Hong Yi recalled the fierce winds that had howled through the illusion, the countless shadows stretching across the ground as if demons were crawling up from beneath it. The memory still made his skin crawl. The Amitabha Sutra said, "The Yaksha King is one of the eighteen mind demons. His divine powers are vast, and he is terrifying beyond measure. Subdue him, and he may serve as a Dharma Protector." Hong Yi was now envisioning a demon, then subduing it to make it his own. "Yaksha King!" Seeing the scene before him, Hong Yi suddenly entered a state of visualization. The words "eradicate evil to the very last root" flashed through his mind. His spirit immediately left his body and drifted out the window, reaching the rockery where Nanny Zeng had been meditating in just a few steps. This was an invisible clash of thoughts. Though unlike a contest of martial arts, it was no less perilous—in fact, more so. He knew that spirit-bewilderment techniques were also a form of visualization: one's spirit left the body and, from afar, conjured illusions around an enemy, making them experience all manner of hallucinations—terror, stabbing pain, the sensation of being burned—and thereby damaging their spirit. The Yaksha King roared and charged forward at once, raising its fork and bringing it down. With a single thrust, it "forked" Nanny Zeng to the ground. Hong Yi knew her spirit had been scattered. The moment the giant demon appeared, it pounced on Hong Yi, lifting its iron fork and striking down. When one visualized a demon to harm others, the first person it threatened was oneself. One had to subdue it with willpower before directing it to attack another's spirit. "If there's a debt, repay it; if there's a grievance, settle it. As a man of letters, I uphold righteousness, understand principle, set names and distinctions aright, and avenge my enemies. Not one of these can be neglected. You came to kill me today, so I cannot let you go." Hong Yi hurriedly visualized his spirit leaping into the Void, transforming into Amitabha as golden light blazed around him. The giant demon shrank back at once, too afraid to advance. Daylight was the bane of disembodied spirits. If a spirit left its body in broad daylight, one without deep cultivation could not see a thing; all they could make out was a vast, dazzling whiteness, while pain pricked their entire body. This was recorded in the Daoist Classic. Suddenly, the illusion took shape again before Hong Yi: a giant demon with a green face and fangs, three zhang tall, red hair covering its head, and a black, razor-sharp iron fork in its hand. Scales covered its hands and feet, and it looked terrifying enough to scare the life out of anyone. Under the golden light's suppression, the Yaksha King submitted completely. Hong Yi could even sense its fear. With a thought, he pointed toward Nanny Zeng, who was clutching her head. Still, such spirit-bewildering tricks and despicable schemes were no path for a gentleman, nor were they befitting someone who cultivated the Dao in pursuit of immortality. Hong Yi would not use them. Then he saw Nanny Zeng shaking all over like a sieve, her body arching violently as if something had speared her. Bang! Bang! Bang! After Nanny Zeng's violent trembling, her body went still. Her breathing was faint, and her eyes had gone unfocused. A spirit at the Day Wanderer stage could drift several people's heights into the air, much like a martial artist whose body had been cultivated to the level of a Martial Master. A single push off the ground sent them flying, moving so quickly that ten steps became one. Hong Yi's spirit could now drift several people's heights up. He hovered above the courtyard wall, looking down over the surroundings, and could see fairly clearly. As a disembodied spirit, he was at home in the night and could see even better than in the daytime. If a seductive fox spirit bewitched someone, appearing as a beautiful woman to embrace them in a dream, the victim would grow weak and die. But there was no one behind the rockery—not a soul. The other party had already vanished. This was the same illusion Hong Yi had encountered before while practicing the Amitabha Sutra's visualization method. The scripture called this mind demon the Yaksha King. "There are no demons in heaven and earth to begin with. They are all illusions born from the human heart. Pity that so few people can see through them." Seeing Nanny Zeng's spirit scattered, Hong Yi understood the truth all the more clearly. "With upright, radiant righteousness, as blazing as the pure sun, how could demons and ghosts come close enough to bewitch you? Still, that old hag's spirit arts were profound. With my state of mind as it was before, I might truly have been harmed." At the same time, several maids woke and came this way with lanterns to investigate. It was Nanny Zeng. Damage to the spirit was extremely dangerous—ten times more perilous than bodily injury. At the slightest lapse, one might spend the whole day in a daze, unable to tell east from west. More serious damage could cause one to lose one's mind and become raving mad. Worse still, one's spirit could be scattered, vanishing completely, with no cure and no way to treat it. As the fork came down, the Yaksha King suddenly disappeared, as if it had burrowed into Nanny Zeng's body. Hong Yi searched in every direction, drifting past the buildings, but could not find which way Nanny Zeng had gone. But he did not let his guard down. His spirit drifted along the walls of the Marquis Mansion, patrolling and making a full circuit. He searched with all his heart and mind. "She moved fast. If Nanny Zeng had used martial arts to kill me instead of spirit sorcery, I'd have been completely helpless." That search made Hong Yi realize just how deep Nanny Zeng's martial skill ran. She was far stronger than he was. When people slept, their spirits were at their most confused and vulnerable. They were also often susceptible to being drawn into dreams by evil spirits and pinned down by nightmares. "She's caught in an illusion and can't free herself." If Hong Yi wanted to bewitch someone, he too could leave his body and use the various illusions from the Amitabha Sutra's visualization method, laying them over another person until they could no longer endure it. An ordinary person would certainly be scared out of their wits. Yet even knowing what was coming, Hong Yi had nearly been pinned down by the nightmare. That showed just how profound Nanny Zeng's cultivation was. Nanny Zeng had taken advantage of the quiet night, thinking Hong Yi was asleep, to perform her illusion without anyone noticing. She had never imagined that Hong Yi had already seen through her scheme. "This is my first experience fighting with spirits, and I've gained some hard-won experience. If I face something like this again, I won't be limited to defending myself as I was today; I'll know how to strike back. I should have counterattacked the moment Nanny Zeng sent her spirit out of her body. Eradicate evil to the very last root." Understand principle, set names and distinctions aright, avenge one's enemies! This is where righteousness lies. "The other party's spirit is badly injured."
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