Full City Mourning

Under the setting sun, a cow's tail swished away flies.

A cowherd, his face smeared with dried snot, sat raggedly on a cow's back, blankly watching a large caravan pass by on the slope below.

"Daoist Master, we've arrived at Jiming Village!"

The caravan finally stopped in a village, and Luo Feibai respectfully approached Mo Chuan's carriage.

He showed no disrespect, despite Mo Chuan's imminent death.

The carriage's thick curtain was pulled aside, and Mo Chuan squinted, poking his head out, and slowly, heavily, stepped out.

Luo Feibai quickly placed one foot on the carriage's edge and helped Mo Chuan down.

"Thank you."

"You're too kind, Daoist Master!"

Luo Feibai respectfully helped Mo Chuan out of the carriage before handing him over to a steady young man for support. He then busied himself with arranging for lodging.

Mo Chuan walked slowly, supported by the young man, and inwardly mocked himself, thinking this was like an early retirement experience.

Old Daoist Priest Yanzhen's body was deteriorating day by day.

Trapped within this shell, he felt like a fish in a pond or a bird in a cage, every step a struggle.

He didn't even dare to let his soul leave.

He had a premonition that if he departed from this body, the flesh would instantly perish.

To put it bluntly, this current body was only kept alive by his soul clinging to a thread of life.

Coincidentally, Fu Luan Temple had received abundant incense offerings in recent days. After nourishing himself with the Sacrificial Dao Furnace, his soul had grown increasingly robust.

Otherwise, how could he have supported Old Daoist Priest Yanzhen to get this far?

'It should be fine to hold on until Yunji Temple. If Yunji Temple doesn't discover anything, I might even get a chance to study their Daoist magic.'

Mo Chuan thought to himself, and the fatigue of the journey seemed to dissipate, giving him a sense of hope, like looking at plums to quench thirst.

After dinner, a guard knocked and entered:

"Daoist Master, a woman in a nearby town has a child who was frightened and lost its soul. All the matchmakers and gossips have tried, but there's no improvement. They heard you were with the caravan and wanted to ask you to take a look."

"Lost soul, huh? I'll go take a look." Mo Chuan readily agreed.

"Alright, Daoist Master, I'll help you."

The guard was overjoyed and quickly came to support him.

When the caravan traveled, they emphasized harmony and good relations. Regardless of whether they were from the righteous or unrighteous paths, they aimed to foster good karma.

As the saying goes, even a hitching post can trip someone.

Building good karma meant paving a clearer path.

Supported by the guard, Mo Chuan arrived at the main hall of the house where they were lodging.

In the hall, Luo Feibai was entertaining guests.

Judging by their neat attire, the guests were likely gentry from the surrounding villages.

That made sense; if they weren't gentry, how could they have such timely information?

"Daoist Master, please take a look at what's wrong with the child. For three days, he's been crying non-stop. Look, his voice is hoarse, but he still whimpers incessantly. He hasn't slept a wink for three days. I've finally had a son..."

A woman walked over, holding an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes. She began to complain like a character from a tragic tale.

"Alright, say less and let the Daoist Master examine the child carefully," a middle-aged gentry member nearby chided.

The woman immediately fell silent and brought the swaddled infant forward.

"Waaah, waaah—"

Mo Chuan glanced over. The infant in the swaddling clothes was indeed whimpering incessantly, though its voice was hoarse and barely audible.

Looking closer, Mo Chuan could faintly see several evil infants clinging to the baby.

Upon seeing the gender of the evil infants, Mo Chuan sighed.

"Did you have a female infant who passed away?"

The woman exchanged a look with her husband, and their faces turned ashen.

"Please, Daoist Master, save my youngest son. I finally had a son at thirty; he can't die now." The woman knelt.

"Alas, what a sin!"

Mo Chuan sighed and raised his hand. A Ghost Subduing Talisman flashed in his palm, and he gently placed it on the infant's chest.

Instantly, the infant's incessant crying ceased.

He pursed his lips, wanting to nurse, but exhaustion overcame him, and he fell into a deep sleep.

"Oh, he's not crying anymore!"

"This is truly miraculous!"

"Daoist Master, you have great mana."

The guards watching the excitement from the side clicked their tongues in amazement.

"Don't lose this talisman; it can protect children from evil disturbances. When you have time, burn some incense for the departed child! Go, go!"

After speaking, Mo Chuan waved his hand, dismissing them.

"Thank you, Daoist Master, thank you, Daoist Master!"

The gentry quickly took out money and, following the Daoist nun's rules, placed it on the table before leaving with the woman.

"Daoist Master, you've worked hard."

Luo Feibai approached, cupping his fists with an embarrassed expression.

"I, Luo, travel far and wide, often in the wilderness. I've seen phosphorescence near graves. Could I trouble you for a talisman to ensure my safety?"

Mo Chuan raised his hand, and a talisman flashed at his fingertips.

"This talisman can subdue fierce ghosts, but it won't work on spirit monsters. However, if you encounter a spirit monster, blades and axes can harm them. Any demon below a Great Jiazi Demon can be cut down in one blow."

Luo Feibai was overjoyed upon hearing this and took it with both hands. "Thank you, Daoist Master, for the talisman!"

Mo Chuan cupped his fists in return and, with the help of a guard, slowly made his way back to his guest room.

The next morning, the caravan set off again.

Mo Chuan once again got into the bone-jarring carriage, his face contorted in misery as he endured the rest of the journey.

Fortunately, they were not far from Changlan City now.

As the caravan traveled until noon, Changlan City was already visible in the distance. Several soldiers were blocking the city gate, checking passing travelers.

Luo Feibai had some influence and was not subjected to any difficulties; he was allowed to pass.

As soon as they entered the city, the driver exclaimed in surprise, "What happened here? Why is the whole city wearing mourning clothes?"

Mo Chuan heard the exclamation, lifted the curtain, and looked outside.

Indeed, on the sparsely populated streets, five out of ten pedestrians were wearing mourning clothes, and one person was weeping.

Walking a few more steps and reaching an alley, he caught a glimpse of a family holding a funeral in the alley.

The soul-guiding banner was raised high.

If it were just one or two cases, they might have just said, "May the coffin rise and wealth come, may purple energy come from the east," to ward off bad luck.

However, the further the carriage went, the more the caravan members muttered.

There were simply too many families holding funerals.

They could be seen in almost every alley, which was truly eerie.

What's more, groups of Daoist priests and Buddhist disciples were coming and going.

After the caravan entered the security escort agency, Luo Feibai, as usual, helped Mo Chuan off the carriage and then eagerly called over the person in charge to ask.

"Old Bucktooth, what's going on in the city? Why are there paper money ashes flying everywhere as we walked?"

"Security escort leader Luo, you might not know, but the city has been experiencing hauntings recently!"

"What?" Luo Feibai's expression changed slightly.

However, Old Bucktooth lowered his voice and said, "But some people say it's the work of child snatchers. There are also rumors in the streets that this is a struggle within the court!"

The so-called child snatchers were human traffickers who specialized in kidnapping children.

Because they often disguised themselves as beggars and roamed the streets, they were called child snatchers by the common folk.

"What do you mean by that?" Luo Feibai quickly asked.

Old Bucktooth glanced at Mo Chuan and said mysteriously, "A month ago, there were rumors of children disappearing in the city, and it has only gotten worse recently."

"A few days ago, the prefect announced that this was the work of child snatchers and executed several culprits. Unexpectedly, not only did this not stop, but even the elderly and young adults began to disappear."

"Rumor has it that this is the work of a thousand-year demon, causing hauntings! Some also say that with the prefect's assessment approaching, someone is trying to frame the prefect!"

Luo Feibai exclaimed in surprise and cursed profusely.

Finally, he turned to Mo Chuan and asked, "Daoist Master, is there a fierce ghost at work?"

Mo Chuan replied, "Under the bright daylight, I haven't detected any ghostly aura yet."

As he replied, Mo Chuan narrowed his eyes, gazing at the dim, long street, lost in thought.

Tonight, he would be staying in Changlan City.

Firstly, the security escort agency needed to unload and count the goods.

Secondly, for the security escort agency, escorting only him, a "human cargo," to Xishan City would be somewhat wasteful, so Luo Feibai planned to find some complementary goods to escort together.

Mo Chuan didn't pay much attention to this.

As night fell, Changlan City was bustling with activity.

The authorities had organized large groups of people, holding torches, to patrol the long streets. The blazing torchlight, like a swimming dragon, weaved through the streets and alleys.

The scene was as lively and eerie as a festival lantern display.

Mo Chuan stood by the window, watching for half the night, but saw nothing. Instead, his old body was exhausted!

He ended up falling into a deep sleep in the latter half of the night.

The next morning, he was woken by a commotion.

When he put on his Daoist robe and stepped out of his room, the scene before him made his spirit momentarily falter.

He saw Huayin Flying Tiger Luo Feibai kneeling in the courtyard.

In front of him, on a spread-out piece of blue cloth, lay a severed foot. Judging by its appearance, it seemed to be a child's foot.

Beneath the foot was a talisman.

—It was precisely the Ghost Subduing Talisman Mo Chuan had given him.

A word from me: From now on, update times will be set between 11 PM and 12 AM. If there are updates at other times, there won't be any tonight.

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Lastly, thank you all, Daoist masters, for your support!