Chapter 119: The God of Gamblers (2)

There stood before him an old woman dressed in ragged, tattered clothes, hunched over and glaring at him with a face full of resentment. Her eyes glowed with a ghostly green light. Liu Dashao hurriedly scrambled to his feet, bit his tongue, and spat a mist of blood toward the old woman. As if frightened, she stepped backward. Seizing the opportunity, Liu Dashao rolled and crawled all the way back home in panic.

As he neared his home, Liu Dashao looked back and saw the old woman standing far away beneath a scholar tree on the main road, still staring at him with that same mournful gaze.

He rushed through the door, shouting, “Zhang Enpu! Zhang Enpu!” Seeing Liu Dashao in such a panic, Zhang Enpu hurriedly asked what had happened.

“There… there was a ghost chasing me!” Liu Dashao gasped for breath, exhausted, and then recounted everything from the moment he and Goudan encountered the group outside the village, to seeing the two ghosts and the old woman chasing him all the way home.

After listening, Zhang Enpu said, “Take me to see that young man. Don’t be afraid!”

Liu Dashao and Zhang Enpu went back out. When they reached the scholar tree, Liu Dashao opened his spiritual eyes but could no longer see the old woman. Zhang Enpu simply walked under the tree, muttered, “Don’t cause trouble,” and then pulled Liu Dashao away. On the way, Zhang Enpu told Liu Dashao that the old ghost woman actually meant no harm—she was just filled with resentment.

When Liu Dashao and Zhang Enpu reached the crowd, they saw villagers covering Yan Xiao’liu with a white cloth. Had Yan Xiao’liu really died? Village Chief Tian was also there, rushing forward to drive the group away, but the burly black-clad men shoved him aside. It turned out Yan Xiao’liu had indeed collapsed and died on the spot. Several villagers then tried gambling against the thin, dark-complexioned middle-aged man, but no matter what they bet, they all lost. It was suspiciously unnatural.

Zhang Enpu frowned as he looked at the thin, dark man. At that moment, the man addressed the crowd, “No offense meant to you all, but we only stay in each village for three days. If no one can beat me in three days, we’ll move on to the next village. I’ll be here tomorrow waiting for you all!”

With that, he stuffed the pile of grain coupons into a sack and led the group toward the village inn.

After watching them leave, Zhang Enpu turned to Village Chief Tian and said, “First, carry Yan Xiao’liu back to his home. I saw that young man’s head bore a red glow of noble fate, but within that vibrant red light were faint threads of black qi. I suspect some evil spirit is at work. Let me figure out a solution before we properly lay Yan Xiao’liu to rest.”

Village Chief Tian nodded and called for several strong young villagers to carry Yan Xiao’liu away.

Back home, Liu Dashao followed Zhang Enpu to the study. Zhang took out paper and brush and wrote for a long time before folding the paper and handing it to Liu Dashao’s father. “Brother Liu, take this letter to the neighborhood committee and give it to Village Chief Tian. He’ll understand everything.”

Liu Laoshi asked with concern, “Master Zhang, what’s happened?”

“You’re worrying too much. Set off now, don’t delay the timing, and be careful on the road.” After giving these instructions, Liu Laoshi wrapped himself in another coat and left with the letter.

Liu Dashao’s mother also asked with concern, “Earlier, I heard from Goudan’s mother that Goudan had a fall at home. His parents took him to the clinic. Oh dear, how did this happen!”

Zhang Enpu comforted her, “Madam, no need to worry. It was just an accident from the young man’s clumsiness.”

Liu Dashao couldn’t sit still. He ran to the door and peeked outside, feeling a chill. Remembering the ghostly old woman he had seen earlier, he shivered and quickly shut the door, returning to the courtyard.

Zhang Enpu sat in the courtyard, deep in thought. Liu Dashao asked, “Master Taoist, what exactly did that old woman want? She was so scary!”

“She was standing right at the door just now!” Zhang Enpu replied.

Liu Dashao was startled. No wonder he had felt so cold earlier. Zhang Enpu led Liu Dashao into the inner room and said, “I believe that ghostly old woman must have some grievance. I’ll summon her to ask. You don’t need to be afraid. Just ask her what she wants and what injustice she suffered, and we’ll know her purpose. I suspect it has something to do with that thin, dark young man!”

After saying this, Zhang Enpu lit a stick of incense and placed it in the burner. He took a black cloth and covered his head with it, reminding Liu Dashao not to be afraid. Then he began to shake his legs. After a while, his arms also started trembling. A strange breathing sound came from beneath the black cloth. Soon, his entire body was shaking. Liu Dashao wanted to approach and check on him when suddenly Zhang Enpu stopped shaking completely, motionless.

Not knowing what to do, Liu Dashao then heard a sharp, high-pitched laughter from inside the room—“Hiiiiii…”—sending chills down his spine. The voice was unmistakably that of an old woman.

As Liu Dashao tried to locate the source, he realized the laughter was coming from under Zhang Enpu’s black cloth. Yet the voice clearly belonged to the old woman. Liu Dashao was frozen in fear. Suddenly, the cackling laughter sounded again.

“Hiiiiii… come here, little boy! Let me have a good look at you! Hiiii…”

Liu Dashao stood rooted to the spot, unable to move, having completely forgotten all of Zhang Enpu’s instructions.

Then, the ghostly old woman began sobbing softly, while Liu Dashao could only see Zhang Enpu’s shoulders trembling—something both eerie and unsettling.

Gathering his courage, Liu Dashao finally spoke, “You…”

“I am from Mang Mountain in Hebei,” the ghostly old woman interrupted before Liu Dashao could ask anything.

“I was the matriarch of a wealthy family in Mang Mountain. My husband passed away early, so I, a mere woman, had to manage all the family affairs. I had one son, the thin gambler you saw today. His name is Ke Jiang. He’s been addicted to gambling since childhood. He gambled not only with money, but with anything he could bet on. He squandered all our family’s wealth. When he ran out of money, he started stealing the jewelry and treasures my husband left behind, selling them for gambling funds. Fortunately, Heaven had mercy—his fate was cursed with perpetual bad luck, so he lost every time he gambled.”

Liu Dashao sighed inwardly and listened intently.

“Later, our family fell into ruin. We dismissed all the servants, and our life became pitiful. Yet that beast still gambled, even without money. He bet on whether it would rain that day, or whether a neighbor would quarrel. One night, he took a shovel and went up the mountain. Coincidentally, I wasn’t asleep and noticed his suspicious behavior, so I quietly followed him.”

“I never imagined that beast would actually dig up his father’s grave. I confronted him, scolding him as a wicked son, trembling with rage, and threatened to report him to the authorities. But that beast, fearing I would expose him, actually choked me to death with his bare hands—his own mother!”

Liu Dashao was shocked. How could someone be so monstrous? That was his own mother! Liu Dashao clenched his teeth in fury.

“That beast, seeing that I was dead, panicked and threw my body into my husband’s coffin before fleeing back home. My soul could not rest, so I followed him every day. But he couldn’t see me. Later, one day, I don’t know where he learned it, but he began to worship ghosts!”

“Worship ghosts? What… what is that?” Liu Dashao’s eyes widened with curiosity.

After hearing the ghostly old woman’s story, Liu Dashao felt infinite sympathy and was no longer so afraid of her. But suddenly, Zhang Enpu began shaking violently.

The ghostly voice grew fainter and fainter: “Master, help this poor old woman! That day, when I saw my son performing some Taoist techniques, I knew you were the one who could help me seek justice! Great Immortal! His gambling luck lies in the big gold ring on his left hand! Remember!”

With that, the black cloth covering Zhang Enpu’s head fell off.

He slowly opened his eyes, looking slightly exhausted. Liu Dashao quickly poured Zhang Enpu a cup of tea.

Zhang Enpu took a sip and calmly asked, “Did you understand everything?”

“Yes, the old woman explained it all to me!” Liu Dashao then recounted everything the ghostly old woman had said to Zhang Enpu. Zhang Enpu nodded repeatedly.

“Master, what exactly is ‘worshiping ghosts’?”

Zhang Enpu sighed and said, “Worshiping ghosts is a method for those born with cursed fates—those with extremely bad luck—to change their fortune.

I once read about it in a book. At night, the cursed person takes offerings and incense to a grave without a tombstone in a cemetery. They place the offerings before the grave, light the incense, and bow several times.

Then they pull the incense from the ground and carry it all the way home. Along the way, countless ghosts and spirits will try to scare them. As long as the person doesn’t lose their nerve and the incense doesn’t go out, and they bring it home before the rooster crows and place it in the burner, their luck changes—they’ll win every gamble.

However, from that moment on, they must sacrifice their lifespan to feed the summoned ghost. Once someone invites a ghost, not only will their descendants suffer karmic retribution, but if the ghost ever leaves, the person’s soul will vanish forever.

Usually, the summoned ghost won’t leave, because these are often lonely spirits with strong resentment who were never worshipped. Naturally, once someone offers them worship, they won’t leave.”

After listening to Zhang Enpu, Liu Dashao thought, Could that long-haired demon with a lolling tongue on Yan Xiao’liu’s shoulder before he died be the ghost summoned by Ke Jiang? That thing was just too disgusting.

Zhang Enpu looked up at the sky, calculated the time with his fingers, and said, “Let’s rest well today. Tomorrow, we’ll break Ke Jiang’s luck!” Hearing this, Liu Dashao knew Zhang Enpu definitely had a plan.

Early the next morning, Liu Dashao’s grandmother was tidying the courtyard while Zhang Enpu sat in the yard reading the *Tianshi Bilu* (Records of the Celestial Master). Liu Laoshi had not yet returned from working in the fields. After breakfast, Zhang Enpu said something to Liu Dashao’s grandmother and then took Liu Dashao into the study.

Zhang Enpu sat at the desk.

He took out a red cloth typically used for talismans and dipped his brush in ink, writing the character “Chì” (敕) at the top. Then, he added two sweeping strokes on each side and several characters for “thunder” below. Liu Dashao recognized it as a Five Thunder Protection Talisman, which he had seen before in Zhang Enpu’s talisman manual. After drawing several talismans and setting them aside, Zhang Enpu turned to Liu Dashao and said, “The old woman mentioned that Ke Jiang’s gambling luck lies in the large gold ring on his left hand—that’s where the ghost he summoned resides. Here’s what we’ll do…”

Zhang Enpu explained the plan to Liu Dashao, then lit incense for the household guardian spirits before returning to the courtyard.

Just as they sat down in the courtyard, a knocking sound came from the gate. Liu Dashao went to open it and joyfully turned back to Zhang Enpu, saying, “Father’s back, and Village Chief Tian has come too!”