Chapter Ninety-Three: Mending the Soul

The first fellow, dressed in a tacky red-and-green outfit, looked dangerous enough. The second—Kongkong lifted his chin and stared upward—was enormous, a great demon by the feel of his aura, also not someone to provoke. And beyond that, a whole host of vengeful spirits. That number alone...

Kongkong dropped to his knees and held out his savings. “Immortal one, please accept this token of my respect.”

Everyone looked strangely at Jiang Lan, including Chi Feng.

“So this is who you are!”

Jiang Lan was equally speechless. She glanced at Kongkong. “Get up. That is not what I meant.”

“No, no, this is my sincere tribute to the immortal one.”

Seeing that the group of malicious spirits was also rummaging around, snatching up whatever they could find, Jiang Lan suddenly felt as though she had been misunderstood and all her efforts had come to nothing.

“If you don’t get up right now, I’ll stew you in a pot.”

At Jiang Lan’s low warning, the gluttonous beast Kongkong Master was frightened senseless and sprang upright at once.

He hurriedly stuffed the silver notes and loose silver back into his sleeves. “Then whatever the immortal one requires, just say the word.”

Jiang Lan nodded and did not stand on ceremony. “You are in charge of White Horse Temple?”

Master Kongkong shook his head and said with a smile, “These days, my disciple Yunxiu oversees the great affairs of the temple. Still, if the immortal one has any command, I can speak with authority.”

“Buddhist light can purify evil energy. I want to let them remain at White Horse Temple for a time and cleanse the corruption from themselves.”

Kongkong’s eyes flew wide. He stared at Jiang Lan in disbelief, but because he still feared her power, he did not dare blurt out, Have you been kicked in the head by a donkey?

He only asked hesitantly, “That would leave them at the very least grievously wounded, if not dead?”

Jiang Lan also noticed the tension among the other spirits and explained, “I will place you inside this divine pouch. The Buddhist light will not erode your souls; it will only gradually strip away the evil energy upon you. He—”

Jiang Lan looked toward Chi Feng. “He will stay to protect you.”

“What? You want this young master to stay in some ghostly place?”

“The only object on me with that ability is this thing. You don’t get a choice, do you?”

Chi Feng shut his mouth. He could hardly tell Jiang Lan that the restrictions on his body had already been lifted. He clapped a hand over his mouth. No, he could not. Absolutely not.

“If you stay quiet, I’ll take it as agreement.”

Chi Feng deflated at once, plainly displeased, and sat down on the ground with a huff.

“What if you run into danger without me?”

Nearby, the divine beast Lingling trotted over with a thump. “Immortal one, I’ll protect you.”

Jiang Lan looked him over. “You can’t fly. Better not.”

Chi Feng proudly patted the shoulders of the shrunken Lingling, who had collapsed to the ground as well. “Don’t be afraid. From now on, big brother will take care of you.”

Lingling leaned miserably against Chi Feng’s shoulder and wailed, “My wife will look down on meee~ sob sob~”

“What a pitiful fellow~” Chi Feng patted the beast’s back and shot Jiang Lan a resentful look.

“These things the immortal one has taken in are probably all sick in the head. One more eccentric than the last,” Kongkong muttered inwardly, carefully trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible.

Jiang Lan walked over to Sheng Wan. “Your evil energy has already been fully purged. Would you be willing to work by my side? For three years. After that, if you wish to be reborn or do anything else, I will help you.”

Sheng Wan froze. He did not think he had any special merit that would make the immortal one keep him. After all, even a great demon had been refused on the spot, with no mercy at all.

His kinsmen nearby assumed he was reluctant and hastened to persuade him. “Say yes, Ah Sheng. The immortal one is a good person and will not treat you poorly.”

Sheng Wan nodded, then lowered himself to one knee. “Sheng Wan pays respects to my lord.”

Before his knee touched the ground, Jiang Lan caught his arm with one hand. “No need. This is a contractual relationship, not that of master and servant.”

“Immortal one, this...”

Jiang Lan waved it off. “Since it is a contract, there’s no need for such formality. Call me Young Master, or simply sir.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

Time was short. Jiang Lan gathered the swarm of spirits into the divine pouch, then turned to Chi Feng. “Go inside and clear out an open area for them to settle in. Once the time is right, I’ll send them to the underworld for a trip.”

“Hah, why are you always so busy? Wouldn’t it be easier to refine this divine pouch properly sometime? And if you want to build a residence, wouldn’t that be a matter of minutes? You just know how to work this young master to the bone.” Though he complained, Chi Feng still entered the divine pouch quickly enough to do what Jiang Lan had asked.

Jiang Lan looked at the barren mountaintop, then at the beast sitting atop it. “And you? What do you plan to do?”

“I want to save my wife.”

Meeting his hopeful gaze, Jiang Lan still shook her head. “I cannot do that right now. Her soul has been reduced to one soul and three spirit fragments; her vital essence is very weak. I can only keep her nourished for now and replenish the last traces of her remaining energy. If we can recover the missing two souls and five fragments, then I may be able to try a ritual. Even then it would only be a try, and I cannot promise success. You should be prepared.”

“What is the worst that could happen?”

Looking at the visible tremor in his body, Jiang Lan said, “It is not simple. Repairing a soul depends on the case and the type. A mortal soul is already among the easier ones, but even a typical earthly immortal would not dare attempt it lightly; it goes against the order of heaven. If it is an immortal soul, then it is even harder. Once a divine soul is shattered, it is likely to develop its own consciousness. However small the fragment, once it has awareness, it becomes very difficult to return it to its original owner.”

“Your wife suffered severe injury and then used forbidden arts. Though she is mortal, the case is still extremely troublesome. The one who performs the rescue is easily backlashed by the forbidden technique. Since you come from the line of the Lingling beast, you must have some connections and surely have consulted many great experts.”

The beast Lingling nodded. “I once went to Mount Zhongnan to seek guidance from Daoist Wuji. He is a realized earthly immortal. He said that even if one finds the missing soul fragments, reassembling them is still no easy task.”

Jiang Lan nodded. “He is right.”

“Xiaoxiao only wants to see her brother once. That has always been her knot in the heart. She has always believed that if it had not been for her, her brother would not have met such a gruesome death... When I saw the Prime Minister of Gu packed into a sack by the immortal one, I thought you meant to kidnap him, to use the resentment he had gathered through the curses of the people of Qin, and so I wanted to... I did not mean any harm.”

Jiang Lan nodded. This child’s thoughts were all written plainly on his face. That old white-bearded Daoist, the one called the Patriarch of Hidden Arts, had a flying sword driven into him and still did not strike back.

“Are those evil spirits also the ones you usually help provide for?”

Lingling nodded, then shook his head.

“It was Xiaoxiao. She felt that way she could repay a little of her guilt toward the Prime Minister of Gu.”

“What happened back then, you should settle it yourselves. As for that fellow, Gu Chengwu, I can watch over him for one year. He has an agreement with me, and I will naturally protect his safety. During this year, use the time to find the missing soul of your wife.”

Lingling’s eyes filled with gratitude. “Thank you, immortal one.”

“Do not speak of my affairs to anyone. Whether man, ghost, or immortal, if others see you searching for your wife’s soul and ask whether you have found a way to restore her, just say this—” Jiang Lan looked at the beast. “Say that you are only following the longing in your heart, and that there is no method.”