Huang Jiu said, releasing its demon aura, wanting to take form. I quickly stopped it, saying, "Hold on a bit. If I can't handle it, then you can step in."
One should always leave a little leeway and hold something back when dealing with things. There's no harm in that.
The female ghost approached, both hands stretched forward in a grabbing motion.
I looked down at my chest and thought, "There's nothing there for you to grab. Are you trying to grab a ball?"
I calmed myself, waiting for her to approach within two steps before swiftly dodging and throwing out the "Dou" character spell.
The Nine-character True Word can only be used in its form, but it's sufficient to deal with this entity.
As Huang Jiu had said, the female ghost seemed a bit slow-witted, unaware of how to avoid the attack, and I struck her directly.
Instead of dodging, she just tumbled and screamed loudly.
However, as she was thrown back, I saw two thin golden threads appear above her head in my Dog Star vision.
I let out a soft "Eh" and quickly activated my third layer of spiritual sight.
Once I got a clear view, I furrowed my brows.
No wonder she seemed so foolish—she was actually a ghost servant.
The golden threads above her head were spiritual threads, which seemed to disappear into the air, but in reality, they were connecting to someone controlling her from behind.
And that person was nearby.
I couldn't estimate the exact distance because the stronger the person controlling the ghost, the farther they could be.
It's rumored that powerful ghost masters can control ghost servants to kill people from a hundred miles away.
However, the ghost servants cultivated by such masters are voluntary and don't need to be controlled like puppets, so distance isn't an issue for them.
I estimated that the person controlling the ghost wasn't a ghost master, but was likely within a twenty-mile radius.
After I injured the female ghost, she vanished into the ground.
I didn't chase her but instead quickly used the blood spike to break the old lady's bones, then called for Xu Dafa to send over a rope.
Xu Dafa arrived, and his attitude was even more respectful now.
People are like that—either they respect wealth or power, or they respect skill.
After my "Dou" character spell just now, Xu Dafa looked at me as if I were a living god.
I took the rope from him and asked him to pull it while I tied one end to the coffin. I shouted, "Pull!"
The eleven people exerted force, and together they dragged the coffin out of the mud and towards the outside.
Once the coffin was moved, I didn't follow but jumped back into the grave pit, scraping down with my blood spike. After a few inches of digging, I unearthed something hard in the soil.
In the other three corners, I found identical objects.
I climbed out of the pit, holding them in my hands, and walked back.
Once the coffin was moved, Xu Dafa dared not act rashly. I said, "Handle the bone pile the way you usually do."
Xu Dafa nodded and instructed the people to carry the coffin to the firewood pile that had already been prepared.
As the sky darkened, they didn't delay and poured coal oil on it, setting it on fire.
As I watched the coffin burn, both Xu Dafa and the village chief sighed with relief.
I rubbed the mud off the objects I dug up on the dry grass and identified them as four six-sided nails.
The six-sided nails had six edges and a strange shape. Once the mud was wiped off, I recognized them.
These nails are also known as Dragon Lock Nails and are used to suppress dragon veins and earth energies.
It seemed someone wanted to suppress the potential of the hidden dragon here. This explained their intent in creating a bone pile.
When the drought demon is born, the land turns barren, which occurs because water has gathered around the drought demon.
The surrounding water vapor dissipates, and the hidden dragon in the area is suppressed, turning from a majestic dragon into a weaker one.
The place where the drought demon resides is exactly at the dragon's mouth, where it gathers water to form a water spout—a feng shui setup known as a dragon spitting water.
In feng shui, a dragon spitting water brings great fortune, but a dragon sucking water brings great misfortune.
However, the person behind this wasn't looking for widespread fortune—they wanted to benefit only themselves.
I asked the village chief, "Has anyone unfamiliar come to the village recently?"
The village chief shook his head.
I asked again, "Is there any wealthy family nearby that has recently lost a young person?"
The village chief thought for a moment before shaking his head.
I said, "Don't guess. I need an accurate answer. Quickly ask around the village to see if any family has recently lost a young person."
The village chief immediately arranged for someone to inform the others in the village, asking them to inquire through the township office and find out if anyone had lost a young family member.
The person who set this up had thought everything through. They had suppressed the hidden dragon's energy for about ten years, temporarily using the dragon-spitting water setup to bless the descendants.
Once the dragon's head fully rises and the upward momentum is gone, they would dismantle the setup.
In doing so, the person buried at the dragon's head would be guaranteed to achieve great success.
As for burying a young person, it was simple to understand.
When an elderly person dies, they lack the energy to fully utilize the dragon's power, but a young person's burial allows the full effect of this setup to be realized.
The fire grew stronger, and night had fully fallen. Xu Dafa and the others lit torches, illuminating half of the mountainside.
Human fire not only drives away darkness but also wards off evil spirits.
Moreover, with the female ghost injured, I figured she wouldn't come out anytime soon.
What worried me more was the person behind her.
If it weren't for Song Laoqie and the money, I would have ended this right here.
But with Song Laoqie's words, I agreed to take responsibility for this matter to the end.
I guessed that the drought demon was almost burned through, and the person behind the female ghost would soon arrive.
As the night deepened, the sound from the burning coffin stopped.
Xu Dafa and the others, used to this, didn't react. They kept adding dry pinewood to the fire.
Pine wood contains pine oil, which is highly flammable, and within about half an hour, the noise from the coffin ceased.
It was at this moment that the Dog Star vision detected a faint aura nearby.
It was a soul light—alive.
Sensing the presence approaching, I turned to the village chief and said, "The corpse won't transform for a while. You've been driving all day and must be tired. Take the others back to rest. Xu Dafa will stay with me."
The village chief, being an outsider, hesitated, saying, "How can we leave you here alone in such a desolate place?"
Xu Dafa, who had seen me unearth the items earlier, guessed there was something suspicious going on. He said to the village chief, "Listen to Li Master. Erwa, take the rest of the brothers back, and look after the three who got hurt."
Erwa was the dark-skinned young man.
They had worked with Xu Dafa for a long time and didn't say much, leaving four torches behind as they ushered the village chief and the others down the mountain.
Once they left, the area became eerily quiet.
Only then did Xu Dafa lower his voice and ask, "Li Master, is this man-made?"
I nodded.
Xu Dafa continued, "Ever since the hidden dragon began rising ten years ago, people from outside have been coming, trying to buy that land. The village chief rejected them, fearing it would affect the village's fortune. It seems there are some with ill intentions eyeing this place."
I didn't respond because the soul light suddenly stopped and then disappeared.
Huang Jiu immediately stood up, vigilantly watching the surroundings.
Xu Dafa, seeing this, remained silent and grabbed the large rake used for cow dung, holding it in the air like a staff.