Yin Shou Shu

Chapter 77 Ghost Banquet
Thinking back on Li Hongye’s death, I still feel strange.

This strange girl who turned into a demon but still retained her humanity in life still has secrets to reveal.

It just so happens that "Witchcraft and Demonic Arts" contains methods for communicating with ghosts and gods, and the ghost walkers do just that...

Ran Qing was thinking, and suddenly found something rubbing against his calf.

I lowered my head and found it was Little Cotton.

Hearing Ran Qing's words, Xiao Mianhua quickly ran into the room and took out a key.

This is the key to Li Hongye's house. She had been holding this key in her mouth when she went to ask Aunt Liu for help, and only then could Aunt Liu open the door of Li Hongye's house from outside.

Looking at the key in Little Mianhua's mouth, Ran Qing smiled helplessly: "Not now, I haven't opened the altar yet..."

He rubbed Little Cotton's head and took the key.

Opening the Yin altar and lighting soul incense are the most important rituals for the ghost.

To open a Yintan is to build a tomb of one's own in the ghost world of Wujiang, so that one can borrow the power of the evil master more stably and will not suffer the sequelae of having his body robbed.

——Of course, the price is that the power of the mask will be temporarily weakened.

But there are ways to get it back.

Only after opening the Yin altar and lighting the soul incense can one be truly considered a ghost.

Ran Qing cleaned the house, dragged in a black goat hidden not far from the cement house, and began to arrange the main room.

These days, he has been reading over and over again the part about opening the altar and lighting incense in "Witchcraft and Demonic Arts", and has already memorized the content.

Four brand new soul flags stood in the four corners of the house. Three rows of burning ingot candles were placed under the broken tablets of Heaven, Earth, Emperor, Parents and Teacher. The large jar was filled with unlit incense sticks.

In the cold and gloomy main room, only the flickering light of the burning candles was heard.

Then Ran Qing brought in a square table and a chair, and placed many empty plates and two incense candles on the square table in the middle of the main room.

Finally, he put the Nuo opera mask on the back of his head.

The black goat that was bought began to tremble after being pulled into the main room. Ran Qing lifted its head effortlessly and placed a plastic basin under the goat's neck.

Grabbing the sharp kitchen knife, he lightly scratched the goat's neck. The hot, bloody blood immediately spurted out and turned into a column of blood that flowed continuously into the basin.

Little Cotton, standing by, covered his eyes with his paws and dared not look. The entire slaughtering process was extremely smooth and the goat did not struggle at all.

After Ran Qing had drained the goat's blood, he directly cut open the twitching goat's belly, took out the hot internal organs one by one, and placed them in empty plates on the altar according to categories.

There was a strong fishy smell in the air.

Piles of fresh offal were placed on the altar: liver, lungs, heart, sheep eyes, large intestines... Soon, the empty plate was filled with things.

Finally, Ran Qing placed the entire basin of steaming sheep's blood on the altar. Without washing his hands, he sat in front of the tablets of Heaven, Earth, Emperor, Parents and Teacher with his hands stained with blood.

"...Please have dinner, everyone."

Ran Qing wore a Nuo opera mask on the back of his head, and held chopsticks, rhythmically tapping the porcelain bowl on the altar.

The crisp sound of porcelain bowls being struck spread in the darkness, and a cold wind swept silently through the room.

The dim candlelight swayed violently, and the light in the room suddenly dimmed, as if a thick black cloth had covered the air. The area around the altar suddenly fell into darkness, and Ran Qing's face was looming in the dim and swaying candlelight.

Little Cotton held his head in fear, covering it completely.

Ran Qing sat there expressionlessly, continuing to tap the porcelain bowl in front of him gently with his chopsticks.

Ding ding—ding ding—ding ding—

The crisp knocking sounds spread in the darkness, and gradually, some dark shadows appeared in the darkness beside the altar.

They are shadowy and looming.

A pair of strange eyes stared at Ran Qing beside the altar in the darkness.

Countless sharp and cold gazes made Ran Qing feel like thorns on his back, and his skin instinctively covered with goose bumps.

At this moment, the offering placed on the altar seemed to have become him.

He sensed a strong malice and the demons' undisguised greed...

Ran Qing frowned, tapped the porcelain bowl in front of him again, and said expressionlessly, "... Please have your meal, elders."

Ran Qing took out the bone hammer left by Aunt Six and placed it directly in front of him.

This was a ghost feast, and one had to invite the evil spirits to enjoy the offerings and reach a consensus with them before one could establish one's own tomb in the Wujiang ghost world. This was just like the Jianghu people of the old times who had to visit the local tyrants and obtain permission when they arrived in a new place.

However, Ran Qing borrowed the grave that Sixth Aunt had opened before. There were not many evil spirits around the grave, and it had been almost cleared out by Sixth Aunt long ago, so there was no need for Ran Qing to risk his life.

The shadowy figures in the darkness are mostly cruel and greedy evil masters.

They wandered in the darkness, appearing and disappearing, laughing sharply, as if mocking or provoking.

Ran Qing called out three times, but the ghosts in the darkness did not move.

Their shrill laughter and strange cries became even more piercing, and they unscrupulously provoked Ran Qing.

A strong and nameless anger rose in Ran Qing's heart.

When dealing with spooky dead things, one will inevitably be affected by their evil spirits.

Ran Qing stood up with a cold face and clasped his fists towards the people around him.

"As the old saying goes, ghosts have their own way, and humans have their own way."

"My younger brother, Ran Qing, is a disciple of the Sixth Sister Mo Baifeng of Zangke. I walk the path of darkness into the underworld, but I also walk on the smooth road of the human world."

"Today, in accordance with Master's will, I have opened a Hundred-Step Altar here, lit three feet of incense, and revived the incense offerings for those who have walked away from the underworld. We will meet again in the mountains and rivers, and we will see each other often in the future."

"Please show mercy today, and we'll be able to get along well in the future!"

When the name of Sixth Aunt was mentioned, the evil spirits in the darkness seemed to hesitate.

They wandered and hesitated, all looking at this young but already ferocious ghost walker.

Finally, some hands, some pitch black, some pale, stretched out from the darkness and grabbed something from the altar.

The dark shadows around the altar gradually dissipated by one third.

However, the shrill laughter behind the mask was even more piercing.

The wandering evil ghosts are easy to deal with, but the evil masters behind the Nuo opera masks...

Ran Qing patiently asked respectfully three times again.

But his urging seemed to anger those evil masters.

The black shadows wandered around the altar, screaming strangely, roaring angrily, and even spitting at Ran Qing madly.

Ran Qing's patience gradually ran out, but he still tried hard.

"Please give me some help!"

boom!
With a muffled sound, the two candles on the altar exploded.

Ran Qing tilted his head and listened expressionlessly for a long time, then finally shook his head indifferently.

“…No! Impossible!”

He picked up the bone hammer, took off the mask, and threw it directly onto the altar. Finally, he bowed respectfully to the mask and said, "The ritual can only continue as usual. No additions!"

"Please give me some convenience!"

It is clearly stated in "Witchcraft, Ghosts and Magic" that when dealing with the evil master, no compromise is allowed!
Although Ran Qing's words were respectful, his actions were clearly threatening.

The moment he finished speaking, the evil ghost mask on the altar suddenly jumped.

It looked like a real ghost face, angry and wanting to leave.

Seeing this scene, Ran Qing's face turned cold, and he didn't even pretend to be respectful on the surface. He just smashed it with a hammer.

"Please, everyone! Give me some face!"

Ran Qing held the throbbing mask tightly, his face gloomy: "You chose me, so I will help you to the end!"

“There’s no point in giving up halfway!”

"Don't bully me just because I'm young and don't have a master to look after me!"

"At worst, I can destroy this Nuo opera mask and fight you all to the death!"

Ran Qing's face was gloomy. Under the wildly shaking candlelight, his shadow was shaking wildly on the wall, as hideous as a demon.

For a moment, the howling cold wind in the room was suppressed.

(End of this chapter)