The Lord of Void and Real

Chapter 84: Chapter 83: Haunted

“This is my Master Luo Daoist, the Elder of the Spring and Autumn Pavilion, and I’m Shen Luo,” Shen Luo introduced himself without picking on the gatekeeper.

“So, it’s Daoist Master Luo and Daoist Master Shen.” The middle-aged man bowed again.

“Are you Ma Simo, who wrote the letter to the Spring and Autumn Pavilion? What’s your relationship with Ma Xingming?” Luo Daoist finally turned around and asked.

“Ma Xingming was my great-grandfather,” Ma Simo answered, shivering under the gaze of the Luo Daoist.

“Do you have a genealogy?” The Daoist asked again.

“Yes, Master Daoist, please have a look,” said Ma Simo, who seemed well-prepared, handing over a black silk-covered book.

Shen Luo quickly took the book and handed it to Luo Daoist.

Daoist Luo grabbed the book with one hand and casually flipped through it before tossing it back to Shen Luo.

“Ma Xingming once studied at Spring and Autumn Pavilion and though he didn’t achieve much, he did contribute to the Pavilion, and so we bestowed upon him a token. Now that you have proved to be his descendant, according to our Pavilion’s rules, you have one opportunity to request assistance from Spring and Autumn Pavilion,” Luo Daoist said, turning to face them again.

“Thank you, Master Daoist.” Ma Simo was overjoyed and repeatedly bowed before inviting them into the house.

Upon entering the main gate, they were greeted by the sight of a square courtyard about an acre in size, with a two-yard-wide bluestone road leading to the grand central hall.

To the left of the bluestone road was a garden full of flowers and trees, while on the right was a pond with several water pavilions connected by bridges. The pond was covered with a layer of green lotus leaves, dotted with a few pink lotus flowers.

There were also courtyards on both sides of the main courtyard, with numerous buildings and pavilions, but they couldn’t clearly see inside from behind the courtyard wall.

As they walked across the courtyard to the main hall, two pretty young maids brought them tea.

“Mister Ma, in the letter you sent to our Pavilion, you briefly mentioned there were hauntings within your mansion but didn’t detail what kind of spirits are these? Has anyone seen them?” Master Luo asked after taking a sip of tea.

“Old Wang, our night guard, saw it. He said it was a red-dressed female ghost, but he didn’t get a good look and fainted on the spot. He fell ill the next day and hasn’t been able to get out of bed since. Then, our guard dogs started to die one after another, they bled from all their orifices when they died… Also, every morning, there are inexplicable bloody and stinky puddles in different parts of the house, sometimes in the front hall, sometimes in the backyard, and once even in my bedroom,” Ma Simo explained, wiping sweat from his brow, his face turning pale.

While listening to Ma Simo’s tales of the strange happenings, Shen Luo looked around, feeling a peculiar gloom in this luxuriously decorated mansion.

“So far, only several dogs have died, and no human lives were taken, but who knows what happens next. Daoist Master Luo, I am willing to offer a hundred taels of gold to the Spring and Autumn Pavilion. I beg you to exorcise the demon and save the Ma Family,” Ma Simo said, his voice trembling, and he stood up to bow.

“Mr. Ma, you are too kind. If there really is a malicious spirit, I certainly won’t stand by,” Daoist Luo said calmly, a glint of satisfaction in his eyes.

Ma Simo thanked him again and again, finally calming down a bit.

“Mr. Ma, based on what you’ve told us, we can’t determine what kind of spirit it is. Can we speak to the guard who is bedridden?” After a moment of silence, Daoist Luo asked.

“That’s… unfortunate. Old Wang was originally recuperating in the mansion, but his family came to take him home yesterday due to concerns about his health,” Ma Simo responded, hesitantly.

“Oh, that’s fine. You mentioned smelly, unpleasant stains appearing every night. I could find some clues from those stains, did those stains appear last night?” Daoist Luo asked.

“Yes, they were in the backyard. But the smell was too terrible, so I had them cleaned up,” Ma Simo replied, looking down in embarrassment.

“Do you still have the bodies of the deceased dogs? Please tell me they weren’t disposed of?” Daoist Luo, without saying a word, paused and then continued to ask.

“The black dogs are here!” Ma Simo immediately looked up and said joyfully.

Luo Daoist also breathed a sigh of relief, waved his hand, and asked Ma Simo to lead him there.

A moment later.

In a storage room in the backyard, Luo Daoist was half-kneeling on the ground, examining the bodies of the three dead black dogs. Shen Luo was standing respectfully behind Luo Daoist.

Ma Simo was scared and stayed outside, not daring to come in.

The dogs had been dead for a long time. Their bodies were shriveled, the fresh blood flowing from their seven orifices had dried up. From their twisted dog faces, one could see they were filled with extreme terror, as if they had seen something extremely horrifying.

Seeing the death state of the three black dogs, Shen Luo’s eyelids twitched. The image of the long-haired ghost that he encountered in the Dreamland Mountain Village involuntarily appeared in his mind.

Luo Daoist touched one of the dead dogs and then pointed between its eyes with his bent finger. A moment later, he withdrew his hand.

“Master Luo, these black dogs died in a peculiar way. How did they die?” When Shen Luo saw him stop, he quietly asked.

“The seven orifices bleeding is a sign of death due to the extraction of essence. Ordinary ghosts all have this ability. There is no need to be overly shocked,” Luo Daoist said nonchalantly.

Upon hearing his words, Shen Luo felt a sense of relief in his heart. It’s good that Master Luo was confident.

Luo Daoist seemed to have understood what he wanted to know. He paid no more attention to the dead dogs, turned around and walked out of the backyard. Shen Luo quickly followed.

“Master Luo, did you find anything?” Outside the courtyard, Ma Simo came to greet them and asked.

“Everything is under control, but we still need to verify it further. Mister Ma, could you please take us around the mansion?” Luo Daoist said.

Ma Simo would naturally not refuse, leading Luo Daoist and Shen Luo on a tour around the Ma Mansion.

Shen Luo knew that Luo Daoist was looking for the hiding place of the ghost. As he followed along, he kept watch discreetly.

But they searched everywhere from the backyard to the main yard, and then to the courtyards on the left and right. They couldn’t find anything in the entire mansion.

“This isn’t right…” Luo Daoist furrowed his eyebrows, muttering to himself.

“Master Luo, could the ghost have come from the outside and escaped since it’s daytime now?” Shen Luo guessed.

“No, the entire Ma Mansion is surrounded by Yin Qi. The ghost is definitely hiding here. It seems to be hiding very well and not easy to find,” Luo Daoist shook his head and said.

“Master Luo, is it not possible to find the ghost? The previous priests I invited also ended up like this. What should I do?” Ma Simo was disheartened.

“Mister Ma, don’t worry. This mere ghost trick is nothing. I have methods to make it show itself,” Luo Daoist said disdainfully, feeling slightly offended.

He then instructed Ma Simo to prepare incense, candles, and a offering table, and asked for some yellow paper and cinnabar. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Ma Simo had invited a few priests in the past, so all these items were already prepared. When he heard the instructions, he immediately had someone bring them in. According to Luo Daoist’s arrangement, he placed the offering table in the center of the main yard. He then arranged incense, candles, melons, and fruits on it to build a Dharma Platform.