Chapter 6

Chang Zhenzhen held the Nine Yang Yin Captive Talisman between his left thumb and index finger, while his right hand continuously made seals, and he softly muttered words that no one, including Shan Xiaoming, could understand.

At first, Shan Xiaoming and the others didn't feel anything unusual, but as the time Chang Zhenzhen spent performing the ritual increased, they all began to feel something was wrong. First, it became extremely cold, colder than the coldest days in Hokkaido, even though it was only August in Japan. Second, the blood pit containing chicken blood and chicken carcasses began to show abnormalities, gently boiling as if it were a pot of water on a stove. However, Shan Xiaoming and the others were very clear that there was no stove or fire here. The chicken carcasses were visibly shrinking, as if their flesh and blood were being devoured by something. Under this scene, Shan Xiaoming, Yamada Kuma, and the others didn't dare to breathe heavily, fearing that they would attract the attention of the ghosts and spirits.

The cold wind around them blew, and despite his fear, Yamada Kuma did not forget the task entrusted to him by the Onmyoji. He kept his eyes fixed on the changes in the chicken heads within the circle. He felt that it was almost time for him to act, as the chicken blood in the nine blood pits had disappeared, and the chicken carcasses had completely shriveled. The cold wind around them had also decreased. Inside the circle, changes that were visible even to the naked eye were occurring. A small whirlwind rose, but strangely, it did not stir up any dust. Intermittent wails could be heard in the wind. As time passed, Yamada Kuma saw strange human faces within the whirlwind, along with the wails. Yamada Kuma confirmed that his eyes and ears were not deceiving him. The situation was indeed as he had thought. Gradually, he no longer felt the cold wind around him, but the wails and ghostly cries within the circle became more intense. The nine chicken heads were also undergoing significant changes. The bloodless combs slowly filled with blood, turning a vivid and glaring red. Yamada Kuma, who had been closely watching the changes in the chicken heads, immediately completed the task given to him by Chang Zhenzhen when he saw the nine chicken heads completely filled with blood. As soon as Yamada Kuma tied the cotton rope, changes occurred within the circle.

The nine chicken heads quickly withered and turned into a small pile of black dust, as if they had been burned. The cold wind formed visible ghost heads within the circle, roaring and struggling. Whenever these ghost heads tried to escape the circle, the cotton rope surrounding the nine blood pits acted like an invisible wall, blocking them. The intense collisions even caused visible red light and black smoke to emerge.

As Yamada Kuma tied the cotton rope, Chang Zhenzhen completed the seals in his hand.

With a final shout of "Go," the Nine Yang Yin Captive Talisman, which had been held between his left thumb and index finger, flew toward the center of the circle at an unnatural speed. It soon arrived at the center, floating in the air, emitting a faint red light. A whirlwind formed around the talisman, and the ghostly faces and cold wind around it trembled in fear. The cold wind, which had been emitting black smoke due to the cotton rope, now seemed unafraid and collided intensely with the surroundings, causing large patches of red light and black smoke to appear.

As the whirlwind around the talisman intensified, the ghostly faces and cold wind were gradually pulled toward the talisman. Despite their desperate struggles, they could not escape being absorbed and sealed. Any ghostly face or cold wind that approached the talisman was sucked into it. Soon, the entire circle returned to normal, and the ghostly cries disappeared, leaving only the talisman in the center.

Seeing the circle return to peace, Chang Zhenzhen slowly walked into the circle, picked up the talisman, and put it in his pocket. The talisman contained the spirits of the weakest initial ghost realm, which posed little threat to normal people with strong yang energy. Only when they gathered in large numbers could they cause harm.

According to the inheritance introduction that Chang Zhenzhen had read, in the past, such ghosts were not worth the effort of the sects. Powerful disciples could easily eliminate them with spells, and they usually focused on capturing fierce ghosts. These initial ghost realm spirits were allowed to exist, as they posed no threat to living people. At that time, the energy in the world was abundant, and ordinary people were very healthy. Only ghosts at the wandering ghost realm could pose a slight threat to living people. If someone were to set up an array to deal with a group of initial ghost realm spirits, they would be laughed at.

Chang Zhenzhen had no choice. He had no energy in his body and could only rely on his mental power. In ancient times, this would have made him a complete novice practitioner. In the modern era, especially since he had just traveled through time, he was not too embarrassed, but he set a goal for himself to quickly cultivate energy and reach the wandering ghost realm. He did not believe that there were no high-level practitioners or evil ghosts in the world. Human wisdom was boundless, and someone might have found a way to replace the energy of the world with something else for cultivation. This was very possible. Moreover, if he encountered a powerful ghost next time and couldn't deal with it, he didn't want to die again. He didn't know if he could be reborn after dying again, so intensive cultivation was the most important thing.

"Now, there shouldn't be any more people in this relief center who are harmed by ghosts. But you should be careful. With so many deaths in Hiroshima Prefecture, it's possible that more spirits might gather here. After all, this relief center is full of sick and injured people with insufficient yang energy, making it easy to attract spirits and ghosts."

Shan Xiaoming, who had been happy to see the spirits sealed away, immediately broke out in a cold sweat. If the spirits gathered again after the Onmyoji left, what would they do? They needed to find a solution, or they would be in trouble once the Onmyoji left.

"Mr. Chang, please help me find a way to suppress these spirits. I beg you!"

Shan Xiaoming bowed deeply, and the two civil servants beside him followed suit.

Looking at the three of them, Chang Zhenzhen thought for a moment and decided that he needed to set up some protections for the relief center, or his previous efforts would be wasted.

"Prepare five military knives and place one in each of the four directions of the relief center. Tie the knife handles with cotton rope soaked in black dog blood, and pour a bowl of garlic juice over the blades every day for seven days. Then I will draw a talisman for you to place in the center of the camp. This will prevent spirits and yin energy from gathering here."

This method was a trick taught to Chang Zhenzhen by an old Taoist in his previous life. According to the old Taoist, it was very effective, though he had never tried it before. Today was the first time, but he believed it would work.

Knives are inherently ominous, and military knives are even more so, infused with the qi and blood of soldiers. Ordinary spirits dare not approach them. The cotton rope soaked in black dog blood enhances the effect, and the garlic juice poured over the blades daily emits an odor that repels evil spirits. Finally, the talisman drawn by Chang Zhenzhen to suppress the center would completely deal with the evil spirits and yin energy in the relief center.

PS: Newcomers are actually very easy to satisfy. This chapter is an extra for the anonymous reader who gave me my first recommendation. Thank you!