8.
“I want to ask you something.”
This guy really had no sense of ceremony. He got straight to the point.
“Go ahead.”
“Are you… a legitimate Daoist priest?”
“Who are you calling illegitimate?”
“That’s not what I meant. I’ve been having trouble lately. Want to go somewhere and talk?”
“Sure. You pick the place. If it’s another skewer joint, I’ll draw a talisman and stick it on you.”
Lâm Nam was clearly still a little embarrassed to bring it up. After I told him it was fine, that I was just a young Daoist priest who believed in science and knowledge, he finally started talking.
He said they’d found a lead on that nanny. Her name was Nguyên Lai.
I was pretty surprised. You don’t often see parents give their kids such a strange name.
Lâm Nam praised me for being sharp. This person was indeed on the west side of the city, but they’d cornered him seven times, and every time he’d managed to get away.
I said he must be a rabbit, with how fast he ran.
He said it wasn’t that simple. A few times, they’d clearly been about to catch him, but then someone would slip and fall, or their vision would suddenly go dark.
One time it was even worse. During the operation, the whole team suddenly ran the wrong way. Nguyên Lai headed east, while the team ran west.
He asked if they’d just been having bad luck lately and whether there was any way to ward it off.
Hearing that, I realized something really wasn’t right. These were professionally trained people, yet they kept making the same basic mistakes over and over.
I told him to let me know the next time they went after him, and I’d come see what was going on in person.
He hesitated.
“Are you worried I’m not officially with the force, so it’d be against the rules?”
“No, it’s not that. Nguyên Lai has a very vicious nature, and he’s got more than one case against him. I’m afraid you’ll be in danger if you come to the scene.”
“It’s fine. I might be just as capable as you.”
He still looked uncertain. “Is there a way for you to give me something to prevent this without coming to the scene?”
“I need to go there and see for myself first. Then I can give you something next time. If I hand you something now, it definitely won’t work.”
On the day of the operation, Linh Nhi and I went to the scene together.
Lâm Nam gave me a thorough warning, telling me to be careful no matter what. He said that if anything happened to me, he’d be skinned alive for sure.
I wasn’t worried about myself. I was only worried about Linh Nhi.
I took the coin sword out of my bag, handed it to Linh Nhi, and told her not to let go under any circumstances.
“Will this… actually work?”
“It works really well!”
“Then I’ll make one when I get home and carry it around.”
“Don’t go making one.”
I glared at her. “These are real coins.”
“What do you mean?”
“These coins really did circulate in ancient times. They’ve passed through the hands of tens of thousands of people. Do you know how expensive they are?”
“Modern coins don’t work?”
“Of course not. Ancient coins have passed through thousands of hands, absorbed the magnetic fields of countless people, and been passed down to the present day. When demons come near, their magnetic fields get thrown into disarray. That’s what makes them work.”
“If you buy a pile of scrap metal from a souvenir shop, you might as well offer it up to the demon.”
Linh Nhi’s eyes lit up. “Whoa, they’re all antiques? They must be worth a fortune.”
I couldn’t be bothered to answer her, so I looked over Lâm Nam’s arrangements.
There was no problem. They’d blocked off every escape route available to Nguyên Lai.
Sure enough, once the operation began, something went wrong.
It wasn’t Lâm Nam or his team’s fault. The man was surrounded by a layer of terrifying black mist. This was no longer just a matter of demons. He might be raising a powerful monster at home.
Thanks to the team members’ righteous energy, they were still safe. If an ordinary person got even a little of that black mist on them, they’d be seriously ill at the very least.
Well, looks like I’ve got work to do.
“Hold tight to the coin sword. If you dare sell it, I’ll sell you.”
With that, I ignored Lâm Nam calling after me and ran straight after him.
9.
A petty demon like this could affect ordinary people, but it couldn’t affect me.
But I couldn’t count on the team members anymore. They’d lost the trail.
I was the only one chasing him into the woods.
A shrill scream rang out, a sound no human could possibly make.
“Do you know who I am? You think you can scare me?” I pulled out my peachwood sword and charged at him.
He was no great shakes, but the black mist behind him was powerful.
The whole forest was full of ghostly shadows. Gusts of cold wind swept across my face, and this demon could hold its own against me for quite a few moves.
Even though I knew it was only an illusion, I still couldn’t afford to let my guard down. If one of its attacks landed, my body might be fine, but it could snap a nerve.
About fifteen minutes passed.
The demon grew impatient. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“Crap!” A demon that could speak human language was more than I could handle.
Ordinary evil spirits only create illusions and make people lose their way. In reality, they just affect the human senses. They can’t talk, and they can’t cause any real injuries.
They can lure people onto rooftops or trick them into hanging themselves.
But they can’t kill you directly.
Things that can talk and control objects have terrifyingly strong magnetic fields. They can directly affect your brain and even use magnetic force to control metal objects.
Only my master and senior fellow disciples could handle this kind of evil spirit.
A sharp claw moved so fast it was little more than a blur. I blocked it with my peachwood sword, but the sword shattered at once. I was sent flying more than ten meters, slammed into a tree, and spat out several mouthfuls of blood.
Before I passed out, I glanced at it.
The demon had finally revealed its true form after going all out.
It was a woman.
When I woke up, I was in the hospital.
Linh Nhi sat beside me, wiping away her tears again and again, while Lâm Nam held his head in his hands, lost in thought.
What was digging into me underneath? Was the hospital bed made of acupuncture boards?
I reached down to feel. It turned out to be coins. The girl had taken apart the coin sword and stuffed them under my back to ward off evil.
“You little brat, do you know how hard it is to weave them into a sword shape?”
“You’re awake?”
Linh Nhi wiped her tears dry. “That’s great. You’re awake.”
I patted Linh Nhi on the head. “It’s okay. I’m not dead yet. When we get back...”home.”
“Really, you’re fine. Go on home. There’s nothing wrong with your body; you’re just a little weak. Rest for a few days and you’ll be fine.” The doctor, who had appeared at some point, chimed in.
‘What do you know? That claw nearly wiped out all my cultivation.’ Of course, I only dared think that to myself.
After telling Lâm Nam that I really was fine, I also told him to be careful and take some time off for now. This wasn’t something he could handle.
We’d wait until the Mao Shan Sect had dealt with the problem before making a move.
When I got home, I drew the woman I’d seen from memory.
I asked Linh Nhi if she was the woman who’d been following Old Vương. When she confirmed it, I felt a little confused.
They were two women who looked exactly alike. You couldn’t use ordinary logic to guess what demons might do; they could create doubles with ease.
But the problem was, Old Vương was involved with Nguyên Lai.
I called Old Vương to ask if he knew Nguyên Lai. He said he didn’t know anyone by that name, but if I needed him to, he could look into it.
Look into what?
The police were already investigating. What did I need him for?
It was strange. That demon seemed to have been raised by Nguyên Lai. It had a deep grievance and was a vengeful ghost. Without some kind of grudge, why would it keep after Old Vương?
Old Vương really was scared of me. His life was in my hands; he had no reason to lie to me.
Whatever. First, I’d go back to the mountain and call for help.
“Ding-dong.” The doorbell rang.
“Who is it?”
“Delivery.”
“Delivery?”
“Excuse me, are you… uh… are you Đồ Ngốc?”
“That’s me!”
The delivery guy snorted with laughter. “This is your package. The recipient has to sign for it. Sign here.”
Before he left, he muttered, “Who comes up with a weird nickname like that…”
The only people who called me Đồ Ngốc were at Mao Shan. Had the sect sent me a package?
10.
Inside were a letter and a sword.
The sword was the Long Tuyền Thất Tinh, Mao Shan’s sect-guarding magical weapon. They were… giving it to me?
The letter was from my senior uncle. It contained just one sentence: “Only your branch can handle this matter yourselves.”
What the hell?
What was that supposed to mean?
Were they abandoning me? Did they want me to fend for myself?
Those old men sure knew how to calculate. They knew I was in danger and still wouldn’t come down the mountain to help; instead, they sent me a sword?
Come on, I can’t beat it.
Even with the Long Tuyền sword, I still can’t beat it.
Sure, it was a good sword, but did they have any idea how capable I was?
I was a top student, not some lunatic. Why were they ignoring me?
I immediately called my junior brother and asked what the sect meant by it.
“Why did the sect send you a sword?”
“I don’t know. Senior Uncle told me to send it, and I even paid the shipping.”
“Next time you send me something, write ‘To my dear senior brother’ or ‘To Senior Brother Thanh Vân’ so I’ll know it’s from the sect. What’s with ‘Đồ Ngốc’?”
After chatting for a bit, I asked, “How’s the investigation into Master’s case going?”
“They’ll probably solve it soon. I don’t know the details.”
“What did Senior Uncle say?”
“He said you were in danger, so he made an exception and gave you the Long Tuyền sword, hoping you’d come back alive.”
“What a heartwarming blessing. No one said they’d come down the mountain to help me?”
“No. He also said this matter had to be handled by our branch alone, and warned the other senior and junior disciples not to get involved. I want to help you too, but you know Master won’t let me leave the mountain.”
“Why do you think Master didn’t take on another five or seven hundred disciples? Now it’s just the two of us staring at each other…”
I didn’t know the exact reason, but I understood that I’d have to rely on myself.