He had just charged in with the others when he saw a cat-faced old woman standing at the doorway of the old house. Li Sanjiang, holding the Peach Wood Sword, stopped in his tracks, waiting for Liu Jinxia and Run Sheng to go first.
Then, for so inexplicable reason, the cat-faced old woman lunged towards Li Sanjiang and even impaled herself on the Peach Wood Sword in his hands, piercing straight through her.
Afterward, there was a cacophony of ghostly wails, cat screeching, and the old lady’s screams until... it all went silent!
At that mont, Mr. Shan felt as if he would slap himself twice to see if his eyes were deceiving him. A Corpse Demon who had everyone running in circles and made him mockingly imitate dog urination... just like that, it was vanquished?
Li Sanjiang himself was sowhat surprised. He even flicked the Peach Wood Sword in his hand and comnted:
"It must be genuine peachwood, the quality from the state-run furniture factory is truly reliable indeed."
...
"Make way, make way!" Li Sanjiang gestured towards the three people lying on the ground, "They have been cursed and are still unconscious. Everyone go scoop up so ’golden potion’ from nearby clay jars, heat it till it’s warm, and pour it down their throats."
In truth, Li Sanjiang knew that Liu Xiazi was the most skilled at exorcism, but firstly Liu Xiazi was injured and not in good condition, and secondly, he was clear about what those three really were; they had it coming.
Imdiately, the villagers divided into two groups. One group was responsible for carrying the Niu family siblings to the tent set up for the ritual, while the other went to scoop out the ’golden potion’ from the jars, clearly more excited and quick-footed.
Inside the tent, it quickly filled up with people. So villagers who were initially asleep were startled awake by the noise or summoned by neighbors to co and join in the spectacle.
During the day, the ritual had been quiet and unoccupied, but late at night it beca bustling with people.
Mr. Shan and Liu Jinxia each sat on a chair, surrounded by villagers offering their care and concern.
In the villagers’ eyes, these two were obviously injured while fighting with the Corpse!
So sharp-eyed kids noticed Mr. Shan’s wet pants. They were chided by their elders, who claid it was from the water soaked up during his scuffle with the Corpse.
So villagers passing by the cetery ca with a ssage; Old Mrs. Niu’s grave was dug up and was found empty inside.
This ssage sent the atmosphere in the tent skyrocketing with excitent, even livelier than outdoor movie nights.
The busiest of all was Li Sanjiang, who continued to hold the Peach Wood Sword high, moving and waving it around as he perford the ritual.
His movents lacked the standard grace and continuity, and compared to the Taoists and Monks of the funeral team, it fell short in visual appeal. But the villagers all knew that the funeral team’s performance was only for show; this old man here was truly capable.
Li Sanjiang chopped here and stabbed there, moving sporadically, murmuring old phrases under his breath.
These phrases were mumbled unclearly, vaguely reminiscent to Li Zhiyuan of the radio dramas like "The Generals of the Yang Family" that Grandmaster listened to on the terrace in the evenings.
Li Sanjiang was well-rested, and with so many people watching and cheering him on, he perford even more vigorously.
When a stench began to spread, Li Sanjiang decisively stopped:
"Alright, the ghostly aura has been exterminated, the demonic energy cleared, everyone can rest assured now. There won’t be any more trouble here."
The crowd applauded in unison.
Li Sanjiang stood with his sword, smiling modestly.
He himself knew that the series of actions he had just perford were aningless. But he hadn’t charged them an extra di, so it didn’t count as profiting from promoting superstitious beliefs. It was just for providing the villagers so peace of mind, catering to their emotions.
The ’golden potion’ in plastic buckets, steaming and still hot, was brought over.
The nearby villagers started to retch at the sll, with so even vomiting, yet not a single one chose to leave the scene!
Especially those who fought to be in the inner circle, where the sll was strongest, they persisted and watched intently while pinching their noses, while the outer circle kept hopping, afraid to miss the highlight.
This truly was a case of stinking to the nose, yet delightful to the eyes.
Even Li Sanjiang felt nauseated, but still had to persist in instructing the villagers to pour it into the mouths.
A few enthusiastic villagers, with wet cloths wrapped around their noses, first pried open the mouths of the Niu family siblings, then carefully poured the potion in with a ladle used for scooping pig feed.
Their hands were steady, not shaking at all, not one drop was spilt or wasted;
It was as precise as pouring hot water into a thermos, complete with ’glugging’ sounds.
Niu Fu was the first to wake up, he began by vomiting on the ground.
Then ca Niu Rui and Niu Lian.
Soon, all three siblings started vomiting together, their own children brought them clean water to rinse their mouths.
Surrounded by villagers with beaming smiles, they praised the redy despite its foul sll; it was indeed effective.
Once the Niu siblings were done vomiting or rather started to adapt, they all ran to Li Sanjiang crying, knelt in front of him, and hugged his legs, wailing their thanks.
They retained so mory of the incident and saw their own mother attempting to claim their lives. If it weren’t for Li Sanjiang and the others conducting the ritual today, they feared their cold-hearted and ruthless mother would have taken them away.
They were crying for their narrow escape from death, making their sobs particularly heartfelt. Niu Lian went on in eloquent phrases, extolling Li Sanjiang as her second parents.
Her two brothers, just like during the dayti mourning, echoed the last syllable of their sister’s cries in harmony.
While comforting them, Li Sanjiang tried to push them away. Firstly, because he couldn’t stand their current stench, and secondly, accepting the role of their second parents felt unlucky to Li Sanjiang; this wasn’t gratitude, it was practically a curse!
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