Chapter 40

Hmph, there's nothing you can do about it either. Write down my phone number. If anything happens in the village, notify me first. I'll be waiting outside. I gave a cold snort and told Lei Qing my phone number.

Senior, I've got it. If anything happens in the village, I'll definitely call you. Lei Qing took out the latest 5.5-inch iPhone, wrote it down, and then called me. My counterfeit phone in my pocket immediately rang, playing the hit song "Little Apple."

When Lei Qing heard this song and saw me looking at him with a displeased expression, his heart immediately became uneasy.

Earlier in the morgue, he had seen me holding a counterfeit phone with this flashy ringtone. He suddenly remembered that he still had a batch of new phones that Zhao Yi had given him to manage the area. He quickly hung up the call and put the phone back in his pocket.

He pushed the guy who had just been caught, A Biao, and said hurriedly, "Go get the unopened iPhone 6 from my car and give it to the senior. The senior must be busy and doesn't have time to wait in line to buy one."

"Huh? But that's mine," A Biao's mind was blank.

Another person with a keen eye quickly kicked A Biao's butt: "When the boss tells you to do something, you don't do it. You were so aggressive just now when he told you not to go over. You offended the senior, shouldn't you make amends? Do you still want to stay in the county?"

Seeing A Biao being scolded, Zhao Qian was secretly laughing, covering her mouth, looking very pleased. I didn't say anything. Why wouldn't I want a new phone? Yu Xiaoxue is already in high school and doesn't even have a phone yet.

A Biao nodded and ran to the nearby minivan to get an unopened new phone, which he then tremblingly handed to me with both hands.

You're still sensible. If any of your family members are haunted by ghosts or troubled by evil spirits, just call me. I took the phone and got back into the car, lying inside waiting for something to happen in the village.

Good! Since the senior said so, you mustn't lie to me. Lei Qing was overjoyed. This is a good connection. This senior is definitely a powerful master of the mystic arts, not like that kid Zhao Yi.

Zhao Qian almost laughed until she choked, but thinking about her grandfather still lying in the coffin, she felt it was inappropriate, so she held back.

Alright, take your people and escort Zhao Qian into the village. Remember, you've taken on the responsibility. If anything happens to her, well, well. I said coldly, pulling up the car window, and didn't say anything more.

After dealing with the group of ruffians, Zhao Qian also entered the village. I watched her until she was out of sight, then sat in front of the car and started drawing talismans.

I chanted the talisman core while drawing the symbols. Soon, ghost-avoiding talismans and spirit-stabilizing talismans appeared in my hands. Although these low-level talismans weren't very effective against evil spirits, having them was better than nothing, and they provided some peace of mind.

After drawing a few, my counterfeit phone rang again. Could something have happened already?

I quickly took out the phone and looked at it. It was Han Shanshan, so I answered: "Speak quickly, I'm busy."

Hey, you sound so picky when I call you. Do you know that there are many handsome guys in the police station who always circle around me? Han Shanshan said sarcastically.

I don't know. Are you going to say something or not? If not, I'll hang up! I was afraid the phone would be busy if something happened, so I was about to hang up. Originally, I wanted her to accompany Zhao Qian into the village, but since she was working at night, I didn't ask her to come.

Han Shanshan immediately softened and asked me earnestly: "No, no, no! Alright, I admit it, you win. What did you call me for just now?"

Nothing much. Since you're busy, I was going to ask you to accompany Zhao Qian into the Zhao family village, in case someone might harm her. I knew that if I didn't say this, Han Shanshan would definitely try to investigate, as it was her nature to do so.

Is that all? Then why don't you protect Qianqian? Isn't that what you should do? Han Shanshan, being a curious person, kept asking.

Do you think I don't want to? I was refused by the Zhao family and can't get in. I'm just waiting outside in the cold.

Hmph, if you had said that earlier, I would have come over right away! Han Shanshan decided to come over very straightforwardly and hung up the call.

I shook my head. Han Shanshan is a nice person, good-looking, and has a great figure, but she's a bit scatterbrained. She hung up the call before we finished talking.

It's better to have less contact with her in the future.

After writing a few more talismans, Han Shanshan's police car arrived.

Han Shanshan ran over and knocked on the car window several times. I unlocked it, and she climbed in.

Wow, are you selling calligraphy and paintings? So many! Ah, this is the new iPhone! Did you just buy it? Selling calligraphy and paintings can make you so rich, and it's even 128GB, costing 8,000 yuan! I heard you have to queue to buy it, and I didn't even dare to buy it. Han Shanshan picked up the phone and examined it from all angles.

I was speechless and said: "Someone gave it to me."

Why didn't anyone give one to me! Han Shanshan said disdainfully, assuming it was from Zhao Qian.

Lei Qing gave it to me. I added, and Han Shanshan was taken aback.

Lei Qing? Isn't that the guy who collects protection money in the west of the city? I heard he's also involved in smuggling across the border. How did you get to know him? Han Shanshan asked again.

Seeing that she wouldn't stop, I gave her two talismans: "Take these, then go inside and watch Zhao Qian from a distance. If anything goes wrong, come to her aid. Do you have your gun?"

Oh, I have it! I was on a mission earlier and haven't returned it yet. Captain Huo is still at the bar, and I came here on my own. Han Shanshan's mind finally returned to the main topic.

Alright, I'll call Captain Huo and ask him to lend you for a few hours. I said, and called Captain Huo, telling him about the Zhao family's situation. Captain Huo readily agreed.

Alright, go. I urged her to leave.

Han Shanshan put on a pouty face, deliberately pulling at her collar to reveal a hint of cleavage: "Hmph, you've already borrowed me from Captain Huo for a few hours, and you don't even let me stay with you longer. Are you afraid I'll eat you?"

I felt a chill. Is this policewoman trying to seduce me with her uniform? When I saved her a few days ago, I did touch her all over, and her soft power is quite strong. If she really tried to seduce me, I'm not sure I could resist.

Just as I was stunned, Han Shanshan burst out laughing and patted my shoulder: "Haha! Look at you, scared! I thought you were fearless! Alright, I'm off!"

You're so scatterbrained! I muttered to myself, still not recovered from the shock, almost overwhelmed by her pressure.

I took a deep breath, released Xijun's vigilance, and continued making my talismans.

After the battle in the morgue, Xijun's strength had greatly improved. He easily bruised the ruffian's hand, giving me a lot of confidence.

However, it's easy to avoid a direct attack but hard to guard against a hidden one. I need more helpers like Xijun. Thinking of my grandmother, she probably had a lot of them, and I only have one, which is not a true combat type.

I drew many talismans and put them in my pocket, then took out my grandmother's books and found the incantation for communicating with ghosts. To invite a ghost into a trap and make it my servant, I need to understand how to communicate.

But the paths of humans and ghosts are different. When humans communicate with ghosts, the ghosts are still separated by the world's yang energy, making it hard to understand what they say. It's easier for ghosts to understand humans because yang energy can penetrate many places.

So, as the elders often say, people shouldn't curse ghosts for no reason. The dead are respected, and they can hear you. An unintentional word might turn a ghost into an evil spirit, and once an evil spirit haunts you, it's too late to regret it.

The incantation I found wasn't the true ghost language but a talisman. As long as I draw the talisman and perform the ritual, I can theoretically communicate with the spirits while sleeping.

However, this is still quite dangerous. To communicate with spirits while sleeping, if your willpower is not strong enough, you might eat the ghost's food or drink the ghost's wine and be taken away by the ghost. Therefore, I need someone to protect me. Although I have Xijun, for safety, I need a trustworthy and powerful person to pull me back if necessary.

At this moment, I need a good partner. I think Zhao Qian has great potential, so I'll choose her.

Jiao, Kang, Shi, Fang, Xin, Wei, Ji, Dou, Niu, Nu, Xu, Wei, Shi, Bi, Kui, Lou, Mao, Ang, Bi, Zi, Shen, Jing, Gui, Liu, Xing, Zhang, Yi, Zhen, with the names of the twenty-eight constellations, I borrow divine power to enter the talisman. I chanted the talisman core and quickly wrote the spirit-communication talisman on old yellow paper, each stroke and hook focusing my mind, with utmost sincerity and no distractions.

Because I had experience making talismans when I was young, drawing this low-level talisman wasn't too difficult. However, the talisman core was a bit challenging, so I had to review it several times to memorize it.

The spirit-communication talisman was quickly completed. With the talisman core, the talisman in my eyes emitted a faint yellow light, a sign that it had borrowed the power of the twenty-eight constellations. Of course, if I didn't have heavy yin energy, I wouldn't be able to see this, and only a talisman with borrowed divine power could function properly.

While drawing the talismans, I kept an eye on my phone to make sure it was working. However, nothing happened until the early hours of the morning. The Zhao family village still had people playing cards and guessing codes, seemingly not about to have any incidents.

I checked the time: 4:30 AM.

That's strange. I felt a heavy yin energy around 3 AM. If I wanted to summon a small ghost, I would have done it. Why hasn't anything happened until now?

I picked up my phone and quickly dialed Han Shanshan to ask what was happening inside.

However, when I looked out the window, I saw that it had started to drizzle. Could it be?

And then, I saw Old Zhao appear in the rainy night, his face green and blue, staring at me in a daze!

Instantly, I got goosebumps, and my sister-in-law pulled my sleeve!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

At the Zhao family village, gunshots rang out!

You are my little, little apple, I can't love you enough.

At the moment the gunshots rang out, the phone on the car stand also rang!