The Young Girl's Chronicles of Demon-Slaying

Chapter 28: The Taoist

Although she had already walked more than ten meters away, Song Jianqiu still couldn’t help but look back at the traveling merchant sitting on the stone bench. It wasn’t until she’d walked away that she realized there was something a bit eccentric about him. Aside from the strange goods on his wooden stand, how did he know she needed a string? Was he just guessing? Or was it simply a coincidence? She had already slipped the bronze pi xiu keychain into her pocket. For now, she didn’t have any keys to attach to it, so she could only play with it as a small trinket. What she was holding in her hand now, however, was the free gift that came with the keychain: that multicolored jade silkworm cord. The name sounded quite fancy, but in reality, it was nothing more than a thin, multicolored, translucent crystal cord. This sort of thing was never sold by the piece—it was usually priced by the jin. The fact that there was a whole bundle on that wooden rack made it clear it wasn’t worth much. So, even though the keychain wasn’t very expensive, this traveling merchant was still a shrewd businessman—he actually gave away an ordinary, worthless crystal cord as a gift, and only one at a time! How stingy! While grumbling to herself, she nevertheless pulled the carp pendant out of her pocket; she did, in fact, need a string to thread it onto. The golden carp didn’t have a pre-drilled hole for a cord, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t be strung. Song Jianqiu first tied the two ends of the crystal cord together with a knot, then made a slipknot and slipped the golden carp onto it, securing it by hooking the cord onto the fins on either side of its belly so it wouldn’t slide down. To make it secure, she tied two more slip knots, so there were three slip knots around the carp, ensuring it wouldn’t come loose. Once she was done, the pendant was complete. She hung it around her neck—it was neither too long nor too short, but just right—and Song Jianqiu was very pleased with the crystal cord, so she went home in high spirits. Watching her figure gradually recede and finally disappear around a distant corner The traveling merchant, who had just closed a deal, was in high spirits. He lowered his head and opened his right palm; to his surprise, a faint golden glow appeared there, and the smile on his face grew even broader. “Truly pure Buddhist light. This little girl is extraordinary—it’s been ages since I’ve seen such pure Buddhist light!” The traveling merchant looked astonished, then said, “In that case, the little girl has been shortchanged. Such pure Buddhist light cannot be matched by just that house-guarding pi xiu and the multicolored jade silkworm cord. It seems that if I encounter her again in the future, I’ll have to find a way to make it up to her.” After speaking, he closed his eyes, appearing to be resting them, but after only a moment, he opened them again and chuckled, “It seems my connection with this little girl isn’t over yet!” “You sly merchant—since when have you taken an interest in little girls?” As if overhearing his mutterings, a voice suddenly rang out. The traveling merchant looked in the direction of the voice and saw a Taoist priest who appeared to be in his forties. The Taoist wore a shabby robe, and his tousled topknot hung askew on his head. “Senior Zhang, possessing the Buddha’s light merely signifies a karmic connection to the Buddha—it doesn’t necessarily mean one is a monk or a nun. From what I can tell, that young girl simply has a strong karmic connection to the Buddha, but she is still a person of the secular world—not a nun.” “So she’s not a nun after all!” Taoist Zhang pondered for a moment. “Hmm, let me take a look at that Buddha’s light!” “Please take a look, Senior Zhang.” Yu Zhiqiu didn’t refuse; she opened her palm, revealing the Buddhist radiance. “Whoa! That really is pure Buddhist light!” At the first glance, even Taoist Zhang nearly jumped right out of his stone chair, but then he slapped his thigh and couldn’t help but curse, “That bald-headed donkey sure got off easy!” Yu Zhiqiu shook his head with a smile and tucked the Buddha’s light away again. With Buddha’s light of such high quality, he’d be able to craft several more spiritual artifacts later on. If he prioritized quality over quantity, he might even be able to create a top-tier magical artifact. Even if he didn’t use it himself, trading it away would be a very good deal. Once the Buddha’s light was retracted, Taoist Zhang resumed his usual languid demeanor and said, “There’s nothing much left to see in Yashan City. That big rat must have been thoroughly spooked by that—it’s probably hiding deep underground and won’t show itself easily. Since that’s the case, we’re just wasting our time here.” “Are you planning to leave Yashan City, Senior Zhang?” Yu Zhiqiu understood the implication of his words. “Hmm, yes, I’m leaving. I’m constantly being chased by my enemies here!” Taoist Zhang said. “I have no choice but to go!” “Senior Liu?” Master Zhang was, after all, one of the “Three Daoists of Yuguang,” known by the monastic name “Sancao Daoren.” How could he possibly have any enemies capable of chasing him around in circles? So, though her tone was puzzled, Yu Zhiqiu had already figured out in her heart exactly who Master Zhang meant by this “enemy.” After all, the Three Daoists of Yuguang—Zhen Yu Daoren Bai Hengchong, Sancao Daoren Zhang Changchang, and Hongye Daoren Liu Hongmei—were renowned masters in both the Buddhist and Daoist realms. The three were senior and junior siblings in the Daoist order. Among them, the eldest senior brother, Daoist Zhen Yu, possessed profound spiritual cultivation; his thunder punishments and thunder incantations were masterful and awe-inspiring. Daoist Zhang Changchang of the Three Grasses, ranked second, roamed the mortal world at will, living life to the fullest with a carefree and unrestrained spirit that was the envy of many. At the same time, his romance with his youngest junior sister, Daoist Hongye Liu Hongmei, was the envy of outsiders, who openly wondered, “How could such a beautiful flower end up growing in a pile of cow dung?” And the fact that this flower would settle for nothing but that very pile of cow dung was truly a cause for regret and sighing. But as it happened, although Zhang Changchang was in his forties, he was incredibly shy. No matter what, he would never admit it under any circumstances. As a result, this couple—the focus of the Taoist world’s attention—embarked on a romance that lasted nearly a decade, a game of cat-and-mouse where one chased and the other hid, becoming the talk of the town. Sure enough, upon hearing Yu Zhiqiu’s words, Daoist Sancao—Zhang Changchang—made a shushing gesture: “Shh! It’s enough that you know about this—don’t go blabbing it all over the place!” Yu Zhiqiu nodded with a smile: “Okay!” As if she needed to go around telling everyone! The entire Buddhist and Taoist worlds already knew about it, didn’t they? It’s just you who thinks no one else knows! Still, he didn’t call him out on it. Since Yu Zhiqiu dared to call himself “Infinite Diviner,” there was naturally nothing he hadn’t covered in the art of divination. In the past, when he had nothing better to do, he’d even cast love divination charts for Zhang Changchang and Liu Hongmei. However, while divining for ordinary people was straightforward—he could usually get to the bottom of things with a simple reading—Zhang Changchang and Liu Hongmei were different. As senior figures in the Daoist realm, the Daoist light they embodied obscured the heavenly will to a certain extent, becoming the greatest obstacle to his divination. He exhausted himself, spending three days on the task, yet still failed. In the end, he could only vaguely discern that the bond between Zhang Changchang and Liu Hongmei—this pair of star-crossed lovers—had not been severed, but they would likely not come together in the short term. Instead, a special person would need to act as a go-between for them to unite. As for who that special person might be, he had no idea. He could only observe that the thread of their marital fate was tenuous—barely there—and would likely not hold out much longer. Although many people envied, resented, and even hated this couple, Yu Zhiqiu was certainly not among them; personally, he actually hoped the two would have a happy ending. Of course, he didn’t mention this ambiguous divination to anyone, as revealing it would damage his reputation as a diviner. Moreover, even if he did speak of it, it wouldn’t help Zhang Changchang and Liu Hongmei’s situation—it might even lead to unexpected complications. It’s important to understand that the scenarios revealed in a divination are not set in stone; they represent only one possible branch of the future. Any slight disturbance could cause the vision to shift. This is why fortune-tellers are always vague when describing their readings to clients, reciting obscure and cryptic verses for them to interpret on their own—because the more precise the divination, the more susceptible it is to interference. However, if one arrives at the interpretation through personal insight, the situation is quite different. (End of this chapter)