Taoist priests in the supernatural world

Chapter 25 The Big Dipper Destiny: Summoning Gods and Exorcising Ghosts

Inside the office, Huang Bai was engrossed in processing a pile of documents.

The welfare home was already short-staffed, so he either had to do many things himself or recruit volunteers from outside.

However, volunteers come and go, so their numbers are ultimately unstable. To truly keep things running smoothly, you still need a stable pool of people.

Huang Bai rubbed his temples, feeling increasingly overwhelmed by the sight.

"Things are too complicated. I need to go to the casino to buy some goods another day, get some money back, and fill the manpower gap."

"Purchase goods..."

As he read this, something suddenly occurred to him.

Going to Macau isn't difficult, but since the welfare home is officially recognized, the source of any large donations must be clearly explained.

Besides, places like casinos are places where you come and go quickly, and ultimately they're not a long-term solution.

Huang Bai thought for a moment, then suddenly had a change of heart.

"Why don't we talk to a few of the nearby temples?"

"They already have a need to do good deeds. If I get the sponsorship, even after I leave, someone will be able to continue supporting them."

In Changhua, the traditional performing arts culture is very popular.

In layman's terms, these are religious activities that have evolved around temple fairs, welcoming gods, processions of gods, and celebrations.

The head general, the two generals of increase and decrease, the white crane boy, and the eight generals all belong to this set of things.

Going to temples to solicit sponsorships can not only provide the welfare home with a stable source of funding, but also help us make connections and see if we can find a way to eliminate the Great Black Buddha Mother from these places.

At noon, Huang Bai finished tidying up the yard and prepared to go out.

"Aunt Yu, please keep an eye on things. I'm taking Duoduo out for a walk."

Duoduo is a special child in the welfare home, and given that her mother has a history of mental illness, it's understandable that Huang Bai, the director, personally took her out to see a doctor.

Huang Bai led Duo Duo along the street.

Cars come and go along the roadside, their horns blaring constantly. The aroma of oyster omelets and Taiwanese sausage wafts from street corner stalls, while on the other side are bubble tea and chicken cutlet stalls.

Duoduo walked for a while, then secretly glanced at the milk tea shop next door and whispered:

"Brother Dean, can I drink that?"

Huang Bai glanced down at her.

The little girl spoke with obvious timidity, not daring to point boldly, only daring to raise her hand quietly.

"Can."

Huang Bai softened his tone and bought her some food.

At an age when they should be nestled in their parents' arms and being pampered, they are forced to learn to read people's faces from a young age. Children who are mature for their age too early often lead difficult lives as adults.

After buying the items, Huang Bai hailed a taxi.

"Go to Zhoucang Temple."

In the original story, Zhou Cang Temple had a solution. Since that's the case, it wouldn't hurt to go and sound them out first.

The car stopped in front of the temple.

The incense at Zhoucang Temple is quite popular, with people coming and going in front of the gate, and the smoke is so thick that it makes it hard to open one's eyes.

Huang Bai stood at the entrance and first glanced at the statue of Zhou Cang in the temple.

In this world, deities often use the practice of "spirit writing" to perform their spells, which is commonly known as divine possession.

There is a saying in the "Jade Rules of the Temple of Heaven" that "true gods do not possess the body".

Therefore, Huang Bai clearly understood that the object receiving incense offerings in the Zhou Cang Temple was not the real Zhou Cang.

Zhou Cang is a fictional character, and the deities worshipped in this temple are mostly just spirits using Zhou Cang's name.

Once the number of worshippers had decreased slightly, Huang Bai led Duo Duo into the temple.

A Guan Dao (a type of halberd) lay across the front of the statue, its expression fierce and its presence oppressive. As soon as Duo Duo entered, her face paled, and a fine layer of sweat appeared on her forehead.

The temple keeper, Aqing, who was tidying up the incense sticks with his head down, didn't even look up and casually said:

"The temple closes at 6:30. The incense is on the right; please take it yourself. It's free."

Huang Bai didn't rush to speak. He stepped forward, took three incense sticks, and lit them with the candlelight.

"Zhou Cang, by the God above, I have a request to make today..."

He had barely begun to speak when the incense in his hand suddenly went out.

Huang Bai glanced at the incense in his hand, thinking it had gotten damp, so he lit it again.

This time it was even stranger.

As soon as the sandalwood incense burned, the row of candles next to the offering table went out at the same time.

Ah Qing Gong stopped moving and finally raised his head.

"Don't light the incense yet."

He frowned and took a few steps closer, his gaze sweeping from the offering table to the yellow and white offerings, and then landing on Duoduo. His expression was different from before.

Huang Bai didn't move, just stood aside and watched him handle it.

Ah Qinggong quickly brought over a basin of rice, tied a red cloth around his forehead, grabbed a handful of burning incense, and began to toss the holy divination blocks while chanting incantations in a low voice.

The wisps of smoke from the temple quickly gathered into bundles, rising upwards like silk threads.

Huang Bai stood to the side, sensing things secretly.

He quickly sensed a faint, ethereal power descending from the darkness. It was peculiar in nature, neither yin energy nor a curse.

"It's the exact opposite of something like the Great Black Buddha Mother. It's not a mantra, but more like the power of incense and vows, or... the power of prayer."

Evil gods and righteous gods should be two sides of the same coin.

Ah Qing Gong drew several intricate patterns on the rice with incense. After a while, he let out a long breath and withdrew from the state of spirit writing.

But when he looked up again, his expression had completely changed.

He first glanced at the offering table, then at the yellow and white offerings, as if confirming that he hadn't misread them. After several breaths, he finally spoke:

"May I ask your name, esteemed guest?"

"Huang Bai, Director of Changhua Welfare Home."

"Mr. Huang..." Ah Qing repeated, his gaze still fixed on him, "May I ask, Mr. Huang, have you studied any lineage of Dharma before?"

"My family has been Taoist priests for generations," Huang Bai replied hastily, "but we don't worship any gods."

Huang Bai doesn't really believe in gods, not because he doesn't believe in the existence of gods, but because he has no religious beliefs.

After hearing this, Ah Qinggong's expression clearly changed again.

He had initially been just surprised and doubtful, but now he became more serious and even subconsciously straightened up a bit.

"I see."

"No wonder...no wonder..."

He seemed to have found an explanation for the divination he had just seen.

After all, he had been in Zhoucang Temple for so many years and had met countless high-ranking officials, but he had never seen anyone burn incense so hard that it extinguished the incense on the offering table.

Not to mention that the gods revealed through divination that he should be treated as an equal.

This is no ordinary pilgrim.

Ah Qing Gong paused for a moment, then cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Huang Bai, his tone becoming even more polite.

"I apologize for my neglect earlier, Mr. Huang."

Huang Bai looked at him with some curiosity.

"What exactly did you figure out?"

After calming down, Ah Qinggong finally spoke:

"What I just divined is 'The Big Dipper Destiny, Summoning Gods and Exorcising Ghosts'."

He had heard of such divination before, but this was the first time he had ever seen it actually happen to a living person in front of him.

"It means that Mr. Huang is someone who can command ghosts and spirits, so the gods have shown him that he does not need to follow the rules of ordinary worshippers, nor does he need to receive incense offerings here."

"Therefore... there is no need to burn incense."

In the end, even Ah Qing couldn't help but glance at Huang Bai again.

He still had a thought in his mind that he didn't dare to say: Could the person in front of him be a ghost or god?

After listening, Huang Bai didn't fully understand either.

Ah Qing Gong clearly knew a little, but not everything. He was too lazy to delve into the matter further, so he simply got back to the main topic.

"Let's not talk about that now. I came here because of her."

He pointed at Duoduo.

It was only at this point that Ah Qing Gong truly focused his attention on the little girl.

He glanced at it a few times, then his expression turned serious.

"This child is cursed."

"Can it be solved?"

After a moment of silence, Ah Qing Gong said:

"There is a way, but it's very risky."

Tell me about it.

"Seven days without food or water."

Ah Qing Gong then explained:

"This is also called 'stealing heavenly secrets.' To put it bluntly, it means pushing someone to the brink of life and death, deceiving the curse of the gods, making that thing think she is dead, and naturally it will stop watching her."

Huang Bai looked down at Duo Duo.

If you really had to go seven days without food or water, you might not be able to withstand it.

"Can this method break the curse, or will it destroy the thing as well?"

"We can only break the curse," Master Qing shook his head. "As for how to eliminate that evil god, I haven't been able to find out. The gods haven't given any instructions."

The relationship between a spirit medium and a spirit is never one of answering every question. Often, if you ask ten questions and get half a vague piece of guidance, that's already considered good.

After listening, Huang Bai did not immediately express his opinion.

"I'll think about it some more."

After saying that, he seemed to suddenly remember something and took out a business card from his pocket and handed it over.

"By the way, is Zhou Cangmiao interested in sponsoring a welfare home?"

"If the temple has this kind of charitable intention, you are welcome to visit anytime."

Ah Qing took the business card, glanced at it, and then smiled.

"Since Mr. Huang is someone the gods value, the temple should give him this much face."

"I will help with the sponsorship to the best of my ability. Mr. Huang is welcome to visit often in the future."

The two chatted for a few more minutes before Huang Bai and Duo Duo got up to say goodbye.

Just before leaving, Ah Qing Gong seemed to remember something and suddenly called him back.

"Oh, right."

"There will be a procession of deities in three days."

"At that time, the chief general, the White Crane Boy, and the two generals Zengsun from the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva Temple will come out to patrol the streets. If you want to ask about eliminating evil gods, they might know."