Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Waiting for Xie Qingfeng to arrive was excruciatingly long.

Those hiding behind Hao Jixin trembled, listening to the unsettling laughter and the banging of the wind against the door from outside.

Each thud was nerve-wracking.

"Why, why hasn't he come yet?" someone stammered, almost crying. They felt the door might give in at any moment.

Hao Jixin knew the peace charm was effective, but he couldn't help feeling scared: "It's only been a few minutes, even if the Master is hurrying over, it will take some time. Don't worry, the Master's charm is on the door, it won't let him in!"

Saying this was also to bolster his own courage; they couldn't afford to panic.

Perhaps hearing them, the banging and wind outside suddenly stopped.

The room fell eerily silent, a quiet that was almost terrifying.

Mao Yue, shivering with fear, whispered, "Why, why has it suddenly gone quiet? It hasn't, hasn't it already gotten in?"

"Don't... don't scare people, it definitely can't get in!" Hao Jixin, frightened out of his wits, stared intently at the door. Then, suddenly remembering something, he turned sharply to look at the pale-faced owner, Luan, "This private room... there aren't any other doors or windows it can come through, right?"

"Huh?" Luan, his mind in disarray, looked around blankly before finally regaining his composure. Understanding Hao Jixin's point, he subconsciously glanced towards the restroom of the private room.

Everyone followed his gaze, and just then, the half-open restroom door creaked open, revealing a partially opened ventilation window on the wall facing them.

Hao Jixin's eyes widened in alarm, exclaiming, "Run!"

He made a dash to grab the peace charm from the door, hoping to use it as a shield.

But it seemed the entity had anticipated this move; as Hao Jixin was about to touch the charm, he felt as if a great force was preventing him from moving forward.

Not only that, it felt as though something was gripping his neck, slowly lifting him upwards.

First, his heels lifted off the ground, then his toes, until he was entirely suspended in mid-air.

This terrifying sight sent the others scattering in panic.

Hao Jixin dangled helplessly, his face turning red, unable to utter a word. Was he going to meet his end here tonight?

He swore to never forgive these scoundrels for getting him into this mess!

When Hao Jixin was violently slammed against the wall, he felt utterly hopeless. It seemed like fate was against him!

Just as he thought he was running out of breath, he heard a door being kicked open. With a loud bang, the door beside him was kicked off its hinges.

Simultaneously, Hao Jixin felt the constricting force around his neck vanish completely as the light flickered before his eyes.

Collapsing to the ground, he gasped for air desperately. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Xie Qingfeng, dressed in white shorts and a short-sleeved shirt, appearing like a deity. Overwhelmed with relief, he burst into tears: "Wuuu, my life is saved!"

Xie Qingfeng surveyed the surrounding ghostly aura, frowning. It was much more powerful than he had anticipated.

But it was nothing he couldn't handle.

The room was filled with a chilling wind, and although the air conditioning wasn't on, it was cold enough to make everyone shiver.

Xie Qingfeng, expressionless, fixed his gaze on a spot, then suddenly raised his hand and swiftly moved forward. His slender fingers seemed to grasp something in the void, as if holding an invisible object.

The entity, initially smug about gaining another "snack," was suddenly restrained. It stared in disbelief, struggling, causing the surrounding dark energy to swirl chaotically, shifting the sofa and coffee table with creaking noises.

The others, hiding in the corner, watched this scene in terror, wondering if someone else had come to be sacrificed.

They then saw the youthful-looking boy with red lips and white teeth, possibly not even of age, lightly slam his arm downward, as if pressing something to the ground.

Almost simultaneously, the eerie disturbances in the room abruptly ceased.

Everyone was stunned: "What the hell just happened?"

Xie Qingfeng turned to look at Hao Jixin, who was finally catching his breath after coughing violently, "How do you want to deal with it?"

Hao Jixin was the client; he was paying, so it was his call.

Seeing Xie Qingfeng, Hao Jixin immediately perked up, his spirit and vigor returning, a stark contrast to his earlier timidity.

Looking into Xie Qingfeng's eyes, he was flattered and surprised: "Can I?"

Receiving an affirmative response, he stepped forward and circled the empty air, "Master, can I see what it is that's been tormenting me?"

He needed to know why this entity, with whom he had no enmity, targeted him!

Xie Qingfeng looked at Hao Jixin without emotion, remaining silent.

Hao Jixin quickly added, "This will be an additional charge, separate from the rest."

Xie Qingfeng, satisfied, showed no emotion on his face. Revealing a ghost in its true form required spiritual energy, and he had only absorbed so much in one night.

Xie Qingfeng lifted his empty hand, channeling spiritual energy into his fingertips, drawing a rune in the void. In a flash of light, the next moment, a ghost wearing the bar's waiter uniform appeared on the previously empty floor.

It was clearly a fierce ghost, with its iron-blue skin, swollen face, and eyes faintly glowing red, surrounded by dark aura.

Those who had doubted Xie Qingfeng's abilities as a master now thoroughly believed.

After all, witnessing a ghost change form was something they had never seen in their lives!

Xie Qingfeng, uninterested in controlling this fierce ghost, had already drawn a revealing charm and, as an afterthought, a ghost-binding charm. He stood up and stepped aside.

The ghost's eyes had turned red, a sign of having taken a life. There was no need to send it for reincarnation. After dealing with Hao Jixin, he would destroy it on the spot.

Startled by the fierce ghost, Hao Jixin regained his composure and saw the ghost glaring with blood-red eyes. He couldn't help but kick out, saying, "Still acting tough? You're already defeated; why are you glaring?"

His kick passed right through the ghost, hitting nothing.

Xie Qingfeng glanced at him, "Don't touch it..." Just when Hao Jixin thought there was some taboo, Xie Qingfeng finished, "Bad luck."

The fierce ghost, infuriated, thought: You're the one with bad luck, your whole family has bad luck! Ah, the frustration of being a ghost!

He was dead and still being insulted. Was there any justice?

Hao Jixin, realizing the potential bad luck, pondered, "What if it rubs off on me?"

"Why are you trying to harm me? I have no grudges against you!" Hao Jixin said this, while several scared people tiptoed closer but didn’t dare get too close, sticking to the wall out of fear.

The ghost knew it had met a tough opponent, glaring resentfully at Hao Jixin.

It held no grudge against Hao Jixin or the other two it had harmed before; it was just angry at the world of wealthy people.

His death was due to his poverty, which relegated him to menial work. Had it not been for the expensive bottle of wine left by a rich patron, he wouldn't have drunk himself to death.

After his death, his resentment lingered. The three people, including Hao Jixin, had just coincidentally crossed paths at the time of his demise. "If I have to die, I might as well take some with me," he reasoned.

Hearing his justification, Hao Jixin and others were stunned: So their lives meant nothing?

Grinding his teeth, Hao Jixin asked, "Master, don't let him off easily! Wait, he's already dead. What now?"

Xie Qingfeng calmly stated, "Soul dispersion."

The group shuddered: Oh no!

The malevolent ghost finally panicked, begging for mercy. But Xie Qingfeng, having slain countless ghosts, was unmoved: "Your fate was sealed when you became a ghost and took two lives."

Realizing pleading was futile, the ghost tried to attack, but the binding charm on its body held it firmly in place, leaving it to watch helplessly as Xie Qingfeng leisurely drew a charm in the air above it.

Instantly, golden ropes appeared out of nowhere, wrapping tightly around the ghost, constricting more and more, causing excruciating pain that made the ghost scream in agony.

The ropes, as if tangible, seemed to burn its skin, capable of obliterating its soul.

And yet, the process was agonizingly slow, as if to deliberately prolong the torment.

Hao Jixin and the others only felt pity, realizing that they would have been the ones suffering if the master hadn't arrived.

Xie Qingfeng, following the client's request to not let the ghost die easily, felt it was enough and channeled the remaining spiritual energy in his fingertips into his palm, then slapped it towards the ghost's crown.

The ghost, previously writhing in pain, instantly dissipated into countless wisps of black smoke and vanished without a trace.

The room fell silent once again.

Xie Qingfeng turned around, his expression indifferent, and asked the still dazed group, "WeChat or Alipay?"

They hadn't recovered from the shock of what they had just witnessed: "Huh?"

Hao Jixin was the first to snap back to reality and hurriedly took out his phone to make a transfer.

Xie Qingfeng stated, "For the malevolent ghost, twenty thousand per entity, plus a thousand for urgent service, and three thousand for the revealing charm. That's a total of twenty-four thousand."

Hao Jixin knew the rules of Xie Qingfeng; whatever amount he stated was final.

He promptly transferred 24,000.

The owner, Luan, and the others were stunned: "Only, only 24,000?"

Thinking of the charlatan Taoist they had hired for a hefty sum, they felt like they had been swindled.

They suddenly looked at the young master with admiration and eagerness in their eyes!

All they wanted now were peace charms!

After Hao Jixin completed the transfer, he immediately turned to Luan, "What are you waiting for? The master saving me was one thing, but getting rid of the bar's ghost is a separate charge. Pay up!" He then winked at Xie Qingfeng, shrugging, "He just spent a hundred thousand on a Taoist for exorcism, and well... you saw what happened, Master."

Xie Qingfeng squinted his eyes: "A hundred thousand? Just for a simple exorcism?"

Luan, a businessman, knew a good opportunity when he saw one, and quickly paid a hundred thousand: "Master, could you... perhaps draw us some peace charms, like the ones for Hao?"

Hao Jixin, worried that Xie Qingfeng would charge the previous rate of 9998 for five charms, quickly said, "You've seen the Master's peace charms, they can ward off fierce ghosts, let alone ordinary ghosts and bad luck, but they're not cheap. Twenty thousand per charm, plus a piece of jade from each of you."

The group readily agreed: "Of course, of course." None of them were short of money, especially when it came to life-saving items, no price was too high.

Although they found it odd to need jade, some of them wore jade for protection. Since only one piece was required, someone immediately offered a piece.

Half an hour later, when Xie Qingfeng and Hao Jixin left the bar and got into the sports car, Xie Qingfeng looked at the over 200,000 added to his account and fell silent.

Was this the feeling of getting rich overnight, just as in his original memories?

Xie Qingfeng thought about the jade that could absorb spiritual energy. If he could afford it, he wouldn't necessarily have to use the jade from his 'treasure vault.'

Although the treasure vault was now his, the items inside were carefully selected by the young emperor, and he always felt strange using them.

If he could afford it, the next time his foster father encountered trouble, he wouldn't need to use the vault.

Xie Qingfeng glanced at the overly excited Hao Jixin driving the car, "That ordinary piece of jade just now, how much does it cost?"

Hao Jixin replied casually, "Not too expensive, around three hundred thousand."

Xie Qingfeng looked at the balance on his phone and then silently turned it off.