Xiao Taos Geistergeschichten (Vollversion)

Kapitel 29

"My earthen dwelling is right across this wall. Now, use your shovel to break it open," Qi Mao Xian commanded.

Ling Li glanced at the earthen wall in front of him. It was thick and solid, with no sign of loosening. However, thinking of Tao Rujiu lying in Cuiying Pavilion, he immediately picked up the shovel.

It turns out that exercising in the gym and actual physical labor are two completely different concepts. Although the wound from last night was on my left shoulder and had been properly bandaged, it still reopened when I swung my right arm, moving my entire body.

He grimaced in pain in the darkness, but still didn't stop what he was doing. Qi Mao Xian stood beside him with a flashlight in her mouth and also saw blood seeping from the man's shirt.

Ling Li was indeed quite clever. After noticing that the wound on his shoulder had reopened, he focused his efforts on digging a small section at the bottom of the earthen wall. Slowly, he dug out a hole the size of a washbasin, revealing a dark space behind it. The man bent down to examine the thickness of the earthen wall, then straightened up and began kicking the walls around the hole. After about ten kicks, the hole in the wall had expanded to nearly a meter square.

Qi Maoxian jumped in first, followed by Ling Li, who bent over.

Behind the wall was a pit. Ling Li shone his flashlight up and down, discovering that the pit was about four meters high and ten meters wide. The ground was paved with bluestone, and there were traces of wooden framing on the walls, though the wood had rotted over time. In the very center of the pit was a bluestone platform about half a foot high, upon which sat a grayish-black stone coffin.

"Help me open the stone coffin; my true form is inside," Qi Mao Xian instructed.

Ling Li glanced at the stone coffin lid, which weighed at least a hundred kilograms. He pressed his right shoulder against the edge of the lid, forcefully pushed open a narrow gap, and then wedged in the iron shovel, trying to use the leverage to pry the lid open.

Before he could even exert himself, Qi Mao Xian sternly stopped him.

"There's an inner coffin inside!" the Cat Fairy exclaimed, dropping her flashlight. "I still need it! We can't break it!"

Ling Li, somewhat angrily, retorted after hearing his words, "It's just a coffin! How much can a shovel damage? Even if it is damaged, the gold one can compensate you. I don't have much strength left, so stop causing trouble."

After saying that, ignoring Qi Maoxian's stern objections, he still drove the shovel in and then used the force to push the coffin lid open with all his might.

With a dull grinding sound, the stone coffin lid slowly slid open, and the shovel, as the gap widened, gradually penetrated deeper into the coffin, finally striking the inner coffin heavily.

“Kara la la la la la…”

A series of sharp cracks immediately appeared in the darkness. Ling Li felt as if the shovel had cracked a thin layer of ice, and the cracks quickly spread outwards along the tip of the shovel. He hurriedly stopped, but it was too late.

Something inside the stone coffin seemed to be disintegrating, somewhat like tempered glass breaking apart—a large, seemingly solid piece of glass will shatter into smaller pieces with just one chip. But tempered glass obviously wouldn't break so easily from the impact of a shovel.

"Qi Mao Xian..." Ling Li asked with some doubt, "What is your inner coffin made of?"

But suddenly, there was only deathly silence behind him, with the sound of a flashlight rolling on the ground.

Inside the small earthen cave, the dim yellow light flickered, and the dark, enclosed room was filled with a damp, musty smell. Ling Li slowly turned around and saw a gleaming white furry tail disappear into a hole in the wall in a flash.

"Hello……!"

Ling Li was stunned, not understanding why the cat fairy had suddenly run away. Just as he was about to turn around and ask her, he was suddenly startled to hear an even louder noise coming from the stone coffin beside him. Before he could react, the heavy stone coffin was kicked high into the air. If Ling Li hadn't dodged in time, it probably would have crushed him.

The man was startled, almost forgetting why he had come here. He quickly rolled on the ground, grabbed his flashlight, and shone it on the fully opened stone coffin.

He saw countless ice shards fly out of the stone coffin like falling snowflakes, quickly accumulating a layer of white frost around it. And amidst the pervasive chill, he sharply spotted a plain white cloth shoe with thin soles, arrogantly held aloft in mid-air.

Immediately afterwards, a figure dressed entirely in white slowly sat up from the coffin bed.

"I painstakingly found this Water Spirit Coffin, preserved it for thousands of years, and you destroyed it all with a single shovel!!!"

Ling Li heard the man grit his teeth and say something. The familiar voice made him suddenly realize something, and he quickly shone his flashlight on the man.

This was a man with a cold and aloof demeanor, like a character straight out of an ancient costume drama. His long hair was casually tied into a knot at the back of his head and secured with a jade hairpin. Even under the yellowish light, he still appeared aloof, with his raised eyebrows and tightly pursed lips giving off a remarkably serious impression.

Ling Li watched as he slowly walked out of the coffin.

"Qi...Cat Fairy?" he asked.

The serious-looking man glanced at him and replied, "Since you have already shed your cat body, what right do you have to talk about being a cat immortal? Call me Qilinpo."

After saying that, seeing Ling Li's astonished expression, he explained, "When you broke the inner coffin, my soul had already returned to my original body. From now on, I will appear in my original body, and I hope you can make some arrangements and preparations in Hailing City."

Ling Li quickly regained his senses and nodded in agreement. Now that the objective had been achieved, there was no need to linger in the earthen cave. The damp air and musty smell made him uncomfortable, and the wounds all over his body finally began to ache after he relaxed.

Tao Rujiu will wake up in a little while.

As he thought this, a sense of joy welled up in his heart. He was about to return to the air-raid shelter through the small hole when Qi Linpo suddenly grabbed his wrist.

"Do you know the value of this Water Spirit Coffin?" Qi Linpo asked.

Ling Li glanced down at the pile of strange, gradually melting ice crystals, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Perhaps the company's cold storage can help you build a few more similar ones."

"You're oversimplifying things, Ling Li." Qi Linpo narrowed his eyes. "I'll keep this score in mind forever. Just you wait and see."

Ling Li is clearly not used to being provoked or questioned by others. However, recently, Dong Li Bu Po manipulated him by claiming to be his ancestor, and now Qi Lin Po is trying to settle scores with him with a sour face. This has greatly challenged his patience.

However, now is not the right time to confront him.

Ling Li pressed his hand to his forehead, trying to suppress the anger in his heart, and replied, "Fine, I said I could compensate you with gold!"

However, Qi Linpo seemed completely unconcerned about the man's promise, and quickly stepped out of the small hole ahead of him, urging, "What are you waiting for? If we don't hurry back, the lamp behind Tao Rujiu might go out at any time."

Upon hearing this, Ling Li took a deep breath and followed through gritted teeth. After leaving the air-raid shelter, Ling Li first took Qi Linpo back to the villa to change her hairstyle and clothes. Fortunately, their builds were similar, with little difference in size. However, Ling Li's casual and free-spirited style, while beautiful on the serious and aloof Qi Linpo, felt strangely awkward and out of place.

The two returned to Cuiying Pavilion at two o'clock in the afternoon. When they walked to the innermost courtyard, they saw Huakai sitting motionless at the door. She only showed a relieved smile when she saw Lingli return.

Hua Kai knew that Ling Li had helped Qi Mao Xian find her true form. So she wasn't too surprised to see Qi Lin Po, but secretly observed him, seemingly trying to find some trace of the big white cat.

Now that Qi Linpo had regained its original form, Ling Li assumed that Tao Rujiu would wake up immediately. However, his request for Qi Linpo to perform the ritual immediately was refused.

"The soul that leaves the body, also known as a ghost, cannot appear during the day when the yang energy is strong."

Qi Linpo explained, "I put Tao Tao's soul in a pottery jar with a talisman added, and it can only be opened after sunset."

Ling Li didn't know much about Yin-Yang numerology, and remembering what happened with the ice coffin earlier, he didn't dare to act rashly again. So he sat down on the blue stone flower bed with a sullen face and habitually took out a cigarette to smoke. But when he took out his lighter, he couldn't light it.

“Smoking is harmful to your health,” Qi Linpo said slowly. “Compared to people in ancient times, modern people are indeed committing slow suicide. Instead of wasting your life, you might as well learn some Taoist arts from me.”

Ling Li couldn't light the cigarette, but still held it in his mouth, saying with a half-smile, "Me? You want me to be a Taoist priest? I don't eat vegetarian food."

Qi Linpo said, "What you learn has no direct relation to what you eat. I just see that you have good natural talent, and it would be a pity to waste it. Besides, we need your participation in what follows."

Ling Li retorted sharply, "What's next? Isn't the matter of the underground palace over yet?"

Qi Linpo did not give a clear answer, seemingly to avoid suspicion, but vaguely said: "This matter needs to be discussed slowly. Right now, I'm just asking you, to learn or not to learn?"

Ling Li raised an eyebrow and answered with a competitive air, "Learn."

While it was said to be teaching Taoist arts, the incantations that required cultivation and skill couldn't be mastered in a short time. Qi Linpo certainly understood this, so what he taught Ling Li was merely the basic knowledge and movements for using magical artifacts. The important thing was to use Ling Li's rare pure Yang physique to enhance the power of these magical artifacts; when necessary, even a man's blood could become a powerful weapon.

Ling Li was a smart man, and simple operations and formations were not difficult for him. Qi Linpo taught him and the other person, and about two hours passed. Hua Kai, who was sitting to the side, then remembered that she hadn't eaten lunch and was starving, so she asked to go to the restaurant for lunch.

After watching him leave, the two who remained suddenly changed the subject.

"Is there something you can't say in front of the flowers?" Ling Li asked in a low voice. "Is it related to Dong Li?"

Qi Linpo's icy face finally showed some expression: "At least you're not completely muddle-headed."

"Confused?" Ling Li laughed sharply. "I'm never confused, I'm just too confident and unwilling to trust others."

“I think the only thing you don’t trust is Tao Rujiu,” Qi Linpo said coldly. “If you express your affection by bullying and hurting others, then it only proves that you are still a child.”

Ling Li paused for a moment, then surprisingly refrained from refuting anything.

Qi Linpo stopped arguing with him and cut straight to the point: "You've seen the underground river in the underground palace. It contains powerful malevolent energy. If left unchecked, it will always be a menace."

Ling Li seemed to understand what he meant: "You mean you want me to help you solve the problem of underground water flow? What does that have to do with Dongli not breaking?"

Qi Linpo replied: "Water flows with a predominantly yin nature, and the malevolent energy it carries is the accumulated resentment from the killings on the battlefield over the past hundred years. This malevolent energy has always been suppressed and imprisoned underground by magic. This method seems common, but it is not a permanent solution. The principle behind it is the same as the flood control measures of Yu the Great and Gun."

Ling Li nodded in understanding, and Qi Linpo continued, "In other places, the structures used to suppress demons and monsters are nothing more than temples and pagodas, but in Hailing City, what serves this purpose is..."

"The tomb of Dongli Bupo?" Ling Li continued, "You mean we're going to smash his grave?"

Qi Linpo nodded.

"Actually, Hailing was called Hailing for a period of time because there was a temple and tomb there dedicated to the Zhenhai General. It was because the Zhenhai General and his tomb blocked the flow of water that the river silted up in the underground channel, creating a situation where malevolent energy lingered."

Ling Li listened with a half-understanding and then asked, "Does clearing away the malevolent energy mean using external force to level Dong Li Bu Po's tomb?"

Qi Linpo shook his head and said, "Ordinary brick and stone buildings don't have any special effects. We just need to destroy Dong Li Bupo's corpse in the tomb—or to put it more simply, remove his mask."

Having said that, the matter at hand was quite clear. The two stopped talking, looked up at the sky and saw that it was getting late, then pushed open the door and went into Tao Rujiu's room.

"If you want to stay here, you must remain absolutely silent," Qi Linpo said to Ling Li. "No matter what you see, don't make a sound or move. Understand?"

Ling Li nodded and found a stool to sit down. He watched as Qi Linpo locked the door from the inside and then checked the windows again. He drew a magic circle around the corner of the wall—Ling Li understood; it was a magic circle to isolate spirits. Spirits inside and outside the magic circle could not circulate, thus preventing Tao Rujiu's soul from dissipating.

After Qi Linpo finished setting up the magic array, he chanted incantations, circled the room, and returned to the table, lighting a candle in each of the four corners. The room instantly brightened, and Ling Li saw Qi Linpo gently move one hand to the pottery jar and take out a small copper bell with the other.

"The Taiwei Mysterious Palace, dark yellow and azure, where the three souls are refined within, the embryonic light is serene and peaceful, the divine treasure jade chamber, born with me, must not be disturbed..."

Amidst the barely audible incantation of the Seven Souls Controlling Technique, Qi Linpo gently gestured a few words on the pottery jar with his hand, and then slowly lifted the lid.

Ling Li stared intently, not taking his eyes off the pottery jar. A wisp of cold air wafted out from it. In the humid August air, it condensed into white smoke, drifting away in a misty, ethereal way. Then, the Qilinpo bronze bell rang, and a hand emerged from the top of the jar as if a snow-white lotus flower had bloomed.

The earthenware jar was no bigger than an ordinary vase, but inside it seemed to be another world. A white, transparent hand slowly emerged from the mouth of the jar, as if it were an animal that had grown inside the jar, hearing the call of Qilin Soul, and slowly reaching out to see what was going on.

Those were indeed Tao Rujiu's hands.

Ling Li remembered that Tao Rujiu had a light-colored mark the size of a coin on her wrist, which was said to be left after a childhood wound healed. Now, the same mark appeared on this pale hand.

It was Tao Rujiu's soul that slowly transformed into human form and crawled out of the pottery jar.

"If you wish to fly, you must go to the Supreme Purity of Taiji; if you wish to be thirsty, you must drink the Jade Essence of the Returning Water..."

As Qi Linpo chanted in a low voice, the hand slowly groped in mid-air before falling and touching the table. Then, the head and shoulders slowly emerged from the pottery jar.

The face, equally pale and even translucent, with eyes tightly closed and devoid of any expression, appeared all the more delicate and refined, like a moving crystal sculpture. This unconsciously evoked the image of a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis, fragile and damp, unable to withstand even the slightest touch.

Qi Linpo watched as Tao Rujiu slowly emerged from the jar, his incantations never ceasing. The copper bell in his hand occasionally swayed, seemingly guiding the soul back to its body. Tao Rujiu's eyes remained tightly closed, but he had completely crawled out of the jar. He was naked, covered only by a strange layer of white frost, and beneath the frost, faint blue or purple scars could be seen on his skin.

Ling Li frowned subconsciously; each mark was a mockery of him.

The process of the soul returning was not complicated. Two hours earlier, he had only just begun to grasp the power of the method. He simply watched intently as Tao Rujiu's soul traveled a distance of half a room, becoming transparent and ethereal amidst the sound of the bell, and slowly merging with the physical body on the bed.

"Alright," Qi Linpo concluded.

The entire process took less than fifteen minutes. After the incantation and the bell stopped, the entire small house immediately became completely silent. Qi Linpo drew a calming and tranquilizing talisman on Tao Rujiu's body before extinguishing the candles and instructing Ling Li to open the doors, windows, and incandescent light bulbs.

The sky outside was a deep blue, and a cool breeze swept through, replacing the stagnant, foul air that had filled the small house for the past few days. Qi Linpo rubbed his legs, which hadn't been used for over a thousand years, and went to the door to meditate. When he turned around, he saw Ling Li already sitting next to Tao Rujiu.

“He’s breathing again…” The man reached out and touched Tao Rujiu’s lips. “His body has warmed up too.”

Qi Linpo nodded naturally: "His body is not seriously injured. After his soul returns, he will wake up in half an hour at most. You might as well call his name and see if he responds."

Ling Li nodded sharply and immediately prepared to bend down to try to wake the young man; however, the three simple words stuck in his throat and he couldn't bring himself to say them.

His past actions have robbed him of the right to utter those three words. Before the young man awakens and settles his score, Ling Li cannot forgive himself; not only for his past actions, but also because even he himself cannot foresee whether the harm caused by doubt and distrust will happen again.

Just then, the person on the bed suddenly let out a soft breath and slowly lifted their eyelids.

Tao Rujiu felt as if he had taken a deep, sweet sleep, without any memory of dreams. He felt as if he were floating in a dark, sunless ocean, devoid of any emotion in his heart or sensation in his body. Calm and gentle, it was unexpectedly comfortable.

So when he felt the heaviness in his body again, he felt quite unhappy. He slowly remembered that his soul had left his body, drifted away like a butterfly in the wind, and was found by the Qi Mao Fairy and placed in a pottery jar... What happens next is now.

The constant, subtle pains in his body sent a lingering sensation into his mind, causing him to sigh and slowly open his eyes.