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墨書 Inktalez
Mary said angrily, "Isn't this just a scam? Brother Shao, why are you stopping me? I need to go dismantle this Old Conman's trick."
I shook my head and replied, "Those old folks have held onto their beliefs for a lifetime. It's not something you can change with a few words of persuasion. Their views of the world and the universe are not going to shift overnight. Right now, they trust that Old Conman more than you. He’s not a real Taoist; he looks more like a chemist, ha ha."
Seeing that I understood the situation, Mary stood silently to the side, fuming.
Yan Junde said, "Although I don't believe in ghosts or spirits, how did that Old Taoist pull off those tricks? They looked pretty convincing. Is it some kind of chemical method? I think he could make a good magician."
Juan Juan shrugged and said, "These principles are quite simple. If you studied as hard as that Old Taoist did back in Junior High School, you'd understand all this. First, the frog that was folded must have been coated with the bile of male dogs and carp, mixed well and dried. It looks just like ordinary paper on the outside, but when placed in water, it moves on its own—that's what the Old Taoist calls summoning spirits."
We nodded as Juan Juan continued, "Secondly, we saw the yellow paper burn and reveal the shape of a monster."
"What’s going on there?" Yan Junde asked curiously.
Juan Juan explained further, "You dip a brush in Potassium Nitrate solution and draw the desired shape on the talisman paper. For example, that twisted monster was likely drawn by the old man himself. After drawing it, there are no visible marks on the talisman. Then he lights it on fire. Since Potassium Nitrate is flammable, the areas where he drew will ignite first."
"This is what they call spirits being burned by Heavenly Fire," Juan Juan shrugged and looked at us. "In the end, any middle school student today would understand how it works. It's just unfortunate that these adults find it so magical."
Yan Junde thought for a moment and said, "Sodium! It's sodium!"
"Exactly," Juan Juan continued from Yan Junde's lead. "Sodium is a reactive element; when it meets water, it generates a lot of hydrogen gas and heat, which causes it to burn and move in circles. As for what he sprinkled in later, I think it's Phenolphthalein Solution. When Phenolphthalein encounters alkaline solutions, it turns pink—just like blood. The talisman had Potassium Nitrate on it, and when nitrate reacts with water, it creates an alkaline solution."
Mary said, "So that's why they took that basin of water away at the end—to prevent others from seeing it; otherwise, they'd figure out the trick. Using nighttime was also clever; turning off all the lights was meant to obscure what he was holding. In total darkness, combined with people's natural fear of darkness, he put on quite a show of ghost-catching."
"That's true," Juan Juan nodded in agreement and added, "These chemical reactions are simple; what's rare is how this Taoist manipulates people's minds to make them believe him. That’s something no school teacher can teach you. Human nature is always the hardest to predict."
"I'm so mad! Are we really just going to let him go?" Mary said through gritted teeth.
I raised a finger and shook my head seriously. "I only said not to disturb those elderly folks who believe in this stuff; I never said we would let that Old Taoist go. I mentioned before that I brought you here to see him catch demons—not just for show; there's always someone watching from behind."
Seeing everyone's puzzled expressions, I continued, "If we had caught him earlier, we wouldn't have had any reason to keep him around. But now that you've unraveled his tricks, we have every reason to catch him—he's been scamming people with his ghostly act."
Everyone's eyes widened in surprise as Mary pointed at me and exclaimed, "Brother Shao! I can't believe how cunning you are! You set this up so casually! If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have thought you were letting it go; turns out you had a backup plan!"
"That's not good; we don’t even know where that Old Taoist has gone now. Shouldn't we hurry up and catch him?" Yan Junde suggested.
I smiled and said, "As soon as they leave the neighborhood, they'll be caught by the police I've arranged in advance. It's best to keep a low profile and not cause any more trouble for this community. So, you see, when faced with certain situations, you can't be too hasty; you need to control the overall situation. Got it, little girl? There's still a lot for you to learn!"
"Full of yourself!" Mary lightly punched me.
By the time we returned to the Police Department, it was nearly three o'clock. At that moment, the Old Taoist had already been detained. When he saw me walk into the interrogation room, his face was filled with panic as he exclaimed, "Little Brother, what's going on? Why was I brought in for no reason? What is happening here?"
I deliberately put on a serious expression and replied, "Old Brother, it's not that I don't want to help you; it's just that there have been some conflicts. The higher-ups just issued a special directive to crack down on superstitious activities. Plus, some police have figured out your ghost-catching methods—something about nitric acid and sodium. They've already sent that basin of water you used for catching ghosts for testing. If there's enough evidence, you're looking at five or six years in prison."
Upon hearing he might face five or six years behind bars, the Old Taoist immediately panicked and said, "Little Brother, we're all just trying to make a living out here. Why do I have to go to jail?"
"You've walked right into it!" I sat down and explained, "A murder occurred in the neighborhood, and the higher-ups are quite troubled. They’ve been investigating for a long time without any leads, and then you went and caused such a scene. They say it has a huge negative impact on social image; it's quite troublesome."
The Old Taoist pleaded, "Little Brother, I won't take a single cent from that money! You have to help me! I have an elderly parent and young children at home—there are over ten people relying solely on me! Oh my God, what a miserable fate..." As he spoke, tears streamed down his face; he looked utterly heartbroken. This was an old veteran of the performing arts—he could act better than I could! I couldn't help but be impressed by his performance; it seemed there was still quite a distance between me and the Golden Horse Award with him around.
I quickly said, "It's not that there’s no way out; after all, we share a bond. Here’s the deal: if you repay the money and tell me exactly what happened in the elevator when you were putting up those talismans—if there's any useful information—you might just avoid prison."
Hearing there was still hope, the Old Taoist hurriedly replied, "Little Brother, some things I don't believe in superstitions either; it startled me too at that moment. When I was putting up that talisman, I pretended that the Ventilation Duct was a place where ghosts come and go, so I wanted to stick a talisman on it. Suddenly, that Ventilation Duct turned yellow! It scared me half to death!"
"Was it inside or outside the Ventilation Duct?" I asked.
"Inside," he said. "I stood on a stool trying to stick one inside. When I did, everything turned yellow—it looked very strange! I don't know what happened; it definitely wasn't just yellow paper fading away. When I pressed it down, I felt little particles as if I were pressing on fine sand—it felt very light. But when I looked before, there was clearly nothing there!"
"Did you soak your talismans in anything or write anything on them?" I quickly asked.
The Old Taoist nodded and said, "Some had nothing on them; they were meant for blessings. Some were soaked in Potassium Nitrate; this kind of paper burns quickly and ignites easily—used for performances like remote fire-starting. Others had drawings of animals or monsters made with Potassium Nitrate; those were props used for killing demons."
"I can't remember which talisman I used at that time," he scratched his head and continued. "Even if it was one soaked in Potassium Nitrate, what kind of chemicals could be in the Ventilation Duct? No one would casually pour chemicals in there."
With an expression of helplessness mixed with humor, he added, "At that moment, people mistakenly thought I had chased away ghosts; honestly, I didn't know what happened either. That's all there is to it—really! Little Brother, I'm telling you the truth; at this point, there's no need for me to lie."
As he spoke again, tears welled up in his eyes as he cried out: "My dear mother! I have four children! My youngest is only three years old—he can't be without a father!"
This old Taoist was over sixty yet had no shame in claiming he had a three-year-old child. I truly had to admire his composure; when he lied, he did so without any embarrassment—it really made one reflect on how seasoned con artists can be.
Having obtained what I wanted from him, I said to the Old Taoist: "Well then, don’t worry; I'll see what can be done..."
"How should we handle this?" I said to a few officers after stepping outside.
"What have you found?" Juan Juan asked.
I nodded and replied, "It seems we need to find out what's really going on in the elevator..."
At that moment, I received a phone call. Looking at the screen, I was surprised to see it was Detective Captain calling. I couldn't believe he was still working on the case at three in the morning. I answered, and heard Detective Captain say on the other end, "Captain Shao, Zhao Yu has also been attacked by that mysterious force! I'm sending you the address; you'll need to take a train to get there!"
"Have they found the black jade yet?" I asked.
Detective Captain replied, "No, as of now, there's still no sign of the black jade. But it's clear that Zhao Yu was indeed in possession of it before."
"Contact the local police and secure the scene," I instructed. "We'll head over immediately."
After hanging up, it seemed my suspicions were confirmed—Zhao Yu was indeed dead. I turned to Mary and said, "Book train tickets right now! We need to rush to the scene and bring along those talismans from the old priest! You all, call Greasy Forensic Doctor and have him head to the elevator in the community right away to thoroughly check the ventilation duct."
The young man had gone hunting with his grandfather in the mountains and unexpectedly encountered Mouse Burning Incense and Wild Cat Worships at the Temple—statues made from human corpses. When he returned home late at night, his biological mother was chasing him with a "person," because of his grandfather's misdeeds towards her!
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