Chapter Nine, The Old Sorcerer

In short, there are no officials or wealthy individuals among my direct relatives. With such an incident occurring, no one can assist me, and it is even less likely that I can pursue the truth and hold Lu Chengshan accountable.

I wandered aimlessly, unaware of how much time had passed or how many places I had visited. In short, Lu Chengshan sought out many individuals, including reclusive old Taoists, high monks, as well as renowned traditional Chinese medicine masters and foreign experts, yet none were able to cure me

Destruction is easy, but construction is difficult. It is not hard to shatter a person's soul, but reassembling that soul is exceedingly challenging. When the souls of a person and a demon are mixed together, separating and reuniting them becomes even more arduous. To illustrate, if one were to pour a bottle of black ink and a bottle of red ink into a cup of water simultaneously, it would be extremely difficult to separate them without damage after stirring. Separating souls is a challenge a thousand times greater than separating ink.

I know what Xianyan is; it is a place that still belongs to the primeval forest, with perilous mountain terrain, especially at the summit where sheer cliffs rise on all sides, with only one place to climb up. It is said that a long time ago, a female Taoist priest attained immortality at the peak of the mountain, frequently demonstrating miraculous feats. Consequently, a small temple was built at the summit to enshrine a deity, referred to as Xian Niang, and the mountain was thus named Xianyan.

In any case, I can no longer speak, so let them fabricate whatever they wish

Kong Yiji began to cough incessantly, then sighed, and after a long while said: "It is very serious, let me see his birth date and time."

I suddenly feel a bit excited. For such a long time, I have had no sensations other than hearing, but just now I distinctly felt him pressing on my pulse point. Now I can feel his breath entering my head. Is my body starting to improve, or does he possess some extraordinary ability?

More importantly, metaphysics has declined, and truly capable individuals are exceedingly rare. The so-called capable people and literature today are not even on par with the Taoist disciples who served several hundred years ago, which is why no one can resolve complex issues. As for emerging sciences, they cannot even ascertain the existence of the soul, let alone provide treatment

I actually felt his hand

My mother fainted before finishing the story. Life as a widow with an orphan is not easy. She has worked tirelessly to raise me, enduring hardships to support my education. After much struggle, she finally looked forward to a brighter future, only to have her vibrant son leave upright and return horizontally, with no hope left for treatment. In that moment, her heart was shattered into pieces, falling into an abyss with no bottom. An uneducated rural woman, what else could she do at this moment but cry

Now, Zhou Tan needs the Nine-Turn Revitalizing Herb from the top of Xianyan Peak as a medicinal catalyst, which has certainly caused great distress for my entire family

On that day, more than ten leaders from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Education Bureau escorted me home, creating a grand and impressive scene, which was quite flattering. They mentioned that I had suddenly suffered a stroke during class, classified as an incurable case in medical terms. Out of humanitarian considerations and the state's concern for outstanding teachers, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Education Bureau provided a subsidy of 50,000 yuan. Additionally, I was recognized as "injured in the line of duty, honorably retired," and was awarded a certificate and a commendation, allowing me to receive a monthly pension.

I once heard that Kong Yiji was a master of yin and yang, and some superstitious old men in the village often gathered with him. However, I have never heard of him capturing any ghosts or subduing any demons. Undoubtedly, he is a charlatan who deceives people for food and drink. Perhaps my grandmother was driven to madness to think of inviting him over

My mother was originally the daughter of a wealthy landlord from Zhenghe County. However, when she was born, her grandfather, who was a "local tyrant and evil gentry," had already been denounced as a class enemy, and all his property was confiscated, leading to a difficult life. Later, during the Great Famine of the 1960s, with seven or eight young children at home and facing starvation, they had no choice but to sell my mother.

I felt drowsy for a while, and when I regained my senses, I heard my grandmother accompanying someone into the room. The person was coughing all the way, with short and rapid breaths. Just from the sound of the cough, I knew who had arrived. This person was in his fifties or sixties, with sparse, greasy hair sticking to his scalp, a waxy yellow complexion, thin eyebrows, small eyes, a pointed nose, and prominent ears. His appearance was repulsive, and his character was even more despicable. His clothes were always covered with a thick layer of grease, emitting a foul odor that repelled both humans and spirits alike. This person was in his fifties or sixties, with sparse, greasy hair sticking to his scalp, a waxy yellow complexion, thin eyebrows, small eyes, a pointed nose, and prominent ears. His appearance was repulsive, and his character was even more despicable. His clothes were always covered with a thick layer of grease, emitting a foul odor that repelled both humans and spirits alike.

My mother hurriedly asked: "What is Jiuzhuan Huan Yang Cao?"

Mother and grandmother, like drowning people grasping at a straw, pleaded desperately, promising generous rewards. Indeed, the old charlatan changed his tune again: "From the perspective of the Eight Characters, facial features, and bones, there is still hope. I can give it a try, but there is one ingredient that is difficult to obtain..."

My mother hurriedly reported my date and time of birth, while Kong Yiji counted on his fingers, muttering incantations. After a long time without any response, I seriously suspected he was stalling, thinking about how to deceive my family. My illness was caused by Lu Chengshan; what does my birth date have to do with it? Although I have encountered both the hanged ghost and the fox spirit, I still have a strong aversion to charlatans, especially one as utterly despicable as this.

Kong Yiji began to examine my eyes, then pressed on my pulse for a long time, followed by feeling my skull. Finally, his yellowed "braised chicken feet" rested on my forehead, and a nauseating odor permeated my mind

The soul of the fox spirit is far more powerful than mine, but it was the first to be shattered by Lu Chengshan, losing two souls and four spirits, suffering severe injuries and being in a paralyzed state. It is also vying for control, so it cannot move my body either, resulting in a stalemate. To put it simply, I have become a vegetative state, relying solely on nutrient solutions to sustain my life.

Grandma hurriedly asked, "Are you saying to call Old Linzi?"

This old man is not only dirty but also ill, suffering from contagious tuberculosis. He coughs incessantly wherever he goes and spits indiscriminately. Despite his illness, he cannot part with his cigarettes, and his fingers have turned a charred yellow from the smoke. What is even more detestable is his laziness and gluttony; he loves to hang around other people's homes to scrounge for food, uttering polite words while being ruthless in his actions. Sometimes, he even uses his long, inch-long fingernails, resembling 'black chicken claws,' to grab food directly. Ever since I read Mr. Lu Xun's "Kong Yiji," I have referred to this man as Kong Yiji.

Grandma hurriedly asked what medicine to use, even if it meant sacrificing her own life, she was willing to do so

"Sir, is there a way?" Grandmother asked anxiously and fearfully

From their conversation, I learned about my own situation. While Lu Chengshan cast a spell to disperse the spirit of the fox demon, my own spirit was also shaken apart. Although he stopped in time and did not kill me on the spot, my spirit is already incomplete, intertwined with that of the fox demon, unable to separate from each other.

I heard my grandmother and mother respectfully address him as "Sir," inviting him to sit down while serving tea and offering cigarettes. Kong Yiji, while saying that there was no need for such formality, thoroughly enjoyed the hospitality as he sat there accepting it all. He then asked me why things were like this and what had happened, but neither my mother nor my grandmother could provide an answer; they simply did not know what had transpired with me.

In the end, only my mother, my grandmother, my uncle, and my aunt remain at home. My grandfather has passed away. My grandmother is a local and now lives with my uncle, who along with my aunt are honest people. Their child is in high school, and the family is not well-off, so they cannot provide much assistance; they can only accompany my mother in tears and sighs.

My mother later endured a lot of hardships, which she still broods over. With so many siblings, why was she the one sold? Parental favoritism cannot excuse her coldness. Therefore, even after finding her relatives, she was unwilling to associate with her maternal family. When I was accepted into a normal school, I borrowed money from several uncles, but after much pleading, I only managed to borrow a total of 500 yuan. This was a blow to both my and my mother's self-esteem, leading us to further reduce our interactions with these relatives.

"If it had been a few years ago, my illness wouldn't have been so severe, and there might have been a way..." Kong Yiji finally spoke, but it was as if he were issuing me a death notice

The human body possesses three souls and seven spirits. The three souls reside within the mind, while the seven spirits are contained within the physical body. Among the three souls, the human soul controls thought and wisdom through the heavenly spirit and the spiritual wisdom spirit found in the seven spirits. It governs the body's movements through the vital spirit, the strength spirit, and the central spirit, and regulates the essence and physical condition through the essence spirit and the heroic spirit. This is a very complex process; a single thread can affect the entire system. If any one soul or spirit becomes ineffective, it can lead to severe consequences.

Yes, it is him

Zhou Tan seems to be speaking to himself: "Although the heavenly soul and earthly soul are not within the body, as long as a person is alive, they will not truly disperse. The soul returns to its homeland and should still be able to be summoned back; although seven spirits have scattered four, they are still within the body, and there is still a possibility of reuniting. Other medicines are easy to find, but the one herb, Nine Turns to Revive Grass, is difficult to locate"

Neighbors and kind-hearted villagers came to visit me one after another, but apart from shaking their heads and sighing, offering a few words of comfort and a small token of goodwill, they were unable to provide any further assistance

The herb known as Huaiyangcao is also referred to as Huaihun Cao, Changsheng Cao, and Jian Shui Huaiyangcao. It is said to grant immortality, as it can be revived simply by drying and soaking in water. Common Huaiyangcao is relatively easy to find, but what I seek is the variety that grows on extremely high cliffs and has died and been reborn more than nine times. Within a few hundred miles of our vicinity, the only place that may have it is the sheer cliff at the top of Xianyan.

My mother and grandmother were immediately taken aback

I have lost two souls and four spirits, and the remaining one soul and two spirits are suppressed by the demon fox, rendering me completely unable to move. If it were not for my strong will to see my mother once more, I might have lost even the last remnants of my hearing and ability to think.

Zhou Tan smiled and said: "There is someone who will definitely be able to gather it, and only you, Aunt Zhang, can persuade him. As long as he is willing to go, he should first burn incense and pray at the temple, explaining that it is for the purpose of saving a life. He should not be greedy and gather other things; there should not be any problems."

Kong Yiji ... No, from now on I will still call him by his real name, Zhou Tan, Mr. Zhou

After multiple ineffective treatments, Lu Chenshan finally lost his patience. Just then, the department he was assigned to had an urgent task, so he seized the opportunity to extricate himself and arranged for me to be sent back to my hometown through the relevant authorities

Kong Yiji hesitated and said: "If I am not mistaken, his soul has not returned to its rightful place, and there is also a spirit attached to him. If we save him, the spirit will also reunite his soul. At that time, whether he can survive is not up to me, but rather depends on its mood..."

On the stone wall of the peak of Xianyan, a type of sandalwood grows, which develops slowly, taking a hundred years to become a small tree. Even a thousand-year-old tree contains only a small amount of genuine sandalwood in its heart, making it extremely precious. Who within a radius of several hundred miles does not know that sandalwood trees are valuable? To this day, no one dares to take action; the first reason is that the sheer cliff is too difficult to climb, and the second is that greedy thieves and herbalists have mysteriously fallen from the cliff in the past. Falling from a height of a hundred meters, several times they survived but were severely injured, leading to increasingly exaggerated tales. Who would still dare to go?

My mother and grandmother were dumbfounded; how could they know what to do in such a situation? Meanwhile, I was somewhat shocked that Kong Yiji could generally articulate my illness and symptoms; this was no ordinary charlatan! It was as if I had seen a glimmer of starlight in the night, finding a sliver of hope amidst despair