Chapter 16: Come Out Here, You Bastard

“What’s the reason?” The two Shang brothers asked me in unison.

“Yin Tomb Sha—this house is afflicted by Yin Tomb Sha! A great deal of yin energy has accumulated here,” I replied.

Yes, it was indeed Yin Tomb Sha.

I had discovered earlier that the Gu family home was plagued by this particular evil. The build-up of yin energy had led to Gu Xiaogang’s father and his son, Pengpeng, falling under its sway one after the other.

Clearly, the Shang brothers were not well-versed in the art of feng shui. When they arrived, they saw only that the house was infested with malicious spirits and immediately declared it a haunted house.

According to their way of dealing with such matters, all that needed to be done was to drive out the ghosts and spirits—that would be the end of it.

But they didn’t realize there was a deep-rooted feng shui problem here, and that’s a much trickier issue. Even if they cleansed the place completely this time, it wouldn’t be long before new foul things would be drawn back to the house.

Moreover, there was still the matter of that half-master’s spirit lingering within.

Why call it a half-master? It was because Gu Xiaogang’s mother’s ghost was clearly present—if nothing had changed, she was one of the two Corpse-Shadow Spirits haunting the house.

The other half, of course, belonged to the dog named Goldie.

Since the dog belonged to the Gu family, it could be considered half a master of the house.

With such a “half-master” present, the yin energy drawn by the Yin Tomb Sha would only benefit them further.

Yin Tomb Sha is, after all, a kind of feng shui formation. Yet, when it’s this harmful, we call it a “feng shui deadlock.”

Within this deadlock, the two Corpse-Shadow Spirits could replenish their yin energy endlessly, which naturally made them stronger.

“Yin Tomb Sha? This house is afflicted by Yin Tomb Sha?” Shang Wuwei cried out in surprise.

I nodded. “Exactly. All their troubles stem from this. I just didn’t expect the spirits inside had grown into Corpse-Shadow Spirits—I only realized it thanks to Master Miao’s guidance.”

“That explains everything! No wonder those Corpse-Shadow Spirits are so powerful!”

“Right, it all makes sense. In a formation like Yin Tomb Sha, our spiritual power is weakened while theirs is enhanced. The balance tips in their favor, and of course, we’re at a disadvantage!”

Though the brothers didn’t know much about feng shui, once I mentioned Yin Tomb Sha, they understood without need for further explanation.

Having pinpointed the root of the problem, they seemed far more at ease.

“I knew it—Red Vengeful Spirits are no match for me, yet two mere Corpse-Shadow Spirits gave me trouble! If not for the Yin Tomb Sha, I could have annihilated them in an instant!”

“Exactly! Only two Corpse-Shadow Spirits!”

Their defeated expressions vanished, and they began making excuses for their failure.

Still, it must be said, as eccentric as they were, their abilities were beyond doubt. At least, I couldn’t handle Corpse-Shadow Spirits myself.

“Gentlemen, could you describe to me what those two Corpse-Shadow Spirits look like?” I asked.

“One is an old woman, the other a little girl,” Shang Wuyong replied.

The old woman must have been Gu Xiaogang’s mother.

***

Who was the little girl?

While waiting for the brothers earlier, I’d questioned Gu Xiaogang thoroughly about his family. He’d never mentioned a little girl.

Could she be an orphaned wild spirit from outside? That seemed likely.

“Did you see a dog spirit?” I asked.

“A dog spirit?” Shang Wuyong echoed, puzzled.

“Yes, a dog spirit. The client’s son was previously possessed by one,” I said.

“No, we didn’t see any. A dog spirit possessing a person—that’s truly bizarre!” Shang Wuyong exclaimed.

They hadn’t seen it?

That didn’t make sense.

That dog, Goldie, its spirit had been in Gu Xiaogang’s house all along.

How could it not be there?

“Are you sure?” I pressed.

This time, Shang Wuwei answered, “Absolutely certain. There’s no dog spirit in there.”

I scratched my head, perplexed.

Where had the dog spirit gone? It was a crucial matter. If I didn’t resolve it, even after dissolving the Yin Tomb Sha, trouble would return.

“Oh, right! Little Wei, you’re Master Zhang’s disciple! Isn’t feng shui your specialty? If you break the Yin Tomb Sha, we’ll be able to take care of those two Corpse-Shadow Spirits easily!” Shang Wuyong said.

“Exactly! Once you dissolve the formation, destroying those two spirits will be a simple matter,” Shang Wuwei agreed.

Originally, I’d intended to clear out the spirits first and then deal with the Yin Tomb Sha. Now it seemed I’d have to resolve the feng shui issue first.

I nodded. “I can break the Yin Tomb Sha—but I’ll need your help. First, let us see the two Corpse-Shadow Spirits.”

I had to confirm their identities. If they were just wandering ghosts, it didn’t matter if they were scattered—such spirits couldn’t be sent on to the Underworld and reincarnation anyway.

But if one was really Gu Xiaogang’s mother, she could not simply be banished. She had a home and family—she could be sent on to reincarnation.

And I needed to know who the little girl was as well.

“Well…” The two exchanged glances, hesitating.

Clearly, neither wanted to go back in and risk another setback.

“You don’t have to fight them—just bring me and the client to the door, and lure them out. We only need to see them,” I said.

“That’s fine! But are you sure you want him to see them?” Shang Wuwei gestured to Gu Xiaogang, who was standing some distance away.

“There’s no other way. Only if he recognizes them can we know the Corpse-Shadow Spirits’ true identities,” I replied.

Normally, ordinary people are not permitted to see such things—not out of secrecy or pride, but because it can have a serious effect on their fortune.

***

Of course, since I was willing to let Gu Xiaogang see them, I was confident I could protect him and his fortune from harm.

“Up to you. You’re in charge,” Shang Wuwei said.

I nodded, then beckoned to Gu Xiaogang.

He hesitated, but eventually walked over to us. “Mr. Yu… gentlemen…”

Because I’d saved his father and son earlier, he trusted me completely. After greeting each of us, he stood beside me, visibly nervous.

“In a moment, we’ll open your spiritual eyes. Just follow me and identify two people,” I told him.

“What? Open my spiritual eyes? Identify… people?” He stared at me in horror.

“That’s right. All you need to do is see if you recognize them,” I assured him.

“I… I…” Of course, he realized I was asking him to identify ghosts, not people. He was understandably frightened, but I could also see a hint of curiosity.

“Don’t be afraid—I’ll protect you. Nothing will happen! In fact, this is a good thing. Seeing them will benefit you and your family. Once you’ve done this, and I resolve the feng shui issue, they’ll leave—and from then on, they’ll watch over your family. You may not become fabulously wealthy, but at the very least, you’ll prosper and live free of misfortune.”

Most of what I said was untrue—the Corpse-Shadow Spirits would not be looking out for him after he saw them.

I spoke only to ease his mind, so he wouldn’t be afraid to live in his own home in the future.

Of course, as long as I solved the feng shui problem, nothing else would happen to his family. With my words as psychological reassurance, they would live in peace and harmony.

As I expected, he smiled and nodded. “Alright, I’ll go with you!”

Having settled the matter, I signaled to the Shang brothers.

They nodded in understanding and led the way to the Gu family home.

At the front door, I said, “Please open his spiritual eyes—just the eyes, not the ears.”

With the spiritual eyes open, he could see ghosts. The “palace of hearing” was the ears; if that was opened, he’d hear the ghosts speak, which could be disastrous.

Shang Wuwei nodded, formed a series of complicated gestures, and pressed his thumbs to Gu Xiaogang’s eyes, gently pulling them apart.

“All done,” Shang Wuwei said.

For him, opening spiritual eyes was a simple task, and he finished quickly.

I nodded and tapped my own brow, opening my spiritual eyes as well.

“All right, bring them out. With you two here, I doubt they’ll dare stray from the house,” I said.

The brothers responded and, in unison, planted their right hands on their waists and pointed with their left toward the house. In a fashion more fit for fishwives than exorcists, they shouted at the top of their lungs, “You two worthless wretches, born without an ass, get out here right now!”