Hong Ning said, “Maybe Master Hai Ming has already let go, but with his remains still buried at the bottom of the pond, it will take time before he can fully enter reincarnation.” She murmured, “If it’s not him, then it must be that female demon. She had a grudge against Zheng Ke too.”
Bai Ling’s expression darkened. “I need to go back and check.”
Hong Ning snapped back to attention. “Why?”
Bai Ling was silent for a moment before saying, with a rare hint of unease, “He Lan Xue has always been reckless and impulsive—she doesn’t think before she acts. Yesterday, she said some things in anger.”
He Lan Xue had an extreme personality and was quick to lash out at others. If she wanted to force Bai Ling to return, harming others was not beyond her capabilities. Wen Xin had a strong cultivation, but He Lan Xue’s ruthlessness was unmatched.
With the distance between them so great, Transmission Talismans had long since lost their effect.
Hong Ning was also beginning to feel uneasy. She nodded. “Then why don’t we both go back?”
"It would be too slow with you tagging along. The fox demon has already left. I'll go back and inform Master, then come find you tomorrow," Bai Ling said. As he spoke, he took her hand and placed a crystal-clear, translucent bracelet around her wrist. "If there's an emergency, call me."
Hong Ning had used this object countless times as a child—so often, in fact, that she had once even experimented with it out of curiosity. Each time, Bai Ling had arrived immediately.
However, once she learned what it truly was, she had refused to use it again. Now that he was bringing it out once more, she could only sigh, forcing a smile. "I'm not a child anymore. Constantly forcing your inner core to leave your body—it’s draining and dangerous."
Bai Ling snorted lightly, pushed her aside, and left. The moment he stepped out, he vanished.
* * *
At dusk, an altar table had been set up beside the pond, covered with a yellow cloth. On it were candles, an incense burner, spirit tablets, and several talisman papers written in three different colors.
This was Hong Ning’s first time conducting a ritual alone. She wasn’t entirely confident.
Master Hai Ming might not have been involved in this case, but he had died unjustly, his remains still buried at the bottom of the pond, never seeing the light of day. Only once the truth was revealed could he finally enter reincarnation in peace.
The challenge, however, was that if she simply claimed there was a corpse in the pond, no one would believe her. Magistrate Tao was already looking for ways to make things difficult for her, and if this case came to light, he himself might be implicated—because, according to the servants' whispers, his household secretly possessed a crystal vase gifted by Zheng Ke.
To convince Lord Hai, she first needed to make him believe in the existence of ghosts and demons.
This particular deity was unusual. Even her master had never summoned it before. Hong Ning didn’t even fully remember the standard incantations.
She could only improvise.
First, she knelt and bowed respectfully, focusing all her mind on chanting the invocation. Then, she used her sword to lift one of the three-colored talisman papers and lit it over a candle, murmuring:
"Disciple Hong Ning humbly calls upon the presence of the Flower Deity. If the Divine Lord hears my request, may the spirit tablet rise..."
The words were clumsy and unpolished, but the intent was clear.
After finishing the chant, Hong Ning anxiously fixed her gaze on the three spirit tablets, not daring to blink.
Nothing happened.
Unwilling to give up, she burned more talisman papers, repeating the ritual three or four times.
Still, nothing.
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