Part-Time Taoist Priest 20

---

Passionate Taoist

---

In the backyard, a new batch of vegetables had matured. Xie Lingya harvested the crops and cooked two dishes. Thankfully, he had only tilled a small plot of land. Now that he was getting busier and busier, farming was just an activity to stretch his tendons during his free time.

Xie Lingya placed the cooked dishes on the table and called out, “Daoting, call that Brother Hai of mine to come to eat.”

Hai Guanchao had said, himself, if Xie Lingya could learn the Taisu Pulse Technique within three months, his relationship with Xie Lingya would no longer be based on their connection with Wang Yuji, and the Taisu Pulse would be considered to be a gift to him.

Not his shigong, not his shifu, and so ‘Brother’ it was.

Zhang Daoting: “……”

Zhang Daoting broke out in sweat as he went to invite Hai Guanchao over for the meal.

Ever since Xie Lingya grasped the basics of the Taisu Pulse Technique, he grew cocky while Hai Guanchao deflated.

Hai Guanchao originally thought that he had given Xie Lingya an impossible mission and that the title of shigong was guaranteed to be his. Who could have guessed that the fellow could be so inhuman and only needed a month to learn the Taisu Pulse!

Although the Taisu Pulse Technique took many forms, its core remained the same. As long as one comprehended the key patterns and changes, they could make interpretations regardless of how messy the pulse was. All that was left was practice.

“Doctor Hai,  Boss is inviting you to eat.” Zhang Daoting took a peek to see Hai Guanchao still in a trance inside his clinic. There were no patients at the moment and he was sitting there in a daze with a book in his hand.

“…Oh.” Hai Guanchao adjusted his spectacles and got to his feet. Closing the door behind him, he followed Zhang Daoting to the temple.

As they were crossing the road, Hai Guanchao couldn’t help grumbling, “Say, how did he manage to learn it…”

What was going on in his brain?

Hai Guanchao was quite talented to have reached this level at his age, but when he began learning the Taisu Pulse Technique, it had taken even him a few months just to learn the basics.

Yet this little rascal, Xie Lingya, how did he learn it so quickly?!

“Doctor Hai,” Zhang Daoting looked at him pitifully. This slap in the face was indeed too brutal, even he couldn’t bear to watch. In fact, he empathized with him. “I’m not sure whether there is such a saying in medicine, but I heard of a saying when I was learning talismans:

‘If a glimmer of firelight could be transformed into a talisman, then all the mortal people of this world would be using ink in vain.’

“Some things are just too unbelievable. When I practice drawing talismans, I repeatedly draw a talisman a few hundred, or even a thousand times, yet the result cannot be compared with one made with a few simple strokes from the Boss’s brush. He’s not even a Taoist priest, don’t you think I feel depressed?”

Hai Guanchao: “……”

Misery sure loves company. Hai Guanchao savored it for a while, then nodded slowly to his fellow sufferer. As he entered the door, he heard Xie Lingya’s purposeful call out to him,  “Brother Hai, come take a seat and eat!”

Hai Guanchao gave him a vague smile and said in relief, “Thankfully, you flunked the postgraduate admission test.”

Zhang Daoting: “……”

Xie Lingya: “…………”

…This person was too petty, attacking someone out of the blue like that!

Hai Guanchao filled up his bowl and sat down. He consoled, “I was thinking, since you’re so good at these kinds of things, if you also excelled in your education, I would have felt inferior.”

“Keep your thoughts to yourself,” Xie Lingya answered with a dark expression. “I will definitely pass it next time!”

Of course, even if he ended up passing it the next time, the fact it took him so long was still a stain.

“That’s right, Boss, we received a package today, ” Zhang Daoting said. “I looked at the sender. It seems to be from the Cultural Bureau.”

“En, that would mean the books have arrived.” Xie Lingya bit down on his chopsticks and tore the package open. Inside were a few dozen copies of the book Strange Tales of Niuyang.

When Xie Liangya inherited Baoyang Temple, he had paid the Cultural Bureau a visit and had been informed that they were compiling a book of the local folktales. Hence, he had returned to compile the material and submitted them.

Now, this book was already published. Besides getting the sample, Xie Lingya also bought a few extra copies for himself.

Zhang Daoting flipped the book open  to the page about the Baoyang Temple and saw two names listed in the author section. One was Xie Lingya and the other was the person responsible for editing and giving the manuscript some touch-ups, since, at the end of the day, Xie Lingya was not a professional.

Even more exaggerated were the contents. It told of a certain abbot of Baoyang Temple vanquishing demons and banishing evil, saving all the common people of Niuyang.

Zhang Daoting was shocked and asked, “Boss, was the grandmaster really this awesome? The venerable founder personally taught him a talisman that could change the course of the river?”

Xie Lingya replied honestly, “Nope. I made that part up.”

Zhang Daoting: “……”

Zhang Daoting felt quite silly that he wondered what type of technique it was and hadn’t even considered that it was made up.

“From past to present, just think about how many sects and priests loved exaggerating their stories. I am just following the trend.” In order to justify his actions, Xie Lingya added, “This book often brought up the Yellow Emperor, Nüwa, and Shennong. Compared to the written notes of ancient people, this isn’t too different. It’s just that, nowadays, people have dropped the poetic element of storytelling and chosen to write them more directly.”

With another drop of sweat, Zhang Daoting said, “But…”

Xie Lingya interrupted him, “Let me tell you, when I search for ancient soul-summoning spells, nine out of ten such spells would say they were used by the Emperor Xuanzong of Tang after concubine Yang passed away to see her beautiful soul again. Wah, there were so many methods. If the Emperor used a different method each night to summon concubine Yang to ease his lovesickness, he would see her more frequently than when she was alive. Then it wouldn’t have made a difference whether she had died or not.”

Zhang Daoting almost laughed out loud. To be the inseparable birds flying in the heavens and the intertwined branches growing on earth;¹天愿作比翼鸟，在地愿为连理枝
From “Chang Hen Ge” by Bai Juyi that sings of romance between Emperor Xuanzong and Yang Guifei this pair was certainly famous. Using their names in a soul-summoning spell would be similar to how the food industry often borrowed the fame of Emperor Qianlong and Empress Cixi.²Cixi and Qianlong were famous Qing Dynasty rulers particularly known for their lavish lifestyles. Many restaurants in Beijing especially, like to say that their founders used to work in the Imperial Kitchen for these two, or certain foods will claim that they were invented/praised by these two.

At this moment, Hai Guanchao came in from the side with his own comment, “There’s still a difference.”

“……” Xie Lingya and Zhang Daoting were speechless, only managing to respond after a few seconds.

Xie Lingya joked, “Our Daoting is an ordained monk. Doctor, don’t speak crudely…”

Zhang Daoting: “……”

---

Everyone had their own circle of friends, even ghosts.

Among the wandering spirits of Niuyang City’s Golden Osmanthus Pedestrian Street, Qin Limin was considered an unorthodox ghost.

This ghost dared to wander around Spirit Official Wang’s temple, even going to the backyard. That was not all, though. Every night he would patrol the surroundings, keeping an eye out for any sort of robberies or scams he may come across. He even wanted to assist an old lady who fell to the ground when nobody came to her help.

Of course, he couldn’t help her up. So he would anxiously call for Xie Liangya, “Teacher Xie! Teacher Xie! Run faster, run faster! Someone else is going to help up the old lady!”

Xie Lingya could only reply with a “……”.

Some ghosts didn’t know the backstory. This new ghost didn’t look like he was under the control of any spell. In fact, most people who knew how to manipulate ghosts would often use them to… How should one put it? In any case, they certainly wouldn’t use them to do such trivial things.

Qin Limin was too embarrassed to recount his experience of getting conned and the screw up that followed and resulted in him being forced to earn his merits back here.

Some ghosts had asked Qin Limin but he simply replied with a red tinge on his skinny face, “I am not the same as you guys. I am a friend of humans…”

Fellow ghosts: “……”

And so, helped by Qin Limin, friend of humans, Baoyang Temple obtained its first debut on local television.

—Because within a single month, they had helped five citizens and supplied information to the police three times, Baoyang Temple finally attracted the attention of Niuyang TV’s Metro Channel. Recently, they were making a special series on the subject of people doing good deeds.

After he was contacted by reporters, Xie Lingya felt very speechless. “I still thought that, no matter what, our well water would be the first to get on the news…”

Leaving aside their talismans, their well water was indeed popular. Every day there were dozens of people who came over to fetch drinking water. In the city, it was rare for people to be willing to go through such trouble.

This was because, after some time, everyone came to know of the quality of the water in the Baoyang well.

However, just like how they received their first banner of ‘An act of bravery for a just cause’, their first time on the news was also because of good deeds.

Regardless, this was another opportunity for publicity. Xie Lingya would certainly not refuse them.

Anyway, when all was said and done, the only one who could appear on the camera was Baoyang Temple’s only Taoist priest, Zhang Daoting.

---

 After the shooting, on some night at 7 p.m., Niuyang TV’s Metro Channel broadcasted an episode from the series ‘Warmth in the City’ titled ‘The City’s Kind-Hearted Taoist Priest’.

The news introduced a small temple situated in the middle of a flourishing city center. Inside, their only Taoist priest was incredibly young. After he came to Niuyang City, he had taken on the responsibility of constantly doing good deeds. The other inhabitant of the temple, who was also the proprietor, was incredibly supportive of him.

The temple was even awarded a banner that said ‘An act of bravery for a just cause’. The officers from the local police station also had much praise for them. The nearby residents and merchants also thought that the little Taoist priest was helpful by nature. Although he was ordained, he was a very excellent neighbor. Everyone called him by an endearing nickname, “The Kind-Hearted Taoist Priest”.

Zhang Daoting on the television screen gave a silly grin to the camera. And next to him was his new title.

Kind Hearted Taoist Priest, Zhang Daoting: “…………………..”

Xie Lingya roared with laughter.

Zhang Daoting touched his face and wailed, “Why do I look so silly? When they were shooting, the reporters kept telling me to be friendlier. Smile, smile, smile; why didn’t they tell me I looked so silly?”

Compared to him, as the “proprietor” who just appeared for a second in the background, Xie Lingya looked a lot cooler.

“Hahahahaha, it’s quite good. I’m going to save this. In the future, people at least won’t think our temple is scamming people.” Xie Lingya cackled until tears trickled down his face. That silly look of Zhang Daoting’s was just too funny. He didn’t have one iota of the elegant air of an immortal.

However, considering that the temple was situated in the city center, being down to earth was probably better.

At the same time, Xie Lingya reported the good news to Qin Limin, “The news has been broadcasted! Although you can’t be seen in it, all of us know that you are the kind-hearted ghost of this city!”

Qin Limin nodded his head fervently.

---

Due to Zhang Daoting’s identity as a priest, the news broadcast left a heavier impression than others. It certainly helped them. 

One of the ways it helped was just as Xie Lingya predicted, everyone suddenly trusted Baoyang Temple a little more and thought well of their personalities. Another was that the young people were shocked that the Taoist priests in the temples could look so young and handsome (when they weren’t having a silly grin). It was different from the white-bearded priests that existed in their impression!

The latter subject drew heated debates in the local forums. There was even a photography hobbyist who posted pictures he had taken at Baoyang Temple.

His photos made Baoyang Temple look aloof and independent from the world and richer in sentiment compared to the news. Under his camera lenses, Baoyang Temple seemed otherworldly and full of emotions that were not conveyed by the news video. 

Previously, some people might’ve heard of Baoyang Temple and their legendary talismans in passing; they might even have known that the temple was located near Golden Osmanthus Pedestrian Street. However, they had no real impression of the place. Now, the news and photos gave them a more comprehensive introduction.

Amidst the forest of skyscrapers, between the bustling cars and people, was the tiny inconspicuous entrance. From the walls of its courtyard, the curving eaves of the main hall’s roof peeked out. Green moss nestled between the roof tiles, riddled with cracks from age. The structure seemed to have appeared out of a fissure in the curtain of time, distinct from its surroundings.

Beyond the gate, one could see bamboo stalks lining the walls. The flagstones that paved the ground were clean, giving off a historic look. In the corner was a well, shaped like a bagua. Wooden tables and chairs were placed inside the courtyard with a smattering of elderly people and youths with a love for tea occupying them.

From the front courtyard alone, one wouldn’t be able to tell that this was a Taoist temple. The tranquil feeling emanating from the space made people from the Golden Osmanthus Pedestrian Street wonder, was this really in the pedestrian street? If they didn’t know better, one would really think this was some tea house from an ancient city.

Panning further into the temple revealed the ancient halls. The main hall and two side halls housed seven to eight statues. From the interior to the exterior, everything looked antiquated. In the backyard, there were a few stone tablets eroded by time. There was even a small vegetable plot, which could mislead one to think that the residents living here were self-sufficient.

In a certain photo, a youth wearing Taoist robes offered incense with their eyes closed. As the smoke from the incense filled the space, the statue’s face also turned foggy.

—These pieces of “evidence” made everyone sigh. Only  a wall apart, it felt like two different worlds. Lots of people had walked past it before, yet never paid it any attention.

At that moment, a tea lover came and said cockily, “I have known of this place for a long time. Every day, I’d fetch some water to drink. Sometimes, I would also sit there to brew some tea with friends. Look, it’s us in that picture. The Taoist priest would never chase us away. The hot water is free. If I buy a plate of sunflower seeds and bring my tea set, I could sit there for an entire day.”

There were even some meticulous folks who realized that in a certain place, there was a sign that indicated it was a historical site recognized by the Cultural Bureau.

It was different from the renovated tourist attractions. Baoyang Temple gave people a “lived-in” feeling. Such an old building, and still Taoist priests lived inside, serving the god statues. Although it was not very famous, some people’s hearts had turned favorable towards it.

And so, all of a sudden, Baoyang Temple again welcomed another large batch of guests. This time, they weren’t here to look for mosquitoes. They came here to see the building’s architecture, the priest, and to drink tea—Naturally, it was an entirely different story once they discovered the other specialties of the place later on.

Zhang Daoting was originally busy providing guidance to believers. Once the news was broadcasted, he suddenly turned into a model.

The new batch of visitors came to look around the old temple and drink from the ancient well. They even took a few pictures for keepsake. Yet how would they be satisfied with just images of the building? They wanted a picture of the Taoist priest as well.

In the entire Baoyang Temple, Zhang Daoting was the only one wearing Taoist robes. He abruptly realized that he would get his picture taken regardless of what little things he did. If he went to offer incense, a series of shutter sounds could be heard shortly after.

There was even someone who asked Zhang Daoting whether he could do a few poses like leaning against the doorframe or staring off into the sky.

Zhang Daoting: “???”

Xie Lingya’s usual work area was moved to the room in the backyard. Now, they already had volunteers that helped them with selling snacks. He didn’t need to go to work at the front like Zhang Daoting, so he couldn’t help laughing out loud when he saw Zhang Daoting’s predicament.

After he finished laughing, Xie Lingya immediately ordered several large water containers and flower pots.

Zhang Daoting exclaimed, “Boss, what is this? We are too busy to even plant vegetables!”

“Hahahahahahaha!” Xie Lingya laughed out loud. “Kind-hearted model, don’t you see a lot of little ladies have come? I’m just preparing some props for you. It’d make it convenient for your photoshoots.”

Zhang Daoting: “……”

Xie Lingya had seen on the internet and realized that Baoyang Temple unintentionally gave off characteristics of ancient buildings. There were even people who began visiting due to its fame. It didn’t matter whether those people were believers or not, many would certainly offer incense or purchase tea leaves to go with the well water.

Xie Lingya even asked for opinions from his female classmates, then bought some decorative plants that fit in with the theme of their Taoist temple and planted lotus flowers in the water pots. The temple’s structure was indeed old but if they added antique replicas, although the style appeared the same, it would actually be tacky. Since they couldn’t afford real antiques anyway, they might as well buy some plants.

This really suited the image of a kind-hearted Taoist. What a lively way of life, farming, and gardening!

Baoyang Temple had a truly excellent location. Under Xie Lingya’s enthusiastic management, the Taoist temple welcomed another batch of visitors. They treated the place like a unique site to rest and enjoy tea. Since there were many youths, the people even suggested the Taoist temple order a few more types of dried fruits and snacks.

Elderly people who had nothing to do, middle-aged uncles who enjoyed photography and drinking tea, lively young girls, earnest believers, none of them  looked out of place as they gathered in different parts of Baoyang Temple.

---

The number of visitors to Baoyang Temple had risen, yet it had been a while since their top believer Brother He Zun last visited.

Last time, after Xie Lingya predicted that he would fail three subjects, out of fear, he gave his all to studying, revising the three subjects that he was weaker in, swearing that he would change Fate. After some time of hard work, he felt improved and less worried that he would fail his subjects, and only then did he come out of his study frenzy.

The first thing on He Zun’s to-do list was to… go hang out with his classmates.

He was, after all, a young man. He intended to go out before coming back to offer incense to Baoyang Temple, then ask Teacher Xie to have another look at whether he was still at risk of failing his test.

He Zun and his classmates planned to go hiking. The mountain was quite high and they decided to stay the night at the guesthouse atop the mountains before climbing another short distance to see the sunrise the next morning.

They were a group that consisted of males and females, chattering and laughing along the way.  When dinner time came around, they hadn’t arrived at the location as estimated. After a round of discussion, they decided to have dinner before continuing the hike.

The sky descended into darkness quicker in the mountains. They were still some distance away from the hotel they had booked.

Because the female classmate he had a crush on was also present, He Zun felt incredibly energetic, not even a bit tired. He ran back and forth interacting with everyone and even wanted to play games like morra and piggybacking.

“Sigh, count me out, count me out. Let’s stop for a while,” someone said.

A girl protested, “Keep quiet! It’s too dark. It’s a little scary.”

Although there were street lights, the trees around them were gloomy, and the forest in the distance was pitch black. It was normal for girls to be afraid.

“Everything’s alright. I’m still here.” He Zun stuck out his chest, implying that he could stand it.

In the next second, because his movements were too rushed, a talisman slipped out and fell down the steps.

He Zun bent over to pick it up immediately, but the nicely-folded talisman was swept up by a sudden breeze and fluttered down the valley next to their path. He Zun held onto the railings and cried, “My protective charm!”

His classmates looked at each other.

In the next moment, everyone saw the previously bold and spirited He Zun suddenly jumping around frantically. “Quick, quick, quick!  Go up the mountain! Go to the hotel! It’s not safe after dark.”

Everyone: “…….”

Although they knew a little about He Zun’s accident, not everyone was afraid of the supernatural. Or one could just say that not everyone was as paranoid as he was about walking at night. Everyone laughed at him. “He Zun, you really are too much of a scaredy-cat! Without your protective charm, you’re as frightened as a worm!”

“Even if you’re superstitious, there should be a limit to it.”

“Hahahaha, we know you’re weak in vitality. How about this? Go hug Yong Ge³Brother Brave tightly.”

He Zun hesitated for a while and then he really did run towards “Yong Ge” who was heavily bearded. “Let’s hold hands…”

Brother Brave: “Scram!”

He Zun: “……”

He Zun scampered away and stood in the center of his classmates, hugging his backpack tightly with his hands forming the Spirit Official’s Hand Seal. 

Upon seeing it, Brother Brave loudly exclaimed, “He Zun, have we offended you somehow? Is that why you’re secretly flipping us off!?”

He Zun: “…Screw you! This is the Spirit Official’s Hand Seal, don’t you know?”

He Zun dared not walk last. He buried his head low as he climbed, sometimes even urging everyone forward.

“My foot!” He Zun suddenly jumped like he was electrocuted. He pinched the small of his back and angrily asked, “Who touched my waist?”

He felt someone pat his waist just then, and his waist happened to be sensitive. He surveyed his surroundings in alertness and realized that everyone looked at him with a strange gaze, so he spoke with a voice full of displeasure, “Don’t scare me! It’s not even a bit funny!”

Nobody paid attention to whether someone touched He Zun, so they agreed with him, “That’s right. He Zun is already so scared, don’t scare him more, alright?”

No one could tell who was looking fishy.

He Zun had question marks all over his head. He didn’t know who the rascal was. Additionally, that strange breeze from a while ago felt wrong. This time, he could only continue keeping his head low. Thankfully, at the moment they could already see the light of the hotel in the distance and it reassured him.

It was also at this moment that a female classmate shouted from behind and leaped forward, frightened.  “Someone touched my butt!”

Touching a girl’s butt went a bit too far. It wasn’t the same as He Zun’s commotion.

He Zun seriously asked, “Who was standing behind you just now?”

The girl shivered for a while, “But, but I was the last one…”

All of a sudden, they all felt a malicious chill. This girl had always been adorable and gentle. She was not the sort of person to joke.

If what she said was true, then who could have touched her from the back?

Unless…

He Zun raised the hand holding the Spirit Official’s Hand Seal up high. “Don’t mess with us! I have protection!”

Yet in his heart, he wailed mournfully. What the hell? How unlucky. Even in a scenic place, he still encountered a ghost.

The other classmates no longer dared to laugh at He Zun. They instead huddled up close to him. After all, he was the only one here with experience with supernatural encounters. He was even a regular at a Taoist temple.

The silence around them was deafening. It was unknown what hid in those pitch-black forests. In the deep mountain valleys, there was only the howling of the wind.

From their position, the light from the hotel looked like it was just within reach. However, they all knew in their hearts that they would still need to walk for quite a distance.

Even a strong man like Brother Brave felt his hair standing on his skin. “Why don’t we call the hotel and ask for the security guards to fetch us? Let’s use any excuse.”

Everyone expressed agreement. Brother Brave fished out his phone to call the number, yet after a few seconds, he expressionlessly said, “It said it was an unused number.”

“……” With a heavy heart, everyone tried for themselves. That official number on the Internet was definitely an unused number. Yet, they had obviously called the number before when they were booking.

Now, the atmosphere became all the more strange.

“I… I want to call my mom…” a girl said, but she didn’t tap on her phone. She appeared to be hesitating. Everyone knew that she was afraid of somehow finding out it was an unused number again if she dialed.

He Zun pinched his hand into the Spirit Official’s Hand Seal again, grit his teeth, and dialed a number, all the while reciting the name of the venerable founder in his heart repeatedly.

Everyone looked at him. They didn’t know who he called. Was it the hotel, his parents, or the police?

In the quiet scene, the sound of his phone was exceptionally loud.

Beep… Beep…

Five to six seconds later, the sound that came through finally wasn’t the robotic voice of the operator, but the clear voice of a male, sounding incredibly relaxed, “Hey, Xiao He?”

He Zun immediately let out a breath of relief and loudly said, “Teacher Xie, I am at a scenic spot in Boshan. On my way to the hotel, there was a strange gust of wind that blew away the talisman to an unknown place. Then something touched my waist and my classmate’s butt. Even the phone numbers have all suddenly mysteriously turned into unused numbers—”

The line on the other side seemed to become a bit noisy for a while. All his classmates held their breath as they listened.

After a while, that clear voice returned, “Daoting, step aside—this master is going to remotely exorcise some ghosts.”

---

Translator: Joan
TL checker: Darkchocolatesan
Editor: Miiya
Proofreader: Taalia
QC: Empress

---