Jealousy Makes Monsters of Men

Ghost Face lunged at Chen Cuo!

But just as it reached him, his breath scattered it into a host of faint words and phrases. Then he swallowed them all in one gulp!

As the saying went...

When in doubt, breathe!

His inhalation seemed ready to draw in every breath of air around him. Not only the words forming Ghost Face, but even some of the malice behind them seemed to be pulled toward him.

The next instant, Chen Cuo shuddered!

Thoughts flooded his mind—

Jealousy, anger, Envy, worry, fear, panic—a torrent of negative emotions erupted within him!

His expression shifted beyond his control, as though each emotion were showing on his face. His mind fell into chaos, his will began to waver, and the sudden surge of foreign emotions threatened to overwhelm it!

But at that moment, the Azure-purple Ghost Face in his heart swelled!

Its outline was hazy and its colors uneven, yet it radiated ferocity. Rings of Golden Light surrounded it, giving off a sense of peace and stability that lent its savagery a touch of solemnity.

His chaotic thoughts and emotions suddenly stilled, then streamed toward the mask. In the blink of an eye, it had absorbed them all.

A blurred face appeared over the Ghost-Faced Mask, as though laid atop it in a second layer.

With a shift of Mind Thought, Chen Cuo could vaguely make out the features of a scholar.

Then more changes came. Several words in seal script surfaced and circled the indistinct face.

Literary talent, learning, reputation, lineage, borrowed influence, authority...

Fragments of information flowed into Chen Cuo's mind, giving him a rough grasp of what had happened.

He willed the mask to change again.

The scholar's face peeled away. It and the surrounding words shrank together, gathering until they collapsed into a single character: "Envy." The Azure-purple Ghost Face swallowed it whole.

The Ghost Face seemed to change subtly afterward, but Chen Cuo found nothing when he examined it. He gathered his thoughts and let the mask sink back into his heart.

"Whew..."

He exhaled and opened his eyes again. The malice and words that had gathered on the paper had vanished, leaving the article as it had been.

He glanced over it once more.

"...We, too, heard this tale and expected some profound insight. Yet from beginning to end, it offers nothing but familiar accounts of the strange, without substance. Such dross relies on romance and vicious ghosts to draw an audience, but in the end, it is merely another tale of ghosts harming people, told to give people something to talk about. It is dull, to say nothing of its errors in composition and its failure to observe parallel structure..."

Chen Cuo laughed despite himself.

You're attacking The Painted Skin of all things?

I could understand calling it feudal superstition, but you're criticizing its storytelling and prose?

Do you realize that Mr. Pu Songling's story can gather an Evil Ghost's will?

Copying it nearly sent me to the heavens! I've had an Evil Ghost chasing me down to kill me!

Shaking his head, Chen Cuo tasted the sourness behind the article. Combined with the Mind Thought he had just absorbed, it told him enough. Lu Le was a son of a concubine in the current generation of the Lu Household. Trading on his brothers' and his lineage's names, he usually had plenty of people fawning over him. Recently, he had written an article in imitation of Lu You and shared it with everyone, only for it to sink without a ripple.

Then the craze for The Painted Skin had begun. Hearing the story had allowed the Evil Ghost to stir the jealousy in Lu Le's heart, prompting him to write this attack and stir up public opinion. Lu Le wanted to draw attention to himself; the Evil Ghost, meanwhile, wanted to spread The Painted Skin's influence, gather people's thoughts, and grow stronger.

"Who would waste time citing source after source to tear down a classic? Someone with a stake in it, of course. The Painted Skin must have threatened his power, wealth, or reputation—maybe more than one of them. That's how he became useful to the ghost. The Painted Skin's Evil Ghost... the real evil lies in the human heart."

Chen Cuo now had a faint understanding of the Evil Ghost's origins.

He recalled what had just happened and narrowed his eyes.

"The Breathing Technique really is extraordinary. It can draw in Buddha Light, and paired with visualizing the Facial Mask, it can suppress emotions and impressions too. An immortal art truly is something else. Just where did it come from?"

As he thought, Chen Cuo sensed the mask in his heart. It had grown a little clearer and seemed far more lifelike.

"The Ghost Face and malice were stirred up by the Evil Ghost, but they came from Lu Le. Instead, they became nourishment for the mask in my heart. Yet my incense-worship method is incomplete, so I can't refine them any further. If I want to advance in cultivation, I must solve this soon, or it'll come back to hurt me!"

He considered approaching Guishan Temple to see whether he could arrange an exchange for a concrete method. Wisdom had already opened the door to discussion, after all. There ought to be a chance.

Beside him, Chen Hai had watched Chen Cuo take the article, draw a sharp breath, and turn grave. Thinking its contents had angered him, Chen Hai cursed its author in solidarity.

Chen Cuo looked at him.

Chen Hai said, "Lu Le and Lu You, the man famous throughout Jiankang, are half brothers. He wrote this out of Envy for Your Lordship's work! It's a malicious attack!" He did not forget to add, "People are spreading Your Lordship's The Painted Skin everywhere. Its popularity is unmatched right now—even Lu You's Green Studio has been eclipsed. Things are going so well. If Lu Le's article smears it, petty men are bound to seize on it. You mustn't take this lightly!"

Chen Cuo nodded. "True. Even critics add to the attention. Lu Le's article is biased, but his family name may help it spread. Then whoever's behind this will get exactly what they want."

Whoever was behind it was, of course, the Evil Ghost!

From his experience in his previous life, Chen Cuo knew how this could unfold. His own reputation might suffer, but The Painted Skin would attract even more attention. Even critics added to the numbers. Some would study the story closely just to attack it, then make detailed arguments that sparked discussion. In doing so, they would spread it even further!

"Even if I leave the mortal world behind someday to pursue the Dao, I can't ignore this. Until I master the complete Incense method, the more widely the story spreads, the faster the Evil Ghost will recover, and the stronger it will become. It'll only get harder to contain!"

After a moment's thought, Chen Cuo told Chen Hai, "Leave the article with me. Go find out more and gather all the information you can." He added, "Bring me any other articles like it, too."

Chen Hai accepted the order and withdrew.

Chen Cuo returned to his room and considered his options.

"That Temple Master came to visit just now. That's a promising sign. When he comes again, I can try asking him. I did help Huizhi, after all. Perhaps I can find an opening. If he doesn't come, I'll ask to visit tomorrow. Besides that, the mask in Dream Marsh might offer another way forward. I've grasped a little of the Out-of-Body Method and formed the beginnings of a visualization. Perhaps I can try it now. First, I'll go take a look."

With that decided, he wasted no time and lay down to sleep.

He did not know that the old Presiding Monk was watching quietly from a distant corner of the wall.

"That article was steeped in malice and tangled with Incense energy, all of it directed at the Marquis of Linru County. Yet he dispelled it with ease. His progress is far faster than I imagined. If the temple wishes to befriend him and settle Huizhi's debt, we must think carefully about what we can offer."

With that thought, he turned and left.

Not long after the old monk departed, a puff of Smoke Aura burst from the corner, revealing a pale figure.

"Snort! That old monk was no simple fellow. If not for my skills, he might've spotted me."

It was a little pig.

A bright green turtle perched on its back, cautiously poking its head out to survey the distance and making soft chirping sounds.

"Snort! Don't be scared. Even that butcher's Blood Sea Fiend Hall couldn't hold me down. I fought my way out of there—what's this place compared to that? Snort, snort! I know monks eat meat—bah! They're vegetarians! We're perfectly safe! Snort!"

"Chirp, chirp!"

"Who do you think I am? This pig's nose knows its business. Last time was an accident. This time, I'm certain we've found the right one! No mistake! Snort! We'll have ourselves a feast!"

The pig and turtle crept through the grass and shadows toward Chen Cuo's room.

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