Chapter 28: Wandering Soul
Master Yang asked with great interest, “Brother Fei, have you officially completed your apprenticeship?”
Li Yunfei scratched his head and replied, “In terms of cultivation, yes, my training is complete. But I haven’t handled any problems on my own yet, so I hope you’ll let me take the lead this time.”
“Of course, any payment will go to you, Master Yang—I won’t take a single cent.”
At these words, Master Yang’s expression grew serious. “Brother Fei, it’s not that I doubt your abilities, but what we’re dealing with this time is particularly dangerous.”
“If you’re not absolutely sure, it’s best not to act rashly. If something goes wrong, lives could be lost.”
Li Yunfei probed, “Is it a vengeful spirit?”
Master Yang nodded gravely. Li Yunfei, on the other hand, brightened at the news—a vengeful spirit! Had it not been a vengeful spirit or a wrathful ghost, he’d have been less eager to act.
The final step in his transition task was to defeat such a spirit; ordinary hauntings were of no use to him at this stage.
With a solemn air, Li Yunfei declared, “Leave it to me! I must defeat a vengeful spirit or wrathful ghost on my own to truly complete my training. This is the test my master set for me, and I have to see it through.”
Having heard Li Yunfei speak with such determination, Master Yang had nothing more to say. He nodded and said, “Alright! Since you insist, I agree to your request.”
“But promise me, don’t try to show off. If it gets too much, you have to pull back at once.”
Li Yunfei agreed cheerfully, “Don’t worry, I know my limits.”
With matters settled, Li Yunfei took out his phone and transferred 12,000 yuan to Du Hua.
“Boss Du, here’s the money for those eight roosters. Please take care of them for me. If Master Yang or his people need them in the future, you can give them to them—consider it a gift from me.”
When Du Hua saw the amount on his phone, his pleasure was impossible to hide—it shone clearly on his face. He gave a thumbs-up and exclaimed, “No problem, Brother Fei. You’re a man of your word!”
Master Yang was equally delighted. Who would have thought a simple trip to buy chickens would lead to meeting a wealthy Maoshan priest? Whether he truly had the skills was yet to be seen, but his generosity was undeniable.
Master Yang had come in a van, so he took the lead, and Li Yunfei followed closely behind in his own car.
The site of the job was in Daping Village, about three or four kilometers along Highway 319 toward the county seat, then another five kilometers down a small country road.
Daping Village was among the best-off in Fenghuang Township. The roads there were paved, and vehicles could be driven right up to each household’s courtyard.
Yet the road was quite isolated and passed by a mass grave.
This was unavoidable; the terrain elsewhere was far too complicated—only this spot was suitable for building a road.
The highway was smooth, and after a few minutes, Li Yunfei followed Master Yang’s van onto the narrow country road into the village.
The road was just wide enough for two cars to pass with difficulty. One side was a mountain wall, the other a steep drop.
A less skilled driver could easily end up driving off the edge or scraping the mountain wall while passing another vehicle.
After about three kilometers, Li Yunfei suddenly heard a system prompt in his mind:
“Notice to host: a dungeon area, Mass Grave, has been found. Level range: 36–40. Please select dungeon level.”
Li Yunfei paid it no mind. He hadn’t dared approach the 31–35 level cemeteries before—let alone a level 36 and above mass grave.
But he noticed that up ahead, the brake lights of Master Yang’s van suddenly flashed, and the vehicle came to a slow stop. He quickly hit the brakes as well.
Once stopped, he saw Master Yang get out and wave toward the front of the vehicle, calling out, “Move along, I haven’t got any, move along!”
It was summer, and the night air wasn’t too hot, so Li Yunfei hadn’t bothered with the air-conditioning, just left the windows open.
Hearing Master Yang’s words, Li Yunfei was quite puzzled. With the van blocking the view ahead, he couldn’t see what was going on, so he got out and walked forward.
When he reached a spot just behind Master Yang, the situation ahead finally became clear, and Li Yunfei’s eyes widened in surprise.
He hurried back to his car, using the door as cover, pretending to fetch something from inside.
From his system inventory, he took out his Bagua pouch, slinging it across his body. He filled it with exorcism talismans, a red spirit-binding cord, his Yin-Yang compass, a coin sword, soul-summoning bells, and other tools.
He also strapped a peachwood sword with a bright yellow cloth sheath to his back, and carried a Bagua mirror in his hand as he walked back to Master Yang’s side.
There, about twenty meters ahead in the middle of the road, illuminated by the van’s headlights, stood a white figure.
Long hair hung down, obscuring the face, making features impossible to discern.
But even from twenty meters away, Li Yunfei could clearly see—the figure’s feet were not touching the ground. It hovered there, suspended.
“Master Yang, what’s happening?”
Master Yang glanced at the equipment in Li Yunfei’s hands, a flicker of envy in his eyes.
He was merely a yin-yang practitioner, lacking any cultivation of his own, unable to use such magical tools even if he had them.
Those in his profession relied more on external objects to deal with spirits and hauntings.
Even the more capable among them could only borrow power from deities through spells and talismans, but did not possess true cultivation themselves.
Hearing Li Yunfei’s question, Master Yang explained, “We’ve run into a wandering ghost blocking the road, demanding incense and paper money. Just like those old folks who stand in the road and ask drivers for tolls.”
With this explanation, Li Yunfei immediately understood and asked in a low voice, “What happens if we don’t give it anything?”
Master Yang replied, “If the ghost is reasonable, you can tell it you have nothing, and it’ll leave on its own.”
“If it’s a bit more aggressive, it won’t harm you, but it’ll play tricks—get you lost, block your vision, things like that. Basically, you’ll be stuck here till dawn.”
Li Yunfei rolled his eyes—so there were freeloaders even among ghosts.
He glanced at the wandering spirit up ahead. “So this one’s the aggressive type? Should I get rid of it?”
Master Yang quickly waved his hands. “No need, that’s unnecessary. Wandering spirits are different from vengeful or wrathful ghosts—they don’t bear heavy karmic debts. Eliminating them would harm your virtue. Just drive it away.”
“I actually have incense and paper money in my car. If we were elsewhere, I’d burn some and settle it. But not here.”
Li Yunfei was puzzled. “Why not? Is there something special about this place?”
Master Yang gave a wry smile. “This place used to be a mass grave.”
He paused, seeing Li Yunfei still didn’t fully understand, and asked, “You know how to open your spirit sight, right?”
Upon hearing this, Li Yunfei slipped the Bagua mirror into his pouch, formed a mudra with his left hand, and made a sword gesture with his right. He chanted:
“Great Lord Laozi divides the Three Pure Ones,
The Lord of Spiritual Treasures stabilizes the three souls,
Heaven, Earth, and Humanity unite three fires,
Grant me spiritual sight to perceive Yin and Yang,
By swift and binding order!”
He passed the sword gesture over his eyes, turned, and looked around. Instantly, he understood why Master Yang had said they couldn’t burn offerings here.
Because it wasn’t just the one wandering spirit ahead—on both sides of the road, no fewer than a hundred or so wandering spirits stood silently, watching them.
Even with his current spiritual strength, being stared at by so many ghosts made Li Yunfei’s scalp tingle and his back grow cold.
“Damn, that many!”
Master Yang gave a bitter smile. “Exactly! If you wanted to appease all of them, burning a little incense and paper wouldn’t be enough. And that stuff costs money—who can afford to burn so much?”
Li Yunfei’s face darkened. He strode forward a few steps, pulled out his Bagua mirror, and leveled it threateningly at the ghost blocking the road. “Move aside, or don’t blame me for what happens next.”