Chapter04
When Xie Que walked into the house, Jing Xiebai had already drawn the talisman.
"Is it burned?" Jing Xiebai gestured for Xie Que to sit next to him.
Xie nodded and sat down.
"Can you tell me what happened now?" After what happened just now, Xie's mind was now full of thoughts of quickly exorcising the ghost and returning to a peaceful life.
He really couldn't accept the reality that his previous peaceful life was suddenly disrupted.
Jing Xiebai gave a short laugh and, without further ado, got straight to the point: "The old landlord in your village was deceived. The forbidden area has bad feng shui. It used to be a mass grave, and it's filled with a lot of negative energy. The old landlord was buried there, and the negative energy has accumulated over time, turning him into a ghost long ago."
Xie frowned, puzzled, "Why would his son bury his father in this place? Isn't this inviting disaster? Or is it that the Taoist priest is incompetent and just looked at the place randomly?"
Xie felt a surge of anger rising in his heart. What on earth were these bastards trying to do? Even though everyone was dead, they still left such a disaster in the village.
Jing Xiebai smiled and continued to explain, "The person your village invited back then was quite capable and was able to suppress the old landlord. Unfortunately, the formation was broken. This is why your father was targeted by a fierce ghost."
Xie was even more confused: "Are you saying that my dad accidentally broke the formation?"
However, Xie cursed the Taoist priest in his heart. Since it was such an important thing, why didn't he mark it? He was so confident that no one would destroy the formation, right?
He was furious and wanted to find the Taoist priest and beat him up, but he saw that there was no smile on Jing Xie's face. Xie paused and realized that something was wrong.
Jing Xiebai shook his head and spoke earnestly, "This formation is invisible to most people. I think someone deliberately destroyed it. This old landlord has been suppressed for so many years, and his power must have been greatly reduced. He urgently needs human blood to restore his strength. Your father must have been deliberately lured away."
Xie's face changed. Xie's father had always been kind and seldom returned to the village, so it was impossible for him to have any grudges against anyone.
"Could that person be the Taoist priest from back then?" Xie shook his head. It had been so long, the Taoist priest was probably no longer alive. But the landlord's family had long since moved abroad, and Xie couldn't imagine who else could know about this forbidden area in the village.
The forbidden area was not something that could be discussed casually in the village. Moreover, the place was deep in the mountains, and Xie did not think that a person from another village could find it in a short time.
"I'll go and ask the villagers if any strangers have come to the village during this time."
Xie Que stood up and was about to go out. Jing Xiebai looked at him and sighed.
"I'll go with you."
For some reason, Jing Xiebai always had a bad feeling in his heart.
If someone really found this place, it wouldn't be too bad. But if that Taoist priest came back, it would be a big trouble.
The temperature was low at night, but Xie was shivering in the cold wind as soon as he went out. His teeth chattered unconsciously, and he crossed his arms and looked at Jing Xiebai.
"Let's go to the house at the entrance of the village and ask first." Xie shrank his head and spoke vaguely.
Jing Xiebai looked at him, said nothing, and nodded.
Xie did not dare to delay, so he took a shortcut and hurried to the villager's house.
It was called a shortcut, but it was actually just a gap between two houses. There was only one solar streetlight at the entrance to the village, and the road was completely dark, with only the occasional cat meowing.
Xie felt a little scared. He didn't know if it was a psychological effect, but he was always afraid that Jing Xiebai behind him would suddenly turn into a paper man.
If I had known this earlier, I wouldn’t have read any supernatural novels. Now look what I did, I ended up scaring myself.
After walking out of the gap, Xie looked at Jing Xiebai who was following behind him with an expressionless face, and cursed himself in his heart.
"It's right in front, let's go in." Xie Que was actually a bit socially anxious, but there was no time for him to mentally prepare himself at the door. He took a deep breath and knocked on the villager's door.
"Come, come, who is it? Why are you knocking on the door at this hour?"
Villagers usually shouted at the door when looking for someone, and few people knocked formally like Xie Que did. The aunt was afraid that it was an official from above, so she quickly dropped her work and opened the door.
Xie smiled the moment the door opened and said warmly, "Hey, Auntie, oh, I'm sorry to bother you so late."
Xie became a familiar figure in the village last month, and the aunt recognized him at a glance.
"Hey, hey, hey, Quezi, come here, come in and sit down." The aunt welcomed Xie Que into the house and then saw Jing Xiebai behind Xie Que.
The aunt was stunned.
"Hey, Quezai, who is this?"
"Oh," Xie Que pulled the person to his side, "This is my boss. Our company wants to develop a tourism project in our village, and I came to ask about the flow of people in the village."
The village is remote and deep in the mountains. Those who are capable have long moved to the city like Xie's father and mother. Those who remain in the village are all elderly people and children, with only a few middle-aged people still staying in the village.
When the aunt heard that they were going to develop tourism in the village, and saw that Jing Xiebai had a calm temperament and a noble air in his every move, she hurriedly pulled them into the house.
The aunt poured a cup of hot water for Xie Que and Jing Xiebai, and sat down awkwardly and nervously.
"Hey, you see, I'm not very good at talking. But if you have any questions, just tell me directly. I will tell you everything I know."
The aunt rubbed her hands awkwardly and smiled shyly.
Xie didn't want to waste any more time, so he asked pointedly, "Aunt, do we have many outsiders coming to our village? Especially those who go up the mountain. After all, young people like to exercise nowadays. I think our mountain is quite suitable for publicity."
After saying that, Xie poked Jing Xiebai's arm, signaling him to speak a few words for him.
Jing Xiebai hummed, then said, "We can use mountain climbing as a selling point for promotion. The scenery here is beautiful, and young people nowadays like to visit these unpopular tourist destinations."
Seeing that there was a real hope for tourism development, the aunt was overjoyed. She thought for a moment, then spoke carefully, "No. I work on the land in front of the mountain every day, and I don't see anyone climbing the mountain."
Fearing that Jing Xiebai would regret it, the aunt hurriedly tried to make amends, "That's because our area is entirely wild. Ordinary people can't get out once they get in. If we build a road out of the mountain, it will definitely attract a lot of people."
Xie, however, exclaimed, "Ah!" and pressed on, "Is it true that no one is coming? Will anyone take the small path up the mountain?"
The aunt gave Xie Que a strange look.
"How is that possible? We are surrounded by mountains. It's easy for locals to get lost if they go in."
Even the locals didn't dare to enter the mountains, let alone outsiders. Xie felt a little annoyed, so he exchanged a few more pleasantries and stood up to say goodbye.
"Thank you, Auntie. That's all I'll ask you today. I won't bother you again if there's anything else."
After saying that, Xie Que took Jing Xiebai away, leaving behind the aunt's voice asking them to stay for dinner.
Xie did not give up and asked several more companies, but they all gave the same answer.
The two stood under the street light, the atmosphere was a little depressed.
It had rained not long ago, and many small flying insects gathered under the lamp. However, Xie waved his hand and shooed them away.
Jing Xiebai glanced at him and took the initiative to say: "Don't look for it. Looking at the situation in your village, it's impossible for someone to come here and go unnoticed."
Xie sighed and said in frustration, "What should we do? Could it really be that the Taoist priest has returned?"
After saying thank you, he subconsciously looked up at Jing Xiebai.
Jing Xiebai frowned, his expression serious, his lips tightly pursed, and he looked annoyed.
Xie was stunned. He had never seen the other party's expression as if facing a great enemy. Even in the forbidden area, Jing Xie Bai did not show a trace of timidity.
Xie, however, realized the seriousness of the problem and said thoughtfully, "Could it really be that Taoist priest?"
Didn’t the Taoist priest die a long time ago? How could he come back and break the formation?
Xie felt it was a little weird that the Taoist priest was still alive. If it was a month ago, Xie would definitely not believe it, but now he had to believe it.
Jing Xiebai looked at Xie Que deeply, and suddenly laughed, the expression on his face changed from irritability to amusement.
Xie was stunned where he was, not knowing whether Jing Xiebai was going to give up and save him. He said in a panic, "No, don't just abandon me halfway through. I don't have the money to hire a Taoist priest anymore."
After hearing this, Jing Xiebai looked at Xie Que like he was idiot. He raised his hand and knocked on Xie Que's head, then said helplessly, "The ghost in you is probably the earthbound spirit you encountered when you went to the forbidden area. It wanted to use you to escape, but I've already saved it. As for this evil spirit, I'm afraid it's been led away long ago, and it can't find you anymore."
Xie was confused. What did it mean that the evil ghost was led away by someone?
Seeing Xie Que's confused look, Jing Xiebai sighed, hesitated for a long time, and finally spoke.
"This matter is no longer your business. But your family has already been dragged into this cause and effect. Are you sure you still want to get involved?"
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