When my master saw me scream and retreat, he asked hurriedly what had happened.
I was still in shock and took a few seconds to calm down. When my fingertips touched the tree's bark, it was as if I had been electrocuted. A powerful spiritual energy surged into my body, causing my entire body to tremble, no less than if I had really been struck by electricity. In that instant, I sensed there was a giant person inside the tree, like a shadow flashing by, and I couldn't describe its exact size or appearance.
I described my feelings to my master, who looked both surprised and doubtful. He slowly reached out and touched the tree, but there was no reaction at all. I bravely, with the caution of touching a high-voltage wire, slowly and carefully reached out again.
The feeling of touching the rough tree bark was transmitted to my fingers, but there was no electric-like spiritual energy, nor any image of a giant. Nothing happened at all. I couldn't believe it, so I let go and pressed my hand down hard again, but still, there was no response. I tried touching the second and third trees, but there was no sensation either.
Could it have been an illusion?
Suddenly, my master burst into laughter: "You must have sensed the tree spirit just now. When I performed the spell on you, I used camphor oil made from their branches, so you have their essence on you, which allowed you to resonate with it."
I was somewhat confused, because I touched the first tree, but the branch used was from the second tree, and the feeling I had just experienced was quite overbearing, as if it was not friendly towards me.
My master looked mysterious and asked me, "Do you know why Sheng Yu Po's attempt to harm you last night failed?"
I had already guessed something last night, but couldn't be sure. My master seemed excited and said, "The demon fox inside you, although sealed, is not completely dormant. It can sense when you are in danger. It shares your soul with you, living and dying together, so when it felt danger, it automatically defended you. Although that evil spirit has some skills, how could it compare to a demon fox that has practiced for thousands of years and can take a human form?"
I suddenly felt energized: "So, it won't harm me anymore?"
"It shouldn't, and since you share a soul with it, it's very likely that you'll form a 'channel' of spiritual power, so you can sense some things through its abilities. That time you dreamed of the village covered in blood mist might have been because of it. Communicating with the tree spirit just now might also have been its doing. Otherwise, even if you have the scent of a thousand-year-old camphor tree, without spiritual power and cultivation, you couldn't communicate with the tree spirit. In the future, you'll have more communication with the demon fox, and maybe you can even borrow its spiritual power. Of course, this will need to be verified and communicated slowly." My master's eyes were very passionate, and he seemed excited, as if he had found a treasure.
I was somewhat suspicious, wondering if he had known in advance that I would turn out this way, with great potential for development, so he had persuaded me into becoming his disciple.
"Master, did you already know it would be like this?"
"Cough, cough, I thought it might be possible before, but it was only confirmed last night."
I felt like a guinea pig again, but this was really good news. From now on, I wouldn't have to worry about the demon fox trying to take over my body, and it could help me avoid disasters and communicate with deities, basically acting as a dedicated protector!
"Master, since it won't harm me anymore, does that mean the problem of only living to thirty years is solved?"
"No, the demon fox won't harm you anymore, but the issue of shortened lifespan might be due to the change of souls, or it could be because of the injury caused by Lu Chengshan. Your fate has this one hurdle, so you must learn the longevity spells from me."
I felt a bit frustrated. Lu Chengshan, that bastard, was the cause of all this. If he hadn't been so relentless, the demon fox wouldn't have attached itself to me, and none of this would have happened. It was hateful that he had such high attainment and power, and I probably wouldn't have a chance to seek revenge in this lifetime.
My master gently stroked the tree trunk and sighed, "These three ancient trees are truly the protectors of our village. Some people say they've seen a giant divine figure at night recently, which might be the tree spirits driving away evil spirits."
I wasn't too convinced. While I could accept that a thousand-year-old tree might have gained some spiritual essence, the idea of them transforming into giant divine beings and running around was something I would never believe. However, my thoughts changed shortly after, as my master didn't say that the tree spirits were physical giants. If they were just spiritual entities, it was possible. As for the overbearing and powerful sensation I had felt from the tree spirit, it was understandable considering their age of over a thousand years. Compared to their age, my young age was like an ant to them.
As we walked back, my master looked angry as he said, "This place should not have houses built. These trees were planted to suppress the local feng shui, but these people just don't believe it. Alas!"
Nowadays, many people build houses without considering feng shui or the overall layout of the village. Sometimes even village cadres can't stop it, let alone my master. I shrugged my shoulders, showing my helplessness.
I saw many people carrying sticks, long-handled axes, and other tools heading out of the village. They were all going to search for the zombie, as this posed a threat to everyone. With the village cadres organizing it, about eighty percent of the village's able-bodied men were mobilized.
Sheng Yu Po's husband ran a clinic by the roadside. When my master and I passed by, Sheng Yu Po was lying on a bamboo chair getting an intravenous drip, and Fan Qiang had his arm in a cast and sling. There were also several of their family and friends. When they saw me and my master, Fan Qiang angrily ran out to block me.
I positioned my master behind me, staring at Fan Qiang with a cold gaze. If he dared to make a move, I would ensure that his other hand and both legs ended up with casts and bandages. With the guidance of Old Lin, my attacks had become much more lethal than before.
Fan Qiang was intimidated by my calmness and composure. He turned around to see that his relatives hadn't moved. Due to his usual reckless behavior, even his father and other relatives had strong opinions against him. If I were to cause trouble at their house, these people would definitely protect him, but now that he was the one provoking me, they wouldn't help him. The reason was still on his side.
Fan Qiang cursed a few times, not only insulting me but also including his relatives, calling them heartless and dogs that only knew how to eat. Then, he didn't return home but walked in the other direction.
Sheng Yu Po had been staring at me with an extremely resentful gaze. Her cheekbones were high, her eyes large and sunken, resembling a cat's eyes. Her complexion was a sickly pale, with some dark greenish marks on her forehead, and her eyes were deep-set and dark, with some scattered white hairs. She stared at me so intensely that I felt uncomfortable, but I wasn't afraid of her. I deliberately raised my head and twisted my mouth, showing a look of extreme disdain: Bring it on if you dare!
My master, however, didn't dare to glare back at the old witch. He pulled me away forcefully. After walking for a while and no one was around, I asked in a low voice, "Master, she will definitely use evil methods to harm me again. You must be careful and not let your esteemed disciple die before he has even left the thatched cottage."
"Spit, spit, the words of a child are not to be taken seriously, speaking nonsense!" My master was very cautious about such things and scolded me for a while. Many spells and incantations were taboo, like the hemostasis talisman. Once, a villager's leg was cut by a broken hot water bottle, with a deep and long wound, bleeding profusely. Old Fan (Fan Qiang's father) couldn't stop the bleeding, but my master used a hemostasis talisman, and it worked immediately. Unfortunately, the injured villager, shocked, said, "It seems there's still some bleeding." That was when things went wrong, and there was always a little blood oozing out, no matter how hard they tried to stop it, and it continued to bleed all night before it finally stopped.
My master knew that Sheng Yu Po wouldn't just give up, so as soon as we got home, he immediately began teaching me how to break curses. He then drew a dispelling talisman and pasted it in my bedroom, and also drew protective talismans and talismans for peace to wear on my body. While drawing talismans, he also taught me some hand seals, steps, and incantations, such as the Heavenly Ruler Seal, Sun King Seal, Moon King Seal; incantations like the Mind Cleansing Chant, Mouth Cleansing Chant, Brush Cleansing Chant, Paper Cleansing Chant; and steps like the Taiyi Immortal's Big Dipper Steps, Primordial Eight Trigrams Steps, Jade Maiden's Crossing the River Steps, etc. Learning knowledge through practical application can achieve twice the result with half the effort.
The effectiveness of talismans depends entirely on the depth of the caster's cultivation, and ordinary people's cultivation is limited. Only by communicating with the heavens, earth, and gods, and borrowing spiritual power can one draw powerful talismans. My master's cultivation was not high to begin with, and years of illness had severely depleted him. He also didn't have "spiritual roots," making it difficult for him to communicate with spirits. Therefore, the effect of the talismans for peace and protection he drew was limited. He hoped that after I learned, I could draw them myself when I was in good condition, and it was possible that the talismans I drew now would be more effective than his, as I had spiritual roots and might inadvertently gain the assistance of the thousand-year-old demon fox.
A series of supernatural events and troubles made me and my master almost forget that today was the Mid-Autumn Festival. With the zombie not yet eliminated, I guessed that the whole village wouldn't have much of a festive mood.
Around 10 in the morning, my grandmother hurried to our house, saying that Sheng Yu Po had a divine spirit possessing her again. The old witch claimed that I had cut branches from the large camphor trees when treating patients, and the tree spirit was angry, causing the strange events of the past few days. A large-scale sacrifice was necessary. This time, more people believed her, partly because no one had ever cut branches from the large camphor trees before, and partly because the zombie had brought great psychological pressure to the villagers, and they definitely wanted to find the main culprit.
I really admired Sheng Yu Po's shamelessness and energy. After just finishing an intravenous drip, she still had the energy to cause trouble. Regardless of what she said, as long as no one came to find trouble with me, it was fine. If someone did come looking for trouble, I had ways to deal with it. My master's prestige was not lower than hers.
My master was also angry about Sheng Yu Po's rumors, but he had no objection to the sacrifice of the tree spirit, and he didn't say anything.
In the afternoon, Old Lin came to our house to sit for a while. He had also gone out to search for the zombie in the morning but had no success. The old zombie had hidden somewhere unknown.
In the afternoon, Sheng Yu Po and her loyal followers, as well as the people who had suffered from the zombie attack last night and those who were timid and afraid, made a big fuss. They offered a whole pig, a whole sheep, and a whole cow to the tree spirit, with countless chickens, ducks, pastries, mooncakes, fruits, and other offerings. There were also countless incense, paper money, and firecrackers, and drums, suona, and other musical instruments were used to support the ceremony. They conducted a "Zou Mao" ritual, which was the highest level in nearly a hundred years.
I didn't go to the scene, afraid of being pelted with rotten eggs by those deceived villagers. If not for my master sitting in our house, they would have already rushed to our house to find me, the main culprit.
The elderly and women continued to make a fuss under the large camphor trees until almost dusk, but those who went to search for the zombie still had no results and gradually returned. Everyone hid in their homes early, shutting and reinforcing their doors to prevent the zombie from breaking in.
Xu Jianmao had gone to other places to invite several Yin and Yang masters, but as soon as they heard about the zombie, they refused to come. In the afternoon, there were some people from the public security bureau who came, but they said that cases of reanimation were not under their jurisdiction, so there would be no support tonight.