Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
After climbing the mountain, Zheng Xuejie saw a relatively young fat man pretending to be a tourist. She frowned and turned to leave. Qin Senior Sister quickly grabbed her and asked where she was going. Zheng Xuejie replied, "There's nothing here, what are we doing? I want to go home!"
She tried to leave, but with Qin Senior Sister's strength, she couldn't hold her back. Besides, there were steps right by their feet, and if they weren't careful, they could easily tumble down. Seeing that hiding wouldn't solve the problem, I had no choice but to run out and call for Ma Rulong to help. The moment Zheng Xuejie saw me emerge from the temple, her expression changed drastically. Without saying a word, she turned and ran. Qin Senior Sister clung to her like a little bird, which looked quite comical.
Ma Rulong was nearby and rushed over in a few quick steps, pulling out a very thin rope from his pocket. Zheng Xuejie screamed, "What are you doing? Let me go!"
Despite Ma Rulong's size, he had previously mentioned that his movements were quite nimble. In just a few swift motions, he tied up Zheng Xuejie like a rice dumpling and then tossed her over his shoulder as if she were a sack of rice, heading back toward the temple. I almost spat blood when I saw this scene halfway there. Is this really the secret technique of Shaolin?
Ma Rulong chuckled and explained, "I moved too quickly; you probably didn't see clearly. While tying her up with the rope, I already used thirty-six techniques of capture. Otherwise, how could she have surrendered so easily?"
I muttered that it was only because she wasn't as strong as him. Although Zheng Xuejie was tied up, her mouth wasn't sealed; she yelled and cursed frantically, making anyone who heard her break into a sweat. Ma Rulong was quite displeased and gave her a few pats on the backside, saying, "Behave yourself; otherwise, I might have to take drastic measures!"
This was obviously meant to scare Zheng Xuejie, but Qin Senior Sister didn't know that. She panicked and quickly asked who I had found that was so fierce—was he a terrorist? I felt embarrassed and said he was a priest from Longhu Mountain and that he was actually quite nice.
A priest? Qin Senior Sister paused for a moment before pointing at a pile of dilapidated buildings ahead and asking, "You’re not telling me this is the temple, are you?"
I actually wanted to say "no," because the buildings in front of us were truly an insult to temples. But in order to maintain Ma Rulong's image, I could only grit my teeth and say yes.
Once inside the temple, I discovered it was another world altogether. It looked shabby from the outside but was well-equipped on the inside. There were tables and chairs—everything one would need—though the rooms were small and the beds were placed in the main hall. Ma Rulong threw Zheng Xuejie onto one of the beds and told us to keep an eye on her while he turned to get something. Zheng Xuejie stared at Ma Rulong for a while before shooting me several glares; finally, she yelled at Qin Senior Sister, "You really want to team up with him to harm me! If I had known earlier, I should have killed you both! You despicable people!"
Her words were too harsh; I couldn't help but defend Qin Senior Sister: "She’s trying to help you! How can you say she's harming you? Don't be ungrateful!"
"I don't want your help! I'm fine, let me go!" Zheng Xuejie shouted, bouncing and twisting on the bed like a grasshopper. It was unclear what kind of rope Ma Rulong had used; it looked thin but was very sturdy. No matter how much strength Zheng Xuejie exerted, she couldn't break free.
After a while, the Fat Daoist approached with a bowl of water, several talismans, and some other items. He lit the Paper Talisman, letting the ashes fall into the bowl. Then he poured half a bowl of water and stirred it with a piece of seemingly ordinary grass before prying open Zheng Xuejie's mouth to pour it in. Qin Senior Sister watched nervously, questioning whether such dirty water was safe to drink.
Zheng Xuejie was resisting violently; she could only manage to drink half of the water in the bowl, spilling the rest all over her clothes. To reassure Zheng Xuejie, I had to ask Ma Rulong what the water was for. Ma Rulong picked up a copper mirror and held it up to Zheng Xuejie, saying, "That's an exorcism talisman from Longhu Mountain. Drinking it mixed with water will reveal any unclean things in her body in the mirror."
Qin Senior Sister and I leaned forward to look into the mirror. Although Zheng Xuejie's reflection appeared somewhat distorted, it wasn't too strange. Ma Rulong lowered the mirror and said, "There's nothing unusual about her; she's quite normal."
Upon hearing this, Zheng Xuejie immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes! I'm normal! Let me go!"
Qin Senior Sister had come all this way not just to hear that she was normal. She pleaded, "Master, please take another look. She's so different from before; there must be something wrong!"
Zheng Xuejie angrily shouted, "You're the one with problems! You damn worthless piece of trash! You seduced men to harm me! I won't let you off!"
With that attitude, I didn't need Qin Senior Sister to say anything; I also thought she had issues. The old Zheng Xuejie would never have threatened anyone like this. At Qin Senior Sister's insistence, Ma Rulong reluctantly tried another method to test her again. But the result was the same: Zheng Xuejie was clean; there were no impurities present.
Qin Senior Sister sat by the bed in disappointment. I understood her feelings; if Zheng Xuejie remained like this in the future, they wouldn't be able to be sisters anymore.
I pulled Ma Rulong aside and asked if there was any way to restore her original personality. Ma Rulong shook his head and said, "Daoist Arts aren't magical powers; they don't have that kind of ability. She has changed because she has completely transformed as a person; it's fate and cannot be defied. Forcing a change could lead to more severe consequences. You sell Amulets at home; you should understand this."
I sighed and nodded in understanding. Ma Rulong patted my shoulder with a smile and said, "Those talismans were drawn by a master from Longhu Mountain; they cost a thousand each externally. Given our relationship, I'll give you a discount—five hundred each."
I widened my eyes and exclaimed, "Why don't you go rob someone instead!"
Ma Rulong said with a smile, "There's no safety in robbery; we are honest people and don't do illegal things."
Although I had prepared myself to be ruthlessly taken advantage of before coming here, I couldn't just spend money without resolving the issue. How would I explain this to the Zheng Family when I returned?
Ma Rulong patted my shoulder and said, "No need to rush. Tonight, we will first conduct a small trial for the Extradition Ceremony to test the wind direction. Just give me the money before you leave."
"Do we need to test the wind direction for the Ritual?" I was a bit confused.
Ma Rulong explained that it was necessary; otherwise, if the Soul Lanterns were sent up and got blown off course before they could take effect, what would happen? According to his teachings of Maoshan secret arts, when the Soul Lanterns rise, it signifies the opening of the path to reincarnation. If the lanterns veer off course, the souls inside cannot reincarnate and will scatter instead; if lucky, they might end up as wandering spirits somewhere.
It sounded quite important. I was also curious to witness the ancestral techniques and see how they differed from those of Thai Ajarn. However, Ma Rulong frequently mentioned Maoshan Technique but rarely spoke of Longhu Mountain. When I asked him why, he explained, "Most of what comes from Longhu Mountain involves talismans, which are very profound but not convenient for everyday use. So generally, aside from large rituals, we use Maoshan Technique more often."
I then asked him why he performed such rituals alone instead of collaborating with his fellow disciples.
Ma Rulong replied that after his master passed away, his fellow disciples scattered and rarely kept in touch. For rituals like this one, putting in effort often goes unrewarded; even if one gains some benefits, they can only enjoy them after death. For many people, such tasks are not worth doing. So for many years, he had been conducting extraditions alone. This made me see Ma Rulong in a new light; although he seemed somewhat mercenary, he still kept his promises.
Afterward, he went to prepare for the evening's extradition while I informed Qin Senior Sister about the outcome. Paying one or two thousand yuan didn't bother her; what truly concerned her was whether she could still get along with Zheng Xuejie after returning. Looking at Zheng Xuejie's hungry expression on the bed, I thought it might be better to find another way and leave myself an escape route...
In the evening, Ma Rulong prepared a table full of dishes—both meat and vegetables—and he cooked them himself. The taste was quite good and not much worse than an average restaurant. He said living alone on the mountain made it inconvenient to eat what he wanted, so he had to put more effort into cooking for himself. Over time, he had developed these skills. Qin Senior Sister held a bowl of noodles and picked up some vegetables to feed Zheng Xuejie. However, Zheng Xuejie refused to eat, tightly closing her mouth.
I quietly asked Ma Rulong, "Will that rope hold?" He replied, "It's a whole piece of beef tendon soaked through special methods; not even ten oxen could break it. What’s more, she won’t be able to! Just focus on your meal; whenever you want to leave, I'll untie her so she doesn't go crazy and end up smashing my stuff."
Comment 0 Comment Count