Chapter Eighty-Nine: The Snake Charmer

The old man in coarse hemp robes was looking at the crowd and explaining all of this when someone suddenly asked, “May I ask, sir, why do rumors of serpent spirits harming people spread in other places, yet in our Knife-Axe Mountain there are such strange wonders? What is the reason for that?”

“Yes, yes, what is the reason?” the others asked at once.

The old man cleared his throat and said, “Tell me, do you know snake charmers?”

“Of course we do. There are more snake charmers here than anywhere else, precisely because the snakes in these mountains are spirited and intelligent,” the crowd cried.

The old man smiled and nodded, admitting it. “This old man is a snake charmer as well. Knowing that the snakes of this mountain possess spiritual nature is why I came here to seek them.”

“You claim to be one, but I have never seen you. I know all the snake charmers in Yingshan County,” said a man who also seemed to be a snake charmer.

“To tell the truth, I come from overseas. This time I have returned to search for a snake connected to certain ancestral secrets,” the old man said mysteriously.

People are naturally curious. Hearing that there were secret matters involved, they all wanted to listen. One bold fellow asked, “What secret? Tell us. If it is good, there will be a reward for you, just as though you had performed your snake tricks.”

“Why not perform while you speak?” someone suggested.

“Yes, yes, perform and talk at the same time.”

The old man reluctantly nodded. “Then this old man will make a fool of himself.”

He took off his carrying basket and from within drew out a green snake five feet long, thick as a wrist.

“Five hundred years ago, so the story goes, a snake charmer searched this Knife-Axe Mountain and found a green snake called Big Azure…”

As soon as the old man finished speaking, everyone was drawn into an illusion. They saw a young snake charmer traveling with a green snake, roaming from place to place to earn his living by performing with it. More than a decade later, the snake suddenly died. The charmer buried it at the point where the dragon vein of Mystic Lake spewed its pearl. Absorbing the vital force of the dragon vein, the green snake transformed into a flood dragon.

Later, the charmer found another green snake in Knife-Axe Mountain. To distinguish it from the first, he named her Second Azure. Second Azure stayed with him for several more decades. The charmer grew old, and Second Azure had become so massive that he could no longer carry her on his back, so he let her return willingly to Knife-Axe Mountain.

Accustomed to the human world, Second Azure often wandered into crowds, but everyone feared her. She nearly scared some people senseless, and they took her for a monster.

By the time the crowd saw this, they had already forgiven Second Azure in their hearts. They understood that she had not come to frighten people on purpose, but because she longed to be near them.

Later, the people found the snake charmer, and he told Second Azure that since she had gained spiritual awareness, she should cultivate properly in the mountains. Only after she had attained a human form should she return to the mortal world.

After hearing this, Second Azure turned and went back into the mountains. But before long she returned, bringing with her a tiny seven-inch green snake. The snake charmer no longer intended to perform his trade, yet when he saw this little green snake so clear and luminous, even he, who had spent his whole life handling snakes, felt delighted, and he took the little one in with him.

He named the little snake Little Azure, and carried it with him every day, teaching it with great care until, after the snake charmer had lived a hundred years, Little Azure kept vigil in mourning for him for three full years before returning to Knife-Axe Mountain.

In the end, the snakes attained enlightenment and traveled everywhere doing good and saving lives.

When the snake charmer finished speaking and put the snake back into the basket, the crowd awoke from the illusion. Yet none of them realized it had been an illusion at all. They only felt that the story had been so vivid it seemed as though they themselves had truly lived through it.

“Wonderful!” someone suddenly cried out, and the others immediately echoed him.

“That old gentleman’s snake art is truly marvelous.”

“Yes, absolutely marvelous,” another said, and then he reached into his pocket, took out a handful of copper coins, and tossed them toward the old man.

Seeing this, the others also took out their purses and gave what copper coins they could, more or less.

The old man bowed to the crowd. “Thank you, thank you all.”

Just then, one man in fine clothes, obviously a wealthy landowner, said, “Sir, I have a thousand acres of fertile fields and hundreds of tenant farmers. But lately wars have broken out everywhere, and who knows when they will reach our Yinhua County. Might I offer sacrifices to three snakes and seek protection for my home and family?”

“Landowner Zhang, you are only afraid your property will be stolen, so you want to pray to the gods for peace and safety,” someone said. Clearly the crowd knew Zhang, one of the great landholders of Yinhua County and one of its few wealthy men. He usually did good deeds and accumulated virtue, and there were few rumors of wrongdoing about him, yet even so, some still resented him.

At once, everyone turned to Zhang, waiting to see what answer he would give.

Even the old man in coarse hemp robes looked at Zhang with some surprise, thinking that this man had a fairly good spiritual root and had actually grasped such a principle. It seemed that Zhang’s family would remain prosperous for another thirty years.

Zhang was not angry. He had originally intended to brush this off with a few words, but seeing the old man’s approving expression, he suddenly became serious. From his own judgment, he could also tell that the old man was no ordinary person.

Zhang straightened his expression and said, “To tell the truth, my family’s ancestors wandered here nine generations ago, but we have always upheld the principles of diligence and thrift in running our household. It took the accumulation of many generations to build what we have today. Even if all our possessions were taken from us now, so long as we kept to our family customs, it would not take many years to build up another fortune.”

He paused, then continued, “If rebel armies come and seize all my property, I would still have the means to rise again. But the ones who would truly suffer are the tenant farmers.”

He bowed with clasped hands toward the old man and said, “That is why I beg you, sir, to offer a way for us to preserve the people of this county, so that all may live and work in peace.”

“Landowner Zhang is truly benevolent,” someone praised.

“Yes, for his family to have what it has now is surely not without reason,” another agreed.

“Hmph,” one man snorted coldly. “Hypocritical.”

There were others who did not understand, and a few merely followed along.

“I would not dare,” said the old man. Smiling, he went on, “When one venerates the enlightened spirits of the mountains, sincerity is what matters. For small matters, they may keep one’s body safe; for great matters, they may bring harmony to the household and prosperity to all things. So long as incense is not interrupted on the first and fifteenth days of the month, one may meet calamity at its extreme and have it turn to auspiciousness, changing danger into safety.

“So long as the offerings are sincere, the home will naturally be free from evil influences. Everyone will be safe, everything will go smoothly, the mind will remain clear, and one will not be misled by dark and foreign forces.

“So long as the offerings are sincere, one can resonate with the spirits. Wishes may be fulfilled. If one’s heart is set upon the Way, the method of cultivation may even be transmitted in dreams. Even if the body dies in this life, the deity one has worshiped will guide one into the path in the next.”

“Excellent!” Zhang clapped in praise. Then he said, “I am willing to build a temple here for the flood dragon and the two snakes of this mountain, so the people may all have a path to follow. I ask for your guidance, sir.”

“Yes, yes, we are all willing to contribute to building the temple. Please guide us, sir,” several others chimed in.

“I do not have much money, but I am willing to lend a hand,” said a man in worn clothing. Though his garments were shabby, his gaze was unwaveringly firm.

“Could this all be a scam?” someone asked in doubt.

“Hahaha.” A man who had apparently studied for only two years burst into laughter and said, “Utter nonsense. Talk of gods and spirits is complete drivel.”

“That’s right. Exactly right. Can you pay me money if I worship it? This is all sheer nonsense,” another echoed.

“Hmph,” said yet another. “What kind of age is this, when all sorts of demons and monsters are crawling out of the woodwork?” With that, he swept his sleeves and turned away.

The old man only smiled without speaking, letting them say what they wished.

More people began arguing endlessly. Seeing the old man so calm, Zhang felt it was unbelievable. Even he was a little angry now, and so he asked, “Sir, they are slandering you like this, and you do not feel angry at all?”

“Why should I be angry?” the old man asked in return. Then he continued, “Whether they believe or not, what does that have to do with me?”

“This…” Zhang was momentarily at a loss for words.

“Heh heh.” Seeing Zhang’s awkwardness, the old man chuckled and said, “Each person lives for himself. What have others to do with it? Those of superior understanding hear the Way and strive to practice it; those of middling understanding hear the Way and are half inclined to believe, half inclined to doubt; those of lesser understanding hear the Way and laugh aloud. If they did not laugh, it would not be enough to prove the Way. Every man has his own aspirations. There is no need for you to worry over others. Just do what you ought to do.”

“Thank you for your guidance, sir.” Zhang bowed to the old man, then thought for a moment and asked, “After the temple is completed, what preparations will be needed? I hope you can draw the true spirit into the statue and consecrate it.”

The old man glanced at Zhang in surprise. He had not expected him to know about installing the inner sanctum of the statue and drawing in a true spirit. A finished divine image had to be infused with a real spirit to be effective. Otherwise, it would be an empty image, and outside spirits of the dark would seep in.

The old man had no intention of explaining everything in detail to him. So long as he kept at it, many things would naturally become clear. After a moment’s thought, the old man gave a half-smiling look and said, “On the third day, when the divine image is completed, I will appear.”

Zhang was startled and felt that this old man was especially extraordinary. He thought he had encountered a true master. He himself had long since built a family shrine, not knowing what to worship, and had only enshrined a statue of the Great Emperor of Mount East. The shrine stood empty and lonely. He had felt there must be some matter here connected to him, and unexpectedly, it had truly come to pass.

A statue for the flood dragon and the two snakes could be completed in just three days, and the temple itself was already built. He had not expected the old man to know even this. Zhang said, “Sir, you truly are a master. Nothing escapes your sight.”

After taking his leave, Zhang hurried off to handle the matter. He did not immediately prostrate himself in worship, because he understood that he was still only in the stage of building the temple. He was not yet qualified to speak of apprenticeship or the like; he still needed to accumulate more.

At this time, An Youyu was just about to return home. He was ragged and staggering, in a miserable state.

Suddenly a servant rushed anxiously up to him and said, “Young master, at last I found you. The whole house is full of snakes. Master and Madam have been bitten and are nearly dead. Hurry back with me and see them one last time.”

“Hahaha…” On hearing that it was snakes again, and thinking of all he had done that day, An Youyu gave a bleak laugh three times and said, “This is truly retribution. Retribution indeed.”

Then, feeling that his parents had suffered calamity because of him, he was overcome with shame. His vision went black, and he collapsed, unconscious.