The Obstacles Were Swept Aside

In the courtyard, Li Botong and several other shopkeepers stood in a row, each wearing a solemn expression.

They wore matching outfits: white Chinese-style jackets, black trousers, blue cloth belts around their waists, and soft-soled cloth shoes.

In their left hands, they held newly made soul-summoning banners.

The banners were bright yellow, their surfaces covered in intricate talismanic lines drawn in ink. Their poles were made of carefully selected slender bamboo, smooth and straight from top to bottom.

In their right hands, they held Soul-Capturing Bells cast from brass.

Old shopkeeper Li Botong stood at the head of the line. His graying hair was neatly combed. With a focused gaze, he held his banner upright at his side, the brass bell hanging beside his leg. He looked toward Xiao Ran, as if waiting for something.

"Let's begin!"

Xiao Ran checked the time. It was about right, so he nodded to Li Botong.

At once, Li Botong focused his mind, raised the soul-summoning banner, and planted it in front of him. The brass bell in his hand swayed, ringing out in a series of light chimes.

The other shopkeepers immediately moved to either side and planted their banners in a circle, murmuring incantations.

Soon, a breeze swept through the courtyard. The soul-summoning banners in their hands swayed in the wind, as if they had come alive, fluttering and quivering.

A visible mass of sinister energy quickly gathered among the banners.

Before long, the space inside the circle was shrouded in white mist. It was as if a rift had opened in the void, leading to some unknown place.

"Jingling, jingling."

The bells rang out beneath the night sky. Their clear notes carried a piercing quality, as if they could strike directly at a person's soul.

Xiao Ran stood to one side