Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, but Thunderbolt Taoist Sect

Ren Yunzong followed Wang Qi back home. As soon as he entered the house, he noticed some changes that were obviously made to prevent evil spirits from causing trouble. The layout of the house had been altered, the well in the yard had been sealed off, there were talismans on the walls to ward off evil, and exorcising magic tools were hanging from the beams. Except for a hairband, all rope-like items had been put away.

Besides, there were paper figures used in the sacrifices, incense burners, herbal incense, and all sorts of exorcism methods, showing that Wang Qihou really wanted to get rid of the torment.

"...Put them away, they're useless."

However, many things here are useless and mostly just tricks used by charlatans to deceive people. Wang Qihou is just an ordinary scholar who neither lives in the city nor has a distinguished family background. Moreover, because he is haunted by evil spirits, he cannot go far and it is difficult for him to find someone with real skills.

The farthest Wang Qihou went was the City God Temple, but the City God... with such a big fuss about the underworld, it's unknown whether the City God here has been affected. In any case, given Wang Qihou's current situation, the chances of him being able to rely on him are very small.

"Then... what does the Taoist priest think needs to be changed?"

Upon hearing Ren Yunzong say that the house lacked any talismans for warding off evil spirits, Wang Qihou promptly removed them. He realized that even after inviting so many people, they were still tormented by evil spirits, and that these things were ineffective.

But for some psychological comfort, he kept them, thinking, "What if, one day it suddenly works?"

Thinking that the Taoist priest in front of him was truly skilled, and that the other party had driven away the ghost, he finally had a moment of peace. He was really afraid that the evil ghost in the shape of a woman would come back, so he asked Ren Yunzong if there was anything else to exorcise the evil spirit.

To his surprise, he received no answer after asking. Ren Yunzong just stared at him silently, which made him nervous again, thinking that he had said something wrong.

But in reality, Ren Yunzong was just observing Wang Qihou's complexion. No matter how you looked at it, Wang Qihou's face could only be described as haggard. He had been tormented by evil spirits and was probably having trouble sleeping every night because he was constantly worried.

"...I'll give you a calming talisman. Go and get some sleep."

Ren Yunzong felt that what this person needed most right now was rest. Now that the evil spirit had run away, it would be better to take advantage of this quiet time to let Wang Qihou take a nap. Otherwise, given his current condition, the evil spirit wouldn't be able to kill him, although someone could probably kill him with a single blow.

"But that ghost..."

"With me here, you can rest assured."

After sending everyone to bed, Ren Yunzong tore down the talismans that were haphazardly pasted on the wall. These were all ineffective fake talismans, with errors in their writing. They looked like they were copied from authentic talismans, and they weren't even made with cinnabar, but with inferior red ink.

Wang Qihou had many of these kinds of swindling and money-grabbing items in his home, including hanging talismans for warding off evil spirits. One of them, a small peach wood sword, was not made of peach wood at all, and a string of Bodhi beads was hanging from the end of the hilt. It was truly a case of "double-pronged approach".

It seems that Empress Wang Qi was truly tormented to the point of desperation, accepting any treatment regardless of its rationality.

Ren Yunzong burned all the messy talismans and looked at the person who had appeared at the door at some point.

No, that wasn't a person. It looked like a ghost, dressed as a samurai, holding chains.

When their eyes met, the person on the other end was a little surprised. After looking closely, they realized that Ren Yunzong was no ordinary person, so it wasn't surprising that he could see them.

“You have come to the wrong place. No one in the Wang family is nearing the end of their lifespan.”

Before the warrior-like ghost could say anything, Ren Yunzong answered first. The other party was holding chains as if he had come to capture the soul. Wang Qihou did look a bit haggard, but it was unlikely that he had suddenly died. Because he was afraid that the woman would harm his family if she couldn't kill him, Wang Qihou had his family move far away and were not here at the moment.

After saying that, Ren Yunzong continued to check the wall and door for any omissions. Although the fake talismans were ineffective, the various strange patterns pasted together might produce some kind of "chemical reaction".

"No, this immortal has misunderstood. I am not here to capture a soul, but to apprehend an evil spirit."

Upon hearing this, Ren Yunzong stopped what he was doing and looked at the other person again.

“There were originally four temple ghosts in the City God Temple, which were kept in the temple in the form of clay sculptures. One of them escaped. After investigation, it was found that this beast had come here and was bullying an honest man named Wang Qihou.”

"It's true."

It was unexpected that the person had escaped from the City God Temple. This was beyond Ren Yunzong's expectations. He thought that the person was someone who had a grudge against the Wang family in the past.

After all, these methods were very similar to those used by the White Lotus Sect to curse and intimidate him, so Ren Yunzong checked Wang Qihou's house again and again to see if there were any signs of being cursed.

Now it's clear that the temple ghosts in the City God Temple came out to bully honest people, but there's still something strange about this explanation.

"It has been some time since Mr. Wang went to the City God Temple to pray for blessings. Why did you come today?"

Ren Yunzong had inquired about this matter. As the closest temple to the village in the vicinity, the City God Temple was a place Wang Qi had visited long ago, but as before, it had no effect. The evil spirits tormenting him were even getting worse.

Now it seems that this ghost is a mud ghost from the City God Temple. It finally managed to escape, and the person it was targeting kept running back into the City God Temple, which naturally further angered the other party. The City God Temple just happened to be pretending to be dead.

So much time has passed, and Ren Yunzong, this outsider, has already stumbled into the plot. Only now does he come to say he wants to catch the ghost. If this ghost messenger had been a step slower, Ren Yunzong would probably have already killed the ghost.

It's really hard to judge their efficiency. If it weren't for Ren Yunzong, Wang Qihou might have already drowned today. If the ghost messengers still come at this time, they can bring back two... no, three ghosts at once, and give away two water ghosts for every mud ghost they catch.

"This……"

Understanding the implication in Ren Yunzong's words, the warrior scratched his head somewhat awkwardly. He knew he had arrived a little late, but there was a reason for it.

“Some things happened a few days ago. The City Gods at all levels conducted a strict investigation. The original City God was replaced because he was involved in corruption and bribery. This Mud Ghost took advantage of that time to run away. When Scholar Wang came, it was during the replacement period, and many tasks were put on hold.”

Ren Yunzong: ...It feels somewhat familiar.

"Recently, the new City God investigated several cases and discovered that a temple ghost had escaped. After careful investigation, he finally figured out what had happened and specially dispatched me to capture that beast."

The mud ghost in the temple came out because the City God Temple was in chaos at the time and the guards were lax. Wang Qihou was harassed for so long without anyone intervening because it happened to be the time of the handover between the old and new City Gods, and they were too busy to deal with it.

The replacement of the City God is because a serious incident has occurred, leading to a thorough investigation at all levels. What kind of incident? What could be the biggest one recently? It's the Xi Fangping case, involving the City God and the King of Hell accepting bribes.

So who helped Xi Fangping escalate this situation? A Daoist innate master. And who is Ren Yunzong? Coincidentally, he is one of the Daoist innate masters.

"……I see."

Ren Yunzong was at a loss for words. He could only admire in his heart what a wonderful boomerang it was, following the cause and effect of the case in the underworld, and stabbing himself back into the body.

That's absolutely incredible.

"The temple ghost disguised itself as a woman and harassed this scholar. It had been attacked by me before and ran away. I am waiting for the ghost to return."

The reason why the other party initially targeted Wang Qihou is still unknown, but since the City God Temple has sent warriors to arrest him, the reason is no longer important.

"May I ask which sect or school you belong to, Immortal Master?"

He had just wanted to say this: Ren Yunzong's attire was very different from that of ordinary demon-slaying Taoists. He didn't seem like a demon-slaying person who traveled around, but rather someone who secluded himself in a cave to cultivate.

"Ascend the path to the shore, and let the clouds follow their course."

Ren Yunzong explained simply that there was no actual shore here; he said that no matter how many times you looked across, you couldn't find it. He only mentioned the name and said it was just a secluded paradise.

"...reaching the shore..."

Surprisingly, the samurai seemed to be deep in thought after hearing this, as if he had indeed heard of it before.

"Does the immortal know a girl named Ling Ziling?"

"A spirit is a spirit?"

This was truly unexpected; Ling Ziling could be connected to the nearby City God Temple. The fact that the other person asked this meant he had met Ling Ziling, perhaps even interacted with her, and knew that she belonged to a sect called Dengdaoan.

"Could it be a girl dressed in pink, with a whisk wrapped in a ribbon of the same color?"

Seeing the warrior nod, Ren Yunzong stepped forward a few paces.

"She and I are indeed from the same sect. The reason I came out this time is to take her back. Could you tell me the details?"

He wasn't searching aimlessly; he would also make calculations along the way. Ling Ziling would calculate which direction Ren Yunzong was coming from, and Ren Yunzong would calculate which direction Ling Ziling was going. The two of them continued like this, one in front of the other.

“A few days ago, this Taoist priest Ling Ziling brought a living person and four fox spirits to the City God Temple. The living person was a soul possessing a corpse, and the four fox spirits were all relatives of the same family. They said they came to report a case.”

This was truly a novel event: a Taoist priest led four foxes and one person to the City God to report a crime, a story that left a deep impression on the warrior.

She followed the proper procedure of "the spirits will be the spirits" correctly. The Huang Jiulang she wanted to sue was a monster, and He Zixiao was someone who had died once. These two had long since escaped the jurisdiction of ordinary government offices. Seeking the City God to handle the case was indeed the path that monsters and ghosts would take.

Coincidentally, the city god in charge of the surrounding area was a newly appointed official. As the saying goes, "a new official makes three fires upon taking office." Ling Ziling's complaint was special. This family of foxes had a large population in this area and was considered a prominent family among the surrounding monsters. This complaint was exactly what the new city god wanted to establish his authority.

"What is she going to sue for?"

Given Ling Ziling's independent nature, it's quite novel that she took the initiative to report to the authorities. After all, she heard there were four fox demons involved, and if it was a monster causing trouble, she would probably suppress it with force and eliminate the demon.

"What she wants to sue is that the fox spirit Huang Jiulang attempted to abduct his cousin and trick her into marrying his lover He Zixiao."

Ren Yunzong: Wait, isn't something wrong?

Huang Jiulang sounds like a male fox, right? He tricked his own cousin into becoming his lover's wife... Ren Yunzong couldn't believe it. How could he betray his own cousin like that?

Moreover, as the warrior just said, He Zixiao was a reincarnation, and given the complexity of the situation, it is indeed necessary to report this to the authorities.

"When they were brought in, they were caught red-handed. Huang Jiulang had achieved some success in his cultivation in his early years and had prestige in the family. I never expected him to do such a thing."

As he spoke, the warrior picked up the chain in his hand and looked in a certain direction. Ren Yunzong looked in the same direction, and several more yellow talismans appeared in his hand.

“I see that there are marks on the immortal’s body that have been cursed. After we capture this beast, why don’t you come with me back to the City God Temple? I will tell you in detail about the matter of Master Ling Ziling.”

"can."

……

With the calming talisman given by Ren Yunzong, the protection of capable people outside, and the absence of evil spirits around him, Wang Qi finally enjoyed a long-awaited peace and quiet. He hadn't had a proper rest in a long time, and he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

He had a dream in which he saw the ghostly woman who was haunting him again. He saw the dark and fat woman standing by the bed, grinning at him, while he lay on the bed, unable to move, as if he were being paralyzed by a ghost.

The woman took out a bundle of hemp rope, tied a loop around Wang Qihou's neck, tightened the rope, and pulled on the other end of the rope, trying to drag Wang Qihou off the bed and drag him to his death on the ground.

Wang Qihou didn't know how the other person had gotten back into his room. He tried to call for help, but he couldn't move his body or make a sound.

What's even stranger is that the woman pulled hard, but she couldn't budge Wang Qihou. In the past, she could always pull on someone and she could even lift Wang Qihou up with one hand and make him hang himself with her.

This time, however, she couldn't pull it at all. Even with the rope tightly tied around her neck, Wang Qihou didn't feel any suffocation, as if the rope was just a uniquely designed necklace.

A gust of wind swept by, and several yellow talismans flew and struck the woman who was pulling hard on the hemp rope. Half of her body immediately caught fire, burning even more fiercely than the last time she burned by the river, as if it was going to burn her alive.

Immediately afterwards, Wang Qihou saw a warrior-like man rush in. The chains on his hands seemed to come alive; with a flick of his wrist, the chains tightened around the woman's neck, just as the rope had been used to put around Wang Qihou's neck earlier.

"You beast, how dare you harass such a simple and honest person!"

The warrior pulled on the chains just as the woman had done, dragging her out of the house. Although Wang Qihou had been lying in bed, his view extended unobstructed to the courtyard outside. He saw that the half-burnt woman had been dragged out of the house and transformed into a monster with lightning-like eyes and a gaping maw.

The monster opened its mouth, revealing a mouthful of fangs, and let out a shrill roar. Ren Yunzong walked to the door, bowed to the person lying inside, closed the door for him, and left with the warrior.

From here, all the noise disappeared, turning into boundless silence. Wang Qihou felt as if he could move again. He didn't have time to worry about the hemp rope around his neck and hurriedly got up, wanting to chase after Ren Yunzong who had gone far away.

Then suddenly a sharp pain shot through him, and his vision spun around. Wang Qi opened his eyes to find himself on the floor of his own room. He had fallen off the bed and woken up.

"...No rope..."

The first thing he did upon waking was to reach up and touch his neck. There was no rope tightly binding his throat. When he looked up, the doors and windows were closed. There was no wind, no flames, no evil spirits haunting him, and no warriors with chains.

"Taoist Master? Taoist Master? Are you outside?"

As his memories from before falling asleep resurfaced, Wang Qi called out a few times but received no response. Recalling the scene from his dream, he quickly got up from the ground, opened the door, and ran into the courtyard, only to find no one there.

"Daoist Master? Daoist Master Ren Yunzong?"

The messy talismans on the courtyard wall were cleaned up, and the courtyard gate was closed. Wang Qi wandered around several times but could not find the blue-robed Taoist who had saved his life.

After taking a nap, Wang Qihou felt lighter than ever before, as if all the gloom had gone with the Taoist and warrior in his dream.

Upon careful consideration of the ghost's final appearance, Wang Qihou discovered that there were four clay ghost statues in the nearby City God Temple, and the woman's final appearance was very similar to one of them.