Yin Shou Shu

Chapter 296 Red Leaves
The dwellings of those who keep ghosts will be filled with heavy yin and death energy, and talismans must be pasted inside and outside the house.

Those talismans are not only meant to suppress the deathly and malevolent energy in the house, but also to dispel bad luck.

According to the older generation, living people who frequently interact with and mingle with inanimate objects will have their luck disrupted by the evil influence of these objects, leading to misfortune and bad luck.

Symptoms include frequently getting water stuck in your teeth, constantly stepping in dog poop when you go out, never getting the winning numbers when gambling, almost never winning money at mahjong, and getting ambushed by enemies on the street...

In order to suppress the evil spirits emanating from the dead and prevent them from affecting one's own fortune, people like ghost keepers, corpse refiners, and corpse drivers mostly have various methods to ward off evil and dispel bad luck.

However, these things were not found in Xiong Dacheng's home.

His house was simply decorated, no different from an ordinary residential house, and there were no talismans inside or outside the house.

Furthermore, the altar for raising ghosts must be placed in the southwest corner of the living room, not in the bedroom or kitchen; this placement is very particular.

People who keep ghosts, both domestically and internationally, almost share this consensus.

However, Xiong Dacheng's living room did not have a jar for keeping ghosts.

Ran Qing told her companions what she had observed.

Mo Li's eyes widened in surprise: "Could he be a ghost keeper? I heard that in Southeast Asia, people who keep ghosts only need to wear a ghost tag."

Ran Qing shook her head: "I didn't see Xiong Dacheng wearing any badges..."

Not to mention when Xiong Dacheng was putting on his clothes, he didn't see it even when he took them off.

The conditions for raising a ghost child are even more stringent.

Although those who walk the path of the dead are not good at raising ghosts, they do have some ways to temporarily raise ghosts, such as taking in some pitiful, lonely ghosts for a period of time.

Therefore, the rules for raising ghosts are clearly explained in the book "Witchcraft and Ghostly Arts".

The novel "The Legend of Sister Shen Er's Demon Extermination" also details the different types of ghost breeders that Sister Shen Er encountered.

None of the characteristics of those who raise ghosts were seen in Xiong Dacheng.

Long Zongshu scratched his head and said, "Well... isn't it a good thing that Xiong Dacheng's ghost isn't on him? It's easier to catch him when the ghost-raiser's ghost isn't around."

Ran Qing nodded: "Theoretically speaking, that's true, but I suspect that the ghost he's raising is actually on him, just rather sinister. Anyway, everyone be careful then."

As she finished speaking, Ran Qing walked to the large vat in the corner of the main room, scooped out two small bags of incense ash, and handed them to Mo Li and Zong Shu.

"Take some incense ash with you; it might come in handy if you encounter a ghost."

Ran Qing wasn't actually worried about dealing with ghost keepers, especially the ghosts they kept.

For those who practice spirit-walking to deal with ghosts, this is a perfect match.

What he was most wary of was Xiong Dacheng's large and burly physique; he feared it would be difficult to deal with him in a fight.

To this, Mo Li confidently replied, "I told you, someone as clumsy and rough as Xiong Dacheng is someone I could easily take down with one hand. Do you really think I travel all over the country unimpeded just because I'm lucky enough to avoid running into bandits?"

Mo Li rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed by Ran Qing's continued distrust.

Ran Qing shook her head: "I know you're very capable, but you still need to be careful."

“Xiong Dacheng is no ordinary ghost breeder; we can’t be too careful.”

After finishing dinner and packing their bags, Ran Qing and the other two left the cement house on Park Road.

They planned to capture Xiong Dacheng during the first half of the night, before the red gate opened.

But as soon as the three of them stepped out of the cement house, the phone rang inside the house behind them.

The three people who were about to leave were stunned and had no choice but to turn around and go back inside.

But the phone in the house was a completely unfamiliar number.

After Ran Qing pressed the speakerphone button, a sharp, piercing sizzling sound came from the other end of the phone.

The sound was like fingernails scraping against a wooden board, making one's scalp tingle and one's body instinctively uncomfortable.

A chilling feeling spread silently through the room.

The person on the other end of the phone doesn't seem to be alive...

Mo Li looked at Ran Qing in surprise.

Ran Qing frowned, enduring her discomfort as she listened carefully for a while, but still couldn't discern what the sound was.

He asked coldly, "Who are you looking for?" Ran Qing asked.

The cold scratching sound of fingernails paused briefly, then resumed, becoming even more rapid and piercing.

The strange noise made Long Zongshu's expression pained, and he couldn't help but cover his ears.

Ran Qing was also furious and almost wanted to hang up the strange phone call.

Mo Li suddenly stopped him, looking at Ran Qing with a strange expression, and said, "...Why don't you try answering the phone?"

Mo Li's suggestion made Ran Qing frown.

He glanced at Mo Li, then at the strange phone.

Two seconds later, Ran Qing reached out and picked up the phone receiver.

The hands-free speakerphone sound immediately disappeared.

What Ran Qing heard through the landline receiver was a hurried, cold female voice.

"...Go to Chen Laosan's house on Qingyuan Road! Don't go to Renmin Road!"

Ran Qing was stunned for a moment upon hearing the voice.

The voice was cold and urgent, carrying a disturbing malice; it was not the voice of a living person at all.

But if I'm not mistaken, that voice is clearly...

"Li Hongye?!" Ran Qing exclaimed in surprise, trying to ask something.

But suddenly, two violent roars came from the other end of the phone, like the howls of some terrifying monster.

As the roaring sound rang out, the phone call in Ran Qing's hand was interrupted, and the landline emitted a beeping sound.

Ran Qing, looking somewhat surprised, looked up at Mo Li beside her.

—How did Mo Li know that he needed a receiver to hear the phone?

And why was it Li Hongye's phone call?
How did she call?

And she urgently reminded him not to go to Renmin Road...

The area of ​​Renmin Road is quite broad.

But at that moment, Ran Qing and the others were heading to Xiong Dacheng's house, which was right next to Renmin Road.

Li Hongye called at this time and said such things...

Ran Qing felt a chill run down her spine—was Li Hongye watching me all the time?
But she was already dead, trapped in the pine forest behind Plum Blossom Mountain by her parents' remains.

How did she manage to monitor Ran Qing's current actions?

Ran Qing's expression turned extremely ugly, her heart filled with confusion.

Long Zongshu asked in surprise, "Ran Qing, what's wrong? Did a ghost call you?"

This phone call was too strange; anyone could see something was wrong.

After a few seconds of silence, Ran Qing did not hide anything and told her companion what had happened on the phone.

"...Li Hongye called me and told me not to go looking for Xiong Dacheng."

Ran Qing told the truth.

Upon hearing this, Long Zongshu stared in astonishment, his eyes widening: "Li Hongye called you? Isn't she already dead?"

"And who is Chen Laosan? Qingyuan Road... I remember he's not far from No. 3 Middle School."

Ran Qing slowly said, "The place where I used to rent a house was on Qingyuan Road. Chen Laosan was a monk there."

"But that guy is just a good-for-nothing conman."

Li Hongye, however, told him to go find this Chen Laosan, not Xiong Dacheng...

Mo Li muttered under his breath, "Your little girlfriend isn't keeping an eye on you, is she? Are you sure she's really in the pine forest behind Plum Blossom Mountain?"

(End of this chapter)