Chapter 70

As the incantation was uttered, the wrist suddenly began to flicker, and the string of black beads on it emitted a continuous stream of light, dozens of times, before a paper crane fell from the night sky with a pattering sound.

Ji Qian raised his hand to receive it, then placed it under the bright candle on the table, and dripped a drop of wine onto the tips of its wings. The crane immediately spoke:

"Today, the Five Wheel Sect is in trouble, besieged by a powerful enemy. Disciples are dying and the enemy is hard to find! I, Baihe, have been injured and my magic is powerless. I can only take the disciples away from the mountain temporarily and send this message to all of you, please be on guard!"

After speaking, the paper crane hissed continuously, and a faint, putrid smell spread. The paper quickly darkened, turned yellow and old, and gradually withered.

The three people were startled by this message. Elder Shi's face darkened and he said, "This is bad! The Five Wheel Sect is besieged by a powerful enemy, and this is a call for help—what do you think, Brother Ji?"

"This is very suspicious!" Elder Ji opened and closed the white paper fan in his hand, his eyes flickering. "The Ten Thousand Rays Peak of the Five Wheel Sect is a ghostly place. Not only is the terrain treacherous, but it also has the power to summon the underworld. Mr. Plum has reached the pinnacle of cultivation. Unless... unless..."

He tapped the fan lightly in his left palm and declared, "Mr. Plum is not on the mountain, and there are few second-generation disciples. Only Baihe and one other are there... No, there won't be two, at most one, and that person must be the second-generation disciple Baihe!"

Indeed, as the bearer of the seal of the Dingjia lineage, his mind was outstanding, and he seemed to have seen the situation firsthand, guessing the situation on the mountain with just a few words.

Elder Shi thought for a moment and nodded, "That's right! Just now, we heard that Baihe was injured. If there were others, they wouldn't have let him send the message. There are no other disciples on the mountain—what do you think about the strength of the enemy, Brother Ji?"

Elder Ji frowned, "That's hard to say. However, Baihe is the weakest of the Five Wheel disciples. The enemy only injured him and didn't take his life, and even let him have time to release the crane. Their strength isn't too great, not necessarily too strong..." He smiled, "Unless this is a trap, with more tricks inside!"

Hearing the word "trick," the man beside him immediately interjected, "Uncle, could it be that they are trying to lure us there and then capture us all?"

Elder Shi and Elder Ji exchanged glances, clearly thinking the same thing. After some consideration, they both shook their heads. Elder Shi slowly said, "This paper crane, after it faded, is clearly over ten years old. It must be an old item. Baihe even released this crane, and who knows how many others he has sent to other sects for help—hmm! I don't believe anyone or any sect in this world could lure the Five Yin-Yang Sects to gather and destroy them. Is he a reincarnated Daluojinxiang or a revered being of heaven and earth?"

Elder Ji smiled and added, "Not at all, you're underestimating ourselves..."

"No, that's not what I meant," the man, Shi Butuan, hurriedly explained, "The Ten Thousand Rays Peak is hidden deep in the mountains. Although there are few paths to the peak, there are countless ways to reach the base of the mountain. I'm thinking, could the enemy be hiding in the mountains, waiting to ambush us?"

The Zhang family of Mount Maoshan in southern China, the Huang family of the north who summon spirits, the Shi family of the west who are Yin-Yang masters, and the Gazzan family of the southeast who practice voodoo are well-known. The southwestern Qian Gui Shi family is part of the Dingjia Sect, with the elder Shi Changtian as the patriarch, but all family affairs are handled by his second son, Shi Butuan, who is also the clan leader.

His thoughts, though not particularly unique, were more in line with the common people's thinking.

Shi Butuan further explained, "When this call for help is sent out, all sects will surely send people to help, but they won't send the leaders, just as we won't have our leader, Uncle Shi, come. If not for Father and Uncle being here, only one of you would bring the disciples. This gives the enemy an opportunity... We must be cautious!"

The two finally understood his meaning, realizing that Shi Butuan was not underestimating their own sect but was more insightful about human nature. After some consideration, they both nodded slowly, "Yes, if that's the case, we must be cautious!"

Elder Ji immediately took out three or five paper cranes from his bag, recited some incantations, and without burning incense or performing rituals, simply chanted the spell to make the cranes fly into the air. He instructed, "Go to all the sects and inform them that Ji Qian and Shi Changtian of the Dingjia Sect are on our way and will arrive soon. The sects can wait for news and won't send more people!"

After speaking, he waved his hand, and the paper cranes flew away.

The two knew that the number of paper cranes was limited and could only send messages to the leaders of the sects. They immediately asked the boatman, "Where are we now, and how far is it to San Yu Kou?"

San Yu Kou is located in the middle of the upper reaches of the Nuchang River, where eighteen streams converge. The river suddenly becomes wide and the water becomes very turbulent. Local legends say that there are water ghosts and demons here, and only the midday sun can suppress them. This is also the closest ferry to the Ten Thousand Rays Peak, but the mountain path is treacherous, so few people use it.

San Yu Kou is a large bay, with Beiyah Du three to five miles upstream and Nanyah Du three to five miles downstream. Both are small bays on the riverbank, suitable only for a brief rest. To rest, bathe, or buy supplies, one must go to the San Yu Kou market in the middle. Merchant ships often stop at the two ferries to rest and send people to the market to buy supplies, then set off again the next day at noon.

The Yin-Yang masters of the Dingjia Sect are the most skilled in controlling spirits, descended from Yang Jian, the disciple of Yuding Zhenren. Their magic can control ghosts, spirits, mountain goblins, and demons, divided into three schools: Ling Yu, Hun Yu, and Ti Yu. The members of the sect are particularly fond of spirits with divine or ghostly powers. Originally, the two could have returned by land, but after hearing the rumors, they were intrigued and decided to return by water.

The boatman, a disciple of the Dingjia Sect under the Shi family, smiled and replied, "Master, this place is called Wangba Ao. There are two streams flowing in from the east and west, hence the name. After passing this bend, it's a straight path, and it's only about seven or eight miles to Beiyah Du..."

"Good!" Ji Qian ordered, "Don't stop at the ferry. We'll go straight to San Yu Kou." Originally, they planned to pretend to be merchants to catch the river demon, but now they had to abandon that plan!

The disciple immediately responded and steered the boat straight down the river.

He turned to Shi Butuan and said, "Butuan, go to the bow and set up the altar. Uncle will use the Five Gou to protect you. If the demon doesn't cause trouble, that's fine, but if it does, use the red talisman to open the way, and the Three Fires to burn the river, so it doesn't get away!"

Shi Butuan responded and set up the altar at the bow of the boat. He spread a yellow cloth, placed three red candles on either side, a bowl of rice in the middle with three incense sticks and five fires, a Fire Spirit talisman on the left, a red wooden peach sword on the right, and also prepared cinnabar, eighteen coins, a red fire rope, ghost cards, an oiled paper umbrella, a pig bladder filled with dog blood, and a large water basin filled with clear water.

Shi Butuan prepared quickly, but the boat moved swiftly down the river. Almost as soon as he finished, they had already passed Beiyah Du. The people on the other boats saw the black shadow in the water and sighed:

"Ah! Another one who doesn't know better will end up in the belly of a fish."

As the boat moved, Elder Ji suddenly laughed and recited, "Heaven is clear, earth is pure, summon the Yin soldiers, Five Souls, listen to my command! With boundless power, I tread across the four continents, subdue the lawless, and eliminate the unjust. If any evil spirits resist, I will use my power to subdue them all—by my command! Five Souls, arise and serve me!"

He thrust his right hand into the sky, and the wrist chain jingled, flying out into the air. Instantly, a thick smoke rose, like ink or mist, and the beads scattered, each attaching to the black smoke, forming five black clouds that flew over the river!

The black smoke swept over the river, instantly causing a fierce, chilling wind!

The boat continued, and the river water splashed against the sides, but there was no ripple, as calm as a mirror or an ice lake. There were no water spirits or large fish to be seen!

In a moment, the boat reached the entrance to San Yu Kou, and the five black clouds continued to follow in the air, never leaving. Just as everyone thought nothing would happen, the black clouds suddenly paused, and three of them, trailing long black tails, shot like arrows into the Nuchang River!

Under the bright moonlight, a black shadow slowly moved in the water, about ten feet long and three feet wide, resembling a snake but too short, and a turtle but too long, like a door panel in the water.

It twisted and rolled in the water, and when the black smoke approached, it flicked its tail and dived underwater. The black smoke could only circle in the air, unable to touch it!

The creature was still far from the boat, apparently preparing to capsize it, but now, with the presence of the spirit control and the faint pressure from the altar on the boat, it was intimidated and just followed. Thus, the Dingjia Sect members did not take the initiative to attack, just waiting for the boat to approach the ferry...

The black shadow swayed away from the ferry, suddenly spraying a water column into the air, as if showing off. Shi Butuan immediately became angry, "Hey, you're still showing off? We'll deal with you when we come back!" He smiled and helped his father up, "We'll use this thing as a donkey when we catch it..."

"No need to worry," Ji Qian smiled, "That thing isn't hard to deal with. We'll handle it when we return... but this is more troublesome!" He pointed to the Kunlun Mountains and shouted, "Go, find the trail."

The five black clouds immediately swept over everyone's heads and flew toward Kunlun.