I am a swordsman in a strange city

Chapter 47 The Evil Tiger Devours Souls
Some people are born with a lot, but they don't care. They don't realize that what they have is something that others have to struggle for their whole lives.

What's most infuriating is that the other party doesn't care. If they cared, how could they not know or understand?
Bao Duxing was furious that the Pei family didn't take this seriously.

“But no matter how tempting this divinity may be, our fathers went in back then and failed. Do you think we will succeed?” Pei Ju countered.

"They're too conservative. Only two people went in. These days, who would go into a place with mythical characteristics with only two people? They would definitely invite many friends to explore and conquer it together." Bao Duxing seemed to know a lot about this kind of thing.

"Invite someone to come along?" Pei Ju asked in surprise.

“You’re too out of touch. Times have changed. Spirit communication is inherently dangerous, so asking someone to act as a protector is quite common now,” Bao Duxing said.

Pei Ju didn't actually learn much from his grandfather. His grandfather really didn't know how far the development of 'psychic communication' had progressed in the world. Even when it came time to get a certificate, he only found out at the last minute.

Moreover, given his status, he could have directly obtained special credentials, but he didn't get them; instead, he had his grandson take the exam.

Perhaps some people cannot understand why he did this, but Pei Ju, as his grandson, knows that his grandfather must feel that he is too old to get that, and the most important thing is that his grandson can get it. Only when his grandson gets it can it be considered a successor.

Pei Ju even initially thought that his grandfather didn't really want him to inherit the true sword technique, because his father's death made his grandfather afraid that his grandson would also die young.

Therefore, Grandpa must have been very conflicted. He didn't want to end up like Dad, but he also didn't want the Pei family sword school to lose its lineage.

He remained conflicted until Pei Ju explicitly told him that he wanted to obtain the sword manual and inherit the Pei family sword school. Coupled with what happened with Xiao Qiu that day, by a series of coincidences, he finally made up his mind.

Therefore, Master Pei was actually very out of touch with the extraordinary world; it seemed as if he had been confined to this Sword Hall his entire life.

He seemed to truly be a temple keeper, guarding the gods within, never leaving.

During the past month, Han Yitong taught a lot about esoteric arts, but she didn't talk about this aspect. Perhaps she would talk about it later, or perhaps she thought it was unimportant.

"How did you get in?" Pei Ju didn't follow up on his question, but instead asked in return.

“I came in the same way my father did,” Bao Duxing said impatiently.

"How did your father get in?" Pei Ju asked again.

Bao Duxing was already getting angry.

"How did my father get in? Didn't your father say?" Bao Duxing said coldly.

“My father never told you what your father’s name was, so I don’t know either,” Pei Ju said.

“My father said he told your father how he got in, but your father didn’t tell you or your grandfather. That can only mean he didn’t want to tell you, or he forgot, or he was influenced. My father said that the Pei family has been enslaved by the evil tiger, but you just don’t realize it,” Bao Duxing said.

Pei Ju wanted to say that his father had already discovered and sensed it, and that his grandfather had even managed to escape from that situation and become a temple keeper.

But in the end, his father still chose to go in.

“My father knew, and my grandfather knew too,” Pei Ju said earnestly. “But by the time they found out, it was too late,” Bao Duxing said. “Then do you know what other purpose your father had in insisting on going to the temple?”

"What is your purpose?" Pei Ju asked.

"You didn't know?" Bao Duxing asked, somewhat surprised.

"I don't know," Pei Ju said definitively. He only just realized that there seemed to be some things left unwritten or unspoken in his father's notes, and his grandfather had only told him never to go into the temple, and even less to listen to others and go into the temple.

He promised his grandfather, and maybe his father also promised his grandfather back then, but his father still chose to go in. Why is that?

“Let me tell you, your father has another purpose for going in: to save your grandfather,” Bao Duxing said.

Pei Ju was startled.

He suddenly didn't know what to say, because he knew that when that day came and he felt he had the ability to enter the temple, he would definitely go in.

No wonder Grandpa always emphasized not to go into the temple.

"Being an accomplice to a tiger is not a simple matter. It's not something you can do whether you want to or not. It means that you will transform from a human into an accomplice. And an accomplice is unaware that he has become an accomplice."

"How exactly did you get in?" Pei Ju didn't press the question any further, because he knew that his grandfather and father both knew about it.

“Naturally, it was through a spirit communication ritual that we learned a name and were able to communicate with it. Of course, it wasn’t as easy as it was for you,” Bao Duxing said.

"How did your father die?" Pei Ju asked.

“Your soul was eaten by an evil spirit,” Bao Duxing said. “My father said he saw your grandfather in that temple.”

"In the temple?" Pei Ju was a little confused, but he could also recall something, because the first time he entered a temple was because of Xiao Qiu.

It was Grandpa who communicated with the mountain king, allowing the four of them to enter the temple together.

After learning from Teacher Han Yitong, I experienced a vision that belonged to the spiritual realm.

When communicating with a spirit, one might encounter images of the spirit's last lingering attachments from its previous life.

He once asked Teacher Han about the origin of the spiritual realm in "Staying Overnight at Sangun Temple" and told Teacher Han about the spiritual realm he had seen. Teacher Han said, "I think that the mountain god was beheaded in that scene, but did not die completely, which formed the current spiritual realm of Sangun Temple."

Only a powerful spirit can create a distinction between inner and outer spiritual fields, and there may even be multiple layers of visions.

"Yes, if it weren't for your grandfather, he and your father would have died inside on the spot. It was your grandfather who saved them, but in the end, my father was still devoured by the evil tiger. He once told my mother that every night when he went to sleep, he would hear the low growl of the evil tiger, and he was afraid to fall asleep."

"But later, even during the day, when he wasn't sleeping, he heard the low growl of the tiger, which grew closer and closer. He experienced auditory and visual hallucinations. His mother said that before his father died, he kept saying, 'He's coming, He's coming to eat me.'"

(End of this chapter)