The barrier shimmered, and a crack appeared in its surface. A tremendous force surged out, making the surrounding space ripple and twist.
"No, that won't do. I'll try again!" Jia Meng gritted his teeth, still unwilling to give up.
He quickly calmed himself and refocused.
His hand movements had grown more practiced and swift, and the incantation on his lips flowed with greater urgency.
This time, the barrier glowed even more brightly. But just as it was about to be completed, the curse energy began to surge and waver again.
Jia Meng panted, "What exactly am I doing wrong?"
But he didn't give up. The talisman he'd drawn in his mind continued to take shape, and he kept adjusting his pace, carefully correcting each step.
"So that's it! It can definitely work!"
Jia Meng finally figured out where the problem lay. His eyes lit up, and he stood once more.
He began forming the barrier again. This time, every movement was much more precise.
The light gradually settled, and a flawless curse object—a Spirit Bone—appeared before his eyes.
Jia Meng collapsed onto the ground, then grinned with satisfaction.
"Next, I just need to see whether this move can successfully draw Mei Chu here."
Over the past few months of cultivation, Jia Meng had devoted himself to studying the Spirit Bone. It had consumed far too much of his energy, so he planned to rest for eight days. Once he'd recovered, he'd move on to the next step.
Just then, the eight days passed. Jia Meng picked up the communicator and contacted Wu Siwu.
"Wu, where are you? I need to talk to you."
Jia Meng's voice was tinged with a hint of embarrassment.
Successfully creating the Spirit Bone meant that his plan was already halfway complete.
He could leave the remaining part to Wu Siwu, who would be in charge of running around. That took a great weight off Jia Meng's mind.
"I'm in the fields, taking care of some work. What is it? You disappeared for months, and now you suddenly call me. Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"
Wu Siwu's voice carried a note of caution.
"Nothing complicated. Once you've finished your work, we'll talk in person."
Jia Meng replied briefly.
"It's good news. I can only tell you now that Mei Chu has a problem, and Divine Curse Sect may be involved."
Jia Meng spoke to Wu Siwu with a serious expression.
"If you're going to say that, now I'm interested. You've been mysterious for so long, and now you're finally going to tell me. I'll be right over."
Wu Siwu agreed readily.
Jia Meng arranged to meet Wu Siwu at his home.
After ending the call, he went to the refrigerator, took out several bottles of drinks, and set them on the table, planning to entertain Wu Siwu and Xia Bu.
Suddenly, he heard a "thump," as if something had struck the protective barrier he'd placed around the house.
He opened the door, only to find Wu Siwu and Xia Bu already waiting outside.
Xia Bu was dressed in a flashy outfit and looked at Jia Meng with a smile.
"Your teleportation skill is really impressive. You're practically at the peak already!"
Jia Meng smiled and teased him.
"You're giving me too much credit. I was going to bypass the barrier outside your house and teleport straight to you, but the collision left me dizzy."
Wu Siwu rubbed his head and said.
"I wanted to play with that curse spirit for a while longer, but since you called me, I had to end its life early. After I found the Spirit Bone, I came straight over."
Wu Siwu shrugged, looking unbothered.
"So, what exactly is this about? Why did we have to meet in person?"
Wu Siwu asked curiously.
Jia Meng led Wu Siwu into the house, then took a bottle of fine liquor from the refrigerator and set it on the coffee table.
The three of them sipped the delicious liquor and listened to Jia Meng explain.
Outside the window, the night had grown deep. Moonlight filtered through the gauzy curtains and fell across the room, adding a solemn, mysterious air to the discussion.
"What? A high-ranking curse tamer is actually involved with Divine Curse Sect?"
Wu Siwu's dark eyes flashed with a sharp gleam.
Jia Meng looked grave. He nodded slightly, his voice low and steady.
"That's right. I don't know the whole story yet, but I'm certain that something's going on. Most of the people involved are from my family."
Wu Siwu frowned and stared at Jia Meng, as if weighing the truth of what he'd heard.
"You're planning to go after the high-ranking members of your own family?"
Jia Meng drew a deep breath, his gaze resolute.
"I'm going after the corrupt ones. It doesn't matter which family they come from. If they're obstructing the righteous development of the curse world, they must be eliminated."
"It's just that Gao Bao from the Jia Meng Family is a very close friend of mine. He's the one who brought this to my attention."
He paused, a hint of frustration in his voice.
"And besides, Gao Bao's your best friend, isn't he? You should've told me about him before. You've been up to something lately, haven't you?"
Jia Meng glanced at Xia Bu and asked, "You've been looking after Gao Bao, haven't you? He's the one who leads the mysterious organization now."
Wu Siwu shrugged nonchalantly and smiled. "I really am training him. His appointment as acting head of the organization is to help him make the most of his talent."
"So what's the result?"
Jia Meng pressed him.
Wu Siwu shook his head, a bitter smile crossing his face.
"Nothing much has happened yet."
"That divine-grade curse artifact can't be easy to find. I can't even call myself an ordinary curse tamer. We need a true master capable of creating a divine-grade curse artifact."
Wu Siwu explained further.
"Forget it. Since I happen to have a good candidate, I'll let you have him."
Jia Meng laughed and pulled a photo from his pocket, showing it to Wu Siwu.
"This kid's name is Xia Bu. He's the son of one of Japan's three great evil spirits, the Inugami. You could say he's your distant relative."
"Take a look. He has innate talent, and he's definitely the right material for a divine-grade curse artifact. You should take him on."
Wu Siwu picked up the photo and studied it carefully. The child in it had bright, alert eyes, a childish face, and a hint of wisdom in his gaze.
"My distant relative? I didn't even know this kid existed. Where did you find him?"
Jia Meng chuckled, a smug look on his face.
"I've been studying barriers, too. I never expected to stumble across him by accident."
Wu Siwu shook his head, clearly not convinced.
"You, of all people, found a talented curse tamer? How could that be an accident?"
Jia Meng shrugged and said with a grin, "My innate curse technique lets me sense unusual barriers. I happened to come across him, and I sensed your aura on him. So I looked into it, and it really was an unexpected discovery."
Jia Meng acted as if he'd stumbled upon a gifted young curse tamer while shopping, leaving Wu Siwu dumbfounded.
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