Chapter 97: Gu Container

Yes, the hungry ghost souls had appeared. Forty eight clusters of red light shot up into the sky like masses of blood, and among them was one particularly intense red, so vivid it gave a chilling, shocking feeling.

All forty eight clusters of red light carried a sense of violent, overwhelming resentment.

I really wanted to see what the hungry ghosts looked like, so I focused my mind as I usually did. But the moment I looked, I took several steps back, because I saw that the hungry ghost soul I was staring at let out a roar at me.

Its appearance was truly terrifying, completely different from the bas relief carvings. The carvings showed small, emaciated hungry ghosts, but this hungry ghost soul was very tall. It could not be called strong, but it naturally exuded a ferocious aura. Its eyes were vicious and violent, and when it opened its mouth to roar, those huge fangs were already shocking enough, but flames were actually spewing from its mouth.

“San Wa Er, close your heavenly eye and step away. You cannot withstand the impact of the hungry ghost’s aura,” my master shouted loudly.

As soon as I heard that, I immediately opened my eyes, closed my heavenly eye, but even so I still felt my blood surge and my head spin in dizziness.

After a long while of calming myself down, I finally recovered a bit, then looked at my master struggling with his hand seals. It looked as if he was being pulled by something, forcing himself to maintain the technique.

This was the drawback of the reversed hand seals. Normally, hand seals follow the laws of nature and draw upon natural power. Reversing them is essentially going against the laws of nature, so resistance is normal.

Gale after gale swept past. I counted them. After a full forty eight waves, everything finally settled down.

Ghosts have no physical form. The only way humans can sense their existence is through disturbances in the wind, since they cause changes in the surrounding field.

Old Man Jiang finally ended the hand seals in exhaustion. I hurried over to support him. “Master, are you alright?”

“I can still hold on. Hui Jue also contributed greatly, but unfortunately in situations where physical forms are destroyed, he cannot act. He cannot even watch. He must avoid it,” Old Man Jiang said weakly.

In truth, I felt it was already remarkable. Despite having different beliefs, they were still such good friends.

He carefully folded the purple talisman and kept it on him. I asked, “Master, are we going to purify them now?”

Old Man Jiang’s expression grew especially grave. “We cannot purify them. We are missing two.”

“What?” My expression immediately changed.

Inside the bamboo forest dwelling, a single oil lamp cast a warm yellow glow, but it could not soften the heavy expressions of the three people present.

“Master, there were forty eight. I counted correctly. Why are you saying we are still short two?” This was a serious issue, I had to ask clearly.

“One gu container should contain forty nine. When Old Du took out the gu container that day, I inspected it. There were no traces of previously hatched shells inside. That means there should have been forty nine worms originally,” my master said tiredly.

“Master, how can you tell there were no previously hatched shells?” I asked.

“For these hungry ghost worms, if the incubation period exceeds ten days, the shells turn red. It is obvious at a glance,” my master said.

Hui Jue raised his eyebrows slightly, indicating agreement.

“Master, I know you must understand what happened in that tomb. Tell me,” I said. I had been holding in questions for a long time, and today I felt I had to ask.

My master glanced at me but did not speak yet. I immediately added, “Master, I am your disciple. Teaching me more is part of guiding me. Also, I want to ask, what happens if two are missing?”

Hui Jue chanted a Buddhist phrase and looked at my master sincerely. “Old Jiang, I know your intention to protect your disciple. You are too indulgent with San Wa Er. If you do not want to explain, then so be it. But he is already involved with the hungry ghost matter. You should explain it properly.”

My master was silent for a moment, then suddenly looked at Hui Jue and asked in disbelief, uncertainly, “Old monk Hui, are you suggesting I take San Wa Er into the hungry ghost tomb?”

Hui Jue again chanted a Buddhist phrase. “That is exactly what I mean.”

“You…” My master suddenly stood up, visibly agitated.

“If you want him to die early in the future, then go ahead and keep doing this. A chick cannot stay forever under the mother hen’s wings, and a young eagle cannot forever refuse to spread its wings. Do you not understand?” Hui Jue said solemnly.

My master paced irritably for a long while, then finally sat back down and said, very well.

I had not spoken the whole time. In truth, I was extremely excited inside. I was still young, and the thought of going somewhere dangerous only made me feel thrilled. I was afraid that if I spoke, I would reveal my excitement.

When I heard my master say very well, I almost jumped up, but I forced myself to hold it back.

Suddenly I understood Su Rou’s feelings from a few days ago when he kept pestering me. It seemed curiosity really was instinctive for the young. Of course, I could not decide for myself, so I would not have been able to agree anyway.

My excitement was impossible to hide. I silently thanked Hui Jue a hundred times in my heart, but then my master suddenly looked at me.

“I know you are happy, but you do not need to show it so obviously, do you?”

I scratched my head and laughed, not daring to say more, afraid I might immediately lose my qualification to go. Unexpectedly, my master then said, listen carefully to what I am about to say. It will be extremely dangerous down there.

I nodded seriously.

“Guo Er and the others accidentally entered what should be a gu chamber. Hungry ghost worms are actually a type of gu worm, just extremely rare. In the past, they should have already gone extinct in the mortal world, or more precisely, they should have disappeared by the Ming dynasty. I never expected to find traces of them again,” my master said gravely.

“Yes, I also thought only a few old monsters in Miao regions might still have one or two eggs preserved,” Hui Jue said solemnly.

“Before entering the tomb, none of this can be confirmed. Only after entering can we know for sure. This matter must be kept strictly confidential. If someone with ill intent learns of it, the consequences would be unimaginable,” my master said.

Hui Jue coughed twice. It seemed he was unwilling to explain too much to me in these areas. My master also fell silent. I looked at both of them in confusion and suddenly felt that the world was very complicated.

“Enough unnecessary talk. In my travels, I once gained some understanding of Miao gu techniques. According to tradition, such a gu chamber should contain nine layers, and there should be a ghost mother inside the tomb,” my master said after a pause.

“Ghost mother?” I suddenly remembered and felt a chill. If the hungry ghost worms were already so powerful, then their mother must be terrifying beyond measure.

“You do not need to worry too much. The ghost mother is already a fully formed existence. It cannot remain long in the human world. It should be in dormancy unless stimulated by special methods to reproduce. This tomb was artificially constructed. I suspect it exists to cultivate a hungry ghost king,” he said.

“This is beyond doubt,” Hui Jue said solemnly.

My head was spinning. Their explanations were fragmented, and I understood none of it. So I said, Master, just tell me what is going on with the tomb and the jar. I do not understand any of this.

“Sigh. Thinking about it makes me uneasy,” my master said, then straightened his expression. “That jar was made from a special kind of clay mixed with unknown materials. I do not know exactly what was added, since it involves Miao secret arts. In short, that jar could seal hungry ghost worms, restraining them from the moment they were born. My guess is that the worms are attracted to that material, or it temporarily relieves their hunger pain. But Miao gu arts are extremely profound, so this is only speculation.”

At this point Hui Jue spoke. “You are not teaching San Wa Er gu techniques. Why go into such detail? Just keep it brief.”