Feng Shui - Chapter 45
Huang Quan understood what she should really do at this moment: listen to the man she loved most. No matter what Feng Shui did, as long as she wholeheartedly supported him, that would be the greatest expression of her love for him.
Feng Shui looked into Huang Quan's eyes, which were filled with love and helplessness, but most importantly, with a look that commanded trust. He walked to the Enchanted Zither on the table, and the eerie green light in Feng Shui's eyes reappeared. His hands swiftly formed hand seals, and a gigantic, mysterious, purplish-blue floral pattern appeared before him. Huang Quan recognized this pattern immediately; it was the same design as the floral tattoo on Feng Shui's back. Feng Shui bit his tongue, spitting blood onto the Enchanted Zither. Instantly, a shimmering purple light flashed across the zither, and the mysterious pattern before him became even brighter, enveloping the entire zither. Then, all the light vanished.
"The Soul Curse..." Huang Quan exclaimed in shock as he watched everything the Feng Shui had done.
The Divine Soul Incantation is a powerful boundary array technique that only gods can use. This boundary array is not for defense, but for attack. However, it is not easily used. It is an offensive boundary array forged from one's own divine soul, and it will only disappear when the caster is completely annihilated, with both body and soul destroyed. Otherwise, this offensive boundary array, unique to gods in the Divine Realm, will never be broken.
Although his Feng Shui skills are not yet at the level of a god in the Divine Realm, he can use the techniques of a god based on his memories from his previous lives as a god. The attack power of the 'Divine Soul Curse' he set up is enough to make it impossible for an ordinary god to break through.
2004-12-09 11:21:00
Part Three: The Art of Word Refinement
Chapter One: The Haunted House
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Yuquan, located on the banks of the Yuquan River 50 kilometers southeast of Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, is an ancient town. Originally named Ercengdianzi, it has a history of nearly a hundred years. In 1931, it was renamed Yuquan after the discovery of crystal-clear, refreshing, and slightly sweet spring water within its borders.
The local specialty, "Yuquan Fangping" baijiu, is pure and fragrant, with a uniquely sweet taste. The author, with his high alcohol tolerance, could easily finish a 500ml bottle of 45-degree Yuquan Fangping baijiu. If he won the third prize in the white bottle packaging – a small bottle of Yuquan Fangping weighing 2.5 liang (approximately 125ml) – he would also finish it. After finishing the 500ml, he could easily drink four bottles of ice-cold 11-degree Harbin beer, with ice crystals. Regardless of the season, beer must be served with ice.
Getting back to the main topic...
It was early winter, and the Northeast is known for its snow, while Yuquan is famous for its ski resorts. The pristine white snow blanketed the land like the tears of angels, or like a white quilt covering Mother Earth.
About five kilometers north of the ski resort, surrounded by seventeen mountains, lies a village nestled deep in the mountains. Recently, a young couple moved into this small village of fewer than thirty households. The woman was very beautiful, and she possessed a very special quality that the women in the village all sensed was extraordinary. This was because the young woman exuded an ethereal, otherworldly aura, and behind her back, everyone affectionately called her "Fairy Maiden."
Her husband was just like any other ordinary person, but he was a bit too ostentatious, and nobody liked him much. I remember when the couple first moved in, they didn't have any furniture, but their clothes showed that they were a wealthy city dweller.
About two weeks ago, He Erkuai's four long-abandoned tile-roofed houses at the east end of the village were sold. Everyone wondered who would be so foolish as to buy these houses. What was even stranger was that these four houses, which were considered "unclean" by people from the surrounding villages, were actually sold.
Another week passed, and the villagers finally met the buyer of the four "unclean" houses. It had just snowed that day, and the world was a beautiful white expanse. Zhang the Widow's twelve-year-old son was gathering firewood in the fields outside the village when he unexpectedly spotted a Toyota 4500 driving up the mountain road and arriving there in the blink of an eye. It was just past five in the morning. Because it was winter, the villagers were still asleep. Only Zhang the Widow's son was out of firewood, so his mother had dragged him out of bed to gather some corn stalks to start a fire and cook.
The Toyota 4500 stopped not far from Zhang Xiao'er. A young man in a white mink coat got out and politely asked Zhang Xiao'er if 'Zhangjia Village' was ahead. Zhang Xiao'er had never seen anything like this before and was completely stunned. He didn't dare say a word, just staring wide-eyed at the man, pointing in the direction of the village. The young man, however, was quite friendly, smiling and patting Zhang Xiao'er on the head, and even giving him fifty yuan as a thank you for showing him the way.
At that moment, Zhang Xiao'er didn't even realize what was happening. He blankly took the green banknote with fifty characters printed on it, while the young man sped off towards the village. Zhang Xiao'er, forgetting all about gathering firewood, ran frantically home to tell his mother about his strange encounter. His mother initially thought he was lying, but when Zhang Xiao'er produced the fifty yuan, she was stunned and quickly grabbed him and ran out of the house to see what was going on.
When Zhang Xiao'er and his mother ran to the door, the Toyota 4500 had already pulled up in front of He Erhui's four large brick houses. A young man in a white mink coat got out. He opened the trunk and took out four large leather suitcases. Judging from his effort, Widow Zhang thought that the suitcases must contain a lot of valuables. At this moment, a young and beautiful woman got out of the passenger seat. This woman was also wearing a white mink coat, which was open. Looking at this young woman, Widow Zhang couldn't help but sigh, "Time is merciless."
The young woman, though without any makeup, had snow-white skin, eyes that sparkled like stars, and rosy cheeks, making her as beautiful as a fairy. Even more astonishingly, beneath her mink coat, she wore only a white, low-cut, tight-fitting printed blouse, a white leather mini-skirt revealing her fair thighs, and white knee-high leather boots. Widow Zhang couldn't help but sigh, "The lives of the wealthy are truly different."
Judging from the intimacy between the young couple, Widow Zhang could tell they were a married couple, and newlyweds at that. Couples married for five or six years would never be so affectionate.
Widow Zhang saw the couple carry the four large leather suitcases into He Erhui's four large brick houses. After a while, the man drove away, and the woman came out and watched him leave. She then noticed her and walked towards her.
As the woman approached, Widow Zhang was surprised to discover something extraordinary about her. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but judging from her attire, the woman seemed wealthy, yet she lacked the ostentatious air of a typical city rich person. The woman possessed an ethereal quality, like a fairy from a television drama, which inexplicably made Widow Zhang feel ashamed of herself.
Given Zhang's usual personality, she would have looked down on any wealthy woman she saw on the streets of town. But, in the presence of this young woman, Zhang felt as if she had met a legendary immortal.
"Hello, I'm new here. We'll be neighbors from now on. I hope we can help each other out. My name is Zhou Feiliu, and that man was my husband, Yu Duotian. It's nice to meet you both," the young woman said with a smile to Widow Zhang.
"Ah...ah, you...hello. My name is Zhang Cuiping, and this is my son, Xiao Er." Widow Zhang was surprised that this woman would speak to her so politely, which made her feel flattered and unsure of what to say.
"Hehe, your son is very handsome. How old is he?" Zhou Feiliu smiled and patted Zhang Xiaoer's head, asking warmly.
Zhang Xiaoer was stunned, because he had never seen such a beautiful woman before. She was so stunning that he didn't know what to say.
"Heh...heh...it's twelve already, waiter, hurry up and talk to them." Widow Zhang patted the waiter beside her and said with a slightly reproachful dry laugh.
"Hehe, here... these are some jelly that your sister bought in the city, I'm giving them to you." Zhou Feiliu squatted down, smiling at Zhang Xiaoer, and took out several large jelly balls from the pocket of her mink coat and stuffed them into Zhang Xiaoer's hands.
2004-12-09 11:23:00
Zhang Xiaoer stared blankly at the jelly in his hand, forgetting to thank him, and looked up at Zhou Feiliu with his big eyes full of curiosity.
"This child is so insensible, he doesn't even thank his aunt!" Widow Zhang scolded, slapping Zhang Xiao'er on the head.
"Hehe... It's okay. Come visit me anytime you have time. I'll head back now, goodbye," Zhou Feiliu said with a smile.
Zhou Feiliu turned and walked towards He Erkuai's four tiled houses. Widow Zhang looked at Zhou Feiliu's back, hesitant to speak, but finally couldn't hold back and called out to Zhou Feiliu.
"Girl, wait a moment," Widow Zhang called out.
"Is there anything else?" Zhou Feiliu turned around and smiled.
"This... how did you end up buying a house here? And why did you buy these four tiled houses belonging to He Er Kuai?" Widow Zhang asked, puzzled.
"Hehe... Is there a problem?" Zhou Feiliu smiled.
“Young ladies, you’ve just moved here, so you don’t know. There used to be a Japanese military gathering point in a valley about a mile from our village. Many people were killed there. After liberation, it became a cemetery. I heard that it’s haunted every night,” Widow Zhang said with an air of importance.
"Hehe, is that so?" Zhou Feiliu smiled without any fear.
"And that's not all! Do you know? Those four tiled houses you live in were originally reserved by He Er Kuai for his third son's wedding. But his son went mad shortly after moving in. He was a smart young man, but he went insane in less than a month... Later, He Er Kuai's brother-in-law also moved in, and he fell seriously ill within a week. A hospital check-up revealed he had cancer. He was a strong man in the village, never seriously ill before. Even a cold would clear up in a couple of days, and he never took any medicine. But unexpectedly, he died within two days of arriving at the hospital. After that, no one dared to live in those four houses anymore. He Er Kuai even consulted Master Wang from the next village about the feng shui of those four houses. He said they were in conflict with the cemetery a mile away, making them a yin dwelling, and whoever moved in would suffer bad luck. Didn't He Er Kuai tell you this when you bought those four houses?" Widow Zhang said with great emotion.
"And there's more to it... Hehe, don't worry, we'll be fine. Thank you for telling me all this. Well, it's cold outside, you should go home too. I'm leaving now." After saying this, Zhou Feiliu ignored Widow Zhang and turned to leave.
Widow Zhang watched Zhou Feiliu's retreating figure with a helpless look in her eyes. Seeing that he was no longer paying attention to her, she pulled her second son and went home.
In fact, Zhou Feiliu was unaware of the background of these rooms. After returning to China from Japan, the monks of the Shingon sect were too busy to care for her and had to return to Bingcheng on their own. Instead, the Shingon monks rushed to famous mountains and rivers throughout China, searching for fellow practitioners in the cultivation world. At that time, Zhou Feiliu had already realized the seriousness of the situation.
After returning to Bingcheng, Zhou Feiliu waited at the Eight Banners headquarters for several days, but Feng Shui, Jiang Yao, and Huang Quan did not return. Zhou Feiliu thought that this matter had really escalated. Although the demon from Yugawara-cho in Japan had not come to China, the fact that Feng Shui and the others had not returned meant that the world would no longer be peaceful. During the days back in Bingcheng, Zhou Feiliu's spiritual sense became increasingly sharp. He tried to use his spiritual sense to probe into the "Butterfly God Ring" that Jiang Yao had given him. Unexpectedly, he found many unknown magical artifacts and several books written in incomprehensible characters. Zhou Feiliu went to the provincial library to look for relevant information about the text recorded in these books, but to no avail.
Later, on a full moon night, Zhou Feiliu discovered that his nascent soul had become unusually active and resonated with the "Butterfly God Ring" on his hand. Zhou Feiliu used his spiritual sense to retrieve one of the books and unexpectedly felt his nascent soul seem to come alive, automatically guiding his spiritual sense into the book. Zhou Feiliu was able to understand all the text recorded in the book, and moreover, he didn't need to understand it himself; his spiritual sense automatically memorized it all and integrated it into his cultivation.
Zhou Feiliu was overjoyed at this discovery. After several days of research, he learned that the book was a secret cultivation manual used by Jiang Yao before she began cultivating demonic arts. However, the other books were beyond Zhou Feiliu's comprehension, as the contents were too profound and complex to understand.
So Zhou Feiliu began to cultivate using the secret manual he knew. Gradually, Yu Duotian also discovered that Zhou Feiliu was different from others.
After returning from Japan, Zhou Feiliu didn't tell Yu Duotian what had happened to Fengshui and the others there. He simply told her that Fengshui, Jiang Yao, and Huang Quan were still traveling in Japan and that he had come back first. A few days later, Zhou Feiliu had almost understood the contents of the martial arts manual and even tried to use some of the techniques recorded in it, but he never expected that he would almost kill Yu Duotian.
Afterwards, Zhou Feiliu had no choice but to confess everything that had happened in Japan to Yu Duotian. Although Yu Duotian scolded Feng Shui for being so inconsiderate, only caring about his own woman and abandoning his friend's wife, she was only joking. She understood that Feng Shui had likely been genuinely in danger and couldn't have returned to help Zhou Feiliu escape. Now that Zhou Feiliu was back by her side and had even taught her cultivation, Yu Duotian couldn't say anything more and decided to let things slide…
After that spellcasting, Zhou Feiliu realized that this cultivation technique couldn't be practiced in the city; it had to be done in a remote mountainous area. However, being too far from Harbin, Zhou Feiliu worried he wouldn't adapt to mountain life. So, at Yu Duotian's urging, he chose Yuquan, a ski resort. First, it was very close to Harbin, only about an hour's drive away; second, Yuquan was also in the mountains, and it was winter, perfect for a skiing and vacation trip, while also allowing Zhou Feiliu to cultivate there—a win-win situation.
So, Yu Duotian and Zhou Feiliu found a vacant house in Yuquan, very close to the ski resort, through some friends. The price was very cheap, just over ten thousand yuan. The seller was also eager to sell, and all the paperwork was handled by the homeowner; all they had to do was pay and sign, and the house would be entirely owned by Yu Duotian and Zhou Feiliu. At that time, Zhou Feiliu was unaware of these hidden details. Because it was a friend's introduction, she thought there wouldn't be any problems, and perhaps she was just too hasty.
However, now that he had moved here and heard Widow Zhang's account of the background of these houses, Zhou Feiliu felt somewhat resentful towards the friend who had introduced him to the property. But then he thought, now that he possessed cultivation skills, it would be a good opportunity to test his progress here.
Upon entering the courtyard, Zhou Feiliu stopped and looked around, but couldn't see anything amiss. There were four tiled houses, three of which were built together, while only one stood alone, presumably for storage. The courtyard in front of the houses was about eighty square meters, square in shape, and was enclosed by a red brick wall along with the courtyard behind the houses.
The house was built facing south, in an excellent location. To the right of the entrance in the front yard was a well, next to which was a small plot of cultivated land. Zhou Feiliu guessed this plot was for growing small vegetables in the spring. A row of poplar trees stood along the yard wall, and to the left of the main gate were a cherry tree and a jujube tree. Not far from the fruit trees, a cellar was built against the base of the left wall, looking somewhat awkward. However, Zhou Feiliu couldn't quite put his finger on what was awkward about it; the cellar was practically invisible unless one looked very closely.
The courtyard was roughly laid out like this. Zhou Feiliu entered the main house, which had three bedrooms and a living room. Upon entering, there was the living room; to the left was the master bedroom, to the right was the secondary bedroom, and directly opposite the door was the kitchen. Zhou Feiliu first went into the kitchen and looked around, discovering there was no running water and they were using a traditional rural earthen stove for cooking. Seeing this, Zhou Feiliu immediately realized a serious problem: he needed to quickly call Yu Duotian, who was driving to town to buy daily necessities, and ask her to bring back a liquefied petroleum gas cylinder, otherwise they wouldn't be able to eat dinner that night.
Zhou Feiliu took out her phone and dialed Yu Duotian's number, explaining what items were missing from the house while looking around the other rooms. The master bedroom on the left was very large, a full thirty square meters, and even had a traditional earthen bed. Zhou Feiliu was overjoyed to see this; in fact, she had always wanted a bedroom like the one in Yu Duotian's city home.
2004-12-09 11:24:00
The layout of the second room was similar to the first, only a little smaller. However, when Zhou Feiliu entered the master bedroom, he suddenly sensed a fluctuation of spiritual energy. Zhou Feiliu's nerves tensed up instantly, and he carefully examined the room. The room was spotless, as if someone had just lived there, but now there was nothing there. Although the room seemed unremarkable, Zhou Feiliu felt an even stronger sense of unease.
Enabling his spiritual awareness, Zhou Feiliu crossed his hands, extending his middle and index fingers. Following the techniques recorded in the manual, he swiftly made several different hand seals, then crossed them parallel to his eyes. Suddenly, an exceptionally sharp glint flashed in Zhou Feiliu's eyes as he looked around again. This move was known as "Opening the Heavenly Eye."
Suddenly, Zhou Feiliu sensed a shadow appear in the ominous spot of the room, which then vanished in an instant.
The feng shui of a house is divided by a large Tai Chi symbol, while the feng shui of a room within a house is divided into three parts. Starting from the left upon entering, the room is divided into three parts from the outside in: 1, 4, 7; 2, 5, 8; and 3, 6, 9.
For example, imagine a long, rectangular room with the door on the right and the window directly opposite the door at the back. Starting from the left side upon entering, divide the room into three equal sections. The first section is numbered 1, 4, and 7; this is the "Peach Blossom Position" for men, while the right side is the "Peach Blossom Position" for women. (Note: This "Peach Blossom Position" is based on the author's own experience; other readers should adjust it according to their own sibling birth order.)
According to feng shui, placing an empty vase in the peach blossom position will bring abundant romantic luck. (Note: It has been confirmed that the author's junior apprentice placed an empty vase in this location in his home, and as a result, he had many romantic encounters every day, and easily met pretty girls online, with an 85% chance of having a one-night stand.)
Next is section 258. This section is still primarily on the left side. The left side of section 258 is the inauspicious location of this room, and it's not suitable to place a mirror there. This is because the opposite of the inauspicious location is the auspicious location of the room. If a mirror is placed in the inauspicious location, it will absorb the auspicious energy, leaving the entire room with only inauspicious energy and negatively impacting the health of the homeowner. Instead, some movable items should be placed in the auspicious location to promote the flow of auspicious energy.
Finally, there's the area on the right side of the three-six-nine grid, which is the wealth corner of the entire house. You should place some ancient coins from the Qing Dynasty there to bring good fortune to the homeowner.
The shadow Zhou Feiliu discovered with his clairvoyance was located in the most inauspicious spot in the house. This location was adjacent to the house's small tai chi symbol, easily controlling the entire feng shui layout. If an evil entity occupied this small tai chi symbol, it would negatively impact the house's occupants. This is precisely why He Erhui's third son suddenly became mentally impaired—it must be due to the evil entity causing the disturbance.
“Show yourself, I’ve seen you!” Zhou Feiliu pointed to the shadow that his Heavenly Eye had detected, which had moved to the position of the Small Tai Chi symbol, and called out in a trembling voice.
After all, it was the first time Zhou Feiliu had actually seen something "unclean," so he wasn't sure what to expect.
However, the shadow did not reveal its true form, but instead slowly moved towards the doorway where Zhou Feiliu was. Zhou Feiliu was startled and quickly took a few steps back towards the door. He then took out the Xuanyuan Sword, which had been blessed by Jiang Yao, from the "Butterfly God Ring" and held it in his hand to bolster his courage.
"If you don't show yourself, I'm going to make my move!" With his sword in hand, Zhou Feiliu calmed down considerably and shouted.
The shadow seemed to sense the power contained in the Xuanyuan Sword in Zhou Feiliu's hand, and stopped when it moved to the doorway.
Suddenly, the sound of a car engine came from outside. Zhou Feiliu's attention was diverted, and he turned his head to look outside. Just then, the shadow rushed towards Zhou Feiliu. He felt a chilling aura approaching, and his body reacted instinctively, quickly swinging his Xuanyuan Sword. A purple sword aura traced a purple trajectory in the air, and an incomparably powerful force struck the oncoming shadow. The shadow seemed to be impacted, letting out a shriek as it dodged the purple sword aura, brushing past Zhou Feiliu and flying towards the door, disappearing in the blink of an eye. The sword aura, having missed its target, did not stop, but instead struck the top of the door, leaving a long sword mark, and a cloud of white dust fell down.
"Trying to run away!" Seeing that the shadow seemed afraid of him, Zhou Feiliu's confidence soared, and he gave chase.
In the courtyard, Yu Duotian had already walked in carrying a large pile of daily necessities when she saw Zhou Feiliu leap out of the room, brandishing his sword.
"Hey, Guizi Liu, what are you doing?" Yu Duotian asked curiously.
"Don't make a sound, I'm catching a ghost!" Zhou Feiliu said with an extremely serious expression.
"Ghost Six! You're exaggerating too much. Would a ghost dare to come out in broad daylight?" Yu Duotian said, finding it amusing.
Zhou Feiliu was taken aback by Yu Duotian's words. After a moment's thought, he realized Yu Duotian's words made a lot of sense. But then he wondered, if this shadow wasn't a ghost, then what could it be? He looked around more carefully, but the shadow was nowhere to be seen. He searched the surroundings with his spiritual sense, but found nothing. Helpless, Zhou Feiliu sheathed his Xuanyuan Sword and shook his head.
"Hey! Stop shaking your head and go help me get my things out of the car," Yu Duotian called out.
"How could that be? If it's not a ghost, then what could it be?" Zhou Feiliu continued to mutter to himself.
However, Yu Duotian didn't give her a chance to think any further. She placed the things she was carrying in Zhou Feiliu's arms, then went out of the yard to get the rest from the car outside. Zhou Feiliu still couldn't understand, and carrying these daily necessities, she walked towards the main house.
Just then, a dark shadow appeared on a mountain some distance from the village. The shadow gradually revealed its true form: a weasel. The weasel's eyes gleamed with an eerie light as it stared at the house where Zhou Feiliu and Yu Duotian were in the village below, its body trembling involuntarily. Without lingering any longer, the weasel tucked its tail between its legs and fled into the mountains, leaving a long trail of blood in the snow behind it.
2004-12-09 11:25:00
Chapter Two: The Truth
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“Look at those legs…” A handsome young man sat on a stone bench in the pedestrian street, pointing at the legs of a beautiful woman who was walking past him in the dead of winter, wearing flesh-colored stockings, and said with endless admiration.
"What happened to her leg?" Feng Shui, sitting next to the man, also looked at the leg of the beautiful woman who had just left and asked the man in confusion.
"If you want to be beautiful, you have to show off your legs..." the man exclaimed again.
"What's so strange about showing your thighs?" Feng Shui asked, even more puzzled.
“That’s not surprising. The point is, I’m thinking about taking a bite out of that thigh…” the man said with a sigh.
"Really... You have quite a wide range of interests..." Feng Shui looked at the man with some surprise and said admiringly.
“But I only want to bite her legs, I’m not interested in the rest of her body!” the man said sadly.
"Why?" Feng Shui became even more curious about the man.
"Do you know the relationship between 0 and 1?" The man turned to look at the feng shui, his eyes flashing with a seductive and lewd gaze.
"I don't know..." Feng Shui looked at the man's eyes and felt a little scared.
"Comrade..." The man's face was so close to Feng Shui's that their faces were less than a centimeter apart, and Feng Shui could clearly smell the bad breath coming from his mouth.
"Comrade?" Feng Shui had never been so close to a man before, and could even smell his bad breath.