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墨書 Inktalez
"He agreed," Shifu said happily.
The master nodded and sat back down on the sofa. He picked up the tea beside him, took a sip, and casually crossed his legs. He seemed like a leisurely old man, completely unconcerned about what A-Zan might do.
A-Zan exchanged a few words with Shifu, then turned to the master and said, "He claims this is a unique secret technique that cannot be demonstrated in front of experts, so he needs me to go into a room with him or for you all to step aside."
The master glanced at the five burly men lying on the ground and replied, "Understood. You two can go to the room."
A-Zan and Shifu each carried two Guman Child containers into a small room on the second floor, while my senior sister and I sat down beside the master.
"Master, you're amazing," my senior sister said.
"You’re pretty impressive too. You slapped that person speaking Chinese and gave A-Zan a good whack with that artifact," the master chuckled.
My senior sister laughed as well and said to me, "I just have to be tough. If you weren't here, I would probably be at a disadvantage. Sigh, who told me I’m so small and still a girl?"
The master nodded, looking at us both as he said, "You both did great. I'm very pleased." This was the first time the master had praised us so openly, making us feel a bit awkward.
I glanced at the several people on the ground who had already fainted and asked, "Master, when will these people wake up?"
The master looked at the clock on the wall and replied, "These individuals have been heavily afflicted by Yin Qi and need Talisman Water to be resolved. I've already instructed Shifu to finish selling the house and car by tomorrow morning; we’ll take an afternoon flight out of here."
"What a pity. I really like this place; I haven't even had a proper chance to explore. Junior brother, will you come back with me next time?" my senior sister murmured, her expression suddenly darkening as sadness washed over her; she remembered the master's divine punishment.
I didn’t respond to her but merely nodded slightly. Master's Wife returned to her usual self and sat beside my senior sister, saying, "Jingjing, I think you and your junior brother make quite a pair. How about..."
The master interrupted Master's Wife, saying, "Alright, tomorrow afternoon we’ll head to Mankut. I need to meet someone there. We can stay in Mankut for a few days; you two can have some fun before we return home."
"Back to the temple?" I quickly asked. Previously, it sounded like the master wouldn’t return again; I thought he wanted to spend March 3rd in Thailand. I didn’t expect he still intended to go back.
The master shook his head and said, "No, back to our hometown in Hunan."
Then the master explained this situation to us. He mentioned that A-Zan was just an ordinary figure in Thailand. In fact, many people there deal with spirits and possess considerable abilities; thus, one should avoid offending local practitioners unless absolutely necessary.
He also told us that he could forcibly refine those little ghosts into lingering spirits attached directly to those four Thais. This would directly solve Shifu's problem; however, this method was similar to what A-Zan used for refining Guman Child—it required the original person for resolution, which ordinary practitioners could do nothing about.
However, his time was running out. If the soul of the Underworld left, then these few people would be completely finished. So he did not take that step.
My master told us to leave a line when dealing with others, no matter how great the grievances. One should never push someone to the brink unless absolutely necessary. There is no eternal hatred in this world, only unresolved emotional knots. Many people live unhappily simply because they harbor such knots in their hearts. He also said, "Remember, wealth, health, hatred, emotions, and even feelings are all ephemeral."
"Is your relationship with the Master's Wife also ephemeral?" I asked earnestly.
The master nodded and replied, "At every stage of life, we have our own missions and responsibilities. For example, your current mission is to change your fate. This change is ephemeral for both your past self and your future self. You are here seeking to change your fate because you have reached a point where it is necessary. Once this phase passes, whether you succeed or fail in changing your fate will become part of the past. Afterward, you won't need to dwell on it anymore. Therefore, everything will eventually become part of the past. Every choice we make, as long as we walk the right path, will not lead to regret."
I nodded in partial understanding and continued to ask, "How do you know if you're on the right path?"
The master pointed to his heart and said, "There is no absolute right or wrong in this world. For me, following this path means that even if I am wrong, it is still right. Not following this path means that even if I am right, it is still wrong."
"Then what about those wicked people who violate moral codes and follow their hearts to do bad things? Is that also right?" This question came from my senior sister.
The master shook his head again and said, "This is about conscience. Those who do bad things are not following their hearts; they are following their selfish desires. Such a starting point already contradicts their true nature."
After finishing his words, the master smiled at the Master's Wife, who was looking back at him with a warm and appreciative gaze.
Listening to my master's words gave me a clearer idea of how to navigate my future path. I even felt that whether or not I changed my fate was no longer important; whether my life was long or short didn't matter either. What mattered was that I needed to walk each stage of life properly. I believed that only such a life could be considered valuable.
When Shifu and A-Zan emerged after four hours, A-Zan was drenched in sweat and looked pale. It seemed he had transferred the contracts of the four Guman Children onto himself. Since that was the case, it was fine; he was meant for this role anyway. It was only a matter of time before he would shake off the backlash from these Guman Children. However, his upcoming days would likely not be easy.
This could be seen as just desserts.
After A-Zan came out, he asked Shifu if he could wake them all up. Shifu took out five red talismans and prepared five bowls of Talisman Water on the tea table, saying, "Tomorrow afternoon at three o'clock, feed this to them and everything will be fine. But before that, you'll have to endure a bit."
A-Zan nodded in understanding and thanked him.
Next, Shifu and I tied A-Zan's hands behind a chair. A-Zan did not resist because he knew that any struggle or cleverness before this Chinese Taoist Priest would be futile.
The next morning, after Shifu completed all the transfer procedures, he did not bring anyone home but signed contracts at an agency instead.
By noon, we packed our things and left Chiang Mai. Before leaving, Shifu lit two coils of incense and hung them on the rope binding A-Zan. Once the incense burned out, it would sever the rope so A-Zan could use Talisman Water to awaken the others. By then, we would already be on our flight to Mankut.
Upon arriving in Mankut, Shifu took us to meet someone—an acquaintance he had found during his previous visit to Mankut. This person was an old friend of Shifu's who dealt in Amulets there but only sold authentic ones; these were almost considered a form of faith and had nothing to do with spirits. It was through him that Shifu gained access to a place specializing in refining Guman Children. There he learned much about Guman Children which enabled him to quickly devise a method for controlling the spirits within them using Feng Shui techniques.
This also explains why Master, despite having foreseen the imminent danger, still had to make a trip to Mankut. Without this journey, he would not have been able to accomplish the things that followed.
After spending a few days in Mankut, Master cooperatively allowed us to explore various local attractions. We visited many famous temples and experienced the local culture of Thailand. Under our persuasion, Master even indulged in a traditional Thai massage. During those days, he seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself. It was hard to tell whether his happiness was for our benefit or truly heartfelt, but that didn’t matter much.
When we returned to Hunan, only half a month remained until the third day of the third month. Master took us back to his hometown, and he didn’t inform anyone about it; I didn’t tell my family either. This time, we just wanted to quietly accompany him through these last few weeks.
After returning to the country, Shifu went back to Guangdong where his wife and children were. He could finally enjoy a stable life there.
Master's old house was a very ordinary tile-roofed building with two stories; the upper floor was made of wooden boards while the lower floor was constructed from mud bricks. He told us that he had lived in this place for over fifty years but left for Guangdong due to opposition from his peers and friends regarding his relationship with Master's Wife. This return could be seen as coming home.
On the day we returned to his hometown, it was drizzling lightly. The lock on the Main Hall's door had rusted shut. I found a stone and spent quite some time breaking it open.
Just as Master pushed open the door, a strong flash of lightning suddenly streaked across the sky. He looked up at the overcast sky and murmured, "Heh, can’t wait half a month anymore?"
There have been many things to take care of lately, so I can't guarantee updates by eight o'clock every night, but there will still be updates—just a bit later than usual. Thank you all for your votes!
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