Chapter 50: Lost Soul

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I left the bathroom doorway in a daze and walked to the end of the corridor. The dojo was simply furnished, yet the layout was clear and precise—undoubtedly the work of a master. The desk was well-equipped, even containing tools unrelated to feng shui masters.

I recalled that Zhao Qian’s mentor was not only her grandfather who initiated her but also a female lay practitioner. It seemed some of these items belonged to that laywoman.

But where had this laywoman gone without a word, leaving all these belongings behind?

With Song Wanyi present, I didn’t dare ponder too deeply. I arranged the talismans I had drawn and reset the tools on the desk. Lighting a dozen high-quality twelve-branch incense sticks, I began silently reciting the incantations.

At the end, I used a brand-new scalpel stored here to cut my middle finger and began rewriting certain spells inside the soul urn with my vital blood. The process was the same as when I had once subdued Xi Jun, though the incantations differed somewhat.

“Come, blood offering.” I looked at Song Wanyi kneeling beside me and shyly extended my middle finger. If it were Xi Jun, I would have felt no pressure.

But Song Wanyi was a female ghost of the same age as Zhao Qian and Yu Xiaoxue, still unappointed as a mountain deity. This method of feeding her my essence, like feeding chicks or ducklings, felt somewhat off, making me uneasy.

Song Wanyi knelt silently beside me, her dark eyes rimmed with a faint red glow watching me with an expression neither joyous nor angry.

This made my outstretched finger hovering midair feel awkward.

She had never consumed anyone’s essence before. As a mountain spirit, there was an abundance of things she could eat; the mountain’s spiritual energy was sufficient for her daily activities. It was not surprising she disdained human essence.

Thus, directly consuming essence was a novel experience for her.

She looked at me for a moment, then reached out with both hands to grasp mine. After some thought, her crimson lips parted slightly and gently touched the blood droplet from my finger.

Wanyi’s lips were a deep red, distinct from Xi Jun’s and unlike those of ordinary fierce ghosts. She was evidently far more formidable. The moment her lips met my essence, she seemed to feel a burning sensation that penetrated her body and soul, and her eyes suddenly brightened.

She took my hand and began sucking. I could feel a continuous flow of blood leaving my body. Having already lost much vitality last night and just returned from the mountain, feeding her essence made me dizzy.

Yet Song Wanyi seemed to savor the taste. When I instinctively tried to withdraw my hand, a hint of reluctance flashed in her eyes, as if she was unwilling to stop.

I remembered how I had nearly used the soul bell to draw her soul before and immediately snapped back to clarity, commanding, “Stop!”

Wanyi was startled awake and seemed to realize that her earlier unconsciousness had already employed a spell to entice me to keep feeding her.

But clever as she was, she quickly masked her panic, extending her tongue to gently lick my finger wound, cleaning away the last traces of blood.

The tender scene resembled flirtation between lovers, sending goosebumps all over me. Though Song Wanyi appeared like a refined lady, sometimes her methods sent chills down one’s spine. Her innate charm made it seem as if she needed no spells to enthrall; every gesture was enough.

I suppressed the restless stirrings within and cleared my mind of impure thoughts. After regaining composure, I relit the incense sticks and placed them on the altar.

“You feed on my essence; henceforth you shall be bound by my control and obey my commands. I will provide you blood offerings regularly. If either of us reneges, you shall be subject to the soul collections of the four-directional spirits and the eight kings of ghosts. Do you understand?”

I quickly lit incense and placed it on talismans inscribed with the names of the four-directional spirits and eight kings of ghosts on the desk.

Song Wanyi nodded and also knelt to worship the deities.

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After the ceremony, I had Song Wanyi enter the new soul urn and carried the old one to a peach blossom tree, choosing a suitable spot to inter her beneath.

Now I was even raising fierce ghosts; burying ashes under the peach tree in the yard was no longer a big deal. After all, I was surrounded by spirits and no longer cared.

Back in the study, I opened the computer and browsed some fashion websites for red clothing, calling Xi Jun to join me.

Xi Jun wrapped her arms around my neck, her small eyes fixed intently on the various bright red traditional dresses appearing on the screen.

She soon found a luxurious outfit somewhat resembling the phoenix coronet and embroidered gown worn by my wife’s elder sister.

I immediately printed the image in color.

Seeing the dress resembling my wife’s sister’s, Xi Jun was overjoyed, staring without blinking.

“I’ll have to ask your sister Zhao Qian how she can send it to you, okay? But that coronet can’t be helped—that’s for weddings. You’re still young, Xi Jun; let’s skip the coronet, alright?” I said.

Xi Jun nodded vigorously, seemingly urging me to handle it quickly.

Actually, I doubted she cared much about the coronet; she simply liked the dress that my wife’s sister had worn.

Holding the printed picture, I left the study and found Zhao Qian sitting with Yu Xiaoxue on the sofa.

Zhao Qian wore a simple dress, her face still flushed, seemingly not yet over the incident in the bathroom where she had exposed herself to me. When she saw me approaching, she shifted uncomfortably, clearly uneasy.

“Qian,” I greeted her.

“Tian Ge...” Zhao Qian looked over, radiant and alluring.

Yu Xiaoxue, eating milk candy and watching TV, glanced at us curiously, puzzled by what had happened between us in such a short time.

“Here’s the thing: I have this outfit Xi Jun really likes because her current clothes are too simple. I was wondering if we could burn it for her? Though a bit troublesome, could you help with that?” I cautiously handed over the drawing.

Zhao Qian noticed my apparent indifference about the bathroom incident and the genuine request, so she took the drawing. After a moment, she said, “No problem. We can use five-colored paper as material, carefully cut it, and burn it to her.”

Hearing her straightforward agreement, I asked, “Is this five-colored paper the kind with blue, yellow, red, white, and black sheets used to burn offerings for little ghosts or children’s souls? Do you have sheets this large?”

“Yes, the dojo keeps some. I’ve done this kind of work before. I remember a wealthy merchant’s daughter drowned unjustly and kept appearing in dreams to the merchant. He told me he saw his daughter unclothed in the underworld. Even though he burned many clothes, it didn’t help. He asked me to assist. After some study, I realized the clothes burned weren’t made of the proper paper, so they had no effect.”

“I found the five-colored paper, cut it into clothes resembling what she liked, and burned them. The next day, the merchant happily told me his daughter appeared again in a dream, wearing the clothes I made, saying she liked them and could finally reincarnate,” Zhao Qian said excitedly. She was thrilled to help me because she usually had to rely on me.

“Hmm... naked, huh...” I mused, thinking about the bathroom incident and muttering unconsciously.

Zhao Qian’s face instantly flushed, and even Yu Xiaoxue couldn’t stand it anymore: “Tian Ge!”

“Oh! Sorry, I got distracted. I wasn’t thinking about the merchant seeing his daughter naked—that must be embarrassing and needs to be fixed quickly. Lucky he met you,” I blushed, making up an excuse.

“Tian Ge! What are you thinking? When did I say the merchant was a man? She’s a woman...” Zhao Qian snatched the drawing and ran upstairs.

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“See, Tian Ge, you’re so bad you made Qian angry. Hurry and catch up to apologize,” Yu Xiaoxue stuck out her tongue.

I pinched my brow and shook my head. Lately, I didn’t know what they were talking about, but Yu Xiaoxue and Zhao Qian’s relationship had become closer than ever, and neither helped me out of awkward situations.

I was indeed somewhat absent-minded, possibly from the blood and energy deficiency. Today I kept having moments of blankness.

After Yu Xiaoxue’s reminder, I took Xi Jun’s soul urn and went upstairs to apologize and change her dwelling.

But as soon as I reached the second floor, Zhao Qian was already inside her bedroom carrying a pile of five-colored paper and closed the door.

It seemed she was genuinely upset; perhaps I needed to reflect seriously today.

Changing Xi Jun’s new dwelling wasn’t difficult; it was part of the process of upgrading a fierce ghost, mentioned many times in my grandmother’s books.

As a ghost’s powers grew, the original soul urn partially lost the efficacy of its binding spells and might be damaged by the increased energy. If the master didn’t replace it with a higher-level urn, the soul would dissipate without support.

The process was much the same as before. Blood offerings were still necessary. Struggling against my energy deficiency, I cut my middle finger again and fed Xi Jun essence to form the contract.

Everything went smoothly. Xi Jun was pleased with her new urn—it was her choice after all.

Suddenly, I felt terrifyingly weak. When I stood up, waves of dizziness nearly made me collapse onto the desk.

I had planned to wait for Zhao Qian to finish the clothes and then burn them for Xi Jun, but I couldn’t wait any longer. What I needed most was rest. Struggling to stand steady, I held the handrail and went downstairs.

“Xue, I’m going to sleep. I didn’t rest last night and feel exhausted. I’ll probably wake up around lunchtime. The Zhang family might have guests coming; you and Zhao Qian handle the meal, and wake me up when they arrive,” I said, opening the study door.

“Okay, Tian Ge! I’ll show you my real cooking skills,” Yu Xiaoxue exclaimed, pumping her fist.

I closed the door, dizzy and overwhelmed, touching my forehead—it was burning hot. I seemed to be running a fever.

“Xi Jun, Song Wanyi, protect me,” I broke out in cold sweat. Since childhood, I rarely had a fever thanks to my wife’s sister’s secret care. Something was definitely wrong this time.

I collapsed heavily onto the bed. In a haze, I saw Xi Jun emerge from her soul urn. Seeing my pale complexion, she anxiously pressed her face against mine.

Song Wanyi knelt by the bedside, frowning with concern.

Suddenly, a loud voice jolted me awake.

“Ru Xia Tian! Investigation reveals: born under yin year, yin calendar, yin hour, yin quarter, yin birth—your fate lacks life energy and you shall die young! You have committed two grave sins: stealing heaven’s order and unlawfully killing ghost messengers! By decree of the Yin Court, all cases are reopened to claim your life! Should you resist, you will suffer the punishment of tongue extraction and oil boiling!”

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