During the glorious period of the Tang and Kaiyuan dynasties, the country prospered and the people enjoyed peace and happiness. At the foot of Zhongnan Mountain, there lived a scholar from a humble family known as “Zhong Xuejue”. Although Zhong Xiujue was diligent in his studies, he was unlucky and over fifty years old, but still failed to pass the imperial examination, resulting in a bleak career. However, a turning point in fate quietly arrived. In her dream, her wife saw Kui Xing descend into the world and gave birth to a son. Zhong Xiucai named her beloved son Zhong Kui with hope, implying that he could dominate the future and win the championship in one fell swoop, making up for his unfulfilled ambition.
Unfortunately, Zhong Kui was still in his infancy when his parents passed away one after another, leaving him and his young sister to rely on for survival, living in poverty but persevering. From a young age, Zhong Kui adhered to his father’s aspirations, diligently studied hard, and pursued both civil and military education. He aspired to take the imperial examination and become an official, and to honor his ancestors. Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, Zhong Kui has grown into a talented young man. He easily passed the scholar and juren exams and was preparing to go to Beijing to participate in the imperial examination. However, due to his poor family background, raising funds became a difficult problem.
Fortunately, the kind-hearted Du Ping generously donated twenty taels of silver to help Zhong Kui embark on his journey. During the journey, Zhong Kui accidentally contracted an illness, but he gritted his teeth and persevered. Unexpectedly, he was surrounded by jealous ghosts along the way and suffered serious injuries without realizing it. He arrived in the capital city with only his strong will. During the palace examination, Zhong Kui’s writing shocked the world and was supposed to win first place. However, due to his ugly appearance, he was despised by the emperor. Despite being recommended by his ministers, he ultimately failed to achieve his goal. Zhong Kui had a strong and fierce temperament, and in a fit of anger, he collided with a cauldron and died. Although the emperor had regrets afterwards, he was given a lavish burial.
Zhong Kui’s soul returned to the underworld, filled with grief and anger that could not be calmed. He stormed into the Hall of the King of Hell and angrily denounced injustice. Under the terror and fear of the King of Hell, he avoided sight, while Zhong Kui waved the precious wolf toothed staff of the palace, causing chaos in the Forest Luo Hall and disturbing the Heavenly Court. Upon hearing the news, the Jade Emperor investigated the situation and remembered his fate. He specially appointed Zhong Kui as the General in charge of exorcising demons and monsters in the human world, and bestowed upon him the Qingfeng Sword and the Demon Slaying Gourd to assist him in his actions.
The name Zhong Kui gained great fame for helping Emperor Ming of Tang drive away the wasting spirits. One night, Emperor Ming of Tang encountered a ghost stealing something in his dream. Fortunately, Zhong Kui appeared and bravely eliminated the demon. After waking up, Emperor Ming was grateful and summoned the painting saint Wu Daozi to the palace. Based on his dream, he painted a portrait of Zhong Kui, which has been passed down to the world. Since then, as a symbol of exorcism and warding off evil spirits, the portrait of Zhong Kui has been hung in thousands of households at the end of each year, becoming an indispensable part of folk beliefs. The name of General Zhong Kui has also resounded throughout the world.
