"Supreme Star, ever-changing without cease. Expel evil and bind demons, preserve life and protect the body.
Wisdom clear and pure, heart and spirit tranquil. May the three souls endure forever, the seven spirits never scatter."
At night, a light breeze carried a chill as it stirred a head of gray hair, a long beard, and the fluttering hem of a backward-worn Taoist robe.
Huang Banxian sat with his palms, soles, and crown facing heaven. Every wrinkle on his face was solemn as his lips moved, his eyes shut while he softly recited the Mind Calming Incantation.
Under the clear breeze and bright moon, the old Taoist recited scripture, carrying a faint air of immortal grace.
"Phew..."
He exhaled a foul breath and slowly opened his eyes. The muscles in his face relaxed, and the moment he opened his mouth, his composure broke.
"Damn it, Ji Li really lured the ghost over."
His gaze locked tightly onto a yellow talisman pasted to the wall in front of him. At that moment, the lower half of the talisman had already burned away.
Yet strangely, its upper half remained completely intact, untouched by the flames, leaving behind only this fragment of a talisman.
Huang Banxian gritted his teeth as though weighing something. After a long while, he made a phone call.
Outside the Family Apartment Building at Chengxiang Port, Mei Sheng led Li Dahong and Hu Nuannuan toward the entrance.
Both Li Dahong and Hu Nuannuan wore exceptionally complicated expressions. Every step they took lacked certainty, and their eyes darted in every direction.
This trip was the turning point of the mission.
As long as they successfully found their employer, Tian Xiaolian, they would uncover the mission's true main event.
But the ghost would not hand over such vital intelligence so easily.