While in Hollywood, I used Taoist magic to quell American terrorism.

As soon as Cao Kun got out of the car, a middle-aged man in a suit quickly came out to greet him.

Following behind her was a woman in her thirties.

Both men were white; the middle-aged man was slightly older, around 50 years old.

The woman was much younger than him, and quite good-looking.

The middle-aged man introduced himself as Logan, and the woman was his wife, Jenna.

Cao Kun had already explained over the phone that a prepayment of 2 yuan was required, and that the prepayment would be refunded if the person could not be found.

The other party agreed.

At that moment, as soon as Cao Kun entered the house, Logan immediately took out a check for $2 and handed it to him.

Since the other party was so straightforward, Cao Kun didn't waste any words and began setting up the incense table.

"Logan, tell me your daughter's name, date of birth, everything."

After Logan gave his name and date, Cao Kun calculated his birth chart and wrote it down on yellow paper.

Based on her birth date, her daughter is very young, only 19 years old this year.

Then, he took out a piece of yellow paper and asked, "When did your daughter go missing?"

Logan: "The last time she contacted me was a week ago."

Cao Kun asked in surprise, "So long?"

Logan said with shame, "I'm usually busy with business and rarely have time to spend with her. I just give her whatever she wants and let her do whatever she wants."

Cao Kun realized that Logan's daughter, Bella, was a typical rich second-generation.

Cao Kun looked at Jenna: "Do you have any contact with Bella?"

Jenna shook her head: "Bella doesn't like me, and she rarely talks to me."

Cao Kun nodded; it was normal for a daughter not to like her stepmother.

Cao Kun: "They've been missing for so many days, you must have reported them missing to the police, right?"

Logan: "Of course there are. According to the investigation, three classmates went missing with her."

The three students last contacted their families three days ago.

"Three days ago, that was June 22nd, which, according to the lunar calendar, should have been..."

Cao Kun calculated the time and wrote it down on the yellow paper.

Cao Kun pulled out another sheet of new yellow paper and asked, "Did they mention where they last contacted each other?"

Logan: "Yes, there was a place, but the police went there and found nothing."

Cao Kun: "Where?"

"A small town," Logan recalled the name, "called... called Creek Lake Town."

Cao Kun: "Give me the map."

Comparing the map with the map, Cao Kun also wrote the full name of Xihu Town on a piece of yellow paper.

Then he asked for a picture of Bella.

With all preparations complete, Cao Kun began the search for the missing person.

Although the Daoist Manual contains techniques for finding people.

But Cao Kun had never used it before. Moreover, it was different from using it directly for fighting and exorcising demons. Cao Kun wasn't sure if this method of finding people would actually work in this country across the Pacific.

Cao Kun placed several yellow papers with Bella's information written on them on the incense table.

He lit three sticks of incense and began circling the incense table.

With each step he took, he uttered a spell:

"We respectfully invite the Duty Officer, the Local Earth God, the Wandering God of Inspection, and the Eyes and Ears that See a Thousand Miles."

"Bella Flake, an American citizen, was born on the day of Jichou in the month of Jiashen in the year of Yichou. On the day of Renshen in the month of Gengwu in the year of Jiashen, she went missing in Creek Lake, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA."

"May God's light dispel the fog, may God's ears hear the news."

"The directions of east, west, south, and north reveal the signs of safety, danger, fortune, and misfortune."

"Report your whereabouts immediately, without hesitation! So be it!"

Cao Kun kept chanting the incantation, and when he got to the words "point the direction," he bowed forward.

According to the "Taoist Rituals and Essentials", if incense ash falls when one bows down, it means that the lost person is in that direction.

If you take the place where you went missing as the center and follow the direction, you will be able to find the missing person.

Cao Kun circled the incense table three times and bowed three times. He had bowed to the southeast and west directions, but no incense ash fell.

This made Cao Kun a little uneasy.

I doubt that this Taoist method of finding people is useful here.

However, since things have come to this, we should at least give it a try one last time.

Finally, Cao Kun went north and bowed again with incense in hand.

"puff!"

A soft sound rang out, and the tips of the three incense sticks suddenly burst open, extinguishing their fragrance.

Cao Kun was stunned for a moment, then his face immediately darkened.

The incense stick's tip burst open, which, according to the "Essentials of Daoist Practices," indicates two possible scenarios.

First, the missing person is trapped by evil spirits.

Second, the missing person is already dead.

If it's just a stick of incense, you could say it's a coincidence.

But now that the tips of all three incense sticks have burst open, it can't possibly be a coincidence.

Logan's daughter, Bella, has most likely met with misfortune.

Seeing that Cao Kun's search ceremony was full of Eastern mysticism, Logan felt a glimmer of hope.

But suddenly, he saw the three incense sticks in Cao Kun's hand go out. Cao Kun's face darkened, and his heart sank as well.

He hurriedly asked, "Master Cao, what's wrong?"

Cao Kun placed the incense on the altar and said, "You should prepare for the worst."

Logan's face paled: "You mean...?"

Cao Kun: "It's exactly what you think."

Logan swayed and almost lost his balance.

Cao Kun: "Now there's another method we can try. Of the three people who disappeared with Bella, you need one person's name and date of birth, and I'll give it another try."

"Okay, I'll go make the call right now." Logan quickly walked to the table and made the call.

Before long, Cao Kun used his search skills again.

"We respectfully invite the Duty Officer, the Local Earth God, the Wandering God of Inspection, and the Eyes and Ears that See a Thousand Miles."

"There are people from the United States today..."

The first three laps were fine.

On the fourth lap, as Cao Kun bowed, the tips of the three incense sticks exploded again, and all three sticks went out at once.

Once could be considered a coincidence, but if it happens twice, then it absolutely cannot be a coincidence anymore.

Cao Kun said in a low voice, "Logan, your daughter may already be dead."

Logan's face drained of color instantly, and his eyes reddened: "Master Cao, what are the chances she's still alive?"

Cao Kun: "Based on the ceremony and my deduction, it's less than 10%."

For ordinary people, the chances of surviving an encounter with evil spirits, especially within three days, are already very small.

Logan's face paled even more, and he was supported by his wife Jenna to keep from collapsing.

Cao Kun asked, "Are we still looking?"

Logan's eyes welled up with tears: "Find her, Master Cao, whether she's dead or alive, I'll find her."

Master Cao, I beg you, please help me find her, even if it's just a corpse. As for the final payment, don't worry, I won't go back on my word.

"If you can bring her back alive, I'll give you another 10 in addition to the agreed-upon 10."

Cao Kun: "In that case, I will do my best."

"Wait for my news." Cao Kun packed his things and drove away.

After more than three hours, Cao Kun arrived at the place where Bella and her three companions last appeared—Xihu Town.

This is a small town with a very small population.

According to Logan, the police came to investigate, but found nothing except that they confirmed Bella and her three companions had been there before.

Cao Kun looked at the map and saw that the main road of the town led in from the south and out from the north.

Based on the previous search techniques, Bella did indeed encounter an accident in the north of the town.

Cao Kun found a restaurant and ordered some food.

During the meal, he asked the waiter what was north of the town.

The waiter shrugged: "There's nothing there. It's far away and there's no one around."

Cao Kun: "And even further away?"

"Further away..." The waiter seemed to realize something, his expression suddenly changed, and without saying a word, he turned and left.