The legend of the ghost urn dates back to the Northern and Southern Dynasties period originated from the Qiang ethnic group. According to the legend, the Qiang people were constantly waging war, and many of their people died or were beheaded in battle, and many died in a foreign land. Their souls could not return to their hometown, and their bodies had long been cremated. In order to bring the souls of their people back to their homeland, the Qiang's sorcerers invented the ghost urn, which initially had a small design, somewhat like modern ash jars. The sorcerers would write incantations on top by hand. When the souls of the deceased Qiang people were found, the sorcerer would summon them into the ghost urn, and the incantations would prevent them from being taken away by the grim reaper. Then, they would trek back to their hometown and let the souls rest there.
This method was recorded and later spread to the western region, where the local wizards learned the original method and started to improve it, eventually passing it down to the present day.
The modern ghost urn like the one Gu Yu took out had developed into a large size, resembling a wine jar. The improved ghost urn could store more resentful spirits, and the incantations inscribed on it not only prevented the grim reaper from taking the souls, but also increased the accumulation of resentment in the surroundings. One could say that the modern ghost urn was purely a tool for raising ghosts!
"I once knew an elder from the western region who said that a black jar had to be chosen as the vessel. First, the black jar was buried in the soil of a chaotic burial mound or grave for forty-nine days. After being unearthed, the jar itself contained resentment and could not be exposed to the sun. The sorcerer would mix the paint with their own blood and write incantations on the surface for nine days. Only then could the jar be used. Once the restless souls were trapped inside, they could not escape, and day by day they would be nourished by the yin energy, increasing the resentment. The use of the ghost urn must also be on days without sun, either when it's raining or at night. However, because there are few practitioners of dark sorcery now and the limited utility of the ghost urn, it does not seal the ghosts on its own, so the demand is not high. As time went on, it became rare to find it in the market."
Zhuzi's explanation was quite detailed, of course, she didn't know the key incantations for making the ghost urn, which was like the most important ingredient in a traditional Chinese medicine prescription. If someone knew it, they could make the ghost urn.
The two resentful spirits condensed together, and a frightening gust of Yin wind blew through. If you didn't know, you would think that there was a fire here.
"Is this too exaggerated? Won't someone call the police?"
The fat man exclaimed in surprise. Right after he finished speaking, the dark clouds in the sky quickly disappeared, and the resentment vanished completely within a few seconds. I rubbed my eyes in amazement, but I couldn't see anything around me.
"How did it suddenly disappear?" I asked, frowning.
"The spell has been successful, the resentment returns to the heavens. This Gu Yu is truly skilled, his methods are clever," Zhuzi seemed to understand something, and at this moment, Daian and Wei Changping walked out from outside the golden thread. I saw that they seemed to have a small tag hanging from their waist, but I couldn't see clearly as it was covered by their coats.
"Gu Yu is truly skilled, his ability to conceal resentment is extraordinary. No wonder Ling Xuan holds you in such high regard," Zhuzi said a few polite words, and Gu Yu seemed very pleased. After ending the spell, he took a sip of water and looked at me, saying, "The Golden Thread spell may be simple or difficult, but I guess you guys don't know about it, right?"
"Don't look down on people. Isn't it just dealing with a few broken jars and rotten ropes? Do you really think you're some great person?" The fat man never held back his words and instantly retorted. Daian sneered, pointed inside the golden thread, and said, "If you can take ten steps inside, then I will acknowledge you."
This statement immediately triggered the fat man, as the disdainful tone hurt his self-esteem. Rolling up his sleeves, he shouted, "Ten steps? Damn it, I'll go inside and walk a hundred steps to show you!"
"Don't be impulsive!" I seemed to guess the reason for the disappearance of the resentment and the non-retraction of the Golden Thread, but I couldn't explain it. The fat man completely disregarded the caution and charged into the Golden Thread.
As soon as his front foot stepped in, I saw Gu Yu's lips move slightly, as if he whispered something, but it wasn't loud enough. The fat man, who had crossed the Golden Thread, suddenly stopped, as if he had seen something but didn't dare to lift his foot. Luo Yong outside loudly shouted, "Brother Cui, keep going, hurry up!"
However, the fat man seemed deaf to everything and didn’t dare to move forward. Based on my years of understanding of Cui Zhen, he was definitely not someone who just talked tough and didn't act. If he said he would go ten steps, he definitely wouldn't hesitate. But now, he was struggling to move forward. Could something have happened inside the Golden Thread?
Thinking of this, I also stepped into the Golden Thread, but Zhuzi hurriedly pulled me back and shouted, "Shanzhi, don't go in."
"It's okay. If he wants to go in, let him go. Whether one more or one less doesn’t matter. It's also good for him to open his eyes and realize that there are always people better than him," Wei Changping said sarcastically, intending to provoke me. I glanced at him coldly, didn't say anything, and stepped over the Golden Thread. I thought it might just be a little trick, and even the diversion or illusion couldn't scare me.
But this time, I was wrong!
As I crossed the Golden Thread, the light in front of me suddenly disappeared, as if I had instantly turned blind and couldn't see anything. I immediately stopped and didn't dare to move. Was it because of my blindness or some other reason? I forcefully rubbed my eyes; if they were sunken for a long time, they would naturally leave white marks. Clearly, it wasn't an issue with my eyes, but there was something wrong with the Golden Thread.
"Fat man." Since I couldn't see anything, I called out to the fat man, assuming he was very close, but even after calling several times, there was no response. Can the fat man not hear me? Or am I unable to hear?
I took a step forward and felt the ground extremely muddy, as if I had entered a marsh.
Not only was there no light, but there was also no sound; the terrain had even changed. What on earth was going on?
I began to understand why the fat man hadn't moved at all, because there were too many changes.
Previously I thought it was the phenomenon of 'ghost hitting a wall,' where a place full of resentment would inevitably have unjust spirits, which sometimes can play tricks on people by clouding their vision with resentment. People couldn't see anything and would be stuck in the same place no matter how many steps they took, believing that nothing had changed.
But 'ghost hitting a wall' and the current situation are completely different. This is not 'ghost hitting a wall,' but more like being in a sealed space. I forced myself to calm down and told myself that it was not the time to confront Gu Yu and the others. Only capable people had the right to confront, while those without capability would just be jumping around like a clown.
I took a deep breath and slowly took out the bell given to me by Han. The changes around me must be due to resentment, so I decided to use the Orthodox Path's magical instrument to dispel this resentment. Hopefully, I would be able to see things! It was just a rough guess on my part, and I couldn't say with one hundred percent certainty how it would turn out.
I tried shaking the bell, but at first, I didn't hear any sound. Even though I saw the bell shaking, there was no sound, and I thought my ears might have gone deaf. But I had no better option at the moment. I told myself not to give up and tried shaking the bell a second time. This time, I heard a very faint "clank" sound - there was a sound, but it was very soft, almost as if it didn't exist.
But at least I knew that this method worked!
So, I shook the bell again, and this time the "clank" was clearer. I realized that the bell's sound was becoming more useful every time I shook it, so I continued shaking it; the sound became clearer and clearer.
"Fatty, Fatty..."
Thinking quickly, I shouted along with the bell's sound, but it was silent all around. But if I could hear the bell's sound, then Fatty should be able to hear it too!
"Fatty!"
I continued to shake the bell and shout at the same time, trying to move forward slowly. Even though it was a familiar place for me, it had become unfamiliar and tense. It was somewhat ridiculous, but that was the power of experts in this field - they could turn the familiar into unfamiliar and make your confidence a joke!
I took five or six steps forward, but suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder from behind!