Chapter 39: The Hairy Moon

I closed my eyes and earnestly sensed the atmosphere of this graveyard. In the study of Feng Shui and metaphysics, this is known as "sensing the qi." Only a geomancer capable of sensing qi can be considered truly qualified.

After sensing the qi, I looked up at the sky. Without stars to provide bearings, I had to rely on the celestial alignment to locate the entrance to the Yin-Yang Gate. Eventually, I pinpointed the approximate location of the Gate of Death: a bamboo grove in the northeast section of the Hundred Grave Caverns. I attempted to enter that area, but as soon as my spirit reached it, an immense force of resistance pushed me back out. It seemed impossible to enter the Gate of Death as a spirit.

Once the Gate of Death was located, finding the Gate of Life was easy. Since Yin and Yang are opposites, the position directly across from the Gate of Death was the Gate of Life. After memorizing the surrounding environment, I exited the bamboo grove. It appeared that my spirit alone could not penetrate the core of this area; I would need my physical body to enter.

With my mind made up, I retraced my steps. This Hundred Grave Caverns was filled with an unsettling, eerie atmosphere. It was clear that I would only be able to uncover the truth once I returned in my physical form. A short while later, I returned to my body.

"Cough, cough!" After my soul returned, I coughed loudly. My spirit had been assaulted by quite a bit of yin energy while in the caverns.

"How is it, Qiyue? Did your body take any damage?" Seeing my soul return, Uncle Hu’s tense expression finally relaxed.

"I’m fine, Uncle Hu. I’ve figured it out—the person behind this, the one trying to harm me, is hiding in the Hundred Grave Caverns. Uncle Hu, I need your help." I took a deep breath and spoke to him earnestly.

"Qiyue, as long as we can get rid of that monster, I don't care about anything else," Uncle Hu replied with firm conviction.

"Thank you, Uncle Hu." I bowed respectfully to him. If it weren't for him, I likely wouldn't have been able to stay in the provincial capital.

"Qiyue, do you need me to prepare anything?" Uncle Hu asked, his expression becoming serious.

"Uncle Hu, please bring the white jade mutton-fat bottle. It will be useful to us." He nodded and picked up the bottle from the ground. "Uncle Hu, let’s rest for a while. We’ll set off at midnight." He nodded in agreement.

I returned to my room, bowed respectfully to the four cardinal deities, and lit some soul-soothing incense before lying down to rest. The soul-projection trip this afternoon had truly exhausted me. Fortunately, I had found the hiding place of the person targeting me. She was hiding in the Hundred Grave Caverns, though dealing with her would likely be a struggle. With Uncle Hu’s support, I felt much more confident.

Midnight arrived quickly. After a light meal and a glass of white liquor each, we gathered our gear and left the Hu family estate. Since I had already been there once during the day, I was familiar with the path.

"Qiyue, be careful. It’s a 'hairy moon' tonight—it feels a bit abnormal," Uncle Hu warned from behind, clutching the jade bottle in his left hand and the hilt of his broadsword in his right. I knew that if any evil entity tried to harm me, Uncle Hu would show no mercy.

I nodded and carefully led the way. I had heard Uncle Hu mention that supernatural events often occurred in these mountains, and I wondered if we might encounter one tonight. Moving along the route I had taken that morning, we covered in just one hour a mountain journey that would normally take several. As I felt the chilly, eerie winds of the deep mountains, my nerves began to tighten. However, I was a descendant of the Qingma Feng Shui tradition, a practitioner of the orthodox path. I would not fear such mere malevolent spirits.

"Uncle Hu, we’ve arrived at the Hundred Grave Caverns. The one behind this is hiding in this area," I said, looking at the surrounding mounds. The same malevolent energy I had felt earlier began to assail us again. However, since I had already cracked the life-and-death layout of the formation, it was unlikely it could trap us now.

"Qiyue, have we entered someone’s formation? Why do I feel like I’m being wrapped in yin energy?" Uncle Hu asked, his right hand gripping his sword beginning to tremble slightly.

"Uncle Hu, I’ve found the way to break this formation. All we need to do now is find the hiding place of that corpse-demon. I have a feeling that once we find it, the person behind this will reveal themselves."

Uncle Hu nodded. He drew his broadsword and stood firmly before us. "Qiyue, proceed with your magic. I will guard you!" Whether it was the influence of the aura he emitted or not, the moment he drew his sword, the surrounding malevolent energy dissipated significantly.

I stopped deep within the bamboo grove, set up my incense burner, and after paying my respects to the spirits, I began to survey the environment. During the day, the malevolent energy had prevented me from seeing the full picture, but now we were here to break the illusion. Destroying the corpse-demon's hiding place would turn the entity possessing Mother Liu into ash, rendering her unable to be controlled any longer.

However, as I paced around, my brow furrowed. The place appeared ordinary, yet it was filled with hidden danger. Using the location of the Gate of Life I had identified earlier, I deduced the general location of the burial site. I signaled for Uncle Hu to follow, and we moved forward cautiously. After about two hundred meters, as indicated by my compass, I told him to stop.

"Uncle Hu, the corpse-demon is buried in these mounds ahead. Once we dig it out, our enemy will appear." I spoke calmly, though I was desperate to know why she wanted to harm me. I had no prior grudge against her. It was midnight, and she was likely hiding within these graves to cultivate her power—the perfect time to strike, as her defenses would be at their weakest.

Yet, I was momentarily stumped. There wasn't just one grave, but nine large ones, all identical and without any tombstones. We couldn't tell which one contained the corpse-demon. I circled them and found that the soil was undisturbed; it didn't look like anyone had been digging. Was this just a decoy, a maze to confuse me?

I didn't believe it was that simple. My training in the art of Feng Shui, passed down by my grandfather, was second to none. I used my compass to scan all nine graves for any signs of a cenotaph, but to my shock, all nine were real graves containing actual corpses. My brow furrowed further. This wasn't a common graveyard, and the presence of nine large tombs in this configuration was highly abnormal. Given the dense yin energy and the manipulated layout, there was definitely something sinister here. These graves were not to be trifled with.