See You Again

Chapter 7

Inviting the Flower God

Terms in WTFFISYA Chapter 7

师父 (shī fù): Master

师兄 (shī xīong): Senior brother

公子 (gõng zǐ): Childe/young master

钟仙 (zhōng xiān): Bell immortal

中天王 (zhōng tiān wáng): King of Central Heavens

帝君 (dì jūn): Emperor lord

衙门 (yá mén): Government office in feudal China

These terms can also be found in the Glossary

All the high level demons entered the temple, not only Bai Ling, but also a snow demon and a five-tailed fox. Bai Ling can be ruled out. As for the other two, Hong Ning also thinks it is unlikely. First of all, Zheng Ke was killed when he entered the temple. It can be seen that the demon must be from the temple, and Zheng Ke has visited Tianhe Temple many times until the day before yesterday. The accident happened after he moved in and replaced the things marked the word "Buddha", which means that the demon can't appear during the day to harm people and is afraid of Buddhism, so the cultivation base will not be too deep. He Lan Xue and Lu Jiu can walk around the temple at will and killing people does not have conditions at all. .

Hong Ning lay on the bed and thought about it for a long time and decided to ask Bai Ling to go to the pond to have a look.

Bai Ling stood outside the door.

Hong Ning was surprised: "What are you doing here?"

Bai Ling didn't answer.

Is he worried that Lu Jiu will come to find trouble? Hong Ning quickly understood the reason, and her heart warmed: "Let's go to the pond again to have a look."

As soon as they walked out of the courtyard, they saw someone waiting outside, Bai Ling just ignored walked forward.

"Bai Ling!" He Lan Xue stopped him.

"Move."

"Shi Xiong, I'll be over there, call me if there's anything." Hong Ning found an excuse to get out and walked quickly without waiting for Bai Ling to say more. Although she was a little sorry for Bai Ling, she really didn't want to offend her and couldn't afford to offend this trouble. He Lan Xue is too crazy, she can do anything, not to mention that there is no need for others to get mixed into the problems between them, it is better to ask Bai Ling to solve it by himself.

"Move." Annoyed.

"Do you like her?"

"She is my Shi Mei, don't cause trouble unreasonably."

师妹 (shī mèi):

Junior sister

He Lan Xue's voice softened after hearing the explanation: "Don't be angry, I just..."

Hong Ning breathed a sigh of relief and quickened her pace. Bai Ling knew that it was very important, if she really misunderstood her, she might end up like Xiao Ke.

Turning around the corner, there is a pond in front.

Suddenly, she tripped over something under her feet and Hong Ning almost fell. Looking down, she saw a white shadow lying on the ground. She immediately backed away to avoid looking at those eyes, opening her mouth to call for help at the same time.

"Carry me over." Lazy voice.

Hearing that it wasn't Lu Jiu, Hong Ning let out a long breath: "Who are you?"

The man on the ground looked decent, but what was different was that he had a pair of ears that were unusually long, and his eyes were half-squinted, with a strange red light.

Is it a rabbit spirit? On the contrary, Hong Ning is much calmer. This demon has not completely shed his true form, and his magic power is definitely not too strong. Could it be that...recently he's the one causing mischief?

Rabbit spirit was dissatisfied with her reaction: "Hello, are you dazed?"

Hong Ning sighed: "Where do you want me to carry you?"

Seeing that she was not afraid, rabbit spirit was a bit surprised. After hesitating for a moment, he stretched out his hand and pointed to the other side of the pond: "I live outside the temple, carry me over there first."

"Okay." Hong Ning leaned down wanting to hug him, but secretly held a talisman and chanted a spell.

Rabbit spirit was completely unprepared, realising he was being restrained, he was shocked: "What are you doing!"

The demonic aura is not heavy, so there shouldn't be any intention of harming anyone. Hong Ning was a little suspicious, she pulled out the small sword around her waist and pointed at him, sneering: "Was the person harmed by you? If you don't tell the truth, you will be beaten back to your original form by heavenly thunder. !"

Hearing beating back to its original form, rabbit spirit became anxious and begged for mercy: "I didn't harm anyone."

Hong Ning said, "How did Zheng Ke die?"

Rabbit spirit said, "Who is Zheng Ke?"

Hong Ning said, "He built this temple at his expense, how could you not know him?"

Rabbit spirit argued: "I rarely come out on weekdays, how would I know about them."

Seeing that it really didn't look like a lie, Hong Ning was disappointed and unreconciled: "You live nearby and you haven't seen anything strange happen in the temple? Are there any other demons in this temple?"

Rabbit spirit seemed to remember something: "You mean a dead person? Right, someone died."

Hong Ning secretly delighted: "Speak."

Rabbit Jing said, "Only I know about this matter. If I tell you, you must let me go."

Hong Ning responded without hesitation.

Rabbit Jing said, "Someone died in the pond."

Hong Ning said, "It's Zheng Ke from a few days ago, who harmed him?"

Rabbit spirit said: "What a few days ago, it was ten years ago."

Hong Ning was surprised: "Ten years ago?"

Rabbit spirit returned to his lazy appearance: "Ten years ago, this was a small temple with only a few rooms. I came to enjoy the shade that night and saw a monk sitting and talking with a man in green. That man wanted to see some kind of dragon palace crystal bottle, so the monk took it out, the man repeatedly praised it for being priceless. When the monk wasn't paying attention, the man killed him, tied him with iron chains and sank him to the bottom of the pond and walked away with the treasure bottle."

Killing people because of greed, no wonder Zheng Ke didn't let him clean up the pond! Hong Ning sucked in a breath of cold air. This monk was killed for no reason. The body has not yet seen the sun and it must be difficult to enter the cycle of reincarnation: "Who is that monk?"

Rabbit spirit shook his head: "That, I don't know."

Ten years ago, someone disappeared in the temple for no reason, it shouldn't be difficult to inquire about it, so Hong Ning let him go after a few words of warning, turned around and walked back.

"The little monk hasn't entered the monastery ten years ago," the little monk said while sorting out the scriptures in the small attic, "Don't mention the little monk, even the abbots also came later, and there has never been one less person in the temple these years. "

Hong Ning wondered: "According to you, no one stayed in this temple ten years ago?"

The little monk put down the scriptures and explained: "In those days, this place was very desolate and simple, and there was only one Hai Ming Shi Fu guarding it, which is not comparable to the current scene. Later, Hai Ming Shi Fu left to travel and handed over the temple to donor Zheng to take care of it. Donor is very trustworthy, he invested in the renovation of the temple and that is how there is today's Tianhe Temple."

Hong Ning was startled, but she smiled: "No wonder Zheng Gong Zi will financially support Tianhe Temple. It turned out to be on account of the friendship with Hai Ming Shi Fu."

The little monk said, "The two of them were good friends."

Hong Ning asked, "Has Hai Ming Shi Fu ever been back?"

The little monk shook his head.

Now that's right! Hong Ning said, "Has anything strange happened in your temple over the years? For example, that pond?"

The little monk thought for a while: "I don't know if it's a strange thing, the lotus flower in the pond blooms later than other places, but falls earlier. Because the little monk thought it was interesting, he recorded the days in private. No matter how well it bloomed before, the petals will always finish falling on the day of 16th June."

Hong Ning was surprised and thoughtful.

The little monk said, "On a summer night last year, a Shi Xiong also said that he saw a demon with red eyes and long ears by the pond, which scared him into sickness for several days."

The rabbit ran out to enjoy the shade, scaring the monk, Hong Ning smiled secretly, fearing that he would be suspicious, she deliberately changed the subject: "No one is allowed come in to offer incense these two days?"

The little monk bowed his head down and said, "Offer what incense, it's a blessing to be able to escape with a life in the future."

Hong Ning hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?"

The little monk said in a low voice, "To tell the truth, donor Zheng had an accident in our temple, and being unable to catch the murderer after so long. Even if the prefect does not pursue it, magistrate Tao will not let us go in the future. Now they have people guarding on the outside, just because they are afraid we will run away."

Dog official! Hong Ning cursed inwardly, comforted him with good words, and then left in a hurry after asking something else. As soon as she walked down the corridor, she heard several yamen runners gathered around one place talking.

"There is a ghost in the room where Zheng Ke died, brothers stay away these days!"

 "For real?"

"What will I scare you for! Last night, Zhao San and I passed by and heard a woman's voice inside. The two of us gathered our courage to push the door open, but there was nothing!"

Everyone gasped.

"I don't know when the one surnamed Hai is willing to leave. The lives of our brothers are hanging, bad luck!"

……

Why is another woman involved? Hong Ning was shocked, and went back to her room to tell Bai Ling about this.

Bai Ling said: "It's not Hai Ming, there is no resentment in the temple."

Ghosts are different from demons. After death, the soul has no attachment and nowhere to hide. It can only roam around the corpse. Therefore, it is impossible to escape Heibai Wuchang. Unless it is full of resentment and is unable to enter the hell gate, and because of this, people with Taoism will easily find them. Now that there is no resentment in the pond, there is only one possibility - Hai Ming has already returned to the underworld.

黑白无常 (hēi bái wú cháng):

lit. Black and white impermanence. Two Deities in Chinese folk religion in charge of escorting the spirits of the dead to the underworld. As their names suggest, they are dressed in black and white respectively. They are subordinates of Yanluo Wang, the Supreme Judge of the Underworld in Chinese mythology, alongside the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced Hell Guards.

Hong Ning said: "Perhaps Hai Ming has already thought it through, but now his corpse is sinking in the bottom of the pond without seeing the light of day, even if he goes to the underworld, I am afraid that he will not enter the cycle of reincarnation so quickly." She murmured: "Since it is not him, It should have been done by the female demon, she also has a grudge against Zheng Ke."

Bai Ling said, "I want to go back and have a look."

Hong Ning returned to her senses, puzzled: "Why?"

Bai Ling was silent for a while, with a hint of unease in her tone: "He Lan Xue has always acted impulsively and recklessly, she said some angry words to me yesterday."

He Lan Xue's personality is extreme and it's too easy to anger others. It's not impossible her to attack others in order to force him to go back. Although Wen Xin has a high level of Taoism, that woman can do anything. Wen Xin can't compete with this ruthlessness. The distance is too far and the sound transmission talisman has long been invalid. Hong Ning is also a little worried, nodding: "How about we all go back."

"Bringing you along would be too slow, the demon fox has already left, I'll go back and tell Shi Fu, I'll come find you tomorrow," Bai Ling finished, pulled her hand and put a bright and transparent bracelet on her wrist. "Call me if there is an emergency."

Hong Ning had used this thing many times when she was a child, and she even tested it out of curiosity. Bai Ling could arrive in time every time, but since she knew what it was, she refused to use it again. Seeing him take it out again, she couldn't help but sigh, and forced a smile: "I'm not a child, always letting your Nei Dan leave the body, which is very hurtful to the sould and dangerous."

內丹 (nèi dān):

Inner/internal alchemy, is an array of esoteric doctrines and physical, mental, and spiritual practices that Taoist initiates use to prolong life and create an immortal spiritual body that would survive after death. In Nei Dan the human body becomes a cauldron (or "ding") in which the Three Treasures of Jing ("Essence"), Qi ("Breath") and Shen ("Spirit") are cultivated for the purpose of improving physical, emotional and mental health, and ultimately returning to the primordial unity of the Tao, i.e., becoming an Immortal.

Bai Ling hummed softly, pushed her away, and disappeared upon exiting.

At dusk, there is an incense table by the pond with a yellow cloth on it. On the table, there are candle incense burner tokens and other objects, as well as many symbols written on tricolour paper.

It was the first time that Hong Ning was working alone, she is uncertain. Although Hai Ming Shi Fu had nothing to do with the case, he died innocently. His bones were buried in the bottom of the pond without seeing the light of day, he will only be able to enter the cycle of reincarnation when the truth is revealed. The main point now is that there are corpses in the pond, I'm afraid no one will believe. Magistrate Tao was originally deliberately making things difficult, and this matter will also implicate him, because he has a crystal bottle given by Zheng Ke in his home, which is the news revealed by the servants.

To convince Hai Gong, he must first be convinced that there are ghosts and demons in the world.

The god this time is very special, Shi Fu has also never invited, not to mention that Hong Ning can’t even remember the normal spells, she can only ponder about it herself. First, she bows her head respectfully, recites the mantra with all her heart, then took up the sword to pick up tricolour talisman paper and lit on the candle, and said silently: "Disciple Hong Ning, I would like to worship under the throne of the flower god, Shen Jun knows, the token..."

神君 (shén jūn):

god/deity lord, more or less the same as 神尊 (shén zūn)

令牌 (lìng pái):

Token, are commonly used instruments in Taoist fasting rituals . The Taoist magic weapon token originated from the tiger talisman used by the ancient Chinese army to issue orders. Usually made of metal or wood.

^picture of 令牌 (lìng pái) token

Although the words were nondescript, the meaning was clear. After she finished her silent recitation, she stared nervously at the three tokens, her eyes fixed.

There was no movement.

Hong Ning was not reconciled, and continued to chant the spell and burn the talisman paper, repeating it three or four times, but still no effect, she could only sigh, and was about to give up. Just as she was about to pack her things, suddenly there was a cool wind blowing, with a strange fragrance in the wind, Paper dust scattered.

"What are you doing?" A familiar voice.

It is rare to be able to communicate with the gods her level, how can she invite the real body to come? Hong Ning's first reaction is that something has gone wrong and is panicking. Seeing that it is him, she is relieved and secretly rejoices: "Inviting the flower god."

Jin Xiu walked over slowly.

Hong Ning originally wanted to address him as Da Ge, but felt it was inappropriate. He might be a senior who is hundreds or thousands of years old, so she forwent the address and directly asked, "What are you doing here?" Is it to protect me?

大哥 (dà gē):

Big/eldest brother

Jin Xiu didn't answer, he just looked at the talismans on the incense table, and said with a smile, "You be able to invite like this."

Hong Ning blushed: "I'm just trying."

Jin Xiu said softly, "Neither do you want to cultivate immortals, nor do you study spells well, how can a person survive in this world alone in the future?"

There was no sarcasm in the words, and there was a hint of worry in the emotion, Hong Ning was stunned, and calmly joked: "Let Shi Fu and Shi Xiong raise me, I can't live forever, I will definitely die before them. If it's still not possible, I'll just forget it and enter the cycle of reincarnation early and reincarnate early."

Jin Xiu was silent for a moment, then sighed: "No matter what happens, you must remember that it is heaven's will, a predestined doom."

The words were mysterious, and Hong Ning was inexplicable.

Jin Xiu said: "What are you inviting the flower god for?"

Hong Ning returned to her senses, told him everything that happened, and finally said, "I suspect that the lotus in this pond is creating mischief."

Jin Xiu turned to look at the pond: "How can you see it?"

Subconsciously wanting to trust this person, Hong Ning didn't intend to hide it: "After more than ten years, there is no resentment around, it is impossible for Hai Ming Shi Fu's soul to still be around. They heard a woman's voice in that room last night, which means it is not possible to be Hai Ming Shi Fu. The affairs of flowers have always been in the charge of the flower god and flower immortals, the lotus flowers here are blooming strangely. They all wither before June 16 every year, I’m afraid it’s not due to the climate. Other that a lotus demon, what other demon is able to control the time of the flowers?"

Jin Xiu said: "Everything has its set number. Zheng Ke did too much evil before his death, so he has this retribution."

Hong Ning said: "But there is no guarantee that she will not harm others in the future, and if she really has a grudge against Zheng Ke, she should come out and make it clear, so as not to implicate the monks in the temple. The dead person is a relative of magistrate Tao, magistrate Tao will vent his anger on them. If she insists on doing her own thing and implicates innocent people, I will have to force her to show up, at that time her cultivation will be destroyed, I can't be blamed."

Jin Xiu frowned: "For a hundred years of flowers and trees, then the heavenly thunder will fall at that time. Only by avoiding it can you become a demon. After another three hundred years of cultivation, you will have to go through a small tribulation, after a five-hundred-year a big tribulation, you can only become a small immortal if the tribulation is successful in 2,000 years."

Hong Ning said: "Exactly because it is not easy to cultivate, when things are not clear, I am also afraid of wronging her, maybe it is another demon. Hence, I want to ask her and inviting the flower god to summon her on my behalf."

Jin Xiu nodded: "You did the right thing."

Hong Ning looked at him for a long time and said bluntly, "Are you the same as her?"

Jin Xiu really smiled and did not deny it.

Relying on his good temper, Hong Ning smiled and said, "Actually, I've long wanted to ask, if you don't want to say it, just pretend that I didn't ask."

Jin Xiu said, "You want me to help you?"

Hong Ning admitted: "Are you able to meet the flower god?"

"Yes, there is no need for others to intervene in this matter," Jin Xiu looked at pond water, "It's not that she doesn't want to come out, it's just that her cultivation is too shallow, and she can't appear during the day. There is buddhism everywhere in the temple, not to mention that the imperial officials are here, there is also yamen runners, evil energy is strong. Tonight at Zi Shi (11pm - 1am), you can ask them to remove their disarm and remove their official robes, wait by the pond and she will come out."

Never mind monks having amulets such as Buddha beads, it turns out that she is also afraid of the yamen with carrying swords. No wonder when those people who heard the sound and pushed the door to enter, she ran away. It seems like she also wanted to come out and clarify the matter, Hong Ning was relieved. probingly: "You should not be an ordinary flower demon, are you... a flower immortal?"

Jin Xiu smiled but did not answer.

Hong Ning remembered something: "Do you know Zhong Tian Wang?"

Jin Xiu said: "Why?"

Hong Ning repeated what Zhong Xian said in the Evil Dragon Pool the day before: "He said he would pay his respects to Zhong Tian Wang."

Jin Xiu shook his head: "He was originally the time governor of Southern Heavenly Gate, sleepy, he made a mistake a thousand years ago. Fortunately, the Di Jun forgave him. I didn't expect that he would not change this habit, having today, it is also predestined doom."

Hong Ning said to herself, "But he said he had seen me before, and he also said that I went with King Zhong Tian Wang to meet him before."

Jin Xiu said nothing.

Hong Ning stared at him: "What are you? Red camellia? Camellia immortal?"

Jin Xiu smiled.

Hong Ning raised her eyebrows: "Reveal your original form for me to see."

Jin Xiu said, "Asking a flower demon show its true form is rude."

Hong Ning smiled and said, "I'm a girl from the mountains, and I don't know how to behave. Are you not afraid that I collect you if I get angry?"

"Bold and rude, this temperament is only worthy of red camellia," Jin Xiu smiled, her eyes soft as water, "It's getting late, hurry up and get to work, I'll come back in the evening." He turned around and walked a few steps before disappearing.

Worthy of red camellia? Hong Ning blushed, and there was still a faint scent in the surrounding air. She suddenly felt flustered, and hurriedly turned around and walked towards Hai Gong's residence.