Chapter 4 Chapter Four: The Secret Art of Raising Ghosts: Killing Ghosts

"Look out the window." When I woke up early in the morning, I opened the curtains and asked Yang Chang to come and see. In recent days, Qingshui Town has become even more abnormal.At first it was only foggy in the morning, but now it is shrouded in dense fog all day, getting worse every day. Today is the day of Su Yun's burial, Suni's whereabouts are still unknown, and the bathing place has not opened yet. Grandpa and little uncle ran outside all day, looking for Suni everywhere. Yang Chang and I helped my aunt with her busy schedule, and finally managed Su Yun's funeral.

"I didn't expect so many things to happen this time. Originally, we came here to get married, but it turned out like this." "Don't think about it, after Su Yun's funeral is over and we find Suni, we will go back to the city to hold the wedding." Yang Chang embraced my shoulder from behind, calming my anxiety softly. "I always feel that things are not that simple. Didn't Suni say 'they won't let anyone go, everyone has to die'. The old man also said that the children's undead have grabbed our feet, now leave Qingshui Town is also a dead end."

"No." Yang Chang seemed to be comforting me and himself, "Isn't the truth of the matter already revealed? The reason why children's undead appeared in the bathing place was because Su Yun's child died miserably. Now he I took revenge on my mother, and the matter has come to an end..." "Has it really come to an end? It was Suni who killed the child with her own hands. Has Suni been murdered now?" "Didn't Suni leave the bathing place? The child's undead is in the bathing place. If she escapes, nothing will happen." I nodded, and hugged Yang Chang tightly, giving him warmth and confidence.

Suni said, "They won't let anyone go, everyone must die", she didn't mean "he", but "them"; Meng Gong also said, "There are more than one child, Su's bathing place is full of children. The ghost of a child". more than one!Yes, I feel like there is really more than one. But I would rather take a chance and believe that the nightmare is over. Su Yun's funeral is a burial.The funeral was held in a very low-key manner. After all, the death was so tragic, and no one wanted to make a fuss about it and leave people talking about it. The ceremony lasted until the afternoon, and the atmosphere at the scene was very depressing.

The eldest aunt cried several times until she passed out, while the grandfather and the younger uncle lowered their heads, with sad expressions. Few people came, a few of Su Yun's former classmates, and workers from the bathing place. In the evening, Mrs. Lan brought Meng Gong over, bowed to us, and we returned the gift. Meng Gong quietly pulled Yang Chang and me aside: "Can you go away now? I want to talk to you." We followed Meng Gong all the way eastward.At the junction of the east and west districts of Qingshui Town, a bungalow hut decorated like a Buddhist hall has a gold-lettered signboard that reads - "Shengong Hall".

Sister Lan went back to the restaurant first, and Yang Chang and I entered the Shengong Hall, where weirdness and aura were everywhere. The walls are covered with portraits of ghosts and gods, and there are many brooms standing upside down beside the wall. On the main platform is a statue of the Supreme Lord, surrounded by small candlesticks, and in the middle of the room there is a square table neatly arranged. There are Peiyu, red silk thread, ancient coins, gossip, and some things I have never seen before.There is a sandalwood fragrance all around, and there is an indescribable feeling in the smell.

"The situation is more serious than I imagined. I believe you don't need to say more, but you also feel it? This girl Su Yun definitely didn't commit suicide, but was killed by a ghost." After we sat down around the square table, Mr. Meng frowned at him. But Baba said with a very dignified face. Yang Chang and I stared at him blankly. I took the words pretending to be calm: "Meng Gong, whether it was suicide or ghost killing, the matter is over. We have already learned about Su Yun's past. She once did something wrong, and a child died because of her." Death. Yang Chang mentioned to you last time that I saw the undead child in the bathing place, it was that child. So Su Yun's death can also be said to be a kind of retribution. She has already paid the price for the wrong things she has done. everything is over."

"Really, do you really think it's over?" Meng Gong smiled strangely. "Otherwise?" I asked back. "If you ask me, Su Yun's death is just the beginning. It won't be long before many people will end up like her." Meng Gong shook his head, his eyes suddenly sharpened, "If this continues, Qingshui Town will be bloodied." Flowing like a river, we must stop the tragedy before it happens. Children, I need your help, and you can only help me, because there is no way out for everyone.” "Is what you said a bit alarmist, do you have any evidence?" Even though I admit that this incident is indeed an incredible supernatural event, it doesn't mean that I believe that Meng Gong is a genuine and capable psychic.

"I have found some clues, you can read it yourself." Meng Gong said, and handed me a booklet. It was a very worn-out booklet, with dark yellow spots on the paper, and a naked child was drawn on the pages, with eyes closed tightly, in a posture like a fetus in a mother's womb, surrounded by many root-like plants . "Ah! It's a cane! It's this kind of cane on the cabinet in the bathroom kitchen!" Yang Chang had already recognized it and exclaimed in surprise. "That's right, this is a vine of the most shade, you said you saw it in the bathing place?" Meng Gong asked.

Yang Chang nodded repeatedly. "That's right, this proves my speculation that someone is using the secret technique of raising ghosts without authorization!" Meng Gong looked excited and angry, and slammed the table hard, making a muffled sound. The secret technique of raising ghosts!The secret technique of raising ghosts! There was a buzzing sound in my mind, and some remaining memories surged out from the depths of my mind. One month before my mother committed suicide, I came back from playing outside, and there was a faint quarrel between her and grandma at the door of my mother's room—"Don't make excuses anymore, I have already seen your secret, I know everything. "

"Mom, you are crazy! I don't want to hear your nonsense, you go out." "Hehe, don't be like this, why are you so afraid? You know how much I envy you. I have studied for decades without success, but you have done it, and you have done it so perfectly. Hurry up, get you Tell me the secret of success, tell me everything!" "Stop talking, I beg you. The secret technique of raising ghosts is not as simple as you imagine. It will breed demons, subvert everything, and destroy everything! Please, let it go, we will live a good life in the future, don't Have you touched those evil things?" "It's really nice to say. Daughter, you are so stingy, do you want to master the secret of raising ghosts by yourself? Let me tell you, don't even think about it! If you don't tell the secret of success, don't blame me for being ruthless." "what the hell do you want?" "What do I want? Haha! You should know that I have Chen Xue's deadly handle in my hand. Don't you love your daughter very much? Don't you do anything for her? If I reveal Chen Xue's secret, you Guess what will happen to her?" "Mom, Chen Xue is your granddaughter, how could you..." "As long as I can get the secret of raising ghosts, I can do anything! Okay, I'll give you a few more days to think it over!" "I beg you not to force me anymore! I really can't say it, I have my reasons!" "It's you who don't force me, don't force me to do things that hurt you and Chen Xue, just do it yourself!" "Mother……" "Hmph! Ah! Chen Xue, you stinky girl, you are actually eavesdropping outside! You come in for me, tell me, what did you hear?" "Snap"——I felt a burning pain on my face, and my grandma's fierce expression quickly magnified in front of my eyes.She has always been indifferent to me, but she has never frightened me like today, she slapped me overwhelmingly.Mom cried and stopped her, and the two chatted.Suddenly, my eyes were dark.When I woke up, I was already lying on the warm bed, and my mother was sitting on the edge of the bed crying sadly. That was the last time I saw my grandma.Later I heard that my grandmother had a big fight with my mother that day, and then my grandmother ran to the Haixiang Hotel in the East District to spend the night alone. As a result, there was a fire at night, and she never came back. "Chen Xue, are you okay?" Yang Chang's worried voice brought me back to reality from memory.I looked into his worried eyes and shook my head slightly. Vaguely, I have a very ominous premonition that I don't want to think of many things, let alone think about them. Because I'm afraid the result is an answer I can't face. Meng Gong looked at me and shook his head, his insightful eyes were full of pity and helplessness. I continued to flip through the booklet. It was a very strange explanatory booklet, with a picture on each page and some words attached to it. In general, it records the origin, use and method of a technique called "secret art of raising ghosts". The origin of raising ghosts is introduced in some words, but the content is very vague and jumpy, and various legends are listed.The final conclusion is that it may be this way, or it may be that way. In short, even the person who wrote this booklet cannot determine the real origin and initiator of raising ghosts. He only said that it may be witchcraft from Miaojiang, or It may be the development of Maoshan technique, or it may be a method used by demons to confuse the world.People who successfully raise ghosts can send their ghosts to do various things and achieve their own wishes. They are almost omnipotent.But there are also many taboos. It seems that if you don't pay attention, you will raise evil spirits, and even be attacked by evil spirits.The method is not difficult but very vicious. It needs the bones of newborns who have just been born but died immediately to hunt for their souls, burn their heads from the chin with fire, collect corpse oil or bone oil, and open an altar for sacrifice. The cane is an indispensable "material" in the practice of sacrificial offerings. I flipped through it quickly, and immediately threw the booklet on the table. For some reason, my heart began to beat faster and my breathing became difficult, as if it was an instinct.I felt extremely terrified and repelled by the matter of "raising ghosts", and I couldn't read the contents of the booklet word for word. "You mean, someone is raising ghosts in the bathing place?" I forcefully suppressed the panic in my heart, and asked Meng Gong tremblingly. Meng Gong nodded: "This is the only reason why the yin energy in the Sujia bathing place and Qingshui Town has increased so rapidly. Because no matter how tragic things happen and how many people die, it will not cause the current situation. Do you still remember the fire in the East District fifteen years ago? More than 700 people died, but no undead appeared because of it! That is to say, no matter what your cousin Su Yun did wrong to kill a child, the child They also do not have the ability to claim their lives. The undead can never do anything without the assistance of a certain medium. So many people are wronged to death every day in this world, but 99.9% of the prisoners are not killed by the undead. Choked to death, do you understand?" I nodded: "Please continue." "There must be a reason for the appearance of a wronged soul, which means that the 'medium' he needs has appeared. And I think the so-called medium is that someone is doing the thing of raising ghosts. Raising ghosts is the most destructive sorcery. The yin qi was pushed to a peak, so the resentful spirits in the bathing place woke up, launched a terrifying and bloody revenge, and finally killed Su Yun. But even this still can't explain why the yin qi can cover the entire Qingshui Town, even Undead who were burnt to death fifteen years ago appeared in Mrs. Lan’s restaurant. I have considered this issue for a long time. According to my guess, there are several possibilities——First, the person who is raising ghosts at this moment has not obeyed the rules of raising ghosts , but what changes have been made inside; second, this person has only a half-knowledge about raising ghosts, and has made an omission in a certain step; I can just imagine." "Could the child be Su Yun's child?" I told about the inexplicable disappearance of Su Yun's child's skeleton. "It's possible, very likely." I gasped. If this conjecture was true, the person who stole the bones of Su Yun's child should have known the secret of Su Yun and Suni long ago.If this person is from the bathing place, it is terrifying that he can hide like this. "What should I do?" I was completely out of ideas. "Tell me what's unusual in Su's bathing place recently?" Meng Gong stared at me and said. abnormal?There are simply too many to count. Su Yun's death, Suni's morbid thirst and her disappearance, as well as the water in the uncle's room, the disgusting rancid smell... I jumped up from my seat violently.These days I have always felt that I have overlooked or forgotten something, and now I finally remembered: "Yang Chang, do you still remember the day when Suni drank the water in the bathing place? The reason why we found her was because we heard the big Uncle's cry for help." Yang Chang was taken aback: "I only remember a big mouse-like thing running in front of my eyes, and then I heard a cry for help. It was the voice of my uncle? How could it be, isn't my uncle bedridden? " I was stunned for a moment, by the way, Yang Chang had never heard the voice of the eldest uncle, so he didn't question it these days.I was so dizzy because of Su Ni's abnormality and Su Yun's death that I completely forgot about it. "Uncle has a problem, he has a problem!" I expressed my opinion with certainty, and immediately narrated to Meng Gong all the strange things that happened after arriving at the bathing place. After hearing this, Meng Gong was silent for a while. "According to the current situation, your uncle is indeed very suspicious. Even if he is not a ghost raiser, he must have something to do with raising ghosts. You must pay more attention to his every move, maybe you can find out from him Order something." When Meng Gong said this, he pointed to a pile of strange little objects on the table and asked Yang Chang and me to choose the same. "These are spiritual objects that I have collected over the years and have special functions to ward off evil spirits, but they can only be used as an aid to help you at critical times. Considering the yin energy that is currently covering Qingshui Town, we are in a disadvantageous position. The ghost has already triggered the evil spirits, our chances of winning are very low, but we can only win, if we don’t succeed, we will become benevolent.” I randomly picked a pair of jade bracelets, the color is green and transparent, without a trace of impurities. Yang Chang wore an obsidian bracelet on his right hand, so he picked out a string of Buddhist beads and put it on his left hand. We were playing with the new "armor", Meng Gong went to the window and opened the curtain to look out: "Oops, it's dark, you should stay here tonight, it's very dangerous outside." "No." I immediately refused, "Today is the day of Su Yun's burial, we can't stay out all night." Yang Chang also echoed at the side: "Indeed, that's too impolite." Meng Gong didn't force it, just said: "Remember, if someone calls your name or pats you on the back, don't agree or turn your head. Be careful of big rocks on the ground. When you see willows and pagoda trees, you must stay away from them." , go to the door of the house and pat off the dust on your body before entering the door." If it was a month ago, I would definitely laugh it off when I heard such "nonsense", but at this time I tried my best to stuff Meng Gong's words into my mind, and asked him: "I always do the same thing at night. Nightmare, is there any solution?" Meng Gong asked: "Did you have any dead relatives in your nightmare?" "Yes, there is my dead mother, but there is also a little girl who looks like a ghost." Meng Gong pondered for a while and said: "Dreams are often a reminder and omen. In the past, there was a saying in the folks, don't put god statues and magical instruments in the room, because doing so will affect the dream and make it impossible for the dead relatives to use the dream as a warning. But you said that relatives and undead will appear together. I need you to explain the dream in more detail before I can judge whether it is relatives warning or undead. But it is getting late now, and the later you go back, the more dangerous you will be. I'll solve it next time. I'll teach you a method, lean an upside-down broom on the wall of the room, fill half a bowl of water with a wooden bowl, put seven plump and undamaged soybeans beside the bed, and straighten the shoes Putting it next to your bed should temporarily prevent ghosts from invading your dreams." Yang Chang and I bid farewell to Duke Meng and walked out of the Shengong Hall. Yang Chang looked around: "This Qingshui Town is really gloomy. I don't know if it was influenced by Meng Gong. I always feel that it is indeed much colder than when we first came here." "Stupid, it was the end of December when we came, and it's already January now, so naturally it's getting colder and colder." "Why, you still don't believe Meng Gong's words?" Yang Chang asked. "Half and half, how about you?" "Hehe, I am the same, half and half, let's figure out what happened to the eldest uncle before making a conclusion." We walked hand in hand on the streets of Qingshui Town where the night was as cold as water.Qingshui Town has not seen the moonlight for many days, and it is cloudy every day. If it weren't for the dim lights from the houses on the roadside, I would really be blind. I looked around strangely, the townspeople in Qingshui Town seem to have really increased recently, and there are still many people wandering around at such a late hour.But rather than walking, it is better to say standing.There were one or two people standing quietly facing the door of each house, not talking to each other, just standing silently, there were men, women, and children, their hands were hanging stiffly, and they didn't know what they were doing. Gradually, I felt that something was wrong. I thought of those undead that Mrs. Lan said were burnt to death in the East District fifteen years ago. Only the undead that she could see were in the restaurant. "Yang Chang." I squeezed Yang Chang's hand hard, and found that his palm was sweating like mine, "Can you see those people standing at the door of the bungalow?" "I was going to ask you too! I was scared to death, and I was really worried that you would not be able to see." Yang Chang heaved a sigh of relief, "Now I finally understand how Aunt Lan felt at that time. Only one person can see a lot of undead, which is really terrifying. " We both felt a little relieved and continued on our way. I was suddenly patted on the left shoulder, and I almost cried out in fright.I only heard a man's deep and erratic voice coming from behind - "Excuse me, do you know where Sister Lan's restaurant is?" Just as I was about to turn around, Yang Chang grabbed me: "Have you forgotten what Gong Gong said? You can't turn back!" "But someone asked for directions, what should I do?" Yang Chang felt embarrassed, so he had to cough twice in embarrassment: "I'm sorry, brother, my girlfriend and I have some neck problems, and we can't turn back, haha! You're looking for Mrs. Lan's restaurant, right? Don't look for it, Her store is closed for a week." "I must find her. I have been looking for her for many years. Tell me where she is." The man's voice seemed to be close to my ears, and I suddenly felt cold and uncomfortable. "Are you a relative of Sister Lan, or a friend?" Yang Chang still asked without looking back. I knew that Yang Chang was testing that person.Mrs. Lan once said that she no longer has any relatives, and she doesn't have much contact with the residents of Qingshui Town, and she doesn't usually talk much, so she got along with us.Except for Meng Gong, she probably wouldn't know how to find her friends for many years. The man didn't answer our question directly, but said incoherently: "I must find her. I'm lost. I've been lost for many years. I want to go home." Yang Chang suddenly tugged at me and pointed to the wall. Through the lights of people on the street, I saw the shadows of myself and Yang Chang stretched out on the wall, but there was no shadow of the man behind us. My whole body froze. Yang Chang held back and asked again: "Who are you from Aunt Lan?" The man's cold voice came word by word: "I am her husband." "Wow ah ah ah ah!" Yang Chang and I yelled loudly and ran quickly. Mrs. Lan's husband was burned to death in the fire fifteen years ago!We made it clear that it was a ghost! But no matter how we ran, the man's voice still followed us closely, asking over and over again: "I can't find my way home, can you tell me? ... I can't find my way home Way to go, can you tell me?" We were scared out of our wits, and the screams shook the sky.The strange thing is that none of the people standing at the door of the bungalow looked back at us. I was puzzled and couldn't help but look at those people, but I saw their drooping hands.The hands of each of them were as black as charcoal—no, they were charred charcoal at all. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Yang Chang, Yang Chang, those people standing at the door of every house are the souls of the fire that burned to death fifteen years ago!" "Wow! Don't scare me!" "It's true, look at their hands!" "Look at the hand?...Ahhh!" Suddenly, I stopped in my tracks and stood still. Suddenly there was a feeling of being pierced by something in my body, I shivered violently, and the voice of the man behind me disappeared. "Why did you stop? There are ghosts chasing us now, why don't you run away?" Yang Chang said to me anxiously. "We don't have to run anymore, the ghost won't chase us anymore." "how do you know?" I stared blankly at the front, and slowly stretched out my finger to point forward: "Look, we have brought Sister Lan's husband home." Right now, we are standing in front of Mrs. Lan's restaurant. "How is it possible! After we left the Shengong Hall, we obviously went to the west bathing place. How could we come to the East District? And we have arrived at the entrance of Mrs. Lan's restaurant?" "Yang Chang, do you think Mrs. Lan will be in danger?" Yang Chang and I looked at each other in blank dismay, then rushed up and smashed the door in a hurry. There was no movement for a while, and just as we were about to break in, Mrs. Lan's timid voice came from the other side of the door: "Who?" "Sister-in-law Lan, open the door quickly, it's me and Chen Xue!" Yang Chang shouted anxiously. The door opened, and Mrs. Lan appeared in front of us with a pale face, with a pillow in her arms, a look of fear on her face, and cold sweat on her forehead: "It's so late, why are you here?" "We... happened to be passing by here, so we came to take a look." I made up an excuse, and asked tentatively, "Sister-in-law Lan, you look so pale, what happened?" Sister Lan hesitated to speak: "You guys come in first, let's sit down and talk." At the four-legged table in the restaurant, Mrs. Lan poured tea for us restlessly, and accidentally splashed the water in the cup all over the table. "I'm sorry, I'm clumsy." Aunt Lan hurriedly found a rag to wipe it off. I quickly pulled her to sit down: "Don't be too busy, let's just sit and go. Sister Lan, did something happen just now? You look very panicked." Sister Lan lowered her head: "It's nothing, it's just that I...I dreamed about my dead husband." Yang Chang and I looked at each other quickly, and I asked again: "What kind of dream is it, is it scary?" Sister Lan sighed faintly, "I dreamed that he stood by my bedside and said to me, my wife, I have finally found a home, and we can be together again in the future. I heard him just after he finished speaking. There was a knock on the door, and I woke up with a start. I opened my eyes, and saw a figure lying on top of me. I was terrified, but my body couldn't move. I've heard that this kind of situation is called a 'ghost press' , but the people who are said to be pressed by ghosts are not all conscious? At that time, my mind was very clear, and I even heard the black shadow lying on my body talking to me-wife, I finally found my home , We can be together again in the future. It turned out to be the voice of my dead husband. Then I struggled desperately and rolled off the bed with my pillow. I immediately stumbled and ran to the door, and you all know what happened next. " "I'm sorry, Mrs. Lan." Hearing this, Yang Chang stood up and bowed guiltily to Mrs. Lan. Sister Lan was startled: "What are you doing?" We were ashamed to tell her about the weird incident that happened after we came out of the Shengong Hall tonight. After hearing this, Mrs. Lan was silent for a long time.She didn't blame us, but said with tears: "This enemy tortured me in every possible way during his lifetime, and he still refused to let me go after death..." We comforted her for a long time, and agreed that we should not let Sister Lan live alone in the restaurant, so we took her to the Shengong Hall and asked her to stay there for one night. Then Yang Chang and I walked towards the Sujia bathing place, and we stayed close together along the way.At the door of every house, there are still standing dead souls who were burnt to death fifteen years ago.