The Xiu family watched “Chen Fashi” devouring the offerings on the altar with a mix of confusion and bewilderment.
Xiu Wancheng tentatively called out, “Chen Fashi?”
“Chen Fashi” ignored him, instead grabbing a golden, juicy roasted suckling pig and tearing off a piece of skin with his bare hands, stuffing it into his mouth.
Shi Pengpeng: “…”
Wen Miao was right; the old ghost’s eating manners were indeed too crude, as if he had been starving for a long time.
Xiu Wancheng’s reputation as a filial son might not be entirely deserved-who knows how he really treated his father when no one was watching.
Xiu’s mother, who often prayed to gods and sought the help of spirit mediums and feng shui masters, nudged Xiu Wancheng and whispered, “Your father has possessed Chen Fashi.”
Chen Fashi had already explained this to them, but Xiu Wancheng wasn’t entirely sure.
Prompted by his mother, he quickly corrected himself, “Dad, is that you?”
“Chen Fashi” finally looked up, squinting as if to confirm Xiu Wancheng’s identity, then slowly said, “Yes, it’s me. Son, you’ve been very filial. You’ve done well this time, and I’m very pleased.”
Xiu Wancheng relaxed a little at the praise.
His mother and Gan Yanmei also showed signs of relief, but as instructed, only Xiu Wancheng was allowed to speak to the possessed Chen Fashi to avoid any conflicts, so the others remained silent.
Xiu Wancheng pointed to Xiu Jizong, who was dozing on the prayer mat, and said, “Dad, you always wanted me to give the family a male heir. Look, this is your grandson. He just turned five…”
“Ah, yes, yes,”
“Chen Fashi” remembered, quickly stepping down from the altar to examine Xiu Jizong closely.
The boy resembled his mother, Gan Yanmei, and was quite handsome.
“Chen Fashi” grew more and more satisfied, finally smiling,
“Good, good. He’s truly my precious grandson. It was him who led the horse that carried me back.”
He turned to Xiu Wancheng and asked, “What’s his name?”
“Dad, don’t you remember?” Xiu Wancheng chuckled.
“You chose his name before you passed away. It’s Jizong.”
“How could I forget?” “Chen Fashi” glanced at him.
“I just wanted to make sure you followed my instructions.”
Xiu’s mother muttered under her breath, “This old man, always so full of schemes.”
“Chen Fashi” shot her a look but didn’t argue.
Instead, he reached out to touch Xiu Jizong’s chubby cheeks, his face filled with affection.
“Jizong, Jizong, what a fine name. With this precious child, our family line will continue. You must grow up well, and I will watch over you from the afterlife.”
This heartwarming scene of familial love stirred whispers among the onlookers.
Some dismissed it as Chen Fashi playing tricks, while others felt pity for Xiu Wancheng’s ex-wife and his two granddaughters.
Of course, not everyone knew about the past conflicts between the Xiu family and the ex-wife, and some didn’t even know Xiu Wancheng had two daughters.
Seeing this scene, they were moved by the apparent harmony and filial piety of the family.
There were also those who, like the Xiu family, valued sons over daughters.
Seeing this, they felt even more strongly that having a male heir was essential.
They sighed in relief that Xiu Wancheng had listened to his parents and divorced his ex-wife, or else the family line would have been cut off.
In the ancestral hall, “Chen Fashi” teased Xiu Jizong for a while, and when he felt it was enough, he turned to Xiu Wancheng with a stern and authoritative expression, saying, “Jizong is my own grandson, the root of our family in this world. From now on, during the annual festivals and sacrifices, he must personally kowtow and burn paper offerings for me, understand?”
“Of course,” Xiu Wancheng quickly agreed, “Jizong is your only grandson. Even if you hadn’t instructed us, we would have done so.”
Chen Fashi nodded, “Good, then I can rest in peace underground.”
Hearing this, Xiu Wancheng felt greatly relieved and was about to say more when suddenly a cold wind swept through, scattering the paper money on the altar table, filling the room with fluttering sheets.
Immediately after, Chen Fashi’s eyes widened abruptly, and his entire face contorted.
Startled, Xiu Wancheng hurriedly asked, “Father, what’s wrong?”
Chen Fashi’s face turned purplish, his mouth gaping open, emitting a gurgling sound.
His hands clutched tightly at his throat as if trying to pull something out of himself.
This horrifying scene not only frightened the Xiu family members but also caused the onlookers outside the ancestral hall to instinctively step back, murmuring among themselves.
“What’s going on? Could it be a haunting?”
“Nonsense, Chen Fashi properly summoned the spirit of the old master Xiu. How could it be a haunting?”
“Then someone must have offended the spirits?”
“Is this fake? But the performance is quite convincing.”
Shi Pengpeng immediately knew something was wrong.
Chen Fashi’s condition clearly indicated that another malevolent spirit had been summoned and was now struggling with the spirit of Xiu’s father for control of Chen Fashi’s body.
Chen Fashi was in the midst of a ritual, his spirit confined, and his body no longer under his control.
Under the tugging of the two spirits, his eyes rolled back, and he was on the verge of suffocation.
Shi Pengpeng quickly leaped over the crowd and into the ancestral hall.
Her graceful movement drew gasps of surprise.
Cai Baojun exclaimed, “Did I see that right? Did she just fly in?”
Wen Miao was equally stunned, “I don’t know, she didn’t tell me!”
Inside the hall, Xiu Wancheng was also taken aback, “Who are you?”
Shi Pengpeng had no time to explain in detail.
She rushed to Chen Fashi, swiftly pinning his arms behind his back with a deft maneuver, and stuffed a yellow talisman into his mouth.
“Gag, gag,” Chen Fashi retched violently, and his own spirit regained consciousness, shouting hoarsely, “First, send the old master Xiu away!”
Shi Pengpeng understood his meaning.
With two spirits inside him, acting rashly could cause unintended harm.
Since he had summoned the spirits through a necromantic ritual, he couldn’t forcibly expel them like ordinary ghosts, as it would damage his cultivation and possibly harm his spirit.
The best approach was to first send Xiu’s father away, then deal with the wild ghost.
Shi Pengpeng turned to Xiu Wancheng, “Did Chen Fashi teach you how to send your father back?”
“Yes, yes!” Xiu Wancheng, being a seasoned businessman, quickly reacted.
He took out another paper horse prepared in advance, lit it with incense, and chanted, “I respectfully request the earth deity to clear the path, the child to escort the soul, and the body to remain safe.”
The paper horse quickly burned to ashes, scattering in the air.
Shi Pengpeng turned to Chen Fashi, “How is it now?”
Chen Fashi’s face remained twisted in shock as he exclaimed, “What’s going on? Why can’t we send him away?”
Shi Pengpeng also noticed that the two yin spirits were still present and asked, “Did we make a mistake somewhere?”
Xiu Wancheng looked bewildered.
“N-no, I followed the steps exactly as Chen Fashi taught me.”
“He didn’t make a mistake,” Chen Fashi panted.
“It’s the paper horse-it refuses to carry Old Master Xiu.”
He paused, then added in confusion, “Why is the paper horse carrying that wandering ghost instead? And the child can’t lead the horse…”
Shi Pengpeng, unfamiliar with the art of summoning spirits, found this intriguing.
“Can a paper horse really mistake someone?”
“That shouldn’t happen,” Chen Fashi said, equally puzzled.
“In all my years of observing spirits, I’ve never made a mistake. The paper horse is guided by familial ties and has never failed before…”
Yet, the current situation clearly indicated something had gone wrong with the paper horse.
Hearing this, Shi Pengpeng seemed to recall something.
After a moment of thought, she suggested, “Fashi, could you let that wandering ghost possess you temporarily so he can explain his origins?”
As she spoke, she showed him a photo of her graduation certificate.
“I’m a student of the Liangyi Academy. I don’t know if you’ve heard of our school…”
Before she could finish, Chen Fashi’s face lit up upon seeing her certificate.
“You’re Shi Pengpeng? The Shi Pengpeng who tamed the stone beast?”
Shi Pengpeng: “…”
She had expected her reputation to spread within the industry, but she hadn’t anticipated it would be this widespread.
It was convenient, though, as it saved her a lot of explanation.
Shi Pengpeng’s exploits in Biannan were legendary.
Recognizing her, Chen Fashi immediately trusted her and not only agreed to her request but also volunteered to share some details about the art of summoning spirits.
Though Xiu Wancheng didn’t understand the situation, seeing Chen Fashi’s high regard for this unfamiliar young woman, he knew she must be an expert and didn’t dare interrupt.
With Chen Fashi’s cooperation, Shi Pengpeng quickly used a talisman to suppress the spirit of Old Master Xiu Jizong temporarily.
Chen Fashi then recited an incantation to withdraw his own spirit.
Thus, the wandering ghost finally took possession of Chen Fashi’s body.
“Chen Fashi’s” face twisted, and his body trembled slightly before his eyes cleared.
Seeing this, Shi Pengpeng knew the yin spirit had successfully possessed him and asked, “Where did you come from, wandering ghost? Why are you causing trouble here?”
“I’m not a wandering ghost!” “Chen Fashi” shouted angrily.
“I am Xiu Jinchi. The one before was an imposter.”
Xiu Jinchi was the name of Xiu Wancheng’s father.
“Chen Fashi” then turned to Xiu Wancheng and said with deep sorrow, “Wancheng, you fool, you’ve been played for a fool!”
The onlookers gasped softly, surprised by this new twist.
Xiu Wancheng looked at Shi Pengpeng in confusion. “Miss Shi, what is this…?”
Shi Pengpeng, who had already anticipated this, remained calm and simply said, “You figure it out yourself.”
As she spoke, she flicked her hand, sending a talisman flying to stick on Xiu Wancheng’s forehead.
Xiu Wancheng felt a gust of wind enter his mind, and his thoughts suddenly became muddled.
In a daze, he felt as if he were floating, his vision rising higher and higher until he saw his own body still kneeling on the ground.
Only then did he realize his soul had left his body.
Before anyone could react in surprise, Chen Fashi released another paper horse from his hand.
Accompanied by a chant, Xiu Wancheng’s soul was carried by the paper horse and swiftly entered Chen Fashi’s body.
This was another feature of the Soul Observation Technique that Chen Fashi had just explained to Shi Pengpeng.
Not only could it bring the deceased back from the underworld, but it could also allow the living to have their souls leave their bodies and personally “observe the underworld.”
However, Chen Fashi’s intention this time was not to send Xiu Wancheng to the underworld.
Instead, he guided Xiu Wancheng’s spirit into his own Yuan Chen Palace to personally identify the two yin souls.
This method was extraordinary, and Chen Fashi only dared to attempt it because Shi Pengpeng was there to protect him.
Moreover, it couldn’t be sustained for too long.
After just a few seconds, Shi Pengpeng quickly performed a spell and dissolved the yellow talisman on Xiu Wancheng’s forehead.
Xiu Wancheng’s body shuddered, and he suddenly regained consciousness.
He leaped to his feet, pointing at “Chen Fashi” and shouting, “He’s my real father! The one before was a fake!”
Xiu’s mother and Gan Yanmei had been watching silently, not daring to interrupt.
But upon hearing this, they could no longer hold back.
Xiu’s mother asked, “Wancheng, are you telling the truth?”
“Absolutely true,” Xiu Wancheng said, slapping his thigh.
“Zongzong got the wrong person and brought back some unrelated ghost. The one who came later is my real father.”
“That little brat didn’t get the wrong person,” “Chen Fashi” said, his face filled with anger as he pointed at Xiu Jizong. “He brought back his own grandfather.”
Xiu Wancheng was stunned.
“Dad, what do you mean?”
“What else could I mean?” “Chen Fashi” pounded his chest in frustration.
He hadn’t wanted to say this in front of so many people, but the situation was too serious to hold back.
He said bitterly, “Wancheng, you’re so confused. Your wife cheated on you. That little brat isn’t your son.”
“If you had listened to that old ghost’s nonsense and let that little brat continue to offer sacrifices and burn paper money for me, my lineage would truly be cut off in the afterlife.”
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire room erupted in uproar.