Chapter 262

Chapter 262

◎Don’t Be Superstitious◎

While the others were saying their goodbyes, Ji Nanxing shared his observation with Xiao Ye: "The decline in his family’s business is likely due to someone stealing their wealth fortune. Even though he’s not at home, the fates of family members are interconnected, so he’s also affected. That’s why the murky energy disperses only to gather again."

Xiao Ye glanced at Qi Ruifang and frowned slightly.

Ji Nanxing: "What’s wrong?"

That expression—it didn’t seem like worry, nor was there any urgency to help. Weren’t they good friends?

Xiao Ye: "If it’s just wealth fortune being stolen, is there any life-threatening danger?"

Ji Nanxing: "I can’t say there’s absolutely none. Judging by the state of his financial aura, the theft might continue for a while. But for someone originally destined for wealth, a sudden decline in fortune isn’t just about becoming poor—it could lead to unforeseen disasters due to the abrupt shift in luck."

However, these misfortunes weren't in Qi Ruifang's destined path. What he might face depends on how much of his family’s wealth fortune has been stolen. Even Ji Nanxing couldn’t read anything definitive from his current appearance.

Xiao Ye said, "Qi Ruifang doesn’t buy into this kind of thing. Even if we tell him, he probably won’t take it seriously."

Xiao Ye himself wasn’t exactly a true believer in the past, but his skepticism wasn’t rigid. For example, if someone told him he’d face misfortune within three days, he wouldn’t lose sleep over it but would still be a bit more cautious. If it actually happened, he’d be shocked that the prediction came true.

But if Qi Ruifang heard something like that, he’d dismiss it outright, figuring the guy was just some con artist trying to cheat him out of money. Even if it came true, he’d write it off as coincidence, refusing to attribute it to fortune-telling.

They’d been playing basketball together for years. Though they didn’t meet often, occasional gatherings were enough to understand each other’s personalities. Small details made it clear that Qi Ruifang not only disbelieved in such things but had a real aversion to it.

If Xiao Ye pulled him aside now and told him his family’s hotel business was failing because someone was stealing their wealth fortune, Qi Ruifang would likely think he'd gone off the deep end.

Knowing how Qi Ruifang would react, Xiao Ye was torn. Not saying anything meant turning a blind eye to a friend's trouble—something he couldn’t accept. But speaking up would only invite skepticism, making Ji Nanxing look like some charlatan in his own social circle. That was the last thing Xiao Ye wanted.

He dug through his bag and asked, "What kind of talisman would help in his situation?"

Ji Nanxing replied, "Ordinary protective talismans, negative energy cleansing talismans, or thunder talismans would all have some effect. But since the root cause isn’t on him, wearing one wouldn’t show dramatic effects."

Xiao Ye: "That’s fine. Wait here for me."

He walked over to the group chatting by the roadside. Seeing him approach, Qi Ruifang smiled and said, "Next time we meet, you might already be in college. Wishing you academic success and admission to your dream school in advance."

Xiao Ye smiled back and handed him a prepared talisman: "I know you don’t believe in these things, but this is a token of good fortune—a symbol of well-wishes. You can tuck it into your phone case. It won’t get in the way."

Qi Ruifang truly didn’t believe in such things. In fact, due to childhood experiences, he had some bad associations. But as Xiao Ye said, the talisman represented a kind gesture. The problem wasn’t the talisman itself but the scammers who exploited such beliefs.

Besides, with their parting imminent, there was no need to put a damper on things. So Qi Ruifang accepted it with a smile and slipped it into his phone case—solid-backed, keeping it out of sight.

After exchanging hugs, Xiao Ye said, "Feel free to reach out if you need anything."

Qi Ruifang wrote it off as parting pleasantries and responded with a smile, not taking it seriously. He waved at Ji Nanxing, who stood nearby: "See you around, everyone. I’ll take off first."

After Qi Ruifang left, Pang Xiang turned to Xiao Ye: "We’re going gaming. Want to join?"

Xiao Ye shook his head: "No, you guys go ahead. We’ll hit up the food stalls nearby."

Ji Naonao had barely touched his hunger—half a bowl of fried rice wasn’t nearly enough.

The group went their separate ways. In a fast-paced city, partings were momentary, and life moved on.

After parting with Pang Xiang and the others, Xiao Ye and Ji Nanxing turned to see the folks from the next table coming out of the eatery. Spotting them still there, the middle-aged man’s face brightened, and he approached.

Xiao Ye shielded Ji Nanxing behind him, frowning as he said, "Sir, you should understand the principle of 'knowing when to stop.' My repeated refusals aren't about being difficult—it's simply that it's not for sale at any price. I hope you know when to stop."

Before the middle-aged man could speak, a bodyguard who had been standing nearby approached: "Boss."

Ji Nanxing shook his head at them. "It's fine."

Hearing this, the bodyguard didn't retreat but stood guard nearby, keeping an eye on the few people blocking Xiao Ye and Ji Nanxing's path.

Ordinary rich kids wouldn’t travel with bodyguards. The middle-aged man realized that persuading this person to sell the Fish Scare Stone was likely impossible. Sighing, he said, "It's rare to come across something I truly like, so I was especially determined. Here’s my card. If you ever change your mind, feel free to contact me—the price is negotiable."

Before Xiao Ye could take the card, Ji Nanxing spoke up: "This Fish Scare Stone won’t help you. The issue in your home isn’t something a mere artifact or ordinary artifact can resolve."

The middle-aged man froze, startled. "You know about my family’s trouble?"

Xiao Ye also looked at Ji Nanxing in surprise. "His family has an issue?"

Ji Nanxing nodded. "He has the look of a man who lost his child in middle age, but with flickering signs of change, meaning there’s still a chance for reversal. He took a liking to the Fish Scare Stone in your hand because someone told him this bracelet is as powerful as a sacred artifact. Artifacts are hard to come by, and something that can subdue spirits is even rarer—that’s why he kept trying to buy it from you."

His senses were sharp. While eating, he had overheard the young man at their table whispering to this middle-aged man that the item on Xiao Ye’s wrist was a rare treasure. If they could buy it, it might help suppress Jiao Xian’s lost spirit.

But the problem in his home likely wasn’t just his son’s wandering spirit. Ji Nanxing detected a foul, evil presence on this man.

All things in the world can develop sentience. Just as love can give rise to flesh and blood, greed and desire can do the same. The things born from darkness are, to humans, greedy evil spirits—also known as malevolent entities.

Such things are rare. With the spread of education, people have learned more principles and how to distinguish right from wrong. At the very least, they no longer offer human sacrifices to pray for rain. Thus, the environments that nurture malevolent entities have dwindled—but rarity doesn’t mean nonexistence.

When he was a child, he once followed his master to a haunted village. The village had somehow provoked an evil presence—anyone who went out at night would be scratched by something unseen. The wounds resembled claw marks, but the spacing and length didn’t match any known animal.

With no trace of the creature, fewer and fewer people went out at night.

They thought staying indoors would keep them safe, but soon, people began getting attacked inside their homes—from shallow scratches to wounds down to the bone. It wasn’t until someone died that things came to a head.

The death was bizarre—as if the victim had been drained completely of blood.

His master quickly captured the killer: a piece of clothing left behind by a deceased person.

The village had a widow who lost her husband early and raised her son alone. But in his twenties, the son went to the mountains to gather wild herbs to earn tuition money and accidentally fell to his death.

After that, the woman lost her sanity. The villagers pitied her, and every household contributed food or money. The village chief took charge of supporting her—after all, they were all from the same village. They couldn’t give much, but at least they ensured she wouldn’t starve.

The woman was shattered. In her madness, she wandered everywhere, searching for her son. On her better days, she sat at home, clutching her son’s old clothes and weeping.

The villagers were kind to her, but a mentally unstable person couldn’t be judged by normal standards. She lived in her own world, convinced her son had been murdered—that the entire village had bullied them, killed her son, and hidden his body to torment her.

No one knew when this belief took root, but in her mind, it became absolute. The clothes, carrying all her darkness yet also her love, gained sentience—it became a monster.

It attacked people because, in its perception, everyone in the village had wronged the woman. It wanted to protect her, so it harmed the "evil villagers."

It killed because it wanted to truly become her son—to be a real "person." So it murdered, drank blood, and devoured the living souls of others.

To this day, Ji Nanxing still remembered the scene when his master ran the clothes through with his sword—the endless flow of blood, the stench of rot that filled the room.

This middle-aged man carried that same foul, evil presence—like desiccated insect corpses hidden in crevices or the decaying roots of trees in mud—twisted and sinister.

Jiao Wusheng didn’t know Ji Nanxing’s background, but hearing him diagnose his family’s trouble was enough to make him take the young man seriously. Desperate, he looked at Ji Nanxing. Even if he was young, if he could identify the issue and understand the bracelet’s power, perhaps he truly had a way to save his son.

"Master Practitioner! If you can see my family’s problem, do you have a way to help me? Or do you know where I can buy an artifact to suppress my son’s soul? I'll pay any price!"

He only had this one son. His wife had passed long ago, and he and his son had relied on each other for years. In his heart, nothing mattered more than his child. He’d give his own life if it meant saving him.

Xiao Ye asked, "What's the situation with your son?"

Jiao Wusheng glanced around. "This isn't really the place to talk. Let's grab a seat somewhere and talk."

Xiao Ye turned to Ji Nanxing. "What do you want to eat? If you want snacks, I can go to the back and buy some for you?"

Ji Nanxing scanned the area and randomly pointed at a restaurant. "This one."

Xiao Ye looked—it was a small family-style restaurant, which seemed decent enough—and nodded. "Alright, this one it is."

Jiao Wusheng watched as they left the hotpot restaurant only to enter a small family-style restaurant, thinking to himself that kids these days can really pack it away.

After they were seated, Jiao Wusheng handed them the menu. "Order whatever you like. My treat."

Whether or not these two could help him, treating a couple of youngsters to a meal was well within his means.

Xiao Ye shook his head. "No need. We've got this. If we can handle your situation, we’ll definitely help, but our fees are non-negotiable. If we can’t, we won’t waste your time. So, what’s going on? What happened?"

Jiao Wusheng sighed. "My son has always been sickly since childhood, always coming down with something. Back then, there was a blind sorceress in our village who felt his bones and said he was too delicate to raise easily. To keep him safe, she suggested he be taken in by a spirit guardian."

Xiao Ye frowned. "A spirit guardian? Who?"

Jiao Wusheng replied, "The Earth God."

Ji Nanxing finished ordering and passed the menu to the waiter. "Then what? When did things start going wrong?"

Jiao Wusheng continued, "A month ago, my son suddenly collapsed at home and fell into a coma. We went to countless hospitals, ran every test under the sun, but no one could find the problem. A friend who knew about the spirit guardian arrangement wondered if the issue lay there. I rushed back to my hometown. The sorceress said the Earth God had taken a liking to my son, and since his term was ending, he wanted to take my son away to serve him."

Xiao Ye nearly blurted out that this was hocus pocus, but then he remembered they’d dealt with plenty of so-called "superstitions" before. As unbelievable as it sounded, if City Gods existed, then Earth Gods probably weren’t impossible either.

He held his tongue, but Ji Nanxing snorted beside him. "And you actually believe this old wives' tale?"

Jiao Wusheng: "... That's rich coming from you who told me I had the look of a man who'd lost his son earlier!"