As soon as Uncle Yu finished speaking, he blew at the three incense sticks planted in the ground.
With that breath, the three incense sticks visibly flared.
Immediately afterward, faint gusts of yin wind began to rise around us.
"Whoo, whoo, whoo..."
It had already been cold by the river. Now that the yin wind had risen, it became even colder.
As the yin wind appeared, my master spoke to me. "Open your sight and give me the sword. The wandering ghosts around here will be coming over soon. Once we gather enough intrinsic yin energy, we can plant the Tong Ghost Hand."
I nodded and handed the sword to my master.
Then I quickly took out the Ox Tears.
I had long grown used to its fishy, bitter taste.
An icy chill spread through me as the Nether Path opened, along with my Heavenly Eye.
The darkness around me instantly became clear.
Holding my sword, my master used a cinnabar brush to draw a talisman on its blade.
It should have been a Yin-Gathering Talisman, used to gather yin energy.
After finishing, he handed the sword back to me.
I held the sword and looked over the frigid riverbank.
I noticed that there were now additional figures and voices.
"Someone up ahead is treating us to a meal!"
"It smells so good!"
"Yeah! I've never smelled food this fragrant before."
"Come on, come on..."
As they spoke, one shadow after another appeared around us and continuously approached our location.
Looking closely, I saw that most of these figures wore burial clothes, while some wore long white garments.
There were men, women, young, and old, most with pale faces.
But some were gaunt as sticks, their complexions yellow and sickly.
Those were basically wandering ghosts.
Having gone years without food,