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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Ten: Eight Methods of Strange Needles
Hearing this, both Old Guo and I felt uneasy. Although the Kiln was not far from Guo Village, the villagers usually did not have any dealings with this Kiln. As a result, so many incidents had occurred here without anyone from Guo Village knowing.
I sighed and said to Boss Fu, "Now that things have happened, what good does it do to blame yourself? You should hurry up and pack your things and take the workers away."
Boss Fu was taken aback and asked me, "Leave? What about the bricks in these kilns? They're almost finished firing."
I was almost amused by his reaction. Even after casualties had occurred, he was still concerned about those poor bricks. It was as if he valued money over life!
But despite my frustration, life was paramount. So I told him, "To be honest, this kiln is definitely a cursed one. If you delay for another day, there might be another casualty. Moreover, because you built this kiln facing Guo Village, it has brought disaster upon Guo Village as well. A young man died today."
Upon hearing this, Boss Fu was understandably frightened and asked me what to do. I replied, "What else can we do? We should leave while we can. Take the workers and go now; I'll handle the rest!"
At that moment, Old Guo also spoke up. He said, "Boss Fu, for your own sake, for your workers' sake, and for the sake of all the old and young in Guo Village, you should leave quickly. Once the situation here is resolved, you can come back. We will allocate a piece of farmland for you, and the villagers will do their best to help you rebuild a Brick Factory. How does that sound?"
Boss Fu sighed and said that there was no other choice but to do so. He then went outside to instruct the workers who were busy.
That afternoon, before sunset, Boss Fu packed everything he could into the vehicle and left with more than ten workers from the Kiln. Suddenly, only Old Guo and I remained in the Kiln along with several smoking cursed kilns.
After Boss Fu left with the workers, I took out my Compass in this Kiln and began to turn it around. The results showed that this place was quite unusual!
The Compass is different from an ordinary compass; on top of Luo Jing is a square platform supporting a circular platform. Both the celestial plate and the terrestrial plate can rotate; only the needle in the central celestial pool cannot turn. This needle is the soul of Luo Jing. With Bagua, Yin Yang, and the Five Elements surrounding it, its sensitivity to energy fields is greater than that of an ordinary compass. Therefore, by observing any abnormal movements within the celestial pool of the Compass, one can infer potential changes in fortune or misfortune in its energy field.
Ancient predecessors formed a set of mnemonic phrases from the detection of Feng Shui auspiciousness and the presence of Evil Energy, known as the Eight Methods of Strange Needles. The Eight Methods of Strange Needles refer to eight abnormal movements within the Compass's Heavenly Pool. They are: Tang Needle, Dui Needle, sinking needle, Turning Needle, Throwing Needle, Counterclockwise, Lateral Needle, and the Straight Needle. Each needle method represents a different auspicious or inauspicious outcome.
I was at the Kiln when I noticed the Compass needle spinning wildly at times and then suddenly becoming completely still. In the Eight Methods of Strange Needles, this is referred to as the Turning Needle and Lateral Needle. Seeing these two needle methods manifest in such a small Kiln left me stunned, wondering what was going on.
According to the Eight Methods of Strange Needles, the Turning Needle indicates that the needle spins continuously, suggesting that Evil Yin is present and Resentful Energy is lingering. Feng Shui teachings state that residing in such a place will lead to harm; whereas the Lateral Needle indicates that the needle has stopped but does not return to the centerline, suggesting that this place is a shrine or ancient temple.
Although the explanations in the Eight Methods of Strange Needles involve supernatural elements, Feng Shui Masters use this method to assess Feng Shui accurately. It is considered the most reliable standard; some extraordinary phenomena cannot always be explained by known science.
Particularly concerning the Turning Needle, also known as the Deception Needle, it refers to the needle head spinning continuously in one direction, indicating an invasion by evil spirits and Resentful Energy surrounding it, which can be harmful to people. Among the eight strange needles, this is the most direct and quickest method associated with disaster; I encountered it when I was in my teens.
At that time, although I had not specifically studied Feng Shui with my Grandfather, he often took me along when he practiced Feng Shui. Thus, I was familiar with some basic theories from a young age; after all, one cannot say they have never seen a pig run if they have eaten pork.
One time, while accompanying my Grandfather into a Deep Mountain Forest, we rested by a Small River. We sat on the Beach with the Luo Jing laid flat on the sand when suddenly its needle began spinning like a fan. Upon seeing this, my Grandfather immediately told me to be quiet and pack up to leave. As we were leaving, I felt a sharp pain in my knee that lasted for a week and prevented me from walking normally; it healed without medication after a week. That night, my Grandfather explained that this was the Deception Needle from the Eight Methods of Strange Needles, indicating that evil spirits were nearby and if we did not leave soon, disaster would follow.
The next day, out of curiosity, we returned to the same spot where the Luo Jing's needle no longer spun. I asked my Grandfather what this meant, and he said it probably passed through here...
What "it" was made me think of an image of an Evil Spirit or Vengeful Ghost dressed in white passing by. After this incident, I became convinced of the existence of the Eight Methods of Strange Needles and deduced that what Luo Jing detected could not simply be magnetic fields. In such desolate mountains and forests, where could such strong magnetic fields come from? Even if there were significant magnetic fields present, why would they vanish by the next day? In any case, if a Turning Needle appears and one does not leave immediately, misfortune will surely follow.
Seeing both types of needles manifest simultaneously—especially encountering the Turning Needle for only the second time in my life—left me confused and worried. Unable to sort through my thoughts clearly, I asked Old Guo what this place used to be and what it was for.
Old Guo replied that this area had been an abandoned grassy field since his childhood; it had not been used for anything for decades—no crops were grown nor houses built.
Clearly, Old Guo's response did not provide any clues because what he described did not resolve my inner doubts.
I certainly wouldn't doubt that something is wrong with the Compass, nor would I think that what the Eight Methods of Strange Needles says is false. If it were just about choosing Yin Yang or Feng Shui for someone, I wouldn't need to worry so much; as long as I didn't choose this place, it would be fine. However, right now I must figure out the reason to prevent any future disasters here.
After thinking for a moment, I asked Old Guo if he had heard any stories from the older generation about this place when he was young.
Old Guo thought for a while and then suddenly said that when he was a child, he heard the elders talk about something, but he wasn't sure if it was true.
Seeing that there seemed to be some clues, I hurriedly asked him what it was and urged him to tell me quickly.
According to Old Guo, when he was young, he heard two different stories from the elders. One story said that this area used to be a Cursed Ground a long time ago, causing disturbances in several surrounding villages. Later on, a Feng Shui Master passed through here and set up a scheme that finally subdued the Evil Spirit in this place.
The other story mentioned that there used to be a kiln here long ago. It was said that the kiln was quite large and had dozens of workers, but for some unknown reason, something happened later on, and all the workers who worked at the kiln died. As for what happened at the kiln, Old Guo didn't know either.
In short, these two stories were ones Old Guo heard during his childhood and have been passed down for a long time; whether they are true or not is something even the storyteller back then didn't know.
After listening to these two stories, I analyzed them carefully and believed that perhaps both stories were true. There might have really been a kiln here in the past, and due to some incident where many people died, it became a Cursed Ground.
Only this could explain the results of the Compass because what the Compass and Eight Methods of Strange Needles refer to with Lateral Needle indicates the presence of divine objects. According to Old Guo's two stories, there used to be an ancient kiln here; it's known that wherever there is a kiln, there is usually a Kiln Deity. This also explains why the Compass showed Lateral Needle. As for Turning Needle, it's even easier to explain—there are Evil Spirits and Vengeful Spirits here!
Having figured all this out gave me some confidence. To ensure that this Cursed Ground no longer harms anyone, I decided to do my best to resolve the Evil Spirits here. I told Old Guo to go back first; tonight I planned to stay here and meet with the Mountain King.
Old Guo nodded and expressed his concerns a few times before leaving the empty Kiln. The vast Kiln was left with just me alone...
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