Knife splashing

Chapter 330: The World and Human Heart
Once the body is out of the coffin, it naturally needs to be reburied.

This kind of thing is usually done by filial sons and grandchildren.

Although Shen Jingyu, the eldest son of the Shen family, had died, he left behind a seven-year-old child. Together with Shen Jinghong, with the help of servants, they helped to cleanse the deceased's body with clean water.

Of course, it is just a symbolic wipe on the face, limbs, chest and abdomen, which is called "Five Blessings and Six Longevity".

At the same time, he would mutter: "Old man, you love cleanliness all your life, your son will help you clean it..."

Shen Jinghong's mood had calmed down, but when he saw the stitched scars on his father's body, tears started to flow again.

Afterwards, the body was carried for burial.

The poor put straw under their bodies and rice and tea in their mouths. But the Shen family was different. They first put wood ash at the bottom of the coffin, and then put a thick quilt on it.

The gilt-bronze key is in my hand,
Beads must also be placed in the mouth of the corpse.

And having done all this is just the beginning.

After all, he had just faked a corpse, and if it was not dealt with in time, it would cause trouble again sooner or later. Therefore, Wang Daoxuan did not even take a rest and directly set up an altar to perform rituals.

Nine lotus lanterns were placed in a circle in front of the coffin, with a tile placed on the two stone bricks in the middle.

This is called the Nine Hells Divine Lamp, and the ritual of breaking through the prison lamp is performed in order to transcend the soul, eliminate the resentment of the dead, and perform salvation.

Wang Daoxuan opened the altar with water spitting out of his mouth, rang the soul-calming bell, then pasted a yellow talisman, held the golden sword in his hand, stepped on the Gang step, and chanted non-stop.

“…Dead souls enter the evil path, how can they ever see the clear sky? Alas, the dead are suffering, the hills and forests are dark, today I will save the dead, and I only hope that they will be reborn…”

Call ~
As the spell was chanted, a cold wind blew in the courtyard.

In front of the coffin, there was a clay basin with burning paper, and the ashes of the paper wrapped around the flames formed a whirlwind that lasted for a long time.

This scene made everyone in the Shen family stand in awe.

Li Yan stood in the distance with his arms folded, laughing in his heart.

He is no longer a rookie and knows the ins and outs of this.

The difficulty of this "Hell-Breaking Lantern Ceremony" lies in two points: one is to eliminate the resentment of the deceased, and the other is to borrow the power of the ancestors to send him to the underworld.

But as the saying goes, experts see the details, while laymen see the excitement.

Only those in the Xuanmen can perceive the process.

The flames forming a whirlwind may seem spectacular, but in fact it is formed by the evil energy of the formation altar, just for the sake of showing off.

If not, how would the owner know that they had done the work?
Of course, not everyone has to be busy.

He was here to protect the law. Sharifei, Lu San, and the wild man Wuba, led by the housekeeper, came to an empty yard, put down their luggage, washed up, and ate.

This ritual lasted until late at night.

Everyone from the Shen family nearby felt a little drowsy.

Click!

At this moment, the tiles suddenly shattered.

In an instant, the cold wind in the yard stopped and the brazier returned to normal.

Wang Daoxuan then wiped the sweat from his forehead, packed up the magic tools, and said to Shen Jinghong: "Mr. Shen, your father's soul has been at peace. Next, we will follow the normal steps. There is no need to hide it anymore."

"Thank you, Taoist Master."

Shen Jinghong heaved a sigh of relief when he heard this.

He had just asked the housekeeper, and the situation of the Shen family was really not good.

The loss at the kiln was not a big deal, after all, the place was still there, and as long as it was managed slowly, things would improve. But troubles followed.

On the government side, the county magistrate said some words of comfort when he saw Mr. Shen had passed away, but those cunning officials repeatedly came to the door to extort money under the pretext of investigating the case...

The villagers received no compensation, and those who died were the backbone of the family. Goudan's mother was weak-willed and jumped into the river in despair, which made the villagers in Shenjiaba village resentful...

Mr. Shen's funeral was held, the door was closed, and rumors spread...

Now that this matter has been resolved, everything else will be easy.

Shen Jinghong even had a plan in mind.

As the saying goes, even if the donkey falls, the frame remains. Tomorrow we will hold a grand funeral, and at the same time provide relief to the villagers, win over the hearts of the people and let others see that there is no chaos in our family.

At that time, they asked their father’s friends in the Chamber of Commerce for help. The Ezhou Chamber of Commerce would stand up for them and put pressure on the Jiangxia County government…

Thinking of this, Shen Jinghong hurriedly said, "Master, you have worked hard. Uncle Shen, take Master and Young Master Li to wash up and have dinner."

"Yes, Master."

The old butler raised his hand quickly, "Please come this way, both of you."

Although the old butler was also tired, he was relieved to see that the second young master was handling things in an orderly manner and had begun to take charge of the household.

Li Yan and Wang Daoxuan returned to the courtyard. Sha Lifei and Lu San had just closed their eyes for a while and were still in good spirits.

As for the savage Wuba, he was snoring loudly.

Li Yan didn't bother to respond, but looked at Wang Daoxuan, "Master, is this matter a bit troublesome today?"

This kind of ritual normally wouldn't take so long.

Wang Daoxuan shook his head and said, "This Mr. Shen is too obsessed. In addition, he has raised a corpse before. We must first disperse his spirit before we can let his soul enter the netherworld."

"This kind of obsession is really rare."

Li Yan said thoughtfully: "The secret method of the Black Cloud Long Sword is not something that ordinary people can possess. Mr. Shen has built up such a large family business. If Mr. Shen can see it, there is no way he can't have thought of it."

"You are so persistent, maybe there is another hidden reason..."

"of course!"

Sharifei became interested. "It must be related to the treasure. So many people are fighting for it, it must be an astonishing treasure! What did the "Book of Jin" say? I can't remember it clearly."

"There were several torches coming out from the city, shaped like large carts..."

Li Yan repeated it, feeling inexplicably strange.

If we look at this description from the perspective of the previous life, we would definitely think it is a UFO, but in this world, there is obviously another reason.

A flying fireball, like a huge car, covered with a white curtain, flew across the night sky...

I really can't imagine what it could be.

Sharifei whispered, "How about we look for it while we're at it?"

Li Yan pondered for a moment, shook his head and said, "Mr. Shen spent most of his life searching for it, but never found anything. Even if it's still there, it's not that easy to find."

"Let's focus on finding the 'Centipede'. The Shen family will be holding a funeral next. Uncle Sha, you accompany Taoist Wang, and I will take Brother Lu and Wu Ba to investigate secretly."

"Brother Lu, pay attention to the surroundings."

"Row!"

After making the arrangements, Li Yan and Wang Daoxuan returned to their rooms, concentrated their minds for a while, and then fell asleep directly.

For them, life here is much easier.

Unlike the three cities of Wuchang, this place is already in the countryside. Not to mention masters, even people from the Xuanmen sect are rare.

Lu San blew a whistle, and Rat One and Rat Two immediately crawled out of their skin bags and climbed quickly to the small courtyard outside.

It was a monster after all. Although its skills were average, it was not good at fighting, and it was a bit fat from eating too much, but its movements were still agile. It quickly jumped onto the roof and squeaked a few times.

Soon, the rats in the Shen family's yard began to pop out one by one.

"Meow!"

However, a cat's meowing sound was also heard. It turned out that the Shen family also raised a few tabby cats, which were very ferocious and immediately scared the mice away.

Lu San had no choice but to call a few more times before the tabby cats hesitated and stopped catching mice.

Although there aren't many rats around, they serve as a layer of warning, guarding every corner. If anything goes wrong, Rat Rat Two will sound the alarm.

In Wuchang City, Lu San was very familiar with this method.

"Squeak!"

Soon, Rat Da shouted, "Someone left?"

Lu San frowned and shook his head, saying, "Don't worry about it, as long as no one breaks in in the middle of the night."

After saying that, he started fiddling with his buds.

This bone has been rebuilt and is even more powerful. It also comes with a dozen magazines, but in a cylindrical shape. Just unscrew the bone and put it inside, then you can pull the trigger to fire.

Of course, a magazine can only hold one round.

But compared to before, it is already very fast...

…………

In the side yard of the Shen family, next to the wall of the woodshed.

There is also a side door here, which is usually frequented by servants. After all, it is not convenient to enter through the main door when transporting firewood, pork and other sundries.

squeak~
The side door slowly opened, and a figure tiptoed out, locked the door, and quickly left the Shen family mansion.

It was a dark and windy night, but the village was not completely plunged into darkness. There were still a few houses with bonfires burning, indicating that people were keeping vigil.

In the darkness, the figure raised his head. He was tall and thin, with triangular eyes and fan-shaped ears. He was none other than the son of the second master of the Shen family, Shen Jingcan.

He looked around vigilantly, grabbed the hem of his gown, tucked it into his belt, and ran out of the village quietly.

Wang Wang!

The old dog in the village heard the noise and barked a few times.

Shen Jingcan walked hurriedly. After leaving the village, he ran as fast as he could, panting heavily, with excitement in his eyes.

After about three incense sticks of time, he came to a small temple, which was built by the lake. It was not very large, with only a main hall, two side rooms, and was surrounded by low walls.

This is a water temple.

There are many rivers and lakes in Ezhou, so the most common ones are temples dedicated to water gods, most of which are dedicated to General Yang Si, and there are also many dedicated to local water gods.

Like this water temple, it is the Dragon Girl Temple.

According to legend, the daughter of the Dragon King of the East China Sea secretly left the Dragon Palace and came to the human world, where she met a fisherman in Liangzi Lake and married him.

But the little dragon girl violated the heavenly rules and was eventually transformed back into a fish by the Dragon King and exiled to the Yangtze River. The fisherman never married and after his death, his ashes were scattered into the lake, and since then, the Dragon Girl Water Temple has been built.

It was pitch black inside the temple, and Shen Jingcan climbed over the wall and entered.

call out!
As soon as he landed, a dart whizzed over and nailed directly into the ground in front of him, half of it buried in the soil.

"Master, it's me!"

Shen Jingcan didn't dare to move anymore and shouted quickly.

With a creaking sound, the wooden door of the wing room opened, and an old man walked out. He had a hunched body, a blackened face, and was wearing a Taoist robe full of patches. He looked like a somewhat shabby temple keeper.

Looking at Shen Jingcan, the old man frowned and said in a deep voice: "Didn't I tell you not to come to me if you have nothing to do? What's wrong with you in the middle of the night?"

"Master, I have something important to tell you!"

Shen Jingcan's face was filled with excitement, and he couldn't help but take a few steps forward and bow.

"Oh, come in then."

The old man narrowed his eyes and turned to go into the room.

Soon, oil lamps were lit in the room.

"Master, there is a treasure!"

Without hesitation, Shen Jingcan told the old man everything he had heard at the Shen family.

Then, he looked at the old man eagerly.

"Black Cloud City, Hall City..."

The old man seemed to be thinking about something, then looked at Shen Jingcan and said calmly: "If there is really a treasure, but it belongs to your Shen family, you are not afraid of being hated by others if you tell me like this?"

"Humph!"

Shen Jingcan snorted and gritted his teeth, "I've seen it a long time ago. As soon as Shen Jinghong came back, those people all supported him. After all, they treated us as outsiders."

"Besides, don't I know what kind of personality my father has? He doesn't care about my eldest brother, let alone me, a bastard. If he takes the money, he will definitely squander it and gamble."

As he said this, he suddenly knelt on the ground and said sadly: "In this world, only Master is good to me, disciple... wuwu..."

After a few words, she started crying.

"Ah~"

The old man sighed and helped him up. "It's rare for you to be so filial. I know it."

"Find an opportunity to copy the location on the map and hand it over to me, and I will teach you the secret method. If you can find the treasure, we will leave this broken place and fly away to become rich men!"

"Okay, I'll listen to you, Master!"

Shen Jingcan nodded quickly, stood up and bowed, saying: "There is still a funeral at home, so I can't be away for too long. I will find a chance to copy it when I get back."

"Go, be careful on the road."

The old man waved his hand and watched Shen Jingcan climb over the courtyard wall.

Not long after leaving the Water God Temple, Shen Jingcan wiped away his tears, changed his expression, and cursed in a low voice: "Damn, old man, you really won't release the eagle until you see the rabbit."

After saying that, he ran towards Shenjiabao.

After he left, the old man's face lost its kind look, and he came to the main hall of the Water God Temple holding an oil lamp.

Inside the hall, the statue of the Dragon Goddess is dignified and majestic, but both the statue and the altar are covered in dust, and it is obvious that no one has cleaned them for a long time.

The old man came to the curtain behind the statue, and with a rustling sound, he lifted up the wooden board on the ground, revealing a secret passage.

He jumped down the secret passage holding the oil lamp. Not long after he walked, he saw a faint light of fire in front of him and a cave of considerable size appeared.

There is accumulated water under the cave and a small pond in front.

On the dry stone platform on the other side of the cave, there stood a statue of Buddha, and several old men were meditating beside it.

The old man bowed respectfully and said, "Master Xiang, there is a clue."

After that, he narrated the incident.

"What kind of clue is this!"

The leading old man shook his head and said, "What the Shen family knows, we also know. The key is the method to enter the ghost town!"

Another old man advised: "Master Xiang, there is hope after all. Perhaps the places that the Shen family knows can find clues."

"Ah."

The old man nodded and looked at the Buddha statue, his eyes flickering. "A few days ago, news came in that there is indeed something wrong with Zhao Changsheng. It is the return of the leader of the Great Song Ghost Cult."

"He caused great damage to the Maitreya Sect. This hatred must be avenged sooner or later, but we must not act impulsively at the moment. We must hide and accumulate strength."

"The southwest is in chaos, and the world is in a difficult situation. It is the right time for us to preach..."

…………

Before dawn, the Shen family became lively.

The gate of the Shen family's mansion opened, and many servants rushed out. They set up a stove outside, put an iron pot as big as a table on it, and started to make a fire and cook.

At the same time, the old housekeeper also took people to knock on doors from house to house.

"The second young master is back to help the old master with his funeral. There is a big pot of food outside the house. Anyone who helps out these days will be well fed..."

"The second young master is kind and said that the Shen family cannot do without you. Don't worry, your family's pension will not be less than a copper coin, and the kiln will continue to recruit people, men, women, young and old can go..."

"Also, the young master asked someone to go to Jiangxia to invite a troupe of actors, and everyone should come to listen to the opera in the evening..."

As things were arranged one after another, the village immediately became lively.

Apart from anything else, just the provision of meals for these few days can allow the villagers to save a lot, and the payment of pensions can also help them sustain themselves for a while.

After all, most of the time, what people fear is not the hardship of the world, but the complete loss of hope...

　Second update later
　　
　
(End of this chapter)