The Road of Wronged Ghosts, Part 1 The Road of Wronged Ghosts

Chapter 5

Master Chanyue quickly hid it, saying, "This is the sect leader's token; do not touch it casually."

He Jianfei exclaimed, "You're so stingy! I used to touch it all the time when Master was around!"

Old Man Li said, "They've even brought out the treasures that guard the mountain; I think the mystery of this temple will be solved soon."

As they were talking, a large group of villagers surged in from afar. The leader stepped forward, clasped his hands together, and said to Master Chanyue, "I am the village chief of this village. We have heard that the abbot of Mount Wutai has come to subdue the demon. We have come here to earnestly request the abbot to use his great power to restore true peace to the villagers."

Master Chanyue quickly returned the greeting, saying, "You flatter me, benefactor. I will do my best. But how did you know I would come?"

The village chief laughed and said, "Isn't that simple? Your junior brother brought his grandson to conduct the survey in person, so we figured the master would definitely come too."

"Grandson?" By the time He Jianfei understood what the villagers meant and tried to correct them, the villagers had already gone far away, leaving only Master Chanyue and Old Man Li chuckling to themselves.

At 5 p.m., the three of them officially set off for the temple. In just fifteen minutes, they arrived at the open space.

After surveying the surroundings, Master Chanyue sprinkled holy water, set up an incense table, lit candles, and arranged talismans, waiting for the temple to appear.

As the clock struck six, the sky began to darken, the sun had completely set, and a sudden gust of wind whipped the withered trees on either side, sending dust and sand flying everywhere. A thick fog rolled in, vaguely revealing a temple emanating a dark aura. Master Chanyue and He Jianfei exchanged a glance and said, "They've arrived." He Jianfei picked up a yellow talisman, burned it over a candle, and flicked it towards the temple. With a "bang," it was flung away. "Senior Brother, this evil temple is protected by a protective barrier." Master Chanyue grabbed seven flying star knives, chanted the Seven Star Incantation, and flew them towards the temple one by one in the pattern of the Big Dipper. With a "whoosh," He Jianfei exclaimed joyfully:

"Alright, the barrier is broken, let's go in."

Master Chanyue bowed to the incense table and said, "Please bring the temple's treasure." The purple-gold bowl slowly rose and came into Master Chanyue's hands. Holding the purple-gold bowl, Master Chanyue said to He Jianfei and Old Man Li, "Let's go in and see what's going on."

Upon reaching the temple gate, the golden alms bowl emitted countless rays of light and colorful flames. Master Chanyue was secretly alarmed: indeed, the resentment was profound. Protected by the radiance, the three approached the temple gate unharmed. He Jianfei couldn't help but shudder, for he clearly saw something red written on the wall—the character "death" written in blood, seemingly still flowing, filled with an eerie atmosphere. The three entered the temple. Inside, a gloomy mist hung heavy, and darkness reigned. A dilapidated statue lay beside the offering table, and a dusty memorial tablet leaned against the incense burner, with several nearly rotten incense sticks stuck inside.

Master Chanyue stepped forward, about to pick up the memorial tablet to examine it, when He Jianfei exclaimed in alarm, "Brother, be careful!"

Suddenly, the fallen statue emitted two beams of red light from its eyes, which flew towards Master Chanyue and Old Man Li, He Jianfei and Li Laobo, respectively. In this critical moment, an almost absurd idea flashed through He Jianfei's mind. He took a slight step back, half-turning behind Old Man Li and pausing briefly. He Jianfei used this opportunity to activate his consecrated Vajra talisman to deflect the beams. Meanwhile, Master Chanyue, possessing his Purple Gold Bowl, easily destroyed the red light.

Master Chanyue flew into a rage: "Demons and evil spirits, you even want to harm us! If I don't take you in today, what use are you in this world?"

He Jianfei cried out, "Senior Brother, no!" Master Chanyue had already raised the purple-gold alms bowl high, from which ten thousand golden lotuses instantly bloomed, enveloping the statue. The temple trembled violently, dust and earth fell, stones shook and walls collapsed, and the statue emitted a red light. Seeing the power of the shockwave, He Jianfei had no choice but to retreat to Old Man Li's side and set up a protective barrier. He inwardly groaned, seeing Master Chanyue locked in a stalemate with the vengeful ghost, thinking that if this continued, the situation would become extremely unfavorable for them. Sure enough, the shockwave slowly spilled out of the temple gate, and in an instant, the entire open space trembled violently. He Jianfei glanced outside and saw only eerie black mist everywhere; his face paled instantly. "Demonic energy soared to the sky, black clouds obscured the sun!" Looking at his senior brother, he realized that if this continued, all three of them would be in grave danger. After a moment's thought, he gritted his teeth, took off the relic necklace from his neck, stuffed it into Old Man Li's hand, and then, without a word, rushed out the door. Old Li caught the relic necklace and exclaimed in surprise, "He Jianfei, what are you trying to do?"

By the time He Jianfei rushed outside, his face was deathly pale. Was this heaven or hell? A blurry white figure leaped out of each temple, and each temple shook violently. He Jianfei assessed the situation, and without a word, pulled out a mysterious smoke from his robes and tossed it into the air. The smoke pierced through the black mist, reached the blue sky, and burst into beautiful fireworks. Old Man Li also wanted to rush outside, but he lacked the power to break through the shockwaves, so he could only stand on the threshold, watching blankly. Seeing He Jianfei release the fireworks, he couldn't help but curse, "You still have the mood to set off fireworks at a time like this? Come in and help your senior brother!" Over there, Master Chanyue's forehead was already covered in large beads of sweat, and his face changed drastically upon hearing the word "fireworks." Little did Old Man Li know that those weren't ordinary fireworks, but life-saving fireworks used only in dire emergencies—calling for nearby Daoist and Dharma brothers to come to his aid immediately. It seemed the situation outside was indeed extremely critical. He couldn't help but feel a pang of regret; he shouldn't have acted rashly without ascertaining the enemy's strength. Losing his life would have been one thing, but…

Outside. He Jianfei watched as the black fog thickened, realizing that even if there were experts nearby, they wouldn't be able to arrive in time. Just as he was feeling helpless, he suddenly remembered something his master had said: "Actually, ghosts are quite afraid of human yang energy. The reason ghosts dare to harm people is because the human body blocks the complete dissipation of yang energy. If you use magic to explode your body and then use a talisman to protect your soul, you can become invincible in the ghost realm." He Jianfei felt a pang of sorrow. Yinzi's smiling face flashed before his eyes, along with his parents and Zhang Chuanxun's blood-covered face: "Could it really be this method?"

He Jianfei slowly raised his right hand, gathering all his life's strength, preparing to cut towards his heart, when suddenly he heard a clear and loud voice coming from afar:

"Neither demon nor righteous. Beyond the light, here lies darkness. In the depths of the blood pool, there is no golden light."

He Jianfei was taken aback and stood there dumbfounded. The voice seemed familiar. Just as he was wondering, he saw a figure slowly walking out of the black mist in the distance. He was wearing a Taoist hat and a white banner, holding a whisk, and stood there smiling at He Jianfei.

He Jianfei exclaimed in surprise, "It's you?" It turned out that the person was the old man he had met on the train.

The old man smiled and said, "I came here today precisely to settle this case. Now that the wronged ghost has been greatly weakened, it is the perfect time to subdue him."

He Jianfei was overjoyed and quickly expressed his gratitude, saying, "Thank you so much for your kind help, sir."

The old man chuckled and said, "It's not about being righteous or not. Actually, I have quite a history with them."

He Jianfei's face immediately turned deathly pale: "Is the old man a ghost too?"

The old man said, "You must know that two Taoist priests came here to exorcise demons and monsters at the end of the Qing Dynasty..."

He Jianfei exclaimed, "Could you be...?" The old man replied, "That's right. That young Taoist priest is my master."

He Jianfei blurted out, "So, wouldn't I have thanked you for nothing?" As soon as the words left his mouth, he immediately realized his mistake and was extremely embarrassed.

The old man continued to chuckle, as if he hadn't heard a thing.

He Jianfei quickly asked another question: "Excuse me, sir, do you have any magical artifacts with you?"

The old man laughed heartily and said, "Why would we need any magical artifacts? Didn't you already bring an excellent one?"

He Jianfei said, "Could you be referring to the Purple Gold Bowl? But it can't defeat that fierce ghost."

The old man said, "Your purple-gold alms bowl is extraordinary in Buddhism. How could it not be able to defeat a single fierce ghost? The reason you fought so hard is simply because you don't know how to use it."

He Jianfei quickly replied, "Then please instruct me, sir." He thought to himself, "Hehe, every cloud has a silver lining. Now I can learn new spells."

Inside the temple, Master Chanyue and the vengeful ghost were still locked in a fierce battle, but Master Chanyue was clearly running out of strength. Although Old Man Li was protected by his relic necklace, he was cornered and unable to move. At this critical moment, a hearty laugh came from outside the temple gate, and the old man and He Jianfei entered together. Seeing the golden bowl with the golden lotus placed inside, the old man sighed, "Brother, it's been so many years!" He then took the bowl from Master Chanyue. He Jianfei immediately perked up his ears, expecting to hear some new incantation, but the old man simply raised the bowl high and shouted, "Golden Bowl, no magical artifact in the world surpasses yours! Can't you even subdue a single vengeful ghost?" In an instant, the bowl emitted ten thousand rays of intense golden light, soon enveloping the entire open space.

After a brief stalemate, a spirit finally flew out of the statue, shimmering brightly. The old man quickly sealed it in the bowl with a talisman. In an instant, the mist dissipated, the black aura vanished, and soft moonlight streamed into the temple, creating a peaceful and serene atmosphere. He Jianfei stared in disbelief: "This counts as a talisman? Hmm, you should remember this well." The old man chuckled, "Don't memorize it randomly. The golden bowl has a spirit. The most powerful talisman must be determined based on the specific circumstances. Your cultivation is still shallow; you'll understand in the future." Then he laughed loudly, "Master, I have finally fulfilled your wish." He then said to He Jianfei and the other two, "Now that this matter is settled, I should leave." Before the three could react, the old man had vanished. Old Man Li was startled and asked, "Was that a person or a ghost?" Master Chanyue put his hands together and said, "Amitabha, well said, well said." Then he suddenly remembered that when he was young, he was serving by his master's side, and a Taoist priest came to exchange magical skills. His master said, "This person is the number one master in the Taoist world. He once subdued a fierce ghost that was rare in a hundred years at the end of the Qing Dynasty. If you meet him in the future, you must address him as Master Uncle." Master Chanyue quickly looked up to the sky and prayed, "Disciple thanks Master Uncle for his great kindness."

Chapter Eight

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Master Chanyue breathed a sigh of relief, then turned around and saw that both of them were frozen in fear. Master Chanyue quickly prepared some soul-soothing water and gave it to Old Man Li. When he looked at He Jianfei, he saw that his eyes were wide open, his pupils fixed and unmoving, completely dazed, not like someone who had been frightened. Master Chanyue quickly nudged him, saying, "Junior Brother, what's wrong?" He Jianfei slowly came to his senses, and after a long while, he sighed and said, "I think I've guessed the cause of Senior A-Qiang's death." Old Man Li was shocked and exclaimed, "Really? What is it?!"

He Jianfei didn't answer, but walked straight to the statue, pushed it aside, and picked up a dusty diary from underneath. Old Man Li rushed over and flipped through it, exclaiming in shock, "This is A-Qiang's handwriting! How could this vengeful ghost have A-Qiang's diary?!" He Jianfei looked at him with a very sorrowful expression and slowly said, "This is utterly absurd! You would never have imagined it! I never thought it would be like this either! It's too cruel for you!" Master Chanyue also vaguely guessed what had happened, but shook his head and sighed. Old Man Li's hands trembled violently as he held the diary: "You...you mean A-Qiang was killed by this vengeful ghost? My God! How did it get into our school, and how did it get back? Did it come specifically to kill A-Qiang?"

He Jianfei could no longer contain himself and shouted, "Stop talking! The A-Qiang you know is not this A-Qiang at all!" Upon hearing this, Old Man Li turned ashen-faced, his eyes filled with bewilderment. Master Chanyue clasped his hands together and said, "May Buddha have mercy! Benefactor Li, you must calm down. The person you know, live with, and deal with is no longer the same person."

Old Li's body jolted violently: "You mean..."

Master Chanyue nodded solemnly: "That's right! The friend you admire is this vengeful ghost. The real A-Qiang has already been possessed by the vengeful ghost."

He Jianfei slowly said, "Do you still remember that time you asked me why you were fine after entering the temple? And I didn't tell you why the evil ghost only wanted my life last night, but was indifferent to you? I still can't figure this out."

Just now, I tested it again. Even at this critical moment, the vengeful ghost still wouldn't take your life. That's when it suddenly occurred to me why the ghost knew what happened in the dormitory the night Zhang Chuanxun died and used that as an excuse to scare me. This can only be explained by the fact that the ghost had been to that university and had some connection with the vengeful spirits there. Moreover, its kindness towards you indicates a deep bond between you, which is why it couldn't bear to kill you. Following this logic, only A-Qiang fits these conditions.” Old Man Li stood silently for a long time, like a clay statue, before finally asking in a low voice, “Is there any other evidence?”

He Jianfei said, "Yes! That white-haired old man said that this place had been peaceful for more than twenty years, precisely because that vengeful ghost possessed A-Qiang. After A-Qiang died, he came back."

Old Li smiled slightly and said, "Doesn't that seem a bit far-fetched?"

He Jianfei said slowly, "The strongest evidence is that diary. No matter what, it was written by him, and you will believe it."