The man wearing a ghost mask appeared in front of the Lion Dance Temple. He grabbed a puppet in one hand and threw it to the ground angrily: "You little brat, you actually set off a smoke bomb to disturb me, making me waste so much time in vain!"
The blow was so powerful that all of the puppet's limbs were broken. It lay on the ground motionless, seemingly unconscious.
A gust of wind blew by, and the surrounding weeds and trees rustled, and sad sobs were heard in the dilapidated temple.
The man with the ghost face is the fake mayor and the real culprit behind these murders. He was disturbed by the puppet released by Yue Ya and ran around for most of the night before finding this place.
The fake mayor looked around and didn't see a single person: "This is the place with the heaviest aura. That brat must be here, in the temple?"
"Woo woo... Boss, save me!" The exorcist who was trapped in the hunting net fell from the eaves of the ruined temple and dangled in the air.
The fake mayor frowned. He felt that the atmosphere was a bit strange. Seeing that the person caught in the net was the exorcist, he felt like he was walking into a net.
Uncomfortable, very uncomfortable.
"Boss, please save me! This broken net can't be burned!" The exorcist called for help anxiously again.
The fake mayor did not move, but only asked: "Where is that brat?"
The exorcist pointed in a certain direction: "When he realized you were coming, he left me and ran over there in a hurry."
The fake mayor walked up to the exorcist. He sniffed the scent on the hunting net and his brows relaxed a little: "So this thing is releasing its scent."
The exorcist held the hunting net with both hands and looked at him pitifully: "I didn't expect that boy to be such a powerful character, so I drank at home and made a mistake. I promise I won't do it again next time. Put me down and I will go with you to catch him!"
"He's so smart. Leaving you behind means you're no longer useful to him," the fake mayor squinted his eyes. "You must have betrayed me and told him the truth. Betraying me will only lead to death. Considering that you've cooperated with me for so long, I'll let you die easily."
The fake mayor raised his hand, and several human-shaped paper talismans emerged, their sharp edges flashing cold light in the dark night.
The exorcist's eyes widened. "Damn, do you have to know each other so well?! And what kind of clichéd line is that!"
The fake mayor felt that there was something wrong with this sentence. Before he could figure out the deeper meaning behind it, he was blinded by a burst of light. The light leaked through the gap in the ruined temple and shot towards him.
He stepped out of the corridor and looked up, only to see a bright lamp hanging above the ruined temple. The strong white light spread in all directions, almost turning the darkness into day.
As if in response to the bright moonlight, the lights in the nearby houses lit up and the dead silence of the night was broken by the rustling sounds of people.
Footsteps and voices could be heard in the surrounding streets. The Lion Dance Temple used to be the core of the town, and the townspeople had gathered here countless times, and the gathering speed was very fast.
Seeing the exorcist's calm expression, the fake mayor realized that he had fallen into a trap. In this situation, no matter which way he went, he would be surrounded by the townspeople and taken back to his original place.
He gritted his teeth, put away the human-shaped talisman, and the ghost mask disappeared, revealing himself as a kind and honest mayor.
He stared at the exorcist with a sinister look on his face and said, "This kid is really scheming. He actually used you to deceive me and secretly gathered the townspeople."
The exorcist nodded, looking serious: "To be honest, I think he is smarter than you. You can learn more skills of being a villain by following him."
"..." The fake mayor felt that he was being mocked and sneered, "Do you think the townspeople will trust a child and an exorcist who deceived them, or trust me, the mayor who worked so hard for them? As long as I play along, kill the Paper Demon in front of the townspeople, and catch the child bewitched by the Awakening Lion Demon, they will still trust and love me as before."
The exorcist said calmly, "Really? Then you can try it."
"You don't believe me?" The fake mayor was a little angry.
"I just feel sorry for you."
"You fart!" The fake mayor was furious and wanted to teach him a lesson.
"Mayor! What's going on?"
"Has the Awakening Lion Demon been caught?"
Some townspeople had already arrived at the open space in front of the Lion Dance Temple. When they saw the fake mayor, they all rushed to speak.
Townspeople: "Old man Chen brought people here to convey your notice, saying that they will soon exorcise the demon in front of the Lion Temple and need our help. We quickly got out of bed!"
Fake mayor: “…” Damn it, that brat actually used my name to gather the townspeople to cheat me!
"Mayor, where is the Awakening Lion Demon?"
"Where's the exorcist? Why isn't he here tonight for the exorcism?"
"Hiss...what's that thing hanging up? A paper, paper, paper man?"
A group of townspeople were talking at once, and the fake mayor felt like there were eight thousand ducks surrounding his ears.
Why do you have so many questions? Is it time for a hundred thousand whys now?
The fake mayor had a lot of dirty words in his mind, but when he was in front of others, he reflexively showed a kind expression of an old man: "This matter is a little complicated, everyone, please be patient and listen to my explanation."
"Yes, I am the Paper Paper Paper Man, and..." The exorcist smiled maliciously and restored his appearance in the hunting net: "I am the exorcist you have always loved and respected. Are you surprised or not?"
The fake mayor's rhythm was suddenly interrupted. He stared at the exorcist fiercely and forced himself to stop talking: "It's my fault. I didn't realize that the exorcist was replaced by the Paper Demon. I just found out the truth today. The exorcist and the Awakening Lion Demon are in cahoots with each other and harm innocent people. We will execute him on the spot today!"
The townspeople didn't expect this to happen and were all stunned.
Someone tried to sort out the current situation: "The exorcist is the Paper Demon. He worked with the Awakening Lion Demon and killed innocent townspeople. The mayor single-handedly found out the truth and captured the Paper Demon, so he notified us to help with the exorcism?"
The "truth" came to light and the townspeople exclaimed.
"The exorcist turned out to be a paper ghost. No wonder he looked at me strangely before. Did he want to eat me?"
"The mayor is amazing. He can actually see through the exorcist's disguise."
The townspeople praised the mayor, and finally someone whispered a question: "But... the mayor is an ordinary person like us. How did he subdue the exorcist?"
Everyone looked at the fake mayor curiously, their eyes full of inquiry.
"Evil cannot prevail over good," the fake mayor took out a black token and said righteously, "This is the exorcism token that the master gave me five years ago. He said that the token would work when the time is right. I used this token to subdue the paper demon."
The exorcist was astonished: "You really are a boaster." This is clearly the token you use to control the human-shaped talisman and paper man.
The fake mayor warned the exorcist with his eyes and regretted very much that he had not sealed his mouth just now.
Between the Paper Charm and the good-natured mayor, the townspeople's balance tilts infinitely towards the mayor.
They even took it upon themselves to tell the mayor the origin of the exorcism order: "That master was able to predict the disaster several years later and even had a backup plan. He is really amazing! We thought he was a liar back then. How shameful."
"Mayor, please use the exorcism order to kill the demon. I want peace to return soon."
"Yeah yeah!"
The fake mayor held his hands and said, "Everyone, please be patient. We don't need to use the exorcism order to deal with the paper demon now. He can't escape. Just use torches to burn the paper demon and this evil temple. When you throw the torches, remember to silently chant in your heart to expel the Awakening Lion Demon."
The townspeople responded and lit torches.
The fake mayor stared at the exorcist without blinking, with a hint of pride in his eyes, as if to say: See, everything is still going according to my script, and the real poor dog is you.
Looking at the clusters of jumping flames, the exorcist said "tsk". This scene was too ironic.
The exorcist was about to close his eyes when he suddenly saw a pale face appear behind the fake mayor.
"Hua Hua——" The evil ghost boss named Feng Feng silently poured a bucket of water on the fake mayor's head!
An evil spirit dressed in red fell out of the mayor's body, looked back in panic, and was strangled by Feng Feng.
Two evil ghosts, one black and one red, confronted each other, scaring the townspeople so much that they retreated frantically.
"Boss, you know me, and I know you too." The exorcist smiled and shook his head: "Since I'm going to betray you, I'll betray you to the end, so I told them your little secret as well."
The fake mayor in red gnashed his teeth, his features grim: "I should have killed you long ago."
Exorcist: "It's too late. You can regret it later."
The townspeople were confused by the series of reversals. They looked at the mayor lying on the ground, then at the evil ghost in red, feeling both scared and confused.
"What the hell is going on?!"
"The mayor is possessed by an evil spirit?"
“Is the real bad guy the mayor?”
"Let me explain it to everyone." Yue Ya walked out of the dilapidated temple, followed by a majestic lion dance.
The townspeople were terrified of the awakened lion. When they saw it, they showed fear and their legs trembled uncontrollably.
Aunt Li saw Yueya and shouted anxiously: "Child, run away quickly, the lion dance is very dangerous!"
Yue Ya smiled at Aunt Li. He pulled out the video from the props and projected it in the air: "Here is the evidence of the Red Paper Ghost's crime and the testimony of the suspect's exorcist."
Yueya slowly and methodically counted the crimes of the red-clothed paper ghost: "Five years ago, the red-clothed paper ghost coveted the Awakening Lion Town, so he possessed the mayor and secretly dumped the body in front of the Awakening Lion Temple, blaming the guardian of the Awakening Lion. He also let the paper ghost play the role of an exorcist, misleading the townspeople to burn down the Awakening Lion Temple, causing more than a dozen lion dancers to die in the fire. The three recent victims were all killed by him. The Awakening Lion did not become a demon, nor did it eat people. It just took away the souls of the dead so that they would not be torn apart."
Yue Ya touched the head of the awakened lion, and the souls sleeping in its belly emerged one by one around him, peaceful and calm.
“You don’t believe in the Guardian Angel, but the Guardian Angel has never given up on you.”
The townspeople were restless after watching the video. They saw many details in the video that Yue Ya had not mentioned, and combined with the actions of the "mayor" and the exorcist, they had seen the whole picture of the case.
They were deceived by the mayor and expelled the real guardian god with their own hands, and put the paper ghost on the altar.
The townspeople suddenly came to their senses and regretted their actions.
They glared at the red-clothed paper ghost, venting their anger.
"The evil ghosts are causing great harm to people!"
"You have deceived us for so many years! You have committed numerous crimes and deserve to be thrown into the eighteenth level of hell, where you will never be able to be reborn!"
"Give me back my son's life!"
The red-clothed paper ghost opened its mouth wide and spat out a human skull, which rolled to the feet of the townspeople.
"Is this your son?" The red-clothed paper demon sneered, "You are so easy to deceive, who can I blame? I just want to live an ordinary life and eat one or two human brains occasionally. Why are you unwilling to fulfill even such a small wish? In this case, I have no choice but to turn this place into my paradise."
A terrifying blood mist emerged from the red-clothed paper charmer, and her body kept expanding. Feng Feng was about to lose control of her.
"Master, can I take off my gloves?"
Yueya pointed to the lion dance next to him and said, "It seems we don't need to do anything."
The lion dance, which has regained the trust of the people, radiates a brilliant light. Its scarlet eyes turn into a sacred golden color. Its snow-white fur dances gently in the night wind. The lion dance is full of divine power. The higher the people's emotions, the stronger its power.
"Dong dong, dong dong dong, dong dong..." The sound of drums suddenly rang out. Old man Chen dragged a tattered red drum from somewhere and started beating it vigorously.
When the drums sounded, people's eyes became red.
The awake lion blinked its eyes, then rushed towards the red-clothed paper ghost fiercely and fought with it.
…
After an unknown amount of time, the scarred lion finally bit the red paper ghost into a pile of shredded paper. There was still a wisp of soul left in the red paper ghost, which fled everywhere and was swallowed by Fei Fei in one gulp.
Feifei chewed it, but it was gone before he could taste it. He couldn't help but look at the hanging exorcist.
The exorcist shuddered.
The drumbeats continued, and the townspeople worshipped the lion, begged it to stay, and promised to rebuild the Lion Temple.
The lion dance swung its tail, returned to Yueya, and rubbed his hand with its head.
Yue Ya touched the lion's forehead and said, "You did a great job."
The lion dance raised its head, and for a moment, Yue Ya felt that he saw through the lion's head a young man with a blurred face but a happy smile.
The boy said, "Can you take me away? Being a god is so tiring."
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