Chapter 8: The Qi-Eating Ghost!

Xu Daoyan originally planned to continue practicing on the back mountain tonight, but after some thought, he decided to go home, considering Cai Wu's disappearance and the unknown actions of the village chief. He could still practice at home, although the effect would not be as good as on the back mountain.

Seeing Xu Daoyan sitting cross-legged on the small bed, Wu Shi smiled and asked, "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to meditate and practice!" Xu Daoyan said seriously.

"Alright, don't play for too long, go to bed early!" Wu Shi didn't think much of it. Children often fantasize about being able to practice, fly through the air, and do anything, which is quite normal. However, she didn't know that Xu Daoyan was really practicing!

He didn't dare to self-harm at home, fearing it would scare his mother, so he could only absorb the spring qi and integrate it into his liver. Although the small house was enclosed, the qi in the universe is not affected by physical barriers; the small wooden house couldn't block the spring qi, which is omnipresent.

Since breaking through to the 7th rank lower grade, the range of Xu Daoyan's absorption of the cosmic force had increased, and he could now absorb qi from a fifty-zhang radius, which ordinary people couldn't even feel.

From dusk until deep into the night, he didn't stop.

"I died so miserably..." A chilling ghostly cry echoed in the middle of the night.

Xu Daoyan, who was practicing, suddenly opened his eyes. The doors and windows were closed, and although he was practicing, he wasn't strong enough to see through obstacles. He frowned, "A ghost has appeared!"

Wu Shi, who had a light sleep, was immediately startled by the ghostly cry. She felt a chill and looked at Xu Daoyan, speaking in a low, urgent voice, "Come to your mother quickly!"

Xu Daoyan nodded, knowing his mother was afraid, and immediately went to her side.

At that moment, the wind outside the small wooden house suddenly grew stronger, and many buckets and farming tools were blown over, making clattering sounds, which made people even more nervous.

"I died unjustly..." Another mournful cry echoed, seemingly right at Xu Daoyan's doorstep.

Xu Daoyan frowned. Since he started practicing his liver, his courage had been greatly enhanced. From the beginning, he wanted to meet these ghosts and see how strong they were: "They're right at our doorstep, I'll go check it out!"

"No! Stay with your mother." Wu Shi hugged Xu Daoyan tightly, preventing him from going out. Her body trembled with fear.

"I died on the battlefield..." Another ghostly cry echoed, very far away, and many people could hear it.

Xu Daoyan frowned, thinking, "Could it be a ghost that escaped from the battlefield cemetery on the back mountain?"

"Bold ghost, daring to cause trouble here, take this sword!" A stern voice echoed.

"Daoist, you dare to stop me from seeking revenge, I will lead an army of yin soldiers to flatten your village!" A cold and piercing ghostly voice echoed.

"Hmph, you're fast!" At this moment, Daoist Jia coldly snorted.

At this moment, many villagers opened their doors and knelt before Daoist Jia, bowing and kowtowing, "Thank you, Daoist Jia, for driving away the ghost!"

They were all scared stiff, and Daoist Jia seemed to be their savior.

Three villagers had already died, and no one wanted to die.

Xu Daoyan opened the door and saw a man in a yellow Daoist robe holding a peachwood sword standing not far away, with many villagers bowing and kowtowing to him.

Daoist Jia glanced at Xu Daoyan, just a child, and didn't pay much attention. He sighed, "I didn't expect this ghost to be so powerful, having died on the battlefield, with a heavy sha qi. It just threatened to lead an army of yin soldiers to flatten the village. I fear I will be powerless to stop it."

"Daoist Jia, save us, you can't abandon us!" A villager immediately shouted.

Xu Daoyan didn't speak. He would have to wait until the next day to go to the back mountain and ask the old beggar for the truth. He knew the old beggar was very knowledgeable and would definitely know what happened tonight.

Xu Daoyan looked at his neighbor, Aunt Dumb, who also came out. They exchanged a glance, and she nodded.

Beside Aunt Dumb was a little girl, very pretty, about the same age as Xu Daoyan, around twelve years old, with a lively appearance. Xu Daoyan always called her Ling'er.

Seeing that Ling'er wasn't very afraid, Xu Daoyan didn't go over. He walked directly into the small wooden house, closed the door, and his mother, clearly still shaken.

Daoist Jia saw this and a cold light flashed in his eyes. A twelve-year-old child dared not kneel to him and didn't seem very afraid, which made Daoist Jia even more determined to get rid of Xu Daoyan's family.

"Little brat, I'll scare you to death tomorrow night!"

"Mother, it's fine, go to sleep, I'll continue practicing!" Xu Daoyan said slowly.

Wu Shi felt a bit helpless, thinking Xu Daoyan was too carefree: "Don't play, go to sleep early. There's a ghost, so you'll sleep with your mother tonight!"

"Then I'll practice on your bed, and if the ghost dares to come, I'll drive it away." Xu Daoyan said with a smile.

Wu Shi thought Xu Daoyan was just a child and didn't know what a ghost was, like a young bull not fearing a tiger. She didn't say much and lay down, holding onto Xu Daoyan's sleeve.

Xu Daoyan continued to sit cross-legged, absorbing the spring qi into his liver, transforming it into vital qi. When the sky was just beginning to lighten, before the hour of Chen, he saw his mother was sound asleep, so he slowly pulled his sleeve from her hand, got up, opened the door, and ran toward the back mountain.

The old beggar had instructed that during the spring months, he should practice on the mountain during the hours of Chen and Si, as the combination of man and mountain is the way of the immortals. Few people live on the mountain, and the cosmic qi is abundant, which is why many people practice on the mountain.

These two hours are when the vital qi is most abundant.

When he reached the back mountain, he saw the old beggar wasn't there, so he sat down to practice on his own for two hours.

Xu Daoyan felt that the vital qi in his liver had increased significantly. If before it was like filling a small basin, now it was like filling a large bucket, a multiple increase.

When Xu Daoyan opened his eyes, he found the old beggar sitting opposite him, silently.

"What happened last night? Was it the yin soldiers from the battlefield cemetery on the back mountain causing trouble?" Xu Daoyan asked the old beggar.

"Ha ha ha, the yin soldiers are much stronger than the ghost last night. The strength of that ghost isn't weak for you; only a 7th rank upper grade practitioner could deal with it. It's called a qi-eating ghost, which targets weak and sick people, consuming their vital qi to strengthen itself. If a weak and sick person is left alone, the qi-eating ghost will take advantage. So when a family member is sick and weak, a healthy person with strong yang qi should be with them to prevent the qi-eating ghost from attacking!" The old beggar explained clearly, and Xu Daoyan learned a lot. He recalled that the three people who died in the village were indeed weak and sick.

Xu Daoyan realized, "I see, I understand."

That day, Xu Daoyan continued to practice the Spring Revival Technique non-stop. By evening, he could now heal himself in just half an hour, a significant improvement.

"If I master the Spring Revival Technique, are there other techniques?" Xu Daoyan asked the old beggar.

"Ha ha, of course. You can use the Spring Revival Qi, a group healing technique that can cover a hundred-zhang area. Anyone within this range can be nourished by your Spring Revival Qi, healing their injuries. However, it requires a large amount of vital qi stored in your liver." The old beggar explained.

"Is it that powerful? What about after the Spring Revival Qi?" Xu Daoyan asked again.

"Ha ha, even more powerful. You can use the Spring Revival Rain, condensing the vital qi into a liquid rain, which has even stronger healing effects and can enhance their qi." The old beggar's words made Xu Daoyan feel a surge of excitement, as it seemed very powerful.

Xu Daoyan nodded and bid farewell to the old beggar, heading home. On his way, he brought some raw sweet potatoes and dug up the ten taels of silver buried under the crooked-neck tree, buying a lot of rice and other supplies in the village, drawing many surprised looks.

They knew the situation of Xu Daoyan's family. Seeing him able to take out one tael of silver was like seeing a poor person suddenly have a lot of money, which was hard to believe.

"Daoyan, how did you get so much money?" The rice seller asked.

"It's from my mother's dowry." Xu Daoyan casually replied. One tael of silver could buy a lot.

He bought a hundred pounds of rice, five pounds of pork, and four live chickens. Since practicing, Xu Daoyan's appetite had increased significantly. He had eaten too many roasted sweet potatoes recently and wanted to improve his diet.

When he got home, Wu Shi was surprised to see Xu Daoyan bring back so much food. Xu Daoyan said he had exchanged the jade bottle with a traveling merchant for ten taels of silver and spent one tael to buy the food.

In this small village, few people ever left, so traveling merchants often came to trade, exchanging goods for goods or money.

Wu Shi knew the jade bottle was worth more than ten taels, but it was better to get rid of it, as she saw it as a potential disaster.

According to Xu Daoyan's request, Wu Shi cooked five pounds of rice and five pounds of pork, which Xu Daoyan ate completely.

Wu Shi was shocked but felt her appetite had also increased after drinking the immortal wine. Moreover, Xu Daoyan was growing, so she didn't say much, although she found it a bit strange. She knew her child well; he had no father and had grown up early, keeping his thoughts to himself. If he didn't want to talk, she wouldn't press him.

Xu Daoyan acted as if nothing had happened, continuing to sit cross-legged and wait for nightfall, not knowing what would happen tonight.

---

End of Chapter 8.