The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.

Author: Yan Leisheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-11-01
Features: The pinnacle of mainland fantasy literature, recreating the classic novel "A Chinese Ghost Story," the chief writer of the three fantasy magazines "Fantasy World," "Jiu Zhou," and "Huan Wang," Yan Leisheng. In times of chaos, there are many demons and spirits; humans and ghosts are intertwined. Wuxin has half the feeling of Wei Xiaobao and half the feeling of Xiao Feng. Using Wei Xiaobao's intelligence to save Xiao Feng's fate—that is the beauty of this book. —"Huan Wang" magazine
After Yan Leisheng's "Dao Ke Dao" was published, we can say: "Fantasy has finally achieved culture." Small characters, grand scenes—the perfect combination, truly an exciting novel. —"Focus · Wind and Land China" magazine
Zeng Min Yan Leisheng's stories are always captivating, just like Yan Leisheng's style—cool, sharp, fierce, and bizarre, making it hard to breathe. Wanting to reach the story's climax, only to find that every unexpected twist is perfectly logical. —"Science Fiction World" magazine
Liu Wei Jia The story is thrilling, the characters vivid, creating a terrifying and eerie ghostly fantasy world with cinematic-like fantastical visuals. —Taiwanese Gaia Culture
The Chinese sorcerers have always been a mysterious group. The extraordinary individuals with extraordinary skills, whether in prosperous times or chaotic eras, always walk in the shadows, either practicing self-cultivation or committing crimes. Whether righteous or evil, they left behind countless strange tales. The protagonist Wuxin in the "Dao Ke Dao" series is from the Zhengyi sect. The Zhengyi sect belongs to the Taoist talisman school, passed down by Zhang Daoling in the Eastern Han Dynasty, known as the Wudoumi Dao, which has been led by the Celestial Masters throughout history. In the Ming Dynasty, it was known as one of the three great families in the world, with the Zhu family of Fengyang being the imperial surname, the Confucius family of Qufu being the Sage of Confucianism, and the Zhang family of Jiangxi being the lineage of the Celestial Master. Most of the Taoists in this sect do not avoid meat, alcohol, or marriage, so they are also called "fire-dwelling Taoists." Fire-dwelling Taoists are no different from ordinary people—they can marry, live at home, practice music and singing, and when there are funerals or other events, they gather to draw talismans, recite spells, and guide the souls. Of course, the rituals in the novel are heavily martialized—I couldn’t let Wuxin play musical instruments to subdue demons and monsters.
The story of Zhang Tianshi capturing ghosts is widely circulated in folklore. In the long popular novel "The Western Journey of the Three Treasure Eunuchs" by Ming Dynasty author Luo Maideng, one of the two sorcerers accompanying Zheng He on his voyage to the West was Zhang Tianshi. There are also many records of Zhang Tianshi capturing ghosts in the notes. In my hometown, there is a Taoist temple called "Xiangyun Guan," built in the early Yuan Dynasty by Pu Jian, originally named Xueming Guan, one of the three major Taoist temples in Jiangnan. In the early Qing Dynasty, it was renamed "Xiangyun" to avoid the taboo of Kangxi's given name, Xuanye. It is said that it was once prosperous, but when I visited, only the main gate remained, along with two stone lions knocked down by Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. The main gate is built of flagstones, with a crack in the middle. The old people say it was made by Zhang Tianshi when he lost to the temple master Zhang He in a magical battle and, in anger, used his sword to cut it. Although I couldn’t see any sword marks, the story was fascinating, and I almost believed it because there was actually evidence to support it. In the notes, the Celestial Masters and judges have always used the "Five Thunder Methods" to subdue demons and monsters. In Yuan Mei's Qing Dynasty work "Continuation of Zilu's Tales," there is an entry titled "Zhu Er Mei," which describes a sorcerer named Zhu Er Mei who used dark magic to deceive people, claiming to be a god, and was highly regarded in the capital. Once, when he fought against Zhang Tianshi, Zhu Er Mei threw a teacup into the air, as if someone was holding it, and it didn’t fall. Zhang Tianshi also threw a cup, but Zhang’s cup hovered in the air while Zhu’s cup fell. "Someone asked the immortal, and the immortal said, 'What he relies on is a demonic fox; what I command is the Five Thunder Divine Spirits. When the divine spirits rise, the demonic fox will flee.'"
The (Zhushan Sect) that appears in the novel is also a real evil sect in folklore. In "Continuation of Zilu's Tales," there is an entry titled "Learning from the Head of the Zhushan Ancestor’s Sect," which reads: In Zhushan County, Hubei, there is an evil sect passed down by a single person, specializing in stealing merchants' wealth. The sect has two factions—the broken head ancestor, who is the junior of Zhushan. To learn this method, one must be struck by lightning. Those who learn the method must first swear before the ancestor, willing to be reborn as humans for seven generations, only then will the method be taught. To avoid lightning, seven pregnant women' toilets must be used. On the New Year's Eve, one must wear mourning clothes and place the silver collected in the past three years on a table, bow, and then enter the toilet several times to suppress the gods. A wealthy merchant from Jiangxi lost three thousand gold coins at night, but when he checked his boxes and chests the next day, nothing was moved except for small holes in the silver paper, as if insects had eaten it. He remembered that when the boat passed Xiangyang, an old man who boarded the ship lived in the rear cabin, burning incense and bowing three times each night, murmuring spells. It was hard to understand, but he suspected it was the Zhushan evil sect. Those who knew used red paper to wrap the silver, protected by five grains on all sides, so the sect’s magic couldn’t work. The Zhushan sect in the story also learns minor sorcery like the "Five Ghosts' Transportation." The detail of learning the Zhushan sect’s magic by drilling a toilet is quite interesting. It is said to be to avoid lightning, which seems to show that the Zhushan sect also knew it was an evil sect and would anger the heavens, so it used filth to avoid lightning—a bit of the straightforwardness of a petty villain.
The name "Yan Gao" in the story comes from the late Qing Dynasty note novel "Autumn Rain and Autumn Lantern," where Yan Gao was a knight-errant, but in reality, he was a bandit who robbed and plundered. When I first read the book, I liked the long poem he recited to the Three Gentleman Scholar: "The moon at the edge of the sky is black, and the beauty on the plain weeps for her head." It was rough and eerie, with a strange beauty, so when I wrote the story, I casually used this name. The Zhushan sect also appears in the "Swordsmen of Mount Shu" by the author of "Pearl Tower," but in Li Shoumin’s version, the Zhushan sect is completely a demon, just a minor role. The "Nine Willow Gate" that appears in the novel, however, is fictional and has no historical basis.
Chinese sorcerers are quite similar to Japanese ninjas and Onmyōji. Ninja techniques and Onmyōdō were also influenced by Chinese mysticism and emerged as such. The nine-character mantra often seen in ninja novels, "All warriors array themselves before battle," comes from Ge Hong’s "Baopuzi," though with a few errors. However, now there are many novels about ninjas and Onmyōji, while traditional Chinese sorcerers are gradually forgotten, which is truly a pity.