People worship their ancestors: I'm just burning some paper money, how did I become a Taoist ma

Chen Guodong was surprised that Li Mu was able to point out the root of his family's problems!

"Because you're not the only one," Li Mu explained. "Others have encountered this situation. I just resolved one case a couple of days ago. The root of the problem was the jar. What they all had in common was that someone had bought a jar from Qingxi Ancient Town. I went to Qingxi Ancient Town myself, but the person who sold the jar has already run away and can't be found."

Chen Guodong's face turned completely pale.

"That jar... was bought by my youngest daughter. She went to Qingxi Ancient Town with her classmates and brought back a jar, saying she bought it from a street stall because it looked nice. I didn't pay much attention to it at the time and just let her put it on the shelf in the living room."

"And then?"

"Later..." Chen Guodong's voice trembled, "Then things started to go wrong. First, we heard strange noises at night, like a child crying. Then the living room lights would flicker on and off inexplicably. And then, my wife woke up in the middle of the night and saw a dark figure standing motionless in the living room."

"And then?"

"Later I guessed it might be the problem with that jar, so I dealt with it." Chen Guodong gave a wry smile. "I threw it away. I threw it in the outside trash can. But the next morning, it reappeared on the shelf in the living room. I threw it away again, and it came back again. I smashed it, smashed it into pieces. But the next day, a new jar appeared on the shelf, exactly the same as the previous one."

Li Mu frowned.

"After you smashed the jar, did anything change at home?"

"Yes." Chen Guodong lowered his voice even further. "It's gotten worse. Before, there were only noises and shadows at night, nothing happened during the day. After the jar was smashed, strange things started happening during the day too. One time, I suddenly heard a loud bang from inside the house. I ran up to check and saw that the coffee table in the living room had been overturned and cups were shattered all over the floor, but I was the only one home."

Li Mu remained silent for a moment.

"That jar isn't something you can just smash and forget. The jar is a container, and you've released what was inside."

Chen Guodong's face turned deathly pale.

"Then...what should we do? I've already asked several people to come and see, but nothing has worked. A Taoist priest performed a ritual at my house all day, and he got sick when he went home that night, and he still hasn't recovered."

"Is that thing still at your house?"

Chen Guodong hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"Yes. It happens every night. My wife is too scared to stay at home anymore, so she's moved to her mother's. I live alone at home, and I'm afraid to turn off the lights every night."

"You're really bold, even in this situation, you still dare to stay at home... How about this, I'll come stay at your place tonight and help you solve this problem!" Li Mu said.

Upon hearing this, Chen Guodong was overjoyed; if this problem could be solved, that would be the best thing ever.

……

As dusk fell, after Chen Guodong finished work, Li Mu went home with him!

At 10 p.m., all the lights in Chen Guodong's house were turned off.

Li Mu sat in the living room, facing the window, holding a peach wood sword in his hand.

Chen Guodong sat beside him, huddled in the corner of the sofa, wrapped in a blanket, his body trembling uncontrollably.

The further he got, the more frightened he became!

"Master Li, when is that thing coming?" Chen Guodong's voice came from under the blanket, muffled.

"I don't know. Just wait."

The living room fell silent, save for the ticking of the wall clock and the occasional barking of a dog outside the window.

11 o'clock.

Twelve o'clock.

a little.

Nothing happened.

Chen Guodong couldn't help but yawn, and drowsiness slowly relaxed his tense nerves.

Li Mu remained focused, his eyes fixed on the center of the living room—the spot where Chen Guodong had said the jar had originally been placed.

There is no jar in this spot now, since the jar was indeed smashed by Chen Guodong and cannot be restored.

The identical jars they saw were probably just an illusion.

Two o'clock in the morning.

A gust of cold wind suddenly slipped in through the crack in the window, and the temperature in the living room dropped several degrees.

Li Mu gripped the peach wood sword tightly.

Chen Guodong also sensed it, and poked his head out from under the blanket, looking around in horror.

In the very center of the living room, a cloud of black mist appeared out of nowhere.

The black mist churned and slowly condensed into a shape.

It's a child.

She looked about seven or eight years old, wearing a red bib, with a bluish-black face, two black holes in her eyes, and a wide grin that reached her ears, revealing two rows of sharp teeth.

It looked exactly like the little devil he had seen in the villa on the hillside.

No, they are not exactly the same.

This one was a bit bigger than the other, and its resentment was stronger.

Chen Guodong was so frightened that he was paralyzed, his mouth wide open, but he couldn't make a sound.

Li Mu stood up and looked at the little devil.

The little devil raised his head, his dark eyes staring at Li Mu.

It opened its mouth and let out a sharp cry, like the cry of a baby or the roar of a wild beast.

Li Mu stood up and looked at the little devil.

The little devil raised his head, his dark eyes staring at Li Mu.

It opened its mouth and let out a sharp cry, like the cry of a baby or the roar of a wild beast.

Then, it pounced on Li Mu.

Li Mu was prepared. He took out an exorcism talisman from his pocket with his left hand, slapped it on the peach wood sword, and thrust the sword forward with his right hand.

"boom--"

The exorcism talisman exploded into a burst of golden light, and the little ghost was thrown away, crashing into the wall with a dull thud.

But it barely paused, flipped over and got up, and pounced on Li Mu again.

This time, Li Mu did not use the peach wood sword. Instead, he extended his right hand, palm facing forward, and recited the Five Thunder Incantation.

"Five Thunder Generals, Train General! Soaring to the heavens and crashing to the earth, driving thunder and rushing clouds—by the decree of the law!"

A bolt of lightning as thick as a thumb shot out from his palm, striking the little devil squarely.

The little devil let out a shrill scream, most of the resentment on its body was dispersed by the lightning, and it curled up on the ground, trembling incessantly.

Li Mu stepped forward, squatted down, and looked at the little devil.

"Tell me, who created you? Where is he?" Li Mu asked directly.

The little devil raised his head, his dark eyes staring at him.

Then, it opened its mouth.

It didn't make a sound, but rather uttered a sentence.

The voice was hoarse, as if it came from a very far place, and it was intermittent.

"...A temple...there's a temple in the mountains..."

"What temple?" Li Mu pressed.

"...Lao...Laojun..."

Before the little devil could finish speaking, the red rope around its neck suddenly tightened, the red thread digging into its skin and causing its entire body to twist.

The little devil let out a painful scream, and its body began to deform, as if something was tearing it apart from the inside.

Li Mu's expression changed, and he quickly took out a spirit-sealing talisman from his bag and stuck it on the little ghost's forehead.

The sealing talisman emitted a faint golden light, and the little ghost's struggles gradually stopped, its body reforming.