Chapter 14: The Cave Altar
A quick knock on the door woke me up, and when I came back to my senses, I found that I had returned to Uncle Xingguo's house, and was lying comfortably in my cabin, when Uncle Hong came in.
Uncle Hong looked at me and didn't speak, he directly pressed his hand to my forehead and began to chant the mantra, about ten minutes later, I felt unusually tired, and I wanted to sleep again in a daze, and in the haze I saw Uncle Hong close the door without looking back.
The next day when I got up, my aunt came over to apologize to me, saying that she didn't know what was wrong, so she beat me indiscriminately and told me not to take it to heart, and said that this family will always welcome me, so that I can live here with peace of mind. Uncle Xingguo also came over and asked me to dissipate my anger, saying that the whole family went out to the restaurant tonight, which can be regarded as an apology to me. I still felt uncomfortable in my heart, so I only said silently: "I am causing you trouble...... Uncle Xingguo patted me.
I asked Uncle Xingguo where the red rubber band went, and Uncle Xingguo didn't seem to want to say anything, so he told me under my questioning.
Last night, Uncle Xingguo saw that I hadn't gone back for so long, so he hurriedly ran out to find me, and found that I was by the river next to the tourist attraction, and was about to jump over the railing, but fortunately he arrived in time to pull me back, and then I was full of nonsense and wanted to beat him, Uncle Xingguo felt that I was wrong, so he hung up the amulet he had been wearing to me, and I immediately fainted.
Uncle Xingguo thought that I was in a bad place, so he took Uncle Hong over overnight, and I was fine after Uncle Hong cast the spell. As for the rubber band, it has been taken away by Uncle Hong, and before leaving, he explained that I was not allowed to go back to Heishizhai Village to find him recently, let me study hard, don't do that useless.
I don't know the situation a little, Uncle Hong seems to be angry with me, but fortunately he took the rubber band away, he must have known that the rubber band was attached to the Yin Spirit, since the rubber band is now in Uncle Hong's hands, there is nothing to worry about. But I'm a little strange, why was I so sad and angry last night, and I was very eager to be friends with that yin spirit, I don't know why, or wait for the opportunity to ask Uncle Hong.
Another week passed, according to the original plan, I should have gone back to the village to find Uncle Hong, but Uncle Xingguo repeatedly told me, saying that Uncle Hong emphasized that I was not allowed to go back to him, and let me stay in the county seat. My aunt also said that I would help Sayuri with her homework, she had not done well in math recently, and asked me to teach her well, so I had to dispel the idea of going back to Blackstone Village.
After a whole month, I couldn't help it, and wondered why Uncle Hong didn't let me go back to him, so after school on a Saturday, I didn't go back to Uncle Xingguo's house, but once again took a ride with the same table and made a card, and walked from Hongyan Shangzhai to Heishi Village.
I arrived when it was almost dark, but I found that the door of Uncle Hong's house was closed and locked, which is not common, and we don't even come to thieves in the poor mountains, unless we want to go out or be away from home for a long time. I shouted Uncle Hong a few times, but no one answered me. I walked to my house next door, but the door was unlocked, just hidden.
I approached and found a piece of paper sandwiched between the crack in the door, I took it out and opened it to take a look, and found that it was a note left for me by Uncle Hong. After reading this note, I realized why Uncle Hong didn't let me come back, and the note read, "Do you remember the three conditions that promised me?" "Before Uncle Hong taught me to learn spells, he asked me to promise him three conditions: first, spells can only save people, not harm people; Second, you are not allowed to use spells without the consent of Uncle Hong before leaving the school; The third is to continue to go to school. It seems that I violated this second article, and without Uncle Hong's consent, I used a spell to attach the yin spirit to the rubber band, but I was also to help the yin spirit and my classmates at school.
Uncle Hong won't forgive me for a while, so I have to find a way to intercede for myself, but what can I do? I did violate the conditions I promised Uncle Hong.
In desperation, I silently walked into the house, cleaned up briefly, and then put incense on my grandfather, uncle and mother, knelt in front of their spirit cards, and told them about the latest things.
Early the next morning, I was ready to go back to the county seat first, and before leaving, I also stuffed a note in the crack of Uncle Hong's door, which stated that I was to help the rubber band Yin Ling, but I already knew that I was wrong, and asked how to forgive me.
Half a month later, on a weekend, Uncle Xingguo had a relative from Hunan who came over, saying that he had something to discuss with Uncle Hong, and by the way, he came to see the fruit planting base, and wanted to do fruit trading in the future. Uncle Xingguo calls this relative uncle, and according to the seniority, I should follow Sayuri to call uncle.
Uncle Xingguo brought a lot of specialties, there are fresh lotus pods and ducks or something, Uncle Xingguo plans to drive his uncle to Heishi Village, by the way to Uncle Hong to share some Hunan specialties, I know that after I begged Uncle Xingguo to take me back to see, said that I want to go back to incense, in the premise that I promised to go back to the county with Uncle Xingguo, he finally agreed to me.
But when we returned to the door of Uncle Hong's house, we found that the door was still locked, and there was a note in the crack of the door as before, so I quickly opened it to see. There was only one sentence written on the note: If you want to find me, go to the altar in the mountains.
The altar in the mountain should be the cave that Uncle Hong took me to last time, and I remember that Uncle Hong said that he used to practice spells there. I hurriedly told Uncle Xingguo and Uncle Xingguo that I knew where Uncle Hong had gone, so I went and called him and asked Uncle Xingguo and Uncle Xingguo to rest in my house next door.
Out of the village, I walked on the path to the south, the road was easy to walk during the day, and in less than an hour I stood in front of the cave entrance in the middle of the mountain, calling Uncle Hong but no one paid attention to me, and I listened carefully to the sound of muttering mantras, and it was estimated that Uncle Hong was cultivating, so I pushed aside the vines and walked to the cave.
Uncle Hong really sat cross-legged in front of the portrait of Chi You and chanted a mantra, he was wearing a mask and holding a strange dagger in his hand and gesturing back and forth. Uncle Hong put a cage next to him, there was a snake and a big vole in it, and the strange thing was that the two natural enemies were in the same cage but they were safe. I didn't dare to disturb Uncle Hong to cast the spell, so I quietly sat on the stone steps at the entrance of the cave.
After about ten minutes, Uncle Hong stopped chanting the mantra and took off his mask. At the moment when Uncle Hong took off his mask, the snake in the cage pounced on the vole and bit on the vole's stomach, and the vole gradually stopped struggling, it seemed that the snake's venom worked. After a while, the snake swallowed the vole, and a large lump bulged on its stomach.
Uncle Hong packed up his mask and dagger and asked me what I was doing here, I quickly knelt down for Uncle Hong, saying that I didn't keep my promise to cast spells on the Yin Spirit, I was really arrogant, I ask Uncle Hong to forgive me, and I promise not to dare in the future. Uncle Hong said: "It's good to know that it's wrong." You brought the Yin Spirit out that day, but you didn't recite the imprisoned mantra, the Yin Spirit was not restrained, and she was very resentful, as long as anyone who touched that rubber band would be affected by it, you almost committed suicide by throwing yourself into the river that night! ”
Hearing Uncle Hong say this, I realized how reckless I was that time, and quickly told Uncle Hong that I knew that I was wrong. Uncle Hong stroked his beard: "I will forgive you this time, but you will not be punished, otherwise you will not have a long memory." After speaking, Uncle Hong pointed to a cave wall next to me, I looked over and found that there were many pits on this cave wall, but there were no cracks, as if it had been beaten out by a blunt object all year round.
Uncle Hong said: "The witch doctor has been in contact with the Yin Spirit all the year round, and his physique is weak, so there are always some brave people around him to protect the Dharma. But my ancestors in this lineage have produced a lot of hunters, so I added some fist and foot kung fu. After saying that, Uncle Hong set up a horse step in front of the cave wall, and then kicked up. Only then did I know that these fist-sized pits were kicked out by years of practice.
Uncle Hong instructed me in my movements, and asked me what I was doing this time, I almost forgot about the business, so I quickly told my uncle about coming to visit relatives, but Uncle Hong frowned: "What is he doing here......" After that, Uncle Hong asked me to memorize all the mantras, so that I must remember these mantras and consolidate them every day.
Uncle Hong walked to the entrance of the cave, turned his head and said to me: "Kick a thousand times on each leg of your left and right legs, you must kick hard and don't be lazy, and you can only go back to eat after kicking, this is the punishment for you to cast a spell without permission, I will go back to meet that distant relative first." With that, he lifted the vines and left. I thought to myself, a thousand kicks on each leg, can I walk back after this kick? But I don't dare to be lazy, after all, I made my mistake first, so let's be honest and be punished, just like running.
Although I was willing to accept the punishment, but after I kicked two hundred times, the forefoot began to bleed, but I didn't dare to stop, who knows if Uncle Hong would secretly target me. At this moment, I suddenly felt a great sense of pressure behind me, and directly behind me was the mural statue of Chiyou.
Suddenly, the sound of chanting mantras came to my mind, and I panicked. I quickly stopped kicking, and subconsciously recited a mantra, which was the one that Uncle Hong wrote in the letter before, I don't know why I chose this paragraph to read, as if I knew that this mantra could compete with the voice in my head, and it did work.
But the voice in my head did not stop, but changed to a strange tone, like singing, and I unconsciously recited it along, and slowly the sound of my chanting mantra overlapped with the voice in my head. Only then did I feel the poisonous scar on my shoulder hurt, and the fire was very uncomfortable, but I didn't dare to stop chanting the incantation.
I chanted along with the voice in my head for a long time, and I could almost memorize it, because this mantra was not too long, but it was repeated constantly, and with the unique tone of the mantra, it was easy to memorize, and the evil scar on my shoulder slowly stopped hurting, and there was a cool feeling that penetrated my whole body, and I suddenly felt that my whole body had inexhaustible strength.
The sound of the mantra in my head slowed down, and the sound became quieter and quieter, and finally it was very calm, and I sat on the ground gasping for air, my clothes soaked with sweat. I quickly turned around and knelt down in front of the mural statue of the god Chiyou and bowed.