The Impala traveled down a winding country lane, its headlights cutting through the darkness and illuminating the gravel-strewn road ahead. Outside the windows, the shadows of trees clawed at the air like monsters lurking in the dark, sending chills down the spine.
"Man, this place is seriously creepy." Dean switched on the car radio, and intermittent strains of old rock music came through as he tried to break the oppressive silence inside the car. He wore a black leather jacket over a T-shirt flecked with dust, his eyes holding a trace of excitement and anticipation-the more dangerous a place was, the more of a challenge it presented to him.
Bai Haorui sat in the passenger seat, toying with three Five Emperor Coins. The copper coins spun rapidly in his palm, giving off a faint blue-green glow. "The yin energy is strong, and there's something in it that makes you feel agitated." He frowned and put the coins away. "This isn't ordinary yin energy. It can actually affect people's emotions."
Sam sat in the back, studying the information on his laptop and reading without looking up. "According to the records, this asylum closed in 1964 because of a 'mass outbreak of insanity among the patients.' They attacked each other, leaving over a dozen dead." He paused and opened a photograph of a yellowed newspaper. "The paper said prolonged abuse caused the patients to suffer mental breakdowns, but local rumors say the doctor here put hallucinogens in their food for his own amusement. That eventually sparked a riot, and the patients killed the doctor too."
"Hallucinogens? A riot?" Dean raised an eyebrow. "So the evil spirit here is that doctor?"
"Very likely." Bai Haorui took out his grandfather's notes and turned to a section titled "If you encounter this, make absolutely sure you annihilate it." "During the Republican era, a drab Japanese-style Western mansion stood on the outskirts of Shanghai. Its iron gates were covered in rust, and 'Matsui Asylum' was written above the entrance. Its director, Matsui Yuichi, wore an immaculate white coat. Behind his gold-rimmed glasses, his eyes held not a trace of warmth. They hardly looked human-this asylum was nothing more than a front he had established for his experiments.
The basement injection room reeked of a strange mixture of disinfectant and medicinal solutions. Patients in tattered clothes were strapped to every cold iron bed. Thick hemp ropes had cut dark purple, bloody marks into their wrists, and heavy iron shackles locked their ankles. Every struggle made the chains scrape harshly. Matsui carried a syringe filled with clear liquid, its needle gleaming coldly beneath the dim kerosene lamp. Even skeletal children and white-haired elders could not escape the forced injections administered every four hours.
"The drug must continue to permeate their systems before we can observe the purest collapse of human nature." Matsui spoke Chinese with a stiff accent, a cruel smile curling his lips. The instant the solution entered their veins, the patients convulsed, their pupils contracting sharply before they let out heartrending screams. The drug rampaged through their bodies, twisting their muscles uncontrollably. Veins bulged beneath their skin like blue-green earthworms, as though countless insects were burrowing through their flesh.
Some were consumed by hallucinations and banged their heads against empty walls until their foreheads became bloody messes, repeatedly screaming, "Don't take me!" and "Leave my child alone!" Others clawed at their skin in a haze, digging their nails into their flesh and tearing off bloody chunks, feeling no pain as they sank into endless terror. Still others had their most primal savagery unleashed, biting and tearing at each other through the iron bars. Their teeth crushed ears and fingers, saliva mixed with blood dripping from their mouths, their eyes clouded and crazed.
Matsui sat behind one-way glass, recording data while enjoying this "experiment." He deliberately reduced their food and water, watching patients tormented by both drugs and hunger fight like starving wolves over moldy cornmeal buns, even beating each other to death over a mouthful of murky water. A young female patient once tried to fight back, slashing Matsui's arm with a porcelain shard. Her reward was a doubled dose-the drugs shattered her mind completely. She began chewing her own tongue until her mouth filled with blood, finally choking to death in her madness.
The torment continued for three full months. The patients' screams gradually grew hoarse, replaced by low growls and grinding teeth. Their eyes were bloodshot, their skin sallow and shriveled. They resembled soulless walking corpses, with only a hatred hidden deep in their eyes that Matsui had failed to notice. He grew increasingly pleased, believing he was about to uncover "the essence of human madness."
Late that night, the injection room was running low on drugs, and Matsui brought a nurse to replenish them. The moment he pushed open the iron door, the patients huddled in the corners suddenly sprang up. They broke free of ropes already worn thin and lunged at him like a pack of wild beasts out of control. Some bit into his neck, their teeth piercing his carotid artery and sending warm blood gushing out. Others tore at his limbs, the sharp cracks of breaking bones mingling with frenzied howls. Still others gouged out his eyes and swallowed them greedily, their faces covered in blood and scraps of flesh.
Matsui's screams were drowned in the bloody revelry as his "test subjects" bit him to death and devoured him in the most primitive, brutal way. His white coat was torn to shreds, and his gold-rimmed glasses fell to the floor, their lenses shattering like his ruined ambitions.
But the killing did not end. Matsui's resentment gathered inside the asylum, forming a mass of dense black mist that lurked in a corner of the ceiling. The surviving patients, their minds already destroyed by drugs, became even more bloodthirsty and violent under the influence of this malice. They slaughtered each other, turning the asylum into a true hell on earth. Only half a month later did a wandering master from Mount Mao pass by and sense its overwhelming baleful energy from afar-black energy soared into the sky amid faint ghostly wails and howls. Even the surrounding vegetation had withered and blackened, leaving not a blade of grass alive.
The master's Daoist name was Qingxuan. With a peachwood sword on his back and a bagua pouch at his waist, he stopped before the asylum's iron gates. First, he took eight ancient copper coins from his pouch and buried them in the eight bagua positions three feet before the entrance. Then he laid cinnabar and yellow paper on a makeshift stone platform, setting up a simple ritual altar. A spirit tablet of the Three Pure Ones stood in its center, with a peachwood sword, command flags, a bronze bell, and talisman seals arranged to either side. Three sticks of incense burned before the altar. Their smoke curled upward, only to twist and scatter against the black energy above the asylum.
"Wretch, today I'll scatter your soul!" Daoist Qingxuan thundered. Holding a bagua mirror in his left hand and forming a hand seal with his right, he silently recited the Heart-Clearing Mantra toward the asylum gates. With a flick of his wrist, dozens of Clear Heart Talismans flew through the air. The papers ignited on their own, becoming points of golden light that fell like meteors into every corner of the asylum. Wherever the light reached, the black mist hissed as though seared by fire. The souls of the patients lost completely to madness trembled, and much of the blood-red color faded from their eyes. They collapsed to the floor, some sobbing bitterly, others giving broken smiles as their minds cleared.
But how could Matsui's vengeful spirit let the matter rest? The black mist abruptly condensed into a hideous human shape-Matsui as he had looked after death. Half his face had been eaten away, exposing stark white bone. Black blood flowed from his empty sockets, and torn scraps of flesh still hung from his body as he roared and lunged at Daoist Qingxuan. "Meddling old Daoist, die!" The spirit's voice was shrill and grating, thick with resentment and murderous intent. Wherever he passed, the air turned bone-chillingly cold, and white frost formed on the ground.
Rather than retreat, Daoist Qingxuan advanced, using the Seven Star Steps to circle swiftly around the altar as he chanted with forceful urgency. "Mysterious source of heaven and earth, root of all qi. Through countless eons of cultivation, bear witness to my divine powers..." He took a yellow talisman from his bagua pouch-a Five Thunder Talisman, inscribed in cinnabar mixed with rooster blood and covered in intricate runes through which faint lightning flowed. Daoist Qingxuan bit the tip of his tongue and sprayed a mouthful of essence blood onto the paper. It instantly burst into dazzling crimson flames.
"Fierce generals of the Five Thunders, what spirit would not submit!" Daoist Qingxuan held the Five Thunder Talisman high and pointed his peachwood sword straight at the vengeful spirit. "Today I shall draw upon heavenly lightning to destroy your wicked soul and deny you rebirth for all eternity!"
As soon as he finished, dark clouds suddenly filled the already gloomy sky. Lightning flashed, thunder rolled, and fierce winds rose. The black energy above the asylum joined the clouds as though it would swallow heaven and earth. Seizing his moment, Daoist Qingxuan hurled the Five Thunder Talisman into the air, swung his peachwood sword, and shouted, "Thunder!"
The talisman exploded in midair, turning into a golden pillar of light that shot into the clouds. An instant later, a bolt of heavenly lightning as thick as a bucket crashed down, striking the asylum's roof dead-on! With a thunderous boom, the entire mansion shook violently. Bricks and tiles shattered and flew, while the black energy screamed within the lightning as it was torn apart and burned layer by layer. Matsui's vengeful spirit struggled in agony, his form dissolving little by little, yet he still howled defiantly, "I refuse to accept this!"
"You beast, after all the evil you've done!" Daoist Qingxuan formed another hand seal, and a second bolt descended, this time piercing the spirit's core directly. The black mist collapsed completely into wisps of smoke, burned away by the heavenly lightning without leaving even a fragment of his soul. The dark clouds above the asylum gradually dispersed, and sunlight shone down again. The baleful energy vanished without a trace, leaving only a scorched smell and the ruined mansion.
Daoist Qingxuan put away his ritual implements and looked at the thoroughly purified asylum with a long sigh. "How could those Japanese bastards even count as human? What unspeakable evil they committed."
Dean said, "Clear Heart Talismans? Ritual altars? Five Thunder Talismans? Bai, can you do all that?" He took a silver dagger from the storage compartment and weighed it in his hand. "Whatever happens, we still need this."
"What's with all the questions? I haven't made you wash today's underwear yet, have I? If I can't draw it myself, can't I copy it? All the steps are right here," Bai Haorui shot back. "This hallucinatory evil spirit feeds on people's fear and negative emotions. Ordinary silver can hurt it, but it won't necessarily destroy it completely. The Heart-Clearing Mantra can weaken its ability to create hallucinations. I'll set up the altar according to the notes, but I'll need you two to guard me. Don't let anything disturb me before I finish drawing the Five Thunder Talisman."
"Will that work?" Dean raised an eyebrow. "Don't end up failing to draw it and alerting it anyway."
Bai Haorui said, "I won't. When have I ever let you down on this trip?"
Sam smiled and nodded, closing his laptop. "We're almost there. The asylum's up ahead."
The Impala stopped outside the asylum, its headlights illuminating the long-abandoned building. Its walls were peeling, its windows shattered beyond repair. The dark openings looked like pairs of eyes staring fixedly at them. A huge iron padlock hung from the rust-covered gates, corroded almost beyond recognition by the years.
"Doesn't this place look like a horror movie set?" Dean pushed open his door, and a heavy stench of mold and rot hit him in the face. He couldn't help frowning. "I can't believe people actually come here exploring."
Bai Haorui took out his luopan. Its needle spun wildly, pointing into the depths of the asylum. "The yin energy is up ahead, and it's getting stronger." He took mugwort and a lighter from his backpack. "Once we're inside, I'll burn some mugwort. Otherwise, this smell will make us puke. Don't split up. I'll find somewhere to set up the altar."
Sam nodded and took a UV lamp from his backpack. "If we run into the vengeful spirit, this kind of UV light can drive it back temporarily."
Together, the three pushed open the gates. The piercing creak sounded particularly eerie in the silent night. Inside, the asylum was a wreck. Broken-down hospital beds, chairs, and medical equipment lay scattered across the floor. Scratches and dark red stains covered the walls; there was no telling whether they were blood or something else.
The hallucinogenic yin energy in the air grew thicker. Bai Haorui immediately lit the mugwort, and smoke spread with a faint, fresh fragrance, dispersing a little of the yin energy and rotten stench. "Follow the smoke. Don't leave my sight," he reminded them, gripping his peachwood sword.
The three cautiously headed deeper into the asylum. Their footsteps echoed through the corridors, mingling with strange sounds that resembled someone quietly sobbing or crawling in the dark. Dean tightened his grip on the silver dagger and surveyed their surroundings warily. Suddenly, he spotted a figure standing at the corner ahead.
"Who's there?" Dean shouted, raising his silver dagger and charging toward the figure.
"Dean, get back here! Fuck, you never listen!"
The figure slowly turned, revealing a familiar face-John's. His eyes were cold, his face expressionless, and he held a gun pointed at Dean. "Why didn't you save your mother?" John's voice was hoarse, heavy with disappointment and resentment. "You could have saved her back then. Why didn't you?"
Dean's pupils widened, pain and confusion instantly crossing his face. "Dad, I didn't... I didn't!" he shouted, his voice trembling. "I went to get help! But I couldn't beat him!"
"Liar!" John roared and pulled the trigger.
"Dean, don't!" Sam shouted, trying to grab him, but it was already too late.
Just then, the smoke from Bai Haorui's burning mugwort drifted over. At some point, he had also arranged the Five Emperor Coins on the floor in the Three Powers formation, with a plastic spirit tablet of the Three Pure Ones bought in Chinatown and three burning sticks of incense beside them. He began reciting the Heart-Clearing Mantra. "Heaven and earth, clear and bright; foul energies, disperse. Heart and spirit, settle; let no evil draw near!"
The steady, forceful sound of the Heart-Clearing Mantra was like a clear spring extinguishing the agitation and confusion in Dean's heart. He shook his head and looked toward the corner again. Where was John? There was only an empty corridor. "Damn it, a hallucination!" Dean cursed, his face pale and his forehead covered in cold sweat.
"I told you this evil spirit can produce hallucinogenic yin energy and amplify your negative emotions." Bai Haorui patted his shoulder. "Good thing I reacted fast, or you'd have ended up attacking each other."
Dean nodded, panting. "Thanks, Bai." He tightened his grip on the silver dagger, his eyes growing even more watchful. "It won't happen again."
They continued forward and reached what had once been the doctor's office. Its door stood ajar, and faint sobbing came from inside. Bai Haorui signaled for the other two to stop, then gently pushed open the door.
The office was a wreck. Documents and broken glass littered the floor, and thick dust covered the desk. A teenage boy crouched in a corner with his hands over his head. His hair was disheveled, his face smeared with dirt, and his eyes unfocused as he repeated, "Stay away." He was Jason, the missing teenager. Two unconscious companions lay beside him.
"Jason?" Sam called softly, slowly approaching.
Hearing him, Jason jerked his head up, his eyes filled with terror. At the sight of Sam and the others, he immediately screamed, "Stay away! You're all monsters!"
Bai Haorui took out the Five Emperor Coins and waved them before Jason, the copper giving off a faint green glow. "We're not monsters. We're here to save you," he said gently. "This is a Clear Heart Talisman. It can keep your mind clear." He handed Jason a talisman. "Stick it on yourself, and those hallucinations won't come back."
Half-convinced, Jason took the talisman and stuck it on himself. Sure enough, his eyes gradually calmed, and he stopped screaming, though his body still trembled slightly.
"What happened here?" Sam asked.
Jason swallowed, his voice choked with sobs. "We... we came here to explore. We wanted to film some paranormal videos and post them online. But after we came in, we saw so many terrifying things. The hallucinations drove my friends crazy. They attacked each other, then passed out." He paused and pointed beneath the desk. "There... there's a medical bag there. We saw the doctor's ghost crawl out of it."
Bai Haorui exchanged glances with Sam and Dean, and they immediately looked beneath the desk. Sure enough, a battered medical bag lay there, covered in dust and dark red stains. The yin energy was coming from it.
"That's the evil spirit's core," Bai Haorui said with certainty. "Let's take him to the makeshift altar I just set up. I'll summon lightning to destroy him completely."
Dean nodded and bent down to drag out the medical bag. Suddenly, the office door slammed shut with a bang. The room's temperature plummeted, and the yin energy grew denser. The medical bag opened, and a vengeful spirit in a white coat crawled out. His face was twisted and deformed, his eyes two black holes. His mouth stretched into a grin, exposing pointed teeth, and he charged at them with a scalpel in his hand.
"Dean, Sam!" Bai Haorui positioned Sam and Dean protectively in front of himself, slung off his backpack, and quickly rummaged through it.
Sam immediately switched on the UV lamp and aimed it at the vengeful spirit. The spirit screamed shrilly, his body beginning to smoke as he staggered back several steps. Dean seized the chance to rush forward, grab the medical bag, and run toward the door.
"Quick, drag it over to the altar!" Bai Haorui shouted. Finally pulling out his peachwood sword, he used it to keep the spirit occupied while retreating.
Together, the three dragged the medical bag to the altar they had just set up. The vengeful spirit followed close behind, attacking them wildly. Dean scattered salt into a circle, temporarily trapping him inside. "Bai, hurry!"
Bai Haorui lit another three sticks of incense and recited the Heart-Clearing Mantra. At the same time, he raised his peachwood sword, dipped it thoroughly in cinnabar, and began drawing according to the Five Thunder Talisman instructions in the notes. "Fierce generals of the Five Thunders, what spirit would not submit!" he shouted, swinging the sword toward the medical bag and evil spirit. A thin golden pillar of light shot straight out. An instant later, a bolt of heavenly lightning as thick as a little finger crashed down from the sky.
As the lightning struck him, the vengeful spirit let out a tremendous scream. His body began to disintegrate, gradually turning to ash. The yin energy dispersed, and even the asylum's air grew fresh.
Jason and his companions slowly came to their senses. Seeing that the spirit had vanished, they finally breathed in relief, tears falling from their eyes. "Thank you... thank you."
Breathing heavily, Bai Haorui put away his peachwood sword and blew on its tip. "It's fine. No big deal."
Just then, a small, frail boy stepped out from behind Jason. He wore a faded hoodie with sleeves that extended past his fingers. His soft hair lay against his forehead, but his eyes were unusually keen. This was Leo, one of Jason's companions.
Leo approached Bai Haorui, stared at the Five Emperor Coins on the floor, and said quietly, "The coins have a faint green glow. There's a warm feeling inside them."
Bai Haorui froze, not expecting the boy to be able to see the coins' light. He pointed at the three Five Emperor Coins. "You can see the color of these coins?"
Leo nodded. "Mm-hmm. Yes."
A system notification sounded in Bai Haorui's mind.
["Spirit Seer" discovered. Like Sam's precognitive ability, this falls under "Demon Mark-Derived Abilities."]
Bai Haorui's pupils contracted. The Demon Mark again. It seemed the Yellow-Eyed Demon's plan to select special children was more extensive than he had imagined. He patted Leo's shoulder. "You're very special. Make sure you protect yourself from now on. Don't go poking around in things like this."
Dean came over and patted Bai Haorui's shoulder. "Not bad, Bai. That move was pretty badass. Teach me sometime."
Bai Haorui smiled faintly. "Hey, no big deal. Family rules say it can only be passed down to direct descendants, but since we're brothers, just call me Dad."
"Fuck you, asshole."
Sam organized their materials nearby, a slight smile appearing on his lips as he watched them bicker.
The three took Jason and his companions out of the asylum and brought them to a nearby police station. Watching the police car drive away, Bai Haorui took out his grandfather's notes and wrote "Spirit Seer" and "Demon Mark" in a blank space, thinking to himself that, when circumstances allowed, he had to protect these special children.