll never face him in the afterlife.

But little did I know—

This was the true beginning of my descent into using Feng Shui to harm others.