Wu Xin: The Monster Killer

Chapter 21 An Encounter with a Taoist Priest

Yue Qiluo firmly believed she needed nourishment, even wishing she could continue growing at the age she was a hundred years ago. She was convinced she was a natural beauty, but unfortunately, her youth had frozen in her early teens. It would be such a pity if a flower that had just begun to bloom didn't finally blossom.

With her thin lips pouting, she sucked on the tender, tofu-like baby meat with relish. The meat was as soft as soup, and the soup as soft as meat. She ate and drank it all, meat and soup alike, until suddenly she let out a satisfied burp. She asked, "Big brother, why aren't you eating?"

Wuxin shook his head in the rising steam: "I am human, and humans don't eat each other."

Yue Qiluo spat out a thin bone: "Who says people don't eat each other? Haven't you seen people eat each other?"

Wu Xin replied, "Those who are eaten will die, and those who eat others will also die. Rather than that, it's better not to eat at all."

Yue Qiluo stretched out her arm and used her chopsticks to scoop the food out of the casserole: "Brother, it's a pity your flesh and blood are poisonous, otherwise I would definitely want to taste you."

After a moment's thought, he asked, "Is Duan Sanlang tasty?"

Yue Qiluo changed the spoon and scooped out the minced meat with lingering relish: "You know Duan Sanlang too? Duan Sanlang is no good. I only collected his soul to play with back then. When I got tired of him, I let him die."

Wu Xin chuckled lightly: "But the Duan family didn't let you off easily either!"

Yue Qiluo pursed her lips, smiled slightly, and tilted her head at him: "What is the Duan family? Just a fallen family. If someone wants to deal with me, they'll find an opportunity no matter what; Duan Sanlang's life is their opportunity!"

Wu Xin looked at her with interest: "Who is 'he'?"

Yue Qiluo took a sip of the broth, then shook the spoon at him: "I'm not telling you."

Wuxin stood up: "I'm leaving."

Yue Qiluo put down her spoon: "Don't leave!"

Without a second thought, she turned and ran, dashing out of the restaurant in an instant. Seeing she couldn't catch up, Yue Qiluo immediately stood up and pulled a long string of paper figures from her bosom. The paper figures flew into the air, and at the same time, she chanted incantations, drawing talismans in the air. Finally, she abruptly flicked her sleeve towards the window and shouted, "Go!"

The paper figures drifted out of the window on the wind, vaguely transforming into human shapes, baring their teeth and claws as they chased after Wuxin. Wuxin wasn't afraid, but he was too lazy to fight with a bunch of paper figures. He ran for two miles in one breath, then suddenly had the idea to turn at a fork in the road, only to be nearly crushed into a pancake by a speeding open-top carriage.

The carriage was very imposing, with two Arabian horses pulling it side by side at the front and two bright storm lanterns hanging behind. The driver hurriedly pulled on the reins, and with a shout and a neighing of horses, the carriage came to an abrupt halt. The person in the back seat was caught off guard and fell forward with a scream. Without warning, there was a "thud" as a whisk fell from the sky and hit them squarely on the head.

Wuxin realized he had caused trouble and quickly bent down to pick up his whisk. The passengers who had fallen flat on their faces got up on their own. Wuxin glanced at the man and saw that he was a dignified Taoist priest wearing a Taoist hat and robe. The priest flicked his sleeves, bowed to Wuxin, and said loudly, "May the Heavenly Venerable grant you boundless blessings!"

Wu Xin hadn't expected the Taoist to be so cultured; even after falling flat on his face, he didn't curse. He respectfully offered his whisk with both hands, about to apologize, when the Taoist suddenly changed his expression and slapped him hard across the face: "You good-for-nothing! What are you doing running around in the middle of the night? What if you'd seriously hurt me? Could you afford to pay for it?"

Unexpectedly, he was slapped across the face. He immediately covered his face and angrily asked, "Who are you? How dare you hit me like that?"

The Taoist priest, standing beside the lantern, raised his pale face and arrogantly replied, "My Taoist name is Chuchenzi. Even the current president calls me a True Man. I've beaten you tonight, are you still not satisfied?"

Wu Xin swallowed his anger and pointed behind him: "Taoist priest, there are ghosts ahead! I kindly came to stop you, and you don't even appreciate it?"

Chuchenzi sneered, snatched the whisk from his arm, and then turned and arrogantly got into the carriage. Once seated properly, he flicked the whisk and said dismissively, "What a joke! I'm here; let's see who dares to cause trouble!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a white figure appeared and disappeared ahead—it was the paper figure that had been pursuing them. The coachman got into the carriage, clearly frightened, brandishing his whip but not daring to utter a sound. Chu Chenzi, however, scoffed and said in a booming voice, "Don't be afraid, let's go!"

The coachman closed his eyes, cracked the whip, and the carriage clattered along the road again. The further the carriage went, the fainter the figures became. When the carriage turned onto the main road, the figures vanished without a trace. Chuchenzi, feeling smug, took out a white silk handkerchief and wiped the dust from his palms. He tossed the handkerchief behind him with the wind, but then felt something was wrong. He turned around abruptly and came face to face with Wuxin!

Wuxin, who had been clinging to the back of the car seat, was spotted by Chuchenzi. He quickly scrambled over the seat and sat down next to Chuchenzi. The two stared at each other for a moment before Wuxin finally spoke: "Daoist Master, are you the abbot of Qingyun Temple?"

Chuchenzi didn't answer, but frowned and demanded, "Who let you get on the car? Get off!"

Wu Xin sized up Chu Chenzi, thinking to himself that this man seemed to have some skill, and he couldn't let him off easily. Even if he refused to help, it would be good if he could provide a few talismans.

Unwilling to make any plans, Yue Qiluo lingered in the carriage, refusing to get off. She stayed there all the way to Qingyun Temple. At dawn, Yue Qiluo left the restaurant and headed alone towards Wen County.

Before leaving, she played a prank, making the shopkeeper and his wife sit at the messy table. After leaving, she released their souls, and in a short while, the couple would return to life. Faced with a table full of bones, Yue Qiluo couldn't imagine their reaction.

She could never get enough of these kinds of tricks. If she didn't intentionally mention Duan Sanlang, she might truly forget him completely. Duan Sanlang's death was quite dramatic; he was her second puppet. Her first puppet was her little maid, who certainly didn't understand why she loved her mistress so deeply—because her soul had fallen into her mistress's hands.

Yue Qiluo wanted to find a place to stay. Since Wuxin didn't like being human, she would use humans to conquer him. But what good would conquering him do? It seemed pointless. She couldn't eat Wuxin, and even if she refined him into a pill, she wouldn't dare consume it. Make him love her and stay with her? But that would eventually become tiresome, and besides, he didn't love her at all.

The road Yue Qiluo was walking on was very secluded, and no one else was passing by. She reached inside her clothes to cover one of her slightly protruding breasts, and squinted her left eye in the glaring sunlight.

A single, unintentional drop of blood adorned his right eye; he was already blind.

That evening, he had no heart to go home.

Everything was peaceful at home, and Crescent Moon was eagerly awaiting his return. Wuxin took a stack of paper talismans from his robes and handed them to Lord Gu: "These were personally drawn by the abbot of Qingyun Temple. If these still don't work, then I'm out of options!"

Lord Gu hadn't slept well all night and had a stiff neck. He craned his neck and examined the paper talismans one by one. After finishing, he perked up: "Master, you're amazing! Shall we go up the mountain again tonight?"

Wuxin took the towel from Yueya's hand and wiped her head and face thoroughly: "We're not going, you go by yourself!"

Lord Gu's mouth dropped open: "Huh?"

Wuxin handed the towel back to Yueya: "Do you know how arrogant that Taoist priest at Qingyun Temple is? I shamelessly begged him to draw so many pictures for me. Lord Gu, think about it honestly, haven't I done more than enough for you?"

Hearing Wuxin's words, Yueya felt a surge of energy; he wasn't a cowardly husband. Meanwhile, Lord Gu was completely dumbfounded, clutching the paper talisman, speechless.

He ignored him and called Yueya into the west room. He took out a piece of paper and a pen, and had Yueya take out the yellow talisman from her purse. He copied it exactly, intending to go to Qingyun Temple again to have Chuchenzi identify its origin. He couldn't just sit at home waiting for Yue Qiluo to come knocking; he had to prepare early.

However, he didn't say much to Yueya, especially not mentioning Yue Qiluo. He was afraid that if he said too much, he would frighten Yueya.

Three days later, Lord Gu hesitated and did not go up the mountain alone, while Wuxin took a long trip to Qingyun Temple.

Qingyun Temple is located on Qingyun Mountain, and its majestic presence resembles a heavenly palace. To be fair, apart from its appealing name, Qingyun Mountain is not much better than Zhutou Mountain in any other aspect. It is only because of Qingyun Temple that it has become a remarkable scenic spot.

Qingyun Temple belongs to the Zhengyi sect, and the atmosphere inside is relatively free. Wuxin, led by the young Taoist priest, bypassed the main hall, passed through several doors and turned several corners, and finally met Master Chuchenzi in a quiet and picturesque courtyard.

Chuchenzi, dressed in a snow-white silk jacket and trousers, his hair disheveled, stood in the veranda, holding a glass of Martell from the capital. Looking down at Wuxin, he leaned against a pillar, taking a sip of the wine. "I heard you have a strange talisman you want to show me?" he said.

Having no intention of asking for anything, he respectfully unfolded a folded sheet of white paper with both hands and presented it to Chuchenzi. Chuchenzi took it and examined it twice, his well-maintained white face expressionless: "Where did you trace this from?"

Wuxin replied, "From a coffin."

Chuchenzi suddenly laughed, revealing two crow's feet that resembled those of someone in their forties: "I don't understand."

Wuxin nodded and cupped his hands in greeting to Chuchenzi: "I apologize for disturbing you, Daoist Master. Since you don't understand, I'll have to take my leave. Oh, Daoist Master, let me tell you something else—the person in the coffin came out a while ago."

With a crisp "crack", Chuchenzi's glass wine glass slipped from his hand and shattered on the stone floor.

(End of this chapter)