"Okay."

Hearing that his grandfather was going to take him to visit relatives and friends, Gu Yun was naturally willing.

He likes this supernatural world very much, and he can't wait to see more of it.

However, the old man did not take him immediately, but waited at the old house of Iijima for an afternoon, and it was not until 11 o'clock in the evening that the grandfather called him to his side.

"Out of body?"

"Hmm."

Grandpa smiled and said, "Those friends of mine have passed away for many years, but they still live in Huangquan and have not embarked on the road to the afterlife. ”

The place where Grandpa is going to take Gu Yun tonight is not somewhere else, it is the place where all living beings will return after death - the other side of Huangquan.

"Yellow Springs is in another dimension, where there is no such thing as the material realm."

They could have used their spiritual vision to enhance their existence and thus access the spirit of the Yellow Spring, but that would be too troublesome.

The best way is to go out of the body and go to the afterlife like an ordinary deceased.

"The most difficult thing about going to Huangquan is not how to get there, but how to come back after you go."

It doesn't have much to do with the strength of the warlock, it mainly depends on spells and connections.

The former refers to a method similar to psionic magic, which can travel through the world, similar to drilling loopholes in the rules of the world, so as to escape opportunistically.

Connections are whether you know the gods or not.

The personhood of the gods is higher than that of the spirits of the Yellow Springs, so they are able to lure some souls back into this world.

Of course, the soul here refers to someone who has not died.

Huangquan has its own rules, the dead cannot come back, and the guidance of the gods is useless.

"If you're dead, you can't come back?"

"I can't come back."

Grandpa said: "But we are just out of the body, not dead, and the law of Huangquan can't control us." ”

Therefore, Gu Yun and Grandpa can go to Huangquan, and then with the help of the gods, or use the spiritual vision to return to the world.

Grandpa's spiritual vision is not advanced enough, and he can't travel through the world at will like Mr. Kogoro.

However, Grandpa knew many powerful gods, and before going to Huangquan, he would make an appointment with them in advance, or borrow some artifacts, so that he could go back and forth between life and death.

"Sora..."

Gu Yun asked, "Is it okay?" ”

"Absolutely!"

Grandpa smiled: "With Lord Tianhu, it will be much more convenient for you to travel back and forth between the two places in the future, Gu Yun, than grandpa and me." ”

Friends are just friends after all, and the gods are willing to help Grandpa.

They have a simple personality, and helping their grandfather is like making friends with him, wishing that he would come to play with him more.

But I troubled people again and again, and my grandfather was really embarrassed.

In terms of concept, Grandpa is a 'not too much contact' faction, and he has mentioned to Gu Yun before that he should not go too deep into another world.

"Xiaokong doesn't matter, she's her own person!"

Fantasy is different, she is Gu Yun's fox, helping Gu Yun go back and forth to Huangquan, that is a matter of course.

"I have a god in my own house," Grandpa said with a smile, "It's really reassuring." ”

"Alright, let's get started."

The grandfather and grandson came to the bedroom, where two futons, one large and one small, were placed.

The two had told Granny Yaeko and Juanjuan Iijima that they would rest in the same room tonight.

"Pranya, Xiaobai."

Gu Yun summoned the two gods: "After my grandfather and I went to Huangquan, I asked you to take care of my body." ”

After the soul is out of the body, the body goes into a deep sleep.

At this time, if someone with a heart discovers and destroys it, the spirit will be judged to be 'dead'.

If it happened to be in Huangquan at that time, he didn't leave.

Then, the whole Yellow Springs world will directly regard you as a 'dead person'.

That is, you can't come back.

Even with the help of the gods, you won't be able to come back.

"Leave it to us, master."

Praruo and Xiaobai are here, plus the several high-level demon-level Shikishen prepared by grandpa, unless the big monster comes in person, no one can touch the flesh of the two.

"Hmm."

Gu Yun lay down, and then recited a mantra in his heart.

After a while, a person who looked exactly like Gu Yun emerged from his body like smoke.

"Is this what it is, out-of-body?"

Gu Yun glanced at himself lying down, feeling very curious.

"The state of the soul, indeed, is very convenient."

"Huh?"

Gu Yun heard the prestige, but his eyes widened: "You, you are grandpa?" ”

I saw that what was standing in front of Gu Yun at this time was not an old man, but a young man in an old-fashioned kimono.

He wears round glasses and is handsome and suave, like a scholar of the last era in Japan.

"Huh?"

The young man said, his body changed, and he turned into the appearance of an old man again: "Just now I was when I was young, Gu Yun is still seeing it for the first time, right?" ”

"It turns out that when my grandfather was young, he was like this!"

Gu Yun asked, "Could it be that in the spirit state, we can change our appearance at will?" ”

After speaking, Gu Yun also began to use his spiritual power, wanting to become an adult.

It's a pity that no matter what he does, Gu Yun is still the same as he is now.

"Hmm..."

Grandpa looked at Gu Yun's actions and laughed: "Little Gu Yun, do you want to become an adult?" ”

"I just tried it, but it doesn't seem to work."

Gu Yun found that he couldn't get bigger, which made him a little confused.

So, Gu Yun looked at the old man expectantly, hoping that he would teach him how to change his age at will in the spirit state.

"Is there a spell that can make spirits older?"

"This, if you have a trick, there is."

"But really getting bigger," Grandpa shook his head, "I can't do it." ”

"That's not right!"

Gu Yun just used the spiritual vision technique to see what his grandfather looked like in his youth, and the other party definitely didn't use blinding methods and illusions, but really made his soul younger.

"It's soul engraving."

To put it simply, it is the artificial imprinting of a spirit body so that it can be used in old age in the future.

In fact, many powerful female warlocks will freeze their spirits in their youngest and most beautiful state.

However, this engraving is unique.

In other words, you can only freeze one form, you can change it, but you can only engrave one at a time, and it must be the state you are in at the time.

Gu Yun's physical body is still a child.

If he becomes a teenager in the future, he can freeze his teenage form, and when he is old, he can still choose to freeze his form to keep his spirit young.

But if you want to get bigger now, you can't do it.

"Maybe there are other spells that can do this kind of thing, but that kind of spell, grandpa really can't."

Grandpa said helplessly: "I'll teach you the spell later, but with Gu Yun's age, it is estimated that you won't be able to use this spell for the time being, right?" ”

"Hmm..."

Gu Yun said speechlessly: "In addition to the beauty of this spell, it also has..."

"Huh."

Grandpa laughed softly, then changed into a youthful posture again, and opened his arms for Gu Yun to observe carefully.

"I see."

Gu Yun knew the purpose of this spell.

Human beings will grow old, and the body after aging has all kinds of drawbacks, such as lack of agility, poor athletic ability, and so on.

This point, even if it is transformed into a spirit body, will still exist.

It's not that ghosts are tired, but it's a special psychological suggestion that binds the spirit's mind and perception.

Now, through out-of-body experience, Grandpa is able to mold the spirit into what he did when he was younger.

In this way, even if the body is old, grandpa can still fight the enemy with a spirit body, and gain the combat ability and reaction speed that he once had.

"Sometimes you will encounter youkai who are very good at physical arts, they are very fast, and they like to cross the Shikigami and attack the warlock directly."

Grandpa was not used to being young, so he reverted to his old appearance: "In this case, an old body is easily targeted. ”

Fighting with a young spirit is much easier than a decaying body in your seventies and eighties.

If one day in the future, Gu Yun's body is injured.

Then when he encounters something, he may also need to fight the enemy in the form of an out-of-body soul.

The posture of the soul and the physical body are definitely gone, but the huge spiritual power will not change.

"Alright, let's go."

"Where are we going?"

"Kamakura."

"Is it that far?"

Many people think that being a spirit can go through walls and go wherever they want.

But in fact, this thinking is wrong.

Because ghosts can't get into the doors and walls of inhabited houses at all.

Each building has its own 'Feng Shui aura', which is an invisible barrier that blocks the spirits.

Only with the permission of the owner can you ignore this obstacle and come and go as you please.

Gu Yun and Grandpa are powerful warlocks, so they can ignore this weak barrier, but the straight-line distance from the old house of Iijima to Kamakura makes it impossible for the two of them to rush directly to it.

"I'm here to summon the god of the little void."

"Oh, wait a minute."

Grandpa stopped: "This time, let's use the usual way." ”

"The conventional way?"

"Even if there is no Shikigami and no gods, how can ordinary warlocks go to Huangquan in a spirit state."

The ordinary warlock in Grandpa's mouth is afraid that it will not make Mr. Dao Mo cry and faint in the toilet.

A bald head said: Do you think all warlocks can go out of the body as casually as you are?!

"Okay."

Gu Yun is now a warlock apprentice who follows his grandfather, and everything is instructed by the old man.

Leaving from the old mansion of Iijima, the grandfather and grandson are different from ghosts, not floating in the air, but down-to-earth, which makes Gu Yun a little strange.

I saw him jump, and found that he didn't feel as light as a swallow.

"Out of body, why can't you even fly?"

Gu Yun asked, and his grandfather explained: "We are not really dead, so we will still be bound by the laws of this world. ”

"If you want to fly, when you come back, you can go and see The Art of Divine Travel."

iQue is an ancient technique from the East, which is divided into two types: day and night, collectively known as iQue.

"Is it the one in the study?"

Gu Yun thought of the spell books he had seen in his grandfather's collection, which contained the method of day and night.

However, because his grandfather had too many spells in his collection, and there were too few uses for iQue, Gu Yun hadn't had time to read this book yet.

"With Gu Yun's talent, it is estimated that you can learn it in one go."

Grandpa said, stopping.

Gu Yun looked around and found that the two had passed through the woods outside the old mansion and came to a road by the ridge.

"Warlocks can fly in the sky through out-of-body and fugue."

It's not particularly fast, but it's not slow either, and it's definitely more convenient than a car anyway.

"What I'm going to do now is how ordinary people can come and take places in a spirit state."

As he spoke, the old man stretched out his hand as he recited a mantra in his mouth, as if to summon something.

"Huh~Huh~~"

Soon, Gu Yun saw that at the end of the originally dark road, two clusters of bright headlights came from far and near.

"This is..."

Gu Yun is now in a spirit state, so he can clearly see the strange aura emanating from the surroundings of this strange bus: "This is a strange story, grandpa?" ”

"Hmm."

In Japan, there are many urban legends such as hearse drifting, ghost buses heading to hell, and taxis killing people at midnight.

These urban legends will continue to produce all kinds of hearses.

The hearse itself has little combat power.

But because of the characteristics of the hearse itself, they can quickly travel through various places, which is very convenient.

"Most hearses are not dangerous, and the probability of ordinary people encountering them is similar to winning the lottery."

Grandpa looked at the ghost bus parked in front of him, there were already some people sitting in it, and he saw that their eyes were blank and their faces were pale, which was very weird.

"But a hearse is a hearse after all," said Grandpa, "and sometimes if you don't pay attention, you may be taken away by them into the world and the ghosts." ”

"Is it so dangerous?"

"So you need to have a lot of weird knowledge."

Grandpa said, "You have to know where these hearses came from and why they were born. ”

"Uh..."

Gu Yun asked, "But grandpa, didn't you say that you don't know about strange talks?" ”

"Stinky boy, don't you look at whose territory this is?!"

Grandpa really doesn't understand, but he doesn't even know the strange things in his neighborhood, right?

"Oh, too, haha."

Gu Yun scratched his head with a smile, and hurriedly followed his grandfather's footsteps and got on the ghost bus with him.

"Are these all weird stories?"

"Not all."

Grandpa ignored the bloody driver in the driver's seat, and calmly handed over the two coins to the conductor lady.

Well, the conductor is also a female ghost with a pale face.

"The drivers, passengers, and conductors here are all lonely ghosts who don't want to go to Huangquan for various reasons."

Grandpa and Gu Yun found a seat and sat down, and then began to communicate as if no one was around.

And the ghosts seem to know that the two are not easy to mess with, and they have no intention of actively scaring or provoking at all.

"This hearse is the only one to be exact."

"And what's going on with them?"

Gu Yun asked, "If you are a ghost, aren't you afraid of being devoured by strange talks?" ”

He'd seen the Rip Girl before, and he'd seen many poor souls bound in ghosts by strange tales.

But now, ghosts and weird buses exist at the same time...

"Are they bound by this hearse?"

Gu Yun asked, "Shall we save it?" ”

"No," said Grandpa, "besides, they're not bound by hearse." ”

Humans, weirdos, and ghosts have a complex relationship.

Strange talk devours humanity and tortures souls.

But if people have died and become ghosts, then they are not afraid of strange talk.

"What strange talk really needs is all kinds of emotions in the living."

Grandpa: "However, ghosts are rarely able to produce strong emotional fluctuations, and to strange talks, they are a waste that is neither tasty nor useful to eat. ”

That's why weird talk treats the living as food, but doesn't touch ghosts and ghosts that are already dead.

"And one of the prerequisites for the strange story that gave birth to this bus was 'there to be a live person in the middle of the night.'"

Note that 'living people' are specifically stated here.

After all, you said that the horror story that humans came up with, and the protagonist is a ghost, is there still a sense of substitution?

You're going to scare the living, not the dead!

As we all know, any urban weird talk is basically a certain 'person' who encounters various supernatural events and never returns.

How could there be such a strange saying that some ghost is waiting for the bus at night?

Even if ghosts are involved, they must have encountered strange stories when they were alive and were still tormented after death.

Anyway, Gu Yun really hasn't heard of it, the protagonist is a ghost, and then encounters a horror story with strange stories.

"The reason why strange stories still torture the dead souls of the living after devouring them."

"One is to extract their surplus value," said Grandpa, "and two, because the victims do not know that they are dead." ”

Only this kind of 'wandering soul' can retain the emotions of human beings before they were born and continue to provide nourishment for strange stories.

Theoretically, if a person can understand that he is dead after being devoured by strange talks, then he will be lured by the power of Huangquan and be liberated.

The most troublesome thing is like Tamura, who doesn't know that he is dead.

This made him, as if he had fallen into a fantasy, repeating the evening when he encountered the rift girl.

As for these ghosts on the hearse.

They are dying horizontally, and the resentment in their hearts has not disappeared, and they will not let go of the hatred of the world and go to Huangquan.

"According to Grandpa, we are spirits now, similar to ghosts."

"Then why did we encounter this car?"

They are now in a spirit state, and it stands to reason that strange talk will not be attracted to the dead.

Gu Yun saw the incantation that his grandfather had recited before, so if he took the initiative to summon it, could the ghost call the hearse?

"My spell is the medium of summoning."

"But the reason why hearses can be summoned by ghosts lies in the hearse itself."

When many people hear the story of a hearse, there is always a "somebody gets on the bus and finds a lot of pale people in the car".

In other words, hearse chatter usually comes with ghosts and ghosts.

"Over time, this kind of hearse has its own attributes that can carry spirits."

Ghosts use these hearses to travel from place to place.

Warlocks like Grandpa occasionally ride them for easy travel.

Grandpa had lived in this land for sixty or seventy years, and he couldn't have known what supernatural events were nearby.

"Are there a lot of hearses like this?"

"Not all urban legends are weird," Grandpa: "It takes enough prayer." ”

Just like this ghost bus summoned by Grandpa, it has a very large driving range, far more than the road near the old house of Iijima.

And to encounter it, there are many prerequisites.

In the end, this ghost bus is not fatal.

"The effect of it is probably to make the person who gets on the bus fall asleep in a daze, and wake up to find that he has run to another city."

Strange stories are not all like the Rift Girl, and there are all kinds of strange things.

Ghost buses, apparently on this list.

"In addition, the resurrection speed of hearse monsters is much faster than other monsters."

It's not that grandpa didn't think about retiring from this strange story.

However, although the hearse itself is weak, its regenerative speed is terrifying.

In strange tales, powerful existences tend to have a longer resurrection cycle.

And such as ghost buses.

You wipe out today, and a new one will appear tomorrow night.

No matter how idle a warlock is, he won't be so bored.

"In the future, when you encounter such strange stories," Grandpa advised, "when you don't hurt anyone, just ignore it." ”

"Hmm."

Gu Yun is not the kind of person who can't hold sand in his eyes.

The existence of strange talk is closely related to human speech, and you can't eradicate it from the source, so it doesn't make sense to eliminate it many times.