These past few days have been truly exhausting, and as a result, I slept for a full day.
When I woke up again, it was already evening, and the outside had turned dusky.
Despite sleeping for so long, I still felt listless and lacked energy.
"Awake?"
Master Gu Hui's voice sounded.
I sat up and saw Master sitting at the counter, smoking.
"Yes, I'm awake, Master."
I rubbed my eyes and replied.
"Go wash your face in the back.
It'll be dark soon, and I'll take you to pay respects to the Ancestor."
I froze.
Why would we have to wait until dark to pay respects to the Ancestor?
Could it be that this Ancestor... had something to hide...
I muttered to myself.
But outwardly, I showed no hesitation.
I gave a "Mm" and then went to the bathroom.
After washing my face, I felt much refreshed.
However, looking at myself in the mirror, I felt an inexplicable sense of dread.
Because in the mirror, I looked incredibly haggard.
My complexion was sallow, my eyes were sunken, and I had prominent dark circles.
At first glance, I looked like someone who had been ill for a long time, completely devoid of vitality.
I touched my face.
In just a few days, I had become so worn out.
Fortunately, it wasn't too late.
With Master here, my condition should improve very quickly.
After washing my face, I came out. The sun had already set.
Outside was once again shrouded in dim light.
Gu Hui was squatting on the ground, burning yellow paper.
In front of him, an incense altar had been set up, with a roasted chicken and apples as offerings.
"Master!"
I called out.
Master nodded:
"Qin Ze, tonight you will be taking the lamp oil.
So before that, I need to give you a dharma name.
This way, it will be legitimate, and you won't bear any karmic consequences."
In the past, let alone talk of intangible karma.
I wouldn't even have believed in ghosts.
But things were different now. I believed every word Gu Hui said.
Moreover, he had mentioned this earlier in the morning.
So I didn't ask any further questions and replied directly:
"I understand, Master. I'll do as you say."
"Good! Bite your finger and write your birth date on this yellow talisman. We'll burn it for the Ancestor, and he'll record your name."
With that, Master took out a yellow talisman and handed it to me.
I didn't hesitate at all and directly bit my finger.
Although it was painful, it was insignificant compared to surviving.
Quickly, I wrote my birth date on the yellow talisman with my blood.
It was so bloody that it seeped through the paper.
After receiving my birth date, Master held it in his hand.
At the same time, he told me to light incense and kneel before the altar.
On the incense altar was a black wooden tablet.
On it were five characters: "Tablet of the God of Mount Tai."
I knew of Mount Tai, but as for the God of Mount Tai, I knew nothing at all.
Yet, I still appeared very devout. I knelt beneath the tablet and lit the offering incense, holding it in my hand.
At this moment, Master also lit three sticks of incense and bowed towards the spiritual tablet:
"Ancestor above, your disciple Gu Hui requests your witness as I take Qin Ze as my sixty-seventh disciple.
I do not seek for him to vanquish demons or achieve fame.
I only pray that he shows compassion to all beings and lives with a clear conscience.
If he errs, it shall be due to my failings as his teacher. May the Ancestor understand and see clearly."
After speaking, Master inserted the three sticks of incense into the censer before the tablet.
He then directly lit the yellow talisman with my birth date written on it.
Having done all this, he motioned for me to kowtow and greet the Ancestor.
Holding the three sticks of incense, I looked at the "God of Mount Tai" tablet and said:
"Ancestor above, please accept this disciple Qin Ze's three bows."
After speaking, I bowed towards the tablet with the offering incense.
Then I stood up and inserted them into the censer.
At the same time, Master picked up the cinnabar brush beside him and said to me:
"Qin Ze, your given name is Ze, and your birth chart is Yin.
Therefore, I shall bestow upon you the dharma name Yin Ze!"
At that moment, I was solely focused on surviving and didn't care about such things.
I knelt on the ground, not responding.
Master picked up the cinnabar brush and wrote the two characters "Yin Ze" on a yellow talisman.
Then, he touched my forehead with the brush:
"Cinnabar touches the youth, a clear conscience.
Sixty-seventh disciple Yin Ze, stands before the hall. Open the talisman!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Master held the yellow talisman between his thumb and index finger and brought it to his chest.
With a "buzz," the yellow talisman ignited and turned into ash as if by magic.
The moment the yellow talisman turned to ash, I felt a sharp pain, like a needle prick, at the spot on my forehead where the cinnabar had been applied.
A wave of intense pain shot through me.
"Ah!"
I instinctively clutched my forehead, the pain piercing me to the bone.
Master withdrew his hand and smiled:
"It's done."
I rubbed my head and finally stood up.
However, I was still curious about the identity of this "God of Mount Tai."
Although I had been accepted as a disciple somewhat haphazardly,
I still needed to understand what kind of lineage I had joined.
"Master, what is the background of our Ancestor, the God of Mount Tai?"
I asked curiously.
Master had a heavy smoking habit. He picked up his pipe and lit it.
After taking a couple of puffs, he said:
"The God of Mount Tai is simply a shortened name for the Great Emperor of Dongyue, who is legendary and powerful.
This is the process for new entrants. If you want to know more, search online; there should be information available."
It felt pointless to ask. I was speechless.
But it didn't matter.
As long as I could survive, it didn't matter who I took as my Ancestor...