Mystic in Hempen Robes

Divine the fate of ghosts

Once I opened the lock, Wang Junhui murmured another incantation beside me before allowing me to push the door open.

I asked what he had just chanted. He said it was a Soul-Soothing Mantra to prevent the ghost inside from being disturbed.

As the door swung open, I reached to turn on the light, but Wang Junhui stopped me. "No lights. This ghost is of a low level; it fears light. Turning on the light would scare it."

Hearing this, I felt a bit stuck. "Without light, how can I clearly see its face or read its destiny *qi*?"

Just as I was speaking, the shop door creaked shut with a *thud*. I nearly jumped out of my skin, barely stifling a yelp. Turning around, I saw Wang Junhui was the one who had closed it.

I let out a slight sigh of relief. "Master Wang, what are you doing? With the door closed, it’s pitch black in here."

Wang Junhui explained, "There’s one kind of light ghosts don’t fear: the light of incense and candles. I’ll light a candle now. You can look at it by that light."

Then I heard Wang Junhui unzip his briefcase in the darkness. A moment later, with a *click*, he lit a lighter beside me. The flame illuminated his face, pale and somewhat eerie in the darkness.

If I hadn’t known he was Master Wang, I might have punched him already.

Next, he lit a candle, and the room slowly brightened. Our shadows began dancing on the walls with the flickering candlelight.

The desk stood right in front of us, but I didn’t see the ghost.

Holding my breath, I was almost afraid to look for it. Wang Junhui held the candle in one hand and formed a hand seal with the other, then pointed at the flame.

Instantly, the flame seemed to gain a will of its own, leaning distinctly *behind* us. Did that mean the ghost was behind us?

The thought sent a chill down my spine.

I started to slowly turn my head to look.

Before I could fully turn, Wang Junhui grabbed my arm. "Don’t rush. Turn slowly. It’s right behind us. Don’t startle it."

Don’t startle it? It was already scaring me!

If Wang Junhui hadn’t been beside me, I would have probably screamed and bolted from the room.

"Follow me, turn slowly. No matter what you see, don’t make a sudden sound!" Wang Junhui released my arm and began turning his body slowly.

I quickly matched his pace.

When we finally faced the other way, we saw a semi-transparent, shadowy figure standing less than a meter away, its back to us. And it was even closer to me.

*Thump-thump, thump-thump…*

My heart raced wildly. Wang Junhui formed another hand seal and pressed it lightly between my shoulder blades. "Don’t be afraid. With me here, it can’t hurt you. You can communicate with it now. Remember, go slow. Step by step. Don’t frighten it."

I struggled to calm my mind, repeatedly stroking my chest to steady my breathing.

After a moment, I spoke softly, "Old sir, could you turn around? Let me read your face. I need to use the destiny *qi* on you to find where your family is."

Talking to a ghost—this was my first time ever. The more I spoke, the faster my heart raced, terrified it might suddenly turn around with a horrifying face to scare me, or lunge at me.

Upon hearing my words, the ghost’s transparent body trembled slightly, then slowly began to turn around.

Its turning motion was bizarre. Something felt off. After a moment of observation, I realized: only its upper body turned toward us; its lower body remained facing away.

This startled me badly. Was this thing deliberately trying to scare me?!

Now I could see the ghost’s appearance clearly. It wasn’t as terrifying as I’d imagined. Aside from being transparent, its facial structure was normal—no distortions or missing parts like I’d feared.

I studied its face carefully. The Yin energy was strongest at the “Chou” position on the right cheek—a sign of death. According to flow-year fortune calculation, the “Chou” position corresponds to ages 78-79. So, it likely died at 78 or 79.

Meanwhile, a strand of Yin energy drifted persistently around its Palace of Illness and Calamity, indicating it died from a “serious illness.”

The Yin energy was weakest around its Palace of Children and Grandchildren, suggesting it had good fortune regarding descendants. Its children and grandchildren must have been filial during its life. If so, what unfinished business could it possibly have?

I kept observing the subtle movements of the faint Yin energy around its Palace of Children and Grandchildren, simultaneously arranging hexagram numbers in my mind, over and over. Once I grasped the pattern, the numbers formed the primary hexagram for the information I sought.

It was the *Yi* Hexagram (**, the Hexagram of Increase). Calculating the changing line, however, was more difficult. Using Yin to interpret Yang, deriving the primary hexagram was hard enough. Determining the changing line required even sharper perception to discern the shifts in destiny *qi* within the facial gate being examined.

Unconsciously, I was already drenched in sweat.

The Yin energy cycled, following destiny’s logic—a Yang line. The changing line number was arranged according to the destiny *qi*: Nine, Three, Five…

It was Five. The changing line was the fifth, the Nine in the Fifth place.

According to the hexagram interpretation, this family resided in a “good person’s home.” Meaning, they were staying with someone else, likely relatives or close friends—definitely not a hotel or inn.

Furthermore, from this changing line, I could tell someone in the family was in poor health. The reason for staying with others was probably for recuperation.

Combining the destiny *qi* with the primary hexagram and changing line, I deduced their location should be in a residential area in the southern part of the city.

But this range was still too broad. If I only told Ning Haoyu this, he’d curse me out.

Yet, with my current skill level in “face-reading divination,” this was as far as I could calculate.

Somewhat disappointed, I concluded the divination. Wang Junhui asked how it went. I explained my results in detail.

After listening, Wang Junhui remained silent, but the ghost stirred. This time, its lower body also turned to face us. Finally, it didn’t look so awkward anymore.

The ghost’s movement startled me again. Wang Junhui held me steady. “Don’t be afraid. It has something to say to you.”

Forcing myself to stay calm, I asked the ghost what it wanted to say.

Wang Junhui murmured another incantation, then tapped a point between my eyebrows. “I’ll stabilize your spirit first, so hearing too much ghost-talk won’t disturb your mind.”

Grandpa had also said that if you hear a ghost speak, you must quickly seal the facial gate related to hearing. Otherwise, hearing too much ghost-talk can make you “believe” it, even become obsessed, and eventually fall under the ghost’s control.

Now, with Wang Junhui’s Taoist protection, I could safely listen for a while.

“Go ahead,” I said to the ghost.

“Wuu… wuu…”

A series of sounds, incomprehensible to ordinary people, came from the ghost’s mouth. But when they reached my ears, they transformed into clear words.

The ghost asked me, “Is my son sick? How is his health?”

I understood. It spoke up after hearing my divination results.

I replied, “Don’t worry. He didn’t go to a hospital but is recuperating at a relative’s house. That means it’s not too serious. Probably more of an emotional issue—like still struggling to come to terms with your passing.”

Hearing this, the ghost made more “wuu” sounds. “My poor youngest son… After I got old, I lived with him all along. My eldest son and daughter treated me well too, but they work far away and rarely could visit…”

Seeing the ghost was about to launch into a long story, I interrupted, “First, tell me: which relatives do you have in the southern part of the city where your youngest son’s family might be staying temporarily? After we find them, you can chat in detail.”

The ghost paused, then gave me an address. It was his sister’s home—his youngest son’s aunt. They were very close, and the sister’s family was well-off with a large house. The ghost said if his youngest son was in the southern part of the city, he’d definitely be there.

With the address secured, I stopped chatting with the ghost. I told Wang Junhui we were done. Wang Junhui murmured a few more syllables, then addressed the ghost, “Wait here quietly. Do not cause trouble, or this Taoist will not be merciful.”

The ghost nodded respectfully toward Wang Junhui.

Then we retreated from my shop, and Wang Junhui extinguished the candle.

Closing the shop door, I took a long, deep breath.

Wang Junhui said beside me, “Send the address to your friend. It’s best to resolve this at night. Daytime is trickier.”

I nodded, edited a text with the address, and sent it to Ning Haoyu. I also called to explain. Hearing the detailed address, Ning Haoyu exclaimed in surprise, “How the hell did you figure that out?”

I replied bitterly, “Figure out nothing! The ghost told me itself. It scared me half to death just now. Enough chatter. Go find them first. We’ll talk in detail when you get back.”

After hanging up, I invited Wang Junhui inside to sit. He thought for a moment and agreed. It was dark, and the mosquitoes were thick outside the shop. Standing there any longer would just make us mosquito bait.

We went around to the main gate and entered the courtyard. Wang Junhui suddenly stopped in front of Grandpa’s room. I asked what was wrong. He looked inside and simply said, “Nothing.”

But I clearly saw the look of great surprise on his face as he gazed into Grandpa’s room. Could there be something in there?

Before I could ask, Wang Junhui suddenly said, “Your grandfather is a master.”

Inside my room, I made a pot of tea for Wang Junhui. The tea-drinking habit was something I picked up from Grandpa, so I always kept some at home. Of course, given my finances, it wasn’t high-quality—just regular Tieguanyin.

Wang Junhui sat down, took a few sips, and asked me, “That skill of reading a ghost’s fate—did you learn that from your grandfather too? Your name is Li Chuyi, right? Then your grandfather… is he Li Nanshan? The great face-reader once known as ‘Divine Visage’?”