Chapter Forty-Two: Dissolution of the Celestial Sight Technique

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Cui Yue asked in surprise, "You? Uncle, what use could you possibly be?"

Li Jianguo replied mysteriously, "I've studied Daoist arts for decades; catching ghosts and expelling demons is my calling. If I had this Heavenly Eye ability, it would be like giving wings to a tiger. Hasn't your mother ever told you? That night, you were struck by ghostly energy and lost your soul, but I brought you back."

A look of pride crossed Li Jianguo's face as he spoke, and he rummaged under the bed to pull out a battered suitcase filled with tattered books and a collection of odd objects: a peachwood sword, a soul-summoning bell, a compass, a statue of Arhat, and so on. The suitcase bulged with these items, which to Cui Yue seemed nothing more than a heap of odd trinkets scavenged from who knows where.

Uninterested, Cui Yue casually picked up the peachwood sword and fiddled with it.

Seeing Cui Yue's expression of disbelief, Li Jianguo grew indignant. "You little rascal, I'm not just bragging—everyone in these ten villages knows my name. Whenever there's trouble at any household, they invite me to handle it."

Cui Yue didn't even bother to look up. "Uncle, if you're really so skilled and have cultivated for decades, why haven't you mastered this Heavenly Eye you keep talking about?"

This question left Li Jianguo speechless. Embarrassed, his face flushed red as he muttered, "You don't understand, kid. The Heavenly Eye requires fate; not just anyone can attain it. The truth is... actually..."

Li Jianguo stammered, clearly running out of things to say.

"Enough, stop it, Uncle. The Heavenly Eye is useless to me. Just help me shut it off—I don't want to see ghosts anymore," Cui Yue said impatiently.

"Waste of talent, such a waste," Li Jianguo lamented. "If only I could open the Heavenly Eye myself..."

He went on, "There are plenty of methods to open the Heavenly Eye, but as for closing it, there should be a way. Let me have a look."

Li Jianguo rifled through the old books in his suitcase, finally digging out one from a corner. He exclaimed with delight, "Cui Yue, look, here it is! It says, 'With virtue comes unity, the righteous path gives rise to clarity, thus arises and thus passes...'"

Cui Yue hurried closer, reading for a long while but unable to make sense of it. "What does it mean?"

"I don't know," Li Jianguo admitted.

"Didn't you say you've cultivated for decades?"

"The sea of knowledge is boundless. What we've learned is but a drop in the ocean, not worth mentioning. In the face of knowledge, we are both as childish as infants. There's so much content—how could I possibly learn it all?"

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Shameless!

Hearing Li Jianguo's words, Cui Yue nearly fainted from frustration. Disgusted, he thought, So after all these years, you haven't even mastered these few books? And yet you dare boast.

Cui Yue pondered the last few lines and began to discern a clue.

"'Retain the foul, expel the pure; seal the Divine Court and Glabella points; connect the Fish Waist and Forehead; traverse the Gallbladder meridian on the foot; descend the Three Yin and Lesser Focus meridians; measure three inches, then wash the eyes with the foul, and it is done.'"

The phrase "retain the foul, expel the pure" seemed to suggest using tainted objects to remove the purity brought by the Heavenly Eye.

"Yes, yes," Li Jianguo echoed.

"The Divine Court, Glabella, Forehead—they're important points on the head."

"Right, right."

"And the Gallbladder meridian and such refer to the body's network of channels."

"Exactly," Li Jianguo nodded.

Cui Yue glanced at Li Jianguo, annoyed—so he knows nothing at all; what's he been doing all these years?

Li Jianguo, seeing Cui Yue pause, urged, "What else?"

"How should I know? I was relying on you. Turns out you know nothing."

Cui Yue was exasperated and silently cursed his luck for trusting the wrong person.

Li Jianguo's face reddened again, and he chuckled, "The Dao is boundless and mysterious. Practice is the only test of truth; practice is the source of knowledge. With practice as our weapon, nothing can stand in our way."

Cui Yue stared wide-eyed, realizing this charlatan could even twist Marxist philosophy to fit here, so angry he couldn't tell up from down.

Fed up, Cui Yue decided not to argue further, not wanting to add to his troubles, and turned to go home and sleep. Li Jianguo blocked his way, shamelessly refusing to let him leave. "Wait, wait, let's try it—maybe it'll work."

"You think I'm a guinea pig?"

"It's not that serious. I never put theory above practice. Practice brings true knowledge."

"Then I'll pass. I don't want you to make things worse instead of shutting off the Heavenly Eye."

"That won't happen. At worst, it'll stay the same."

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Cui Yue couldn't withstand Li Jianguo's pleading—it was clear he'd be treated like a guinea pig, but he resigned himself; what's the worst that could happen?

Li Jianguo stared at the book, pretending to study it, then slapped his thigh. "Ah, I understand! See, there are a few incantations at the end. It'll work for sure."

Cui Yue looked at Li Jianguo, his face somber and filled with doubt.

Li Jianguo excitedly rummaged through his battered suitcase, pulled out a few items, and arranged them on the table.

He cut yellow paper into strips two feet three inches long, mixed cinnabar with water, and dipped a brush in it, copying the script from the book, though his imitation was clumsy.

From a distance, Cui Yue thought it looked halfway decent. Glancing at the table, he saw Li Jianguo's charms compared to those in the book—the general shape was similar, but some strokes were wobbly and off. He looked closer and quickly stopped him.

"Hey, Uncle, the book clearly says to write 'Summon,' but you wrote 'Reflect.' And over there, 'This' is written as 'Mercy.'"

Cui Yue pointed at the charm on the yellow paper.

"Really? Let me see. Ah, that's just a slip of the pen," Li Jianguo said, glancing at it and realizing his mistake. He apologized and made a few quick corrections with his brush.

Cui Yue took a deep breath and glanced at the door—if Li Jianguo weren't blocking it, he'd have escaped long ago. This was far too unreliable.

Once the charms were ready, Li Jianguo had Cui Yue sit upright on a stool, took out his acupuncture kit, and drew two silver needles, preparing to act.

Cui Yue's voice trembled, "Uncle, are you sure about this? This isn't a joke—maybe we should forget it."

Li Jianguo quickly pressed him down, reassuring, "Relax, relax. I've stuck myself dozens of times—never a problem. Just sit tight."

He then aimed carefully at the prescribed acupoints and inserted the first needle.

"Ouch!" Cui Yue grimaced in pain.

"Don't move. Let me see—Fish Waist, this needle is for Divine Court, next is Glabella..."

Soon enough, Li Jianguo followed the book's instructions, sealing several key acupoints with silver needles. He burned the charm he'd written earlier, mixed the ashes with water, and had Cui Yue drink it.

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