“Oh? Daoist priest, you mean to exorcise demons and subdue monsters?” Everyone turned to look at the Daoist; some gazes were filled with curiosity, others with surprise. They’d all heard countless stories about demon-slaying, but rarely did one encounter such a person in the flesh. “We’ll take a look first, and decide then...” “Cattle Village isn’t far,” the bodyguard said. “About thirty li ahead, you’ll come to a long steep hill. Cross over that, and you’ll be there. There’s a tea stand set up just before the village, and past that is an earthen watchtower, that’s where the family lives. They built a pigpen outside, with a pond beside it. If you set out now, you should reach it in about half a day.” He paused, then added, “As for the mountain demon Mr. Wang mentioned earlier, the one who makes people carry it across a bridge, you’ll have to go another twenty li past the village. There’s a broken, low bridge with a fast current. That’s the place.” He then turned to look at the Daoist. “So, will you be going, Daoist Master?” “I am a traveling Daoist priest,” Song You replied with a polite bow. “I was heading that way already. Having heard of such a strange affair, naturally I must go and see it for myself. Many thanks to you for pointing the way.” Everyone continued to size him up, each with their own thoughts. But since the Daoist hadn’t asked for money or aid and only expressed interest in going to see the place, they didn’t suspect him of being a con artist. At most, they wondered whether he truly had the ability to handle monsters. And truth be told, this one didn’t look like a swindler at all. “Where are you coming from?” asked the same wandering swordsman who had brought up the mountain demon earlier. “Just returned from my travels.” “And where are you headed?” “Why don’t you use a bridle on your horse?” “She’s clever and doesn’t need one.” “You seem like a man of real ability,” the wanderer said seriously. “That man-eating demon in Cattle Village is truly detestable, and it only targets kind and honest folk. I myself once passed by that house and was given a drink of water. If I had better skills and more confidence in my martial arts, I’d have followed Virtuous Duke Wang’s dream and rounded up some brothers to go monster hunting in the hills myself.” He bowed, frowning in frustration. “I heard that years ago, right on this same road, there were fog ghosts running rampant in Liangshui Hollow. A passing immortal took care of them as easily as swatting a fly, and the locals even erected a statue by the roadside in his honor. Since you clearly have ability, why not follow that immortal’s example and rid the land of evil? It would be a good deed and a tale worth remembering!” “Follow the immortal’s example...” Song You softly repeated the words, then smiled. The ways of the world were truly full of strange twists. Then, politely and calmly, he said to the man, “Naturally, I should follow that immortal’s example.” After a slight pause, he said, “Only, I still have matters to attend to. I’ll be turning onto a side path ten li ahead. As for a mere mountain demon, it’s not worth the fuss. I have a friend, the Swallow Immortal, who can handle it easily enough.” Just as he finished speaking, a swallow flew down from the sky before threading through the dense canopy of ancient cypresses and landing lightly on a branch nearby. Everyone stared, eyes wide with astonishment. “Daoist Master, are you truly confident?” “There are demons and monsters nearby hurting people, and nothing’s been done for so long. I feel ashamed,” the Daoist said calmly. “So, just watch and see.” The Daoist leaned in and gave a few instructions to the swallow, describing the appearance of the two demons and roughly where they were located. The swallow nodded repeatedly, as if it understood human speech. Then it turned its head and shot off into the distance, its body light and swift, disappearing in the blink of an eye. At the same time, from the brocade satchel on the horse’s back, a short sword silently slid out of its sheath and followed after, slicing through the gaps in the cypress branches with a sharp swish before vanishing into the sky. Everyone who saw this was full of astonishment. “In that case,” said the Daoist, “I’ve rested enough. I’ll take my leave now.” Cradling the brocade satchel that housed Lady Calico, his face was now free of sweat. Now that his body cooled down, he rose to his feet. “It was truly by a stroke of fate that we met here. I bid you all farewell.” “Immortal, take care on your journey...” Leaning on his bamboo staff, the Daoist walked off. The horse followed him obediently, the jingling of its bells and the steady clop of hooves echoing softly behind. The cat occasionally tilted its head to peer into the sky, or turned back to glance at the resting villagers. Then, with light, mincing steps, it followed after the Daoist. Voices murmured in discussion behind them. “Well, looks like Cattle Village’s been saved. We can all travel this road with less fear now.” “With a Daoist that powerful, why not ask him to rid the whole road of monsters?” “Ah! I should’ve asked him for a few protective talismans.” “What I said earlier wasn’t made up,” someone said. “They say there really used to be a Daoist temple on Yin-Yang Mountain in Lingquan County. The Daoist there had incredible powers, and he specialized in demon hunting. If they were still around, the monsters wouldn’t be running rampant like they are now... but the temple disappeared. No one knows why...” Their voices drifted into the Daoist’s ears but gradually faded as he walked further away. “Why...” he repeated softly the last word he’d caught. A hundred thoughts stirred in his heart. But he soon let them go, turning his head this way and that as he walked, surveying the mountains and forests on either side. It was about time to do a thorough cleansing. Traveling ten li ahead took only half an hour. Once they turned off from Jinyang Road onto a smaller side path, Lady Calico never again trailed behind Song You. Instead, she trotted quietly at the front, saying nothing, but she often stopped to gaze in silence at the nearby landscape, such as a stream, a mountain village, or a distant farmhouse. Sometimes she would turn her head to look at the Daoist, clearly waiting for him to catch up. Seeing this, the Daoist for once quickened his pace. Back in the day, when Lady Calico enjoyed widespread worship, villagers from dozens of li around would come to ask her to drive out rats. Night after night she fulfilled her duty, and the mountain villages in the area had surely all seen her. There was no telling how many times she had traveled this very path. Now that she walked it again, everything seemed familiar. Before long, the calico cat stopped once more, stepping to the roadside. She craned her neck and peered through the wild grasses, gazing up at a small mountain in the distance. Halfway up the mountain stood a small, weathered temple. Though the temple was visible from where they stood, it was still a good two li away. The cat remained standing motionless, gazing toward the little temple. Only when the sound of footsteps came from behind when the Daoist had drawn near did she finally turn her head and look at him with those amber-like eyes. “Let’s go,” the Daoist said calmly. They left the main path and followed a small trail through the fields, then climbed the hill. Two li wasn’t far, and before long, they were nearing the temple. The temple was small, no bigger than a single room, built in the style of a palace but in miniature. After so many years, it had grown even more dilapidated. There had never been a proper door, and there still wasn’t one. Back then, at least a bamboo fence had been placed at the entrance, as it was an offering of respect from the locals toward the once-spiritually-effective Lady Calico. Now even the fence was gone. The red paint on the walls had almost completely peeled away; it was hard to find even a patch of red left on the whole wall. Naturally, there was no sign of incense or offerings either. The calico cat sat at the entrance, keeping a small distance from the doorway. It was utterly still as it gazed up at the temple where she had once lived for so long. It was difficult to read emotion from a cat’s face, so no one could tell what she might be thinking at that moment. The Daoist was the first to step inside. Unsurprisingly, there was no longer a statue. The altar had been smashed, but no one knew by whom. Bits of wood littered the floor, and there were signs of past fires. Most likely, after Lady Calico had left and the statue was broken, the villagers, seeing that the Cat God no longer answered prayers or accepted offerings, had gradually abandoned the temple. Eventually, it became nothing more than a shelter for travelers and wanderers to keep out wind and rain, a place to rest for the night. The cat followed him in, turning her head this way and that with a solemn expression, though it remained unclear what thoughts occupied her mind. With a soft swish, she leapt up onto the altar. She moved around freely, pacing here and there, sniffing at this spot and that. After a long while, she finally stood atop the altar and said her first words to the Daoist below, “I used to sleep behind here all the time. Even when people came to the front and prayed to me, they never noticed I was hiding back there.” “You’re good at hiding,” the Daoist replied. “But sometimes there were too many people, and some fierce jianghu folk came to stay in the temple. Just their smell was enough to scare a cat. I didn’t dare stay with them. So when they were here, I had to go sleep behind the temple instead.” “Wasn’t it cold in winter?” “I have very long fur,” the cat answered seriously. But after a pause, she muttered, “Though, it was still really cold.” “What about when it rained?” Song You asked from within the temple. “More people must’ve come in here to take shelter then, right?” “On rainy days, I slept under trees!” “Lady Calico, you’re truly magnanimous,” the Daoist said. “I was timid back then.” The cat spoke now with an air of indifference. But upon reflection, with her personality, she had probably felt indifferent about it even back then. As was typical of cats which were always avoiding humans, getting wet in the rain was just part of life. But the Daoist didn’t feel the same upon hearing it. Lady Calico was a Cat God, worshipped by the villagers and enshrined in this temple. This place had once been her home. She had earned the villagers’ devotion and the temple’s upkeep by tirelessly catching mice night after night. When she returned, she should have been able to rest; on cold, rainy nights, she should have had a place to shelter from the wind and rain. Yet because of jianghu wanderers full of bloodlust and heavy murderous auras taking up lodging in the temple, she had to hide, or even leave the temple altogether. Thus, she was exposed to the cold wind and rain outside. “...Sigh.” The Daoist let out a sigh and then said, “But Lady Calico, you still loved this place very much.” The calico cat stood atop the altar, but unlike the old days, she didn’t sit in the center. In fact, she didn’t even sit down. She just stood at the edge, talking to the Daoist. She pointed out one spot, telling him that this was where villagers used to stick incense into a lump of mud in offering to her. She would lie here and quietly inhale the scent. Then she pointed to another spot, saying the villagers would place loaches and small fish there, and she’d be overjoyed upon seeing them. Sometimes, some starving wanderers or those who hadn’t eaten in days would steal her offerings before cooking them, or even eating them raw. She’d get furious, but there was nothing she could do about it. “Sometimes, I would go nearby to catch mice. After catching one, I’d bring it back and save it for myself. At first, I used to hide the mouse in the temple, but people lodging inside could smell it. Some of them would search and throw it away once they found it. So later, I got smarter, I started burying the mice under the tree by the entrance. When I got hungry, I’d dig them up and eat.” “But I was really good at catching mice. Plus, the villagers often brought offerings, so I was rarely hungry. Only in the winter was food scarce. Other times, I’d bury the mice and forget all about them. When I finally remembered and went to dig them up, the bugs had already stolen every last bit.” Lady Calico rambled on endlessly to him.