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When they arrived at the ancient temple, Sayo and Xiao Xiao had already returned. The fragrant dishes were laid out on the table, and with Master Xiao, a lively character, the meal was enjoyable, devoid of any sense of oppression. It felt as if they had forgotten the chaos of the previous night, even though he still had no way to resolve the situation. Having known each other for so long, he understood that such brain-teasing matters were best left to someone else to worry about. So he decided to simply enjoy life without getting involved in it. This mindset allowed him to avoid many troubles and gain unexpected joys in life. On a broader scale, this is what life is about.
This attitude is indeed commendable; everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. In any given situation, collaboration is always better than going solo. To me, this reflects a level of trust in our relationship. Over the years, we have dealt with various matters together, not too few but not too many either. Although we are of similar age, he always looks to me for guidance on critical issues. Even when my actions are something he cannot understand or even opposes, he ultimately compromises unconditionally—unless it involves something that could harm me or poses a risk; then he would do everything in his power to stop me. To put it emotionally, this is friendship.
After finishing their meal, everyone remained seated, chatting about various experiences from far and wide. Xiao Xiao, being the youngest, took the initiative to clean up the leftovers from the Eight Immortals Table and Lunch Box. I said, "Alright everyone, it's time to discuss tonight's matters."
Everyone straightened up in their seats. Master Xiao said, "I know you have a plan; just tell us what to do and we'll follow your lead. But one thing: my junior brother and Sayo are treasures; if there's any risky business involved, I need to be the one to handle it."
Before I could respond, Xiao Xiao quickly interjected, "Senior Brother Liu, although I'm the least experienced and not as skilled in Daoist Techniques as you two, I've been thinking about this since last night during my Vigil. This morning you mentioned whether there might be Yin Chai around us; I believe there shouldn't be any because at around four o'clock last night when I checked your compass, there were some significant spiritual reactions—more than one. That can't be Yin Chai; it’s likely those five spirits we encountered. They probably didn’t come in because our doors and windows are sealed with too many talismans. That's why I didn’t wake you all up. Since you told us to buy a lot of materials for setting up formations in town, I think we could arrange some formations inside this ancient temple tonight and lure those spirits in one by one before dealing with them using other methods." Xiao Xiao clearly picked up on Master Xiao's enthusiasm and preferred using terms like "deal with" or "take care of."
I nodded and said, "Xiao Xiao, you have more ideas than your senior brother does. If we can confirm there are no Yin Chai nearby, this is indeed a good approach. However, regarding how to lure them in one by one, do you have a practical plan?"
Xiao Xiao blushed and lowered his head as he replied, "The method I mentioned relies on either you or my senior brother having knowledge of Feng Shui techniques."
"If we had that kind of method, we wouldn't need to call you Senior Brother Liu; we could handle it ourselves without making unnecessary fuss," Master Xiao scoffed before pulling out a cigarette and taking a deep drag as if displeased with Xiao Xiao's lack of consideration.
"Are you saying that means I'm useless along with Brother Liu?" Sayo laughed softly while covering her mouth, clearly trying to help Xiao Xiao out of an awkward situation. I said, "Alright, alright! I don't have any specific plans either. So let's discuss any issues together; we must come up with a solid plan tonight to resolve this situation. We can't afford to delay the Construction Team's schedule or waste the villagers' time; the Ghost Festival is approaching fast—we're running out of time too."
Master Xiao added, "Exactly! Once we draw back the bowstring, there's no turning back; if we don’t finish things before the Ghost Festival ends, those five spirits will have no way out."
"Forget about bows and arrows," I suddenly recalled something important and turned towards the nearby hillside where the graves were located. Running swiftly up the path on that small hillock made me realize that both Sayo and Xiao Xiao seemed to understand what I was getting at.
Without waiting for them to speak up, I continued: "The reason I'm certain there were indeed Yin Chai last night is that within this setup, those Spirit Gods dared not approach our ancient temple. Since Xiao Xiao saw significant spiritual reactions on your compass last night, it must be related to Yin Chai—only Yin Chai would disregard this setup."
Xiao Xiao nodded sheepishly and said, "If there are indeed Yin Chai present tonight, I'll definitely find a way to identify them. We might even negotiate with them to work together on this matter."
"You can communicate with Yin Chai, but that doesn't mean you can't talk to us. Can't you just tell us if there's anything nearby?" I asked in surprise.
Xiao Xiao proudly replied, "I can't communicate, but you all can." Master Xiao, looking a bit confused, said, "We're not your grandmother. Just say what you need to say; stop beating around the bush."
"You mean we can communicate with you because you can summon Yin Chai and then talk to us?" I asked, puzzled. Summoning a spirit was one thing, but summoning Yin Chai was undoubtedly alarming, especially since Xiao Xiao was still so young.
Xiao Xiao said, "I can do it, but it comes at a cost. As for what that cost is, I can't say for sure. It's a bit risky; if we encounter a cooperative Yin Chai, that's fine, but if we run into a difficult one, it could affect everything."
Without him saying it, we all knew what kind of cost it would entail—one that no one would willingly bear. I immediately rejected the idea. "That's too risky; it's not feasible." Master Xiao quickly added, "If there are no other options, then let me summon Yin Chai. I'm strong enough to handle the cost."
I ignored Master Xiao's self-destructive suggestion and continued asking Xiao Xiao, "Since you can sense Yin Chai, can you pinpoint its exact location? As long as you can sense where it is, we can use divination to see what Yin Chai means. This way, we won't need direct communication and can still understand its attitude. As long as Yin Chai agrees not to interfere with us, I have a way to trap those five Spirit Gods and let Yin Chai take them away."
"That's not a problem; I have a way to know Yin Chai's exact location, and the deviation won't exceed fifteen degrees," Xiao Xiao confidently stated.
"That's more than enough. Let's go set things up." Hearing Xiao Xiao's confident response eased my mind. This was the first step in executing our plan. If we couldn't get Yin Chai's consent, then even the most meticulous plan would fall apart with its involvement.
Back at the ancient temple, Master Xiao asked, "Even so, what does this have to do with fighting ghosts? You saw last night; we had no idea about Yin Chai's existence. In that confrontation, we had no chance of winning and were at an absolute disadvantage."
Lighting a cigarette, I replied, "Last night was due to our lack of preparation and our unwillingness to go all out. Simply playing defense won't get us anywhere. Knowing that Yin Chai is present and capable of handling things changes everything. The reason Yin Chai didn't act is that it fears the deadlock at the Cemetery. As long as those five Spirit Gods leave the Cemetery and can't return, we're in good shape—it doesn't even require us to lift a finger for things to be resolved. Our job is simply to trap them so that Yin Chai can reap the rewards."
"I'm still confused. If we can trap them, why wait until tonight? Our abilities aren't enough to contain five ghosts anyway. And will Yin Chai cooperate with us? What if it only captures one at a time?" Xiao Xiao asked doubtfully.
As I sorted through the items they had bought for setting up the Binding Formation, I asked, "Do you know about the Seven Star Soul Locking Formation?" Sayo shook her head and said, "No idea; it sounds impressive."
"That's nonsense. They say this formation can trap five ghosts, but it's all just talk. Both the front and back of the formation need someone who understands it to maintain it, a nimble person to guide the souls, and another person who can see the ghosts to report their locations to the one guiding the souls. Most importantly, you need someone quick-handed to seal the formation star by star. It's incredibly difficult, and the formation doesn't have as much power as one might think; its overall binding force is insufficient. Trying to use this formation to trap those five troublesome spirits is harder than climbing to the sky," Master Xiao shook his head and said.
I replied, "What you said about the formation is true, but when combined with that reverse bow setup, its power increases exponentially. Trapping five ghosts wouldn't be a difficult task at all. The curved path represents the bow, the straight road leading to the ancient temple represents the arrow, and the ancient temple itself is the arrowhead. Don't you think something is missing?"
"The bowstring," Xiao Xiao answered eagerly. I said, "No, that's incorrect. The bowstring is thin and can be considered intangible; it has form but no shape. Any terrain can be seen as a bowstring, even air can be one. What’s missing is—"
"The arrowhead." Before I could finish, Master Xiao suddenly realized.
I nodded and said, "That's right, it's the arrowhead. If we place the Seven Star Soul Locking Formation at the arrowhead position, it will undoubtedly have the greatest lethality against the Spirit Gods emerging from that Cemetery dead zone. I am eighty percent confident that I can trap all of them. Moreover, this formation will only lock down the ghosts; it will be useless against Yin Chai. When all five are locked together, Yin Chai can just take them away."
Master Xiao clapped his hands in excitement: "Brilliant! You really have a sharp mind. It seems I need to brush up on my knowledge of Yin House Feng Shui."
After counting our supplies, I said, "Let's take a break first. After dinner, we'll start setting up; we have a tough battle ahead tonight, and everyone needs to be well-rested." With that, I found a tent and crawled in to prepare for a nap to recharge my energy.
Just a few seconds later, I heard Sayo's puzzled voice: "Wait a minute! You guys mentioned that Seven Star Soul Locking Formation requires two people to maintain it, one to report positions, one for Soul Guiding, and one to seal it—doesn't that mean we need five people? But there are only four of us!"
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