The master did not look back at us again.
Nor did he respond to Uncle Master with a single word.
He simply turned his back to us, waved his hand, and drifted towards the two Yin messengers in the rain.
As he approached, the master cupped his hands towards the two Yin messengers.
The two Yin messengers nodded slightly, turned abruptly, and walked forward.
My master followed behind them.
As soon as the three figures took three steps, they vanished into the rain.
The surrounding chilling aura instantly disappeared.
Everything returned to normal.
The master was gone…
My Uncle Master and I knew that from this moment on, we were separated by yin and yang.
He was truly gone.
“Master, farewell!”
I choked back a sob as I gazed in the direction the master had left.
With that, I immediately knelt on the street.
Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably, mingling with the rain and dripping onto the ground.
I kowtowed three times towards the direction the master had gone.
In my mind, I recalled the past six months.
The master's teachings, every moment spent with him.
It felt as if those scenes were from yesterday.
My heart was filled with a myriad of emotions.
Without the master, I would not be who I am today.
The master saved my life, taught me Taoist methods, and passed down the shop and the Yin-Yang Envoy talismans to me.
He made me a Yang Envoy, a semi-official of the underworld.
And now, he was gone.
And he left with regret.
My heart ached terribly.
I had lost another loved one.
I knelt on the ground and couldn't help but cry out.
“Mas… Master…”
My choked whispers could not conceal my longing for the master.
Although I had been mentally prepared for this,
And I knew that in the cycle of reincarnation, this was a step everyone had to take.
A step no one could avoid.
I just hadn't expected it to come so soon.
At this moment, Uncle Master came up to me.
He let out a sigh and said,
“Little Qin, get up! Senior Brother, he… has departed.”
As he spoke, Uncle Master helped me to my feet.
I looked at Uncle Master and noticed his eyes were also red.
Those two old fellows had bickered their entire lives.
Now that the master was gone, Uncle Master was also deeply saddened.
“Uncle Master!”
Uncle Master nodded:
“The old fool is gone. Let’s start making arrangements for his funeral.”
I nodded:
“Okay!”
Then, I walked into the house.
Upon entering the room, I saw the master’s body, his eyes closed.
He lay quietly on the chair, as if he were asleep.
Uncle Master paused and walked forward.
When he touched the master’s body, he frowned slightly.
Then he sighed:
“Senior Brother must have passed away last night.
The reason he only left now is surely because he wanted to see you one last time.”
After saying this, Uncle Master sighed again.
Hearing this, tears once again welled up in my eyes.
With a "plop," I knelt before the master's body.
“Master!”
Saying this, I kowtowed to the master again.
At the same time, another person entered from the main door.
It was Old Mo. He had probably just arrived for work and, seeing the situation in our shop, rushed over.
When he saw me, Uncle Master, and the master lying on the chair, lifeless,
He likely guessed what had happened.
But he still asked in disbelief,
“Master, Old Qin, Senior Uncle, has he… has he passed away?”
I didn't answer immediately. Uncle Master simply nodded.
Seeing Uncle Master nod, Old Mo quickly put down his umbrella and walked over.
He knelt down beside me and kowtowed three times to the master.
“Senior Uncle, may you rest in peace.”
Just then, the little fox also came running out from the inner room.
She transformed into her human form,
And in her hand was a small wooden box.
Then she said,
“Qin Ze, Master Gu passed away last night at three o’clock.
He asked me to give these things to you.”
Hearing this, I stood up again.
I took the wooden box from her hand and, suppressing my grief, opened it.
Inside the box were some documents, identification, bank cards, and some cash.
There was also a will.
These were the master’s belongings and inheritance left to me.
As I held them, tears dripped onto them.
The master was gone, but he had given me all his savings and assets.
I felt no excitement or happiness, only a tearing pain in my heart.
The master’s death was a reality.
I could not change anything. Now, I could only send him off with the highest funeral rites…
Then, Uncle Master took out three sticks of incense.
He bowed to the master’s body:
“Senior Brother, rest assured as you descend.
I will arrange the funeral matters properly for you!”
After speaking, he had Old Mo place an incense burner at the master’s feet.
He inserted the incense sticks.
Finally, he took a yellow talisman and waved it over the master’s face,
“Yin messenger…”
His voice drew out, long and lingering.
And I, also suppressing my grief, took out the soul banner from the shop.
Following the rules of funeral rites, I hung it at the main entrance…
Old Mo also took out a brazier and began burning paper offerings.
Finally, they carried a coffin, parked in the backyard, into the main hall and placed the master inside.
For the next three days,
Uncle Master, Old Mo, and I were busy arranging the master’s funeral.
The master had not suffered in his passing, so a three-day simple ritual was sufficient.
The master had few relatives and friends. Besides the surrounding shopkeepers,
And his former colleague Brother Chen, very few people came to pay their respects.
Yunxia Gu also did not come.
Because she could not be contacted…
However, on the night of the master’s funeral procession,
Uncle Master asked me to light nine white candles at the door.
And hang a white wooden tablet with my master’s name, “Gu Hui,” written on it.
I didn’t know why this was being done.
Because this method of funeral procession was something my master had never told me about before.
But since Uncle Master told me to do it, I did.
He also told me and Old Mo that if anyone came to pay respects at night, we should not say anything.
We should just watch.
If they bowed, we would return the bow.
But we were not to speak.
The white candles outside must not be extinguished.
Although I didn't understand why, I had a feeling it was not ordinary.
While keeping vigil until one in the morning,
The white candles outside rustled.
Then I saw an old woman, leaning on a dragon-headed staff and carrying a large rat, walk in from outside.
I recognized this person, the proprietress of Rose Supermarket.
She was a spirit medium from Heiniuling’s bottomless pit, Shu Guifang, Grandma Rat.
Without a word, she came to the mourning hall.
She bowed to my master’s coffin, then nodded to us.
Afterwards, without stopping, she turned and left.
Not long after she left, an old man in a black robe arrived.
I had never seen him before.
But this person exuded a chilling aura, his entire body concealed within the black robe.
He felt like a ghost, but not quite.
After bowing to the master, I returned the bow.
He looked at me, and then at Uncle Master and Old Mo on the side.
Finally, he nodded to Uncle Master, acknowledging him.
Then he also turned and left.
The third person was a short man wearing black and white robes.
He looked like a dwarf.
But as soon as he appeared, he exuded a foul smell of corpse qi.
This dwarf was definitely not a zombie or a corpse, just smelly.
After arriving, he also bowed, and then left.
Thus, starting from one in the morning,
Six or seven more waves of strange people came to the house one after another.
Except for the first Grandma Rat,
I hadn't met the others, nor did I know what they did or their surnames…