Night Worship of the God

"Grandpa, you seem in good spirits today." "I reckon so. Don't know why, but my chest doesn't feel tight today, my breath isn't stifled, and all sorts of things suddenly don't bother me anymore. Queerest thing..." "A man's life—it's just how it goes!" Grandpa Li Gui's mood was strange today. Finding the plaque damaged hadn't angered him; he had even wandered out to the village entrance and the edge of the fields for a few turns, no longer squatting by the doorway brooding over his pipe as he usually did. Li Yan understood in his heart, of course. With the plaque ruined and the Three Powers Demon-Suppressing Coins fallen from within, the malignant yansheng curse aimed at their family was broken. The three sharp blades hanging over their heads were gone, so his grandfather's heart naturally felt lighter. Such influence was not visible on the surface. Yet the old man could sense it to some degree as well. Seemingly because he was in high spirits, Grandpa Li Gui finished his supper, squatted by the door for a few puffs of tobacco, and belted out an old Qinqiang aria he hadn't sung in ages: "Upon my head a gold-hoop coiled-rope cap, upon my frame a Nine Palaces Bagua robe. At my waist a silk cord and returning-yang grass, on my feet cloud-scaling mountain shoes... "Mystic, mystic, mystic! Wondrous, wondrous, wondrous! Through the Three Mountains and Five Sacred Peaks I roam. Should you ask my given name and surname—turn-head stiff-neck Shen Gongbao!" It was Qinqiang, *The Yellow River Formation*. Tales of the Investiture of the Gods existed in this realm too, and were widely told. *The Yellow River Formation* was a piece beloved by young and old across Guanzhong. Inside the room, listening to his grandfather belt out the Qinqiang verses, Li Yan squatted on a bench, Guanshan blade in hand, grinding it stroke by stroke against a whetstone. *Clang! Clang!* The rough, hearty Qinqiang singing blended with the rhythmic scraping of the blade. As the sun set in the west, Li Yan raised the blade and inspected it closely. The cold edge glinted sharp! …… Earth God Temples, also known as Temples of Blessing and Virtue, originated from ancient worship of the soil god, She. As the *Book of Rites* noted in "Spring Offices," beyond the Great Earth Spirits were the Earth Spirits and Terrestrial Deities, from which the Earth Gods of later generations took their title; the spirits of the five soils were the *she*. One could say this belief had run through folk faith from antiquity to the present day. Even the current imperial court had decreed that every *li* of one hundred households should erect an altar to sacrifice to the gods of the five soils and the five grains. Thus, Earth God Temples could be found throughout the Nine Provinces. Naturally, their size varied, and the prosperity of their incense offerings differed widely. Most commoners in Guanzhong scratched a living from the dirt. They feared neither hardship nor toil; what they feared most was unpredictable weather and misfortune. Consequently, temples to the Earth God and the Dragon King enjoyed bustling incense offerings. The Earth God Temple of Fort Li was no exception. The Earth God Temple here was not large—merely walls of blue brick and yellow clay by the roadside, forming an earthen hut barely taller than a man, no more than five paces in length and width. To call it a temple was generous; it was more like an Hen-sized roadside shrine, barely offering shelter from wind and rain. Enshrined within were the Earth God and the Earth Goddess. Though their carved smiles were kindly and benevolent, the flaking, mottled paint took on an eerie cast under the moonlight. Before the altar, incense ashes and candle stubs were piled like small mounds, and the surrounding trees were hung thick with red cloth ribbons tied for blessings—plain evidence of how flourishing the offerings normally were. Tonight the bright moon was like frost, and nocturnal mist hung thick all around. A speck of firelight drifted out from the village, moving closer. The traveler was none other than Li Yan. He wore coarse black clothing with leg wraps, a Guanshan saber buckled at his waist, a basket in one hand and a lantern in the other. To avoid being spotted, he wore a conical bamboo rain hat pulled low. Walking alone through the dark night, he carried an air of unspoken mystery. Arriving before the Earth God Temple, Li Yan tilted his head up slightly. Beneath the rim of the hat, his eyes burned like torches, chilling and formidable. Sharpening his blade that afternoon had also been an exercise in honing his killing intent. After confirming no one was nearby, Li Yan set down his basket and took out fruit offerings, incense, candles, and even a slab of roasted meat and a jar of wine. He arranged them in order and lit the candles. Li Yan rubbed his face, beamed a brilliant smile, slapped open the wine jar's mud seal, and said in a low voice, "Grandpa Earth God, I've come to pay you a visit. "Truth be told, you watched me grow up. By any reckoning, you're an elder to me. It was wrong of me not to burn incense before, but we can't just let that evil creature run wild and cause trouble... "Tonight, I'd like to borrow your fine domain so the two of us can join hands and purge this evil. What do you say?" Knowing this world was far from simple, Li Yan naturally put on a different face. Usually he couldn't be bothered to burn incense, but whether it worked or not, when facing danger one had to offer pleasant words lest things go awry. And truth be told, this Earth God Temple was indeed remarkable. Earlier, even a hundred meters off, he had caught a dense scent of incense. After setting out the offerings and lighting the candles, he inexplicably felt a wisp of warmth. It was somewhat similar to the feeling given off by the "Valiant in a Hundred Battles" plaque, only gentler. Meanwhile, the Three Powers Demon-Suppressing Coins saber tassel inside the red cloth bag at his waist grew steadily colder. Evidently, these were two completely different forces. Yet the two forces did not clash. According to Widow Wang, the Three Powers Demon-Suppressing Coins had been forged in the previous dynasty and tempered through incense worship atop Mount Tai, becoming a dharma artifact. Yin and yang conquered one another, yet they could also merge and complement each other. Li Yan was still a layman; he did not grasp the deeper principles. However, he was skilled at reading people and could tell Widow Wang harbored no malice—she genuinely wanted to destroy that cold-altar rampaging soldier. At the thought, Li Yan chuckled. "Grandpa Earth God, since you're staying quiet, I'll take that as a yes!" With that, he lit three sticks of incense and prayed with sincere devotion. After planting the incense, he kowtowed respectfully three times. Only then did he follow Widow Wang's instructions: unhooking the red cloth bag from his waist, he brought out the Three Powers Demon-Suppressing Coins saber tassel and placed it as an offering before the Earth God Temple. At once, he noticed the difference. Though nothing moved to the eye, he could smell that the warm scent of incense was draping itself over the tassel. One had to realize that he was not a member of the Xuanmen and had undergone no cultivation. Once empowered by the tassel, the Guanshan blade would overflow with baleful qi; using it for less time than it took to smoke half a pipe would leave him freezing all over, barely able to endure it. With the Earth God Temple's incense empowering it, he could wield it for much longer. Seeing that nothing had gone wrong, Li Yan finally relaxed. He rose and circled the temple a few times, committing every detail of the surrounding terrain to memory. In nocturnal combat with poor light, knowing the ground was paramount. The shrine backed onto a low knoll, less than a hundred paces from the official highway. In the distance stood a grove of poplars; the ground was flat, with no ditches or gullies. For him, this was an advantage—no fear of stumbling into a hole in the dark. Having finished this, Li Yan returned to the front of the shrine and sat cross-legged, the Guanshan blade laid flat across his knees. He checked the sky, then closed his eyes to rest his spirit. Behind him, the Three Powers Demon-Suppressing Coins saber tassel remained on the altar. According to Widow Wang's warning, this item could only be employed once the rampaging soldier possessed a host, lest he frighten it away and waste all their efforts. Incense curled upward, and the statues of the Earth God and Goddess retained their beaming, amiable smiles... ………… Finally, the hour of the Rat arrived. This was a most peculiar double-hour. Sitting within range of the Earth God Temple's incense, Li Yan felt it all the more acutely. During the Zi hour, yin qi reached its peak; even the warmth surrounding the temple seemed suppressed as a chill welled up from the ground. Yet simultaneously, a single spark of yang was born anew, faint and nascent. At this time, mice and rats came out to scurry, which was why the Zi hour belonged to the Rat. Folklore had it that small as rats were, they were brimming with vital vigor, capable of gnawing a fissure through the primordial chaos of heaven and earth, allowing yang qi to rise gradually and cycle with yin—hence the adage "the rat gnaws open the heavens." That was the true reason why the Rat stood first among the twelve Chinese zodiac signs. Of course, this was also the hour when sinister spirits and ghosts ran most rampant. With the yang of heaven and earth suppressed, human yang suffered the same fate, leaving mortals most vulnerable to being preyed upon by such things. Suddenly, Li Yan snapped his eyes open, a cold light burning within. *Whoosh—* Out on the distant highway, a gust of sinister wind kicked up for no apparent reason, whipping up dust and whirling in place. Under the bright moon, it was strikingly conspicuous. At the same time, Li Yan caught that icy, foul stench. The freezing sensation on his back grew increasingly intense. He knew this was the curse the entity had laid on him—like a mark that would pursue him relentlessly even if he fled to the ends of the earth. Sensing his aura, the whirlwind swept toward the Earth God Temple. Yet as it neared the perimeter of the temple's incense, it was barred outside, lunging left and ramming right, unable to force its way in. *Whoosh—* The sinister wind howled, the frigid, rancid stench growing heavier. As the howling wind reached Li Yan's ears, it shifted instantly into a voice: "Yan'er, where are you?" "Come out, come home with me..." Weathered and sorrowful, it was his grandfather's voice. A cold sneer tugged at Li Yan's lips; he remained unmoved. Though he was no Xuanmen practitioner, he had deduced several patterns. First, this cold-altar rampaging soldier possessed intelligence and was cunning, but acted more like a beast governed by primal rules—lacking the deep contrivances of human thought and bound by certain limitations. Otherwise, how could it have fallen for his tricks two nights in a row? Second, it did not actually know human secrets; rather, it bewitched the human mind, and this power had to be channeled through a curse. On that previous night, his grandfather, who had not been cursed, heard nothing at all. Such bewitchment specifically targeted weaknesses in the human heart. Because he worried most about his grandfather, the old man's voice appeared. Using the heart as a mirror, it seeped into every crack. Furthermore, the creature was adept at concealment. During the day, Li Yan had searched around the village for several turns without catching its scent. And when it crept into the village, it hadn't alerted the watchdogs. Only when wounded would the village dogs detect it. According to Widow Wang, this thing was trying to seize his mortal body. As long as he sheltered within the Earth God Temple's incense power and refused to be bewitched, the cold-altar rampaging soldier would have no choice but to possess another vessel to force its way in. Sure enough, matters took a turn. As the sinister wind repeatedly battered against the boundary, a reaction stirred within the Earth God Temple. The nearby scent of incense grew denser. Li Yan felt warmth flowing through his heart. The chill of the curse upon his back eased noticeably, and even the bewitching calls vanished. *Grandpa Earth God pulls his weight!* Li Yan could not help but praise silently. *Whoosh—* Unexpectedly, the sinister wind began to draw back slowly. From the look of it, it was about to leave. *How can I let that happen!* Li Yan thought, alarmed. He had no time for an endless battle of attrition with this thing. Besides, the protective plaque at home was already ruined; if he missed tonight, his grandfather might be in grave danger. With that thought, Li Yan rolled his eyes as an idea formed. Without the slightest hesitation, he dashed right to the boundary of the Earth God Temple's incense power. "What's the rush? Let's play a little longer!" "Ooh, I stepped out..." "Ooh, I'm back in..." "Come on! If you've got the guts, come get me!" Such blatant provocation drove the creature completely mad. *Whoosh!* Suddenly, the sinister wind whipped into a violent gale. Li Yan's heart tightened, and he hastily retreated into the temple. Yet once the tempest blew past, that distinct icy stench was gone. *Did it really flee?* Just as resentment flared in Li Yan's chest, he suddenly felt a chill creeping up from behind. *Rustle-flap-flap!* In the distant poplar grove, a flock of birds took flight in nighttime panic. From the thick mist, a vicious wolf with glowing red eyes crept slowly into view. Then, more than a dozen wolves, large and small, sprang out from different directions, surrounding the Earth God Temple...