A God's Guidance on the Bright Path
Lin Baisui and his group set up an altar, choosing a location right behind the Deer King Temple.
This wasn't a random selection; they had already searched the residences of the seven wizards beforehand.
Especially the witch's mansion of the Broad Ears Clan.
No trace of an altar being set up for the God of Vengeance was found.
Only after confirming that there was nothing else they could refer to or use did they decide to choose a location themselves.
Helai cannot go too far from the Deer King Temple yet, so the altar is placed behind the temple, which makes it convenient for him to observe and provide guidance nearby.
You've come at the perfect time.
Lin Baisui pulled Chu Tianshu towards the altar, saying, "Even if you hadn't come to find us, we would have gone to find you anyway."
"When the altar connects to the real world, the aura belonging to the Mirror Ape can be disguised by Ma Lingbai's bloodline."
"However, the Mirror Ape's divine power is very difficult to simulate. It would be much more convenient if you sat here."
This altar is made of earth, with three layers and an octagonal perimeter.
Each step is about one foot high and two feet wide.
Besides Lin Baisui, the only other people involved in the construction were a middle-aged woman surnamed Wang and a kind-looking old lady.
Old Madam Yu is a proper lay Buddhist, practicing with her hair still intact, but I heard that she has an archaeology background.
Initially, when she studied Buddhism, she mainly focused on Buddhist rituals related to Ghost God. By analogy, she also explored various accounts of Ghost God communicating with the real world.
The Nine-Character Mantra she practiced, "Lin Bing Dou Zhe Jie Zhen Lie Zai Qian," was inherited from an antique statue of the Ananda Dragon King.
It is said that Ananda Dragon King, was in human form and was the god of agriculture.
Therefore, the mantra practiced by the Old Madam Yu has the effect of harmonizing the soil and water.
Specifically, it can quickly solidify soft mud and sand that has been soaked in water.
The school of thought that Ms. Wang belongs to is rather subtle.
Before Chu Tianshu arrived, he heard Xianhe mention it briefly.
It was a new school of spiritual practice founded in the last century, dedicated to combining military tactics and electromagnetic communication science.
"The connection between Ghost God and spirits and reality is actually somewhat similar to sending telegrams; as long as the frequencies match, they can communicate."
Ms. Wang was standing next to Ma Lingbai's body, inserting more than a dozen iron rods, circling the outline of Ma Lingbai's body, into the earthen mound.
These iron bars can also be used to put a corpse that has been broken in two back together.
She has short hair, but soft features and speaks clearly and cheerfully.
"In theory, if we can grasp the frequency range of a Ghost God, we can create corresponding instruments to monitor whether there are any acts of worshipping that Ghost God in a block or even an entire town."
Unfortunately, research results in this area have not been significant, and funding has consistently been insufficient.
"I strongly suspect that the reason this project is progressing so slowly is because we could only detect the frequency of a certain Ghost God from a realistic perspective before, and we couldn't experience the Spirit Realm to summarize the various factors..."
Old Madam Yu smiled at Chu Tianshu and said, "Young Wang likes to talk to herself a bit. Mr. Chu, you're not from her school of thought, so just ignore her."
Chu Tianshu listened with great interest.
"Ms. Wang, monitoring Ghost God is difficult. Is it possible to make such an instrument for detecting general Evil Spirit on a large scale? Ideally, an instrument that can be used in underdeveloped areas, or even in environments somewhat like ancient times?"
Ms. Wang's eyes lit up, and she smiled, "We also have similar projects. Although they're not very practical right now, we've already achieved some results, and the future looks promising."
"Mr. Chu, I've heard that you have a direct cooperative relationship with the pharmaceutical research institution of our Chang'an Institute of Science and Technology. You're sure to make a fortune in the future. Would you be interested in investing in our project?"
Chu Tianshu grunted in response.
He was just asking out of curiosity; he never expected to run into someone trying to attract investment.
"Gentlemen, we can discuss these matters later."
Lin Baisui picked up the conversation, pointing to the altar, "Let's get down to business first."
Following the instructions of the three men, Chu Tianshu walked to the execution platform and grasped an iron rod in each hand.
These two iron bars clamped precisely between Ma Lingbai's left and right temples.
He then unleashed his aura of power.
Lin Baisui instinctively tensed up, revealing a wary expression typical of someone who had been through countless battles.
Ms. Wang and Grandma Yu paused for a moment, silently recited mantras, and gradually adjusted their state.
The three men walked around Ma Lingbai's corpse, their movements seemingly chaotic yet orderly, and began their ritual.
As Chu Tianshu found himself in the midst of it, he felt the aura around him becoming increasingly strange.
Being in the Spirit Realm, one should look up to reality with reverence.
But at this moment, he felt as if his perspective had unknowingly reached a certain height.
It's like looking down from above at the cloud-shrouded, misty, and indistinct human world.
You can vaguely Chucheng buildings, wide roads, lakes, and fields, but you can't see any people at all.
"It really is Hailing. This is... Qintong, isn't it?"
Although Chu Tianshu said that his hometown was a third-tier city.
But in reality, Hailing can be considered a third-tier city.
Each of the city's districts has its own unique characteristics.
Among them is the ancient Qintong, which is famous for its tourism industry.
This ancient town is surrounded by water on all sides. The Taidong River flows through the north of the town, the Jiangxing River runs across the east of the town, and the Magpie Lake wetland scenic area is located in the south of the town.
The town boasts numerous ancient and famous trees, including a Chinese scholar tree from the Tang Dynasty, a camellia with ten thousand blossoms from the Song Dynasty, a boxwood and a soapberry tree from the Ming Dynasty, and a hibiscus from the Qing Dynasty.
The clear waters, blooming flowers, and carefully maintained ancient town features naturally soothe the mind of visitors.
Legend has it that the rice produced in the ancient farmlands of Qintong was unusual, resembling barley.
The ancients called it "Deer Mound Fields" and referred to the rice as "Yu's Surplus Grain".
However, due to the passage of time, it is now difficult to verify what these ancient legends refer to.
When tour guides introduce these things to tourists, they just use them as a way to pass the time and mention them casually.
Some guides can simply explain things in Mandarin.
There was also a guide, but he was communicating with the tourists in a foreign language.
It wasn't English, but rather a string of gibberish that I couldn't tell which country it was.
One of the tourists suddenly took out his phone, answered a call, and his expression immediately changed. He then spoke a few words to his companion.
Everyone, including the guide, Shangdu excitement, but then looked around nervously.
The group feigned composure and hurriedly returned to the hotel.
Their companions were waiting at the hotel.
Everyone gathered in the same suite.
This kind of low-end hotel didn't even have cameras installed in the corridors, and they had already inspected the rooms.
Even if there were any missing devices, they would malfunction under the influence of their Mind Power fluctuations.
Inside the suite, a portrait was openly displayed.
The image depicts a snow-white ape with a round mirror embedded in its chest, surrounded by hundreds of ghostly blue flames.
At this moment, the ape's eyes are glowing.
The pale blue light, about an inch long, seemed to make the white ape's eyes appear three-dimensional.
As soon as you enter this room, no matter what angle you're in, you feel like the apes are staring at you.
As the guide closed the door, everyone behind him knelt down.
He slammed the door shut, turned around, and prostrated himself on the ground, joining the others in chanting the incantation.
The middle-aged man at the front loosened his tie, tore open his collar, pricked his chest with his fingertip, drew blood on his forehead, and spoke.
This passage is no longer a spell, but...
On the altar in the Spirit Realm, Chu Tianshu frowned deeply.
His view suddenly shifted, from overlooking the misty world above to the view inside a room.
He could see their faces clearly and hear their voices, but he couldn't understand what they were saying at all.
Ms. Wang grasped an iron rod and said, "We can communicate; the believers over there can't hear us."
"These people are speaking a foreign language."
Chu Tianshu controlled his throat and, relying on his memory, directly imitated the pronunciation he had just heard.
"Can you understand me?"
Ghost God and spirits probably don't need to understand language; they can directly comprehend the believer's meaning.
However, the platform where Chu Tianshu and his group stood clearly did not have a built-in translation function.
"This is the language of Shan State."
Helai spoke up, "They're actually believers from overseas, who've come to Hailing to act as inside agents for the Ghost God!"
"That's great."
Wisps of smoke drifted from the Deer King Temple, coalescing into a pattern on the altar that resembled a small map.
"Tianshu, you don't need to speak. Just observe this pattern and emanate your Mind Power; the believers will sense it."
"Remember to visualize this image with a sense of warmth and affection, as if it were directed at a companion."
Chu Tianshu nodded, stared at the pattern, and after a moment, closed his eyes.
Inside the suite, everyone felt a divine revelation and excitedly raised their hands to bow down once more.
The map was very clear; the guide took out his phone's navigation app and compared it to the map, and he knew exactly where it was pointing.
As for why the "divine revelation" is exactly the same as the pattern displayed on mobile phone navigation, no one doubts this.
Since they are gods, their divine power is naturally unfathomable, so it's perfectly normal to guide them in the most convenient way.
If one day guidance is given that resembles a riddle, that would be perfectly normal.
The group immediately packed their belongings, left the hotel, and followed their phone's navigation to drive to the Hailing Yangtze River Bridge.
After crossing the bridge, turn off the highway and you'll soon see a cluster of houses standing along the river.
The houses looked ordinary, but that didn't diminish the pilgrims' reverent atmosphere.
They overlooked the fact that these houses were unusually quiet, with all the doors and windows closed even in broad daylight.
Inside the convenience store, four people were playing cards; surprisingly, they were all young men.
Everyone pushed open the car doors, got out one after another, and found their destination.
Outside the iron gate of the house, there was a recliner, where an old man with white hair and beard lay, holding a cat in his arms.
"Yo."
The old man watched the group with great interest, then turned and called out into the courtyard, "Everyone's here."
In the main hall, it seemed as if large wings were flapping, and a Xianhe flew out, crossed the courtyard, and landed on the iron gate.
Its sharp beak was like a sword, and it glanced indifferently at the people.
Upon being swept over by that one glance, everyone's clear consciousness vanished as if sugar were suddenly dissolved in boiling water.
Thump thump thump...
Everyone in the tour group collapsed, their eyes rolling back in their heads.
Young men and women emerged from all directions and immediately began to carry these people away.
(End of this chapter)