Five Ghosts Technique and Round Light Technique

"What good luck for a simple kid..."

Seeing that the young lady, who was like a precious pearl, had agreed to Hu Ma, the old shopkeeper chuckled and sized up Hu Ma. "Since our young lady is kind-hearted and agreed to you, it's your good fortune. Tell me, what's going on?"

Witnessing this scene, the sedan bearers and others nearby exchanged glances, finding it strange.

Second Master, seeing this, couldn't help but feel a pang of worry. "Although this noble person in the sedan chair couldn't refuse and agreed to young Hu Ma, the shopkeeper isn't too pleased. When Cao Xin Hall comes to the village to collect herbs later, I wonder if they'll make things difficult for us."

"Alas, there's no helping it. If it were any other child in the village, they wouldn't be so clueless."

"Young Hu Ma is just spoiled by the Old Woman; he thinks everyone should help him."

"..."

"I..."

Hu Ma knew this kind of "simple kid's luck" was bound to happen and was just thinking about how to explain it.

He had already realized the dangers and strangeness of this world and naturally couldn't reveal everything foolishly. He simply looked at the sedan chair and said, "My Old Woman is a Ghost Walker. A powerful Evil Spirit appeared in this forest, so she went in to deal with it."

"But I don't know what happened. My Old Woman's signal was lost, and I don't know how she is now."

"I want to know where my Old Woman is."

"..."

"Ghost Walker?"

The old shopkeeper frowned upon hearing this. "Do you have anything your Old Woman used? Or something she carried with her?"

Hu Ma listened and couldn't help but frown.

His Old Woman's things were all back in the village; he hadn't had time to go back and get them.

Although everything he had on him was given by his Old Woman, he hadn't seen her for nearly half a month.

"Heh, you don't?"

Seeing this, the old shopkeeper couldn't help but let out a couple of cold laughs.

Suddenly, the woman in the sedan chair spoke, "What about the basket the little Ghost Envoy is holding? Will that do?"

"..."

"Ghost Envoy?"

The old shopkeeper was startled by this. He suddenly turned his head and glared fiercely at Second Master and Hu Ma. "You brought ghosts with you?"

Second Master felt a surge of nervousness. "Xiao Hong Tang was following along? How did someone see her!"

Dealing with these nobles from the city was full of taboos. He had come out to guide them, and yet he had brought an Evil Spirit with him. They might think they had ill intentions and were looking for an opportunity to harm them.

Not only would they not get paid, but they might even get chopped up.

"Don't be so nervous."

The person in the sedan chair spoke calmly. "It's just a subdued little ghost, quite well-behaved. It's harmless."

This kind of matter could be big or small. Since everyone in the sedan chair said so, the old shopkeeper calmly suppressed his anger.

"Fine, a basket it is. As long as it was used recently, hand it over."

"..."

Hu Ma quickly nodded, turned, and took the basket covered with red cloth from Xiao Hong Tang, who looked a little scared.

In the eyes of others, he merely turned around, and a basket suddenly appeared in his hand.

The scene looked quite eerie, like a magic trick.

The old shopkeeper beside them watched this scene with a calm expression, but the sedan bearers were all startled.

"They say the eight hundred li Old Yin Mountain is so strange that even the grass there is sinister. It's true."

"This young kid, brought from the village, actually has such spooky methods."

"..."

Little did they know, Hu Ma's method, though it looked strange, was something even Second Master couldn't do.

This was the skill of a Ghost Walker like his Old Woman. Hu Ma was only borrowing Xiao Hong Tang's ability to casually take a basket.

This action was simple and ordinary to those who could see Xiao Hong Tang or knew what was going on.

But to those who were unaware, it seemed a bit uncanny.

Just like Cui Xie'er, who was fighting with him, probably couldn't figure out how he fell for no reason.

"Consider yourself lucky, kid. Otherwise, we wouldn't bother with your business."

The old shopkeeper took the basket from Hu Ma, lifted the red cloth to take a look, and seeing it was empty, covered it again.

Then he walked a few steps to the side, stood before a patch of wild grass, held the basket in one hand, and with his fingers together at his chest, closed his eyes. He muttered something rapidly, his voice extremely low. It was estimated that no one but himself knew what he was chanting.

But as he chanted, the surroundings actually changed. A gust of unseen wind seemed to sweep by.

The wild grass around swayed and rustled, as if pushed by an invisible hand, or as if unseen things were whispering to each other.

After a while, with a final shake, the eerie wind disappeared, and the wild grass gradually quieted down.

Hu Ma was greatly astonished. His eyes widened, and he couldn't help but glance at Second Master again. He saw that Second Master also felt a sense of awe, his eyes wide as he stared. He whispered to Hu Ma, "This shopkeeper is quite capable. This is the Ghost Control Technique; he can find paths and move wealth with unfathomable divine and ghostly means."

"Huh?"

But as they were speaking, the old shopkeeper opened his eyes. His expression seemed a bit strange as he looked at the sedan chair. "My Five Ghosts Method seems to be ineffective."

"Old Yin Mountain is different from other places. Your Five Ghosts cultivation is not enough; you cannot use such methods."

A faint voice spoke from inside the sedan chair, "Bring me a brush. Let me try!"

The old shopkeeper quickly agreed. He ordered a guard nearby, who was carrying a small bundle, to come over. The guard opened the bundle and took out a brush case, an inkstone, and a porcelain bottle.

Just outside the sedan chair, they poured the liquid from the porcelain bottle into the inkstone and ground it carefully. After a long while, they opened the brush case and used the fine brush inside to dip into the ink. Then, holding it with both hands, they lowered their heads and sent it into the sedan.

Hu Ma didn't know what they were doing, but he smelled a strange scent from the small porcelain bottle. He turned to look at Second Master.

"It should be Lord Tai Sui's blood..."

Second Master was also observing closely and explained to Hu Ma in a low voice, "It's been refined with a secret method."

"I've seen Ghost Walkers and members of the cult use this kind of spell. The things they use are mostly related to Lord Tai Sui."

"..."

The meat is used for eating or healing, and the blood is used for casting spells and curses...

Hu Ma thought to himself, do all the strange phenomena in this world originate from Lord Tai Sui?

"Alright, let's see if you are sincere enough!"

After a long while, a fair and slender hand with delicate fingers extended from the sedan, offering a small, exquisite mirror.

"Look into the mirror and think of your Old Woman. If you are sincere enough, you will be able to see her."

"..."

Hu Ma nodded and was about to reach for it, but the old shopkeeper proactively took it and handed it to Hu Ma.

Hu Ma nodded to show he understood and stepped aside, looking at the mirror's surface.

On the mirror's surface were drawn some strange talismans, looking rather messy. He didn't know what they meant. The mirror, which should have reflected a person's face, only showed a fragmented image due to the presence of these talismans. Forget seeing the Old Woman; even his own face couldn't be seen completely.

But Hu Ma could tell that the person in the sedan had considerable skill, so he slowly breathed and earnestly thought of the Old Woman in his mind.

Why was he so eager to enter the forest to find his Old Woman? Was it only for the Tai Sui Meat that she would give him?

It seemed to be more than that. She truly doted on her grandson. To bring her grandson back to life, she stayed up all night chanting scriptures, begged the ancestors at the Old Fire Pit, and even risked danger to enter the forest alone to fight the evil spirits sent by the Meng Family...

He wasn't her grandson, but he had received all the benefits.

He had truly felt the Old Woman's wholehearted sacrifice and devotion, and he genuinely felt grateful...

As this thought arose, Hu Ma's vision suddenly blurred.

It was as if his eyes had become blurry from staring at the mirror for too long.

But as this blur appeared, the light reflected in the mirror and the crooked talismans drawn on it actually leaped up. The colors and lines rearranged themselves, forming a hazy image in his field of vision.

He even seemed to hear faint sounds in his ears.

He saw a giant ancient tree with bells tied to its branches, swaying in the air like thousands of snakes.

The Old Woman, hunched over, stood before the ancient tree, chanting incantations loudly.

Each branch of the tree was like a python, weaving and intertwining around her. On the branches, dark shadows in clumps opened their bloody mouths and bit at the Old Woman as they swung, locked in a fierce, chaotic battle.

Suddenly, one of the branches seemed to sense something and lunged towards Hu Ma.

Hu Ma had borrowed the mysterious mirror to glimpse that scene, but the strange branch actually tried to pull Hu Ma into the battlefield.

"Crack!"

Just as the branch was about to touch Hu Ma, the Old Woman reached out and grabbed a bell on the branch.

She also turned, her gaze passing through the mirror, and looked at Hu Ma, her voice hoarse, "Don't look, and don't come looking for me..."

"..."

But within the Old Woman's warning, Hu Ma saw the branches of the tree tremble, as if strange voices were shouting:

"Come, hurry, your Old Woman is about to die..."

"..."

"Crack!"

These various sounds rushed into Hu Ma's mind like a torrent, intertwining incessantly. The mirror suddenly shattered.

Hu Ma staggered back two steps and subconsciously looked at the sedan chair.

Silence reigned within the sedan. After a long pause, a faint voice finally sounded:

"You owe me a mirror."