Chapter 101 – Waiting for the Rabbit

The hand that had been gripping him tightly loosened, and before Wei Yang could react, he heard Zhang Xiuqi blurt out, “Uncle?” Could it be Master Zeng? Watching the rare look of panic on the Little Celestial Master’s back, Wei Yang couldn’t help but feel nervous as well. He hadn’t expected Master Zeng to be involved in Old Yao’s case. Could it be that Old Yao’s soul hadn’t been captured because of this? But where is Master Zeng now?

Before he could step forward, Zhang Xiuqi had already turned and walked toward the center of the alley. In the middle of the path was a section of uneven, pitted ground, likely caused by years of neglect. To most people, it wouldn’t seem unusual, but Zhang Xiuqi quickly approached one of the small pits, carefully examined it, and then drew his Suihou Sword, gently inserting it into the pit. When he pulled it out, the tip of the sword wasn’t covered in yellow sand but a thin layer of dirty red.

“Someone buried something here?” Wei Yang followed and frowned when he saw the substance on the sword.

Zhang Xiuqi nodded, then looked up in the direction of Old Yao’s house and the Dragon Summoning Talisman at the alley’s entrance, answering, “Last night, during the battle, the Yang Baleful Energy clashed with the formation.”

“The talisman at the alley entrance—was it drawn by Master Zeng? Did he break the formation here?” Wei Yang quickly understood and asked.

Zhang Xiuqi’s expression turned icy: “He didn’t break it. It was mutual destruction.”

In Taoist practices, Baleful Energy is also divided into Yin and Yang. An excess of Yin energy gives rise to Yin evil energy, which is ghostly and cold, easily invading people’s minds. If Yang energy is too intense, it produces Yang evil energy, which is fierce and unstoppable. Generally, these two would never appear in the same place, but if manipulated by magic to make Yin and Yang evil energy collide, any formation or talisman would immediately lose its effectiveness, turning into a chaotic energy. When Yang evil energy and Yin evil energy clash, the practitioners on both sides suffer varying degrees of backlash. Unless absolutely necessary, no one would willingly use such a destructive method.

Hearing the Little Celestial Master’s explanation, Wei Yang’s face also changed color: “Is Master Zeng injured? Can you find him now?”

Zhang Xiuqi shook his head. To avoid being pursued, his uncle had also used several maze formations, making it impossible to trace his whereabouts now.

Seeing the Little Celestial Master’s expression, Wei Yang naturally guessed that this matter wasn’t easy to handle. After thinking for a moment, he asked instead, “What about Old Yao’s soul?”

“It’s still in the house,” Zhang Xiuqi answered straightforwardly. A soul that hasn’t been captured will naturally linger nearby.

“If the person who harmed Old Yao wants his soul, won’t they have to come back? Can they summon the soul during the day or from a far distance?” Wei Yang asked the key question.

Since they went to such great lengths—breaking into the house, capturing the soul—the perpetrator surely wouldn’t give up easily. If Master Zeng disrupted their plans, they might try other methods. If they could summon the soul from elsewhere, that would be one thing. If not, they’d have to return, right?

“Not during the day,” Zhang Xiuqi seemed to understand what Wei Yang was getting at. “The soul returns to its home. Without external factors, it won’t stray far from the room.”

This was a fundamental principle of soul summoning. Even in rural areas, people would call out for the soul at night from their doorstep, using water and stove ash as a guide to avoid the scorching sun, which harms Yin souls. When a person loses their soul, as long as they’re not far from home, the soul will naturally return. That’s why, if someone loses their soul near their home, they can usually find it there. In places like hospitals, where human energy is chaotic, it’s not suitable for summoning souls.

After hearing Zhang Xiuqi’s explanation, Wei Yang immediately made a decision: “Then it’s settled. We’ll stay at Old Yao’s house today. If the enemy comes, that’s ideal. If they don’t, we’ll summon Old Yao’s soul back and restore his consciousness to see if we can gather any information.”

Zhang Xiuqi looked up at the alley entrance, seemingly hesitant, but Wei Yang had already knelt down and firmly grasped his hand: “Brother Qi, with the current lack of clues, searching would be futile. I’ll call Director Sun later and ask him to help look for Master Zeng. For now, let’s focus on solving this problem…”

The person who set up the formation in the alley not only targeted Old Yao’s family but also clashed with Master Zeng, clearly a dangerous individual. There were no obvious traces of spellcasting nearby, so rather than wandering around aimlessly, it was better to wait for the rabbit. If they could catch that person, they might also uncover some clues about Master Zeng. Wei Yang didn’t let go of Zhang Xiuqi’s arm, holding onto him tightly, afraid he might run off somewhere he couldn’t reach.

Seemingly infected by Wei Yang’s determination, Zhang Xiuqi slowly stood up and gripped his hand in return. Feeling the warmth in the other’s palm, Wei Yang quietly sighed in relief and led the Little Celestial Master toward the residential compound.

&&&

Zeng Jingxuan sat in the corner of a KFC, quietly scraping the rice on his plate with a spoon. This was the busiest area near the train station, with a five-story shopping mall bustling with people. Many travelers would stop here to eat and rest, and customers were constantly coming and going. With such a massive flow of people, casting spells or divination became nearly impossible.

During his half-month of escape, he had often used similar methods to secure some rest, including now. However, Zeng Jingxuan’s hand suddenly paused, gripping the spoon tightly for a moment before relaxing. He picked up the coffee cup beside him, took a sip, and swallowed the blood in his mouth along with the coffee.

Last night, he had taken another risk. When he arrived outside that neighborhood, the opponent’s formation had already been activated—a Filthy Blood Evil Energy Clash Formation. This was a typical Jiangtou formation, requiring the practitioner to bury a pregnant animal (usually a cat or dog) in the south of the formation site and set up a frightening evil energy formation in the victim’s home. By using the principle of Yin and Yang collision, it would attack the target. This formation was highly damaging to heavenly harmony, and anyone hit by it would either die or be severely injured. At that time, the Yin evil energy had already fully dispersed, and it was beyond human power to stop it.

But Zeng Jingxuan still chose to intervene. Although it was late at night, the train station remained a place of strong human energy. The Dragon Summoning Talisman from Sanliao Village was a unique formation that could only summon Yang evil energy, typically used in places with extremely strong Yang energy like mountains. It was only because of the train station’s special location that he could use the Dragon Summoning Talisman in the middle of the night. However, the force of the Yin and Yang evil energy collision still left him with some internal injuries. If he hadn’t preemptively set up formations to conceal his aura and used a few maze formations, he might not have escaped this time.

Yet Zeng Jingxuan didn’t regret taking such a risk, because after just one encounter, he realized that this Jiangtou Master might have some connection to the people chasing him. True Jiangtou wasn’t the low-level stuff like Southeast Asian black magic or Gu magic; it was a type of dark art derived from Taoism. They used Taoist talismans and formations but committed acts that defied heavenly principles. As a result, most Jiangtou Masters would die young or leave no descendants, and truly powerful Jiangtou techniques were rarely preserved, allowing the Southeast Asian practices to flourish.

But the group chasing him was different. Their formations and talismans were far more powerful than those of ordinary Jiangtou Masters, and they didn’t immediately lose their lifespan when casting spells, as if they had some way to offset the cost. They were also more reckless in their actions. Encountering one or two such people might be understandable, but having three or five was definitely abnormal. After just one encounter with that person, Zeng Jingxuan had made up his mind to eliminate him first. Otherwise, even if he could escape pursuit, he might expose his whereabouts, which would be extremely dangerous.

Moreover, after his intervention last night, the person hadn’t completed his task. Perhaps he would act again tonight, and if possible, Zeng Jingxuan would have to take the risk once more. Putting down the coffee cup, Zeng Jingxuan quietly exhaled, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes, as if falling into a deep sleep.

A few hours later, when the moon hung high in the sky again, a shadow appeared on the road. However, this time, instead of turning into the back alley, he walked straight along the main street to the entrance of the railway residential compound. At this hour, the compound’s main gate was already closed, leaving only a small door for night-shift workers. The security guard, a long-time employee, recognized all the regular night-shift workers, but for some reason, when he saw this stranger today, he froze for a moment, then personally opened the iron gate to let him in. Afterward, the guard stumbled back to the security booth, and two or three minutes later, he shuddered as if suddenly snapping out of it, leaning back in his chair. But this time, he didn’t return to his duties; instead, his eyelids grew heavy, and he soon fell into a deep sleep.

The figure silently entered the compound, walking under the moonlight to the back of Building 6. However, he had no intention of going upstairs. Instead, he circled to the back of the building and began drawing a formation in the small garden. Soon, a faint green mist rose from the formation, and all the residents of Building 6 felt a wave of drowsiness. Those already asleep fell into a deeper slumber, while those still playing on their computers or phones found their eyelids growing heavy, and soon they slumped over their desks or beds, quickly falling into a deep sleep.

However, while everyone else was asleep, one person in the living room of Unit 402 stood up.

“Someone’s here. It’s a sleep curse,” Zhang Xiuqi stood up and whispered to the person beside him. They hadn’t set up a defensive formation; a Copper Coin Formation would have been enough to neutralize this level of curse. If they had set up a formation, the backlash would have easily revealed their presence. This was the opponent’s probe, and they chose to silently avoid it. But simply avoiding it wasn’t enough. Since they had dodged the first move, it was now their turn to strike unexpectedly.

As he spoke, a yellow talisman flew from Zhang Xiuqi’s hand, landing squarely on the windowsill facing the back of the building. A phosphorescent flame appeared out of thin air, burning the talisman with a hiss. Along with this, a stream of energy shot out like an arrow, heading straight for the figure downstairs.

With a crisp “snap,” a small light bulb seemed to shatter beside the shadow, creating ripples in the air. The figure let out a low groan, but before the sound faded, a smile appeared on his lips.

In the back alley, a red light flashed, and another surge of evil energy shot into the sky, heading straight for the room where the spell had been cast. Zhang Xiuqi swiftly drew his Suihou Sword, taking two quick steps to the window and thrusting the sword into the floor directly in front of it. With a loud “buzz,” the glass on the window and the teacup on the table trembled, and cracks appeared on the glass surface.

Zhang Xiuqi’s expression changed, and Wei Yang also stood up in surprise: “There are two of them!”