Chapter 63: Chapter 65 Crossing the Dead Soul Chapter 63: Chapter 65 Crossing the Dead Soul Upon learning that Xi Zheng is a descendant of a General’s family and her servants are all soldiers, Qi Qian didn’t need Qin Liuxi to instruct him anymore; he promptly had people wrap the bodies one by one with mats collected from the peasants’ hos and place them into the pit.
Qi Qian, looking at the bodies wrapped in cool mats, turned to Qin Liuxi and said, “Perhaps we should ask those peasant families later if they have simple coffins?”
Forr soldiers, who had defended and protected their country, their ultimate fate was to be wrapped in a cool mat, to die a foreign death far from ho; this made him feel sowhat uneasy.
If there was a simple coffin, it would be better than just a cool mat, and the peasant families always prepared coffin wood in advance for the elderly.
When Qin Liuxi heard this, he looked over and said, “That’s just a small village. Usually, they can only buy their daily necessities by trading with peddlers. The coffin wood is all felled and shaped by themselves from the mountains. In the entire village, only one old man had made preparations. Most of them will end up like these people, with just a cool mat to wrap around them after a hundred years.”
Qi Qian fell silent.
“Let it be, whether it’s a mat or coffin wood, whether they are clad in tattered clothes or wrapped in silk, in the end, when a person dies, it’s just dust returning to dust, earth returning to earth,” Qin Liuxi said to Xi Zheng, “You add the first handful of soil.”
Xi Zheng nodded, took a shovel, and filled the first shovelful of soil into the pit, then followed by another. This, she did on behalf of her younger brother, and afterward, Pingzi took his turn.
Qin Liuxi, on the other hand, sat down cross-legged, opened his lips, and began to recite the mysterious scripture Taiyin Jiu Ku Tianzun had expounded for delivering souls from the Blood Lake in Fengdu, to liberate the dead souls, while Chen Pi beside him used a flint to burn the effigies of gold ingots ticulously folded from yellow paper.
A serene silence filled the forest, the only sound was the scripture, purifying the spirit of the listeners.
Whether it was Qi Qian or Xi Zheng and the others, this was their first ti witnessing the deliverance of souls from such close quarters, and the one performing the scripture was just a ‘young boy.’ Yet, as she recited the scripture and conducted the simplest of Daoist ceremonies, it involuntarily commanded their solemn respect.
Prickly characters like Ying Nan, in such a setting, also couldn’t help but show reverence and fear.
The chanting of the ancient and distant spell ceased, a breeze ca by, and it seed as if the sound of chains echoed through the air.
Qin Liuxi opened his eyes and gazed into the Void, his hands performing mantras and sealing spells, his eyes calm and peaceful.
In the Void that others couldn’t see, there were soul bodies bowing and expressing their gratitude to her, then disappearing into the forest with the ssenger.
Qin Liuxi saw several specks of golden light flying towards the spiritual platform and let out a long sigh of relief.
She took a few gold ingots and placed them into the fire alone, murmuring words to herself – this was a special offering to a certain ssenger as a reward for their troubles and consolation.
After the ceremony was complete, Qin Liuxi carved a piece of the wordless tombstone, inscribing it only with a few Taoist runes, and erected it in front of the new graves.
Xi Zheng burned the last gold ingot in front of the graves and solemnly kowtowed three tis before standing up and bowing to Qin Liuxi: “Xi Zheng thanks Mr. Xie for his compassion.”
She did not inquire about Qin Liuxi’s identity. Qin Liuxi’s successive actions had both impressed her and filled her with gratitude; from now on, Xi Zheng’s life was pledged to Qin Liuxi, with no regrets until death.
Qin Liuxi stood up, took the wet handkerchief handed over by Qi Qian to wipe his hands, and said to her, “Your life’s fortunes lie to the west. Head westward; to go northward is to follow a path to death.”
Xi Zheng was startled, then understood sothing, and took a step forward: “Mr. Xie, you…”
It seed Qin Liuxi did not wish to take her with him.
“You have your own destiny, but it’s not by my side; it’s in the west. If you dare to venture, you will find your own domain.” Qin Liuxi handed the handkerchief back to Chen Pi, then took out a Jade Talisman and gave it to her: “Wear it, may it bring you peace and safety.”
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