Maoshan Academy of Dark Secret Techniques - Chapter 1 - The Extinction of Maoshan Techniques

If you were given a chance to be reborn, what kind of life would you choose?

Humans, a mysterious species, the prized creation of God.

As science gradually grew powerful, humanity gazed upon the universe for the first time and realized that the heavens described in Journey to the West¹ do not exist.

And if you were to dig a thousand meters underground, you still wouldn’t reach Hell.

Throughout history, the concept of ghosts has varied greatly. A quick search on Baidu² reveals that even ghosts now have classifications.

Science has proven that Heaven doesn’t exist and neither does Hell. It can definitively tell you that ghosts are not real.

But I would like to tell science this: you can claim that ghosts don’t exist, but you can’t truly prove that ghosts are merely fictional.

Lam Ching Ying’s Chinese zombie movies remain classics to this day. And yet, Baidu tells us that Lam Ching Ying was not, in fact, a real Maoshan Master.

Baidu’s final verdict-“Lam Ching Ying was not a real Maoshan Master”-not only establishes his lack of authentic ties to Maoshan practices but also subtly affirms the existence of Maoshan techniques.

In this age of endless work and relentless schedules, where the day of a Red Country citizen consists of waking up at seven, working, coming home, and sleeping,

Maoshan techniques-or, more precisely, the Maoshan Secret Techniques, an even more authentic form of ghost-repelling arts-have long been forgotten.

Yet somewhere in Red Country, a Taoist known as Bai Dao resides. He is a Patriarch of the Maoshan Secret Techniques, a once-divine Immortal who had already ascended to godhood, but for some unknown reason, descended back to the human world. Perhaps only he knows why.

With long, flowing white hair and a matching beard, his transcendent aura unmistakable, Bai Dao sat cross-legged in meditation.

If you counted carefully, the four seasons had already passed in their entirety-Bai Dao had sat here for over a year. Just what kind of boundary or curse requires an Immortal to sustain a spell for over a year? It remains a mystery.

By now, the trees had turned yellow, and people had begun donning their coats. At the peak of a remote mountain in Yunnan, within Red Country, a young man stood at the edge of a cliff.

Ahead of him was a dense, unrelenting crowd of people, cutting off any path of retreat.

A burly man with tattooed arms stepped forward, shouting furiously, “Chen Yu! You beast! As the Strategist of our Mafia, second only to the Boss, you had his full trust. Who would’ve thought you’d kill him-for a woman, of all things?! Is a woman worth more than the brotherhood we shared?”

The man’s voice trembled with rage, his emotions clearly at their limit.

On the edge of the Cliff stood a young man named Chen Yu, who showed no signs of panic. Dressed in all black, with rising sword-like brows, he exuded an air of dominance.

With a smile on his face, Chen Yu fearlessly said, “Underboss, don’t be so agitated. Since you’ve chased me down to this point, death holds no fear for me. However, I must clarify a few things. First, the Boss’s woman indeed had a thing with me – that wretched woman. How many of you have slept with her? Dare to say it out loud? For a woman like that, I would never kill the Boss.

Second, it was the Boss who begged me to join the organization. I told him that my temperament is unpredictable, and no one can foresee my actions. Today, I could make you a dragon among men, but if I’m in a bad mood, his corpse might just show up in the sewer the next day.”

Seeing Chen Yu so arrogant, the Muscle Man took out a machete. “Chen Yu, keep being cocky. Today is your sacrificial day. We’ve been brothers for ten years, so I’m giving you a chance. Say your last words, and maybe I’ll grant you a favor.”

Chen Yu seemed unfazed by the Muscle Man’s machete, maintaining an indifferent demeanor. “Underboss, since the Boss is dead, aren’t you the Boss now? Do you think I don’t see your little scheme? Killing me, will it really benefit you?”

Once he saw that Chen Yu had unraveled everything, the Muscle Man’s fury subsided. “Haha, you’re absolutely right. Now, I am the Boss of the Mafia. Strategist, I actually wanted you to live. But alas, your mind is no use to me. Since I can’t have you, go die.”

With that, the man brandished the machete and charged at Chen Yu. Moments later, Chen Yu decapitated him.

As the man approached step by step, Chen Yu gradually backed away until he reached the edge of the Cliff.

Talking to himself, Chen Yu said, “Having spent my life as a strategist, always being used by others, today I can finally be myself.”

A slight smile crept on his face.

He quickly turned around, facing the sheer drop of the Cliff, and leapt off.

“Let me become one with the world; let my flesh and blood merge with nature. God, please accept my humble body and grant me true freedom.”

Gently closing his eyes, Chen Yu seemed to see the Grim Reaper’s curved blade preparing to dismember him one last time.

Farewell to the humble world.

Farewell to the humble man.

Farewell, eternal farewell.

Chen Yu’s body plummeted rapidly due to gravity, just one meter from the ground.

Suddenly, a flash of white light enveloped him, and along with that light, Chen Yu vanished from this world.

When Chen Yu woke up again, he found himself in a run-down classroom.

He rubbed his confused eyes, trying to confirm everything he was seeing.

“Where is this? Hell? Ah, my head hurts so much.”

Chen Yu pressed his hands against his head, hoping to alleviate the sudden pain.

Struggling to get up from the floor, Chen Yu wanted to find out where he was.

It seemed like an old academy. The spider webs on the glass and the weeds in the playground indicated that this place had been abandoned for a long time.

Chen Yu was located on the first floor of the school, in the first classroom on the left, right in the middle of the desks.

But why am I here?

Chen Yu looked around in disbelief. He could hardly accept that he, who had already died, had ended up in such a ghostly place. Could this be what they call a time travel?

Suddenly, a small snake crawled out from under the desk, flicking its unsettling tongue, startling Chen Yu into a shiver.

He rubbed his eyes hard, hoping that when he opened them again, what he saw wouldn’t be real. However, what presented itself to him was still this eerie classroom.

Where exactly is this?

As the night gradually descended, being in an unfamiliar place with broken desks, a grass-grown floor, and the creaking doors, Chen Yu’s heart began to fill with fear.

Trying to steady his rising fear, Chen Yu decided to leave the classroom and see what was going on.

“Bang!”

“Ah, that hurt!”

Just as Chen Yu was about to step out the door, an invisible force pushed him back, causing him to tumble to the ground.

“What is going on? Why can’t I go out?”

At that moment, a cold sweat broke out on Chen Yu, his legs trembled unnaturally, and his expression turned to one of fear, as if he had seen something he shouldn’t have.

Right in front of Chen Yu, a broken piece of chalk unexpectedly floated up by itself, appearing somewhat frightening in the dark campus.

“Is there a ghost here?” Chen Yu was extremely frightened, but the naturally floating chalk didn’t behave like something out of a horror movie. Instead, it moved to the blackboard and began to write a message: Welcome to the Maoshan Master Entrance Exam.

Chen Yu felt a bit confused.

“Maoshan Master? Entrance Exam? What does this mean?”

Before Chen Yu could react, the old blackboard suddenly lit up like a TV screen, revealing a faint silhouette that looked like a Taoist.

Footnote:

1. Journey to the West(西游记): A classic Chinese novel written in the 16th century by Wu Cheng’en, chronicling the adventures of the monk Xuanzang who travels to India to acquire sacred texts, accompanied by three supernatural disciples, including the famous Monkey King, Sun Wukong.

Baidu(百度):

China’s leading internet search engine, similar to Google, offering a wide range of services including maps, news, and cloud storage.