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墨書 Inktalez
Not long after, we arrived at Liu Baoping's home. His house was located in the suburbs and was a self-built structure. Judging by the dilapidated condition of the house, it was indeed very poor. The surrounding area mainly consisted of two-story buildings, while his home was still a tile-roofed house. Pushing open the old wooden door, a musty and sour smell immediately hit us. Liu Baoping probably also found the smell unpleasant, saying that he was too busy working to have the energy to shower or change clothes when he got home, so...
The others, including Hu Xiaoyi, instinctively covered their noses, but I wasn't too concerned about the smell. Having seen many dead bodies, I wasn't bothered by it; instead, it was the Yin Qi drifting around the room that made me feel extremely alert.
I asked Liu Baoping where the child was.
He pointed to one of the locked bedrooms and said she was locked in there.
As he spoke, he walked over and opened the door. We immediately saw the child who had previously sold Jade Bracelets, bound with a rusty iron chain to the beam of the room, suspended in mid-air. She seemed to be in a state of stupor and didn't even open her eyes when we entered.
I was taken aback and walked over to see that her skin had been scraped raw. I asked why he had done this. Liu Baoping's eyes turned red as he said he had no choice. The child had gone mad at times and would even harm herself, and recently it had become increasingly severe. The family had no money left; he needed to work to earn money for food. To prevent any accidents while he was away from home, he found a chain from an open space to tie her up.
In this situation, no one else who came with us spoke up. The facts were clear; Liu Baoping wasn't lying. During the argument, he hadn't made any calls because he either didn't have a mobile phone or had lost his small landline phone long ago. So naturally, it was impossible for him to inform his accomplices in advance about this scheme to deceive anyone.
Some might say that perhaps his accomplices were hiding nearby watching him?
That was also impossible because judging by the child's wounds, they had already scabbed over and then been scraped again; she must have been tied up for quite some time. If someone were to claim that these injuries were fabricated, I could only say that if there were truly such a highly skilled criminal gang capable of such deception, they should just go work as makeup artists for horror film productions.
Looking around, it was indeed a bare house; Liu Baoping stood there awkwardly as if unsure of what to do.
I told several people that the situation was already clear; he wasn't lying. The others also recognized this point and after some consideration said they would just take back their money. For a family like this, even if they were greedy, they couldn't bear to extort more money from him.
But where would Liu Baoping get the money? He hadn't even noticed that the Jade Bracelet was missing, nor had the child given him a single cent.
Those few people wouldn't believe him and insisted that even if he hadn't given it to him, it must be hidden somewhere in the house; they would find it themselves! Saying this, they ignored whether Liu Baoping agreed or not and began searching around the house. Liu Baoping hung his head low and squatted by the wall like a criminal awaiting interrogation.
I wandered around the child and could sense a heavy Yin Qi surrounding her. I just didn't know whether the spirit was currently within her or in the bracelet.
Sometimes, if a spirit doesn't harbor malicious intent or hasn't done anything significant, it can fall into a deep sleep state. During such times, it's difficult to sense its presence. Only professional Ajans can easily discern this. I could feel the Yin Qi purely because of my Ghost Fragment ability.
After a while, a few angry individuals rushed into the room and shouted at Liu Baoping. They were holding a clay basin filled with ashes, but faintly visible among the ashes were remnants of several one-yuan Renminbi notes.
It was clear that this basin contained burnt money. Liu Baoping looked bewildered; he had no idea about money, let alone when it had been burned. The angry group smashed the basin on the ground, sending dust flying everywhere and leaving him in a mess.
I was quite displeased. So what if a few thousand yuan were gone? Why get so worked up? If there was an issue, they should address it without making such a mess.
The group insisted that Liu Baoping must sell his Jade Bracelet to get money. With evidence in hand, they threatened to call the police if he didn’t comply immediately. Liu Baoping shouted in desperation, “This is for my child's medical treatment! You can't take it! Whoever tries to take it, I will fight them!”
He was honest and straightforward, but even when threatening others, he lacked the forcefulness. Someone immediately took out their phone, ready to call for help.
I thought for a moment and stopped that person, saying not to rush; I would talk to Liu Baoping first.
Then I pulled Liu Baoping out of the room and asked if he was willing to sell the bracelet. However, I couldn't offer too much—just twenty thousand yuan.
Liu Baoping hesitated; he had heard that this bracelet was worth several tens of thousands. I suggested this: I would waive the money my brother lost and give him an additional thirty thousand yuan so he could pay off his debts. Liu Baoping counted on his fingers and then shook his head, saying that if he paid them back, he wouldn’t have any money left for his child's treatment.
I said, “I will treat your child for free; not a single cent will be charged. I guarantee they will be better by tomorrow.”
Liu Baoping looked at me in surprise and asked, “You can treat illnesses? Are you a doctor?”
I replied, “I’m not a doctor, but only I can cure your child’s illness. Do you know why?”
Of course, he said he didn’t know. I pointed at the Jade Bracelet in his hand and said, “Because your child isn’t sick; they are possessed by the evil spirit within this bracelet. It’s what you call possession—understand?”
Liu Baoping was so frightened that he almost threw the bracelet away. He trembled as he asked, “Are you trying to scare me? How could there be ghosts...”
For someone as simple-minded as him from the countryside, beliefs in spirits were quite convincing. Besides, I wasn’t lying; that child was indeed possessed. I said, “Trust me; there’s no need to deceive you about this. If it weren’t possession, how could you spend so much money without finding out the cause? How about this: let me help you treat your child first. Once she’s better, we can make our deal—how does that sound?”
Liu Baoping hesitated for a moment and then gritted his teeth and nodded, saying, “Alright! As long as you can make my child well again, even if you don’t want three thousand yuan, this Jade Bracelet will be yours!”
I smiled and reassured him not to feel like he was losing out because hiring someone for such matters would typically cost a lot of money—usually several tens of thousands. Offering him thirty thousand yuan already accounted for that portion of the cost; in essence, it was no different from the normal market price.
Liu Baoping couldn't understand anything. He was fixated on one point: if the child got better, he would give me the Jade Bracelet. If the child didn't get better, it wouldn't matter how much I pleaded!
I called Hu Xiaoyi and asked him to take the bank card to withdraw thirty thousand. Hu Xiaoyi looked puzzled and asked what it was for. "You’re not thinking of donating, are you?"
I said, "Let’s just say it’s not a loss." Hu Xiaoyi still didn’t get it, and I didn’t want to explain further. I asked if he still wanted the Jade Bracelet. He vaguely understood something and hurried off to get the money. While waiting, I called the others over and told them I would help cover the cost. When they asked why, I told them the truth.
When they learned that spending thirty thousand could buy the Jade Bracelet, they were somewhat tempted since they understood its actual value. But Liu Baoping said that to get the bracelet, not only did they have to spend thirty thousand, but they also had to ensure the child got better!
Upon hearing this, their enthusiasm waned. From Liu Baoping's description, they concluded that the child had a "terminal illness." A few tens of thousands might just be throwing money away. So, they all agreed to let me cover this expense. However, they were curious about how I knew how to treat illnesses—was I from a medical school?
I didn’t want to explain to them, so I took out my phone and called Second Uncle to ask how to exorcise the spirit.
Second Uncle said, "You're not Ajan; what do you know about exorcism? If you really have to do it, it depends on the situation. If it's not too serious, you can use a White Olive Amulet to drive it away. However, afterward, the spirit might return; that's what we call 'recurring symptoms.' To completely exorcise it or if the situation is more severe, you either need to invite Ajan or use some more troublesome methods."
For example, you could get some exorcism items and then ask Ajan to draw a Spirit Summoning Talisman or something similar to trap the evil spirit in another object. I said, "Then hurry up and get it done! It's urgent; someone's life is at stake!"
Second Uncle asked, "Who is it this time? Your classmate?"
I replied, "A life-and-death friend; someone with whom I've shared my life!"
Second Uncle was puzzled and asked when I had gotten so close with someone. However, hearing me say that, he agreed and promised to send the items as soon as possible.
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