This time, Wang Ya formed the Lotus Seal. With Old Tang and Zhang Beauty standing nearby, she recited silently, only shouting at the end when the seal was complete: “Lotus Soul Welcoming, souls return! Soul Return!” She thrust the power of the Lotus Seal onto the mud figure, making it tremble and giving the impression that a tiny figure stepping on a lotus had suddenly burrowed into the earth from within.
Wang Ya clapped her hands. “Done. Now we wait for news. Oh, and don’t get careless. Watch out for that Dead Old Lady tracing the Soul-Welcoming Doll back here. Zhang, are the defenses you set up at this Construction Site reliable? Can they stop ghosts?”
Old Tang and Zhang Beauty both stared at Wang Ya without responding.
Wang Ya didn’t need to guess—she knew they weren’t reliable. Otherwise, how could Zheng Yanxia’s soul have been hooked away, and how did those five Five Elements Ghosts sneak in? Knowing the Old Ghost harbored deep hatred toward her, if the Dead Old Lady came killing, she’d target Wang Ya first. How could she afford to slack? Ignoring her fatigue, she drew more talismans.
Wang Ya drew over thirty talismans in one go, feeling utterly exhausted, her body limp—not just from physical depletion, but from excessive mental strain.
During this time, Old Tang and Zhang Beauty went out briefly. When they returned, they each had new items.
Old Tang now held a Luopan Compass and carried a Peach Wood Sword on his back. At first glance, he looked like a Taoist priest, but in his Tang suit, he resembled more a tai chi practitioner.
Zhang Beauty returned with a coil of green vine wrapped around her hand—fresh green with tender buds hanging from it, verdant and vibrant as if freshly plucked from new growth. Additionally, she wore a shiny Silver Collar around her neck, with a Longevity Lock engraved with a sea map dangling from it.
When Wang Ya saw the Silver Collar on Zhang Beauty’s neck, she instantly recalled the boy Rudong from her elementary school textbook and burst out laughing. She teased, “Zhang the Expert Hunter, add a steel fork to your hand and you’d be perfect!” Before the words finished, she suddenly felt the Talisman Array tremble slightly. Wang Ya whipped her head toward the array but saw nothing unusual.
Zhang Beauty and Old Tang also turned vigilant gazes toward the array, their brows furrowed tightly.
Old Tang looked down at his Luopan Compass, its needle spinning wildly like a windmill.
Without a word, Wang Ya leaped two steps into the Talisman Array and stood at the Vermilion Bird position, cautiously observing her surroundings.
The room fell silent, the air heavy as if dark clouds pressed down, ready for a storm at any moment.
The atmosphere turned eerie in an instant.
None of the three spoke, all focusing their senses and carefully watching their surroundings.
Suddenly, the Soul-Welcoming Doll mud figure above Zheng Yanxia’s head trembled. Wang Ya clearly saw a lotus-shaped talisman light carrying soul light plunge into it. Lotus Soul Welcoming had retrieved Zheng Yanxia’s hooked-away Heavenly Soul and Earthly Soul! Wang Ya smiled and said, “Done—Zheng Yanxia’s souls are back!” She looked up, preparing to form the seal to guide Zheng Yanxia’s souls from the Soul-Welcoming Doll back into her body, when suddenly a burst of aura exploded. Followed by a cracking sound, countless mud shards flew everywhere in the room. The rooster on Zheng Yanxia’s chest toppled over without warning, convulsed a few times, and went still. Then, black blood surged from its mouth and nose.
Wang Ya looked at the shattered Talisman Soldier Doll scattered across the floor and the dead rooster sprawled there. Her mouth twitched unnaturally: That Dead Old Lady was ruthless! She steadied herself, formed the Soul-Passing Jue with her hands, transferred Zheng Yanxia’s Heaven and Earth souls from the Soul-Welcoming Doll back into her body, and placed a Lotus Soul-Suppressing Seal on Zheng Yanxia’s forehead.
A few seconds later, Huang Qi opened her eyes. Her vacant gaze “stared” at the ceiling. Her hand groped the floor beside her, she frowned, sat up, scratched her head, concentrated for two seconds—as if listening intently to the surroundings or using Heart Awareness to scan the environment—then asked, “What happened? Wang Ya? Why are you here?”
Wang Ya stepped forward in two strides and pulled Huang Qi up from the ground. Of course, it wasn’t because the floor was cold and she worried Huang Qi would catch a chill; it was to retrieve the ancient bronze coins she’d lent for body suppression. With the ancient bronze coins pocketed, Wang Ya felt like she’d swallowed a calming pill and let out a long sigh of relief. Only with them suppressing her body did she feel her life was secure.
Zhang Beauty grabbed Huang Qi’s wrist. “Little Qi, are you okay?”
Huang Qi replied, “I’m fine,” then asked, “What happened? Why is the Yin Qi in the room so heavy?” She suddenly exclaimed, “Someone’s downstairs!”
Old Tang said, “Dong Zi and Fang Yan are down there.”
Huang Qi said, “It’s not them.” She said uncertainly, “It seems like we’ve been surrounded.”
Wang Ya walked to the window and looked outside. All she saw was pitch blackness; even the Construction Site’s floodlights had gone out at some point! Wang Ya suddenly realized: If the Dead Old Lady had escaped and called for backup to deal with her, Zheng Yanxia was the bait to lure her into the trap. And now, after calling back Zheng Yanxia’s soul, she was exhausted, her strength nearly spent! She’d opened the Yellow Springs today, used the Talisman Soldier Doll to break evil, called the soul with the Soul-Welcoming Doll, and drawn dozens of talismans—both her physical energy and mental strength were depleted. If the Dead Old Lady attacked now, what could she use to fight back? She hadn’t seen the Five Elements Ghosts when she previously confronted the Dead Old Lady; they couldn’t have appeared from nowhere. The Dead Old Lady must have called reinforcements. One Dead Old Lady was tough enough; with unknown allies and these three unreliable pig teammates who might betray her at any moment, what was she to do?
