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墨書 Inktalez
The Five-Color Lord had its downsides, which was why I rarely brought it out for work. There were many uncontrollable factors involved, and sometimes this unpredictability could backfire on me. After all, it was merely a tool, even though the Five Spirits held a significant status for us. We usually treated it with respect, but if we didn’t follow its rules, it would certainly enforce its own.
This draw from the Five-Color Lord made me realize that I needed to find a way to send it away before letting Sun Ming in. If I didn’t get rid of it, when I started fighting with Sun Ming, not only would it not cheer me on, but it might also assist Sun Ming against me. I absolutely could not allow such a thing to happen; if other colleagues found out, they would surely laugh at me. Especially Master Xiao—if he knew, he would mock me for decades.
Outside the door, Sun Ming was frantically rattling the doorknob while pounding on the door with his other hand. He was genuinely anxious; I knew he was worried about the Long-Haired Spirit he controlled. But that Spirit God had already been absorbed into my possession. I shouted, "Stop knocking! Your ghost has already been taken by me." As soon as I said this, the Five-Color Lord struck again, causing my hand that was twisting the doorknob to tremble violently, and I felt my strength wane even more. What was I going to do? I frantically thought of a way; no, I had to trick Sun Ming into leaving for a moment.
Upon hearing my words, Sun Ming's actions became even more violent, banging on the door with deafening thuds. I wondered how poorly managed this community was; with such a commotion, how could there be no security coming to check? Suddenly, an idea struck me: "Don’t bang so hard! What if the neighbors call the police? The door outside isn’t even closed!" I vaguely remembered that when Sun Ming chased me inside, I hadn’t heard the door close. Regardless of whether he had closed it or not, I said this because there was a corridor outside this bedroom door that led to the main entrance; as long as Sun Ming didn’t leave the bedroom door, he wouldn’t be able to see whether the main door was closed.
As soon as I said this, the banging stopped abruptly. When I heard footsteps retreating, I quickly grabbed the nearby Cloth Bag and moved to the door. Just then, the third strike from the Five Spirits landed on my back. I silently cursed the Five-Color Lord for whose side it was really on while swiftly pulling out a pair of Incense and a pair of red candles. I had to admit that Sun Ming’s speed was impressive; before I could even light the incense and candles, he stomped back to the bedroom door in an agitated manner.
Hearing his footsteps again forced me to use my left hand to twist the lock while my right hand remained free. Miss Liu sat in her chair watching my movements without saying a word. It wasn’t until I picked up the Incense and received another strike from the Five Spirits that she weakly asked, "Isn’t it your helper? Why is it always hitting you?"
I forced a smile and shook my head without replying. Biting down on the Incense with my mouth, I began lighting it with my right hand. After lighting the Incense, the Five Spirits ceased its impending fifth strike and began inhaling the smoke emitted from it with closed eyes. This was only temporary; if I didn’t send it inside soon, it would still hit me again. After placing the Incense in a simple holder, I hurriedly lit another pair of red candles and then started burning Joss Paper while chanting spells to invite back the Five-Color Lord. Fortunately, invoking the Five-Color Lord’s Hand Seals didn’t require both hands; otherwise, it would have been troublesome.
In those few minutes while I prepared to summon back the Five Spirits, Sun Ming outside continued his relentless assault like a madman twisting keys and banging on the door. Seeing that the Five Spirits were also present in the room made Miss Liu exclaim in shock: "You’ve captured both ghosts!"
I turned back to her and said, "Not two ghosts—one ghost and one lord. The one hitting me is my lord; I can’t provoke him—don’t refer to him as a ghost." She nodded and asked softly, "Daoist Master, can you help loosen my bindings?" My instinct was to agree, but realizing that my hand was still locked made me understand that leaving wasn’t an option. Apologetically, I replied, "I can’t; Sun Ming has a knife outside."
She understood and fell silent for a moment before asking, "So what should we do now?"
I said, "What can we do? We either call the police or security." After hesitating for a moment she said, "Alright then—let’s call the police. I used to be afraid of his ghost; now that you’re here, I'm not scared anymore. Yes—let’s call."
Alright then—calling the police. A bitter smile crept across my face at this absurdity; dealing with Ghostly Affairs required calling law enforcement—this was a major taboo in our profession. As I pulled out my phone and pressed on the call icon, I noticed Sister Su’s number among recent calls and suddenly thought of asking her for help. If we really called the police later on, explaining everything would be complicated enough as is. Plus there was Sun Ming outside; based on current judgments he seemed to be Miss Xiao’s reincarnation. If he were taken away by police just like that—and if he had committed any crimes before—he could end up spending years behind bars over something that would become an unresolvable knot in his heart because Mr. Chen didn’t have much time left.
I didn’t dial 911 but pressed Sister Su’s number instead. The phone rang over ten times before I thought she wouldn’t pick up when suddenly her lazy voice came through: "Little Master Liu? What urgent matter brings you to call at this hour?"
I felt relieved that Sister Su had left her phone on while sleeping. I politely said, "Sister Su, I'm in trouble here at Miss Liu's house. Please hurry and find someone to help." Sister Su had the address of Miss Liu's house; she had texted it to me just yesterday.
As I was on the phone, Sun Ming outside pounded on the door even harder. The loud banging made Sister Su curious, and she asked, "What's going on, Little Master Liu? Why is it so noisy over there?" I replied, "Sister Su, please bring two strong people who can fight. I've found the person who cursed Mr. Chen from the Underworld, and he's outside right now banging on the door with a knife. Hurry up and come over; the address is..."
After hearing Sister Su acknowledge me with an "mm," I hung up the phone and shouted outside, "Sun Ming, stop wasting your energy! I've called for help. If you keep this up, I'll have to call the police."
"Damn," Sun Ming shouted from outside, his frustration evident. I was puzzled by his reaction but soon realized that he must have broken his key trying to force the door open. I released my grip on the deadbolt lock and laughed, saying, "Well, now you've broken your key. If you have the guts, try to break down the door! Ha!" I said this confidently; after all, the bedroom door was a heavy cedar wood door with three locking bolts. With his current strength, there was no way he could kick it down.
Since he couldn't break down the door, I felt more at ease. I walked over to Miss Liu and helped loosen the ropes binding her. She had fully regained her composure and sincerely thanked me before glancing nervously at the door being battered by Sun Ming. She said anxiously, "He won't really break down the door, will he? He's quite powerful and can control ghosts."
I chuckled lightly and replied that controlling ghosts wasn't that impressive; if she wanted to learn, I could teach her. It was actually quite simple. It just took a toll on one's lifespan, which ordinary people shouldn't be exposed to. She nodded thoughtfully and said with lingering fear, "You Taoist people are truly terrifying."
I responded, "Don't generalize everyone based on one person. Whether he is a Taoist or not is debatable; perhaps he just learned this trick from some master and doesn't really count as a Taoist. Besides, if he were truly a Taoist, he would know what kind of price one has to pay for using such methods against others."
While Sun Ming continued to bang on the door outside, I chatted with Miss Liu in the bedroom. His behavior also taught me something: drunk people not only don't fear pain when fighting but also tend to be stubborn in their actions. Even knowing that he couldn't break down the door, he kept trying without considering other options. This relentless banging not only wasted his energy but also did nothing to advance the situation.
After about two minutes, the banging finally stopped. Miss Liu let out a sigh of relief and said, "He must have run away."
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