Chain Reaction

"Hmph. Even if something happens, you won't be able to handle it. Save my number. If anything goes wrong in the village, notify me immediately. I'll be waiting outside." I snorted coldly and gave Lei Qing my phone number.

"Senior, I've saved it. If anything happens in the village, I'll definitely call you." Lei Qing took out the latest Apple phone, the 5.5-inch model, and saved my number. Then he called me. The knockoff phone in my trouser pocket immediately rang with the divine song "Little Apple."

When Lei Qing heard the song and saw me staring at him darkly, his heart began to pound with anxiety.

Earlier, in the morgue, he had seen me holding that knockoff phone, whose ringtone was this flashy divine song. Then he suddenly remembered that he was carrying a batch of phones Zhao Yi had just given him for coming to guard the place. He quickly hung up and shoved his phone back into his pocket.

He shoved A Biao, who had just been grabbed by the hand, and hurriedly said, "Bring me that unopened iPhone 6 from my car and give it to Senior. Senior must have been busy lately and had no time to queue up and buy one."

"Huh? But that's mine..." A Biao's mind went blank.

Another man had a much sharper eye. He hurriedly kicked A Biao in the butt. "The boss told you to do something, so do it! Why were you acting like a fool when he told you not to go over just now? You fucking offended Senior. Shouldn't you offer him some compensation? Do you still want to stay in the county?"

Watching A Biao suffer in silence, Zhao Qian covered her mouth with the back of her hand and snickered from the side, looking as though she had everything under control. I said nothing either. Why wouldn't I accept a new phone if one was being offered? Even Yu Xiaoxue was already in high school and still didn't have a phone.

A Biao nodded vigorously, then ran to the nearby van and brought out an unopened new phone, which he handed to me with trembling hands.

"At least you know how to behave. From now on, if anyone in your family gets tangled up with a fierce ghost or harassed by an evil spirit, just call me." I accepted the phone, returned to the car, and lay inside, waiting for something to happen at the village.

"Wonderful! Since Senior put it that way, you mustn't lie to me." Lei Qing's face lit up with joy. This was a chance to form a good karmic connection. That man was definitely a powerful expert from the Arcane Sect—nothing like that brat Zhao Yi.

Zhao Qian laughed so hard she nearly choked, but then remembered that her grandfather was still lying in a coffin and felt it was inappropriate, so she could only hold it in.

"All right, take your men and escort Zhao Qian inside. Remember, you've accepted this karma. If anything happens to her... heh heh." I sneered and rolled up the car window, leaving the rest unsaid.

After dealing with the gang of punks, Zhao Qian also entered the village. I watched until I could no longer see her, then sat at the front of the car and began drawing talismans.

As I chanted the talisman core and drew the runes, sheet after sheet of Ghost-Avoiding Talismans and Spirit-Calming Talismans soon appeared in my hands. Although these low-level talismans were of little use against evil spirits, having them was better than having nothing. Keeping them on me put my mind at ease.

After writing two or three of them, my knockoff phone rang again. Could something have happened already?

I quickly took out the phone and glanced at it. It turned out to be Han Shanshan, so I answered. "Say it quickly. I'm busy."

"Oh? Your sister calls you, and you're annoyed? Do you know how many handsome men in the police station circle around me every day?" Han Shanshan said sarcastically.

"I don't know. Are you going to talk or not? If not, I'm hanging up!" I was afraid something would happen while the line was occupied, so I was about to hang up. Originally, I had wanted her to accompany Zhao Qian into the village, but she was working a night case too, so I hadn't asked her to come.

Han Shanshan immediately softened and asked obsequiously, "No, no! Fine, fine, your sister gives in. Hurry up and tell me—why did you call me just now?"

"It's nothing. Aren't you busy? I was thinking of asking you to accompany Zhao Qian into the Zhao Household village. I was worried someone might harm her." I knew that if I didn't tell her, Han Shanshan would find a way to investigate. It was an occupational habit of hers; otherwise, she wouldn't have called me.

"That's all? Then why aren't you protecting Qianqian? Isn't that what you're supposed to do?" Han Shanshan was curious by nature and kept asking questions.

"You think I don't want to? The Zhao Family barred me from entering. I can't get in, so I'm standing outside in the cold wind."

"Hmph, you should've said so sooner! I'll have someone drive me over right now!" Han Shanshan cheerfully decided to come and immediately hung up on me.

I shook my head. Han Shanshan was a decent person, and she was pretty with a fiery figure, but there was clearly a hole in her forehead. Just look at this call—she hung up before I had even finished speaking.

I'd better have less contact with her in the future.

As a result, after I drew a few more talismans, Han Shanshan's police car arrived.

Han Shanshan ran over and knocked several times on the car window. I unlocked it, and she climbed inside.

"Wow, are you selling calligraphy and paintings? You drew so many! Ah, this is the latest iPhone! Did you just buy it? You're so rich from selling calligraphy and paintings—and it's the 128-gigabyte version. That must've cost eight thousand in cash! I heard you have to queue up to get one. Even your sister couldn't bear to buy it." Han Shanshan picked up the phone and examined it from every angle.

I was utterly speechless and said, "Someone gave it to me."

"How come no one ever gives me one?" Han Shanshan said disdainfully, assuming Zhao Qian had given it to me.

"Lei Qing gave it to me." I added that, and Han Shanshan froze for a moment.

"Lei Qing? Isn't that punk the one collecting protection fees in the west of the city? I heard he's even involved in smuggling across the border. How did you get mixed up with him?" Han Shanshan asked again.

Seeing that she was never going to stop, I stuffed two talisman papers into her hands. "Take these. Then go inside and keep an eye on Zhao Qian from a distance. If you notice anything wrong, go support her immediately. Did you bring your gun?"

"Oh, I did! I was just out on a mission and hadn't had time to return it. Captain Huo is still at that bar, so I came by myself." Han Shanshan's mind finally returned to the main point.

"Good. I'll call Captain Huo and tell him I'm borrowing you for a few hours." As I spoke, I called Huo Dazhong and explained the Zhao Family's situation. Huo Dazhong readily agreed.

"All right, go." I urged her to leave.

Han Shanshan put on a resentful expression and deliberately tugged at her collar, revealing a snowy glimpse of her cleavage. "Hmph, you've already borrowed me from Captain Huo for a few hours, yet you won't let your sister keep you company a little longer. What, are you afraid I'll eat you?"

A chill ran through me. Could this policewoman be trying to play at seduction in uniform? When I had rescued her two days ago, I really had touched every inch of her with my own hands. Her soft assets were formidable. If she truly tried to seduce me, I didn't know whether I could withstand it.

Just as she had fooled me into freezing up, Han Shanshan burst out laughing and patted me on the shoulder. "Hahaha! Look how frightened you are! I thought you feared neither Heaven nor Earth! All right, I'm leaving!"

"You and that hole in your forehead!" I cursed under my breath. My mind still hadn't recovered, and I had nearly been crushed by Big Sister-in-law's oppressive aura.

I drew in a deep breath and sent Xijun out to keep watch, then continued making my curse talismans.

After the battle in the morgue, Xijun's strength had risen greatly. She had casually grabbed that punk earlier and bruised his hand, which gave me plenty of confidence.

Still, open spears were easy to dodge while hidden arrows were hard to guard against. It would be best if I had several helpers like Xijun. Thinking of Grandma, she probably still kept a whole crowd of them. Having only one was far too few—and she wasn't even a true combat type.

After drawing a great many paper talismans, I tucked them into my trouser pocket. Then I took out Grandma's book and found the incantations concerning communication with ghosts. After all, if I wanted to lure a ghost into a jar and turn it into an evil spirit under my control, I couldn't manage without knowing how to communicate.

But humans and ghosts followed separate paths. When a human communicated with a ghost, the ghost was still separated by the worldly yang energy, so understanding what a ghost said was not easy. It wasn't as simple as a ghost understanding human speech, since yang energy overcame yin and could pass through many barriers.

That was why the elders often said that people shouldn't casually curse ghosts for no reason. The dead came first, and they could hear you. A single thoughtless remark might stir a soul into becoming an evil spirit. By the time an evil spirit haunted you, regret would come too late.

What I found wasn't true ghost speech, but a kind of spell talisman. As long as I drew the talisman, performed the ritual, and placed it beneath me, I would theoretically be able to communicate with the ghosts and deities outside after falling asleep.

However, it was still extremely dangerous. If I tried to communicate with ghosts and deities while asleep and lacked sufficient willpower, eating something a ghost offered—or drinking its wine—could result in being carried away by the ghost. Therefore, I still needed someone to protect me while I performed the ritual. Although I had Xijun, for safety's sake I needed someone trustworthy and powerful enough to pull me back at the critical moment.

That was when a good cultivation partner became necessary. I felt Zhao Qian had plenty of potential, so I tentatively reserved her for the role.

"Jiao, Kang, Di, Fang, Xin, Wei, Ji, Dou, Niu, Nü, Xu, Wei, Shi, Bi, Kui, Lou, Mao, Ang, Bi, Zi, Shen, Jing, Gui, Liu, Xing, Zhang, Yi, Zhen—with the names of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, I borrow divine power to enter this talisman." As I chanted the talisman core, I quickly wrote the "Spirit-Communicating Talisman" on old yellow paper with cinnabar. Every stroke and hook concentrated my heart into it. My heart was utterly sincere, without the slightest distracting thought.

Because I had experience making talismans since childhood, drawing this low-level talisman was not particularly difficult. The talisman core, however, was somewhat challenging, so I had specially reviewed it several times before memorizing it.

The Spirit-Communicating Talisman was soon completed. With the talisman core inscribed, a faint, nearly imperceptible yellow radiance appeared in my eyes. It was the manifestation of the divine power borrowed from the Twenty-Eight Mansions. Of course, if I hadn't possessed such heavy yin energy, I wouldn't have been able to see it. Only a spell talisman that had borrowed divine power could display its proper effect.

As I drew talismans, I kept checking whether the phone was still working. Yet when the second half of the night arrived, nothing happened at all. People were still playing cards and guessing numbers in the Zhao Family village. It didn't look as though anything was going to happen.

I checked the time. Four-thirty in the morning.

Something was wrong. I had already felt the yin energy grow quite heavy after three o'clock. Any little ghost that was going to appear should have appeared by now. How had I stayed awake until this hour without anything happening?

I picked up the phone and hurriedly prepared to call Han Shanshan, intending to ask what was happening inside.

But then I looked out the window. Drizzle had begun to fall, sparse and scattered. Could it be...?

The moment I looked, I saw Old Man Zhao suddenly appear in the rainy night. His aged face was mottled blue and green, and he was staring blankly at me!

Instantly, goosebumps erupted all over me, and Big Sister-in-law suddenly tugged hard at my clothes!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunshots rang out from the Zhao Family village!

"You're my little apple, how could I ever love you too much..."

The moment the gunshots rang out, the phone on the car's mount began ringing too!