"This..."
Squire Lu hesitated, glancing to the side with an annoyed expression.
Steward Lu, who had been waiting on them nearby, looked utterly miserable and quickly pleaded his innocence. "Master, I... I didn't say a single thing..."
Before the words had even finished leaving his mouth, he silently cursed his own blunder.
This was practically an unprompted confession, openly admitting that something was wrong in the Lu household.
He had always handled matters with meticulous care, but he lived in dread of Squire Lu. It was precisely that panic and fluster that had tripped him up.
Squire Lu's face naturally grew even darker.
Yet before his temper could flare, Wang Daoxuan spoke up. "There is no need for the patron to blame another. The steward said nothing at all; it was this poor Daoist who noticed a few oddities."
With that, he led everyone out into the courtyard. Pointing first to a corner of the wall and then to a distant tree, he said, "The sun has blazed for days without a drop of rain, yet moss and mildew thrive in that corner. That jujube tree is clammy and damp, and dead birds have fallen from its branches... There is unquestionably an accumulation of yin sha qi here."
Everyone took a look, and sure enough, it was just as he had described.
These seemingly inconspicuous details suddenly appeared thoroughly uncanny.
Standing behind the others, Li Yan chuckled inwardly.
Wang Daoxuan might be a decent man, but his jianghu tricks were just as slick.
Ever since this Daoist resolved to enter the Xuanmen, he had traveled north and south, visiting famous teachers. Though he had never succeeded and had been duped many times, he had not returned empty-handed.
He had picked up a bit of every trick and trade in the Xuanmen.
By all rights, having such skills should have been plenty to earn a decent living.
Yet the divine ability Wang Daoxuan had awakened happened to be that of the tongue. Many things could only be deciphered through taste after he put them in his mouth.
He could hardly go around licking everything he saw, could he?
How was he supposed to lick a zombie or a ferocious ghost?
And if an unmarried young lady were possessed, would he go and lick her body as well?
Fortunately, he had eventually devised a workaround, using talisman paper or other implements as a cover, letting them absorb the scent and flavor before tasting them.
Even so, the work he did most often was that of an earth master practicing feng shui.
After all, among earth masters, there was indeed an esoteric discipline known as tasting soil.
Of course, the tongue ability was not entirely devoid of potential. When one's cultivation reached a certain stage, chanting true incantations and mantras with it could unleash far greater power than ordinary practitioners could muster.
Wang Daoxuan, however, clearly lacked that level of skill.
Moreover, conducting the ritual to construct a mental temple for spirit preservation had completely wiped out his life savings and plunged him deep into debt, leaving him in utterly dire straits.
Crossing paths with Li Yan had given him an idea.
Li Yan could catch scent of unusual odors, while Wang Daoxuan could interpret the omens behind them.
The two of them working together was a match made in heaven.
Their silence along the road had been dedicated to precisely this.
Li Yan had picked up a faint scent of yin sha qi, so he had rested his hands behind his back with the back of his hand facing upward—palm for yang, back for yin.
Then, lifting his little finger, he had pointed toward the abnormal spot in the courtyard.
Wang Daoxuan had watched him closely and entered the estate already knowing the score. Naturally, he could put on the air of an accomplished master before the Lu household, driving his "hitching post" firmly into the ground.
"Master Wang is truly brilliant!"
Sha Lifei feigned astonishment and clapped his hands in prompt applause, playing the role of the enthusiastic flatterer.
Three clumsy cobblers had indeed put their heads together to rival Zhuge Liang.
Sure enough, Squire Lu's expression shifted slightly. He took a long, searching look at Wang Daoxuan, then cupped his hands respectfully. "Master Wang is profound indeed. Please, take your seats."
The group returned to the hall and sat down.
Squire Lu hesitated for a moment. "It was not my intention to conceal it, but this matter..."
"Rest assured, patron."
Wang Daoxuan already knew what he wanted to say and nodded with a gentle smile. "This poor Daoist's cultivation may be modest, but my lips are tightly sealed."
Only then did Squire Lu let out a sigh. "This matter is exceedingly strange."
"Last night, Zhao Jiu, one of the courtyard guards on night watch, heard a commotion and went to investigate. What he saw was a human figure floating in midair—and it was none other than my first wife."
"Zhao Jiu cried out in shock, and several others came running out and saw it too. Then, right before everyone's eyes, she vanished into thin air."
Wang Daoxuan furrowed his brows. "Curse it all... How could that be?"
Hearing this, Li Yan found it strange as well.
Whether ghosts, spirit soldiers, or Xianjia, all were formless entities that only those who had awakened divine abilities could perceive.
Ordinary mortals could only hope to glimpse them under extreme circumstances—such as being on the verge of death, besieged by yin sha, or visited in dreams by yin souls.
For so many people to see it at the same time was rare indeed.
Sha Lifei, sitting off to the side, paid none of this any mind. Unable to restrain himself any longer, he was already stuffing his face, gulping down wine, and mumbling around mouthfuls of food, "Did the madam... pass away?"
"That is precisely the problem."
Squire Lu let out a bitter smile. "My wife is frail and has been bedridden with illness for years, but for the past several months she has been in a constant daze."
"After the incident, we went to check on her."
"She is still alive!"
Stroking his beard, Wang Daoxuan shook his head and frowned. "This is a case of a living soul departing the body. It requires a ritual to summon and settle the soul. Yet a living soul is equally invisible. For so many people to see it is entirely unheard of."
Seated beside him, Li Yan was no slower with his own chopsticks, which flew across the dishes as he shoveled large slices of spiced beef and perch into his mouth.
Though he appeared to be engrossed entirely in gorging himself, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
Could this bizarre phenomenon have something to do with the treasure he was searching for...?
Squire Lu gritted his teeth. "Daoist, how can this be resolved?"
Wang Daoxuan pondered for a moment. "There are many reasons why a living person's soul might leave the flesh. If I were to guess, the madam has likely been bedridden for so long that her yang qi has destabilized, causing her living soul to scatter."
"Let us first perform a ritual to summon her soul."
***
The night was windless, and the Lu residence was brightly lit with candles.
Contrary to what Sha Lifei had claimed, although Squire Lu had taken two beautiful concubines, he had not cast aside his wife of humble beginnings; in fact, he treated her with exceptional respect.
An elegant residence in the rear courtyard served as the madam's quarters.
Though she lay bedridden, little different from a paralyzed vegetable, the courtyard was kept impeccably tidy and staffed by numerous servants.
More importantly, this was the master's inner residence. Squire Lu had yielded it to her, moving with his concubines into a side courtyard instead.
By now, an altar had been erected in the courtyard.
Calling it an altar was generous; it was merely a square table upon which rested a statue and a spirit tablet dedicated to Heavenly Lord Chen of Xuanqi's Manifest Might. Behind them, arranged in neat succession, were a pair of red candles on stands, a sandalwood censer, a sandalwood dish, a cup of pure water, ritual tablets, a command talisman, a wooden fish, a peach wood sword, sheets of yellow paper, and other such paraphernalia.
There was even a wandering soul jar.
It was a small black jar bound in red cord, sealed at the top with yellow cloth, and pasted with talismans. A faint wisp of yin sha qi swirled around it.
Inside was a minor yin soldier that Wang Daoxuan had managed to recruit with great effort. It possessed no grand abilities, capable only of delivering messages or tracking down lost items.
Having finally landed a major job, Wang Daoxuan had brought out his entire collection of tools.
At this moment, Squire Lu, along with the guards and servants of the estate, were all present.
Wang Daoxuan pinched his fingers to divine the omens, then said in a deep voice:
"The madam was born in the Year of the Tiger. Anyone born in the Year of the Ox, Tiger, Snake, or Monkey must leave the estate at once and not return until dawn tomorrow..."
"Cover every mirror in the compound..."
"The personal maidservant who tends to the madam on ordinary days shall remain..."
"All other nonessential personnel must withdraw and hide in their rooms. No matter what you hear, under no circumstances may you rashly step outside..."
A string of instructions rolled off his tongue, leaving the listeners somewhat dazed.
Squire Lu barked at them, "What are you waiting for? Do as he says!"
The servants immediately set to work. A few guards from the Zhao Family Fist looked at one another, but without a word, they turned and departed.
Only Squire Lu asked cautiously, "Must I withdraw as well?"
Wang Daoxuan nodded. "A living soul fears fright above all else. One careless mistake, and it may scatter into nothingness. It is best to be cautious."
"Very well. I leave it in your capable hands, Daoist."
Without further chatter, Squire Lu turned and left.
Now, only Li Yan and Wang Daoxuan remained in the courtyard, along with the maidservant who, following instructions, entered the room to snip a lock of hair from the emaciated, comatose madam and tear off a piece of her undergarment.
Seizing the opportunity, Li Yan whispered, "That Squire Lu has a pungent smell of urine on him. He masked it with expensive scented powder, but I hardly dared get close..."
"I noticed it long ago."
Wang Daoxuan was not surprised. Shaking his head, he said, "During my travels through the prefectures, I once came across a village where the locals routinely castrated their second sons to send them into the palace in pursuit of wealth and rank. Over the generations, quite a few prominent eunuchs emerged from there, who returned to build lavish estates, and every family scrambled to imitate them."
"Yet the palace is treacherous; not everyone can make a name for themselves. Plenty never even made it through the palace gates. Several loafers in that village looked just like him—pot-bellied, pale and beardless, with flabby skin..."
"Did your divine ability return?"
"It comes and goes."
Li Yan wore a helpless look.
Ever since his divine ability erupted outside Xianyang, it had been unstable—sometimes faint, sometimes flaring up violently, only to leave his soul exhausted.
The flare-up just now was how he had caught the scent clinging to Squire Lu.
No wonder the man kept two gorgeous concubines at his side without caring about the stares of others, even carrying an air of smug satisfaction. If he was a eunuch, it made complete sense.
Li Yan had come to the Lu estate to find that mysterious treasure.
A eunuch who had once lived in the capital...
Could the treasure have been smuggled out of the imperial palace?
Unfortunately, his divine ability chose this exact moment to act up. What rotten luck.
Naturally unaware of what Li Yan was thinking, Wang Daoxuan began explaining, "The art of soul summoning originates from ancient shamanic nuuo rituals. The *Rites and Ceremonies* states in its 'Mourning Rites': 'The summoner is the official who calls back the hun and recovers the po.' It is also said that the rite of soul summoning precedes the encoffining and sets the timeline for the burial and tomb preparation."
"Given the madam's physical state, I fear that once her soul is summoned back, a funeral will follow soon after."
As he spoke, he cut into the paper.
A large sheet of coarse yellow paper fluttered beneath his shears, and gradually, a paper soul-summoning banner took shape, adorned not only with cloud patterns but also with silhouettes of human figures.
Li Yan could not help but praise him. "Fine craftsmanship, Daoist."
Wang Daoxuan chuckled, shaking his head. "If you ever have the chance to meet a true paper-craft master of the Xuanmen, you'll know what real wonder looks like. What I know is barely skin-deep..."
Without pausing his hands, he continued imparting Xuanmen lore to Li Yan.
This was their tacit understanding: Li Yan served as his assistant, while Wang Daoxuan guided him into the trade, teaching him its various esoteric intricacies.
While they were speaking, the maidservant returned with the hair and cloth.
Wang Daoxuan first burned the hair to ash and sprinkled it into a jar of clear water, watching how the residue drifted. After observing it for a moment, he tucked the scrap of cloth into the staff of the soul-summoning banner and said, "When the Zi hour arrives shortly, take this banner and stand on the roof of the courtyard in the northeast corner. Wave the banner and call out: 'Soul, return! Soul, return!'"
"Remember: do not be afraid. If you feel a chill come over you, close your eyes and keep shouting. The moment you hear the sound of the wooden fish, run straight back."
"And if someone calls your name from behind, whatever you do, do not look back!"
The maidservant was already trembling all over, but remembering the handsome reward her master had promised, she gritted her teeth. "R-rest assured, Daoist, I remember."
With that, she carried the soul-summoning banner away with utmost care.
Li Yan found this curious. "Calling someone from behind is a trick played by evil spirits and ferocious ghosts. Can a living person's soul harm someone too?"
Wang Daoxuan whispered, "A living soul cannot withstand a scare. It is like someone sleepwalking; it must be guided back."
"I'm afraid the maid might startle the soul into scattering."
Li Yan let out a wry laugh.
Wang Daoxuan was certainly thorough in his precautions...
***
Before long, the Zi hour descended, plunging the entire Lu residence into pitch-black darkness.
The maidservant had already climbed onto the roof. With eyes shut, she waved the soul-summoning banner, gritting her teeth and crying out, "Soul, return! Soul, return..."
The drawn-out, haunting cries sent chills down the spines of the servants, driving them under their blankets in terror.
In a wing of a separate side courtyard, Squire Lu and his two concubines were likewise sequestered in a darkened room.
At this moment, an extra trace of stern authority had settled over his face. Turning toward the two concubines, he said in a cold voice, "Take them out."
The two concubines hurriedly reached beneath their garments and each retrieved a jujube.
Squire Lu took them and popped them straight into his mouth. Chewing them as he listened to the cries floating in from outside the window, his eyes flickered with an uncertain gleam...
Chapter 24