The Great Compassion Mantra carved on the amber? This was the first time I had heard of it. In the past, I often heard the elderly talk about how if words were carved on a Buddhist bead and it was consecrated, it would become a dharma instrument that could ensure safety. But today, seeing this piece of amber, I finally broadened my horizons.
"This piece of amber itself has a long history. Look at the color and the luster; it is inherently valuable. Of course, if I were to exchange your staff for just one piece of amber, it would be a bit undervalued. So, I need to talk about the other good things about this amber." The woman paused, and at this moment, I finally saw clearly what was wrapped inside the amber. It looked like a small piece of stone, but this stone actually looked a bit like a child!
"Is this stone wrapped in your amber? Why does it look like a child?" I asked in puzzlement.
"Hey, this is the real valuable part of this item. What's wrapped inside is not a stone, but a child!"
When she said this, I was suddenly taken aback. I had heard years ago that in Thailand, there were people who made small ghosts using the dead infants' remains and sold them for evil purposes. Could it be that the piece of amber in front of me was such an item?
"Why are you so startled, young man?" The woman said with a mocking smile.
I cursed in my heart dammit, isn't this scary? It seems that she's not a normal person.
"Perhaps I didn't explain it clearly. This is not the real dead child's corpse. How could a dead body be wrapped in such a small piece of amber? What's inside is the resentment of a dead child!" While talking, the woman put the amber in the sunlight that was streaming into the room. I could see the entire amber gradually glowing, and as time passed, the light on the amber became brighter and finally, I could even see the golden rays inside the sunlight. I squinted my eyes, even though they felt sore and uncomfortable, I didn't want to close them. I was eager to capture such a miraculous scene with a camera.
Taking the amber out of the sunlight, the woman placed it in front of me, and I saw the circle of Great Compassion Mantra carved on the amber now shining in golden, appearing quite miraculous. The resentment of the child in the amber had also changed a little. At this moment, the woman said, "This Great Compassion Mantra was carved by a high monk and infused with spiritual power, for the purpose of subduing the resentment inside. The resentment of this child carries a bit of mischievousness. If you treat it well, it will naturally help you with things; it's an excellent item. Won't you reconsider?"
This practice was actually quite similar to raising a little ghost in Thailand. I was quite repelled by such an evil item. After all, I grew up in the New China, where our forefathers shed blood and sacrificed their lives to establish, and even though I might have some cunning tricks, fundamentally I was upright.
Seeing that I seemed unwilling, the woman smiled and put away the amber, then picked up the bracelet made of small leaf sandalwood.
"This bracelet is from the Qing Dynasty, and you have an idea of the price of small leaf sandalwood. However, this whole bracelet is actually an accessory made for this Demon-Subduing Pestle."
I thought the woman had misspoken. How could a Buddhist bead be used as an accessory for a small item? Wasn't that putting the cart before the horse?
"Take a look."
She turned the Demon-Subduing Pestle towards me, and indeed, I had never seen such a shaped Demon-Subduing Pestle before. On the whole, it was similar to other Demon-Subduing Pestles, but the only difference was the strange pattern carved on its face, resembling a totem.
"I think you hold this Demon-Subduing Staff in such high regard because of the pattern on it, right?"
Seeing the just-learned amber, I became smarter and pointed at the pattern.
"Exactly! This one is the totem of the Fengba people, the Mountain and Sunset pattern," Zhubo carefully collected the bracelet back.
In my impression, genuinely powerful Demon-Subduing Staffs were generally from the Tibetan region. I once saw people selling such staffs near the Shanghai City God Temple with a few friends, quite large in size, looking like a big hammer. A blessed Demon-Subduing Staff is a weapon for exorcism and dispelling evil. It is said that many Tibetan lamas and living Buddhas would wear it.
But I didn't have much research on this, and I had never observed the pattern on top carefully. I didn't even know the origin of the Fengba people that Zhubo mentioned.
"You probably don't know, do you?" Zhubo saw my confusion and smiled, "But it's not your fault, very few people understand the Fengba people. Instead of being a nationality, they are more like a sect. The Fengba people are not born into a single ethnic group. According to ancient legends, the minority nationalities in Tibet used to select a child with exceptional talent from among their own people and send them to the Fengba people every few years. Different from the hereditary succession of living Buddhas, each Fengba person is a sorcerer, but none of them reincarnates. They only cultivate the present, and not the past or future, yet each Fengba person's magical power is quite extraordinary. A totem of the Fengba people is engraved on the magical instruments they use. This totem is called the Mountain and Sunset pattern. If you look carefully, doesn't it resemble a sun slowly descending from the sky, gently sinking into the mountains?"
After Zhubo's explanation, I became even more impressed with the Demon-Subduing Staff. It turned out to be a very influential magical instrument. No wonder it required matching with the small leaf red sandalwood.
"But, how do I know if your staff is genuinely effective or just good-sounding?"
I intentionally provoked the other party.
Zhubo smiled, lit a cigarette but didn't put it in his mouth. Instead, he placed the cigarette next to the bracelet. Then, I saw the smoke slowly emanating from his hand and drifting around the bracelet, but the smoke didn't dissipate. On the contrary, all the smoke gathered and accumulated around the bracelet. I widened my eyes in astonishment, unable to speak. This seemingly was just a smoke phenomenon but exuded a mysterious and unfathomable feeling.
"How can this be?"
I asked in surprise.
"Smoke seeks the Buddha, the Buddha seeks the incense. Hasn't Lao Hei ever told you this principle?"
After Zhubo finished speaking, he waved his hand, and the smoke dissipated. He then put the bracelet back into the bag.
Compared to the previous amber, I became more interested in the bracelet in front of me. Nevertheless, the divine staff on me was also quite mysterious; the two held almost equal standing in my heart, leaving me somewhat hesitant.
"What book is this?"
Since I couldn't decide for a while, I turned the topic to the book. Zhubo picked up the book, held it carefully with both hands, and said, "This book is called 'Mountain and Wilderness Strange Tales.' I don't know the author; the cover probably had it written, but unfortunately, as you also saw, half of the cover is missing. The latter half is also nowhere to be found."
It turned out to be a fragmented book. There are quite a few valuable ancient books in China, but first, it must be determined whether the book is valuable for historical research. Then, it needs to be from a distinguished author. If the author is Wang Anshi, for instance, it naturally holds a different value than a book written by an ordinary scholar. Additionally, it needs to be determined whether it is a unique copy. If it is passed down through the ages like "Records of the Grand Historian" and not directly copied by the author, its value is greatly diminished.
However, as Zhubo placed this fragment among these three items, it seemed it may indeed have its unique features.
"This book is incomplete, and the language in it is often obscure. However..." Zhubo deliberately prolonged his voice and only continued after seeing my curiosity, "everything recorded in it is real!"
I didn't react for a moment, but Zhubo had already carefully opened the book. As I glanced at it, I was instantly shocked to see that the pages recorded all sorts of information about mountain spirits and wild creatures, their appearances, habits, and preferences, just like a clearly documented encyclopedia.
"Understand now? This book specially records various kinds of monsters, where they may appear, what they look like, and their behaviors. And the most valuable part is that it records methods of capturing and subduing these mountain spirits and wild creatures. For people like you and Lao Hei, who are constantly traveling and making a living by catching ghosts and goblins, the value of this book is naturally self-evident, right!"
If people don't know the composition of snake venom, they can't prepare a serum. That's a point I understand! If you want to understand their world, perhaps this "Mountain and Wilderness Strange Tales" is the best stepping stone!
"Don't think I'm deceiving you; there are also records of 'Cu Ku' here. You can check it out for yourself."
He pointed to a page in the book to show me. The record of the young 'Cu Ku' was surprisingly similar to what I had seen, and it seemed that the credibility of this book was indeed not low!
"How about it? You've seen everything, do you like it? If you do, can we make a deal?"
With his hands rubbing together, the beads stared at my stick, shining straight.
I felt a bit hesitant in my heart, to put it frankly, it was a bit greedy. Both things are good for me, and if I had to give up one, I really couldn't do it. Glancing at the beads opposite, the guy looked quite approachable, maybe I could get some benefits from him.
Thinking like this, I smiled and said, "How about this, you give me the bracelet and the book in exchange for my stick, if you're willing, then we have a deal!"
"What's the deal?!"
As soon as I said this, I didn't expect the beads to get agitated all of a sudden. My heart immediately skipped a beat, and there was immediately some anger on the other's face, obviously a bit displeased.