Guo Ziping suddenly said something that left me momentarily stunned. I even wondered if I had misheard him.
"Mr. Guo, what did you just say?" I asked again for confirmation.
Guo Ziping's face immediately turned red. Speaking softly and awkwardly, he said, "Young Master Wu, I said… for the past month or so, almost every night, I've encountered a beautiful woman in my dreams… sleeping with me."
I let out a sigh, thinking to myself—why can't such a good thing ever happen to me?
I replied, "Mr. Guo, it's just a dream. It's not like it really happened. I don't think it should have much of an impact on you, right?"
To my surprise, Guo Ziping shook his head. "It's not what you think, Young Master Wu. In my dreams, everything is real. I can genuinely feel her presence. And every morning when I wake up, I feel utterly exhausted, like my body has been completely drained. That woman is so beautiful—like an immortal stepping out of a painting. I simply can't control myself."
That took me aback even more.
A woman in his dreams sleeps with him; he feels her truly there; and each morning he wakes up as if hollowed out.
No matter how I thought about it, it just didn't sound realistic.
But judging by Guo Ziping's expression, he didn't seem to be joking.
As if afraid I wouldn't believe him, he added, "Young Master Wu, you have to believe me. Everything I said is true. I'm not lying to you."
Only then did I understand why he had insisted on going upstairs to talk privately, and why he didn't want others to hear—especially not the two girls downstairs, one of whom was his daughter. This was indeed a hard topic to bring up in front of them.
I thought for a moment before asking, "When exactly did this start?"
"About a month ago, I think. I can't remember the exact day… My wife passed away early, and I've never looked for another woman. Mainly because my daughter's grown up now, and I didn't want her to be unhappy. At first, I didn't think much of it—actually found it kind of nice. After all, it's been years since I've touched a woman. But then she came every single night, wearing me out. After about a week, I realized I couldn't take it anymore."
He sighed and said bitterly, "Young Master Wu, you're still young—you can't understand this kind of suffering. If I were younger, I might have been able to hold on for a while. But I'm almost fifty now; my stamina's not what it used to be. Over the past weeks, I've been physically and mentally drained. I keep running to the hospital, buying all kinds of supplements. If I hadn't, I might already be dead from the torment of that dream woman."
Listening to him, it almost sounded like I didn't want to experience this kind of "suffering." Well, I wouldn't mind the chance…
I told Guo Ziping to stretch out his hand so I could check his pulse.
After years of training with my master, I've dabbled in mountain lore, medicine, fate, physiognomy, and divination.
The "medicine" here refers to traditional Chinese medicine.
One touch of his pulse, and I realized Guo Ziping's spleen and kidneys were seriously weak—he'd reached the point where even supplements couldn't help.
If this went on for a few more days, his life might indeed be over.
I withdrew my hand and said, "Mr. Guo, you'd better restrain yourself. At this rate, you'll live at most another week—your kidneys are already severely overdrawn."
Guo Ziping was shocked. "Young Master Wu, you have great abilities—you must save me! What exactly is going on?"
"I can't say for sure yet. This is the first time I've encountered such a case. Before this started, did you meet any strange people, offend anyone, or go to any unclean places?" I asked.
He thought for a while. "I haven't left Yanbei City in the past two months. The people I've dealt with are all just regular business contacts. As for offending anyone—no way. I'm a businessman, and I always value harmony."
Since he had no clue about the cause, it made things harder.
I was at a bit of a loss myself.
Then he said, "Young Master Wu, do you think I might be possessed by a female ghost? Otherwise, why would she come to me every night? Lately, I've even been afraid to sleep. The moment I drift off, she comes—and my old bones can't take it anymore."
"I don't sense any ghostly aura from you—only a faint trace of evil energy. Let me first check if there's anything unclean inside your body, then we'll decide the next step," I said.
"Alright! As long as you can save me and drive that woman away, I'll do whatever you ask," he said excitedly.
I nodded, pulled out a Spirit Summoning Talisman, and told him to sit cross-legged in front of me.
From my pack, I took out three sticks of offering incense and a small censer.
"Mr. Guo, close your eyes, empty your mind, don't think about anything, and don't be nervous. Can you do that?" I asked.
He nodded.
I lit the three sticks of incense and placed them in the censer.
Wisps of blue smoke curled upward toward the ceiling.
Then I pressed the Spirit Summoning Talisman onto his forehead and began chanting:
"Drifting and floating, gold by the ten-thousands, food by the thousands of catties, all as offerings; scatter the ghosts without obstruction, let the roads be clear; by my command, appear before me at once."
When I finished, the talisman on his forehead flickered faintly.
I glanced at the incense in the censer.
I stared for a full minute, but the incense smoke didn't change at all.
If there were any spirit or ghost inside him, it would be drawn to the incense instead of drifting toward the ceiling—it would be pulled toward Guo Ziping's nostrils.
No spirit could resist this incense—my master had made it specially.
If there really were a spirit, it might even be lured out entirely, and I could capture it with my Tianpeng Ruler, ending the problem for good.
But even after half the incense had burned, there was no reaction.
I sighed. "You can sit back down."
Guo Ziping opened his eyes. "Young Master Wu, did you find anything?"
I shook my head. "Nothing for now. But I have another idea—when night falls, I'll come again after you've fallen asleep."