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墨書 Inktalez
In the realm of gossip, one must first distinguish between the innate and the acquired. When it comes to arranging formations in the wild mountains, the Primordial Bagua is typically the first consideration. Thus, the spot I began to dig was the Dry Position, also known as Position One, located directly to the south. The so-called Qian Sanlian, Kun Liuduan, Zhen Yangyu, Gen Fuwan, Li Zhongxu, Kan Zhongman, Dui Shangque, and Xun Xiaduan all come into play here. To understand the purpose of this formation, one must first excavate the buried items within the Dry Position and assess their nature.
The soil above felt dry to the touch, distinctly different from that of other areas. It even had a slight warmth to it. As I scooped out handfuls of dirt, the object beneath gradually became clearer. When I finally held it up, Liu Jian was startled and nervously asked if it was a skeleton.
I examined it closely and confirmed that it was merely a complete animal skull. The flat skull had an elongated snout with sharp teeth. Its large nasal and eye sockets suggested it belonged to a dog, though it was filled with dirt inside.
I brushed away the dirt from within and pulled out a small aluminum box, about the size of a typical pencil sharpener. The box was exquisite; despite its small size, it had a tiny latch on top. A gentle tug was enough to open it.
Seeing me retrieve such a small item, Liu Jian asked if I had unearthed some treasure and how much it might be worth. I replied that it was just an ordinary aluminum piece, probably worth only a few dollars.
As I opened the small box, a strong fishy odor wafted out—this had definitely been buried for quite some time. Yet the smell was still potent, indicating how well-sealed the box was.
The exterior was silver-white while the interior appeared mottled. Inside were three very sharp animal teeth, a piece of paper folded into a triangle, and a scrap of red cloth. Both the paper and cloth were small, along with some black powdery substance. When I pinched it between my fingers, it crumbled into dust; it must have been dried blood.
Liu Jian watched me intently as I stared at these items in silence and asked what they were. I didn’t respond but placed the box on the ground and picked up the triangular piece of paper. As I slowly unfolded it, I noticed that it was quite warm to touch—almost hot—and as I continued to open it, its temperature increased further.
When fully unfurled, I quickly scanned the characters written on it but could no longer withstand its heat. I tossed the paper aside just before it hit the ground; it ignited spontaneously and turned to ash.
Both Liu Jian and I were taken aback—Liu Jian shocked by the paper's self-ignition while my astonishment stemmed from the characters and symbols inscribed on it. Although I had never used such a talisman before, I recognized that this was historically employed by masters to deal with large numbers of spirits. Many such talismans would be used as primary materials to set up a grand formation combined with other Feng Shui methods to create a formidable Soul-Slaying Formation.
During ancient times of war, when bones piled high and vengeful spirits were countless, many Taoists would accompany armies to handle subsequent ghostly affairs. If any malevolent forces dared to command spirits to wreak havoc in the mortal realm, those Taoists would deploy this kind of Soul-Slaying Formation to eradicate them—a cruel yet direct method. Over time, due to the immense karmic burdens associated with such practices, they gradually fell out of use; these were details I had read about in books.
Of course, this type of talisman could also be used to establish Binding Formations with effects surpassing those of Confinement Talismans; however, its indiscriminate efficacy meant that it affected both Yin Chai and Yang Qi alike. This implies that if enough talismans were amassed to form a Binding Formation trapping certain Spirit Gods within, even Yin Chai would be unable to extract them.
The more I thought about it, the more shocked I became. If all eight directions contained such things, then there must be some Spirit Gods trapped in this empty space. Otherwise, who would go through such trouble to set up something like this?
The Dog Head, with its sharp teeth, and the bloodstains—if I guessed correctly, they should belong to a male creature. These are among the most powerful Yang Objects in existence, and using such things to trap spirits is undoubtedly effective.
Thinking of this, I quickly stuffed the items into the Dog Skull and buried it again. Liu Jian asked me what was wrong. I couldn’t explain everything to him clearly, so I simply said, “I don’t know. I have a bad feeling about this. Someone set this up here; it’s best not to act until we understand the situation.”
Liu Jian nodded thoughtfully and helped me bury the items, placing stones on top.
While working, he asked, “Does this have anything to do with the haunting at my house?”
I had been lost in thought and had forgotten about Liu Jian's family situation. His question made me connect the two events. The ghosts at his home—wasn’t it said that they were due to a lack of offerings? In previous years, his family had burned paper offerings here, but this year they hadn’t come on the anniversary, and now there were hauntings. It would be nonsense to say there was no connection.
Recalling the several slightly raised mounds of dirt I had seen earlier and remembering what Liu Matriarch had said about several people involved, combined with these items used for trapping spirits around here—could it be understood that those Spirit Gods causing trouble at Liu Jian's home originated from this place?
But if all eight directions contained such things, how did those Spirit Gods manage to escape?
Every formation has a sealing position, which can generally only be opened in three locations: the Kun position in the north, the Li position in the east, and the Kan position in the west. This sealing position is also an opening position; one seals while another opens. For Spirit Gods to enter or exit, they must pass through this location. So if this location still contained those Dog Skull items, it would directly prove that the Spirit Gods troubling Liu Jian’s family did not come from here.
I was deep in thought when Liu Jian noticed I wasn’t paying much attention to him anymore and fell silent. After considering everything, I dashed toward the stone at the Kun position, with Liu Jian following closely behind with tools in hand.
When we reached the stone by the Kun position, I rolled up my sleeves and began flipping it over one by one. I checked the soil underneath and felt it with my hands; just like before, there were no worms or centipedes.
Liu Jian asked if I wanted to dig it open. I replied that it wasn’t necessary and told him to cover it back up. Then I ran over to the stone at the Li position. This stone was slightly larger; I rolled up my sleeves again but found that I couldn’t move it at all. After several attempts using all my strength, I could barely lift it a little bit. Liu Jian came over to see me struggling with this stone; without saying a word, he extended both hands to help me move it aside.
The scene beneath the stone this time was vastly different from the previous two encounters, startling both me and Liu Jian. The soil inside was damp, filled with countless interwoven small holes, and numerous black centipedes were crawling around. They moved at incredible speed, scattering in all directions and disappearing into the surrounding grass. Thankfully, the centipedes were small; otherwise, it would have been quite terrifying.
Once the centipedes had fled, Liu Jian looked at me and asked if we should dig. I thought for a moment before nodding and saying, "Yes, but no matter what we find, you mustn't panic, understand?"
He paused for a moment, then nodded and replied, "It's daytime now; whatever we dig up shouldn't harm me, right?"
His last statement was a question. I nodded and assured him, "Don't worry; it won't harm you. Just take your time while digging and be careful not to damage what's underneath."
Liu Jian nodded, lifted the hoe, and began to dig into the soil. With the first strike, it seemed he hit something hard, producing a dull thud of metal against stone. I felt a jolt of alarm and quickly said, "Didn't I tell you to be careful? Why are you using so much force?"
Liu Jian replied nervously, "Who knows why this thing is buried so shallow? The Dog Head was buried so deep before."
I nodded and advised him to be gentler and to use a shovel instead. I couldn't help but wonder why something at this sealing location was buried so shallowly.
Liu Jian cautiously removed the wet soil above with the shovel until he uncovered a flat stone. He picked it up to examine it but couldn't discern anything unusual about it. Presumably, this stone was meant to prevent others from damaging whatever lay beneath. He tossed the stone aside and gestured for Liu Jian to continue digging. I couldn't help but feel a growing anticipation for what might be buried below.
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