Chapter 10: Chapter 10: This Venerable One Goes on His First Mission
Fortunately, Chu Wanning hadn't heard much of Mo Ran's play pretend Mouth Punishment, so he managed to scrape by with some made-up nonsense, if only just.
It was terribly late by the time Mo Ran got back to his room. He took a nap and attended morning classes as usual the next day. After these classes came his favorite morning activity: breakfast.
As morning classes ended, Mengpo Hall gradually filled with people. Mo Ran took the seat across from Shi Mei. Xue Meng, having come too late to snag the spot next to Shi Mei, was reluctantly forced to sit next to Mo Ran with a gloomy face and only his own lateness to blame.
If anybody were to ask Mo Ran to name the best aspect of Sisheng Peak's teachings, he would definitely say it was that this sect's cultivation didn't require fasting. Unlike the lofty, ethereal sects of the upper cultivation realm, Sisheng Peak's cultivation method didn't mandate abstinence from meat or any other foods, so the meals there had always been sumptuous.
Mo Ran drank from a bowl of savory, spicy youcha soup, slurping up the peanut crumbs and crunchy soybeans within, and enjoyed a plate of pan-fried shengjian buns, cooked to a golden crisp, that he'd ordered just for Shi Mei.
Xue Meng gave Mo Ran a sidelong glance. "Mo Ran, it's really quite incredible that you went to Red Lotus Hell and actually managed to walk back out on your own two legs," he said mockingly. "You're a true inspiration."
"Of course," Mo Ran responded without even bothering to lift his head. "Who do you think I am?"
"Who do I think you are?" Xue Meng sneered. "Just because Shizun didn't break your legs doesn't mean you're anything more than chopped liver."
"If I'm chopped liver, then what are you?"
Xue Meng scoffed. "I am Shizun's top disciple."
"Self-proclaimed. Hey, why don't you go ask Shizun for his seal of approval so you can frame it and hang it on a wall? You owe at least that much to your title of 'top disciple.'"
Xue Meng snapped his chopsticks with a crack.
Shi Mei hastened to play mediator. "Please don't fight. Hurry and eat."
"Hmph."
"Hmph," Mo Ran mimicked Xue Meng, a shit-eating grin plastered on his face.
Xue Meng bristled, smacking the table. "How dare you!"
With the situation rapidly deteriorating, Shi Mei hurriedly held Xue Meng back. "Young master, everyone's watching. Eat, eat—don't fight."
Mo Ran and Xue Meng's horoscopes were simply incompatible; though they were cousins, they ended up bickering every time they met. Shi Mei tried without success to talk Xue Meng down. In the end, he had to resort to physically wedging himself between the two to ease the tension, placating left and right as he attempted to distract them both.
Shi Mei turned to Xue Meng. "Young master, do you know when the madam's cat is going to give birth?"
"Oh, you mean A-Li? Mom was mistaken. She's not pregnant, she just had a big belly from eating too much."
Shi Mei paused, then turned to Mo Ran. "A-Ran, do you still have to go to Shizun's place to do chores today?"
"Shouldn't have to anymore. Everything that needed to be tidied up has been tidied. I'll help you with copying the sect rules today."
Shi Mei laughed. "Do you even have time to help me? Don't you have to copy them a hundred times yourself?"
Xue Meng raised an eyebrow, looking with some astonishment at Shi Mei, who usually never put a single toe out of line. "How did you end up having to copy the rules?"
Shi Mei looked embarrassed, but before he could answer, silence dropped over the dining hall as all sounds of conversation ceased. The three of them turned to see Chu Wanning enter Mengpo Hall, his white robes billowing behind him. He walked to the food counters without any expression and started selecting pastries.
More than a thousand people were eating in the hall, but with the addition of just one Chu Wanning, it swiftly became as silent as a graveyard. The disciples lowered their heads to munch on their food; if anyone talked, it was in the most hushed of tones.
Watching Chu Wanning carry his tray to his usual corner to quietly eat his congee by himself, Shi Mei let out a soft sigh. "Actually, I feel kind of sorry for Shizun sometimes."
Mo Ran glanced up. "How so?"
"Just look: no one dares to go near where he's sitting; no one even dares to talk loudly with him around. It was okay when the sect leader was here, but without him, Shizun doesn't even have anyone to talk to. Isn't that lonely?"
Mo Ran hmphed. "He brought it on himself."
Xue Meng got angry again. "You dare to mock Shizun?"
"How am I mocking him? I'm just telling the truth." Mo Ran put another bun on Shi Mei's plate. "With a temper like that, who would want to hang out with him?"
"You!"
The shit-eating grin returned to Mo Ran's face as he peered at Xue Meng. "You got a problem with me?" he drawled lazily. "Feel free to go sit with Shizun for your meals, then. Don't hang around us."
That shut Xue Meng right up.
Xue Meng felt great respect for Chu Wanning, but just like everyone else, he felt even greater fear. Angry and humiliated, but with nothing he could say in return, he gave the table's leg two sound kicks and sulked by himself.
Mo Ran was the picture of languid smugness as he directed a taunting glance at the little phoenix. Then his gaze moved across the crowd and landed on Chu Wanning. He didn't know why, but when he looked at the only white-clothed figure in the hall full of people dressed in rich blue and silver armor, out of nowhere, he remembered that same person sleeping curled up amidst piles of cold metal the night before.
Shi Mei wasn't wrong. Chu Wanning really was quite pitiful.
But what of it? The more pitiful he was, the happier Mo Ran would be. As he thought about it, the corners of his lips couldn't help but lift even more.
The days flew by.
Chu Wanning didn't call Mo Ran to the Red Lotus Pavilion again, and so his daily chores became idle tasks like washing the dishes, feeding the chicks and ducklings Madam Wang kept, and weeding the medicinal herb garden. His month of confinement passed in the blink of an eye.
One day, Madam Wang called Mo Ran to Loyalty Hall. She patted his head as she asked, "A-Ran, how are your injuries?"
Mo Ran responded with a smile. "Thanks for worrying about me, Aunt. I'm all healed now."
"That's good. Be more mindful in the future. Don't make such big mistakes and anger your shizun again, understand?"
Mo Ran was an expert at acting pitiful. "Got it, Aunt!"
"And another thing." Madam Wang retrieved a letter from a small table made of fragrant rosewood. "It's been a full year since you entered the sect, which means it's time for you to take on exorcism duties. Your uncle sent this via messenger pigeon yesterday. Once your confinement period is over, he wants you to go down the mountain to complete this assignment."
Sisheng Peak's customs dictated that after one full year in the sect, disciples had to go see the world and gain practical hands-on experience as exorcists. On a disciple's first mission, they were accompanied by their shizun, who observed and lent aid as necessary. They also invited another disciple along in order to encourage camaraderie with their fellows and hammer home the meaning of "A loyal heart remains constant, whether in life or in death."11
Mo Ran's eyes brightened. He accepted the assignment letter, tore it open to read in a hurry, and started grinning in delight.
"A-Ran, your uncle entrusted you with a heavy responsibility for your mission in the hopes that you will be able to make a name for yourself," Madam Wang said fretfully. "The Yuheng Elder is a powerful cultivator, but swords are indiscriminate in battle, and he may not necessarily be able to protect you. Don't fool around too much, and make sure you don't take the enemy lightly."
"I won't, I won't!" Mo Ran waved her concerns away, still grinning. "Don't worry, Aunt. I'll take care of myself, no problem!"
He dashed off to pack.
"That child…" Madam Wang watched his retreating back, her gentle, graceful face lined with worry. "How is he so happy about simply receiving a mission?"
How could Mo Ran not be happy? The mission from his uncle was to look into an incident at Butterfly Town at the request of a certain Landlord Chen.
Who cared what kind of ghost or ghoul it was? What was important was that, in Mo Ran's last lifetime, this was where he had fallen under the influence of a demonic poison and, in an addled state, forcibly kissed Shi Mei within an illusory realm. It had also been one of the very few times Mo Ran had been able to get so intimate with Shi Mei. He was so ecstatic that he was practically on cloud nine.
On top of that, because he had been under the influence of the demonic poison, Shi Mei hadn't even been able to make a fuss. Free kiss! No consequences whatsoever!
Mo Ran was so happy he couldn't stop smiling. He didn't even mind the fact that Chu Wanning also had to come on the mission. He could just leave the exorcising to his master while he flirted with Shi Mei. Who would say no to such an easy job?
After Mo Ran invited Shi Mei and they reported to their shizun, the three of them headed on horse to the troubled Butterfly Town straightaway.
This town's specialty trade was in flowers. Fields of flowers stretched for many miles beyond the residential area, and butterflies of all colors could always be found fluttering about within the town—hence its name.
It was nightfall by the time the trio arrived, but the village entrance was bustling with activity. Drums beat out loud and clear as a procession of performers dressed in red and playing the suona turned out of an alleyway.
Shi Mei was puzzled. "Is this a marriage procession? Why is it happening at night?"
"It's a ghost marriage," Chu Wanning answered.
A ghost marriage, also known as a yin marriage, was a tradition among the common folk wherein they united men and women who had died young and unmarried in posthumous matrimony. This tradition was rare in poorer areas, but Butterfly Town was quite prosperous, so the practice was far from unusual there.
The showy procession was divided into two lines, one carrying bolts of satin and silk, the other carrying paper money and ingots, both escorting a sedan decorated in red and white. Lit by gold lanterns, the procession made its way out of the village.
Mo Ran's group pulled their horses to the side to let the ghost marriage procession pass. As the sedan came near, it became clear that the person within was not a living one, but rather a ghost bride made of paper. The ghost bride's lips were painted a bright scarlet, and two red lines on her cheeks framed a deathly pale face. Her smiling visage was extremely frightening.
"What kind of lousy tradition is this? Is money burning a hole in this town's pocket or what?" Mo Ran muttered under his breath.
"The people of Butterfly Town are extremely superstitious," said Chu Wanning. "It is their belief that solitary graves attract lone souls and stray spirits, bringing misfortune to the family."
"That's not actually a thing, right?"
"It is real as long as the townsfolk believe it to be."
Mo Ran sighed. "I guess. Butterfly Town's been around for hundreds of years. If you were to tell them now that their superstitions don't actually matter, they probably wouldn't be able to accept it."
"Where's this procession going?" Shi Mei asked in a quiet voice.
"We passed a temple earlier," said Chu Wanning. "The one enshrined inside was not a god, and a decorative cut-out of the wedding character Xi12 was pasted on the door. The altar was piled with red satin, upon which had written phrases such as 'match made in heaven,' 'harmony in the afterlife' and the like. I believe that's probably their destination."
"I also noticed that temple." Shi Mei looked pensive. "Shizun, is the one enshrined within that temple a ghost mistress of ceremonies?"
"That is correct."
A ghost mistress of ceremonies was a ghostly entity born of the imagination of the common people. They believed that the souls of the departed also needed to follow the proper customs when marrying. Therefore, the deceased pair needed to be witnessed by a mistress of ceremonies to certify that they had indeed become husband and wife. Since ghost marriages were a common tradition in Butterfly Town, it followed that they had made a gilt idol for the ghost mistress of ceremonies, which they had enshrined at the entrance to the cemetery outside town. The families holding ghost marriages would accordingly stop by with the ghost bride to worship at the temple before the burial.
Mo Ran had rarely seen such ridiculous practices before and watched with great interest.
But Chu Wanning only gave the procession a brief, ambivalent glance before turning his horse around. "Let's go. We must check on the family being haunted."
"Three honored Daozhang, I've suffered so much! You're finally here! If someone hadn't come to take care of this soon, I—I wouldn't even want to live anymore!"
The client who had asked Sisheng Peak to perform the exorcism was the richest merchant in town, Landlord Chen.
The Chen family dealt in perfumed powder and had four sons and a daughter. After the eldest son's marriage, the newlyweds had sought to move out, as the new wife had disliked how noisy the family was. The Chen family had riches and reputation to spare, so they'd purchased a large plot of land in a secluded area by the mountain north of town, one situated in a nice spot that even had a natural hot spring.
But on the first day of construction, they'd only dug a couple shovels into the mountain ground before they hit something hard. The wife had moved over to take a look only to immediately swoon from fright—somehow, they had dug up a brand-new, red-painted coffin.
Butterfly Town had a designated burial ground where all their deceased were interred, but this solitary coffin had inexplicably shown up at this mountain. Not only that, it had neither grave nor marker, and the entire coffin had been painted bloodred.
Of course they hadn't dared to proceed any further and had hurriedly covered it back up. But it had been too late. Ever since that day, strange events had befallen the Chens.
"First it was that daughter-in-law of mine," Landlord Chen lamented. "The fright affected her baby and she miscarried. Then it was my eldest son; he went into the mountains to collect medicinal herbs to help his wife recover, but he slipped and fell, and by the time we found him, he was dead…" He expelled a long sigh and waved his hand, too choked up to continue.
Madam Chen dabbed at her tears with a handkerchief. "My husband is right. In the months after that, each of our sons met with misfortune, one after another. If not disappearance, then death—of our four sons, three are already gone!"
Chu Wanning's brow furrowed as he glanced past the couple, and his gaze landed upon the pale-faced youngest son. The boy looked to be about the same age as Mo Ran, fifteen or sixteen, and had delicate features, though they were now twisted with fear.
"Would you mind telling us how your other sons…?" Shi Mei asked. "How did they die?"
Madam Chen sighed. "Our second son went to look for his brother and was bitten by a snake on the way. It was just a regular grass snake, not poisonous, so at the time, no one paid it any mind. But a couple days later, he just fell over while eating, and then…" She let out a sob. "My son…"
Shi Mei exhaled, feeling terrible for having to push. "Then were there signs that he had indeed been poisoned?"
"Ha, what poison? Our family's definitely been cursed! The oldest sons are all dead and the youngest is next! He's next, I tell you!"
Chu Wanning frowned, gaze snapping to Madam Chen. "How do you know that the youngest son is next and not yourself? Does this malicious spirit only kill men?"
The youngest son of the Chen family cowered to the side, his legs shaking and his eyes swollen like peaches. Even his voice squeaked and contorted as he said, "It's me! It's going to be me! I know it! The person in the red coffin is coming! He's coming! Daozhang, Daozhang, save me! Daozhang, save me!"
He began to lose it as he spoke, scrambling over to try to hug Chu Wanning's thigh.
Chu Wanning had always been averse to physical contact with strangers and immediately sidestepped him. He lifted his head to stare at the Chens. "What exactly is this about?"
The couple exchanged a glance and spoke with quavering voices: "There's a place in this house… W-we're afraid to go near it again. Daozhang will understand when he sees. It's truly evil, truly—"
"What place?" Chu Wanning interrupted.
They hesitated for a moment, then pointed toward the ancestral shrine room with shaking hands. "There…"
Chu Wanning led the way, followed closely by Mo Ran and Shi Mei. The Chen family trailed behind at a distance.
They pushed open a door to a room that looked no different from the ancestral shrines of other large families, with rows of memorial tablets flanked on both sides by pale candlelight. All of the tablets in the room were painted yellow, with the names and positions of the departed engraved thereon. The writing was neat and careful: Esteemed Spirit of So-and-So Ancestor, Esteemed Spirit of So-and-So Ancestor, so on and so forth.
But in the very center, there stood a tablet with lettering that wasn't carved and painted but written in a vivid red: Spirit of Chen Yanji. Erected by a living member of the Chen-Sun Clan.
The Chen family, who had been hiding behind them, peeked into the shrine room that was draped in fluttering white silks. Perhaps they hoped for a fluke. But those letters on the tablet, which seemed to have been written in blood, were still there, and they broke down immediately.
Madam Chen wailed loudly, and the youngest son's face was so pale that he hardly even looked alive.
First, the phrasing on this tablet didn't conform to that of traditional funerary rites. Second, the characters were extremely messy, as if the writer had been about to fall asleep and struggling to write, so much so that they were nearly illegible.
Shi Mei turned his head and asked, "Who is Chen Yanji?"
"Th-that's me," answered the youngest son from behind him, his voice shaking with sobs.
Landlord Chen wept as he spoke. "Daozhang, it's like this. Ever since our second son passed, we noticed that…that a new tablet had been added to the ancestral shrine, but that the names written on it were those of living people from our family. Once a name appears, that person is doomed to meet disaster within seven days! When our third son's name appeared on the tablet, I shut him in his room and sprinkled incense dust by his door, and I even got someone to come cast some spells. We tried everything, but—on the seventh day! He still died… No cause whatsoever, just died!"
The more Landlord Chen spoke, the more emotional and afraid he became, and he even dropped to his knees. "I've never committed any wrongdoing in my life—why must the heavens treat me so?! Why!"
Shi Mei's heart ached for the old man, and he hurriedly went to comfort him as he cried to the heavens. He looked up and said softly, "Shizun, this…"
Chu Wanning hadn't even turned around. He was staring at that tablet with great interest, as if flowers were about to bloom from it. Suddenly, he asked, "A living member of the Chen-Sun clan—is that referring to you, Madam Chen?"
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