C19 The Bronze Mirror Reflects the Red Candle

Suddenly, a black mist spewed from the old ghost's mouth and rushed toward me. Accompanying this ominous cloud was a declaration:

"I am the source of the black juice!"

In that perilous instant, a long-standing question that had plagued me finally became clear. I puzzled over the origin of the black juice that Zhou had given me over the years.

Zhou arrived in our village about a decade ago and never left. After saving me, he regularly provided me with copious amounts of black juice, which didn't seem like it was haphazardly concocted. Back then, I was young and didn't think too much about it.

It wasn't until I tried my hand at making the black juice that I realized how inefficient the conversion from ghosts to juice was. Even if Zhou processed our entire village's ancestral graves, it wouldn't yield enough for a kettle's worth! So, where did Zhou's black juice come from? Was he breeding ghosts?

Today, I uncovered the truth. The old ghost had been covertly operating a ghost market within the pine forest formation, attracting countless spirits daily. Zhou's black juice ingredients undoubtedly originated from here. Zhou had been capturing ghosts for over ten years, seemingly with the old ghost's silent consent.

The reason for this consent? I'd wager that Zhou had once given the old ghost a thorough thrashing.

"This isn't unwarranted!"

With a mix of anger and resolve, I pulled a talisman from my bag and hurled it into the swirling black fog.

These were Yang Talismans, aptly named for their storage of Yang Qi, which naturally suppresses Yin Qi. As the old ghost's black mist enveloped me, I was struck by an icy chill, yet there was no sense of revulsion or terror—this was merely concentrated Yin Qi, devoid of malevolence.

Upon contact with the black mist, the Yang Talismans sprang into action. In an instant, they unleashed their stored Yang Qi. While not as potent as the dense Yin Qi and unable to fully dissipate the black mist, this was genuine solar energy—crafted under the midday sun.

The Yang Qi didn't scatter the Yin Qi, but it did buy me some time. With a quick roll, I managed to dodge to one side.

The old ghost sneered, clearly unimpressed by my tactic, yet I found myself growing curious about him.

There's a saying that the righteous path is fraught with hardships. It applies to both humans and ghosts; those who tread the path of evil and practice dark arts progress rapidly in their cultivation. This is particularly true for resentful ghosts burdened with negative karma, with no hope for reincarnation. They often resort to dark arts, which is what makes evil ghosts so vile. However, the old ghost's recent move, while impressive in scale, lacked any trace of malevolence...

For a ghost in charge of such a vast market, this seemed almost inconceivable...

As I lost focus, the old ghost's black mist surged towards me once more. My only defense was the Ghost Suppressing Talisman from my bag. Although it wasn't the perfect counter for Yin Qi, its sheer number was enough to provide a temporary barrier, allowing me to slip away.

The old ghost relentlessly pursued, manipulating the black mist in another attack, and I was out of talismans to defend myself.

"Hehehe, today you'll descend to hell and join old man Zhou. You'll learn that the honor of the netherworld is not to be violated!" The old ghost's hysterical laughter sent chills down my spine.

Truly, with such an overwhelming force of Yin Qi, I had no effective countermeasures left. It seemed I was on the brink of death.

But just as the old ghost's Yin Qi nearly reached me, a strong wind came from behind, and I turned to see an object hurtling towards me. Instinctively, I caught it. Then I heard Wang Dali's gruff voice:

"Wang Xu, I went back to the village and gathered everything you asked for. I couldn't find that one thing, but I figured you'd need the rest urgently, so I brought them to you first!"

I exclaimed with relief:

"If that one thing is missing, so be it. These will suffice for now. Dali, you've truly saved me!"

Indeed, Wang Dali, whom I had sent back to the village to fetch some items, had returned. The package he tossed to me contained the very things I needed—various magical tools and materials I had stored at home.

The malevolent spirit's chilling presence continued to close in on me, but fear no longer gripped me. From the package, I retrieved an eight-trigram mirror and a red candle. I lit the candle and set it before the mirror. The candle's flame, reflected by the eight-trigram mirror, cast light upon the spirit's dark mist. Instantly, the mist ceased its advance and no longer threatened me.

As the light continued to shine, the black mist began to dissipate, accelerating as it vanished. Clearly, this turn of events had caught the spirit off guard. In a desperate move, the spirit opened its gaping maw and began to inhale the mist, indicating its significance to him.

I didn't pursue the retreating mist; with the magical tools at my disposal, handling him would be a simple task.

By then, Wang Dali and Bai Xiaoxiao had caught up with me. Bai Xiaoxiao, eyeing the burning red candle and its reflection in the mirror, expressed her unease with a timid question:

"What is this? It's just a candle and a mirror, yet it feels so unsettling..."

Wang Dali watched me expectantly, making me somewhat self-conscious. I felt compelled to explain:

"This technique is known as 'Copper Mirror Reflecting Red Candle,' and it's quite an auspicious spell. The mirror, crafted from copper, has been graced by the reflection of a bride on her wedding day, and this red candle was lit by a groom on the night of his nuptials.

There's an age-old belief that joyous unions are free from all prohibitions. Joy can neutralize malevolent energies, and Yin energy is no exception. The spirit's tactics may seem formidable, but they're merely a manifestation of Yin energy, easily dispelled by the power of joy."

Wang Dali scratched his head, a droplet of drool betraying his longing for his spouse. Bai Xiaoxiao nodded as if enlightened, though her newfound understanding was of little consequence to her spectral nature.

With the copper mirror reflecting the light onto the red candle, the spirit's countenance grew even more somber. His ghostly claws trembled slightly, betraying a fury that seemed to know no bounds. I surmised that this wasn't his first encounter with such a tactic; Zhou had likely used it to discipline him before.

"Humph! Mere child's play. So it brings a bit of joy and scatters my Yin Qi—do you honestly believe I, the Old Ghost, have no means to deal with you?"

With those words, Old Ghost clapped his hands, and a plume of black smoke erupted behind him. Within the smoke, vague figures emerged: Yin Warriors clad in ancient armor, brandishing decayed spears. Clearly, the old man wasn't up for a fair fight and was calling in reinforcements.

"Attack!" Old Ghost's eyes blazed red like twin bulbs as he pointed at us and bellowed.

Amidst the battle cries, a horde of Yin Warriors advanced on us. Bai Xiaoxiao and Wang Dali instinctively retreated several steps, a typical human response to the presence of malevolent energy.

"Wang Xu, should we make a run for it? I... I'm frightened. I still want to go back and... you know, with Little Feng!" Wang Dali stammered in fear.

I let out a sly chuckle, opened my bag, and methodically arranged the magical instruments it contained. With a grin, I retorted,

"Run? Why should we run like headless chickens? They're the ones who'll be running! Relax, you'll definitely get to... you know, with Little Feng. Damn... to think you're not even a virgin anymore!"

Feeling somewhat disheartened, I meticulously prepared the simple yet decisive altar.