No Errors or Omissions!

The old Taoist stood in place, watching his disciple bustle about with a faint, knowing smile.

Shen Hui, however, showed no sign of embarrassment at being thwarted.

He clapped his hands, pulled a sheet of yellow paper from his bosom, and said with a grin, "Good that it's gone—good. With it gone, luring the snake out of its hole is half done."

As he spoke, he casually took a small writing brush from the rack, brought it to his nose, and sniffed.

"The ink's decent stuff."

He muttered under his breath, then picked up the teapot, poured a little tea water into the inkstone, and slowly ground the ink stick.

Once the ink was thick, he spread out the yellow paper, dipped the brush, and began drawing a talisman.

His brush moved like a dragon in flight—the talisman's head rose with sharp momentum, the body flowed in one breath, and the tail finished clean and crisp, every stroke precise, without a hint of hesitation.

In the blink of an eye, a talisman still wet with ink was complete.

The old Taoist's brow twitched slightly, but he forced down his astonishment and instead asked, "Why not use cinnabar?"

Shen Hui blew on the ink, smiling. "He shouldn't be far yet—his aura's still warm. This ink will do; no need for cinnabar."

In truth, the old Taoist's question wasn't groundless.

It's well known that the art of talismans splits into two paths: civil and martial.

Civil talismans mostly use cinnabar; martial talismans use ink. The distinction lies entirely in yin-yang properties and functions.

Cinnabar is the pure yang essence of heaven and earth.

Its color is fiery red, corresponding to the fire of the Five Elements, symbolizing light and yang energy. This is called "yang virtue"—manifesting virtue through reward and blessing.

Drawing talismans with cinnabar borrows its pure yang essence to amplify the spell's power and divine might.

Ink, by contrast, belongs to yin. Its color is pitch-black, corresponding to the water of the Five Elements, representing stillness and darkness.

It symbolizes "yin punishment"—enforcing justice through penalty and execution.

Thus, talismans drawn with ink often carry a stern, suppressing intent.

This Paper Crane Tracking Talisman before them was meant for "sensing" and "guiding." By its nature, it belonged to the civil talisman lineage and should have used cinnabar.

Of course, this wasn't an ironclad rule.

Each school's methods adapt to circumstances and individuals.

For instance, Shen Hui's Paper Crane Seeking Talisman was something he'd learned by spending five points of Dao Xing.

Though it was just a minor art without rank, he'd maxed out its proficiency, making such adaptations effortless.

Now he deftly folded the talisman into the shape of a paper crane.

As he folded, he murmured an incantation under his breath:

"First fold the soul, then fold the trace, third fold the wings to ride the breeze; tail fold firm, mind and heart clear, paper crane with spirit draws you near."

Once folded, he dipped the brush tip in leftover ink and dotted the crane's eyes.

Then he pulled out the few strands of hair he'd picked up from the table that morning and carefully tucked them into the crane's belly.

Finally, he raised his hand to form a seal, pointed into the air, and commanded softly, "Rise!"

The paper crane instantly came to life, its wings fluttering as it wobbled into the air, circled the room once, and then flew out the window.

Master and disciple wasted no time and followed the crane.

The crane led them out of the county town, heading west all the way.

What surprised Shen Hui was that Scholar Li, despite his frail appearance, had a decent pace—they walked for quite a while.

The crane crossed fields, leaped over a dry creek, and turned onto a desolate path.

Weeds grew thick on both sides, thorns snagging at clothes—clearly a rarely trodden road.

After about seven or eight li, as dusk approached, a thatched hut suddenly appeared ahead, leaning crookedly in a patch of wasteland.

The hut had gaps in its walls, sparse thatch on the roof, and peeling plaster—an abandoned shack long uninhabited.

Shen Hui exchanged a glance with the old Taoist and crept closer.

Before they got near, they could faintly hear two voices from inside.

One was shrill, the other hoarse, weaving together with a note of panic and agitation.

The hoarse voice spoke first, thick with anger: "Didn't I tell you before? Don't come looking for me for nothing. Showing up so recklessly now—aren't you afraid of bringing disaster down on yourself?"

Then came Scholar Li's trembling, tearful voice:

"Do you think I wanted to come? But those two Taoists are truly formidable. That Yin Sha ghost from the Liu family was cleaned up in an instant. Seeing their methods, I'm terrified."

"Today at the inn, I deliberately picked a fight and feigned illness, barely managing to slip away. That Taoist has probably already seen through things. If we don't think of something, our affair will be exposed sooner or later!"

The conversation inside the hut continued, voices lowered to a whisper, yet growing more chilling by the moment.

"...That thing in the Liu Family Old Residence should have been left to mature a while longer, until it fully gained power before we subdued it."

The speaker's voice was sinister, laced with irritation. "Now look—you rushed in and stirred up trouble, drawing that Taoist's interference. Haven't you ruined my plans?"

Then came another torrent of scolding.

Scholar Li's voice carried a tearful quaver as he replied in panic, "Celestial, please calm your anger! I... I only wanted to gather some money quickly. I never expected those two Daoists to be so formidable..."

After a long while, the scolding from inside the room gradually subsided.

"Enough, enough. Since things have come to this, complaints are useless. Let me ask you—has the Yin Sha on that widow in Zhang Family Village been properly nurtured? Don't let it end up like that waste from the Liu family, broken by a Daoist at the first opportunity, ruining our grand plan."

Scholar Li trembled all over, his voice shaking.

"It's taken care of, taken care of! I set up the Yin Gathering Array as you instructed. I only need to wait for the right moment to subdue it and refine the Yin Sha day by day. It's just a pity about the Liu Family Old Residence's..."

"Waste!"

The hoarse voice cut him off with another harsh scolding, clearly still burning with anger. "If you hadn't been careless in your work, how would that Yin Ghost have revealed its trail?"

The scholar shrank his neck and fell silent, mumbling nothing.

The hoarse voice sighed and continued, "Enough. Now that you've fled here, you must lie low for a few days. Once I've gathered all the Yin Sha from Zhang Family Village, we'll leave this place immediately, lest we bring disaster upon ourselves! By the way, did you leave any evidence that the Daoist could seize?"

"No... none!"

Scholar Li hurriedly defended himself. "I was careful in every way, with no mistakes..."