Chapter 37: "Heavenly Scripture of Alchemy and Medicine"

After the final exams, I couldn’t wait for my uncle’s driver to take me back home. The provincial capital was nice, but after all, it wasn’t my home.

As soon as I returned to my hometown, Jiushizhang, I overheard the villagers gossiping about how Old Yang, the one who had invited the divine spirit, was near death.

How could that be? Wasn’t Old Yang in good health during the National Day holidays? How could she deteriorate so quickly in just a few months?

When I got home, my parents were there. My mother was quite happy to see me back for the holidays, but I couldn't help noticing that there was more white in their hair.

Returning home felt strange and bittersweet, but overall, it was good to be home!

My mother was busy making food for me, but I quickly stopped her, telling her I wasn’t very hungry. Then, I asked, “Mom, I heard Old Yang is sick. Is that true?”

My mother sighed and said, “Yes, a few days ago, someone came to ask her to summon a spirit to drive away evil, but unexpectedly, she suddenly collapsed during the ritual and became paralyzed. Now she can only speak intermittently, and her words are unclear. Could it be that the Yang family has revealed too many secrets and is being punished by the heavens?”

I was startled. Wasn’t this the second time something had gone wrong during a ritual to summon a spirit?

My father took a few puffs from his pipe, his half-hidden face surrounded by smoke. He grunted twice and glanced at my mother, saying, “Stop talking nonsense. What secrets? The Yang family has been full of scammers for generations. How could they summon a divine spirit? If I could do that, I’d be a god myself. Ridiculous!”

My mother rolled her eyes at him and retorted, “Your family’s the best, huh? Isn’t it the Zhang family that’s full of so-called ‘spiritual masters’? Didn’t you say the Yang family and ours were very close in the past? Why are you speaking like this about them?”

I froze, surprised. The Yang family and the Zhang family were close in the past? Was there something more to this?

I quickly asked my father, “Dad, what was our relationship with the Yang family? I’ve never heard of this before.”

My father glanced at me, stood up from the sofa, and said, “Don’t ask about those things. Just focus on your studies.” After finishing, he walked out of the room.

Something was off. From the look on his face, I could tell there was more to the story, but why wouldn’t he tell me?

I said to my mother that I was going out for a bit, and then walked towards the Yang family’s house on the east side of Jiushizhang.

Regardless of what the relationship between the Yang family and our Zhang family was, I should go see Old Yang, especially since she had taught me the methods of divination and spirit summoning.

Along the way, I greeted the villagers—uncle, aunt, elder, brother, and so on. It felt good to keep up appearances; if I ignored them, they’d surely say, “Look, Zhang Santi’s son went to school and now that he’s home, he doesn’t even recognize us anymore.”

Although I didn’t mind these things, my parents were very concerned with face, so being polite like this was probably me doing them a favor.

When I entered the Yang family’s house, I saw Yang Youcai, the father of Yang Yáng, limping out of Old Yang’s room. He was walking slowly with his hands behind his back, his demeanor calm and unhurried.

“Ah! Isn’t this… Santi?” he said, his speech slow as always.

Ugh, Yang Youcai always spoke like this. A word would come out so slowly, and given his calm manner, he didn’t seem at all like someone whose mother was on the verge of death.

I quickly nodded and said, “I’m here to check on Old Yang.” Before he could say anything else, I hurried into Old Yang’s room.

The room was filled with a strong smell of Chinese medicine, so pungent it was almost unbearable.

Old Yang was lying on the bed under a large red quilt, her lips trembling as she stared blankly, her hair a tangled mess, and the wrinkles on her face deeply set in a regular pattern. Beside her pillow, there was a half-bowl of black, sticky medicine and an old, worn-out thread-bound book.

The book, slightly yellowed and facing down, didn’t seem like something I could recognize at first glance.

I sat down by the bed and softly said, “Old Yang, I’ve come to see you.”

Hearing my voice, Old Yang’s dull eyes suddenly seemed to brighten a little. She opened her mouth, but I noticed that her mouth was crooked, and her words came out with great difficulty.

I was puzzled. Since Old Yang was like this, why hadn’t I seen Yang Yáng at home?

“Santi, good… good child,” Old Yang said with great effort.

Seeing how hard it was for her to speak, I quickly said, “Old Yang, don’t speak anymore, just rest well.”

“Water…” she whispered.

She needed water, so I quickly stood up, took the cup from the nearby table, and gently helped Old Yang sit up to feed her a few spoonfuls.

She felt so light, and I sighed inwardly, feeling a bit down.

“Santi, are you on vacation now?” After drinking a bit of water, Old Yang’s speech became a bit quicker.

I nodded and replied, “Yes, just got back today for the holidays. By the way, Old Yang, where’s Yáng? I haven’t seen him around.”

Old Yang sighed and said, “Who knows? He hasn’t been home lately. I heard he’s been taking some lamb to the south to make a fortune.”

Ah, no wonder.

“That kid, I’m afraid I won’t see him again…” she added with a faint smile.

I forced a silly grin and said, “Old Yang, you’ll definitely get better, don’t talk like that.”

“Child, I know my own fate,” Old Yang said with a bitter smile in her eyes. “Do you believe it? In the past, when I asked for divination, it was all fake. But recently, I’ve had a strange feeling… I did a reading myself, and I know I won’t last much longer.”

…I didn’t know whether to believe Old Yang’s words or not, but reluctantly, I nodded to show I believed her.

“Santi, those things I taught you, don’t use them anymore. Oh, summoning gods… What gods? The Yang family hasn’t summoned a single god, but we summoned the King of Hell instead. It’s all karmic retribution!”

After hearing Old Yang’s words, I thought for a moment. It seemed like she was telling the truth. Damn it!

“Those things are harmful, Santi. You’re a good kid, I don’t want to hurt you,” Old Yang said, speaking more and more quickly.

I said, “Don’t worry, Old Yang, I understand. But I want to ask, what was the relationship between our Zhang family and your Yang family?”

Old Yang paused for a while and then said, “Yes, it was a big one. My maternal family’s surname is Liu. The Zhang, Yang, and Liu families have a history, but very few of your generation know about it. Hey, take that book. It’s for you. Read it and you’ll understand.”

I was curious. I picked up the old, thread-bound book, its pages frayed at the edges, and opened the cover. Four bold characters in cursive appeared in front of my eyes.

I suddenly felt my eyes widen in shock.

The title of the book was “Heavenly Scripture of Alchemy and Medicine.” My heart pounded.