Qi Zhongbin had, of course, heard the temple keeper's words. Carrying the paper figure that had been cut in half, he searched throughout the city, finally finding an incense shop on a secluded street in the western district.
Both the designs of the paper figures and their painted colors matched those Qi Zhongbin had encountered the night before exactly.
Qi Zhongbin did not bother going inside to ask questions. He glanced toward the west, then turned and left.
They were either hiding in the western district or outside the western city gates. Beyond those gates lay wilderness, desolate hills, and paupers' burial grounds, so the latter was quite possible.
Still, the area was far too large. Rushing out to search would surely yield nothing, and Qi Zhongbin did not want to beat the grass and startle the snake.
By the time he returned to the Mo Household, Qi Zhongbin had disposed of the paper figure. He had also brought back two large jars of incense ash from the City God Temple and purchased statues of the Four Direction Venerable Gods.
Some said these four gods were incarnations of the Four Spirit Divine Beasts. They had several honorifics among the common folk, but were usually called the Eastern Spirit General, Southern Spirit General, Western Spirit General, and Northern Spirit General for short.
Taking several servants with him, Qi Zhongbin went to the four corners of the Mo Residence. He started in the east, setting down one of the statues, laying out some simple offerings, and taking out his own incense burner.
"Incense. A flame."
One servant hurriedly handed over the incense, while another offered a lit candle. Qi Zhongbin lit the incense, returned the candle to the servant, then stood quietly with the sticks raised for a moment.
After several breaths,