Chapter One: The Half-Immortal

Chapter One: The Incident

After graduating from university, Lin Ran had been living in the provincial capital due to work requirements, while his parents remained in the countryside. Every year during the holidays, Lin Ran would return home to reunite with his parents. As their only child, Lin Ran was the center of his parents’ attention and concern.

“Ran, hurry up and get out of bed! After breakfast, you’re coming with me to your third aunt’s house!” His mother’s nagging voice drifted in from the kitchen before Lin Ran had even woken properly.

“We’re going to my third aunt’s? What for?” Lin Ran asked, still groggy.

“You nosy boy, why do you ask so many questions? Listen to me, when we’re at your third aunt’s, don’t speak out of turn!” His mother shot him a stern glare, fire-poker in hand. The message was clear: disagree, and the poker would do the talking.

“Fine, fine, I get it. Superstitious old ways—she’s just a fraud,” Lin Ran responded absentmindedly, muttering under his breath. This so-called third aunt was what villagers called a “spirit medium,” someone who “interpreted incense.” Whenever someone in the village fell ill or lost a cow, they would run to her. Such tricks might fool the villagers, but Lin Ran, a graduate from a prestigious university, would have none of it.

“What did you say? I’m superstitious? You ungrateful brat, grown up now and think you can ignore your mother? Do you have any idea your very life was saved by your third aunt? You heartless little beast!” At his words, his mother’s anger exploded. She stormed into his room and unleashed a torrent of scolding.

Lin Ran had no idea why his mother was suddenly so furious. He clamped his mouth shut, though his mind lingered on her words: his life had been saved by this so-called spirit medium of an aunt? He had never heard such a thing before. Clearly, he would need to investigate.

An idea forming, Lin Ran put on a bright smile and sidled up to his mother. “Don’t be mad, Ma! I just woke up and my head’s not clear. Where are we going again? To my third aunt’s?”

His mother, though still visibly upset, seemed mollified after her outburst. “Yes!” she huffed.

“Really? I love visiting my third aunt’s place! It’s always so comfortable there!” Lin Ran feigned delight.

“Hmph! You little charmer, always know what to say,” she replied, but his words seemed to ease her mood further.

“Ma, what did you mean when you said my life was saved by my third aunt? What’s the story there?” Now that she was calmer, Lin Ran pressed the question.

His mother’s expression shifted immediately, turning uneasy. She hurried to the family altar in the west room, lit three sticks of incense, and began murmuring prayers—presumably for peace and safety. Lin Ran frowned, puzzled by his mother’s sudden piety, and noticed her hands trembling as she lit the incense. Based on his years of experience, this was no ordinary matter.

“Ma…” he began.

His mother cut him off sharply: “You are never to ask about this again, do you hear me?”

Lin Ran could see she wasn’t joking and nodded his assent. Outwardly, he agreed, but inwardly he resolved to get to the bottom of the mystery.

After breakfast, Lin Ran drove his mother to his third aunt’s house. It was the fifth month of the lunar calendar, and most people were busy in the fields, yet in front of his third aunt’s house, several expensive cars were parked, and there was a steady flow of visitors. Lin Ran’s interest was piqued—his third aunt, whom he barely remembered, seemed to be quite renowned in the area.

When he and his mother entered, the house was already full of people sitting in silence. On the kang, a heated brick bed, sat a man of about fifty, speaking in a peculiar, singsong voice. Yes, a man—contrary to what Lin Ran had expected.

Lin Ran glanced at his mother, about to speak, but she silenced him with a glare. He bit back his words and focused on the so-called “third aunt.” At that moment, she was seeing a mother and her limping daughter.

“Third aunt, could you please help? My daughter’s ankle has been sprained for three months. Neither hospital treatments nor medicine have helped. Is it something unclean?” the woman asked with deep respect, clearly a true believer.

“Let me see,” said the third aunt, slowly opening his eyes and beckoning the girl onto the kang.

The girl removed her shoe and climbed up. The third aunt didn’t examine her foot immediately but closed his eyes and began muttering rapidly—so quickly that Lin Ran couldn’t make out the words. He watched with growing curiosity; he had encountered such charlatans before and knew their tricks.

After less than a minute of murmuring, the third aunt opened his eyes and focused on the girl’s foot. He pressed and prodded, then asked the mother about the hospital diagnosis, to which she responded truthfully.

He nodded and began another round of chanting, this time more slowly, so Lin Ran could understand.

“It’s a real illness, you see!” he declared. Then, grasping the girl’s ankle, he asked if it hurt. The girl nodded. The third aunt placed his other hand over the sore spot, moving it up and down as he chanted what sounded like incantations.

After several repetitions, he withdrew his hand. “Try walking,” he instructed.

The girl hopped down and, to everyone’s amazement, began walking without pain, even skipping with joy. Her mother, overjoyed, showered the third aunt with praise and placed a thick wad of cash on the kang before hurriedly leading her daughter away.

The watching crowd murmured in awe, their faith in the third aunt evidently strengthened. Lin Ran, who had come expecting to see a fraud exposed, was surprised to see the problem seemingly resolved. His curiosity about the third aunt only grew.

Just then, as the remaining visitors formed a line to be seen, the third aunt waved them off. “The spirit is tired today. Everyone, come back tomorrow!”

Those who had traveled far looked disappointed but did not protest. Lin Ran’s mother, too, could only leave, already planning to come earlier the next day.

As Lin Ran and his mother were about to leave, the third aunt called out to them.

“Lin Ran’s mother, stay.”

She brightened immediately, gripping Lin Ran’s arm in excitement.

“Third aunt!” she said, flustered and honored to be singled out.

The third aunt nodded, saying nothing, and disappeared into the inner room. Moments later, he returned holding a box of dark red wood, its origins unclear. He opened the box to reveal a piece of ink-black jade, carved in the shape of a beast Lin Ran could not identify.

The creature was shaped like a leopard, with a dragon’s head and tail, a pair of wings that could not be spread on its shoulders, and two backward-curving horns.

“Third aunt, what’s this?” Lin Ran’s mother asked, astonished.

“This is a Pixiu—an ancient auspicious beast, but also a fierce one. Carrying it wards off evil and attracts wealth. Lin Ran has always been frail, attracting unclean things. This jade will protect him. People nurture jade, but jade also shields its wearer,” the third aunt said, his gaze gentle, almost paternal as he looked at Lin Ran.

Lin Ran’s mother hesitated, unsure whether to accept the gift. This strange third aunt was being unexpectedly generous.

“This is no ordinary jade. It’s a spiritual stone. It has chosen Lin Ran as its master—his blessing. Remember how I once told you that Lin Ran would face a major calamity in life? That time is near. Wearing this jade will help him get through it,” the third aunt said gravely.

Moved, Lin Ran’s mother accepted the jade and pressed it into Lin Ran’s hand, placing the money she had brought on the kang.

“Take your money back. The child did not choose the jade—the jade chose the child. It is his good fortune,” the third aunt said, shaking his head.

“Thank you, thank you!” Lin Ran’s mother’s eyes filled with tears. She knew the third aunt’s abilities and believed his words. This calamity had been predicted years ago, and Lin Ran was her life. She would not allow anything to happen to him.

She thanked the third aunt over and over, her gratitude inexpressible. In her heart, she resolved to do more good deeds from then on.