Preguntando sobre canciones de amor

Capítulo 15

His gambling nature was incurable. Lu Shuai always won, and his wealth piled up. Until a month ago, Lu Shuai glanced in the mirror one morning, and what he saw terrified him, almost making him cry. The once robust Lu Shuai had become skin and bones, and age spots had appeared on his handsome face. Even though Lu Shuai knew it was caused by an evil spirit, he was powerless to do anything. If he were to hire a sorcerer to exorcise it again, what if the evil spirit failed to leave and instead angered him, making him one of its kind?

Finally, one day, Lu Shuai's elderly father saw his face. No matter how the father questioned Lu Shuai, he remained silent. Helpless, the old father went alone to his son-in-law's house, which was also the home of the village head of Yinfeng Village, and told his daughter and son-in-law the whole story. After settling the old father in, the daughter handed the task over to the village head, who then cleverly passed it on to old man Le Shui.

After listening, Zhou Qiang said, "Master, don't worry, it's just a little ghost. I can handle it myself." Old Man Le Shui shook his head and explained, "I'm not worried about dealing with the little ghost. I'm just worried that if the little ghost possesses Commander Lu, can you handle it?" Back then, when Wang Lao Er's ghost possessed a human body, the two elders couldn't do anything about this human skin shield, which is why Le Xi Po died in the end. Zhou Qiang quickly said, "Master, don't worry, leave it to me. I'll take care of it myself tonight." Zhou Qiang had studied the cause of Le Xi Po's death for a long time and naturally found a solution.

Seeing Zhou Qiang's confidence, Old Man Leshui didn't say anything more. Xie Qifeng led Qian Qiuyue to Old Man Leshui and said, "Uncle-Master, this is Qian Qiuyue from the Jiangtou Sect. She and Qin Shuang are good friends and want to stay at our house for a few days." Zhou Qiang thought to himself, "You make it sound so easy. 'A few days' might mean staying here forever." He chuckled to himself. Qin Shuang also greeted Old Man Leshui and then took Qian Qiuyue's hand and ran to the kitchen.

Old Man Le Shui suddenly laughed; he finally remembered that Zhou Qiang had just said he won first place in the martial arts competition. Zhou Qiang and Xie Qifeng watched helplessly, thinking that his reaction speed was indeed extraordinary. Zhou Qiang put the birthday cake on the table and repeated, "Master, you are turning eighty this year."

Old Man Leshui suddenly stood up and roared, "What? I'm eighty years old!" This meant that Old Man Zhang was seventy-eight years old today. Old Man Leshui had once said that Old Man Zhang would face a great calamity at the age of seventy-eight. Zhou Qiang and Xie Qifeng were terrified by Old Man Leshui's actions. Old Man Leshui also realized that he had gone too far with his emotions, and he gestured for Zhou Qiang and Xie Qifeng to follow him into the house.

“You’re not young anymore, it’s time to let you know about the Four Demons of Chaos.” Old Man Le Shui plopped down on the edge of the bed. “Since when, four demons who have cultivated themselves into spirits have appeared in the human world. Three of these demons have unknown origins, but we all know the most powerful one. It has thousands of years of cultivation, which is the same as the number of years that the Qi Yi Sect has been around.”

"Why do you say that?" Zhou Qiang asked curiously. The old man Le Shui said with a half-smile, "Because that demon was raised by our ancestor back then."

"Ah!" Zhou Qiang and the other man exclaimed in unison.

"That's right. It's said that back then, our ancestor raised a demon named Fang Yuan. To save Lao Tzu, our ancestor released Fang Yuan to secretly alter the birth register in the underworld. When Lao Tzu's birth date was changed, the demon was discovered by the gatekeeper ghosts. As a result, Fang Yuan caused chaos in the underworld. Just as Fang Yuan left the underworld, Yama, the King of Hell, went to Heaven to complain, saying that the Qi Yi sect in the human world had stolen and altered the birth register, but it was impossible to find out whose birth date was changed. The Jade Emperor was furious and immediately drew a line on our ancestor's birth register. That's how the Qi Yi sect was sentenced to death by Heaven." Old Man Le Shui paused here, then continued:

"When the demon Fangyuan returned, he only found the corpse of his ancestor; even his soul was nowhere to be found. Enraged, Fangyuan wanted to kill all humans. However, a single sentence from his ancestor changed his mind: 'I raised you to save people; remember, never harm anyone.' So, the enraged demon stopped harming humans and instead began killing ghosts and monsters. At that time, he killed half of the ghosts causing chaos in the human world. Gradually, Fangyuan killed more and more ghosts, absorbing more and more yin energy, thus increasing his magical power. In some unknown era, an old woman appeared on Mount Tai, used magic to capture Fangyuan, and imprisoned him at the foot of the mountain. To this day, the whereabouts of Fangyuan remains a topic of much discussion among people in the supernatural world, but no one knows that this demon belongs to our Qi Yi sect."

Old Man Leshui changed the subject, saying, "In addition, three more demons have appeared among the people. One is suppressed by the Maoshan sect under their own house, guarded by a century-old peach tree. Another is sealed inside a large Tibetan silver bell by a highly skilled lama of Tibetan Buddhism, who sends people to chant sutras around the bell every day, hoping to dispel the demon's resentment." As he spoke, Old Man Leshui tapped the ground with his cane. "The third one is right below our house. The demon is sealed in a small bottle, wrapped with over ninety different Qi-Yi diagrams. Legend has it that the other three demons can work together to release the demon Fangyuan at the foot of Mount Tai, so our purpose in living in Hebei is to protect him." Chapter Two: The Qi Yi Exclusion Technique - Yi Ge's Spirit - Collected and organized by

Although he had finished speaking, it seemed the two little ones in front of him wouldn't quite grasp the heavy responsibility they were shouldering. Old Man Leshui wanted to give them a few more words of advice, but Qin Shuang's voice interrupted him, "Dinner's ready, everyone come and eat." Zhou Qiang and the others must be hungry after their long journey, so Old Man Leshui gestured for the children to eat first.

At the dinner table, after Xie Qifeng introduced Qianqiuyue, everyone began to eat. Zhou Qiang, without hesitation, cut the longevity peach from the cake, placed it on a paper plate, and handed it to Old Man Leshui, saying with a smile, "Master, here's a longevity peach for you, it's creamy, hehe." Then Zhou Qiang called everyone to eat the longevity cake. Old Man Leshui accepted the cake from his beloved disciple, feeling very pleased. He had suffered a lot his whole life and had never eaten a cream cake before. Finding the taste quite good, he ate it in large bites. Zhou Qiang watched his master eat with relish, feeling indescribably happy. However, his good-for-nothing junior brother kept cutting off pieces, putting one in his mouth, and cutting another. Seeing that the boy had eaten half of the cake meant for their master, Zhou Qiang coughed repeatedly as a warning.

Seeing Zhou Qiang's pale face, Qin Shuang asked with concern, "What's wrong? Is your throat sore?" Zhou Qiang quickly shook his head, picked up his bowl, and drank the porridge in one gulp. After eating a little more, Zhou Qiang got up and left the kitchen. He needed to prepare his tools; they would be moving around that night.

Qin Shuang led Qian Qiuyue to the room where Le Xipo had once lived. Qian Qiuyue looked around the room. Although it was dark and damp, it was clean and tidy, giving people a comfortable feeling. Le Xipo's portrait was placed in the center of the table. The frame of the photo was exceptionally clean. Qian Qiuyue thought to herself that the old woman in the mirror was truly blessed. Even after she died, there was an old man wiping her mirror every day.

Zhou Qiang called Qin Shuang out of the house and said, "Lend me my son for a bit." Qin Shuang was puzzled when the Yin-Yang Snake, hearing Zhou Qiang call it, crawled out on its own. Zhou Qiang smiled and picked up the Yin-Yang Snake, saying, "Good boy, Daddy will take you to catch ghosts." Qin Shuang gave Zhou Qiang a puff of white smoke and muttered, "Crazy."

"Say goodbye to Mom quickly." Zhou Qiang's words almost made Qin Shuang's nose twist in anger. But the yin-yang snake seemed to understand Zhou Qiang's words, turning back and shaking its head a few times at Qin Shuang, as if waving goodbye. Zhou Qiang laughed and walked out the door. Qin Shuang took two steps forward to catch up, whispering, "Be careful." Zhou Qiang turned back and smiled at Qin Shuang, then suddenly pointed to Qin Shuang's side and asked in horror, "What's that?" Startled by Zhou Qiang's words, Qin Shuang quickly turned her head to look, and taking advantage of the opportunity, Zhou Qiang swiftly kissed Qin Shuang's cheek and rushed out the door.

Seeing that Zhou Qiang had already run far away, Qin Shuang stomped her feet in frustration, pouting her rosy lips as she looked out the door. Anyone could tell that Qin Shuang was secretly delighted.

Zhou Qiang put the Yin-Yang snake into his backpack, humming a little tune as he walked to the village head's house. The village head treated Zhou Qiang like a living Buddha, hurriedly inviting him in to offer water and cigarettes. Zhou Qiang, annoyed by these formalities, impatiently said, "Uncle, stop with the nonsense, saving lives is the priority. Take me to your brother-in-law's house now." The village head readily agreed, pushing a dilapidated motorcycle out of a side room, and they drove Zhou Qiang out of Yinfeng Village, arriving wearily at Lu Shuai's house.

Lu Shuai's house was nothing more than a dilapidated dwelling, the dim yellow light from the window casting a hunched figure. The village headman parked his motorcycle in front of the door and said apologetically to Zhou Qiang, "Mr. Ye, please go in. It's not convenient for me to come in." It seemed the village headman was still quite afraid of ghosts. Zhou Qiang jumped off the motorcycle and replied, "Alright, then you can go back now, Uncle. Be careful on the road." The village headman nodded, turned, and drove away, as if afraid Zhou Qiang would change his mind.

Hearing the conversation outside, the figure inside opened the door. An elderly man with white hair stood there, looking at Zhou Qiang with a puzzled expression. Zhou Qiang stepped forward and said to the old man, "Hello, sir. You must be the father-in-law of the village head of Yinfeng Village. I've come at your son-in-law's invitation to save your son's life." Upon hearing this, the old man not only didn't rejoice but burst into tears. Zhou Qiang, thinking he had said something wrong, quickly bowed repeatedly and apologized, asking, "Sir, did I say something wrong? Why are you so sad?"

The old man sobbed, "I am Lu Shuai. I never imagined I'd become as old as my father." Upon hearing that the old man before him was indeed the gambling addict Lu Shuai, Zhou Qiang's goodwill towards him plummeted. He thought, "Serves you right." Lu Shuai invited Zhou Qiang into the house and then made him a cup of tea. Zhou Qiang sat on the worn-out sofa facing the bed, crossed his legs, and said, "The ghost will definitely come back at night to drain your yang energy. When it comes, I'll deal with it. You should go to sleep; you'll be fine when you wake up."

At this moment, Lu Shuai felt his eyes grow heavy. He thought back to a year ago when he was tall and strong, playing mahjong all night long without feeling tired. But looking at himself now, he was drowsy all day long. Thinking about how he had fallen to such a state, he sighed angrily, took off his clothes, covered himself with the blanket, and fell fast asleep.

A moment later, Zhou Qiang saw Lu Shuai snoring loudly. He placed something near Lu Shuai's head and returned to the sofa, observing the situation with his "Heavenly Eye." Zhou Qiang took out his phone and checked the time; it was already past 10:30. Just as Zhou Qiang was wondering why the evil spirit hadn't arrived, a gust of evil wind blew outside the door, and with a 'creak,' the door opened and then closed automatically.

A malevolent spirit drifted in from outside, effortlessly entering Lu Shuai's bedroom. It saw a young man lounging with his legs crossed, one hand resting on the table, rubbing his temples, his eyes fixed intently on the soundly sleeping Lu Shuai. The spirit chuckled, completely disregarding the young man. It floated onto the headboard, pressing its entire body against Lu Shuai, and began to inhale his vital energy mouth-to-mouth. A white vapor escaped from Lu Shuai's nose and entered the spirit's mouth.

The evil spirit was greedily sucking on Lu Shuai's body when someone tapped it on the shoulder. Without turning around, the evil spirit said, "Can't you see I'm busy? We can talk later." As soon as it finished speaking, the evil spirit sensed something was wrong. Since arriving in Hebei, it hadn't made a single ghost friend. Why was something tapping its shoulder? Curious, the evil spirit turned its head 180 degrees and saw it was the young man who had been sitting on the sofa.

The young man tilted his head, asking innocently, "Hey, what are you doing? This is wrong, didn't your mother tell you?" The evil spirit realized it had met its match. Just as it was about to get up, something bit its hand. Looking down, it saw a strange snake had crawled out from under Lu Shuai's pillow and bitten it. Seeing the snake's appearance, it knew it was no ordinary creature. The evil spirit shook off the yin-yang snake; a purplish-yellow bruise had already formed at the wound.

The Yin-Yang Serpent, not content with its current attack, slithered towards the evil spirit again. Compared to dealing with the fiendish Cheng Long, the Yin-Yang Serpent seemed less interested in this little ghost, slowing its attacks. It resembled an old cat catching a mouse but not intending to devour it, instead toying with it to death. The evil spirit tried to get up to dodge, but Zhou Qiang was pressing down on its shoulder from behind, preventing it from rising. Desperate, the evil spirit turned and glared fiercely at Zhou Qiang, opening its disgusting maw to bite down on his hand.

Although Zhou Qiang wasn't worried about dealing with this low-level "Joyful Ghost," he instinctively withdrew his hand. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Joyful Ghost broke free from Zhou Qiang and floated into Lu Shuai's body. Lu Shuai, without even opening his eyes, sat up abruptly. Zhou Qiang grabbed the Yin-Yang Snake from the bed and took two steps back. Old Man Le Shui had indeed guessed correctly! When evil spirits couldn't deal with humans, they would use another human as a shield. This reminded Zhou Qiang of Le Xi Po's death.

Zhou Qiang calmly took out the ghost-raising bottle and muttered to himself, "Grandma, this move was bought with your life." Zhou Qiang sniffed and released the evil ghost Cheng Long. Strangely, this time the Yin-Yang Snake didn't attack Cheng Long. At this moment, Lu Shuai, possessed by the evil ghost, got out of bed and walked towards Zhou Qiang. Zhou Qiang gave an order: "Let me show you the Qi Yi Expulsion Technique. The era of possessing others is over. Now I'm in charge!" After saying that, the evil ghost rushed forward with a 'whoosh'. Its body slammed solidly into Lu Shuai's chest. The evil ghost behind it was bounced off Lu Shuai's body by the impact of Cheng Long and fell to the ground. Lu Shuai turned to the evil ghost on the ground and said, "This body now belongs to me, Cheng Long!" After saying that, he walked back to the sofa and watched Zhou Qiang deal with the evil ghost.

This Qi-based expulsion technique was invented by Zhou Qiang himself. The death of Le Xipo dealt Zhou Qiang a heavy blow, but it also gave him immense motivation. In other words, besides feeling grief over Le Xipo's death, Zhou Qiang also considered why she died. Ultimately, it was because exorcists struggled to deal with repeated possessions by ghosts. Therefore, Zhou Qiang developed this new Qi-based technique. Following the principle of "might makes right," the evil ghost Cheng Long's cultivation was many times greater than that of the mere Xi Gui, so it easily possessed Lu Shuai's body. Without a human shield, the Xi Gui would be much easier to deal with.

The Yin-Yang Serpent leaped out again, lunging at the still-standing Joyful Ghost. Knowing his fate was sealed, the Ghost quickly knelt and begged for mercy: "Sir, spare my life! I was blind and didn't recognize your greatness. I shouldn't have harmed you. Please spare my life, and I'll tell you a shocking secret." "Oh?" Zhou Qiang's curiosity was piqued. He called out, "Son, come back!" The Yin-Yang Serpent stopped, crawled back, and ascended from Zhou Qiang's leg to his shoulder, flicking its tongue at the kneeling Joyful Ghost.

Son? The ghost, not having time to ponder the convoluted relationship between the sorcerer and the strange snake, began recounting the greatest secret he had ever witnessed since becoming a ghost. ====================================================================================== Chapter 3: The Mysterious Man - Yi Ge's Spirit - Collected and organized by

The "Joyful Ghost" before Zhou Qiang wasn't a Hebei ghost; it had come to Hebei by possessing someone else's body, much like smuggling across the sea. If it were caught by the ghost soldiers, the consequences would be unimaginable. It seemed the Joyful Ghost had been forced to come to Hebei. Zhou Qiang thought this, waiting for the Joyful Ghost to continue.

“I was originally a villager from Changzhou. As the saying goes, heaven is jealous of talent, and I unfortunately died of cancer. After my death, I lived in my old home in Changzhou,” Xi Gui murmured. Changzhou? Isn’t Changzhou the location of Maoshan? Zhou Qiang interrupted Xi Gui and asked, “Do you know Master Zhang and his disciples from Maoshan?” Xi Gui perked up at this question and sat up on the edge of the bed, spitting everywhere as he said, “Yes, yes, they live in the same village as me. And this secret is very likely to be closely related to them.” Seeing that Zhou Qiang was also listening intently, Xi Gui continued, “A year ago, two outsiders came to the village and stayed at the village chief’s house. I couldn’t tell where they were from, but they seemed to have a lisp, and they always added a ‘de la’ to the end of their sentences.” Although he often heard those two words on TV, Zhou Qiang didn’t know where these outsiders were from. He shook his hand, signaling Xi Gui to continue.

“They’re no ordinary people. Every night they come to the graveyard and take a few little ghosts back with them. One of my ghost friends was captured, and later a few of us little ghosts discussed how to rescue him. So we secretly went to the village chief’s house, only to see a horrifying scene.” The Ghost of Joy paused, his pale face showing a look of terror, and stammered, “They, they actually ate our ghost friend alive! And we also heard them talking about practicing some kind of strange art, and that they would buy the century-old peach tree in Master Zhang’s house in Maoshan no matter how much money it cost.”

"So witchcraft still exists on the mainland," Zhou Qiang muttered to himself. He had once heard Old Man Le Shui mention that besides the major supernatural sects on the mainland, there was a long-lost witchcraft sect. This witchcraft was a combination of Qin Shuang's poisonous Gu techniques and Qian Qiuyue's black magic. Moreover, the witchcraft sect possessed several unique spells, such as raising and devouring ghosts, and consuming poisonous insects. It was said that these could enhance their cultivation. Even Old Man Le Shui didn't know exactly how the witchcraft sect had developed. He only knew that after the liberation of mainland China, the witchcraft sect disappeared without a trace.

The sudden appearance of this witchcraft sect must be suspicious. Zhou Qiang frowned, pondering. With his limited intelligence, he wouldn't be able to figure it out even after three days. The reason for this was merely to put on an act in front of the ghost. The ghost suddenly burst into tears, saying coyly, "As a result, we were discovered by those two outsiders. They somehow found a big bag, and the bag seemed to have a mysterious attraction, sucking my other ghost friends in through the window. Luckily, I was hiding at the back, which saved my wretched life."

Afterwards, I worried that they would eat me sooner or later, so I escaped to the highway, possessed a truck driver, and ended up in Hebei. The first day I arrived in Hebei, I smelled the scent of a graveyard. As soon as I got there, I met Lu Shuai. You probably know the rest.” After saying this, the ghost knelt down again, clasped his hands in a fist and pleaded, “Sir, please spare me.” Zhou Qiang stood up, flicked the ghost-raising bottle, and the evil ghost Cheng Long floated from Lu Shuai’s body into the bottle.

Zhou Qiang pulled out a Qi Yi diagram from his pocket, turned to Xi Gui, and said, "Come here." Xi Gui floated over. Zhou Qiang grabbed one of Xi Gui's hands and covered Lu Shuai's mouth, then pressed his palm, holding the Qi Yi diagram, against Xi Gui's arm. Zhou Qiang's hand moved downwards to Xi Gui's side, and a faint yang energy emanated from Xi Gui's hand, which Lu Shuai inhaled with his breath. Zhou Qiang breathed a sigh of relief and said to Xi Gui, "Thank you for telling me this secret. The Maoshan Sect and my Qi Yi Sect have been on good terms for many years. With your information, I can take action as soon as possible. It seems those two mysterious people are after Master Zhang and his disciples from Maoshan."

Before Xi Gui could even say "I dare not," upon hearing Zhou Qiang claim to be from the Qi Yi Sect, he was so frightened that he sat down on the ground, muttering, "You, you, you're from the Qi Yi Sect? The King of the Supernatural from the Henan Anyang duel?" Zhou Qiang feigned helplessness, saying, "Keep it down, keep it down. You've heard of me in the Underworld too?" Seeing that the King of the Supernatural before him was so different from what he had imagined, and seeing that Zhou Qiang meant him no harm, Xi Gui stood up and flattered him, "Sir, you are indeed remarkable. Since the Henan supernatural duel ended, your reputation in the Underworld has soared. To die at your hands would be an honor. Since you've released me, I'll take my leave now. I promise you, I won't harm anyone again." With that, he darted out the door, not forgetting to close it behind him, fearing that Zhou Qiang might go back on his word and cost him his life.

Zhou Qiang didn't leave Lu Shuai's house. Instead, he lay down on Lu Shuai's bed and pondered the mysterious man's purpose. Unfortunately, he wasn't Morse, and he couldn't figure it out based on hearsay and clues alone. Zhou Qiang sighed, decided to stop thinking about it, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.

The next morning, Zhou Qiang was startled awake by a scream. Upon looking up, he saw that Lu Shuai had recovered her complexion; her previously hunched back had straightened, and her half-gray hair had begun to turn black. Lu Shuai was staring at the mirror, screaming with the same astonishment a girl might feel upon discovering a new pimple. Seeing Zhou Qiang awake, Lu Shuai grabbed his hand excitedly and said, "Thank you so much, Mr. Ye. I really don't know how to repay you!"

Zhou Qiang pulled his hand away from Lu Shuai's and said while putting on his shoes, "We charge for exorcising ghosts. Take the money you think is extra to your brother-in-law's house. Poverty is nothing compared to a lack of education; tell him to buy some textbooks for the children at school." Lu Shuai was stunned. Did he really think this man was only in his early twenties? This kid completely disregarded his own interests, focusing solely on helping the village children get more education. Compared to him, what was the point of his own gambling day and night? Thinking this, Lu Shuai's eyes welled up with tears.

Zhou Qiang noticed, but ignored it. He jumped off the bed, stretched, and said, "Goodbye." He then headed towards the door. Lu Shuai called after him, "I swear, I'll never gamble again. Thank you for changing my life." He didn't forget to flatter him, "I bet you'll become the most famous exorcist in China." With a thud, Zhou Qiang fell to the ground, immediately got up, turned back, and smiled, saying, "Still gambling?" Lu Shuai realized he had misspoke and smiled apologetically.

"It's so good to be able to change someone," Zhou Qiang smiled, then left the neighboring village and returned to Yinfeng Village.

As soon as Zhou Qiang entered the door, Qin Shuang rushed up and grabbed his ear, yelling, "Where did you go last night? Why didn't you come back all night?" Zhou Qiang was about to get angry, but when he saw Qin Shuang's face, he burst out laughing. It turned out that Qin Shuang hadn't slept all night, but she was too embarrassed to go see Zhou Qiang, so she could only wait helplessly. In the end, Zhou Qiang didn't come, and her eyes turned black from waiting. Qin Shuang scolded, "Still laughing?" Then she squeezed Zhou Qiang's ear harder, making tears well up in his eyes from the pain.

Xie Qifeng sneered from the side, "Haha, serves you right! Who told you not to come back tonight? This shrew waited for you all night without sleeping." Xie Qifeng's smile only lasted for a moment before turning into a painful, ferocious expression. Qian Qiuyue twisted Xie Qifeng's ear and said calmly, "How did you know that Junior Sister Qin Shuang didn't sleep all night? Did you sneak into our room? You pervert!"

Two women twisting the ears of two grown men was a rare sight, especially since Zhou Qiang and Xie Qifeng, the two fellow disciples, were laughing at each other. The sounds of wailing and howling outside drifted into the house. It was only thanks to Old Man Le Shui's compassion for his two beloved disciples that Qin Shuang and Qian Qiuyue were allowed to leave for the time being. After breakfast, fearing Qian Qiuyue would be lonely, Qin Shuang took her to school to keep her company. The children at the school were delighted to see this beautiful older sister and all gathered around to welcome her.

But shortly after Qin Shuang and Qian Qiuyue left, the front door of Old Man Leshui's house was suddenly kicked open with a thud. Zhou Qiang ran out of the house and saw none other than Zhang Xiaolong from Maoshan, weeping bitterly. Zhou Qiang knew something was wrong and quickly helped Zhang Xiaolong into the house. When Zhang Xiaolong saw Old Man Leshui, he knelt down with a thud, crying and shouting, "Uncle Leshui, my master is dead!" This scene was exactly the same as when Zhang Daoren's master had begged the ascetic master for help years ago.

Upon hearing of his old friend's passing, Old Man Le Shui slammed his fist on the table, creating a large hole, and shouted, "Damn it, what's been waiting for has finally happened!" Old Man Le Shui was a model mentor in Zhou Qiang's eyes; his sudden outburst of anger and profanity told Zhou Qiang that this matter was definitely not simple. ====================================================================================== Chapter 4: Witness - Yi Ge's Spirit - Collected and organized by

Zhou Qiang helped Zhang Xiaolong, who was kneeling on the ground, to his feet and comforted him, "Xiaolong, sit down first, and tell me about Uncle Zhang's matter slowly." After Zhang Xiaolong's agitated mood calmed down a bit, he began to recount his story.

After the supernatural martial arts competition ended and everyone said goodbye, Zhang Xiaolong bought a train ticket and returned to Changzhou. As soon as he entered the village, Zhang Xiaolong sensed something was wrong. He felt the villagers were pointing and whispering behind his back, and when their eyes met, the villagers deliberately avoided his gaze. At the time, Zhang Xiaolong didn't pay much attention, but when he got home, he was dumbfounded. The century-old peach tree in his house was gone, and a rotten peach wood coffin sat conspicuously in the main hall. Zhang Xiaolong immediately thought that this must be the secret his master had mentioned under the peach tree.

So Zhang Xiaolong began calling his master's name. Finding his master not home, and driven by curiosity, he opened the coffin. The peach wood, having rotted over the years, was easily removed by Zhang Xiaolong. Inside lay none other than the deathly pale and cold-blooded Master Zhang. Zhang Xiaolong froze for a few seconds, unable to believe it. His master, so full of life just days before, was now a corpse. A few seconds later, Zhang Xiaolong burst into tears, his sobs echoing throughout the village.

Zhang Xiaolong cried for three whole hours. When he calmed down a bit, he carried Zhang Daozhang's body out and placed it on Zhang Daozhang's bed. He gently covered it with a blanket and said, "Master, sleep well. I'm going to avenge you." After saying that, Zhang Xiaolong took all the usable tools in the house with him and went out.

As soon as he stepped outside, Zhang Xiaolong panicked. He didn't know who had harmed his master, or where to begin. So, Zhang Xiaolong grabbed anyone he saw and asked if anyone had visited his house recently. The person said they didn't know. Zhang Xiaolong was too agitated and grabbed a kitchen knife, ready to strike. Coincidentally, the person was indeed the only witness to Zhang Daoshi's murder and had concealed the truth to avoid causing trouble for him.

Startled by Zhang Xiaolong's cleaver, the man was stunned and hurriedly said, "I'll talk, I know, I saw it. Don't cut me. It was the village chief and two outsiders who harmed your master." Zhang Xiaolong took a deep breath and continued, "How did they harm him?" Zhang Xiaolong recognized the village chief; six months ago, the village chief and his master had a secret meeting. The village chief asked Zhang Daoist to sell him his family's century-old peach tree, offering an exorbitant price of 200,000 yuan. A full 200,000 yuan! How could someone living in the countryside afford that? Zhang Daoist became suspicious. Besides, the century-old peach tree was sealed with a demon; if the peach tree was uprooted, the demon would also emerge and wreak havoc on the world, something that a mere Maoshan sect couldn't withstand.

On the night Master Zhang was murdered, the witness happened to be passing by the village chief's house when he heard a series of clanging noises coming from inside. Driven by curiosity, the witness quietly opened the wooden door and saw Master Zhang fighting with two outsiders in the yard. Master Zhang had initially been able to easily handle the two men. However, the village chief then ambushed Master Zhang from behind, grabbing him. The two outsiders seized the opportunity and murdered Master Zhang, saying, "We have different stances, don't blame us." Seeing the dead body, the witness was terrified and ran home in a panic, pulling the covers over his head and trembling.

Zhang Xiaolong put away the kitchen knife and ran towards the village chief's house without stopping, afraid that if he was even a second late, the murderer would escape. But Zhang Xiaolong was still too late. There was only a woman in the village chief's house, presumably the village chief's wife. Upon seeing the village chief's wife, Zhang Xiaolong suppressed his anger and asked, "Is the village chief home?" The woman, seeing that it was Zhang Xiaolong, warmly welcomed him into the house and said, "Hongwei isn't home. I just came back from my parents' house. I was wondering where that damned Xu Hongwei had gone, and the two out-of-towners staying at the house were also gone. Their luggage was gone too. Maybe Hongwei saw them off."

The eyewitness was right. Since the village chief and the two outsiders had disappeared, Zhang Xiaolong returned home dejectedly and properly buried Zhang Daoren's body. He buried it in the pit under the big peach tree in his yard. Zhang Xiaolong planted the peach wood sword Wei Tianba had given him in the ground, knelt down, and swore, "Master, I swear I will not rest until I avenge you." Zhang Xiaolong was found by Zhang Daoren at the train station. Because Zhang Xiaolong had no milk, his master had searched everywhere for mothers in the village to provide for him. One can imagine how difficult it was for a middle-aged man to carry an infant and search for milk.

When Zhang Xiaolong was six years old, he saw that everyone else had a mother, but he only had a master. So he cried and begged Master Zhang to find him a mother. A few days later, a middle-aged woman came to his house, claiming to be Zhang Xiaolong's mother. She hugged and kissed Zhang Xiaolong. But Zhang Xiaolong felt no affection for this mother at all. One day, Zhang Xiaolong overheard Master Zhang and this mother talking. The mother said, "I really can't stay any longer. My husband will be back from working in another city soon. Please pay me quickly, I need to go home." Master Zhang bowed and scraped, saying, "Please, stay a few more days, spend the New Year with Xiaolong, and then you can leave. I can pay you more, okay?"

The woman ignored her, probably too afraid of her husband, and said, "Uncle, if you hadn't given me so much money, I wouldn't have bothered coming here. If my husband found out, he'd beat me to death. Let's just forget it. My child is still in daycare."

Master Zhang, who rarely interacted with women, was momentarily speechless and could only resort to action. With a thud, he knelt before the woman. At that moment, Zhang Xiaolong ran over crying, helped his master up, and sobbed, "Master, I was wrong. I don't want a mother anymore. I only want Master." From that moment on, Zhang Xiaolong never mentioned the word "mother" again.

Another time, near the New Year, Zhang Xiaolong saw other children wearing new clothes and was very envious. This didn't escape the notice of Master Zhang. That night, after Zhang Xiaolong fell asleep, Master Zhang covered him with a blanket and began sewing clothes by the dim candlelight. Sewing clothes is no easy task for a man. Three days later, Master Zhang told Zhang Xiaolong to close his eyes and dressed him. When Zhang Xiaolong opened his eyes, he was astonished to see a new garment on him. He looked at himself in the mirror, and in the mirror, besides his beautiful new clothes, he saw Master Zhang's fingers holding a white cloth.

Zhang Xiaolong turned and grabbed Master Zhang's rough hand. A few bloodstains were visible on the fingers wrapped in white cloth. After Master Zhang's repeated persuasion, Zhang Xiaolong finally unwrapped the cloth, revealing his master's hands covered in needle marks. This time, Zhang Xiaolong didn't cry. However, he only wore the new clothes for one day during the New Year celebration, then carefully put them away, intending to wear them again the next day.

Recalling the past, tears, saliva, and snot streamed down Zhang Xiaolong's face. Suddenly, he stood up, wiped his face with his sleeve, grabbed the key, locked the door, and left Changzhou. He had no choice but to seek help from the Qi Yi School in Hebei. The emergence of the Mischievous Demon had disrupted their lives and caused the deaths of many good people; Master Zhang was just one of them.

After Zhang Xiaolong finished speaking, Old Man Leshui was trembling with anger. He suppressed his emotions and said, "Tomorrow! Tomorrow we'll go get our revenge." Zhang Xiaolong and the others were quite bewildered. China was so vast; where could they possibly find the murderer amidst the sea of people? Only Old Man Leshui knew the answer. ===================================================================================== Chapter 5 of "The Successor of Qi Yi: Don't Leave Me" - Yi Ge's Spirit - Collected and organized by

When everyone turned their attention to Old Man Leshui, he turned to Zhou Qiang, who reluctantly hummed in response. After settling Zhang Xiaolong in, Xie Qifeng went to cook. Everyone felt heavy-hearted. The once lively Old Man Leshui's house suddenly became deathly silent, with sighs echoing one after another. At Qiyi Elementary School in Yinfeng Village, after giving a lively Chinese lesson, Qin Shuang went to her simple office to chat with Qian Qiuyue. "Senior sister, how can I make a boy's heart flutter?" Qin Shuang asked shyly, her eyes wide.

Qian Qiuyue thought for a moment and replied, "Oh, my junior sister has a guy she likes~" Qin Shuang's face flushed red instantly. "Speak gently to boys, blink more, and bite your lip." Qin Shuang said "Oh," and demonstrated a few times as Qian Qiuyue said. Then, the sound of the two laughing and joking came from the office.

Finally, noon arrived, and Qin Shuang and Zhou Qiang returned home. As soon as they entered, Qin Shuang saw Zhou Qiang sitting in the yard. She said softly and sweetly, "I'm back." Zhou Qiang looked up and saw Qin Shuang's beautiful eyes flashing at him, occasionally biting her cherry-like lower lip. Zhou Qiang wanted to bite her, but he didn't. Instead, he said with annoyance, "I get annoyed just looking at you. Get away from me."

Qin Shuang couldn't believe Zhou Qiang's words and asked softly, "What did you say?" Zhou Qiang stood up and roared, "Get out of my way! I'm annoyed by you. Ever since you entered our house, I've been annoyed by you. I only wanted to possess you because you're somewhat pretty. But the longer I spend with you, the more I hate you. Pack your things and go back to Yunnan, you country bumpkin!" Before she could finish, Qin Shuang slapped Zhou Qiang hard across the face, tears streaming down her face. Every word Zhou Qiang said felt like a needle piercing her heart, but she had no choice but to act this way.

Seeing her junior sister being wronged, Qian Qiuyue pointed at Zhou Qiang and cursed, "What are you? A disgrace to the Qi Yi Sect!" She then helped Qin Shuang into the house, but Xie Qifeng, coming from the kitchen, stopped her. Qian Qiuyue looked at Xie Qifeng in confusion. Xie Qifeng's cold eyes met her disdainful gaze as he said, "Don't talk about my senior brother, you're no different. Get out with Qin Shuang!" He then turned and walked into the kitchen without looking back.

Qin Shuang finally broke down. Everything was fine last night, how could things have turned out like this? She desperately wanted Old Man Le Shui to stand up for her, but Old Man Le Shui and Zhang Xiaolong sat silently in the room. Although Old Man Le Shui knew his apprentice had gone too far, he didn't stop him. Qin Shuang mistakenly thought that Old Man Le Shui was condoning his apprentice's actions. She hastily packed her luggage with Qian Qiuyue, and before leaving, she took the Yin-Yang Snake from her bosom and threw it to Zhou Qiang. Crying, she left with Qian Qiuyue, slamming the door shut. Zhou Qiang and Xie Qifeng in the kitchen both sat on the ground.

The two reached the entrance of Yinfeng Village. "Junior sister, don't cry. It's not worth it for a man like that," Qian Qiuyue comforted her. Qin Shuang wiped away her tears and sobbed, "Okay, I know. I'm going back to Yunnan. Take care, senior sister." She then walked away on her own, not daring to look back, nor wanting to. This place was truly awful; she wished she could leave immediately. After Qin Shuang left, Qian Qiuyue stood at the village entrance, hesitant to move. Being slightly older, Qian Qiuyue naturally thought things through more thoroughly than Qin Shuang. She wondered why this family had suddenly changed so drastically; there must be something fishy going on. Therefore, Qian Qiuyue didn't leave but secretly stayed at the village head's house. Of course, she had paid for it.

No one wanted things to escalate to this point, but it was unavoidable. None of the four grown men could eat; they were all silently lost in thought. That night, Old Man Le Shui settled Zhang Xiaolong in his room and went to sleep in Granny Le Xi's room. Xie Qifeng also lay in bed, unable to fall asleep for a long time, thinking of Qian Qiuyue. Zhang Xiaolong also buried his head in the blankets, sobbing softly, reminiscing about Master Zhang.

Zhou Qiang sat in the courtyard, gazing at the moonlight, listening to "Don't Leave Me" on his phone, his heart aching. As he listened, tears welled in his eyes, but he dared not utter a sound, his head bowed, forcing himself to cry, his features contorted in pain. Suddenly, footsteps sounded from inside the house. Zhou Qiang quickly wiped away his tears and turned to see Old Man Le Shui. Old Man Le Shui walked to Zhou Qiang's side, sat down, and comforted him, "Child, you and Ji Yan did the right thing. The more people are involved in the Mischievous Demon's affair, the more difficult things become. I know you were worried about Qin Shuang's safety, which is why you sent her away." Zhou Qiang leaned against Old Man Le Shui's lap, continuing to sob. Old Man Le Shui stroked Zhou Qiang's hair, looking up at him. He thought to himself: Junior Sister Le Shui, your senior brother will be down to join you soon.

The next morning, everyone's mood had calmed down a bit, and they ate something. Zhou Qiang asked, "Master, what should we do to find the murderer?" Old Man Le Shui confidently replied, "The mysterious person's goal isn't to kill Junior Brother Zhang, but rather for the Four Demons of Chaos. Although I don't know why they released the Four Demons of Chaos, I'm certain that once released, they will rescue the remaining ones. Of course, except for the Qi Yi Demon under Mount Tai. The Qi Yi Demon needs the magic power of the other three demons to be released. Based on this, the Four Demons of Chaos and the mysterious person will either attack our Qi Yi Sect or travel to Tibet."

The mysterious figure first targeted the Maoshan sect's troublemakers. In contrast, Tibet is a sparsely populated region; they would surely be discovered by the Tantric lamas there, and besides, the Tantric lamas are numerous; two mere individuals are no match for them. Our Qi Yi sect, on the other hand, has a long history. Although ordinary people may not have heard of us, we have always been among the top in the supernatural world, and they wouldn't dare attack us rashly. Therefore, they chose to start with the Maoshan sect. If the mysterious figure is a highly skilled supernatural expert, if I'm not mistaken, they should be on their way to Tibet now.

None of us know where they are, so I'm just guessing. Since we can't be sure, this is the only way. Ji Ye and Ji Yan, you two go to Tibet with Zhang Xiaolong. I'll stay home and keep watch.”

Zhou Qiang stood up and said, "How can this be? What if you're in danger, Master?" Old Man Le Shui smiled and said, "Don't you trust your master? Back in the day, I was the champion of the supernatural martial arts competition. It's decided then. Pack your bags and go." Old Man Le Shui looked confident. "I'll be waiting for your good news."

After Zhou Qiang and the others had eaten and drunk their fill, they packed their large bundles. Old Man Le Shui continued to sit in the living room listening to the radio, looking relaxed and carefree. "Master, we're leaving," Zhou Qiang said goodbye. Xie Qifeng said, "Uncle-Master, there's food in the kitchen. I've been cooking for several days. We'll be back in a few days. But if it's not good, you can ask Sha Gui to find the village head to cook for us."

Old Man Leshui, seemingly unconcerned, waved his hand and said, "You can go now. Don't worry, I'll be fine." Xie Qifeng pulled Zhou Qiang and Zhang Xiaolong away from the house. Hearing the door close, Old Man Leshui turned off the radio and went to his bedroom, groping around for something. He gently knocked on the wall, and suddenly a section of the wall made an unusual sound. Old Man Leshui smiled, punched hard, and shattered the wall. Suddenly, a wooden box handle appeared inside. Old Man Leshui fumbled for the handle, pulled it out, and a long wooden box emerged. Old Man Leshui squatted down, opened the lid of the box, and inside lay a brand-new walking stick.

Old Man Le Shui picked up the walking stick inside, stroked it, and said, "Old friend, it's been so long." The three large, conspicuous characters 'Qi Yi Stick' were deeply imprinted on one side of the stick. ========================================================================================== Chapter Six: The Mastiff and Zi Jun (Part 1) - Yi Ge's Spirit - Collected and organized by

Qin Shuang arrived at the train station in a huff, glaring at everyone she met, practically a shrew. She bought a train ticket back to Yunnan and immediately left this heartbreaking place. On the train, gazing at the ever-changing sky outside the window, she wondered if this relationship was truly over. As she calmed down, she realized that Zhou Qiang's sudden change in temperament was indeed a bit strange. But then she thought about how infuriating every word Zhou Qiang had said; she couldn't possibly go back with the audacity to do so.

A spotted black spider crawled from Qin Shuang's bag onto the table. This was the 'old fellow' connecting the three lifetimes of the Qi Yi Sect and the Gu Shu Sect. Qin Shuang stroked the spotted black spider, deciding to stop thinking about anything. The spider seemed to want to say something to Qin Shuang, but unfortunately, Qin Shuang didn't know the art of language; otherwise, she would have definitely returned to Hebei.

The next day, Zhou Qiang and Xie Qifeng took a taxi to Dezhou, Shandong. Dezhou is known as a transit point for many major cities in China.

Zhou Qiang took out his phone and dialed a number. "Hello, Qi Zijun? Are you at the temple? What? You're still on your way back? How did you get back? I'm impressed!" After saying that, he talked to Qi Zijun about serious matters and hung up. It turned out that Qi Zijun had walked back to Tibet after the martial arts competition. Because he had a Tibetan mastiff with him, it was inconvenient to travel by car. Four days had passed before Qi Zijun finally set foot in Tibet. When Zhou Qiang brought up the important matter, Qi Zijun quickened his pace; it was still a two-day journey. Zhou Qiang asked for the specific address of the lama temple, and the two of them hurried towards Tibet without stopping.

The temple was filled with the sounds of chanting, permeated with a Buddhist atmosphere. In the vast courtyard, hundreds of monks sat around a large bronze bell, their eyes slightly closed, reciting scriptures in unison. The bell was densely engraved with Tibetan script, giving it an air of mystery. An elderly lama sat at the temple entrance; he appeared to be the abbot. Suddenly, a chill swept through the temple. The abbot abruptly opened his eyes, and the voices of the hundreds of lamas fell silent. Everyone stared at the entrance, their gazes fixed on the abbot. As the abbot had predicted, three people slowly approached. The two in front, one appearing to be over seventy and the other over fifty, were dressed in expensive suits, looking down disdainfully at everyone in the temple. The man behind them wore a black raincoat, completely covering his face, which was hidden under the hood.

The old abbot shuddered. He hadn't encountered such profound yin energy in a long time. Seeing that the three men were up to no good, he stood up and said, "Who goes there? And what brings you here?" The mysterious man, who looked to be over seventy, took a single stride that covered two meters. If it weren't for his white hair, no one would guess that this agile fellow was seventy years old. The mysterious man said with a sinister smile, "I've heard that your temple is guarded by a demon. Is that true? If it is, I hope you can take it away."

The old abbot squatted down, picked up the light cylinder, and said with a sneer, "Hmph, that troublemaker has gotten used to living in our lama temple and doesn't want to go out anymore. Besides, you don't have the ability." He then opened the light cylinder. There was a snap fastener on the cylinder. The old abbot calmly snapped it open, and the cap of the cylinder was removed. It turned out there was a hidden secret inside the cylinder. Lamas are generally seen wearing red and yellow robes, and wearing a yellow hat resembling a rooster's comb. But the old abbot took out a black and white robe from the cylinder. It was white because the fabric was entirely white, and black because the white fabric was covered with dense Tibetan script.

The older, mysterious man chuckled faintly and said, "Heh, the old abbot is right. I truly don't have that ability." He then turned to look at his companion at the door. The man in the raincoat strode towards the old abbot; because his head was bowed, no one present could see his face clearly. The old abbot gasped. This yin energy was emanating from this man. Although the two men in suits at the door also carried yin energy, his decades of cultivation were more than enough to handle it. But the yin energy emanating from this man was almost suffocating.

All the lamas present stood up in unison, staring at the mysterious man approaching the old abbot, fearing something might happen to him. Their fear wasn't of the abbot or the mysterious man, but of Qi Zijun and his Tibetan mastiff. Qi Zijun was the senior disciple of this monastery. Before leaving, he had instructed them to take good care of the abbot, in case he returned to find him thinner. Qi Zijun chuckled mischievously, glancing down at the giant mastiff beside him. All the junior lamas gasped, then nodded repeatedly.

Eighteen years ago, a giant Tibetan mastiff appeared in Tibet. With its sharp teeth, the mastiff subdued many villagers and frequently stole the village's dairy goats and other animals. Everyone complained and hoped someone could get rid of the mastiff. The news spread quickly, eventually reaching the ears of a lama known as the "Living Buddha of Tibet." This Living Buddha was now the abbot of the monastery. The abbot left the monastery and came to the village to help the villagers deal with the giant mastiff. After several nights of waiting, the mastiff finally appeared. Suddenly, the villagers shouted, "The mastiff has stolen another dairy goat!" Seeing the crowd surrounding it with torches, the mastiff leaped out of the crowd and ran away into the distance.

The abbot, watching from the rooftop, saw the man leap down, wielding a large knife, and chase after the fleeing Tibetan mastiff. A leader behind him, carrying a torch, said, "Hey, even if he's a Tibetan Living Buddha, he can't beat a mastiff that big. It's good he's scared away; why chase after him? Let's go home." He then waved to everyone, signaling them to go home and sleep.

The Tibetan Mastiff ran non-stop to the entrance of a cave, glanced behind it, and then disappeared inside. A three-year-old child, naked from the waist down, smiled happily upon seeing the mastiff. The mastiff before them was a far cry from the ferocious dog they had displayed in the village; it was as if it had become a completely different beast. The mastiff gently tossed a trembling goat to a corner, and the child stepped forward, greedily suckling at the goat's milk. The mastiff watched the child nurse, seemingly quite content.

The Tibetan Living Buddha lived up to his name; not only did he run with the agility of a swallow, but he also walked so fast that even the keen-eared Tibetan mastiff couldn't hear him. With a clang, the abbot had unknowingly placed a knife against the mastiff's neck. He gasped, "I'm exhausted. You've harmed the people; today I'll kill you." He raised his sword to strike. By then, the mastiff had no time to dodge and could only await its fate.

Just as the abbot was about to strike, an infant ran out and pounced on the Tibetan mastiff. Curious, the abbot looked at the baby beneath him, then at the trembling goat beside him, and understood. The mastiff wasn't trying to harm anyone; it was forced to do so to survive the infant. The abbot put down his knife, picked up the baby, and said to the mastiff, "From today onward, you are forbidden to steal from the village."

The child seemed extremely unwilling, crying as he reached out his little hand to the giant Tibetan mastiff after being picked up by the abbot. However, the giant mastiff didn't try to stop him, but looked at the infant with reluctance. Perhaps, entrusting a human child to another human was the best solution. After the abbot left with the baby, the mastiff crawled out of its den, gazing at the moonlight and letting out a long howl. ======================================================================================= Chapter Seven: The Mastiff and Zijun (Part Two) - Yi Ge's Spirit - Collected and Organized by

Unexpectedly, ten years later, the Tibetan Mastiff and the grown-up child met again. One day, the child went out to play and heard the sounds of animals tearing and fighting in the woods. Curious, he ran over to investigate. He saw several wolves surrounding a large Tibetan Mastiff. One wolf pounced, but the Mastiff knocked it to the ground with a single swipe of its paw. One wolf fell, and another appeared; countless wolves surrounded the Mastiff. The pack swarmed forward. The Mastiff's strength and abilities were limited, and it was injured by the combined attack. However, it seemed this Mastiff was extremely experienced in combat; although bitten by the wolves, it managed to avoid attacks on vital areas.