Otherworldly Merchant

“Those black clouds are a sign that the heavenly punishment is coming!” Zen Master Baimei said. “There’s someone in this village that has done something that goes against the heavens’ will. If that person survives this heavenly punishment, the consequences will be unimaginable.”

I was startled, but I didn’t agree with Zen Master Baimei’s view. “I know the people here, and they are honest workers. They’ve been farming for generations and have earned their living. There are no witches or sorcerers in this village, so how could someone here do something that goes against the heavens’ will? Also, even if they did, I don’t think that person will be able to endure the heavenly punishment.”

Zen Master Baimei gave me a knowing smile. “That person isn’t stupid; they know they can’t bear the heavenly punishment. That’s why they want to use the entire village as a meat shield. If we don’t find them, the people in this village will all be doomed!”

The burden on my shoulders became heavier. Now, the lives of all the people in the village were in my hands. The pressure made me feel breathless.

We didn’t go to the village directly as we would alert the enemy. I called Li Mazi and asked him to reunite with us at the village entrance.

Soon after, Li Mazi came. After seeing Zen Master Baimei and Chuyi, he cheered up. “It’s great that you guys are here. I don't think we could deal with this alone.”

“Li Mazi, what did you discover?” I asked.

Li Mazi said, “That uncle is indeed fishy. This morning, he took his mother's corpse to town to cremate her. Then, he sprinkled her ashes into the lake. After he dumped her ashes, a strong mist rose from the lake and covered the entire village…”

“What happened afterwards?” I asked.

Li Mazi said, “Nothing. He didn’t go out for the whole day. Oh right, I asked around and learned something. However, I’m not sure if it will be helpful.”

“That uncle isn’t the granny’s biological son. When her husband passed away, they didn’t have any children, so the woman adopted him. They lived together and the uncle settled in her house.”

“Also, this morning, his son left the village with his wife and baby. They seemed to be in a hurry, and they have yet to return.”

“Merciful Buddha,” said Zen Master Baimei. “If I’m not wrong, this could be a plan he has had for a couple of dozen years.”

I was startled. “Zen Master Baimei, what do you mean?”

Zen Master Baimei answered, “If that uncle was adopted, he does not have any blood relations with the villagers. His only relatives are his son and his grandson. Now that they have left, he will use the folks here to block the heavenly punishment.”

“Perhaps he had this plan in mind ever since he was adopted. Now that the time has come, he will naturally take action.”

All these events made me believe in Zen Master Baimei’s explanation.

However, what was that uncle’s plan, and how was it related to my grandfather? Why did he invite me here just to shoo me away afterwards?

I suspected that he lured me here so that he could use me as a hostage to force my grandpa’s soul to come out.

After thinking about this, I couldn’t control my anger. Damn it! He used me to lure my grandpa... I wish I could dismember him right now!

“Li Mazi, you just said that the uncle dumped his mother’s ashes into the lake and didn’t bury her in that grave with good geomancy. So, was someone else buried in that grave?”

If the granny wasn’t buried there, perhaps the stunning female corpse had taken her place.

“That grave was filled, but I don’t know if they buried anybody down there,” Li Mazi answered.

I had a strong premonition that the beautiful corpse was buried there. I suggested checking the grave.

On the way there, we passed by a lake. Li Mazi stopped and said, “This lake is where the uncle dumped his mother’s ashes. Oh, the fog above the lake seems to have become thicker...”

I glanced at the lake, and a layer of fog hovered above it. It rippled and surged towards the general direction of the village.

I went close to the water and examined it, and my scalp went numb at that instant.

I felt as if there were hundreds of eyes watching me!

Dumping a corpse into a lake would affect the lake’s geomancy. It was like throwing a burning match into a dry meadow. It would burn the entire meadow.

I wondered if the grandma’s ashes would awaken the souls sleeping at the bottom of the lake.

“Merciful Buddha, what a wicked person!” Zen Master Baimei suddenly said. “He turned his adoptive mother into a ghost corpse and used her ashes to awaken the souls sleeping under the lake to shoulder the heavenly punishment for him. That guy is a monster.”

“What’s a ghost corpse?” I asked.

“In order to create a ghost corpse, you have to take the soul out of the body. Then, you have to dry up the body and grind it into a powder. This kind of corpse doesn’t have a soul but only resentment. It has the power to awaken other ghosts.”

I sighed and said, “He’s completely lost his morality.”

That grandma's body wasn’t burned to ashes. Instead, he dried it up and ground into powder. That uncle didn’t have any bit of humanity left in him. Although she wasn’t his biological mother, she had raised him. Wasn’t he grateful for that?

Zen Master Baimei read the ‘Ksitigarbha Scripture’ to calm down the souls and prevent them from going crazy and harming the villagers. Then, we went to the grave.

The grave had been filled, and when I moved forward to check it, I felt an unnatural feeling of coldness. It was so cold that the grass near the grave was completely frozen.

Li Mazi and I used iron shovels to dig up the grave.

The Millennial Icy Sword on my back vibrated as if it had sensed something. It wanted to get out of the sheath as soon as possible!

I handed it to Chuyi. He was a master in swordsmanship. In the case of a sudden event, he could take action in a timely manner.

I continued to unearth the grave with Li Mazi.

Shortly after, we found the coffin. The uncle had discreetly buried it here.

I dug faster, and the entire coffin was soon revealed. The cold air that exuded from the coffin was really terrifying.

I didn’t waste time and pulled the nails off the coffin, moving the lid aside.

The moment the coffin lid was lifted, a wave of black mist gushed out, and a horrible stench came with it.

I covered my nose and moved aside.

The mist scattered and quickly disappeared. It seemed it was not poisonous.

The Millennial Icy Sword started to vibrate harder, and even Chuyi was having trouble holding it in his hands.

I looked inside the coffin, and after I saw what was inside, I screamed in shock.

A man wearing ancient golden garments lay inside the coffin. His eyes were closed, and his face calm. It looked as if he was sleeping.

That’s the uncle, right? Why is he inside this coffin? My heart raced in fear. Instinctively, I wanted to wake him up.

Zen Master Baimei advanced forward to stop me. “No, don’t wake him up! It’s best to kill him silently.”

Chuyi came closer and drew the eight-faced Han sword on his back, aiming at the uncle’s heart and stabbing.

However, his sword couldn’t pierce through the golden clothes. It was like stabbing onto a thick sheet of steel; it created a sharp noise.

“That’s no use,” Zen Master Baimei said. “This is a gold-jade garment. You have to use the Millennial Icy Sword to pierce through it.”

Chuyi put away his sword and raised the Millennial Icy Sword. He was about to take action.

But right at that moment, the uncle suddenly opened his eyes. He sneered and shouted, “Die!”

Then, the uncle shot up like an undead coming back to life and kicked the coffin lid away.

I jerked back and gazed at him with fearful eyes.

He didn’t seem to have a hunched back anymore. He stood upright and looked imposing in those gold-jade garments. For some reason, each of his eyes now had two pupils, which were moving continuously.

“Twin souls…” Zen Master Baimei was startled. “He actually has twin souls!”

“Twin souls?” I didn’t understand and looked at Zen Master Baimei. “Does he have two souls in his body?”

“That’s right.” Zen Master Baimei nodded and said, “A man with twin souls no longer belongs to the ‘three corpses and five ghosts’ system, and he won’t be bound by the principle of death. In other words, no one in this world can kill him.”

“Old fool, you do have some knowledge!” The uncle sneered. “Unfortunately, it’s too late. When I get through the heavenly punishment, I will draw your souls out and enslave you!”