Knowing she didn't have any cheat abilities, Ji Zhaoxi followed Xie Qingyan and his companion once again.
She ended up finding Xie Qingyan burning paper money by the roadside, with the man burning it alongside him.
Her eyes lit up, and she quickly floated over.
As they burned it, she inhaled the essence. None of the other ghosts dared to come close, so this time she finally had her fill.
The newly lit paper money turned to ash in the next second. Soon, the entire stack of paper money in Xie Qingyan's hands was burned out.
The man asked cautiously, "Daoist, why is this paper money burning so fast?"
He had an ominous premonition in his heart.
Xie Qingyan's hand paused. He shifted to another direction to continue burning, and Ji Zhaoxi eagerly followed suit.
As Xie Qingyan burned, she inhaled.
Xie Qingyan: ...
The man didn't even dare to look at the pile of ashes on the ground. He lightened his breathing, trying his best to minimize his presence.
The wandering ghosts and wild spirits hiding not far away all glared at Ji Zhaoxi angrily.
"Why is that stupid ghost so selfish? She sucked it all up."
"Good heavens, she finished it all. Are the rest of us ghosts supposed to starve?"
"I'm so hungry..."
For wandering spirits like them, with no relatives to burn paper money or offer incense for them, they could only inhale a little bit of the wishing energy left on the roads.
They frequently went hungry, only occasionally getting a full meal.
Seeing that Xie Qingyan wanted to pack up the remaining unburned paper money on the ground, Ji Zhaoxi immediately grew anxious. She blew a breath, and the paper money instantly scattered all over the floor.
Xie Qingyan silently looked at the scattered paper money, not knowing what to think.
"Burn a little more," Ji Zhaoxi looked at him with pleading eyes.
The man was almost scared to death by the paper money on the ground. He squatted there, shivering and muttering non-stop, "Don't come for me, my flesh doesn't taste good."
Xie Qingyan glanced at him and burned all the remaining paper money on the ground. Ji Zhaoxi was finally full.
Then, she followed them to the Linqin Orchard.
When the two men and one ghost arrived at the orchard, Squire Zhao was craning his neck looking outward. Upon seeing Xie Qingyan, his eyes instantly lit up.
"Daoist Xie, you're finally here."
Xie Qingyan nodded at him. "Squire Zhao."
Squire Zhao brought Xie Qingyan into the orchard with a bitter face. The fruits on the trees were just as the man had described, so red that they were turning purple.
Xie Qingyan held a fruit and observed it carefully. Ji Zhaoxi also squeezed in to observe it together.
"I previously hired Shaman Wang. She built a shed at the entrance and told me to pour a basin of rooster blood under the trees every day, saying this would appease the female ghost's resentment," Squire Zhao sighed.
But not only was this completely useless, the fruits also became increasingly purple and foul-smelling.
He had already caught all the roosters in the village, and there were none left in the neighboring villages either. The village hens were so angry that they would peck at him whenever they saw him.
Ji Zhaoxi saw incense burning in the corner and immediately went over.
Just as she was about to start inhaling, Xie Qingyan suddenly spoke up, "Squire Zhao, who is the incense in this corner prepared for?"
Squire Zhao frowned deeply. "Shaman Wang asked me to prepare it, saying it could ward off evil."
Xie Qingyan approached the sticks of incense, and Ji Zhaoxi also looked on with a serious face.
"Squire Zhao, this incense is not used to ward off evil, but to attract ghosts." Xie Qingyan's tone was somewhat heavy.
Squire Zhao's eyes widened, and he stepped back two paces in fright.
Ji Zhaoxi, on the other hand, accepted it quite well. "No wonder it attracted me over. This incense looks very expensive."
Xie Qingyan looked at Squire Zhao. "Furthermore, this incense is not just for attracting ghosts, but for attracting malicious spirits. If ordinary wandering ghosts inhale this incense, their souls will scatter and perish. By then, your orchard will only be left with malicious spirits."
Both Squire Zhao and Ji Zhaoxi were frightened.
"How could that Shaman Wang be so wicked!" Ji Zhaoxi and Squire Zhao said in unison.
What if she had inhaled it just now?
Squire Zhao's hands couldn't stop trembling. "Daoist Xie, what should we do now?"
"Squire Zhao, where is Shaman Wang right now?" Xie Qingyan asked.
Squire Zhao looked at him with a pale face. "Shaman Wang said she needed to go out to exorcise ghosts for a few days, and I don't know when she'll be back."
Xie Qingyan nodded. "Squire Zhao, this matter will have to wait until Shaman Wang returns, but you must not light this incense anymore."
Squire Zhao quickly nodded.
"Daoist Xie, why don't you stay at my place for these few days? That way, if anything happens, I can tell you immediately, alright?"
"Then I will have to trouble you, Squire Zhao."
"No trouble at all, no trouble at all."
The courtyard Squire Zhao arranged for Xie Qingyan was right next to his own.
Just in case something really happened at night, he could howl, and Daoist Xie would be able to come out and save him.
The sky gradually darkened, and Ji Zhaoxi felt the ghostly aura on her body grow much stronger.
Xie Qingyan was sitting at the table drawing talismans. Ji Zhaoxi leaned over the table and watched earnestly. "Is this used for killing ghosts?"
She couldn't read the characters on the talisman.
Watching Xie Qingyan lower his head and draw the talisman so seriously, Ji Zhaoxi gently blew a breath, and the talisman paper was immediately blown to the ground.
Xie Qingyan's expression remained unchanged as he bent down to pick it up. Standing nearby, Ji Zhaoxi blew another breath, forcing Xie Qingyan to walk a few steps forward to reach it.
Ji Zhaoxi couldn't hold back her laughter, and the talisman paper finally stopped moving.
Xie Qingyan picked up the talisman paper from the ground, finished drawing the rest, and then got up and walked outside to ignite the talisman paper.
Ji Zhaoxi smelled a surge of wishing energy. She watched from the side with some hesitation. Could this be eaten?
It smelled edible, but this was a Daoist item.
Ji Zhaoxi went ahead and inhaled it anyway. If she really died, it would at least count as dying at Xie Qingyan's hands.
As she inhaled the essence of the talisman paper, she was surprised to find that not only was she uninjured, but she also felt a strong sense of fullness.
"Xie Qingyan, you really are a good Daoist."
Ji Zhaoxi couldn't help but praise him.
During the day on the mountain, he burned paper money for the wandering ghosts, even though she had eaten it all.
Now he was burning things for the wandering ghosts again. How could this Daoist be so nice?
Xie Qingyan stood up calmly and walked into the room.
He even closed the door.
Ji Zhaoxi glanced back curiously, but still didn't go over.
When she finally finished inhaling, she wanted to float inside, but suddenly discovered that the room was locked.
Ji Zhaoxi panicked at once. What was going on? Wasn't she just able to enter a moment ago?
She floated back and forth anxiously outside. A sinister wind suddenly blew through the air, the leaves on the trees began to shake wildly, and a sound resembling a faint weeping echoed throughout the courtyard.
Seeing the wildly shaking trees outside the window, Squire Zhao's heart tightened. He hurriedly closed the window and lay down on his bed.
As long as he fell asleep, he wouldn't be afraid of anything.
Ji Zhaoxi tried to blow the paper off the door, but she couldn't blow it off at all.
Suddenly, a helpless voice came from inside the room.
"Miss, this poor Daoist is about to bathe now."
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment.
Ji Zhaoxi stammered, "Are you calling out to a person or a ghost?"
Xie Qingyan's cold and clear voice came from inside: "Miss, other than you, there shouldn't be any other ghosts in the courtyard."
"Oh, oh," Ji Zhaoxi nodded honestly. "Then you go ahead and bathe. I won't disturb you."
