CHAPTER 12: CHAPTER 7: MING ZHANG NOTES

My master has been Taming Evil for over a year, and he has already grasped the crucial Secret Technique for Taming Evil.

I’ve heard that the Yin Walking Generals who guard the prefectures for the Evil Suppression Bureau rely on this technique and have survived for over a decade without signs of revenge from the Evil Spirits.

Today, Master spoke much, stirring my heart. I picked up the pen to express it, still not satisfied.

I don’t know what kind of Evil Spirit I’ll be able to tame in the future. By then, I might head to the Evil Suppression Bureau for a task. Perhaps, in the future, I can also be a Yin Walking General guarding a prefecture, bringing glory to my ancestors, leaving my name in history.

...

[March 15]

Black Mountain Village has one hundred and eight people? Three days ago, the record was still one hundred and nine people.

These past three days, there were no exorcism activities, no deaths, and no one went far away. Why is Liu Family’s third son missing from the list?

After asking the whole village, they all say there’s no such person in Black Mountain Village. I seem to recall that the Liu Family lost two sons early on and had a daughter in their old age, now they only have one daughter, Liu Caifeng.

But the list written by my own hand could never be wrong. Liu Tianyou, sixteen years old, the only person from Black Mountain Village attending private school in the county, returned from Tangyuan County, absolutely exists!

I asked Master, and he told me to stop investigating.

In this world, there are many existences that cannot be recorded, not allowed to be named or described, not even to be mentioned. They cannot be confronted by human strength. Even the Yin Walking Generals guarding the prefectures need to retreat.

Fortunately, few people are aware of these existences. They stay away from humans, only appearing occasionally, rarely causing disasters. As long as you don’t unluckily trigger their rules, nothing will happen.

Everyone, including Master, does not remember Liu Family’s third son. How did he provoke such terrifying entities, how frightening!

Master took the opportunity to teach me, telling me to put away my curiosity to live longer. In this world, concerning Evil Spirits, it’s not necessarily better to know more.

Also, every day, you must clearly count the villagers. Important matters must be recorded with vermillion ink, and always consult when encountering something strange.

Some Evil Spirits can alter people’s memories, but they cannot change vermillion ink. The purer and thicker the vermillion, the harder it is for the Evil Spirits’ power to affect it.

After thinking about it, Wangshan City seems safer. They have the Day Traveling Envoy and Night Traveler from the Evil Suppression Bureau taking turns on duty. I really don’t understand why Master resigned from the Evil Suppression Bureau just to come to this broken place.

There’s not much vermillion ink left. I plan to head to Tangyuan County tomorrow morning to buy more and deliver a letter to Master.

Drive the Black Donkey cart, bring the ink bucket, talismans, and iron sword for protection, don’t forget!

...

[April 8]

Black Mountain Village has one hundred and nine people, five black dogs, and nineteen Morning Roosters.

It rained the day before, and the young Zhao Family’s child went missing. By today, there’s no trace. Eight out of ten, the child was naughty, stepping into a puddle on a rainy day and vanished.

Today, Li Family’s wife gave birth to two big healthy boys. Their black dog also gave birth to a litter of puppies, three black and two spotted.

A Morning Rooster was killed to honor the gods, recording the newborn’s birthdate with chicken blood, vermillion, and Yellow Paper to stabilize the soul, ensuring peace from Evil Spirits for three years.

What’s Li Family’s feng shui? So prosperous with many children and blessings?

Li Weiming isn’t afraid of too much happiness, dying violently in the wilderness, leaving behind a young and beautiful widow.

If speaking of beauty, it should be that village’s mad woman and her silly daughter, Shuiling, who are pretty. What a pity, the mother and daughter act as the Village Guardians for Black Mountain Village, protected by Kou Yushan and the villagers.

Kou Yushan, this solitary widower, has hidden quite a bit of glutinous rice to help exorcise the Evil Spirits for Skinny family. He’s really good at winning people’s hearts.

Skinny’s old mother, half-buried, doesn’t deserve to waste such precious glutinous rice. It’s a waste!

It’s been nearly a month since the Ghost Gate opened. Every night in dreams, I revolve around the chaotic burial mound, yet I still don’t see the Nine Netherworld.

Master tells me not to rush, to first serve the villagers well. When the time comes to descend to the Lower Nine Netherworld, lighting the Heart Lamp will still rely on the incense from these mud-legged folks.

Descending to the Lower Nine Netherworld without a Heart Lamp is like a sheep entering a tiger’s den, inviting Evil Spirits, dying quickly.

...

[April 27]

Black Mountain Village has one hundred and eight people, five black dogs, and nineteen Morning Roosters.

Li Weiming died.

His wife suffered postpartum blood loss, so yesterday he went to Tangyuan County to buy medicine for her and didn’t return overnight.

This morning, just before dawn, Old Liu across the door stayed up all night in the main hall because of strange noises in his house during the night.

He happened to see Li Weiming through the crack of the door, looking like a corpse, returning from the night, covered in soil, standing in Li’s courtyard, looking toward the house.

As soon as the Morning Rooster crowed, Li Weiming turned into a pile of yellow soil, leaving only a few bags of medicine and a rattle buried in the ground. Li Family wailed incessantly, alarming the entire village.

Just said Li Weiming was a short-lived ghost!

Staying out at night, he ran into Evil Spirits and could return, he must have worshiped a Mountain and Field Ghost.