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墨書 Inktalez
Gravekeeper
In just a second, I remembered the love that had gone away. I said, "Let me provide you with an exciting reading."
Wang Shao's Mother glanced at me. Although her face showed no expression, confusion lingered in her eyes.
I hurriedly explained, "Auntie, this four hundred thousand actually belongs to Wang Shao. She earned it while working as a model, but she was afraid it wasn't safe, so she kept it in my account. After she passed away, I always intended to give this money to you, but I didn't have the time until recently when our school finally had a break. Please don't blame me."
Wang Shao's Mother's hand grasped mine, and tears truly fell this time. "Thank you so much. Wang Shao had such a good friend like you; she... was really wonderful."
I replied, "It's nothing special, Auntie. Just keep the money safe. If you feel it's not secure, have your son help you deposit it in the bank."
Wang Shao's Mother quickly responded, "Alright, alright! You two came back just in time; I've made chicken soup, and it's almost ready."
"No, no," Xia said, her face turning pale. "Um, Auntie, we need to go back. It's... it's quite scary here at night."
Wang Shao's Mother reassured us, "What’s there to be afraid of? You two are strong young men; I'm just an old lady and I'm not scared at all. Besides, look over there; they’ve already started setting up the altar for the ritual. The three people they invited are very skilled; there's nothing to fear."
Xia still wanted to leave, but I was curious. Although I had dealt with ghosts many times before, I had never seen how those Taoists exorcised them. So I held Xia back and said, "Brother, it’s fine. Let’s stay and see how they catch ghosts. That way, if we encounter something like this again in the future, we’ll know what to do."
Xia glared at me in frustration. "Staying is fine, but you have to give me five thousand!"
I laughed and patted Xia on the shoulder. "Deal."
We stayed behind and after finishing the chicken soup that Wang Shao's Mother made, there were three loud bangs from outside Wang Shao's house. The ritual site was not far from the entrance of Wang Shao's home; you could see it as soon as you stepped outside. Other villagers gathered at a distance to watch the ceremony.
I opened the door and looked across the way. There were two monks and one Taoist priest on the other side. The two monks were working together; they held prayer beads and struck a wooden fish while chanting the Rebirth Mantra.
The Taoist priest took a more commanding stance as he set up the altar. He poured Rooster Blood, arranged Yellow Talismans, inserted a Peach Wood Sword, raised a Soul Banner, and stood proudly in a yellow Master's Robe before the altar while gazing at the sun.
The surrounding villagers whispered among themselves.
At that moment, a middle-aged man walked over from that direction and addressed the three practitioners: "Thank you for your hard work, masters."
The three of them ignored him and continued with their tasks.
"Wang Shao's Mother" whispered, "That person is Liu Kai, a gambler. Sigh, he even killed his own father just to marry. What a beast."
At that moment, the sun had completely set, and the ground suddenly shifted from light to darkness.
In an instant, I felt a chill in the air, as if the temperature had dropped suddenly.
Xia jumped in surprise and hid behind me.
Suddenly, the Taoist priest opened his eyes wide and shouted, "The seventh day of returning the soul! Vengeful Spirits are at their peak! All bystanders, stay away from here!"
Liu Kai hurriedly retreated into his house.
The two monks moved their prayer beads faster, their wooden fish striking quicker and quicker, completely losing rhythm.
Even I, an outsider, could tell something was off.
The Taoist abruptly drew his Peach Wood Sword and pointed it at the monk, saying, "Calm down! You two foolish donkeys better leave if you don't have real skills."
The monk opened his eyes in panic, his hands striking the wooden fish even faster. Suddenly, with a loud bang, the wooden fish exploded. The monk's eyes rolled back as his body floated up.
The monk's toes lifted off the ground, his eyes glaring fiercely at the Taoist before him.
Seeing this scene, Xia Yi behind me screamed in shock and knelt on the ground, hiding behind me and refusing to come out. Xia was terrified; other villagers were equally frightened and hid in their homes, while the braver ones kept their distance to watch.
I instinctively grabbed my backpack, feeling a bit scared myself. This was indeed Vengeful Spirits; they had instantly possessed the two fake monks.
"Liu Old Man! You have lived honestly your whole life; though you have no fortune or karmic retribution, you will surely be reborn into wealth next time. If you remain so stubborn and unrepentant, I will scatter your soul!" The Old Taoist, dressed in a master’s robe, spoke coolly. He truly looked like a great master.
"I want to go home!" The monk cried out in a voice that sounded like a ghostly wail. "I want to go home... Get out of my way!"
"Very well! Since you are so ungrateful, do not blame me for being ruthless!" The Taoist suddenly drew his Peach Wood Sword. With a swift motion over a pile of yellow paper, it ignited with a whoosh. Then he lunged at the monk.
With a swish... the Peach Wood Sword pierced the monk's chest. Suddenly, white smoke erupted from his chest, followed by a cloud of black mist rising behind him. The black mist shrieked loudly, its sound piercing my eardrums painfully. Then the black mist took on the form of Liu Old Man.
“Evil Spirit, take this!” The Taoist kicked the unconscious monk aside and swung his Peach Wood Sword at Liu Old Man.
At that moment, Liu Old Man transformed into Vengeful Spirits. His entire form began to materialize, resembling a swirling mass of black mist, as he engaged in battle with the Taoist.
The others were terrified by Liu Old Man's ghostly appearance, but I focused intently on the Taoist's movements. Suddenly, I realized that I was not any less capable than this Taoist.
It seemed that the Taoist had yet to open his eyes fully. Fortunately, after Liu Old Man became a Vengeful Spirit, ordinary people could see him; otherwise, the Taoist would have been unable to act.
The key point was that the Taoist wielded a Peach Wood Sword, hacking away just like I would, but he occasionally produced a talisman that would explode suddenly, startling Liu Old Man's spirit.
The Old Taoist was physically weak; after several exchanges, he was already panting heavily.
I felt a bit disappointed. I had expected this Taoist to be formidable, but it turned out he was about my level—nowhere near Yang Gou Dan. If Yang Gou Dan were here, he would have dealt with this ghost in one swift move.
I grabbed my backpack, stood up, and prepared to help.
Xia Yi pulled me back in panic. “What are you doing?”
“The Taoist is about to collapse; I need to assist him,” I replied.
Xia Yi shook my arm. “Come on, Song Fei, are you crazy? That’s a ghost! A Vengeful Spirit! If the Taoist can’t handle it, you’ll just get eaten alive!”
Wang Shao's Mother chimed in to dissuade me. “Song Fei, don’t go over there. Liu Old Man was killed by his own son; he must be filled with resentment. The greater the resentment, the stronger the spirit. You really shouldn’t go.”
I thought for a moment and concluded that while Liu Old Man as a Vengeful Spirit was indeed powerful, he was likely on par with Wang Shao. With me and the Old Taoist, we could definitely handle him.
“Don’t worry, Auntie. I know what I’m doing. You all stay back; I’ll check it out.” With my backpack slung over my shoulder, I walked toward the two monks who were already pale with fear, huddled together and repeatedly chanting Amitabha.
As I approached and reached for my Peach Wood Sword to help, the Taoist suddenly threw all the talismans from the table at Liu Old Man.
With a loud bang, those talismans exploded and sent Liu Old Man flying far away.
At that moment, the Old Taoist hurriedly ran to the table and began rummaging through his belongings. After a long search, he finally pulled out a palm-sized yellow net from the bottom of his box.
“Left Azure Dragon, right White Tiger, in front Vermilion Bird and behind Black Tortoise, the four symbols of the earth and the five elements, metal, wood, water, fire, earth, grant me the Earthly Universe Net! Urgently as commanded!” The Old Taoist shouted, suddenly spitting a mouthful of blood onto the net in his hands before tossing it into the air.
The net expanded with a whoosh, catching the wind, and then descended upon the ghost of Liu Old Man.
“Roar…” The ghost of Liu Old Man let out a painful cry as the net touched him, his entire body emitting white smoke.
I looked on in astonishment. What the hell! Such a powerful artifact truly was impressive.
Of course, I didn’t step forward; I stood aside and watched.
Old Taoist gasped for breath and shouted, “Liu Old Man, stop struggling! This Earthly Universe Net is passed down from my Maoshan Patriarch. The more you struggle, the more you will suffer from lightning.”
Inside, Liu Old Man had already transformed into a Vengeful Spirit. He ignored the words and continued to struggle fiercely, causing the net to sway dangerously.
Old Taoist was startled for a moment; he adjusted his hat and called out, “Hey, you two monks, hurry over here and chant the Rebirth Mantra. We need to help him move on. It seems this Vengeful Spirit has too much Resentment, not even fearing the pain of lightning. My net may not hold for long.”
Upon hearing this, the two monks quickly approached the net, trembling as they began to chant the Rebirth Mantra, hoping to help Liu Old Man. At that moment, Old Taoist also moved closer to the Vengeful Spirit, murmuring incantations in an attempt to guide this spirit.
“Roar…” Hearing the chanting of the sutra, Liu Old Man struggled even harder; it seemed he had no intention of moving on.
At that moment, Xia Ye slowly crawled over. Seeing that the Vengeful Spirit was trapped in the net, he felt less afraid and hid behind me. “What the hell!, this is thrilling! Song Fei, it’s so exciting—better than watching a movie!”
I ignored him.
“Roar!”
The ghost of Liu Old Man continued to thrash inside the net, shaking the Earthly Universe Net violently.
Old Taoist suddenly opened his eyes wide and shouted, “Liu Old Man, why are you so stubborn! Don’t you know how to repent?”
Ignoring him, Liu Old Man kept crashing against the net. The arcs of electricity flickered across it; however, it was evident that their power was weakening.
At this moment, Old Taoist’s expression finally changed. He shouted loudly, “Unworthy descendant Liu Kai, get out here immediately! Hurry!”
Half a minute later, Liu Kai timidly walked out from his home.
The Old Taoist said, "Your father's ghost has too much resentment. It must be eliminated before I can subdue him. You need to kneel before him and sincerely repent! Hurry, if you can eliminate three parts of his resentment, I can help him move on."
Liu Kai nodded and with a thud, he knelt before Liu Old Man, crying out loudly, "Father, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have killed you just to marry this woman. Please forgive me and rest in peace as you move on to your next life."
The vengeful spirits in the net fell silent for a moment.
Seeing the opportunity, the Old Taoist shouted, "Keep repenting! Don’t stop; I will help him move on."
Liu Kai continued to bow and apologize.
However, at that moment, Liu Old Man's vengeful spirit suddenly struggled even more violently. The lightning in the Earthly Universe Net nearly shattered Liu Old Man's ghost into pieces.
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