Young master, why not become a corpse immortal?

Chapter 126 What People Hold

"Cuihua, don't go! Don't go!"

The middle-aged man, pinned to the ground, had a flickering ghostly figure. He struggled and screamed at the ferry, his fingers digging into the ground.

If they were alive, they would probably have already dug trenches into the mud.

Two demon soldiers with bull heads and horse faces each occupied one side, their iron-clad palms glowing with a soul-binding blue light, pressing him down so hard that he couldn't even lift a finger.

The two demons were chatting when they caught sight of a newly appeared figure in the forest, and their muscles tensed up immediately.

With his long face slightly turned to the side, the horse-faced man's iron hooves had already quietly stepped on the weapon that was stuck diagonally into the ground.

Very wary.

Only when they could clearly see the wolf-headed man did their tense shoulders and back relax.

"Don't be foolish, Brother Lu! If these delicate-skinned girls get bewitched by the ferry, we brothers won't be able to protect them!"

White steam billowed from the bull's nostrils, and its copper bell-shaped eyes glared at Lin Jiang and the others.

"These are the officials from the Kyoto Shinohei Division."

The wolf-headed man clearly knew his subordinate's temperament well, so he spoke earnestly, word by word.

then,

Lin Jiang could see with his naked eye that the expression on the bull's face had frozen.

He immediately switched to a fawning smile:

"Why didn't you say so sooner, Brother Lu! If we had known our distinguished guest was coming, we would have been much more prepared and tidy."

Horse-faced, who had originally intended to touch the weapon, immediately withdrew its hooves after hearing the identities of Lin Jiang and the others.

The corners of his mouth are stretched towards his ears, and his eyes are drawn as two curves.

He must be laughing.

"Now you're blaming me for not saying it sooner, you silly ox."

The wolf-headed demon kicked his own brother, then turned to explain:

"They are holding a living soul, so it is inconvenient for them to perform the full ceremony."

"It's alright. If it weren't for these two brothers, this man's soul would have been stolen long ago."

Lin Jiang walked up to the merchant and squatted down.

During the day, he had met the merchant once.

I never imagined that I would almost have my soul stolen in the middle of the night.

Gong Xuan squatted down and slapped the talisman. The moment the yellow paper landed on the soul's brow, the howling stopped abruptly.

Only those eyes, still gazing longingly at the ferry, remained fixated on an unyielding obsession.

The two demons, the ox and the horse, were released from their shackles, their copper bell eyes wide open: "As expected of the master, such methods are far superior to our brute force."

"This talisman can only suppress the condition for a short while. To cure it, we will need to use other methods."

As he spoke, Gongxuan took out a red rope and a bell from his pocket. He first tied the red rope to the ghost's wrist, and then threaded the bell onto the red rope.

Then, Gongxuan gently flicked the bell with his hand, and a tinkling sound rang out. A wisp of green smoke actually rose from the bell.

A young man stood against the wind in the smoke, his features resembling those of a merchant, gazing at the village where smoke curled from the chimneys.

"What a wonderful technique!" Chen Dajiang exclaimed in amazement.

"This skill is called 'the one who tied the bell must untie it.' Although the name sounds elegant, it's actually just a way to examine one's conscience."

Let's put the conversation aside for now and focus our attention back on the images in front of us.

The young man gazed at the mountain village in the distance; it was so large that it could be called a town if it weren't for the fact that it hadn't yet been walled up or paved with bricks. He stopped under a tree, seemingly waiting for someone.

Just a moment later, a girl was seen walking towards them from not far away.

The girl wasn't particularly beautiful, but she was wearing a rather pretty dress, a rarity among ordinary villagers. She walked up to the young man and smiled sweetly.

"You've been waiting for me here for a long time, haven't you?"

"Not too long."

"Would you like some pancakes?"

The girl took out a few pancakes from her bosom, and the two sat under the tree and ate the pancakes.

The afternoon sun was shining brightly, casting a golden glow around the two of them.

Gong Xuan glanced at the bell's status and said:
"This is the most cherished memory in the businessman's heart."

"Why stare at the crumbs for so long? Just say this guy got dumped by Cuihua, that's all!" Ox-Head interrupted, scratching his horns. "Besides, it's so uncomfortable to have this crumb stuck in your teeth."

Gong Xuan rolled his eyes:
"Hey, you really have no sense of romance."

However, he didn't continue watching the two young men squatting under the tree eating pancakes. Instead, he flicked his finger at the smoke screen, and as the ripples spread, the clear sky suddenly darkened.

It seemed as if water was flowing through the painting, but when you looked again, the sky was already covered with dark clouds.

The two young people were still eating pancakes under the tree when the girl suddenly said after taking two bites:
“My father wants to marry me off to a young master in a nearby town.”

The pancake in the boy's hand rolled into the grass, his Adam's apple bobbed for a long time, but he couldn't utter a single word.

"I've never seen that young master before, I don't know what he's like, and I'm a little scared..." The girl turned half her face to look at the young man by the tree:

"Take me away?"

The boy's mouth was slightly open, but he was clearly hesitant.

It seemed as if the heavens were against us, with gusts of cold wind blowing and dark clouds gathering.

"The weather is quite fitting for the atmosphere," the wolf-headed man couldn't help but say. "Sometimes when I go to listen to storytelling performances, it's always like this. They love to match the weather with bad things, like a curtain being drawn on a stage. When you're sad, it rains; when you're angry, it thunders. Is this some kind of human talent? A way to make the sky change with your mood?"

Gong Xuan's veins throbbed slightly.

"This is a memory! People always process their memories. This memory of his is full of scars, so naturally it will be like a torrential downpour."

The scene then shifts again, first to a torrential downpour, where a businessman, clearly older, stands in the rain, while in the distance, a procession of relatives and friends is making a lively scene with gongs and drums.

Horse-faced also chimed in:
"I just don't understand your complicated human thinking. That girl said she wanted to take her away, so why didn't she? If this were us, we'd just snatch her away!"

Gong Xuan simply couldn't take it anymore:
"Can you all just shut up?"

The three monsters immediately shut their mouths.

Gong Xuan had lost all his spirit and hastily waved his hand, shattering the smoke into scattered fragments.

"He probably saw the girl named Cuihua on the boat, and he needs to make a paper doll that looks like Cuihua to coax her back."

Gong Xuan rubbed his temples, looking troubled: "I don't know if I'll have enough time. The dolls I make always have crooked noses and slanted eyes. I've tried several times before, but people always said they didn't look like them..."

Lin Jiang pondered for a moment, then suddenly seemed to have thought of something:

"Taoist Master, we need someone who looks like him. Just call out to him from a distance."

"Indeed, it would be more effective if the person with the knot in their heart were here. As the saying goes, the one who tied the knot must untie it. A ship lost on the wrong boat is still just a ship lost on the wrong boat. How can it compare to the person themselves?"

"Then I might have some methods."

Lin Jiang took out a lantern from his pocket.

"Sir, what is this?"

Gongxuan had never seen this lantern before and did not know its function.

Lin Jiang then whispered to the lantern:

"Do you still remember what that girl looked like?"

"My lord, please rest assured. To me, rouge and powder are like ink and paper to scholars. If I cannot remember a woman's beautiful face, what use am I?"

The green gauze lantern spun gently in response, and a swarm of butterflies emerged from between the bamboo ribs, instantly transforming into a woman who landed behind the soul.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be exactly the same as the one I remembered!
Gong Xuan couldn't help but take a second look:
"Impressive skill!"

The lantern, upon receiving the praise, covered its mouth and chuckled softly.

"Taoist Master, do you think these features suit Cuihua well?"

"Yes, that's right. This is much better than the paper figures I made."

Gong Xuan walked over to the merchant and placed his hand on the talisman:

"I will remove the talisman in a moment. Please call out to him softly, just like the one he loves. This will help him return from the lost ship."

The lantern nodded.

With everything ready, Gong Xuan flicked his wrist and plucked the talisman downwards.

"Cuihua!"

The heart-wrenching screams rose again, and the merchants who were lying on the ground scrambled to their feet, trying to chase after the ship.

Unexpectedly, a familiar voice suddenly came from behind:
"You idiot, you even mistook me for someone else! I've been waiting for you here for so long!"

The merchant's neck stiffened, and his steps suddenly stopped.

He turned his head and looked to the side. When he saw that familiar face appear before him, two lines of clear tears flowed from his eyes.

The merchant opened his arms, as if wanting to embrace the person before him:

"Cuihua..."

"good chance!"

Gong Xuan simply reached out and slapped a talisman onto the merchant's back.

The merchant's body instantly transformed into a streak of light and flew directly into the distance.

He's back to life.

Lin Jiang watched the light recede into the distance, still somewhat puzzled:
"That'll be fine?"

“That will do.” Gong Xuan nodded. “We must not wait until the soul realizes that the surroundings are fake, otherwise it will definitely be led away by the Lost Ship.”

"That's terrifying."

"Yes."

Lin Jiangyuan saw the lost boat drifting further and further away on the river, and that faint sense of attraction had shattered completely.

It seems like nothing else will happen.

"What about the souls of the other two?"

"I was just about to send someone back. Since you gentlemen are here, would you like me to take you back?"

“You should send them back,” Gong Xuan said. “If we go back with our souls on our bodies, we’ll probably end up in their dreams, which will cause trouble the next morning.”

"it is good."

The wolf-headed man nodded and immediately ordered Ox-Head and Horse-Face to send the remaining two souls back. Only then did he reveal a simple, honest smile.
"Gentlemen, why don't you have some delicious food and drink before you leave?"

"Let's find Miss Jiang first; we can't just eat all the food ourselves," Lin Jiang said with a smile.

……

The waning moon peeked over the eaves as everyone returned home.

Lin Jiang also filled his Qiankun bag with some snacks and drinks.

The wolf-headed man insisted on giving it away for free, but Lin Jiang took out the money anyway.

These elusive creatures didn't accept gold or silver; they either bartered or accepted copper coins. Lin Jiang happened to have a lot of copper coins, so he bought some from each household.

They were all priced at the normal rate.

Rabbit's osmanthus cake is fragrant and delicious, and Zuo Shanjun's ham is hard to find in ordinary shops. By going to a big market, the harvest is really plentiful.

After returning to my accommodation, I was a little tired.

Even if a practitioner's body isn't tired after a long day of work, their mind is exhausted and they need to meditate to regulate their breathing.

They said goodnight to each other and went back to their respective residences.

As the doors to the side rooms closed one by one, Lin Jiang sat cross-legged on the soft cushions of the carriage, his eyelashes already glistening with starlight.

However, what he didn't notice was that a light mist gradually appeared around him, enveloping the carriage.

……

The scent of rouge mixed with the smell of alcohol pierced my nostrils.

Lin Jiang suddenly opened his eyes, and the lanterns on the boat swayed so much that he turned his head to avoid them.

"Sir, sir, have you had too much to drink?"

The woman, her thick powder falling onto her pomegranate-colored skirt, leaned over, the silk flower at her temple almost brushing against his nose.

Lin Jiang frowned. He suddenly felt a slight tremor beneath his feet and couldn't help but ask:
"This is where?"

"Oh, sir, you've really had too much to drink. How come you don't even know where you are?" The woman flicked her handkerchief, creating a fragrant whirlwind. "The only way to cross the river for the lost is to take a boat for the lost."

(End of this chapter)