Dispelling Doubts

Then he said to me, "Let me introduce myself first."

I nodded incessantly next to the old man, like a chick pecking at rice.

Then the old man slowly began to speak, "My name is Li Xuanqing, and I am your grandfather's junior disciple brother.

We were both from Maoshan in the past, but some unforeseen events happened later, forcing us to leave Maoshan.

There were five of us senior and junior disciples.

The Senior Disciple Brother is your grandfather, Li Xuande. The second disciple brother is called Li Xuanba, and as for the third, that's me.

The fourth and fifth disciple brothers are Li Xuanzong and Li Xuanwei, respectively.

Strictly speaking, you should be calling me Martial Uncle."

Upon hearing this, I was stunned. I thought, he's from my grandfather's generation, so I should call him Martial Grand-Uncle, why can I call him Martial Uncle?

I immediately voiced my confusion to the old man.

The old man glared at me, "Can't I want to look younger?

Calling me that makes me sound so old, and I don't like it.

From now on, just call me Martial Uncle, and don't bother me with useless things."

I nodded. I'd call him whatever he wanted.

I was a little surprised that they were fellow disciples, and then I respectfully called out, "Martial Uncle."

I thought to myself, since I know now, I'll have to change how I address him to "Martial Uncle" from now on.

Then I asked, "Martial Uncle, what exactly happened in Lin'an Village? Can you tell me about it?"

Martial Uncle lowered his head and was silent for a moment, as if reminiscing about the past.

Then, Martial Uncle spoke with deep eyes, "This matter has to be traced back to several decades ago.

At that time, your grandfather and I were both in our twenties, full of vigor, and our cultivation had achieved some success.

But one day, your grandfather and I returned to Maoshan after traveling.

As soon as we entered the mountain gate, the Sect Master summoned us to his room and told us there was something for us to handle."

Martial Uncle paused and then said, "Oh, right.

At that time, the master of our five senior and junior disciples was the Sect Master of the Maoshan sect.

So we asked our master what it was.

Master said there was a place called 'Lin'an Village' that we needed to go to.

My senior brother, your grandfather, and I then asked Master what we were going there for.

Then Master began to tell us the past of Lin'an Village.

He said that a very absurd thing happened in that village a long time ago.

It was something he encountered during his travels before, but at that time, the situation had not yet reached its breaking point.

But after so many years have passed, it seems it's about to erupt.

The incident should have happened a thousand years ago. At that time, there was a Prime Minister serving in the imperial court.

When he reached retirement age, he resigned from his official post and returned to his hometown. The Emperor, seeing that he was old, approved his request.

He also bestowed upon him many gold and silver ingots, silks and brocades, and various other precious items..."

The carriage was loaded to the brim. As they passed by Lin'an Village, it was getting dark, so they decided to stop in the village and ask for lodging for the night.

But who knew that Lin'an Village at that time, though appearing peaceful, was a complete den of bandits!

The villagers worked in the fields during the day and robbed and plundered at night. They committed all sorts of evil deeds whenever they encountered anyone, burning, killing, and looting.

Later, a few bandit leaders got together and decided to kill everyone in the group and steal all their belongings.

That night, the bandit leaders led their men.

It could be said that the villagers were farmers by day and bandits by night.

Then they went in and killed all eighty-odd people in the group and took all the treasures.

While moving the treasures, they discovered a young girl hiding in a chest.

The girl was fair-skinned and rosy-lipped, dressed in luxurious clothing. Upon inquiry, they learned she was the Prime Minister's daughter.

They then ordered someone to restrain the young girl, and someone went to report to the bandit leaders.

When the bandit leaders came in and saw the young girl, who was fair-skinned, beautiful, and extremely luxurious, Those bandit leaders harbored wicked intentions and took turns violating the young girl.

After the bandit leaders finished, the young girl was on the verge of death...

After dividing the treasures, they discovered that there were too many corpses to hide.

If they burned them, they were afraid the fire would last until the next day. If people saw it during the day, they wouldn't be able to keep it a secret.

Regardless, he was an official appointed by the imperial court, so no one dared to be careless.

The bandit leader thought of the large, deep pit behind the village and decided to go all in.

He then ordered his subordinates to throw all the corpses into the deep pit in the back mountain.

When all the corpses were thrown into the deep pit, several people carried the dying young girl to the bandit leader.

They saw that the young girl's clothes were tattered and her body was covered in bruises, but she was still breathing.

A few subordinates smirked and said to the bandit leader, "Let the brothers have some fun too. We don't get to encounter this kind of merchandise more than a few times in our lives."

The bandit leader nodded and said, "Hurry up, throw her in before dawn."

The rest is history. After those scoundrels were done, the young girl was barely clinging to life.

Then, those scoundrels kicked the dying young girl into the pit.

Fearing that the corpses would rot and emit a stench, thus attracting the attention of the authorities, the bandit leader immediately issued an order.

He told all his subordinates to help dig soil and fill the pit. It was said that they dug for nearly half a hill.

People from other villages passing by saw this scene and asked them why they were filling the pit.

The bandit leader had already discussed the answer with his subordinates.

He told them that if anyone asked, they should say the village was suffering from smallpox.

"Fortunately, it was discovered early. Fearing contagion, they were buried."

After Martial Uncle finished recounting the past, he sighed, "Alas! In those years, smallpox was an incurable disease.

The common people feared it like a plague. Once someone was found to be infected with smallpox.

At best, they would be sent to a leper colony to fend for themselves. At worst, they would be beaten to death or buried alive.

When nearby villages heard that there was smallpox here, no one dared to come any closer.

A few months later, the government, having not received any news of the former Prime Minister's safe return, sent people to investigate.

The investigators followed the clues all the way to Lin'an Village and heard that the village was suffering from smallpox.

They immediately turned around and left, and the matter was dropped."

I asked Martial Uncle, "Did something happen afterward?"

"Yes, something did happen."

Martial Uncle stroked his chin and said, "It was one night, three months after those people were buried. The bandit leaders mysteriously died.

Their deaths were extremely gruesome. Then, the subordinates who participated in the murders either disappeared or died tragically at home.

Gradually, more and more people died, and the remaining ones panicked.

So, the villagers decided to find an old Taoist priest to come to the village and investigate.

Taoist priests back then were truly capable.

Unlike the fake ones nowadays who pretend to be Taoist priests to swindle food and drinks.

The old Taoist priest casually asked a few questions about the situation, then took out his compass and walked around a few times.

He then calculated with his fingers and knew roughly what had happened.

After learning the outcome, the old Taoist priest's heart grew cold. If he told the truth, his own life would surely be in danger.

If he didn't say anything, he couldn't bear to watch the villagers die one by one. He was in a dilemma.

So, the old Taoist priest thought of a compromise.

He said to the villagers, "This humble Taoist observes that the back mountain of this village never sees sunlight throughout the year.

This is due to excessive Yin energy. To break this anomaly, one must use Yin to overcome Yin."

The villagers, not understanding, asked the old Taoist priest, "What do you mean by using Yin to overcome Yin?"

The old Taoist priest said, "Using Yin to overcome Yin means burying the deceased in a place with excessive Yin energy.

As long as there are enough people, the Yin energy will suppress the Yin energy, and this situation can be resolved.

First, you should move all your deceased relatives to the back mountain.

From now on, anyone who dies in the village should also be buried in the back mountain. This will protect the village."

Martial Uncle sighed and said, "Alas! The old Taoist priest had no choice.

If he had told the truth, he might have died on the spot.

If he didn't say anything, he couldn't bear to watch the hundreds of people in the village die one after another.

So, he used this method to temporarily suppress the disaster.

In fact, this method only treated the symptoms, not the root cause. No matter how much Yin energy there was, it couldn't suppress the ever-increasing resentment.

Once the resentment accumulated to a certain level, the disaster would truly erupt.

The correct approach would have been to dig up all the corpses and bury them in batches in places with ample sunlight.

This way, the Yin energy and resentment would not gather together, and there would be no subsequent events.

But the old Taoist priest dared not say it, fearing he would bring trouble upon himself. However, he was too naive. Just as he was about to leave."

An iron rod smashed towards his head, and the old Taoist priest died on the spot...

Afterwards, the villagers also moved their deceased loved ones to the back mountain, burying the old Taoist priest's body along with them.

For the next thousand years or so, whenever someone died in the village, they were buried in the back mountain.

The village slowly calmed down, and very few people knew the truth anymore.

It wasn't until more than forty years ago that my master, may he rest in peace, went out traveling and immediately saw the problem here.

Master knew that the yin energy here could no longer suppress the resentment, and that the things inside seemed incredibly powerful.

He then returned to Maoshan and summoned me and your grandfather, telling us to live in Lin'an Village.

If anything were to happen to the village one day, we would be prepared.

And so, the two of us lived there for over forty years. He got married, had your father, and then had you.

As I disliked noisy places, I've been living in this bamboo forest.

Later, Master passed away, and there was a struggle for the Sect Master position within Maoshan.

Originally, Master intended to pass the Sect Master position to your grandfather, Li Xuande.

Because Second Disciple Brother Li Xuanba had coveted the Sect Master position for many years, he then caused chaos at Maoshan.

Furthermore, your grandfather got married and no longer had any attachment to Maoshan.

And so, while guarding the village, he watched his descendants slowly grow up.

That's all the trivial matters of the village. Do you have any other questions?"

Upon hearing this, I asked Martial Uncle, "Then where did all the people in the village go?"

Martial Uncle said, without any surprise, that they were all buried in the soil of the back mountain.

I nervously asked, "Everyone is dead, so will I be okay?"

Martial Uncle was silent for a moment and said, "You should be fine. Your father should have made arrangements.

Listening to your account of how you got out, your father must have used a Substitute Straw Man to trick him."

"What is a Substitute Straw Man?"

Martial Uncle replied, "It's when you write down your birth date and time and paste it onto a straw man made of straw.

This can conceal your original soul, and even if he destroys the straw man, it won't harm you.

After all, the straw man is just a decoy, with only a trace of your soul's aura on it."

I was still confused and asked, "Then why did the beans I threw when I came out turn into people?"

"That's called Scattering Beans to Create Soldiers," Martial Uncle said. "Ghosts favor the yin, and soybeans are also yin.

So, through certain methods, ghosts are enshrined within the beans.

When you need them, you just take them out, chant the incantation, and scatter them."

Then Martial Uncle glanced at me and said, "I took a look when you arrived here. You've used quite a lot on your journey.

These were all collected by your grandfather over many years of running around, one by one.

You must know that each bean contains a ghost, and some ghosts are extremely difficult to collect.

It might take a very long time to persuade them, or perhaps a fight.

Your grandfather traveled all over for more than ten years, and only managed to collect this small basin.

You wasted half of it in one night. If your grandfather knew, he'd surely rise from his grave.

Moreover, this method has been lost for many years.

Back then, Master only taught it to your grandfather; even the current Sect Master of Maoshan doesn't know this skill.

If they were sold, each one would be worth hundreds of thousands, and they'd be priceless."

As he spoke, Martial Uncle gritted his teeth and looked at me, saying, "You prodigal son."

I flinched and meekly said, "I had no choice but to do it to save my life. Besides, those soldiers were so weak, they disappeared as soon as I threw them out."

Martial Uncle glared at me and said, "Nonsense! With your grandfather's skill, he wouldn't bother with ordinary ghosts.

Although the ghosts in the village have some cultivation, they are definitely no match for the yin soldiers in the beans."

I said, "That's exactly what I mean, they disappeared as soon as I threw them out."

Martial Uncle looked at me suspiciously and said, "Take out the remaining soybeans and let me see."

Upon hearing this, I opened my bag and handed a handful of soybeans to Martial Uncle.

Martial Uncle felt them in his hand, frowning, and then said with slight surprise, "Oh, so that's how it is."

I asked Martial Uncle what was wrong.

Martial Uncle said that because the soybeans had not been nourished by yin energy for a long time, the yin soldiers inside had severely regressed in strength.

Then he added that there were "Ghost Spirit" level yin soldiers among them.

Normally, this level of Yin Soldiers, let alone a handful, could be deployed.

Even just throwing out two would be enough to beat those ghosts until they were crawling on the ground, begging for mercy.

I asked again, "What is a 'Ghost Spirit'?"

Martial Uncle didn't answer. Instead, he looked at me and said, "Kid, don't ask so many questions.

Right now, I'll ask you one thing: do you trust your Martial Uncle?"

I hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Martial Uncle said, "Good. Give me the rest of the soybeans.

Come back in a while, and I'll have a surprise for you."

I was about to pour out all the soybeans from my bag to Martial Uncle.

Martial Uncle quickly said, "Whoa, whoa, whoa... wait a minute. This stuff can't touch the ground.

Otherwise, the Yin souls inside will slip away through the earth."

"Wait for me here."

With that, he ran back into the house and brought out a dirty copper basin.

Then, he started putting the soybeans in one by one, counting as he went.

In the end, he counted a total of three hundred and twenty-six beans, then said to me:

"Kid, watch carefully. This is all there is. When you come back, I'll restore these to their peak condition for you.

But let's be clear, after I help you with this, you'll owe me a favor.

I won't ask for much, just give me the six extra beans as a tip. What do you say?"

I thought to myself, just six beans? I'd already thrown out who knows how many last night. So, I generously waved my hand and said, "Deal."

Then, Martial Uncle rubbed his hands together and said a bit sheepishly:

"Don't think I'm greedy, it's just that this stuff is really hard to come by."

"Oh, oh, oh, alright... take them."

Seeing how generous I was, Martial Uncle nodded approvingly.

It wasn't until much later that I understood the true value of this item. Thinking back to how many I had wasted that night...

I raised my hand and slapped myself twice. I really hit myself. Of course, that's a story for another time.

Then I asked again, "By the way, Martial Uncle, what's the deal with the paper horse I have?"

Martial Uncle asked me to take it out so he could see it. So, I took out the paper horse my dad had given me and showed it to Martial Uncle.

After looking at it, Martial Uncle clicked his tongue and said, "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Your dad and grandpa were really generous to equip you with such good stuff."

He continued, "This is called an 'Yin Horse.' It's a form of Taoist magic, but yours is much more advanced than most.

Others are mostly single-use; they disappear after one use, and they don't last very long."