All preparations complete, I began the ritual of appeasement.
Before starting, I instructed the Wu family to leave all the curtains wide open.
At the same time, I took a mirror from the dressing table and hung it with a red rope beneath the light fixture.
I then addressed Wu Lianyong and Wu Ma, who stood nearby:
"Don't be frightened later. After I perform the incantation, the thing that's possessing Sister Wu will appear in the mirror. We'll try to talk to it first. It would be best if we can resolve it through conversation and send it away. If that's not possible, then I'll resort to force..."
Hearing my words, Wu Ma and Wu Lianyong trembled, nodding repeatedly in agreement.
Following this, Lao Mo and I exchanged glances. We didn't treat this matter as anything significant, considering it merely a simple exorcism.
After closing the doors and windows, the room plunged into complete darkness, devoid of any light.
I lit three sticks of incense and a white candle simultaneously. The faint flame burned, but soon, the red candlelight shifted to an eerie dark green. It looked very strange in the room, a transformation caused by the candlelight encountering ghostly energy. Lao Mo and I remained calm, accustomed to such phenomena. Wu Ma and Wu Lianyong, however, appeared visibly terrified, their eyes wide, their bodies trembling.
Next, I produced a yellow talisman and lit it directly in the candlelight. The yellow paper burned, quickly turning to ash. Concurrently, I gently placed a chopstick upright in a bowl of water. Normally, it would not stand on its own. But at this moment, the chopstick stood perfectly straight in the water bowl, appearing particularly eerie under the dark green candlelight.
Seeing the chopstick standing, I took a step back and addressed Wu Lianhua, who lay on the bed:
"Friend, what shall I call you?"
As soon as I spoke, Wu Lianhua’s body on the bed trembled slightly. Then, I noticed a ripple forming in the mirror hanging beneath the light. In the dim glow, it looked like waves on water. This method is called the "Nether Mirror Technique," taught to me by my master just days before he departed.
Upon witnessing this, I turned and gestured for Wu Ma and Wu Lianyong to look up. Both shifted their gaze upwards. The moment they saw the mirror with the rippling surface, they became uneasy, their breathing becoming noticeably rapid. They let out heavy, ragged gasps. Soon, the ripples dispersed, and a figure appeared in the mirror. It was a thin woman with a pale complexion, but her appearance was clearly different from Wu Lianhua's; it was someone else.
The plump woman seemed somewhat dazed, standing in the mirror and staring at us outside it. This must be the malevolent entity possessing Wu Lianhua. A female ghost.
Then, in a drawn-out, sinister voice, she replied:
"The deceased, Huang Lishi."
Huang Lishi? It seemed this female ghost had been dead for quite some time. I paid it no mind and continued:
"Huang Lishi, I am Qin Ze, a Taoist priest. I see you today because I wish to ask why you are possessing Wu Lianhua. Do you have any grievances with her?"
As I asked this, the people around me widened their eyes, silently staring at the pale-faced female ghost in the mirror. The ghost's expression remained somewhat dazed. In fact, after hearing my question, she shook her head:
"Wu Lianhua? I don't know her!"
Her voice was very soft, faint, and mournful, each word drawn out. She sounded weak and listless. However, after saying this, I found myself feeling perplexed. If you're possessing Wu Lianhua, how can you not know her? But this was an appeasement ritual, so I didn't get angry. I simply continued:
"Huang Lishi, Wu Lianhua is the woman you are currently possessing. The realms of yin and yang are separate, and the paths of humans and ghosts diverge. Today, I, a humble priest, have been entrusted by the Wu family to ask you to release Wu Lianhua. You can state any difficulties or conditions you have. As long as they are reasonable, we will agree."
I finished speaking calmly, awaiting the other party's response. My master had always said that generally, once we Taoist priests reveal our identities and offer concessions, most common malevolent entities will accept the offer and step down. The appeasement ritual would then be successful. Of course, if the other party refused to cooperate, then a forceful expulsion might be necessary.
At this moment, the ghost's reply was crucial. Lao Mo and I felt a hint of nervousness. The Wu family members stared with anticipation. Wu Lianyong even chimed in:
"As long as, as long as you release my sister, my, our family will definitely give you plenty of spirit money and incense."
"Yes! Please let my daughter go!" Wu Ma couldn't help but cry out.
However, the female ghost in the mirror still appeared dazed. Without any change in her expression, she woodenly looked at us outside and suddenly tilted her head, saying:
"Isn't she the pig I raised?"
Huang Lishi's voice was still soft, but this time it carried a trace of confusion. Hearing this, all of us were stunned.
"The pig she raised?" What did that mean? What did she mean by "the pig she raised"? Lao Mo and I instinctively exchanged a glance. Lao Mo then spoke:
"Huang Lishi, get it straight. The person you're possessing is a human, not a pig."
But the female ghost Huang Lishi continued to shake her head in the mirror, replying mournfully:
"No, she's just a pig. See how fat I've kept her? When the time comes, she can be traded to Master Wang to settle the debt. That way, my husband won't have to work so hard..."