Taboo Mage - Chapter 66 - Trading One Life for Another

The departed spirit, sensing the presence of humans, especially that of Li Meng’s family, quickly revitalized itself, its sharp teeth lunging for Li Meng’s neck.

Suddenly, Buddhist prayer beads flew out from a corner, and Jue Chi, already dressed in his Kasaya, somehow had an alms bowl in hand.

At first glance, he somewhat resembled Fahai¹ from the Legend of the White Snake².

The beads struck the departed spirit, which writhed momentarily, its dark eye sockets glaring towards Jue Chi.

“Evil creature! You have committed grave sins, now accept your punishment!” Jue Chi bellowed, his voice thunderous.

The departed spirit cowered in Li Meng’s arms, trying to use her human energy to fend off the Buddhist chant’s intimidation.

Seizing the moment, I held a piece of yellow talisman paper and circled behind Li Meng, aiming to stick it onto the departed spirit while she was distracted.

Suddenly, the auntie, who had been hiding in the corner, burst out, grabbed Li Meng by the arm, and forcefully pulled the departed spirit from her embrace.

Unexpectedly, the usually timid auntie showed such courage.

I took the opportunity and affixed the yellow talisman paper to the forehead of the departed spirit. Meanwhile, Jue Chi, waiting for his chance, approached with the alms bowl in hand.

As soon as the alms bowl touched the departed spirit, it writhed like an insect, shrinking more and more. I threw the soul-capturing bottle towards Jue Chi, who opened its lid, and the mostly imprisoned spirit was instantly captured within.

Having captured the departed spirit, I finally breathed a sigh of relief. At this point, there was no choice but to destroy this spirit.

That responsibility now lay with Jue Chi.

“I want to ask about the child… what do you plan to do with her?” Du Qiang, supporting a sobbing Li Meng, hesitated before finally asking in a grave tone.

Exhausted, I slumped on the sofa, poured myself a glass of water, and said, “What else can be done? The child died a horrific death, her spirit carrying immense resentment, and it even caused the death of your child. Such a malevolent spirit will not be accepted by King Yama.”

“Is there… any other way to make things easier for her down below?”

I glanced at Jue Chi and shook my head, saying, “There’s no way. Unless…”

“Unless what?” Li Meng’s eyes filled with hope.

Seeing that the timing was right, I shared the method of trading one life for another. Just as I finished speaking, Li Meng rushed out and knelt down in front of me with a thud.

“Master, whatever the method, I’m willing to try it!” Li Meng agreed so readily that I actually felt a pang of compassion.

“You should consult with Master Jue Chi about this.”

Even though I had anticipated everything from the beginning, when Li Meng actually expressed her willingness to exchange her own spirit for a chance for the departed spirit to be reincarnated, I hesitated.

Jue Chi rolled his eyes at me discreetly and helped Li Meng, who was kneeling before him, to her feet.

“Are you sure? If you exchange your chance of reincarnation with this Resentful Spirit, you might not be able to reincarnate after you die and spend your life as a lonely ghost,” Jue Chi said with a frown.

Li Meng did not hesitate and nodded solemnly.

My gaze swept over Du Qiang and Auntie standing behind Li Meng; the mother and son were looking down, seemingly lost in thought. Even when Li Meng proposed to exchange her chance of reincarnation, they just looked up in surprise and did not attempt to stop her.

I thought, this is truly human nature.

The Resentful Spirit was very strong, and the soul-capturing bottle could not control it for long. After confirming Li Meng’s decision once more, Jue Chi decided to resolve the matter immediately.

Trading one life for another, whether in Buddhist teachings or in the ancient books left by my grandfather, is considered a somewhat sinister magic. Such actions, which defy the process of reincarnation, inevitably bring a backlash to the practitioner.

Following Jue Chi’s instructions, I mixed black dog blood with glutinous rice water and soaked the soul-capturing bottle in it for two hours.

Meanwhile, Du Qiang brought four black dogs and tied them in the corners of the room in the four cardinal directions: northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest.

Once everything was ready, Li Meng sat cross-legged in the center of the room, with Jue Chi wearing a Kasaya sitting opposite her, with two white incense candles placed in front of him.

I used a red string to encircle them, hanging bells on it, and meticulously cleaned the floor with glutinous rice water.

“You may begin now.”

As soon as Jue Chi finished speaking, he took out the soul-capturing bottle and placed it inside the alms bowl. He brought his hands together in prayer and quickly began reciting the Sutra. The soul-capturing bottle within the alms bowl started to vibrate intensely.

Soon, the red string began to tremble as well, and even the bell started to make a sound. Unlike the previous shrill bell sounds, this time the bell sounded dull and muffled.

I frowned, staring intently in Jue Chi’s direction without blinking.

The sound of the bell grew louder. Suddenly, Jue Chi opened his eyes, picked up the dagger from the ground, and slashed his wrist. Blood flowed down the Buddhist prayer beads into the alms bowl.

I remembered a scene I had seen in ancient books, on a page about trading life for life. Grandfather had noted that the person activating the Array must use their own flesh and blood as a medium.

This was what legends referred to as the guarantor.

At this moment, I didn’t know what else was inside the circle formed by the red string, apart from Jue Chi and Li Meng, nor was I curious. Whatever was inside, I guessed I would never want to see it in my life.

Curiosity killed the cat, a truth I knew well.

Jue Chi’s lips gradually turned pale. I looked at Li Meng and noticed a black dot suddenly appearing between her brows. The dot grew more distinct until it eventually looked like a black mole.

“Is that it?” Auntie hurriedly came over to ask.

Suddenly, the white candle went out. Jue Chi and Li Meng slowly opened their eyes. Apart from looking a bit pale, they seemed unchanged.

Jue Chi nodded, “It’s done.”

“When can the child be reincarnated?” Auntie, who had been silent all this while, suddenly burst out anxiously.

“She still needs to be salvation.”

Sweat trickled down Jue Chi’s forehead. I helped him sit down on the sofa, supporting his arm. Jue Chi weakly looked up at Auntie and said in a deep voice.

I stroked my chin, observing Auntie’s anxious expression. I certainly didn’t believe that she had suddenly become genuinely concerned for her deceased child.

Sure enough, upon hearing Jue Chi’s words, Auntie’s eyes widened as she asked, “This salvation, how long will it take? The child won’t come back, will he?”

Footnote:

1. Fahai(法海):Fahai is a monk in Chinese folklore, most notably appearing in the “Legend of the White Snake.”
2. Legend of the White Snake(白蛇传):This is one of China’s Four Great Folktales, telling the story of the love between the white snake spirit Bai Suzhen and the human Xu Xian.