Dimly visible, the ground has two symbols, without substance, as if they have been condensed out of thin air and are slowly dissipating.
Someone is exorcising demons.
The father and son duo had long been noticed by others, and with their inability to return to the courtyard and receive the merits of prayer, they grew progressively weaker.
It definitely wasn't the Taoist who calms the mind, who had just come down from the Four Rules mountain.
Are those the remaining "people" who have walked into this town to uphold heaven's will?
If the matter is dealt with by others first, then it's no longer my business, and it has nothing to do with the Taoist from Four Rules Mountain either.
Máo Sān shí's arrangement was intercepted by others.
I fell silent for a moment and then turned around, heading towards the direction of the village.
The peculiarities I had earlier felt now had their answers.
It was precisely because they were being watched that their courtyard was sealed, and under the opponent's means, they grew progressively weaker, becoming wandering souls.
Since the matter is about to unfold and has been more or less resolved by others, I forcefully intervening would only stir up trouble. It's better to go back and consult with Wuling again.
The village road is deserted, with no pedestrians around. Cold wind whispers through the darkness.
As I walked, I began to notice something amiss.
Vaguely, it seemed as if someone was following me from behind.
Suddenly halting, turning back to look, I saw an old stooped and feeble person, with a somewhat young but stout and honest face staring at me straight ahead.
Have the father and son's souls solidified again?
Are they still following me?
Looking at each other, they suddenly quickened their pace. It's because they are so "ethereal" that their footsteps are light and swaying due to the wind.
My hand pressed against my waist, although I didn't want to cause trouble, they were going to attack me, so I had to strike first.
The person who was scheming in the shadows against these two ghosts couldn't say much against me.
In a blink, the two ghosts were right in front of me, their expressions were extremely exaggerated, and their eyes were staring at me even larger.
I felt a sinking feeling in my chest and was about to draw out two talismans.
An odd scene occurred; they suddenly knelt down together and then began to tremble and cry like ghosts.
The faint, eerie sound of the ghost's crying seemed particularly agonizing.
"How miserable we are," the cold, mournful voice came from the hunched old man.
"Pain..." The ghost with the bloated face trembled as he cupped his chest.
They didn't attack me, but instead, they were complaining?
I suddenly remembered what Wuling said. They knocked on doors at night, going door to door, saying they were miserable.
Is their haunted experience really just limited to this?
Bang!
In the boom, the two ghosts turned into gray mist again and were scattered away by the wind.
Previously, the gray mist had dispersed instantly and was invisible. Now, it hovered around the spot in front of me, struggling to solidify into shape.
My thoughts flashed through my mind like lightning.
As the saying goes, "Do not commit wrong deeds; do not fear the knock on the door of ghosts." Broadly speaking, it is a general conclusion that if ghosts come knocking on people's doors, it must be for evil.
Old Qin's head had mentioned while teaching me the Nine Schools of Arts that if ghosts cry out to humans, it is because of unresolved grievances, indicating that they have suffered great injustice and peril and are only seeking help from others.
To some extent, it is similar to the dead floating in the water seeking justice. However, in this case, if someone helps them, they will not blame those who helped them if their grievances are not resolved properly. Ghosts will not do so.
A wave of doubts surged through my mind.
Theoretically speaking, they had killed the entire family of eight, and the injustice they had suffered before death had been fully resolved through evil overcoming evil.
Then...
The thoughts suddenly halted.
I turned around and ran swiftly towards the depths of the village!
Returning the way I came, I reached the exposed courtyard in about a few minutes.
Pushing the slightly ajar door, I entered the courtyard.
The air was filled with the scent of incense and candles, both strong and pungent.
Twisting my head, I looked at the side of the courtyard door. What I saw inside didn't have any talismans to repel ghosts.
However, outside the courtyard, the father and son's ghost reappeared. They knelt on the ground, constantly bowing to me and sobbing mournfully.
The two dispersals had weakened their souls, already frail, to the point where they were like a flickering candle in the wind, teetering on the verge of collapse.
I kicked a glob of wax oil on the ground, and it clattered as it fell outside the courtyard. The two ghosts were overjoyed and rushed over to it.
After that, I picked up the few remaining unburnt incense sticks on the ground, lit them, and threw them outside with trembling hands. They were firmly planted on the village path outside the courtyard gate.
The smoke kept swirling, absorbed by the two ghosts.
Their souls have received nourishment from the incense, and they are no longer so ethereal.
In this way, it won't be a problem even if they disperse seven or eight more times.
Looking back at the courtyard, the two-story red brick building at the back similarly showed the poverty of the father and son.
I noticed something strange.
The balustrade of the second floor seemed to be inscribed with symbols.
At first glance, the brick balustrade appeared very rough and was covered with marks.
If you look closely, the talismans are mixed in with the chaotic marks, not very refined, but they do exist.
Is it that talisman that's not allowing the two ghosts to enter the house?
And then, the person in the shadows is slowly dispersing them with talismans?
My first thought is that the person behind the scenes is not a Taoist priest.
Generally speaking, Taoists who uphold heaven's will would directly turn ghosts into wandering spirits and would not subject them to long-term repeated tortures.
The old gentleman had no such need.
I went up the stairs, crouched down by the balustrade, and used a common copper sword from Duoyu Taoist Temple to scrape off the talismans.
Instantly, the father and son ghosts suddenly darted into the courtyard.
The ground trembled, and in the vibrations, the incense ashes filled the air with white smoke that constantly infiltrated their bodies.
The nourishment from the incense and prayers made the two ghosts increasingly solidify!
Just then, something unusual happened!
A muffled boom echoed, and they suddenly exploded, becoming two puffs of gray mist again!
Not only that, as if there was some kind of invisible pulling force, the two puffs of gray mist were quickly pulled out of the courtyard, as if being dragged to another place!
My heart sank and I suddenly rolled over, jumping down to the second floor.
I landed with a thud, my steps generating a strong wind, and I quickly followed the two puffs of gray mist that were struggling to escape.
This must be some kind of spirit-summoning technique.
The Nine Lower Arts can summon spirits.
Taoists can do so as well.
The other party had allowed these two ghosts to roam in the village, even go around seeking justice from the entire village.
At this moment, he also seems to have realized the problem? He wants to collect them!?
My pace did not slow down, and I did not lose sight of them.
After about ten minutes, the two puffs of gray mist entered a courtyard.
An agonizing scream echoed immediately.
The scream was still that of a ghost, hollow and ephemeral, and it would not be heard by many.
Curses were heard from within the courtyard: "You two, got something, huh? You broke my talismans and even ate some incense."
"Incense, do you deserve it? Ah!?"
The tone of the voice became heavier, and the scream grew louder.
I took a step forward and kicked the door hard with all my strength.
With a clanging sound, the red lacquer iron door collided with the side wall, breaking both of the seals I had kicked.
The empty courtyard was extraordinarily eerie.
Two wooden shelves supported two skeletons, which had been tortured into unrecognizable shapes.
In the center of the wooden shelves, there was a small campfire. The wooden shelves were slightly leaned forward, and the skeletons were roasted on the fire.
Not only that, there were misshapen talismans stuck all over their bodies.
At this moment, the two ethereal shadows seemed to struggle to crawl out of the skeletons, but were unable to do so.
There were also two small earthenware bowls on the ground, each under a skeleton, filled to the brim with crystal-clear oil from the corpses.
To one side, there was a man who looked like a thin monkey, squatting. His clothes were stained with oil, his cheeks sunken and gaunt, and his cheekbones sharp as knives.
The man suddenly stood up, his gaze falling onto my face, asking in a low voice, "Who are you?"
