Thousand Dusts Ferry Me - Chapter 25

Jiang Baiyu used the Incantation of Truth on Little Tower and asked her:

“How many people have you killed?”

“Just two. And two attempted murders.”

“Who were the two you killed?”

“They were those two damn Daoists who cursed my big sister. You already know about them, right? If I hadn’t killed them, they would have killed my big sister! I haven’t killed anyone else; my big sister doesn’t allow killing.”

“Were the two attempted murders us?”

“Yes, I had no choice. You were going to arrest me, and you were just too difficult to kill!” Little Tower said this with a face full of indignation.

Cheng Suiyan thought this kid was adorable and couldn’t help but pinch the white ball of hair on her head. Little Tower rolled her eyes and spat a big mouthful of saliva at him. He laughed and dodged.

Jiang Baiyu asked again, “Was it also you who wore the embroidered shoes that night we met at Mingyue Tower?”

“Yes, I just wanted to scare you.”

“Why did you cast spells to give nightmares to people in Guangling City?”

“Because they urinated on me!”

“……”

The four suddenly understood that those people had been retaliated against for randomly urinating… Was the truth really this simple?

How could this reason be both bizarre and reasonable?

If someone randomly urinated on them, they would probably draw their sword and chop someone too.

Fu Xue found it strange. “But… why didn’t these people say anything?”

Cheng Suiyan said, “Perhaps these people didn’t think randomly urinating was a serious offense, so they didn’t connect the dots.

Even if a few people suspected something, if others didn’t speak up, they wouldn’t either. After all, this wasn’t something honorable, and people always like to gloss over their faults. Especially these immoral people – they might even be glad others were also targeted.”

Yun Qing asked Little Tower, “Were you able to cast spells from the moment you formed?”

“Stinky Daoist, of course not!”

“Then who taught you how to cast spells?”

Jiang Baiyu, worried Little Tower might lie, repeated the question.

Little Tower answered, “A passing brother taught me.”

“What was his name?”

“He was called Ci Lili.”

“……?”

“What are you staring at? Are you done asking?”

Jiang Baiyu asked Yun Qing, “Do you have anything else to ask?”

Yun Qing shook her head, looking somewhat perplexed.

From this perspective, Little Tower hadn’t done any evil. Even when she acted, her motives were primarily defensive and retaliatory. This actually aligned with the characteristics of vessel spirits. Generally, vessel spirits born from positive emotions were fundamentally friendly to humans.

According to Yun Qing’s principle, she typically ignored spirits that hadn’t committed evil.

“But I can’t let you go,” she muttered to herself.

Little Tower burst into aggrieved tears. “What do you mean? I told the truth and you still won’t let me go. You just want to eat me, you bad Daoist, stinky Daoist! Just wait until I smash your teeth into gaps!”

“Alright, alright, I won’t eat you. You’re not even a real child. Come with me first.”

Little Tower was forced to transform back into a pearl, which Yun Qing placed in a pouch. She cast a prohibition spell on the pouch’s surface.

Fu Xue asked, “Senior sister, why can’t we let her go? I think she’s quite cute.”

Cheng Suiyan nodded vigorously beside her, “I think so too.”

Yun Qing was also conflicted and explained, “Vessel spirits are born from human emotions and can naturally cultivate by feeding on human emotions. All human emotions towards vessel spirits can become their source of cultivation power.

Do you think Little Tower’s cultivation advanced so quickly? It was because the rumor of Mingyue Tower being haunted spread widely in Guangling City, causing everyone to feel a sense of fear. This fear became the nourishment for her cultivation.”

“Ah?” Fu Xue exclaimed, “Does that mean if this continues, she’ll become an incredibly powerful being? Powerful enough to potentially overthrow an entire city?”

“More or less. Although Little Tower currently bears no ill will towards humans, how can you guarantee that when she becomes powerful, that power won’t spiral out of control?”

Cheng Suiyan said, “We can eliminate the city’s fear and make people believe Mingyue Tower isn’t haunted.”

Yun Qing shook her head. “What good would clarifying do now? Later, when Little Tower grows larger and her intelligence increases, she’ll likely discover the trick herself. Do you think she won’t create new haunting rumors?”

“In the end, she’s just too unique. It’s almost unheard of. I believe even my master would be at a loss if he were here.”

“We could burn Mingyue Tower.”

“Useless. Mingyue Tower was her original vessel. If it exists, that’s good, but even without it, she can inhabit somewhere else,” Yun Qing said with a sigh.

She continued, “Actually, the best choice before us is to kill Little Tower. But… if a person were truly that hard-hearted, they probably wouldn’t have any worries at all.”

Jiang Baiyu consoled her. “The Heavenly Way has its own rules. Don’t worry.” He then produced a pouch from somewhere and dropped something into Yun Qing’s palm.

Yun Qing looked down to see a piece of malt candy.

Yun Qing put the malt candy in her mouth, feeling slightly better. She asked, “Where’s this from?”

“From this little ghost. I guess she was the one who stole your candy that night.”

“Anything else?”

Jiang Baiyu shook the pouch, “Only one left. She’s probably already eaten the other.”

Yun Qing shook her head, “Fu Xue, you missed out.”

Fu Xue laughed, “Senior sister, I want a cart of candy tomorrow!”

“Okay!”

Cheng Suiyan laughed and looked at them, saying, “This place is now flat ground. Let’s return to the Immortal Capital Cloud Lodge.”

The few people returned to the Immortal Capital Cloud Lodge. On the way, Yun Qing remembered something and sidled up to Jiang Baiyu, looking sly, “Brother Baiyu.”

Such a respectful address made Jiang Baiyu’s eyelid twitch slightly, “Hmm?”

“Your Incantation of Truth is quite good.”

“Right?”

“Is it a secret technique of the Huayang Sect?”

“Hmm.”

A secret technique… Yun Qing found the next part difficult to bring up.

Jiang Baiyu, being considerate, sensed her thoughts and asked, “Want to learn?”

Yun Qing’s eyes lit up, “Can I learn?”

Even in the dark, her eyes were so bright they couldn’t be ignored. Jiang Baiyu was in a great mood, suppressing his laughter, and said, “If you call me master, I’ll teach you.”

Yun Qing seriously considered it, then shook her head. “Can’t call you master. How about calling you dad?”

“Cough, cough, cough.” This made Jiang Baiyu cough violently.

“If that doesn’t work, I can call you grandpa.”

Jiang Baiyu quickly waved his hand, “No need, no need. I’ll teach you.”

Fu Xue’s head popped out beside Yun Qing, “Can I learn too?”

Cheng Suiyan also asked, “Me too, can I learn?”

Jiang Baiyu looked at Cheng Suiyan. “You’ll need to pay.”

Cheng Suiyan nodded readily: “How much?”

“One thousand taels.”

“Deal.”

Yun Qing knew this was definitely a fair price, even a bargain.

When she saw Cheng Suiyan pull out a thousand-tael silver note, she didn’t want to learn for free, so she also pulled out her freshly warmed thousand-tael note and tried to hand it to Jiang Baiyu.

Jiang Baiyu stopped her hand with two fingers, “You don’t need to.”

“Huh?”

He smiled, “I’m your spoils of war, after all.”

…….

As soon as they returned to the inn, Jiang Baiyu fully explained the Incantation of Truth, including its energy circulation, hand seals, and techniques. After explaining the essence, he also mentioned two precautions.

First, the Incantation of Truth was similar to divination and could generally only be used by high-level cultivators on lower-level cultivators. However, lower-level cultivators also had a small chance of controlling higher-level cultivators, depending on the target and environment.

Second, there was a type of Daoist technique that could resist the Incantation of Truth’s control. If they encountered such a Daoist, they shouldn’t use the spell.

“What Daoist technique?” the three asked in unison.

Jiang Baiyu answered, “The Way of One Mind. This path emphasizes single-mindedness, having no external distractions. Those who have achieved enlightenment can control their own thoughts.

The Incantation of Truth essentially inquires about what a person thinks and desires. But practitioners of the Way of One Mind can control their thoughts and can provide any answer they want when faced with the spell.”

Yun Qing and Fu Xue looked at each other. Yun Qing said, “The Way of One Mind? Isn’t this just a legendary Daoist technique? Are there really people who practice it?”

They didn’t notice Cheng Suiyan’s hesitation when he heard the words “Way of One Mind”.

Jiang Baiyu’s gaze seemed to inadvertently sweep past Cheng Suiyan before settling on Yun Qing. He asked, “Anything else?”

Fu Xue asked, “Controlling thoughts shouldn’t be difficult, right? For example, if I feel that thinking about a certain thing makes me sad, I can choose not to think about it. Would that count as controlling thoughts?

If so, can ordinary people resist the Incantation of Truth?”

Jiang Baiyu shook his head and said, “What you’re talking about is a very superficial level of control. The Way of One Mind can carve thoughts deep into the sea of consciousness.

Let me give you an example. If I ask you what one plus one is, you might deliberately answer three just to defy me. But deep down, you will always believe that one plus one is two.

The Way of One Mind is different. They first change their own perception from the depths of their heart. They themselves believe that one plus one is three, so naturally, they will answer three.”

Yun Qing shook her head and said, “This would drive oneself crazy. No wonder no one practices the Way of One Mind.”

Cheng Suiyan said, “That’s just a special situation. The Way of One Mind certainly wouldn’t randomly modify the sea of consciousness for no reason.”

Jiang Baiyu looked at him and said, “You seem to know a lot about the Way of One Mind.”

“Yes,” Cheng Suiyan nodded heavily, “I have indeed heard about the Way of One Mind. This involves the biggest secret of my family,” he said, pulling out a small notebook, “This is my ancestor’s notes.”

Yun Qing took the notebook and saw that the cover was written in seal script with the words “Old Man Nan’s Dream Memories”. When she opened the notebook, she found it was neatly written in tiny fly-head characters, even with accompanying illustrations.

Fu Xue leaned over to take a look and said, “You’re lying. This paper is clean and white, it’s clearly not an ancient document.”

“The original is naturally kept at home. This is my handwritten copy.”

Yun Qing scanned the contents of the notebook, and her expression gradually became serious.

Jiang Baiyu became curious and walked to her side, resting one hand on her chair back and leaning down to look.

The “Old Man Nan’s Dream Memories” began with Old Man Nan’s own preface. Old Man Nan’s original name was Cheng Sanlang, who lived in a small fishing village called Cheng Family Bay by the sea, where generations had made their living by fishing.

One day, Cheng Sanlang passed by a river pond outside the village and accidentally saw three children drowning.

Without hesitation, Cheng Sanlang dove into the water to rescue them. He consecutively saved three children but exhausted himself and was entangled by water weeds, seemingly about to drown in the pond.

Cheng Sanlang closed his eyes in despair, but instead of feeling the suffocation of water entering his nose, he felt as if he had left the pond.

Strangely, he opened his eyes and found himself lying under a willow tree by the pond, his clothes already dry.

Standing under the tree was a fairy who introduced herself as a Daoist with the name “Yi Xinzi”, who had passed by and, seeing Cheng Sanlang’s noble deed, came to his rescue.

Cheng Sanlang thanked her profusely and invited the fairy to be his guest.

The fairy was nothing like the rumors of immortals being cold and aloof. Upon hearing Cheng Sanlang’s invitation, she happily agreed, went to his home, and even tasted the village’s home-brewed rice wine and home-cooked dishes.

The fairy read Cheng Sanlang’s fortune by feeling his bones and sighed:

“Although you are kind-hearted, your fate is not good. You were supposed to die today. Even if I save you, you will face many disasters and hardships in the future, with a life of poverty. Would you like me to send you on your way to be reborn?”

Cheng Sanlang cried and said he could not bear to leave his family and would rather suffer.

The fairy, ultimately unable to bear seeing such a kind and honest person suffer, used an immortal brush to change his fate.

After changing his fate, one day Cheng Sanlang went fishing and pulled up a basket-sized shell. When he opened it, he found a handful of top-quality pearls and became prosperous. Afterward, his children and grandchildren studied and became officials, and the family’s fortunes rose day by day.

…..

What caught Yun Qing’s attention was not Cheng Sanlang’s legendary fate, but the immortal brush.

Yi Xinzi revealed to Cheng Sanlang that the brush was called the “Eight Clouds Fate-Writing Brush”.

Their Longshou Sect happened to have a magic treasure with the same name that could not be used.

What was the relationship between Yi Xinzi and her master? Could it be related to her master’s disappearance?

Was the Eight Clouds Fate-Writing Brush unusable or simply not dared to be used?

Seeing Yun Qing staring blankly and reluctant to turn the page, Jiang Baiyu softly asked, “What’s wrong?”

Yun Qing came back to her senses and said, “Nothing… Suiyan, can I borrow this book for two days?”

“Of course.”

****

Fan Erlang had finished his accounts until the hour of Hai the previous night. During the accounting, everyone had heard a rumbling sound outside and thought it was thunder. He fell asleep exhausted and was awakened by knocking on the door while sleeping soundly.

“Who is it?” he asked unhappily.

“Young Master, something has happened at home,” came the voice of Steward Sun.

It turned out that Steward Sun had waited until dawn before daring to come and find Fan Erlang.

Fan Erlang was still groggy but was completely awakened by this sentence. He ran to open the door without even putting on his shoes, “What happened?!”

Steward Sun had not slept all night, looking tired and haggard. Upon seeing Fan Erlang, he could not help but burst into tears, “Young Master, the Fan Mansion is gone!”

Fan Erlang looked as if he had been struck by lightning, falling to the ground in shock, his eyes red, “Gone… gone?”

“Yes!”

“The old madam and young madam… are they both gone?”

“Oh, no, no…” Steward Sun realized his ambiguous words had made the young master think the entire family had been wiped out.

He hurriedly helped Fan Erlang up and quickly explained what had happened the previous night.

Fan Erlang felt as if he had survived a great calamity and let out a long breath. Thankfully, only the house was gone.

He pushed Steward Sun away in annoyance, “Your mouth should be telling stories in a teahouse. It’s wasted in the Fan family.”

Steward Sun smiled apologetically, “Young Master hasn’t had breakfast yet. Shall I get something to fill your stomach?”

“No, let’s go home first.”

…..

When Fan Erlang returned home and saw the ruined mansion, he could not help but curse the demon in his heart.

He first went to see his mother. Madam Ding, upon seeing her son, naturally elaborated on the events of the previous night, adding dramatic details, and then began to cry:

“That harbinger of misfortune! I said long ago that you shouldn’t have married her. Look at how she has ruined our home! I almost never saw you again! Aren’t you going to give up? If you don’t divorce her soon, your own mother will be driven to her death!”

“Mother, please rest,” Fan Erlang said, and then instructed Yu Ping and others to carefully attend to the old madam.

After leaving his mother, he went to see his wife, Yunniang.

Yunniang was not there. Only a maid named Chunmei said, “Madam asked me to tell you that she is waiting for you at the Mingyue Tower.”