Chapter 11: Driving Away a Hundred Ghosts (2)

After resting for a short while, Old Man Jiang pointed to the northwest corner of the courtyard and said to my parents, “Stand over there to avoid getting caught in the impact later.”

My parents quickly went over as soon as they heard him. Who would go looking to clash with that kind of thing when they had nothing better to do.

In truth, setting up the formation and drawing talismans were all preparation. This was the moment when Old Man Jiang truly began the work of exorcising evil.

He lit three sticks of incense, raised them high above his head, and once again chanted under his breath. After finishing, he respectfully used a special method to place the incense into the burner. At the same time, he stamped his feet, his whole body shook, and his gaze suddenly became even more spirited than before. His entire presence grew stronger, even carrying a faint oppressive pressure.

Then Old Man Jiang used that familiar gesture to lightly tap his brow and closed his eyes. He clearly looked much more relaxed than before. With a loud shout of “Open,” a faint red glow flashed across his brow.

But Old Man Jiang still did not open his eyes. Instead, he stood in the courtyard continuing his chanting. He then formed a strange hand gesture and pointed at three places on his body. After that, all the outward aura and pressure he had been releasing completely vanished.

Finally, Old Man Jiang began stepping in a special pattern, chanting as he slowly moved. His steps were erratic and scattered. When the final step landed, his feet settled into a strange angle and he stopped moving completely.

Submit the petition to invite the deity.

Open the eye to observe the situation.

Seal the body and stabilize the soul.

Seal the Seven Stars footwork to stabilize the spirit.

Before using the true hand seals, Old Man Jiang smoothly completed all these necessary steps like flowing water. Without this, recklessly performing seals would be extremely dangerous.

Next, Old Man Jiang raised both hands to about three inches from his chest and began forming the first hand seal. It was still so complex that it was impossible to clearly distinguish it, still accompanied by chanting, but this time the completed seal carried an indescribable rhythm.

Among the intertwined fingers, one finger stood upright while the others formed a surrounding star-like pattern, giving a sense of gathering.

As expected, with the final syllable of Old Man Jiang’s chant, gusts of swirling wind rose in the courtyard, all converging toward where he stood.

Seeing the whirlwinds rise and converge toward Old Man Jiang, my mother anxiously pinched the hem of her clothes. At Widow Zhou’s house, she had seen wandering ghosts coming to collect paper money before, when winds rose from flat ground and spun like this.

Ordinary people would still fear being struck by it. Even if Old Man Jiang was skilled and bold, he should not be able to handle something like this. There were over twenty whirlwinds.

But what my mother feared did not happen. Old Man Jiang did not even open his eyes. He pushed both arms forward and quickly formed another hand seal. At the same time, he resumed stepping, his footwork slightly different from before, wide and forceful, almost like a dance, though still irregular and without clear pattern.

A strange thing happened. As Old Man Jiang formed the next seal, the whirlwinds suddenly disappeared, as if they had been frozen in place. Only then did my father clearly see the seal. Because of the strange finger positions, it was impossible to tell which finger was which. The only clear detail was a palm facing forward, with the thumb and little finger pinched together.

Old Man Jiang did not stop moving. He continued drifting through the courtyard with strange steps. Even more bizarre things followed. Wherever his hand seals pointed, whirlwinds appeared again, and this time they all blew toward the ritual altar.

The altar was not far from my parents. Seeing the whirlwinds coming, even my father turned pale. Faced with something so supernatural, they did not dare act on their own and could only stand still without making a sound, afraid of disturbing Old Man Jiang.

But soon they were no longer worried and instead became even more shocked. The whirlwinds could not pass the altar. On the side facing the wind, the yellow cloth was clearly being blown up, yet the wind could not reach the other side. The altar showed a strange phenomenon where one side of the cloth fluttered violently while the other side remained completely still.

Old Man Jiang kept pointing his hand seals in all directions, and whirlwinds kept rising and surging toward the altar. After a long while, they finally subsided.

At this point, my parents both let out a breath of relief. Even if they did not understand, they could tell the ritual was likely finished. Just as they were about to step forward, they suddenly heard Old Man Jiang’s voice explode like thunder in the courtyard.

“Stubborn and unyielding, do you truly want me to scatter your soul?”

The roar carried tremendous force. My mother broke out in goosebumps, as if something inside her had been startled. My father felt the same.

They did not know that this roar carried his cultivation power and a sealing technique, creating a natural suppression over wandering spirits. Even ordinary living souls could feel it.

After that roar, there was no movement in the courtyard. Old Man Jiang, still with closed eyes, seemed angered and let out cold laughter. Suddenly he raised both hands above his head, standing straight like a spear, while continuing his chanting.

When the chant ended and the seal was formed, even my father was shocked by its power. He could not describe its shape, only that two upright fingers held slightly together felt like a heavy blade that one must avoid its edge.

“Do you want me to strike it down?” Old Man Jiang’s voice echoed like rolling thunder through the courtyard. His entire presence was condensed to the extreme, like a battlefield general about to deliver a fatal blow.

With that question, an unprecedented whirlwind rose again in the courtyard and blew toward the altar. When it reached it, even the clear water on the altar spilled slightly, but it still could not pass. It gradually came to a stop.

Old Man Jiang slowly released his seal and opened his eyes. His expression was extremely exhausted, but he still nodded to signal my parents that they could move.

Seeing this, my mother quickly went inside and brought a cup of tea for Old Man Jiang. After he drank it, she went to fetch a stool. She also glanced at me in the room and saw that I was sleeping peacefully, my expression calmer and more relaxed than usual. She shook her head, unsure if it was just her imagination.

My father walked over to Old Man Jiang, who was cleaning up the altar, and asked with deep admiration, “Master Jiang, have those things been destroyed?”

Old Man Jiang picked up a blue talisman from the altar and held it in front of my father. “They are all sealed inside. Do you want it? I can give it to you.”

My father jumped back in fright, waving his hands repeatedly. “No, no, Master Jiang, you should keep it. I would not know what to do with it.”

My mother brought out a stool. Old Man Jiang sat down and rested for a while before saying, “This time I am sending Third Son some merit, intentionally accumulating blessings for him. I still need a friend to help out and deal with Widow Zhou’s matter as well. I will be away for a few days, not long. Third Son is already fine now, remember to take good care of his body.”

My parents nodded repeatedly. My mother even asked, “Master Jiang, will you still have a late night meal here tonight, still vegetarian?”

Upon hearing this, Old Man Jiang jumped up angrily and said, “Vegetarian my ass, I have worked myself to exhaustion just waiting for meat and alcohol tonight.”

That night, Old Man Jiang finished dinner and returned to the mountain. Before leaving, he said, “Tomorrow I will set out. Once this matter is resolved, I will come back and talk to you about Third Son.”

The next day after Old Man Jiang left, my mother went to Widow Zhou’s house and told her what he had said. When Widow Zhou heard that he was willing to help, she was overjoyed.

However, her condition was truly getting worse. Her face was pale, she could barely eat, and her body was constantly icy cold. My mother could only sigh at the sight.

But fortunately, my condition had improved. As my father put it, I was almost too expensive to raise.

Why? Ever since the day of Old Man Jiang’s ritual, my appetite had greatly increased. Apart from Glug glug finishing the milk my father prepared for me, I also ate some rice porridge.

From then on, even the daily milk was not enough, and I had to eat rice porridge as well. My father originally wanted me to live on milk alone every day, but unfortunately our family did not have that ability.