Chapter 007: The Mad Dog Boy

“Something happened to Uncle Li? What happened?” I asked hurriedly.

All along, Uncle Wang and Uncle Li had taken good care of me. If nothing else, just during the time I was injured, they looked after me with great dedication.

“An old man from a family was possessed, and he went to help drive away the evil spirit. But before the problem was resolved, a young child in the same family got into trouble too. Now he’s trapped there, you have to hurry and help him!” Uncle Wang said to me anxiously.

“Trapped? What do you mean?” I asked, puzzled.

“He’s holding those two under control and can’t leave. If he pulls out recklessly, either those two will die, or he will!” Uncle Wang was clearly agitated.

“That…” Judging from the situation, it did sound grave, and I couldn’t help but feel anxious too.

“You know I’m no good at this kind of thing. We can only rely on you!” Uncle Wang said.

Uncle Li and Uncle Wang were different.

Uncle Li was a Taoist priest, skilled in rituals and exorcising evil spirits. Uncle Wang, on the other hand, knew nothing of the sort; he simply helped out, running errands and assisting with minor tasks. When Uncle Li needed extra hands, Uncle Wang would help as a lamp-bearer or something similar.

“All right, go get my bag and let’s go right away!” I said, limping over to the study, where I took out a jade box from the cabinet.

Inside the jade box were spirit talismans drawn by my teacher. These were not the fake charms sold at street stalls, but genuine, aura-infused talismans, so they had to be stored in a jade box.

My skill in drawing talismans was still far behind my teacher’s, but compared to others, I was quite capable. After all, in all these years, the things I learned most thoroughly from my teacher were geomancy and talisman crafting.

With my teacher’s talismans in hand, I felt confident. I didn’t think any evil spirit could stand up to these.

Uncle Wang went upstairs to fetch my bag, then quickly moved the car to the door. My movements were still inconvenient, so he had to help me into the car.

Once inside, Uncle Wang stepped on the gas and headed for the outskirts. After leaving the city, he drove even faster.

In less than half an hour, we arrived at Wengdun Village.

It wasn’t a small village—maybe a hundred households or more. As we reached the entrance, I saw Guo Shiping already waiting for us.

Guo Shiping was Uncle Li’s apprentice, always working alongside him. When he saw Uncle Wang’s car, he waved at us.

“Guo, where’s your master?” Uncle Wang called out as he stopped the car.

“Over there, Uncle Wang, Wei, hurry—my master can’t hold on much longer!” Guo Shiping, looking flustered, pulled open the car door and got in.

“Just up ahead, the house by the utility pole at the entrance!” As the car moved further into the village, Guo Shiping pointed and shouted directions to Uncle Wang.

“Guo, give us a hand with the things!” Once the car stopped, Uncle Wang called out to Guo Shiping, then got out and helped me down.

As soon as I got out, I looked up at the house in front of me. One glance was enough—I could tell something was very wrong with it, seriously wrong.

“Woof… woof woof…” A series of dog barks came from inside the house.

With the barking, several people emerged. A man in his forties came up to us as soon as he saw us.

He looked me over, noticing I was bandaged in several places, one leg in a plaster cast.

Indeed, I was leaning on a crutch, with Uncle Wang supporting me—I hardly looked like someone who could solve their problems.

“Where are they? Hurry and take us to them!” Uncle Wang demanded.

“Uncle Wang, Wei, my master is this way!” Before the man could answer, Guo Shiping ran over with our things and dashed straight into the house.

“Woof… woof woof… woof woof woof…”

Barking continued from inside.

Guo Shiping ran in first, dropped the things, then came back to help Uncle Wang support me.

Once inside, the scene before me made my heart jolt—a fright, to be precise.

Uncle Li was sitting on a stool, eyes closed, one hand pressing on each of two people.

One was an old man, the other a boy of five or six.

The old man was lying on the sofa nearby, his face ashen, eyes closed, motionless. Uncle Li’s left hand, forming a seal, was pressed to his forehead.

The old man’s condition was unsettling, but it was the boy squatting on the floor who frightened me.

His head was thrown back, teeth bared as he struggled, emitting relentless “woof woof” barks like a dog. But Uncle Li’s right hand was pinned to his forehead, keeping him from moving.

I’d heard barking on the way and assumed there was a dog. Never had I imagined that the barking came from a little boy.

“Woof woof woof…” The boy’s mouth opened and closed, barking again and again. His little face was twisted in pain, his mouth bloody. It wasn’t clear whether he’d bitten someone else or bit his own tongue.

Most terrifying of all, his eyes had rolled back until only the whites showed, howling like a mad hound.

“Rabies?” Uncle Wang shot a glance at me.

“No, it’s not rabies,” I shook my head.

Uncle Li heard our voices and opened his eyes. When he saw us, joy flared in his gaze.

“Wei, help me!” Uncle Li said weakly.

It was evident that he was at the end of his strength. If he hadn’t had some cultivation, he’d have lost control of the pair already.

“Are you… are you Master Zhang’s apprentice? Please, save my father and my son!” The man we’d met at the door followed us in. Hearing Uncle Li call for my help, he instantly understood who I was. He dropped to his knees before me, crying and begging.

The others were also in tears, calling out, “Son! Father!”

Seeing the man kneel, they all followed suit, pleading with me.

“All right, get up! What’s your name?” I asked the man.

“My name is Gu Xiaogang,” he replied.

“Get up! Go right now and find five catties of soybeans, ten catties of millet, a bag of salt, and half a catty of tea leaves! Go!” I shouted at Gu Xiaogang.

At my words, he sprang up, flustered, shouting to the others, “Hurry, help me find these things!”

The scene was a bit frightening, but I already had a good guess about the situation.

“Uncle Wang, prepare cinnabar, ink line, and rooster’s blood!” I called to Uncle Wang.

He answered immediately and started pulling the items from my bag.

“Brother Ping, light several sticks of incense. One stick at a time, spaced a fist apart, and plant them in a circle around the house!” I ordered Guo Shiping.

He responded and dashed outside.

Having made all the arrangements, I turned to Uncle Li. “How much longer can you hold on? Ten minutes?”

“Ten minutes should be fine, but hurry!” Uncle Li answered, exhausted.

“All right!” I replied, then turned and called out, “Uncle Wang, the compass, please!”

“Coming!” He quickly opened my bag and handed me the compass.

I took it, holding it flat in one hand, limping around the room with my crutch.

“There! Set up the censer there!” I pointed at a bench not far away.

Uncle Wang went over and placed the censer as instructed.

Once he’d set it up, I called, “Good! Light nine sticks of Yinluo Incense!”

Yinluo Incense was no ordinary incense—it was made with special ingredients. For evil spirits and ghosts, it was a powerful tonic.

“Uncle Wang, give me the talisman box!” I reached out to Uncle Wang.

He quickly handed me the jade box containing the talismans.

I opened it and took out a Heavenly Talisman of Exorcism.

“Uncle Li, I’m about to use the talisman on him—hold steady!” I warned.

With two fingers, I gripped the talisman paper, reciting the incantation under my breath.

“Lin!” At the end of the incantation, I gave a low shout and slapped the Heavenly Talisman onto the boy’s back.

He let out a muffled groan, then collapsed limply to the floor.

Seeing the boy faint, I let out a sigh of relief. My teacher’s talismans truly were formidable.

But just then, the old man lying on the sofa suddenly opened his eyes and began to struggle fiercely, roaring, “Dajin! Dajin! What are you doing? Let go of Dajin!!”