Half past eleven at night.
Inside the police station, Xiang Cheng's duffle bag was on the table.
"Are these his study materials?" The policeman searched through it and said, "He came to Beijing to take the national tour guide test?"
"Yes." Chi Xiaoduo said, "Have you found his whereabouts? It's already been 24 hours. I came here once already, but the police station wouldn’t let me file a report... "
"Take it easy." Chen Zhen said, "We haven't made contact with him either."
Chi Xiaoduo was relieved and looked at Chen Zhen.
Chen Zhen's hair was very short, and he was taller than Chi Xiaoduo but a little shorter than Xiang Cheng. His clothes were very fashionable. He wore a pair of Google glasses, a pressed white shirt, and shorts that hung just above his knees. He was also wearing a silver bracelet with a small silver sword hanging on it. After Chen Zhen entered the police station, the mink on his shoulder jumped down and crouched in the corner.
While the policeman took notes, the mink jumped onto the table and watched him write curiously.
"What's its name?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
Chen Zhen, who was deep in thought, returned to his senses, and asked, "What? Who? "
"Your mink." Chi Xiaoduo motioned to Chen Zhen.
Chen Zhen's expression changed instantly, and he looked at Chi Xiaoduo in disbelief.
"You can see it?" Chen Zhen asked.
Chi Xiaoduo: “.....”
“What mink?” the policeman raised his head and asked.
Chen Zhen gave Chi Xiaoduo a look, telling him not to say anything. Chi Xiaoduo thought of what he had seen on the train and felt cold all over.
"Nothing." Chen Zhen said, "He was asking me about the cartoon picture on my wallet.”
Chi Xiaoduo: ".....”
The policeman couldn’t see it?! This mink was so big, and it was running around on the table, but the policeman couldn’t see it?! Chi Xiaoduo shouted internally, what the fuck? What exactly is going on?!
"Sign here." The policeman said, "Everything, including the notes and records from Chi Xiaoduo just now, have all been transferred over to you."
"Thank you." Chen Zhen took the files and left the station with Chi Xiaoduo in tow. They stood at the door of the police station, and Chen Zhen let out a sigh and then turned to look at Chi Xiaoduo with a heavy look.
"Do you know Xiang Cheng?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Strictly speaking, I don't know him." Chen Zhen said, "But I've seen his picture in the internal publication. Take a look, it’s this person, right?"
Chen Zhen took out a piece of paper that contained a black-and-white photo of Xiang Cheng.
"Yes." Chi Xiaoduo was a little flustered and asked, "What exactly is going on? And then there’s your...pet. "
Chen Zhen's mink came out of the flowering shrubs. It looked around, ran over in a flash, scampered up Chen Zhen's legs to his shoulders, and lay down quietly.
"Let me ask you some questions first." Chen Zhen led him over to a street lamp and carefully looked at Chi Xiaoduo's left eye. He just looked at one eye, grew helpless, and asked, "Has anything touched your eye recently? Or has something strange happened? "
"No ah." Chi Xiaoduo said, "On the way to Beijing, I saw something terrifying, but I thought it was a dream."
Chen Zhen said, "Lihun Pollen is really troublesome..."
Chi Xiaoduo looked at Chen Zhen nervously. Chen Zhen said, "Let’s talk in the car."
Chen Zhen took Chi Xiaoduo to the car parked on the side of the road, inserted the key and started the car, but didn't drive away.
"The department has driving restrictions in place, we’ll have to wait until after 12 o'clock." Chen Zhen looked at his watch; there were still ten minutes left.
Chi Xiaoduo asked, "Who are you?"
"A relevant department." Chen Zhen replied.
Chi Xiaoduo then noticed a row of chibi stone guardians on the dashboard, facing the outside of the car.
"Besides Xiang Cheng telling you that he came to Beijing to take the national tour guide certification," Chen Zhen asked again, "what else did he say?"
Chi Xiaoduo thought of something. "One of our friends said that he was entrusting him to do something..."
"I know." Chen Zhen said, "Qi Wei, I know him. What else?"
"Nothing." Chi Xiaoduo said, "Right! And there’s still Si Gui! I haven't seen Si Gui in awhile either. "
"What is Si Gui?" Chen Zhen asked.
"A bird." Chi Xiaoduo said, "It was always with us before."
Chen Zhen's cellphone alarm rang. He started the car, backed up, drove away from Huilongguan, and took Chi Xiaoduo onto the road.
Chi Xiaoduo leaned against the front passenger seat and was about to speak, but Chen Zhen turned sideways, pulled out his seat belt, and motioned him to fasten it.
"My name is Chen Zhen, and I’m the head of the capital’s exorcism office." While driving, Chen Zhen adjusted his Google glasses and said to Chi Xiaoduo, "I don't know what happened to your eyes, but take my advice on this: no matter who you meet or what strange things you see in the future, don’t say anything."
"There's a person ahead!" Chi Xiaoduo yelled.
Chen Zhen looked up and a black shadow appeared in front of the car, but the jeep passed right through it.
Chi Xiaoduo: "......”
"From eleven to one every night," Chen Zhen looked back, continued to drive, and said, "is the time when the yin qi is the heaviest. Ghosts, yao, and devils will all wander outside; there’s no need to make a fuss about it. Recently, because Beijing is holding an expo, we’ve already cleaned up a lot of them."
Chi Xiaoduo: “.....”
Chen Zhen glanced at Chi Xiaoduo and said, "When did it start? It should have been recent. "
"Wait," Chi Xiaoduo said, "Why didn’t I know? Is what I saw a ghost?"
"Yes, has Xiang Cheng examined your eyes? He should have discovered this, too; he is an exorcist. " Chen Zhen pressed his Google glasses twice and said, "I am as well."
Chi Xiaoduo opened his mouth slightly, wide-eyed, without making a sound. Chen Zhen then said, "I know that it may be very difficult for you to accept this. I don't know what happened to you and your partner in the past, but you must believe me. This is my work permit, and if you want to find him, we must communicate frankly. If it weren't for Qi Wei, I wouldn't work overtime for this. "
Chen Zhen then took out his cellphone, pressed the call history a few times, and showed it to Chi Xiaoduo. Qi Wei’s number was on there.
"Should we give him a call?" Chen Zhen asked.
"No need, I believe you." Chi Xiaoduo hurriedly said.
"Call him ba." Chen Zhen connected his phone to the car’s audio system and dialed Qi Wei's phone. Qi Wei answered very quickly.
"Chen Zhen?" Qi Wei asked.
"Qi Wei!" Chi Xiaoduo said.
"Picked him up." Chen Zhen said, "I'm looking for your friend now."
Qi Wei hurriedly said, "Thanks. Xiaoduo, help him. Chen Zhen is my friend."
Chi Xiaoduo let out an “en,” and Chen Zhen hung up the call.
Chen Zhen asked Chi Xiaoduo, "I’m going to take the liberty to ask, are you two lovers?"
"N...No." Chi Xiaoduo replied, "Not at the moment."
"Not at the moment." Chen Zhen repeated, "That is to say, maybe in the future you guys will be. Why did he take you with him?"
Chi Xiaoduo said, "We met in Guangzhou, and I took the initiative to go with him. He didn't want to do his previous job anymore, and he planned to come to Beijing to test for a certification. I had nothing to do at the same time, so I followed him."
Chen Zhen said, "What did he do before? Where did you two meet? "
"Male... Male public relations." Chi Xiaoduo said, "I met him in a club. Wait, what did you say you guys were just now?"
"Exorcists." Chen Zhen stopped at the red light, shifted gears, and said, "As the name suggests, we get rid of all the devils that harm people in the world and protect ordinary people who are living in society that are subject to these forces."
Chi Xiaoduo let out an “oh” and nodded. “It must be very hard work.”
“It’s alright,” Chen Zhen said. “Are you willing to join us?”
“I’ll consider it ba,” Chi Xiaoduo replied.
Chi Xiaoduo thought, that’s not right, what the hell are exorcists ahhhhhh! Me, as a great sorcerer?! This is a dream, right?!
"This..." Chi Xiaoduo said with a confused expression, "I can't believe it at all, but why do I feel as if everything is normal?"
"Because your subconscious has already accepted it all; your partner has made you smell Lihun Pollen before." Chen Zhen said, "It made you forget some things."
Chi Xiaoduo: "What?!"
Chen Zhen drove through a red light and said, “Before I set out, I read the work report from last quarter. The chiwen in Guangzhou had something to do with you, right?" Suddenly, Chen Zhen remembered something, turned his head to look at Chi Xiaoduo, and said, "I see... This is the power of the black dragon."
"Wha...What?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Anyway," Chen Zhen said, "don't tell anyone that you can see something different, or that will bring you trouble, understand?"
"Okay." Chi Xiaoduo said, "You mean that I’m like you guys and can see ghosts and yaoguai?"
"No." Chen Zhen said, "We can't see them. Every exorcist has their own unique talent, but no one can see a yaoguai that has deliberately hidden itself , unless the yaoguai takes the initiative to reveal itself. For people like Xiang Cheng, who have inherited top talents from the Fengdu Ghost City, the true power of Acalanatha, even he can't see them. He can only sense yaoguai through experience and mana."
"The true power of Acalanatha?" Chi Xiaoduo had no idea what was going on.
"I'll explain it to you later, it's too complicated."
"Wait... Let's start from the beginning ba." Chi Xiaoduo said, "My mind is such a mess now, what are yao and devils? Are there really ghosts?"
Chen Zhen slowed down, paid attention to both sides of the long night road, and drove along Xidan Street. The street was still a little jammed late at night, and the traffic moved forward slowly.
"Bright Light over the Mountains and Seas." Chen Zhen said, "To explain this, you must first understand the concept of life and death. In the Chinese system, death is not an advocated subject. The Confucian concept of three thousand years has been..."
"If you don't understand what life is, how can you understand death?" Chi Xiaoduo said.
"Yes." Chen Zhen asked, "What major were you?"
Chi Xiaoduo replied, "Architecture."
Chen Zhen nodded in approval. "You did pretty good with your extracurricular reading, I studied history."
"Go on."
Outside the window of the car, the light from the street lamps scattered alongside the jeep, and Chi Xiaoduo felt like he was trapped in a long, slow dream. Chen Zhen's voice was very pleasant and had a kind of smooth and steady comforting feel to it.
"Life and death have a strange power." Chen Zhen swerved around and rushed onto another street with almost no other cars. He said, "Some scientists believe that the soul exists in the fifth dimension, while some theologians believe that there is another area in our world that we can't see with the naked eye, just like heaven and hell in Western legends."
Chi Xiaoduo was silent and looked at the open road ahead.
"The living are merely passing travelers, the dead return to their eternal homes. The heavens and earth are an inn; for all our grief we inevitably return to dust." Chen Zhen said, "The original intent of death is to ‘return,’ so to return to where? Naturally, it’s to the heavens and the earth. Can you accept that when the soul is scattered amongst the heavens and the earth, it becomes a unique force? "
"Yes." Chi Xiaoduo replied.
"So." Chen Zhen manipulated the steering wheel with one hand and snapped his fingers. A flash of light burst out of his fingers, and the little mink behind him stood up vigilantly and observed the two people.
Chi Xiaoduo was startled.
"This power is everywhere." Chen Zhen said, "Like a shadow following its person, we call it 'spirit.’ That is what the swindling Qigong masters and Fengshui masters in the Jianghu often call ‘qi.’ This power will eventually flow into two places: the heavenly vein and the earth veins, which will become the main energy for the existence and evolution of the essence of this earth.
"Since ancient times, animal totems and god totems have been competing and fighting non-stop. After the war of the conferred gods, the totems in the human world suppressed the ancestors' natural totems, and the animal worship system gradually disappeared. As human activities on earth grew more and more extensive, the animals’ space has been again suppressed. Just as people can be smart or dumb, animals also have all kinds of tiers," Chen Zhen said in a leisurely fashion, "Some animals are affected by 'spirit', and their bodies will change a little, so they become yao.
"If this yao starts to live in resentment," Chen Zhen turned to look at Chi Xiaoduo and said, "the power of the 'spirit' will grow stronger and stronger. It will transform the yao once again upon its death, and become a 'devil.'"
"Once the power of the devil takes shape, it will not be bound by time or a lifespan, and will exist forever, to bring disaster to the world." Chen Zhen said, "Our job is to find suitable ways to exorcise it."
"I thought only ghosts could be exorcised."
"No, you’re replacing animals with people." Chen Zhen explained, "Among human beings, those who obtain extraordinary abilities are equivalent to the ‘yao’ among animals. The only difference is that they are human."
"Human yao." Chi Xiaoduo understood and nodded.
Chen Zhen: “....”
"Humans are also a kind of animal." Chen Zhen said, "The only difference is that human’s brains and thoughts are more developed."
"But I've never seen anyone with great abilities ah?" Chi Xiaoduo said.
"Aren't these all abilities?" Chen Zhen casually pointed out the window of the car.
"Bright lights that shine all night, a continuous flow of cars, and endless inventions every day." Chen Zhen said, "This is the embodiment of the power given by the heavens and the earth to human beings. The only difference is that we hold wisdom in great esteem, which is different from how the beasts worship physical strength.”
Chi Xiaoduo: "....”
Chen Zhen added, "Us exorcists, in the strictest sense, are also yao, the yao among humans. Don't say that phrase again, I've already heard it countless times. "
Chi Xiaoduo laughed with a “haha”, and Chen Zhen laughed bitterly.
"Then Xiang Cheng..."
"Xiang Cheng makes a living by collecting yao." Chen Zhen replied, "I guess he's a part-time public relations man? Based on his photo, he looks like a pretty energetic young man... How old are you, Chi Xiaoduo? "
"Twenty-six." Chi Xiaoduo replied.
Chen Zhen nodded and said, "A bit young."
"And you?"
"Thirty-three."
"Can’t tell at all." Chi Xiaoduo thought that Chen Zhen was very cordial and couldn't help asking, "Can anyone be an exorcist? Could someone like me be one? "
Chen Zhen pondered over it deeply, turned his head, and asked, "Do you want to enter this line of work?"
Chi Xiaoduo shook his head, frowned deeply, and asked, "Xiang Cheng is an exorcist, isn't he? Is this a very dangerous job? Just like tonight, if he goes missing, I won't know what happened and can’t help at all. It’s too depressing.”
"The pay for exorcists is very average." Chen Zhen turned the steering wheel and said, "Your life is in danger all the time, and the rules and regulations are still very strict. Are you sure?"
"Then what good points are there?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"There are no good points." Chen Zhen replied as he laughed and focused on driving.
"Impossible." Chi Xiaoduo said, "If someone is willing to do this line of work, then there has to be something worthwhile about it ba."
Chen Zhen nodded and said, "That makes sense. Then for the sake of world peace, does that count?"
Chi Xiaoduo thought about it and said, "That counts as a reason, but if for the sake of world peace you still can’t make enough to feed yourself, then it would be very hard for many people to want to do this job ba."
"In the first place, you don’t need many people in this line of work. It's enough to rely on a few idealists. Now there are so many idealists that it’s almost too much, and the country is still considering further downsizing. But let's say, if you can barely support yourself, " Chen Zhen said leisurely, "would you have a better chance to get to know a completely different world and get in touch with the essence of the world by experiencing a bunch of messy phenomena?"
Chi Xiaoduo thought that this could hardly be regarded as a reason to do the job. Chen Zhen then asked, "You get to have an exciting, wonderful, adventurous life every day, does that count as a good point?"
“That counts...ba,” Chi Xiaoduo said.
"To sum up." Chen Zhen said carelessly, "That is the plus side. If you’re looking for material benefits, there aren’t any, it is purely spiritual. Therefore, some people say that the exorcism department is a group of idealists, but society can't do without these idealists either. Just like civil servants, the salary is small. However, exorcists can find ways to make some extra money, while it is difficult for grass-roots civil servants to earn some extra money now. "
"Can it be a part-time job?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Yes." Chen Zhen said, "But you are already too old to do this job. At the most, one should be seven or eight, in the early years when one’s fires burn low to train your ability to engage the heavens and the earth."
Chi Xiaoduo was a little disappointed, but Chen Zhen said, "Although, if you are really interested, you can apply to qualify for a yao-subduing equipment master."
Chi Xiaoduo was excited and asked, "What do you do there?"
"It’s basically providing assistance for exorcists in identifying yaoguai and magic weapons." Chen Zhen replied, "They work in their professional field and are independent of the exorcists. I'll give you some information next time for you to look at them."
"Okay." Chi Xiaoduo was very satisfied. If it was like that, then maybe he could help Xiang Cheng.
"I guess Xiang Cheng came to Beijing with another task besides taking the certification exam." Chen Zhen said, "Maybe Qi Wei told him something, and when he was carrying out this task, he ran into some kind of accident that was a bit out of his control. "
"Is Qi Wei also an exorcist?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Yes." Chen Zhen replied, "The Qi family is a very old family in the Guangdong area. They have passed down their history, and pretty much even before the exorcism committee was created, they had many Fengshui Masters come out of their family during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Their family is very rich."
"Do exorcists get paid?" Chi Xiaoduo asked again.
"Before, they used to." Chen Zhen replied, "They don’t anymore. Wait for me here for a while."
The car stopped outside the Lingjing Alley, and Chen Zhen got out of the car and ran off. Chi Xiaoduo felt that everything was so unreal and stared out of the window in a daze.
At the same time, in the dark, Xiang Cheng hit the wall with the Demon-Subduing Staff and looked up. Water was dripping down the deep tunnel, and the tunnel seemed endless. Xiang Cheng walked for a while again, then simply sat down and took out the extremely dusty Si Gui from his pocket. He closed his eyes, and stroked its body.
Si Gui's body glowed, and it unfurled its feathers. Xiang Cheng sent it forward with his left hand, and Si Gui spread its wings and flew along the tunnel.
Xiang Cheng tried to turn on his cellphone several times. However, it was out of power, and he was trapped in this dark cave.
A bird fluttered over from the passage behind him and landed on Xiang Cheng's shoulder.
Xiang Cheng: ".....”
Xiang Cheng looked back at the dark passage that he had traversed, and then looked ahead. Si Gui raised its head and looked at the walls of the passageway.
Half past eleven at night.
Inside the police station, Xiang Cheng's duffle bag was on the table.
"Are these his study materials?" The policeman searched through it and said, "He came to Beijing to take the national tour guide test?"
"Yes." Chi Xiaoduo said, "Have you found his whereabouts? It's already been 24 hours. I came here once already, but the police station wouldn’t let me file a report... "
"Take it easy." Chen Zhen said, "We haven't made contact with him either."
Chi Xiaoduo was relieved and looked at Chen Zhen.
Chen Zhen's hair was very short, and he was taller than Chi Xiaoduo but a little shorter than Xiang Cheng. His clothes were very fashionable. He wore a pair of Google glasses, a pressed white shirt, and shorts that hung just above his knees. He was also wearing a silver bracelet with a small silver sword hanging on it. After Chen Zhen entered the police station, the mink on his shoulder jumped down and crouched in the corner.
While the policeman took notes, the mink jumped onto the table and watched him write curiously.
"What's its name?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
Chen Zhen, who was deep in thought, returned to his senses, and asked, "What? Who? "
"Your mink." Chi Xiaoduo motioned to Chen Zhen.
Chen Zhen's expression changed instantly, and he looked at Chi Xiaoduo in disbelief.
"You can see it?" Chen Zhen asked.
Chi Xiaoduo: “.....”
“What mink?” the policeman raised his head and asked.
Chen Zhen gave Chi Xiaoduo a look, telling him not to say anything. Chi Xiaoduo thought of what he had seen on the train and felt cold all over.
"Nothing." Chen Zhen said, "He was asking me about the cartoon picture on my wallet.”
Chi Xiaoduo: ".....”
The policeman couldn’t see it?! This mink was so big, and it was running around on the table, but the policeman couldn’t see it?! Chi Xiaoduo shouted internally, what the fuck? What exactly is going on?!
"Sign here." The policeman said, "Everything, including the notes and records from Chi Xiaoduo just now, have all been transferred over to you."
"Thank you." Chen Zhen took the files and left the station with Chi Xiaoduo in tow. They stood at the door of the police station, and Chen Zhen let out a sigh and then turned to look at Chi Xiaoduo with a heavy look.
"Do you know Xiang Cheng?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Strictly speaking, I don't know him." Chen Zhen said, "But I've seen his picture in the internal publication. Take a look, it’s this person, right?"
Chen Zhen took out a piece of paper that contained a black-and-white photo of Xiang Cheng.
"Yes." Chi Xiaoduo was a little flustered and asked, "What exactly is going on? And then there’s your...pet. "
Chen Zhen's mink came out of the flowering shrubs. It looked around, ran over in a flash, scampered up Chen Zhen's legs to his shoulders, and lay down quietly.
"Let me ask you some questions first." Chen Zhen led him over to a street lamp and carefully looked at Chi Xiaoduo's left eye. He just looked at one eye, grew helpless, and asked, "Has anything touched your eye recently? Or has something strange happened? "
"No ah." Chi Xiaoduo said, "On the way to Beijing, I saw something terrifying, but I thought it was a dream."
Chen Zhen said, "Lihun Pollen is really troublesome..."
Chi Xiaoduo looked at Chen Zhen nervously. Chen Zhen said, "Let’s talk in the car."
Chen Zhen took Chi Xiaoduo to the car parked on the side of the road, inserted the key and started the car, but didn't drive away.
"The department has driving restrictions in place, we’ll have to wait until after 12 o'clock." Chen Zhen looked at his watch; there were still ten minutes left.
Chi Xiaoduo asked, "Who are you?"
"A relevant department." Chen Zhen replied.
Chi Xiaoduo then noticed a row of chibi stone guardians on the dashboard, facing the outside of the car.
"Besides Xiang Cheng telling you that he came to Beijing to take the national tour guide certification," Chen Zhen asked again, "what else did he say?"
Chi Xiaoduo thought of something. "One of our friends said that he was entrusting him to do something..."
"I know." Chen Zhen said, "Qi Wei, I know him. What else?"
"Nothing." Chi Xiaoduo said, "Right! And there’s still Si Gui! I haven't seen Si Gui in awhile either. "
"What is Si Gui?" Chen Zhen asked.
"A bird." Chi Xiaoduo said, "It was always with us before."
Chen Zhen's cellphone alarm rang. He started the car, backed up, drove away from Huilongguan, and took Chi Xiaoduo onto the road.
Chi Xiaoduo leaned against the front passenger seat and was about to speak, but Chen Zhen turned sideways, pulled out his seat belt, and motioned him to fasten it.
"My name is Chen Zhen, and I’m the head of the capital’s exorcism office." While driving, Chen Zhen adjusted his Google glasses and said to Chi Xiaoduo, "I don't know what happened to your eyes, but take my advice on this: no matter who you meet or what strange things you see in the future, don’t say anything."
"There's a person ahead!" Chi Xiaoduo yelled.
Chen Zhen looked up and a black shadow appeared in front of the car, but the jeep passed right through it.
Chi Xiaoduo: "......”
"From eleven to one every night," Chen Zhen looked back, continued to drive, and said, "is the time when the yin qi is the heaviest. Ghosts, yao, and devils will all wander outside; there’s no need to make a fuss about it. Recently, because Beijing is holding an expo, we’ve already cleaned up a lot of them."
Chi Xiaoduo: “.....”
Chen Zhen glanced at Chi Xiaoduo and said, "When did it start? It should have been recent. "
"Wait," Chi Xiaoduo said, "Why didn’t I know? Is what I saw a ghost?"
"Yes, has Xiang Cheng examined your eyes? He should have discovered this, too; he is an exorcist. " Chen Zhen pressed his Google glasses twice and said, "I am as well."
Chi Xiaoduo opened his mouth slightly, wide-eyed, without making a sound. Chen Zhen then said, "I know that it may be very difficult for you to accept this. I don't know what happened to you and your partner in the past, but you must believe me. This is my work permit, and if you want to find him, we must communicate frankly. If it weren't for Qi Wei, I wouldn't work overtime for this. "
Chen Zhen then took out his cellphone, pressed the call history a few times, and showed it to Chi Xiaoduo. Qi Wei’s number was on there.
"Should we give him a call?" Chen Zhen asked.
"No need, I believe you." Chi Xiaoduo hurriedly said.
"Call him ba." Chen Zhen connected his phone to the car’s audio system and dialed Qi Wei's phone. Qi Wei answered very quickly.
"Chen Zhen?" Qi Wei asked.
"Qi Wei!" Chi Xiaoduo said.
"Picked him up." Chen Zhen said, "I'm looking for your friend now."
Qi Wei hurriedly said, "Thanks. Xiaoduo, help him. Chen Zhen is my friend."
Chi Xiaoduo let out an “en,” and Chen Zhen hung up the call.
Chen Zhen asked Chi Xiaoduo, "I’m going to take the liberty to ask, are you two lovers?"
"N...No." Chi Xiaoduo replied, "Not at the moment."
"Not at the moment." Chen Zhen repeated, "That is to say, maybe in the future you guys will be. Why did he take you with him?"
Chi Xiaoduo said, "We met in Guangzhou, and I took the initiative to go with him. He didn't want to do his previous job anymore, and he planned to come to Beijing to test for a certification. I had nothing to do at the same time, so I followed him."
Chen Zhen said, "What did he do before? Where did you two meet? "
"Male... Male public relations." Chi Xiaoduo said, "I met him in a club. Wait, what did you say you guys were just now?"
"Exorcists." Chen Zhen stopped at the red light, shifted gears, and said, "As the name suggests, we get rid of all the devils that harm people in the world and protect ordinary people who are living in society that are subject to these forces."
Chi Xiaoduo let out an “oh” and nodded. “It must be very hard work.”
“It’s alright,” Chen Zhen said. “Are you willing to join us?”
“I’ll consider it ba,” Chi Xiaoduo replied.
Chi Xiaoduo thought, that’s not right, what the hell are exorcists ahhhhhh! Me, as a great sorcerer?! This is a dream, right?!
"This..." Chi Xiaoduo said with a confused expression, "I can't believe it at all, but why do I feel as if everything is normal?"
"Because your subconscious has already accepted it all; your partner has made you smell Lihun Pollen before." Chen Zhen said, "It made you forget some things."
Chi Xiaoduo: "What?!"
Chen Zhen drove through a red light and said, “Before I set out, I read the work report from last quarter. The chiwen in Guangzhou had something to do with you, right?" Suddenly, Chen Zhen remembered something, turned his head to look at Chi Xiaoduo, and said, "I see... This is the power of the black dragon."
"Wha...What?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Anyway," Chen Zhen said, "don't tell anyone that you can see something different, or that will bring you trouble, understand?"
"Okay." Chi Xiaoduo said, "You mean that I’m like you guys and can see ghosts and yaoguai?"
"No." Chen Zhen said, "We can't see them. Every exorcist has their own unique talent, but no one can see a yaoguai that has deliberately hidden itself , unless the yaoguai takes the initiative to reveal itself. For people like Xiang Cheng, who have inherited top talents from the Fengdu Ghost City, the true power of Acalanatha, even he can't see them. He can only sense yaoguai through experience and mana."
"The true power of Acalanatha?" Chi Xiaoduo had no idea what was going on.
"I'll explain it to you later, it's too complicated."
"Wait... Let's start from the beginning ba." Chi Xiaoduo said, "My mind is such a mess now, what are yao and devils? Are there really ghosts?"
Chen Zhen slowed down, paid attention to both sides of the long night road, and drove along Xidan Street. The street was still a little jammed late at night, and the traffic moved forward slowly.
"Bright Light over the Mountains and Seas." Chen Zhen said, "To explain this, you must first understand the concept of life and death. In the Chinese system, death is not an advocated subject. The Confucian concept of three thousand years has been..."
"If you don't understand what life is, how can you understand death?" Chi Xiaoduo said.
"Yes." Chen Zhen asked, "What major were you?"
Chi Xiaoduo replied, "Architecture."
Chen Zhen nodded in approval. "You did pretty good with your extracurricular reading, I studied history."
"Go on."
Outside the window of the car, the light from the street lamps scattered alongside the jeep, and Chi Xiaoduo felt like he was trapped in a long, slow dream. Chen Zhen's voice was very pleasant and had a kind of smooth and steady comforting feel to it.
"Life and death have a strange power." Chen Zhen swerved around and rushed onto another street with almost no other cars. He said, "Some scientists believe that the soul exists in the fifth dimension, while some theologians believe that there is another area in our world that we can't see with the naked eye, just like heaven and hell in Western legends."
Chi Xiaoduo was silent and looked at the open road ahead.
"The living are merely passing travelers, the dead return to their eternal homes. The heavens and earth are an inn; for all our grief we inevitably return to dust." Chen Zhen said, "The original intent of death is to ‘return,’ so to return to where? Naturally, it’s to the heavens and the earth. Can you accept that when the soul is scattered amongst the heavens and the earth, it becomes a unique force? "
"Yes." Chi Xiaoduo replied.
"So." Chen Zhen manipulated the steering wheel with one hand and snapped his fingers. A flash of light burst out of his fingers, and the little mink behind him stood up vigilantly and observed the two people.
Chi Xiaoduo was startled.
"This power is everywhere." Chen Zhen said, "Like a shadow following its person, we call it 'spirit.’ That is what the swindling Qigong masters and Fengshui masters in the Jianghu often call ‘qi.’ This power will eventually flow into two places: the heavenly vein and the earth veins, which will become the main energy for the existence and evolution of the essence of this earth.
"Since ancient times, animal totems and god totems have been competing and fighting non-stop. After the war of the conferred gods, the totems in the human world suppressed the ancestors' natural totems, and the animal worship system gradually disappeared. As human activities on earth grew more and more extensive, the animals’ space has been again suppressed. Just as people can be smart or dumb, animals also have all kinds of tiers," Chen Zhen said in a leisurely fashion, "Some animals are affected by 'spirit', and their bodies will change a little, so they become yao.
"If this yao starts to live in resentment," Chen Zhen turned to look at Chi Xiaoduo and said, "the power of the 'spirit' will grow stronger and stronger. It will transform the yao once again upon its death, and become a 'devil.'"
"Once the power of the devil takes shape, it will not be bound by time or a lifespan, and will exist forever, to bring disaster to the world." Chen Zhen said, "Our job is to find suitable ways to exorcise it."
"I thought only ghosts could be exorcised."
"No, you’re replacing animals with people." Chen Zhen explained, "Among human beings, those who obtain extraordinary abilities are equivalent to the ‘yao’ among animals. The only difference is that they are human."
"Human yao." Chi Xiaoduo understood and nodded.
Chen Zhen: “....”
"Humans are also a kind of animal." Chen Zhen said, "The only difference is that human’s brains and thoughts are more developed."
"But I've never seen anyone with great abilities ah?" Chi Xiaoduo said.
"Aren't these all abilities?" Chen Zhen casually pointed out the window of the car.
"Bright lights that shine all night, a continuous flow of cars, and endless inventions every day." Chen Zhen said, "This is the embodiment of the power given by the heavens and the earth to human beings. The only difference is that we hold wisdom in great esteem, which is different from how the beasts worship physical strength.”
Chi Xiaoduo: "....”
Chen Zhen added, "Us exorcists, in the strictest sense, are also yao, the yao among humans. Don't say that phrase again, I've already heard it countless times. "
Chi Xiaoduo laughed with a “haha”, and Chen Zhen laughed bitterly.
"Then Xiang Cheng..."
"Xiang Cheng makes a living by collecting yao." Chen Zhen replied, "I guess he's a part-time public relations man? Based on his photo, he looks like a pretty energetic young man... How old are you, Chi Xiaoduo? "
"Twenty-six." Chi Xiaoduo replied.
Chen Zhen nodded and said, "A bit young."
"And you?"
"Thirty-three."
"Can’t tell at all." Chi Xiaoduo thought that Chen Zhen was very cordial and couldn't help asking, "Can anyone be an exorcist? Could someone like me be one? "
Chen Zhen pondered over it deeply, turned his head, and asked, "Do you want to enter this line of work?"
Chi Xiaoduo shook his head, frowned deeply, and asked, "Xiang Cheng is an exorcist, isn't he? Is this a very dangerous job? Just like tonight, if he goes missing, I won't know what happened and can’t help at all. It’s too depressing.”
"The pay for exorcists is very average." Chen Zhen turned the steering wheel and said, "Your life is in danger all the time, and the rules and regulations are still very strict. Are you sure?"
"Then what good points are there?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"There are no good points." Chen Zhen replied as he laughed and focused on driving.
"Impossible." Chi Xiaoduo said, "If someone is willing to do this line of work, then there has to be something worthwhile about it ba."
Chen Zhen nodded and said, "That makes sense. Then for the sake of world peace, does that count?"
Chi Xiaoduo thought about it and said, "That counts as a reason, but if for the sake of world peace you still can’t make enough to feed yourself, then it would be very hard for many people to want to do this job ba."
"In the first place, you don’t need many people in this line of work. It's enough to rely on a few idealists. Now there are so many idealists that it’s almost too much, and the country is still considering further downsizing. But let's say, if you can barely support yourself, " Chen Zhen said leisurely, "would you have a better chance to get to know a completely different world and get in touch with the essence of the world by experiencing a bunch of messy phenomena?"
Chi Xiaoduo thought that this could hardly be regarded as a reason to do the job. Chen Zhen then asked, "You get to have an exciting, wonderful, adventurous life every day, does that count as a good point?"
“That counts...ba,” Chi Xiaoduo said.
"To sum up." Chen Zhen said carelessly, "That is the plus side. If you’re looking for material benefits, there aren’t any, it is purely spiritual. Therefore, some people say that the exorcism department is a group of idealists, but society can't do without these idealists either. Just like civil servants, the salary is small. However, exorcists can find ways to make some extra money, while it is difficult for grass-roots civil servants to earn some extra money now. "
"Can it be a part-time job?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Yes." Chen Zhen said, "But you are already too old to do this job. At the most, one should be seven or eight, in the early years when one’s fires burn low to train your ability to engage the heavens and the earth."
Chi Xiaoduo was a little disappointed, but Chen Zhen said, "Although, if you are really interested, you can apply to qualify for a yao-subduing equipment master."
Chi Xiaoduo was excited and asked, "What do you do there?"
"It’s basically providing assistance for exorcists in identifying yaoguai and magic weapons." Chen Zhen replied, "They work in their professional field and are independent of the exorcists. I'll give you some information next time for you to look at them."
"Okay." Chi Xiaoduo was very satisfied. If it was like that, then maybe he could help Xiang Cheng.
"I guess Xiang Cheng came to Beijing with another task besides taking the certification exam." Chen Zhen said, "Maybe Qi Wei told him something, and when he was carrying out this task, he ran into some kind of accident that was a bit out of his control. "
"Is Qi Wei also an exorcist?" Chi Xiaoduo asked.
"Yes." Chen Zhen replied, "The Qi family is a very old family in the Guangdong area. They have passed down their history, and pretty much even before the exorcism committee was created, they had many Fengshui Masters come out of their family during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Their family is very rich."
"Do exorcists get paid?" Chi Xiaoduo asked again.
"Before, they used to." Chen Zhen replied, "They don’t anymore. Wait for me here for a while."
The car stopped outside the Lingjing Alley, and Chen Zhen got out of the car and ran off. Chi Xiaoduo felt that everything was so unreal and stared out of the window in a daze.
At the same time, in the dark, Xiang Cheng hit the wall with the Demon-Subduing Staff and looked up. Water was dripping down the deep tunnel, and the tunnel seemed endless. Xiang Cheng walked for a while again, then simply sat down and took out the extremely dusty Si Gui from his pocket. He closed his eyes, and stroked its body.
Si Gui's body glowed, and it unfurled its feathers. Xiang Cheng sent it forward with his left hand, and Si Gui spread its wings and flew along the tunnel.
Xiang Cheng tried to turn on his cellphone several times. However, it was out of power, and he was trapped in this dark cave.
A bird fluttered over from the passage behind him and landed on Xiang Cheng's shoulder.
Xiang Cheng: ".....”
Xiang Cheng looked back at the dark passage that he had traversed, and then looked ahead. Si Gui raised its head and looked at the walls of the passageway.
