Chapter Five: A Glimpse into the Path (Part Two)

“Look at this passage,” Shi Jun said, pointing at the booklet. “It says here that humans are closest to the earth element, but have no fixed attribute—before a person channels the power of the five elements to transcend the mortal body and become either an immortal, a demon, or die and turn into a nether spirit, humans remain the closest to earth, yet lack any defined boundary of attributes. In other words, humans can learn any kind of elemental magic at will! If we can devise a spell that focuses on earth and supplements it with other elements to counter Chishang’s water-based constitution, perhaps we could catch him off guard by exploiting his misjudgment. That might give us a chance, don’t you think?”

“That sounds reasonable, but before anyone channels the power of the five elements to transcend their body, their strength is extremely limited. How could we possibly subdue a powerful ghost like Chishang with so little magical force?” Hu Hai was initially puzzled, but his mind was quick. As he spoke, he suddenly caught the subtlety in Shi Jun’s words, slapped the bedboard, and cried out in sudden realization, “You sly fox, I’ve finally got it! Most people couldn’t do it, but you just might be able to!”

Shi Jun was delighted that Hu Hai grasped his meaning so quickly. He continued, “Our immediate priority should be to divide our efforts. You should focus on practicing the basic meditative techniques from the book to strengthen your spiritual power as quickly as possible. Also, take some time to study your Spirit Return and see if you can unleash its full potential. That way, when you face Chishang again, you won’t be caught so off guard.”

“Alright!” Hu Hai agreed enthusiastically, but then asked, “What about you? Creating a spell that combines multiple elements isn’t something simple. Besides, we don’t even know a single elemental spell yet!”

“That’s because you’re too careless!” Shi Jun flipped through the booklet again and pointed to the last few pages. “Look here. Aren’t there a few basic spell techniques described at the end?”

“Yes! The Art of Severing, Water Shield, Water Spirit Summon, Three-foot Frost... and more!” Hu Hai snatched the booklet with delight, humming as he read, “Water Dragon Wave—Isn’t that Chishang’s signature move? Ha! I’ve found a real treasure!”

“Most of these are water-based spells, probably because Old Ancestor Yellow Springs hails from the Underworld, so his power is focused on water. Did you notice there’s also a basic earth spell in here?” Shi Jun pointed at the last page and speculated, “But it seems he copied it from somewhere else, and there’s only this one.”

“Ha! The Art of Binding—definitely earth element. Your plan could work! Hmm? But the incantation and hand seals are incomplete. Why is that?” Hu Hai was excited, but upon a closer look, he was disappointed.

“That makes perfect sense! According to the five elements theory in the book, spells of mutual restraint are not interchangeable. No matter how profound Yellow Springs’ cultivation, unless he transcended the limitations of the five elements, he could not master the earth spells that specifically counter his own water affinity. If that’s the case, then it’s natural that he only has a superficial grasp of the earth-based Binding Art, and so the record in the book is incomplete.” Shi Jun paused, then continued, “Since he knew little about it, it’s only logical that the details in the book are sketchy.”

Hu Hai blinked, half understanding and half puzzled, but soon his spirits rose again. “Who cares about countering water or earth? Since Old Ancestor Yellow Springs left it behind, it must be useful! Ha! I’m a bona fide earth element expert—let me try it out first!”

Shi Jun was also curious to see what the spell could do, so he made no objection and simply watched Hu Hai follow the book’s instructions.

* * * * * * * *

Hu Hai, after flipping through the booklet for a while, drew a deep, theatrical breath, sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, muttered a few words, and waved his hands, forming bizarre and awkward hand seals. He then opened his eyes, pointed at Shi Jun, and shouted, “Bind!”—using Shi Jun as his live test subject.

Shi Jun’s eardrums buzzed from Hu Hai’s shout, but nothing else happened. He grunted, “You’re making enough noise to wake the dead! Magic isn’t about volume, you know.”

Hu Hai, seeing Shi Jun completely unfazed, scrutinized him up and down, waved his hand before Shi Jun’s face, and, after Shi Jun batted his hand away, admitted defeat with a crestfallen sigh. “Looks like it didn’t work. I followed the book’s instructions exactly—why isn’t it having any effect? Maybe you should give it a try!”

Shi Jun hadn’t expected Hu Hai to succeed on the first attempt, but seeing him so downcast, he tried to comfort him. “Don’t worry. The spell is incomplete to begin with. Let’s just leave it for now.”

But Hu Hai’s stubbornness had been roused. He tossed the booklet into Shi Jun’s arms and, facing him directly, insisted, “You try it! I refuse to believe it won’t work. I’ll be your target!”

Shi Jun was also curious, so he carefully read through the booklet again and began to cast the spell.

But after forming only two or three hand seals, he sensed something was off—the spell really was incomplete, and seemed to be missing a critical part. The hand seals and incantation truly did channel earth-elemental power; as he cast the spell, he could feel a dense, robust energy field stirring. But the instructions for using that force to actually bind an opponent were missing. It was like holding a state-of-the-art pistol without knowing where the trigger was—a truly exasperating predicament.

Yet Shi Jun was nothing if not tenacious, and his lack of formal training meant he wasn’t bound by conventional methods. When his casting was blocked, he instinctively improvised, varying the hand seals and then invoking the latter half of the “Spirit Disruption” spell.

As the magic surged, Hu Hai’s pale yellow, rich, and vibrant spiritual field appeared vividly in Shi Jun’s mind. With no time to ponder, he kept switching hand forms, merging the ending of the Spirit Disruption spell with the Binding Art, and in that moment, spontaneously created an entirely new spell combining both earth and water elements.

The two opposing energy fields clashed and merged within Shi Jun, creating an alternating sensation—now cool as water, now warm as earth—that spread swiftly through his body and finally unified. He raised both hands, and a band of faint yellow light shot straight at Hu Hai, striking him squarely.

Hu Hai saw a flash of yellow light, then suddenly the bed beneath him seemed to soften, transforming into an immense marsh. His body and even his soul were dragged down, paralyzed, every limb frozen. Waves of dread swept over him as though his soul were being devoured by some nameless force. He tried to cry out, but no sound emerged. All he could do was watch himself sink into a bottomless abyss.

Shi Jun saw Hu Hai jerk violently, then collapse, rigid as a board, a look of terror and despair on his face. Shi Jun’s heart clenched with dread. He rushed to cradle Hu Hai, calling his name in panic—he could hardly believe a casually improvised spell could have such a terrifying effect and blamed himself for his recklessness. But overwhelmed by confusion, he couldn’t think of a way to remedy the situation, so he hurriedly laid Hu Hai flat on the bed and dashed into Motuo’s room to seek help.