Rong Jiaojiao frowned and said, "So what is our mission this time...?"
Elder Li said in a deep voice, "Our mission is to go to the Southwest Branch to investigate the source of the curse on those artifacts, find a way to lift the curse, and at the same time, find the location of the ancient tomb to prevent the curse from spreading further."
Rong Jiaojiao nodded, understanding the difficulty of this mission.
Curses are often associated with ancient evil magic or demons, and if one is not careful, they may cause even greater disasters.
"Our fellow Daoists from the Southwest Branch are already waiting for us. Let's set off as soon as possible," Elder Li said.
Rong Jiaojiao patted Ziling and said, "I have all my things with me, so we can set off now."
Elder Li stood up: "Then let's set off!"
The two bid farewell to Team Leader Zhang, left the branch headquarters, and flew towards the Southwest Branch on their swords.
The Southwest Branch is located in a border city in the southwest, two thousand miles away from Jiangcheng.
The two people and one beast flew on swords, passing through rolling mountains and swirling clouds.
Because they were in a hurry, Zi Ling didn't need to search for the demon spirit along the way. It transformed into a beam of light, sometimes flying in front of Rong Jiaojiao, sometimes landing on her shoulder, appearing very lively.
After flying for most of the day, we finally arrived at the Southwest Branch.
The branch office is located at the foot of a mountain on the outskirts of Yunyang City, in a rather large courtyard.
Elder Li landed outside the gate with Rong Jiaojiao and knocked on the door with his spiritual power. The gate opened by itself when no one answered, and the two went inside.
A cultivator dressed in ethnic clothing approached and asked in broken Mandarin, "Hello, my name is Yang Qifan. May I ask if you are Elder Li and Junior Sister Rong?"
This person was quite outgoing. Elder Li nodded slightly: "We're a bit late. How is the situation?"
Yang Qifan sighed: "The situation is terrible. Those police officers are unaware of it, and everyone who touched these objects has been cursed."
"The curse has now spread throughout their bodies, and their skin has begun to fester. We can't find a solution, so we can only isolate them for now."
"But this is not a solution either. If we can't find a way to remove their curse, they will likely die from festering sores all over their bodies."
Elder Li frowned and said, "Take us to see those artifacts."
Yang Qifan nodded: "I've been waiting for you two here. I'll take you inside now, please."
As she spoke, she led the two towards the inner courtyard of the branch. Rong Jiaojiao asked, "Senior Brother Yang, are you all alone here?"
Yang Qifan shook his head: "There are more than 20 people in the Southwest Branch. The others have all gone to look for clues about the ancient tomb. I'll stay and wait for the two of you."
Rong Jiaojiao didn't understand why there were so many people here when other branches only had a few, but she didn't ask. She nodded and followed him into the inner courtyard.
Deep within the inner courtyard lies a sealed stone chamber, its door covered with talismans that emit a faint glow.
“This is where those artifacts are stored,” Yang Qifan said. “We have sealed the stone chamber with talismans, but the curse is still slowly spreading.”
Elder Li nodded, and Yang Qifan took out a talisman and affixed it to the door of the stone chamber.
The talisman instantly emitted a golden light, and the door to the stone chamber slowly opened.
The group entered the stone chamber and saw several ancient artifacts placed in the center.
There are bronze artifacts, porcelain, and a portrait.
These artifacts are covered with black patterns invisible to the average person, exuding an ominous and evil aura.
"Are these the cursed artifacts?" Elder Li said. "Young friend Rong, come and take a look."
Rong Jiaojiao stepped forward and carefully examined the items.
She could sense the intense evil aura emanating from the vessel, as if an invisible force was trying to break the seal and erode her body.
Rong Jiaojiao frowned and said, "These utensils possess a very strong evil power."
Elder Li nodded, looking at the purification and exorcism talismans pasted on it. The evil forces were still struggling and could break free at any moment. He said, "This curse is indeed very strong. We may need to find an ancient tomb to completely solve the problem."
Rong Jiaojiao took out a Soul-Burning Talisman and asked Yang Qifan, "Can I try this talisman to see if it works?"
Yang Qifan glanced at the talisman in Rong Jiaojiao's hand, unable to identify what kind of talisman it was, but could sense a divine power emanating from it. He nodded, "Junior Sister Rong, please try it."
Rong Jiaojiao immediately affixed the Soul-Burning Talisman to one of the bronze artifacts. The Soul-Burning Talisman instantly emitted a dark blue light, enveloping the artifact.
The black patterns on the vessel began to fluctuate violently, struggling to resist the power of the Soul-Burning Talisman.
However, under the burning of the Soul-Burning Talisman, the curse power on the object was gradually burned away, and after more than ten minutes, the curse power was completely burned away.
Yang Qifan was overjoyed, and even Elder Li's face showed joy.
Rong Jiaojiao purified the other items, and two hours had passed.
Yang Qifan was already very excited. Seeing that Rong Jiaojiao had finished doing all this, he went up and took her hand and asked, "Junior Sister Rong, can you also purify the curse power on those public security personnel?"
Rong Jiaojiao shook her head: "Senior Brother Yang, it's not that I'm unwilling to help, but this talisman is called the Soul-Burning Talisman. As the name suggests, it's a talisman specifically designed for the soul."
“It may be effective against curses on objects, but it is extremely risky to use it on living people. If you try to cleanse them forcibly, it may damage their souls or even endanger their lives.”
Yang Qifan's face instantly darkened. He released Rong Jiaojiao's hand and sighed, "What can we do? They've been tormented by the curse to the point of being unrecognizable. If the curse isn't lifted soon, they probably won't last much longer."
Elder Li also frowned. He had witnessed the power of the Soul-Burning Talisman, which could even burn demonic spirits at the Celestial Master level. Its power was indeed too great to be used on living people.
He pondered for a moment and said, "Fellow Daoist Yang, don't rush. Let's hurry up and find the source." He then turned to Zi Ling, who had remained silent, and asked, "Zi Ling, could you perhaps follow the aura emanating from these artifacts..."
Zi Ling shook her head, her voice echoing in the minds of the three: "This is an ancient divine curse. This kind of curse can only be activated upon contact with a person, and once it enters the human body, it will merge with the person's soul and is very difficult to separate."
“I cannot guarantee that the source can be traced from the artifacts, but we should be able to trace the places they went by from the aura of the people who brought them out.”
Yang Qifan looked troubled and said, "We were worried that the curse on those people's corpses would spread, so we have already burned them."
"However, our team leader has already taken their scent and used a compass to track them, but as time has passed, their scent in the mountains has dissipated, and we can't find their exact location, only their general direction."
Elder Li frowned and said, "Doesn't that mean we can only completely solve the problem by finding the ancient tomb?"
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