Just as they were talking, a girl of seventeen or eighteen entered. She was very pretty, and to Liu Dashao’s surprise, he recognized her—Luo Siyu, a former classmate from town. Luo Siyu walked in and said to Luo Ping’an, “Uncle, my third and fourth aunts have arrived. Second Uncle told me to come and get you.”
Luo Ping’an acknowledged and excused himself from Liu Dashao before heading out.
Luo Siyu turned to Liu Dashao and asked, “Master Liu, why are you here at my house?”
Liu Dashao replied somewhat awkwardly, “Well, I’m the Taoist priest your family hired to perform the funeral rites for your grandfather.”
Luo Siyu covered her mouth in shock. “No way! You’re a Taoist priest? I always thought you were just a bit odd, but I never imagined you’d get into this kind of superstitious nonsense!”
Liu Dashao didn’t quite know how to respond. He hadn’t expected to run into an old classmate here! Rubbing his head, he muttered, “Believe it or not!” He hesitated for a moment. Ever since meeting Old Lady Fan, he had stopped seeing this profession as shameful. Still, standing before an old classmate made him feel awkward and embarrassed. He couldn’t help thinking: If I had known I’d run into someone I know, I’d have refused to come no matter what.
Smiling at him, Luo Siyu said, “Never thought I’d see a socialist youth like you into this stuff. I guess you’re just trying to find another way out because you were worried about not getting into college, huh?” She laughed.
Liu Dashao sighed and continued eating, ignoring her. After dinner, the three men went to their room to rest. The Suona King said to Liu Dashao, “Hey, Master Liu, that girl was your classmate, right? She’s pretty cute. Why don’t you go out and hang out with her?”
Liu Dashao shook his head. “Old brother, you saw for yourself—she really dislikes what we do. We’re just not on the same wavelength.”
The Suona King sighed. “Yeah, they all think we’re peddling superstitions. So it’s understandable they’d look down on you.”
Luogu Chen added, “Right. My daughter feels the same way about me.”
Liu Dashao snapped, “Will you two shut up and go to sleep already?”
Luogu Chen replied, “Sleep? It’s still early—barely eight. I’m going to go chat with the locals. I made a few friends here last time. I already asked the Luo family to let them know I was here. They should be coming soon. If you want to sleep, go ahead by yourself!”
Suona King chimed in, “Yeah, way too early to sleep. Come on, I’ll go with you.” The two walked out together.
After they left, Liu Dashao lay in bed thinking. He was considering the worst-case scenario for the current situation. In the afternoon, he had examined the body and noticed the Earth Soul was missing—it had probably gone to the Luos’ peach orchard. The Heaven Soul was intact and stable, but he remained uneasy about the lingering breath in the chest.
If an animal passed over the body, the static energy from the creature might activate the breath. If the breath was simply exhaled, everything would be fine. But if it was inhaled, it could cause an abnormality—what was known as a corpse transformation, or in other words, a Jiangshi (zombie). Alarmed, he got up and drew several protective talismans.
Back in bed, pondering how to respond, Liu Dashao eventually fell asleep.
Luo Ping’an, following Liu Dashao’s instructions, had gathered over a dozen people to keep vigil in the main hall. They were divided into three groups playing cards. At first, they occasionally checked to ensure no cats or dogs wandered near. By midnight, the Luo family members were discussing matters in the kitchen. Since the main hall had been reserved for the vigil, Luo Siyu was listening in on the adults’ conversation. Mostly, she was hearing the Suona King and Luogu Chen tell bizarre stories. Though she didn’t fully believe in ghosts and spirits, she listened with fascination.
Just as they were discussing a particularly strange tale, a cat suddenly darted in—perhaps drawn by the warmth of the brazier. So engrossed was Luo Siyu that she didn’t notice until the cat brushed against her, making her jump and cry out. Seeing it was just a cat, she grew angry, kicked it lightly, and muttered, “Damn cat!”
Her shout startled Luo Ping’an. He shouted, “Don’t let the cat go into the main hall!”
But it was too late. Startled by the kick, the cat bolted toward the main hall. Inside, the group was playing cards. Hearing the cat’s meow and Luo Ping’an’s shout, a few of them dropped their cards and rushed to stop the cat from crossing over the body. Unfortunately, the cat had initially been heading beneath the body, but seeing people approach, it leapt straight onto the altar and jumped right over the corpse’s chest.
Everyone froze. They had been told how serious this was. Dozens of people stood motionless, staring at the body in shock. Luo Ping’an rushed out urgently, and others from the kitchen followed him into the main hall. Luo Siyu, unaware of what had happened, followed too. More than twenty people stood there, staring at the corpse on the altar, desperately hoping nothing would happen.
Luo Siyu whispered, “Dad, what’s wrong? Why are you all staring at Grandpa’s body?”
Everyone held their breath. Luo Ping’an didn’t answer his daughter. Time ticked by. Everyone was holding their breath, waiting for the moment to pass. But just as they were about to relax—
The old man’s body suddenly sat up without warning, eyes wide open. In an instant, the temperature in the hall seemed to drop by dozens of degrees. Everyone was seized by a chill. In that moment, no one could even scream. They simply took a step back instinctively. Luo Siyu buried her face in her father’s chest, clutching his clothes tightly. Since the corpse remained seated without further movement, everyone slowly calmed down. Most of the people keeping vigil were young. Though a few nearly soiled themselves, none panicked or fled. Perhaps they all wanted to see what would happen next. Sometimes people are like that—when most afraid, they want to see the most clearly. No one blinked, not even the corpse, whose eyes remained wide and unblinking. They all watched, unsure whether they hoped the old man would move again or remain still. Perhaps they themselves couldn’t tell. Even the Suona King and Luogu Chen were shocked. Though they had been in this profession for decades and had seen many strange things, they had only heard of such events before.
Luo Ping’an was the first to recover. Trembling, he whispered to his daughter, “Xiao… Xiao Nan, quick… go get the priest!”
Luo Siyu asked nervously, “Which priest?”
Luo Ping’an replied, “The one you mentioned—the one from your high school! Hurry!”
Luo Siyu looked at her father, confirmed his meaning, and ran toward the room where Liu Dashao was staying.
Perhaps tired from the journey, Liu Dashao was sleeping soundly, unaware when someone entered the room. It wasn’t until the lights were turned on, his blanket pulled back, and he was shaken awake that he noticed a girl standing beside him, trembling. He exclaimed, “Luo Siyu, what are you doing? Even if you hate me, you don’t have to go this far!”
Luo Siyu was too scared to speak. Summoning her last bit of strength, she stammered, “Liu Dashao, so… something’s happened!”
Liu Dashao immediately snapped awake. He could figure it out without even thinking. He quickly got dressed and grabbed the talismans he had prepared before bed, ready to rush out—only to feel someone tightly gripping his arm. It was Luo Siyu. Looking at her, he saw her helplessly whisper, “Liu Dashao, I’m so scared. My grandpa—he’s not turning into a ghost, is he?”
Liu Dashao patted her shoulder. “No, but if we don’t hurry, he’ll become a Jiangshi. Let’s go.”
Holding Luo Siyu’s hand, he rushed to the main hall. The old man was still sitting upright. Liu Dashao wasted no time. Chanting an incantation, he slapped a talisman onto the old man’s forehead. The corpse immediately collapsed back down, eyes closed, as if nothing had ever happened.
Rubbing his eyes, Liu Dashao turned to the more than twenty people present and said, “You all were too careless! Fortunately, the old man’s lingering breath wasn’t strong. If it had been more, who knows what might have happened! So many people watching, and still a cat managed to jump over the body!”
He turned to the two men and added, “You two, how could you be so unprepared for something like this? What kind of job are you doing?”
The Suona King replied sheepishly, “We can’t compare to you and your master. We’re just here to assist. We’ve only heard about such things before—but this doesn’t seem quite the same as what we heard.”
Liu Dashao’s face twitched slightly. “What do you mean, not the same? Did you think that once this happens, the deceased would become a blood-sucking zombie? You thought it wouldn’t happen? That’s only for those who died with deep resentment, whose chests are filled with lingering hatred. But this old man passed away peacefully. What’s in his chest is just residual yang energy. However, it’s already been tainted by yin energy. It will soon turn into evil qi. Then he would still become a Jiangshi. You think he wouldn’t have drained all your blood?”
At the words “drain all your blood,” the group grew uneasy. Luo Ping’an asked anxiously, “So, Master Liu, what should we do now?”
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