The woman called “Auntie Ma” drew her legs up and sat naturally cross-legged on the chair. As wisps of white smoke curled from her mouth, her eyes closed slightly, and she muttered words indecipherable to anyone else:
“...East Sea ligugu that... harm ankuandai good... jigigugu... jigigugu...”
“You take that... jigigugu... sun needs... above... valley's dong...”
Zhuang Sinan sat down silently with his arms folded.
He hailed from Baishan Temple on Mount Emei. Though his discipline focused on cultivating the mind rather than the physical body, he was indubitably an orthodox Buddhist disciple.
Now that the Spiritual Resurgence was underway, ushering in vast changes across the world, even sacred Buddhist sanctuaries were not exempt from conflicts of interest.
When spiritual energy first awoke, it was not the authorities who noticed first, but the orthodox Buddhist and Taoist lineages occupying the famous spiritual mountains.
As far as he knew, last winter, golden light had illuminated the summit of Zhengyi Monastery on Longhu Mountain, triggering Spring's Return overnight.
Maoshan's Three Palaces and Nine Monasteries had closed their gates one after another, claiming publicly that they were addressing internal affairs. In secret, however, they recalled numerous disciples and remained behind closed doors for over three months.
Early this year, tourists atop Mount Tai, Mount Heng, Mount Song, Mount Hua, and Mount Heng witnessed celestial palaces and phantom musicians dancing amidst the clouds, alongside Buddha's Radiance shining down. It felt so real that it was certainly no mere mirage.
From then on, hundreds of major temples across the six mountains stood in tight solidarity, united in concealing the suspected revival of spiritual pulses.
Why had cultivators since ancient times always chosen scenic places of picturesque mountains and rivers?
Was it not precisely because those mountains harbored spiritual pulses rich in spiritual energy?
Although Mount Emei was not as famous as Longhu or Maoshan, it was still a sacred sanctuary blessed with spiritual resonance, naturally harboring dormant spiritual pulses of its own.
Unfortunately, the spiritual pulse on Mount Emei had only woken recently. It was as weak as a newborn babe, capable of supplying only a limited amount of spiritual energy for cultivation.
Spiritual energy was like milk—every extra mouthful one person drank meant one less mouthful for someone else.
When faced with the Great Dao and the opportunity to cultivate into an immortal, who would be willing to yield?
Therefore, the various sects and hundreds of temples and monasteries on Mount Emei made a pact with the authorities. Whether monk or Taoist, all disciples on the mountain were sent down, allowed back up to cultivate only in accordance with their contributions.
At this thought, Zhuang Sinan let out a soft cough and unconsciously uttered a Buddhist chant.
When it came to chanting scriptures, Auntie Ma could not compare to him.
But when it came to searching for people or tracking down missing items, perhaps no one under heaven could match the Northeast Ma family.
Inside the brightly lit tent, the squinting woman blew out clouds of smoke. Overhead lights cast down on her face, stretching out long, distorted shadows.
In many film and television works, the phrase “Southern Mao and Northern Ma” was frequently mentioned. Some said the “Ma” referred to the Chu Ma disciples in the north who invited immortals to possess their bodies; others said it referred specifically to the Ma family of the Northeast.
Unlike disciples like him who cultivated their physical bodies and minds, the Ma family members were more like a traditional cultivation clan. Passed down through bloodlines from generation to generation, their familial bonds were naturally far more tight-knit.
Yet the unique status of the Ma family did not stem from themselves, but rather from the fox immortal they had worshipped for generations—Old Master Hu.
Rumor had it that this fox immortal possessed extraordinary foresight, and his method of cultivation differed from ordinary demon kin. Legend said that when the Qing troops entered the Pass and spiritual energy was drying up, he struck a covenant with the Qing court to safeguard the future of the fox clan:
The Qing imperial family issued an edict to erect steles and spirit tablets for the fox immortal, allowing spirits in the Northeast region to cultivate using imperial qi. In exchange, the spirits and lesser monsters were forbidden from crossing Shanhai Pass to wreak havoc in the mortal realm.
Although in recent years, the mountain spirits and wild monsters in the Northeast were restricted by the iron rule that “no spirits may attain enlightenment after the founding of the republic”—let alone attaining enlightenment, even younger generations opening their minds grew increasingly rare.
Cultivation was arduous, yet the Hu family (the foxes) managed to endure by consuming the residual imperial qi of the Qing court.
Now that the spiritual pulses showed signs of awakening, cultivation still required time. Naturally, the Ma family—who could communicate with spirits, mountain monsters, and ghost souls—saw their status rise alongside it.
Even Auntie Ma before Zhuang Sinan—whose full name was Ma Lanhua—looked entirely ordinary, like a gentle and kind mother. In truth, however, she possessed an impressive background.
Word had it that her eyes opened just three days after birth, and she was personally held by the fox immortal worshipped by the Ma family. After reaching adulthood, she single-handedly established her own shrine. The spirits serving her shrine encompassed all five major families—Hu, Huang, Bai, Liu, and Hui—and all obeyed her command.
Even though the spirits from Ma Lanhua's shrine could not accompany her on this mission, she brought along two ancient ghosts for self-defense.
Supposedly, they had died back in the Qing Dynasty and had been worshipped by the Ma family ever since.
Accompanied by two old ghosts who had enjoyed decades of incense offerings, Ma Lanhua could practically walk tall anywhere outside, making ordinary cases an absolute breeze for her.
If not for the long-standing ties between Baishan Temple and the Ma family, Zhuang Sinan would never have secured a slot to accompany her.
—This was essentially being carried through a quest by a top player; who wouldn't want to farm more contribution points to return to the mountain and cultivate sooner?
He just wondered what benefits the authorities had offered the Ma family to actually move this prominent figure to action.
Zhuang Sinan shook his head slightly.
...
Footsteps passed outside the tent from time to time, while searchlights standing in the center of the camp illuminated the surrounding area as bright as day.
Everyone moving between the tents was equipped with professional hazmat suits and oxygen masks. Even the Xixiang regional director stationed on the front lines wore a set.
From a distance, they looked like a group of puffy bread-men clad in silver spacesuits, as though aliens were invading Earth.
As the woman's self-mutterings continued, the tent quieted down. Only the ticking and beeping of researchers operating instruments broke the silence, accompanied by rhythmic, quiet murmurs.
Zhang Jin, the director of the Xixiang region, was fidgety and restless. She stepped out of the tent multiple times, staring up at the yellow moon in the sky through her oxygen mask.
Four days had already passed.
Although they had contained the Mulian Village scenic area and restricted movement, the number of missing persons continued to climb.
With every passing minute, the danger facing those missing grew by one degree.
Outside the cordon of the Mulian Lake scenic area, a crowd of sensationalist journalists waited eagerly for results.
Since she was personally overseeing the operation, if she failed to find the source of the toxic miasma and retrieve the missing individuals, not only would her own position be in jeopardy, but her entire leadership team would suffer the fallout.
Months ago, Jingbei had dispatched guidance teams to various provinces, accompanied by top-level directives and response measures specifically tailored to supernatural events.
The situation at Xixiang's Mulian Lake had erupted far too suddenly and without warning, rendering several pre-established contingency plans impossible to execute as designed.
If their deduction proved correct and the toxic miasma was indeed the culprit behind the tourists' disappearances, then it would justify her taking the heat to decisively evacuate all nine thousand one hundred and thirty-two residents from Mulian Village.
“Director Zhang, you should probably take a look at this. It's the material the municipal bureau just sent over.”
Outside the tent, an officer wearing full protective gear trotted over. The secretary took the files, quickly skimmed them, and hurried over to the director's side, whispering a reminder:
“This is the background check on the missing persons you requested, all newly updated from the database.”
The director nodded and took the document. Her clumsy protective suit was somewhat cumbersome, but fortunately, it did not hinder her from reading the papers.
Glancing over ten lines at a glance, years of administrative experience allowed Zhang Jin to quickly memorize the characteristics of each missing person. As she flipped to the final page, a flash of realization crossed her eyes:
“As expected. It matches my earlier deduction.”
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