“Please rest assured, Master and Mistress. The young master has already recovered and will be as good as new after resting quietly for three to five days,” a man’s voice was heard from the back hall.
“In that case, we are truly grateful to you, sir. Another banquet shall be arranged in the future to properly thank you for your great kindness,” a woman’s delicate voice echoed from afar.
“Indeed, indeed,” a coarse and hearty voice replied, “Why wait for another day? Why not have my family prepare a feast tonight so that I may drink heartily with you, sir?”
“Master—-” the woman’s voice, previously heard, scolded from afar, “Mr. Qi is an esteemed guest; it is only appropriate that the village elders accompany him at a banquet on another day. Master, you mustn’t use this as an excuse to indulge in drinking again.”
“Hmm—-” the hearty voice hesitated slightly, then spoke in a more conciliatory tone, “My dear wife, you see, I’ve abstained from alcohol for over half a month now—-“
“Master and Mistress, I have never been accustomed to feasting and drinking; I prefer simple and plain meals. Besides, curing illnesses and saving lives is merely the duty of a physician. There’s no need to mention any banquet of gratitude. It is getting late; I must take my leave now,” the man’s voice said.
Mei Qing, listening outside the house, was even more astonished. He never expected that this yellow-faced man could suddenly transform into a physician and actually cure the illness of the young master of the house. Reflecting further, Mei Qing speculated whether this fellow might have ill intentions, perhaps using his medical skills as a cover for some sinister plot, or even causing the young master’s illness in the first place to create an opportunity for his own schemes. Mei Qing hesitated but did not act hastily, merely keeping a safe distance while observing the bearded, rough-looking man escorting the yellow-faced man out, then ordering a maid to accompany the man to a side courtyard.
Mei Qing followed the pair from a distance, passing through the moon-shaped gate into the side courtyard. He found the compound small but neat and clean. The guest room where the man would stay was at the far end of the courtyard. Though lacking a pond, it was surrounded by elm and willow trees, making it quite secluded and peaceful.
The maid escorted the yellow-faced man into the room and then quietly closed the door. Mei Qing approached softly and hid by the window. Just at that moment, the door creaked open again, and the maid emerged with a look of embarrassment and anger. Without looking back, she walked away, muttering to herself, “Looks like a plague-stricken god! Who on earth would fancy someone like you! If the master hadn’t ordered me to serve you, I would never come near you! I haven’t even said anything, yet you put on this act of being a noble gentleman! You look suspicious and untrustworthy, and I don’t even know what you really are!” With these words, she left, muttering all the way.
Observing the maid, Mei Qing noted that although her facial features were unremarkable, her figure was quite seductive, making her a rather alluring woman. That the yellow-faced man could reject her company was quite unexpected to Mei Qing.
As he pondered, Mei Qing was about to leave when suddenly he sensed a ripple of spiritual energy emanating from the man’s room. A chilling and sinister aura spread outwards, and he faintly heard the man exclaim in apparent surprise. Startled, Mei Qing didn’t know what had happened, so he extended his spiritual awareness to quietly investigate the situation inside the room. As his awareness entered the room, he was shocked to find the yellow-faced man sitting cross-legged on the bed, with the small cauldron he had once seen the man take from a tomb placed in front of him.
The small cauldron was made of some unknown material, entirely black and dull. The last time he had seen it, it had seemed unremarkable, but now something strange was happening: dark purple rays were swirling around the cauldron, and waves of evil energy were continuously emanating from it.
The yellow-faced man was sweating profusely, his hands forming two different mudras as he struggled to suppress the evil energy rising from the cauldron. At that moment, Mei Qing’s spiritual awareness penetrated through the window, colliding with the evil energy and the man’s incantations.
Just as the evil energy was about to overwhelm the yellow-faced man and erupt violently, it suddenly seemed to sense Mei Qing’s presence. Like a magnet, it abruptly surged toward Mei Qing outside the window with a “whoosh.”
Inside the room, the yellow-faced man, already in a state of distress, was startled by this unexpected turn of events and exclaimed in alarm. He realized someone had been eavesdropping from outside the window, and at once felt a mix of shock and anger, silently cursing his own carelessness. Seeing the evil energy inexplicably rushing toward the figure outside, he felt an immediate relief. With a sharp cry, he raised his hand and released a bluish-green bracelet.
As soon as the bracelet emerged, it radiated a brilliant green light, filling the room with a bluish glow. The man’s hands moved rapidly, and his body became like a wisp of green smoke attaching itself to the bracelet. In an instant, it transformed into a streak of green light. With a shout of “Quickly!” it smashed through the window and shot straight toward Mei Qing, enveloping him in a cascade of green radiance.
Mei Qing was stunned. He had only intended to observe and investigate, never expecting that the evil energy within the cauldron, which had been dominating its struggle against the yellow-faced man, would be so sensitive to his spiritual awareness. Even more unexpectedly, it abandoned its confrontation with the yellow-faced man and rushed toward him as if seeking vengeance.
As the evil energy approached, an icy chill spread through Mei Qing’s body, as frigid as ancient glaciers, causing his entire body to stiffen and become nearly immobile. Horrified, Mei Qing was fortunate to have recently practiced drawing talismans, gaining some proficiency. With a thought, he instantly conjured a Vajra talisman, which formed a protective barrier around him.
A faint creaking sound filled the air as the Vajra talisman’s faint golden shield was quickly overwhelmed, appearing on the verge of collapse. Seeing this, Mei Qing inwardly cursed his lack of preparation.
He had entered the area cloaked in invisibility, and since it was merely an ordinary civilian residence, he hadn’t made extensive protective preparations. Now, in the face of an emergency, his lack of experience was glaringly evident.
At this moment, Mei Qing couldn’t help but regret his recent focus solely on drawing first-grade talismans, barely practicing any above the second grade. Now he only had a few old talismans left from his early days. He realized he should have brought more talismans as spares before coming here.
Just as Mei Qing was lamenting his mistake, he heard a furious shout from inside the room, followed by a streak of green light bursting through the window. As soon as it emerged outside, it exploded like a cluster of cold stars, spreading into a mist of radiant light that rained down on him without warning.
“Prohibitive Art!” Mei Qing had spent the most time studying this technique, so he immediately recognized the mist. Seemingly just sparkling points of cold light, it actually contained the subtle flow of the five elements, with waves of true energy instantly draining the surrounding five elements’ power. The mist hadn’t even reached him yet, but Mei Qing could already sense the immense power of prohibition within it, causing the surrounding five elements to become chaotic. At once, his Vajra talisman became unstable, teetering on the verge of shattering.
“Metal generates Earth, Five Elements return to Origin! Sever!” Realizing the worsening situation, Mei Qing knew he couldn’t hesitate any longer. He immediately reversed the Vajra talisman while silently reciting a teleportation spell, preparing to flee.
The Vajra talisman drew upon the structure of Metal within and Earth without. However, unlike the purely dual-five-element talismans Mei Qing had studied, these were mature talismans refined and researched over thousands of years, with extremely stable structures. The Metal and Earth elements on the talisman were exceptionally stable and wouldn’t undergo any unusual transformations.
While the Vajra talisman was usually a good defensive talisman, the situation was dire now. The evil energy from the cauldron continued its relentless assault, and the man had launched a hostile prohibitive art. If he continued to hold his ground, it would surely lead to his demise.
The prohibitive art was clearly one that sealed all five elements. His Vajra talisman, based on Metal and Earth, was within the five elements and would certainly be nullified by this attack. However, the evil energy from the cauldron might be composed of death energy, which was outside the five elements, making it immune to the prohibitive art. At that point, Mei Qing would have no support, and the evil energy would rush in, leaving him in grave danger.
Therefore, with lightning-fast thinking, Mei Qing decisively abandoned his protective talisman formation. Instead, he reversed the five elements, intending to create chaos and seize that fleeting opportunity to escape using a teleportation technique.
With a “bang,” the faint yellow glow of the Vajra talisman surrounding Mei Qing flickered and exploded, instantly creating a swirling vortex of flickering light around him. Mei Qing’s previously indistinct silhouette within the glow became distorted by waves of light, appearing quite strange.
Mei Qing had already completed the mudra with his hands and silently finished chanting the teleportation spell. As the surrounding five elements became chaotic and the icy evil energy approached, threatening to engulf him, the star-like rays from above howled with a faint whistling sound, clearly demonstrating the immense power of the prohibitive art, which had drained all the five elements’ energy from the area above.
“Escape!” With the mudra completed, Mei Qing felt as though his body merged with the vast earth, instantly vanishing into a chaotic mass of thick soil. Following his intention, he teleported an indeterminate distance away, only emerging from the ground when his internal energy was nearly depleted.
The yellow-faced man had just launched his prohibitive art when he noticed the eavesdropper outside the window detonating his protective talisman, seemingly attempting a desperate gamble. A cold sneer crossed his face as his right hand flipped, revealing another magical artifact. He was ready to teach the sneaky fellow a lesson when he suddenly saw the figure feigning bravado.
Who would have thought that the fellow was merely bluffing? As soon as he saw the protective talisman explode, the next moment, with a “whoosh,” the figure transformed and vanished into the earth, disappearing in an instant.
“Fiv…e…E…lements…Escape…Oh my god!” The yellow-faced man covered his mouth with his hand, unable to suppress his exclamation.
Another cry came from inside the room, surprisingly from Mei Qing himself, who had just vanished.
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