Where does the ethereal aura come from?
Xu Yi, standing to the side, looked at Wu Zi with starry eyes and praised him, "Wu Zi, you're so nice."
Wu Zi glanced at Xu Yi, then turned and left without saying a word.
Xu Yi patted the female ghost: "Quick, let's follow."
"Oh." The female ghost nodded, then burrowed into the middle of the body. She then took Xu Yi's arm and followed him down the mountain. Xu Yi asked, "What should I call you? You don't seem to be Lady Huaiyuan."
“Yes,” the female ghost nodded, “I am indeed not his wife, and there is no love between us. Just call me Li Niang.”
Xu Yi said sweetly, "Okay, Li Niang."
"Wow..." Li Niang exclaimed, shaking off non-existent goosebumps, "Your moan is so sweet, Xu Yi..."
Xu Yi knew that Liniang was teasing her, so she wrinkled her nose and remained silent.
Wu Zi asked, "Li Niang, who gave you that small stone on the roof beam in your house?"
“He was a fellow Daoist who had attained enlightenment. I once saved his life through someone else’s words, and he gave me that stone, saying it could conceal my aura.”
Wu Zi nodded and returned the stone to Liniang: "Keep this stone close to your body. It's more effective than putting it on the roof beam, and you won't have to worry about anyone stealing it."
"Steal?" Li Niang looked at Xu Yi, who was even more puzzled, with a puzzled expression, and asked Wu Zi, "Does anyone steal this?"
Wu Zi glanced at Li Niang and said, "Human hearts are unpredictable; I'm afraid of thieves eyeing them."
Xu Yi patted Liniang's hand and advised her, "Wu Zi won't harm you. Keep him safe."
"And don't tell anyone where this stone is, not even Huaiyuan," Wu Zi said seriously.
"Huh? Not even Huaiyuan is told?"
“Hmm,” Wu Zi nodded, his words carrying a hidden meaning: “I’m just afraid that if I let it slip to the thief, everything will be irreversible.”
Xu Yi had always trusted Wu Zi and always judged the importance of things according to Wu Zi's words. Hearing Wu Zi emphasize it again and again, she agreed, "Listen to Wu Zi. Wu Zi is smarter than all of us. Don't forget that."
"Okay." Li Niang nodded solemnly and hid the pebble between her eyebrows.
Not long after, they returned to the Qi residence.
Wu Zi introduced Li Niang to the steward, saying, "This is an outside helper we invited. However, there can be no ordinary people within several miles when she casts her spell, otherwise it will affect the spell's effectiveness."
After listening, the steward nodded solemnly, then summoned everyone in the mansion to retreat outside the gate. He even had his son inspect the entire mansion to make sure that only the five of them remained before bowing to Wu Zi and the other two, and then leaving the mansion with his son.
Seeing that the steward had also left, Wu Zi raised his hand and threw the bell he had been using earlier into the air above the Qi residence. After the light emitted by the bell had completely enveloped the Qi residence, he said to Li Niang, "There is no one left in the entire Qi residence. You can go and cast your spell in peace, and then try to persuade Master Qi."
"Alright." Li Niang nodded, bowed to Wu Zi to express her gratitude, and then entered Master Qi's bedroom.
Xu Yi and Wu Zi were outside, watching as black mist rose and red light appeared in the bedroom... After waiting for more than an hour, they finally saw Master Qi and Li Niang come out together.
As soon as Master Qi came out, he bowed to Wu Zi and Xu Yi and said, "Thanks to the two of you for your help."
"You're welcome," Xu Yi waved her hand shyly, "It was mainly Li Niang who saved you."
Master Qi looked at Li Niang and nodded: "Li Niang's experience is truly unbelievable. However, I love Li Niang's acting, and her personal life has no impact. Although I was surprised that night, I never thought of doing anything."
Li Niang smiled and nodded to Xu Yi and Wu Zi: "We've already talked everything out. Master Qi is a man of great vision and will naturally not go back on his word. I will also help Master Qi complete the things he left behind while he was in a coma. I will keep your words in mind, so there's no need to worry."
Xu Yi admired Master Qi somewhat, but was still a little worried, so she took out another of Wu Zi's communication talismans and handed it to Li Niang: "This is a communication talisman. If anything happens later, remember to contact us."
"Okay," Li Niang pinched Xu Yi's cheek before replying, "I know, little Xu Yi, don't worry about me, just take good care of yourself."
“Yes,” Xu Yi nodded obediently, “I will.”
Then the two bid farewell to the Qi family and, with the large sum of money given to them by the Qi family, went to find the enlightened fellow Daoist that Li Niang had mentioned.
"Wu Zi, why are we looking for that fellow Daoist?"
Wu Zi tapped Xu Yi on the head: "There is already a trace of immortal energy in that stone. Of course we should pay a visit to someone who can become an immortal in half a step."
"Oh," Xu Yi said, seemingly understanding but not quite, "to get closer to each other?"
Wu Zi rolled his eyes and tapped Xu Yi again: "Trying to build connections? Once someone becomes an immortal, they sever ties with the mortal world. What connections could they possibly have? The main thing is to ask a master how to help you control your ghostly energy."
"Is it for me?" Xu Yi was visibly happy: "Wu Zi, you're so good to me."
"Yes..." Wu Zi replied perfunctorily, "Isn't it because I'm afraid you'll suddenly turn into an uncontrollable vengeful ghost again?"
Xu Yi pouted, feeling utterly touched for nothing...
Seeing Xu Yi's unhappy expression, Wu Zi found it amusing and reached out to ruffle her hair. Unexpectedly, Xu Yi slapped Wu Zi's hand away. Wu Zi looked at his hand and exclaimed, "Oh, Xu Yi, you've gotten bold! You dare to slap me like that!"
"Really?" Xu Yi felt a chill and quickly came up with an excuse: "Maybe it's because I felt safe by your side that I relaxed." She then nodded at Wu Zi.
Wu Zi laughed generously: "This is a good thing, don't be nervous." After a pause, he added: "Actually, you don't need to be so careful and afraid. With your appearance as a vengeful ghost, there are very few people in the world who can defeat you. There's no need to be anxious all the time."
"Really?" Xu Yi was somewhat skeptical.
"Of course, think about those fox demons. You can tear them apart with your bare hands. Isn't that amazing enough?"
"Then... what about Sister Li Niang?"
"If it's a serious fight, she's no match for you."
"Really!" Xu Yi exclaimed excitedly, having never known she was so powerful. "So next time I encounter something, can I just go up and beat it up?"
"Hmm..." Wu Zi hesitated for a while before saying tactfully, "We still need to be cautious about those particularly powerful ones..."
Xu Yi understood; Wu Zi was trying to comfort her… She rolled her eyes again and remained silent.
They crossed a mountain and arrived at the neighboring village. Following Li Niang's directions, they walked to a farmhouse in the eastern corner of the village. In the yard, two boys were fighting over a toy, a little girl was squatting in a corner digging for ants, and a woman dressed as a farmer was sweeping the floor. When she saw them, she came over and asked, "Who are you two?"
"Oh, we're just passing through, we've come to ask for a bowl of water," Wu Zi said.
After hearing this, the peasant woman warmly invited the two into the courtyard. A moment later, she brought over two bowls of well water and said, "This is freshly drawn well water, it's so refreshing. Don't be shy, drink it and then scoop some more."
"Thank you, sister-in-law," Wu Zi said, glancing at the yard full of ordinary little radish heads. "Sister-in-law's house is so lively! Hey... where is everyone else?"
"You mean the husband?" The peasant woman chuckled. "The husband works in the fields and won't be back until dark."
Xu Yi looked at Wu Zi and relayed the message, "They won't be back until tonight? What excuse do we have to stay until then?"
“Sister-in-law, you are kind-hearted and blessed. The head of the household must be a good person too. If you don’t mind, could you let us stay the night?” She then took out several dozen copper coins from her pocket and said with feigned difficulty, “My sister and I are not well-off either. How about we add thirty copper coins for our meals?”
The peasant woman laughed heartily, "So you wanted to stay the night? No problem, we have spare rooms, feel free to stay. You're so kind, brother, I won't stand on ceremony, thank you both." After saying that, she wiped her hands and took the copper coin from Wu Zi's hand and put it away.
Xu Yi and Wu Zi accompanied the three little rascals as they played around, and soon it was evening.
They heard someone returning, and Xu Yi and Wu Zi looked over at the same time. At the front was a burly man carrying a hoe, followed by a boy of about fourteen or fifteen, and at the very back was a mangy, yellow dog.
Both of them were ordinary mortals, without any trace of cultivation. Xu Yi frowned and looked at Wu Zi, who simply shook his head slightly to indicate that he had not noticed anything unusual either.
The peasant woman went up to the strong man and took the hoe from him: "The husband is back?" She then looked at us and said, "These two siblings were passing through and asked for lodging. They gave me thirty copper coins for food."
The man came over with a simple smile: "Hello, gentlemen. We have spare rooms. You can stay directly without paying any money."
Wu Zi stood up and cupped his hands in greeting: "The rules can't be broken. It's already a rare treat to meet two kind people like you. How can we accept this for free? You can rest assured and we'll feel more at ease too."
“Okay,” the burly man nodded and said to the peasant woman, “Steam some buns for them to take on the road.”
"Okay, I got it," he said, then turned to Xu Yi and the others and said, "I'll go cook now, you wait a moment."
"You're welcome, you're welcome, sister-in-law, please go ahead."
Xu Yi listened to Wu Zi casually discussing the crops, weather, and harvest with the burly man. Just as she was wondering if she had come to the wrong place, she noticed someone watching her. She turned her head and saw that although the mangy dog was lying on the ground, its eyes were staring straight at her. She blinked, confirming that the mangy dog was looking at her, and couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Just as she was about to pull Wu Zi away, she heard an old voice in her mind: "Don't be afraid, we'll talk about it tonight."
Xu Yi tugged at Wu Zi's sleeve, but Wu Zi didn't turn around. He just patted her hand to indicate that he understood.
Xu Yi was truly astonished; she had never imagined that the fellow Daoist Li Niang had mentioned was a dog… She kept staring at the mangy dog. The burly man, thinking she was afraid of dogs, yelled at the mangy dog, “Get out of the way, don’t scare the guests.”
"No, no," Xu Yi quickly waved her hand. The eldest son, who had come back with the burly man, stared at Xu Yi and said, "It doesn't bite, don't be afraid."
"I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid, I just... I just wanted to look." Xu Yi was afraid that she would make the half-step immortal's dog suffer: "I, I just like dogs, that's why I was staring at it."
The eldest son ran over, petted the mangy dog, and said to Xu Yi, "Its name is Dahuang. It's very intelligent and never barks randomly."
"Not barking? Not barking? It bit that rich businessman last time! I'll stew it sooner or later." The burly man was furious. He turned to Wu Zi and said, "You don't know, a few months ago a rich businessman took a fancy to my land. He offered a high price, and we even reached an agreement. But that beast bit his leg. He didn't make any money; instead, he lost a lot of money." The burly man spat and pointed at the mangy dog, saying, "I'll stew you tomorrow."
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