Chapter 7 Preparation

"I have no time to pay attention to this," Qiu Laoliu shook his head and said, "Although it has only been dead for a short while, it was quite wealthy and left behind a considerable amount. If you happen to go to the ghost market, please bring me some back."

Order another steamer! Qin Mu glanced at Xiao Bai, who had already eaten everything clean, but looking at its deflated belly and its eyes filled with lingering desire, it seemed that it was still not full, and immediately let out a loud shout

Hmph, when it arrives, I will make it lose its wits!" Xiao Bai was full of fighting spirit, completely oblivious to Qin Mu's worried expression.

"Is it really going to come out at this time of day?" Xiao Bai stuck out his tongue and then explained to Qin Mu, thinking that he must not make such a mistake again, otherwise he would be looked down upon by Qin Mu.

Xiao Bai did not know what to say

Qin Mu's actions are motivated by a reason; it is not due to fear. Rather, the shapeshifting fox, Xiao Bai, possesses a considerable deterrent effect, reminiscent of a fox assuming the authority of a tiger. In reality, Xiao Bai's ability to transform is attributed to being a spirit attendant, and her cultivation level is merely a few hundred years.

Xiao Bai watched as this fat man drooled all over his most beloved "bed board". Taking advantage of Zhu the Fatty's deep slumber, Xiao Bai somehow pulled out a marker and began drawing a turtle on the fat man's face.

Do you still remember the aura of malevolence that this fat man exuded when he entered the room?

Little Bai playfully stuck out his tongue, holding one end of the rope. Qin Mu affixed the newly written talisman onto it, and with a swipe of his finger between the talisman and the rope, the talisman was firmly secured to the rope. Little Bai, curious, tugged at it, but it did not budge.

"It should have come long ago." Xiao Bai rolled his eyes and said, "Of all times, it had to come now."

Well, let's do it tomorrow morning. Qin Mu looked at the fat man's expression, which was somewhat inscrutable: Perhaps later, you know he hasn't had much rest these past two days. I added a concealment symbol for him, so when that thing comes in, the first thing it will see is you and me. In fact, there was another sentence that Qin Mu did not say, if that thing really comes, the first thing it will definitely see is Xiao Bai

Upon receiving such a reminder from Qin Mu, Xiao Bai seemed to have thought of something and immediately blurted out: "Is it because this fat man is a monster?"

"You have asked this question no less than one hundred times, and I have said it many times: there is no glue, this is all based on my own ability." Qin Mu smiled with a sense of accomplishment

Xiao Bai rested his head on his hand, watching Qin Mu perform these actions. When Qin Mu had encircled the entire room with the talisman rope, Xiao Bai suddenly felt as if the house was isolated from the outside world.

"Hmph, who told him to drool on my bed? He deserves it," Xiao Bai said with righteous indignation, and then was immediately attracted by what Qin Mu was holding: "Mu Mu, you went upstairs to rummage for so long just to get this little bit of stuff?"

How on earth did you do it? Do you have glue hidden in your hands? No matter how many times he watched, Xiao Bai still found it incredible

Upon hearing Qin Mu's words, Xiao Bai immediately rubbed his fists in excitement, but then seemed to remember something and asked, "When will this fat man wake up?"

Xiao Bai let out a sound of surprise, and by the time she jumped off the table, she had already transformed into a graceful young girl. Her appearance was similar to that of the girl who had awakened Qin Mu that day, except she was wearing a long robe of the same color as Qin Mu's, and her hair was casually tied in a braid, resembling a miniature version of Qin Mu. This transformation into human form did not affect Xiao Bai's agility at all, and with a quick leap, she dashed forward.

This rope is known as a talisman rope, made from long talismans that have been twisted together. The material is extremely tough, and it is unclear what it is made of. This item was passed down to Qin Mu by the previous generation of shamans, and it measures only a few dozen meters in length

After bidding farewell to Qiu Lao Liu, Qin Mu felt that this outing was a joyous occasion for everyone. Unfortunately, it seemed that only he felt this way. Xiao Bai squatted on Qin Mu's shoulder, watching Qiu Lao Liu, who wore a face full of bitterness as he saw them off, and wondered if he had eaten too much.

Qiu Lao Liu vaguely understood that charging such a hefty consultation fee likely meant that Qin Mu had some confidence in his own judgment. If he did not have complete assurance, how could Qin Mu dare to make such a guarantee? He patted Qin Mu on the shoulder and said, "Be careful. Yesterday, there was a newly deceased soul who had been dead for less than a month dining with Fatty. They probably know each other and even had a quarrel."

Seeing Qin Mu stick a drawn talisman on the fat man's head, Xiao Bai chuckled and said, "Look at him, he looks so much like a zombie"

"Hehe, we must thank Qiu Lao Liu for that," Qin Mu said with a smile. "If it weren't for this fat man eating something at Qiu Lao Liu's place earlier, I wouldn't have thought of this method. Can a living person eat the things from Qiu Lao Liu's? Just look at the drool coming from this fat man to know how unpleasant it is. A living person eating something that belongs to the dead, contaminated by the aura of death, and after being scared all night, this fat man's spirit has long been in a state of collapse. Right now, we can say this is the weakest moment for this fat man, and his yang energy has also weakened... If we don't take action now, do you think that thing is a fool?"

As Qin Mu Yi came down from upstairs, he saw Xiao Bai playing joyfully and couldn't help but chuckle as he patted its little head, saying, "Alright, what has that person done to offend you so much?"

Originally, the soundproofing of Qin Mu's dilapidated house was not very good. The two neighboring households were not exactly quiet either; every night, it was either singing or arguing, as if only those two families in the world were enjoying a peaceful life, completely disregarding the feelings of others. However, after Qin Mu arranged everything, all the surrounding sounds retreated like the tide, until nothing could be heard.

Qin Mu took a deep breath and thought, well, since I am here, I might as well accept it; everything will be left to fate

"Wait for that thing to come to me on its own." Qin Mu adjusted his posture and continued playing Tetris: "Even Old Qiu can see that this fat man has offended something significant. I'm not that diligent, so I choose to wait."

Qin Mu was taken aback, but he also smiled and said, "You are so mischievous; take the rope and draw the boundary."

"I am asking you to take the sea bowl on the balcony..." Qin Mu shook his head, looking at the already fallen Yin-Yang Ding: "Forget it, let's take this instead; it has much more deterrent power"

Hmph, now you understand the benefits of diligent study and practice, huh? Always sleeping day in and day out..." Xiao Bai, who had just come down from upstairs, couldn't help but interject upon hearing Qin Mu's sentiments. She was holding a bowl the size of a washbasin, which looked somewhat peculiar, resembling an ancient bronze ding, but appeared slightly larger. Xiao Bai placed the object in the center of the hall, saying, "Mu Mu, you are being too cautious, aren't you? Using a yin-yang ding to hold water? The previous generation of shamans would be furious with you.

Qin Mu understood at that moment that there were indeed quite a few people like Qiu Lao Liu. However, Qiu Lao Liu was quite fearful of the real ghost market, and every time he earned money at night, he would ask Qin Mu to take it along for him

Qin Mu looked at the figure of Xiao Bai going upstairs and said with some concern, "Be careful with that." Then he shook his head helplessly and remarked, "Such a childlike disposition."

Old Qiu, standing to one side, stumbled and nearly fell

and * illustrations * books

What should we do now? After finishing these tasks, Xiao Bai looked at the sky outside, which seemed to have just passed noon

What are you waiting for?" Xiao Bai widened his eyes

Ah?" Xiao Bai exclaimed, "Didn’t you say for me to bring down the water from upstairs?"

"Transform into human form, for there is a tough battle to be fought tonight." Qin Mu held a worn brush used for recording in his mouth and a stack of yellow talisman paper in his hand. After wandering around downstairs, he added, "Go help me bring that bowl of water from upstairs."

Qin Mu's face darkened, expressing his frustration: "Xiao Bai, you've been with me for so long, can't you tell whether someone is human or a demon? Indeed, this fat man has a demonic aura, but it does not originate from him. I suspect there is something protecting him; otherwise, he would have been dead by now"

"I feel unwell, it is too quiet, as if there is no one around." Xiao Bai shook its head, instead finding it more comfortable to listen to the arguments from the two households on either side.

Qin Mu did not answer directly: "Do you think this feels comfortable?"

"Then why didn't it take action before?" Xiao Bai was taken aback.

And Qin Mu particularly enjoyed the exhilarating sensation when writing talismans, which is why he never paused while writing; he always completed them in one continuous flow

Yin Yang Ding? Qin Mu woke up during the process of drawing the talisman and turned to look at the bronze cauldron on the ground, feeling both amused and exasperated: "How did you manage to summon it? The Yin Yang Ding will surely throw a tantrum tonight for being treated so unjustly."

Qin Mu completed a talisman, and the vermilion runes on the ordinary yellow talisman paper flickered momentarily. This was a sign of spiritual energy flowing through; if the runes did not flicker after being drawn, it could only be deemed a failure. Qin Mu let out a weary sigh, "I am becoming increasingly unskilled; it has only been a few months since I last drew, yet it is so exhausting."

Qin Mu narrowed his eyes and asked, "Do you know where that soul has gone?"

Xiao Bai felt somewhat uncomfortable, "It's too quiet. Mu Mu, why don't you use this method when you sleep?"

Returning to his own clinic, Zhu Fatty was still sprawled on the table, sound asleep, with a suspicious silver thread hanging from the corner of his mouth, emanating a strange burnt smell. As soon as Xiao Bai caught a whiff of it, he immediately began to express his disdain for the entire table.

"Then that settles it." Having arranged everything, Qin Mu pulled out an old game console from under the table and calmly began playing Tetris. The more important reason he did not mention was that with Qin Mu's current abilities, he could not maintain this "isolation formation" for an entire night. As for using the formation to block the sounds of the people around, Qin Mu had actually thought of that long ago.

Qin Mu frowned and glanced at his patient. He has always been responsible for his patients. Seeing the fat man's condition, he shook his head, threw the little fox downstairs, instructed it to watch over the fat man, and then went upstairs alone.

Qin Mu merely smiled and did not respond, using a talisman rope to encircle the entire hall, placing a talisman every two steps, and hanging a small bell every step. After Qin Mu casually brushed the talisman rope, it obediently adhered to the wall, and the main door was securely locked, with two talismans affixed behind it.

Xiao Bai spat lightly and said, "You still haven't had enough of the abilities of the master, have you just finished watching 'Empresses in the Palace'?"

While expressing such a sigh, the hand did not hesitate; it lightly licked the brush, placed a piece of talisman paper flat on the table, took a deep breath, and suddenly thrust down with one hand. When writing a talisman, one must not pause; if one is not sufficiently skilled, at the very least, the brush must not separate from the talisman paper. Once separated, the transmission of spiritual energy will be obstructed, and that piece of talisman will be rendered useless.

"This is hard to say." Qin Mu chuckled, "This is the time when this fat man is at his weakest. If we don't come now, wouldn't that be a missed opportunity? Besides, that thing is so powerful, why would it worry about a mere daytime?"