The Zhang Mansion's Strange Haunting

Jinghe County had recently been plagued by a strange occurrence.

Steward Zhang's mansion, the residence of a wealthy magnate, was being haunted by evil spirits and ghosts!

It was said that this haunting was peculiar, only possessing women and avoiding men.

Steward Zhang's main wife and his six concubines had all been possessed. When the spirits acted up, they would be overcome by a surge of blood, their eyes would roll back, and they would break out in cold sweats, drenched as if by rain.

Some, unable to bear the torment, would even bite their lips and cry out in agony.

It was rumored that during an exorcism, his most favored sixth concubine clawed at the bedding in pain, making Steward Zhang, despite the presence of outsiders, weep openly.

In this era of limited entertainment, the incident quickly became the talk of every street and alley in the county.

Many common folk secretly criticized the Zhang family, believing they had committed too many wicked deeds and were now facing retribution!

As soon as this was said, someone retorted.

If it was retribution, why wasn't Steward Zhang himself being punished?

This question immediately silenced everyone, leaving them speechless and fostering secret grumbling.

Could it be that ghosts also bullied the weak and feared the strong?

Thus, another rumor spread through the town: ghosts feared wicked people.

For instance, executioners and butchers, it was said, not only kept people at a distance, but even fierce ghosts would detour to avoid them.

The fact that the ghost dared not possess Steward Zhang precisely indicated that Steward Zhang was truly a wicked villain!

Fierce ghosts would retreat three miles upon seeing him.

Believe it or not, this argument gained considerable traction and became the prevailing sentiment for a time!

It made people sigh, lamenting that good people don't live long, while villains endure for millennia!

At this moment, Steward Zhang, whom the populace described as someone even "fierce ghosts would detour to avoid," was standing outside his main wife's room, peeking inside and wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.

Beneath his opulent robes of brocade and silk, his legs trembled uncontrollably.

His main wife was once again being tormented by the spirit, lying on the bed. She gripped the edge of the stool with both hands, her face contorted in a pained grimace.

Beside her, two shamans, dressed in ceremonial robes and hats, holding drums in their left hands and mallets in their right, were shaking bells and dancing the shamanic dance, chanting incantations to appease the spirits and ward off evil.

"The sun sets in the west, the sky turns black. Travelers seek inns, birds seek the forest, tigers return to their dens... First, we invite the Fox, then the Yellow One, inviting the Great Python, the Spirit Mink, and the King of Sorrows..."

The shamans' chanting was sonorous and their tongues rolled, making their scriptures sound obscure and difficult to understand to outsiders, inspiring awe.

However, no matter how hard the two shamans, Great God and Second God, tried.

The main wife remained in agony. At one point, she even suddenly straightened her body, tilting her head back, sweat beading and soaking her clothes.

"The sun sets in the west, the sky turns black. Travelers seek inns, birds seek the forest, tigers return to their dens..."

After completing their ritual, Great God and Second God exchanged glances upon seeing the main wife's posture, attempting to repeat the process.

Unexpectedly, Great God suddenly trembled all over.

He stopped moving.

With a face full of fear, he retreated from the room, saying, "Steward Zhang, this demon is too fierce. We are powerless to help."

After saying this, he turned to leave.

"Hey, hey, hey! Please wait, both of you..."

Steward Zhang, no longer daring to stand at the door, quickly made an excuse to chase after them.

"You two are renowned experts in these parts. If even you are powerless, what... what am I to do?"

Steward Zhang caught up, sweat beading on his forehead.

"Steward Zhang, I heard that the Fu Luan Temple in Qingshui County has an immortal child. Perhaps they can resolve your predicament."

The two shamans quickly clasped their hands together, recommending another colleague.

"Qingshui County?"

Just as Steward Zhang was about to ask for details, a servant reported, "Master, a wandering Daoist priest has arrived outside, saying he wishes to see the ladies."

Upon hearing this, Steward Zhang immediately bristled and waved his hand, "Go, go, go! What kind of rogue Daoist dares to come and scam money? Do you think I'm desperate enough to try anything?"

Ever since this haunting occurred in his household, countless half-immortals and masters had seemingly appeared from nowhere in Jinghe County overnight.

At first, he had treated them with utmost respect and courtesy.

However, after repeated failures, he finally realized that they were just a bunch of charlatans trying to swindle him out of his money.

From then on, he only invited those with established reputations.

Even so, he had invited all the renowned experts from the surrounding ten miles, yet there was still no improvement. He was so frightened that he had been living outside the city for the past few days.

"Master, that Daoist priest... seems to have some skill."

The servant hesitated for a moment and stammered.

Logically, he shouldn't have spoken out of turn, but if his master could hide in the countryside outside the city, they, the servants, had to guard the home. If this matter wasn't resolved, they were also afraid!

"What makes you say that?" Steward Zhang asked.

"Master, your servant is clumsy with words. You'll understand once you see it."

"This..." Steward Zhang hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Please invite them in!"

"Yes!"

The house servant quickly turned and went to invite the guests, afraid the master would go back on his word.

"Great Immortals, if I heard correctly, the Fu Luan Temple you mentioned earlier is... an immortal child?"

"Precisely."

"Since it's an immortal child, their cultivation must be limited, right?"

"Ah, Steward, you misunderstand. The tradition of the Fu Luan Temple lies in inviting immortals to descend through divination. Their great power belongs to their ancestors. It is precisely because they are immortal children, with pure roots, that they can invite immortals," the Shaman explained.

As they were speaking, they noticed Steward Zhang's gaze drift towards the courtyard's arched gate.

The two Shamans turned to look and their eyes immediately lit up.

What a handsome Daoist!

They saw a young Daoist, no older than twenty, with a hairpin in his hair, wearing a Daoist robe, and stepping in cloud-soled shoes, approaching with the bearing of a dragon.

The person was none other than Mo Chuan.

To say how handsome he was, well, not entirely!

In this era of widespread malnutrition, simply being able to eat enough to develop normally was enough to crush ninety percent of people in terms of physique and appearance.

Moreover, having reshaped his physical body with the Earth-born Fetus, he was free from the chronic illnesses of grain consumption, making him a prime example of how one good feature can hide many flaws.

Speaking of which, why was he here?

It was purely a matter of fate.

It turned out that ever since he discovered the wonderful use of incense offerings in aiding cultivation, he had used the Chen Family's incense offerings to manifest in this world, intending to experiment actively.

Unexpectedly, during his journey, he encountered several villages and towns, experiencing their local customs and traditions, but found no incense offerings anywhere.

Of course, if people kept their doors closed, he wouldn't know if they offered incense or prayed.

He did consider sneaking in to take a look?

Unfortunately, now that he had a physical body, he had lost the stealth of his ghostly form, where he could "disperse into qi." It was naturally difficult to perform feats like scaling walls and walking on rooftops.

Or rather, he didn't have the ability.

This made Mo Chuan somewhat nostalgic for his time as a ghost.

He heard that the Daoist sects had methods for "Emerging Yin Spirit," and he should try to obtain them if he had the chance.

After walking and stopping for two days like this, he unexpectedly arrived in this unknown small county. Hearing that Steward Zhang's household was experiencing hauntings, he naturally followed the scent like a cat to a mouse.

"Jinghe's Zhang Xian greets the Daoist Master. May I ask your name, Daoist Master?"

Steward Zhang quickly approached and asked with cupped fists.

"This humble Daoist is Ming Chen. Greetings, Steward Zhang!"

Mo Chuan returned the salute with cupped fists. Ming Chen was a new Daoist title he had chosen, taken from the "Sun, Moon, and Stars" of the Three Scenery Daoist Magic.

"So you are Daoist Ming Chen. You've arrived at a most opportune time. Could you please examine my wife? My Zhang family is about to be completely ruined by that demon."

Steward Zhang was clearly exhausted and, without further pleasantries, immediately got to the point.

"Allow this humble Daoist to examine first."

"Yes, yes, yes. Daoist Master, please this way!"

Steward Zhang hastily and respectfully invited Mo Chuan. The two Shamans, who had intended to leave, exchanged a glance and followed.

At this moment, the door to the main wife's room was wide open, with several servants standing fearfully in the courtyard, peeking into the room to observe the situation.

Suddenly seeing Steward Zhang return, they all jumped in fright.

Fortunately, Steward Zhang's mind was focused on Mo Chuan, so he didn't scold them.

Mo Chuan excused himself and entered the wife's room.

Inside, the main wife, who was over fifty, lay on the bed, panting heavily.

Seeing Mo Chuan enter, her eyes were also hazy, as if still immersed in some unspeakable, bizarre illusion.

Mo Chuan glanced around and frowned slightly.

It wasn't that he had discovered a demon.

It was that the place was too clean.

So clean it was like a marketplace thoroughly cleansed by the midday sun.

Mo Chuan's peripheral vision caught Steward Zhang, who was standing at the door and peeking in, as well as the two Shamans standing a short distance away to avoid suspicion. He thought, no wonder so many people have failed.

There's something fishy going on here, isn't there?

After a moment's thought, he approached the wife, raised his hand, and a Ghost Subduing Talisman flashed on his fingertip, pressing it onto the bedding.

Everything was as usual.

'Isn't it a ghost?'

Mo Chuan extended his index finger again and gently tapped the woman's brow.

A wisp of Primordial Qi leaked from his fingertip, circulating within the woman's body.

According to the usual signs, there was no ghost possession or spirit monster's influence.

She was just a bit weak and depleted.

"Did it escape? No, her body is too clean. If she had been possessed or influenced by a spirit monster, there would definitely be traces left behind."

As his thoughts flickered, Mo Chuan turned and walked toward the door.

"Daoist Master, what's the situation?" Steward Zhang asked quickly.

"Very tricky," Mo Chuan said.

"Ah? Is this... is there no way?" Steward Zhang looked distressed.

"There is still one method, but I can't guarantee the effect."

"Daoist Master, please try it as soon as possible!" Steward Zhang urged.

"This method requires borrowing three incense offerings from you, Steward," Mo Chuan said with a serious expression.