Chapter 73: Preparation
Old Master Wu described the strange occurrences in the villa in great detail. At first, only Wu Xiaoxiao occasionally added to the account, but eventually, everyone from the Wu family began to chime in, recounting the odd things they had recently encountered in the villa. Some incidents even happened outside the villa, and they were all brought up as well.
Some of these strange incidents they described were indeed terrifying and scientifically inexplicable, but some of the so-called strange occurrences were completely exaggerated. These were things any normal person might encounter, but in the current situation, they attributed everything to the villa being haunted.
Yang Haoran listened intently and very carefully, but he didn't speak. Instead, he kept his head down, eating voraciously.
The Wu family's chef was excellent, and Yang Haoran had never tasted such delicious food in his life, so he simply couldn't stop eating.
At the entire dinner table, only Yang Haoran was eating with the most gusto. Following closely behind him was Ma Ling. Ma Ling didn't use her chopsticks much, but she drank a considerable amount of alcohol.
The others, however, were all preoccupied, especially the Wu family members, whose faces all bore expressions of lingering fear.
Even Guan Hai's complexion was somewhat pale, and he had no appetite. Originally, the Wu family's affairs had nothing to do with him, but hearing them recount the recent events in the villa, even he, an outsider, felt his heart race. It was easy to imagine the torment the Wu family, as the directly involved parties, had recently endured.
"It's definite that this villa is haunted. From the moment I entered, I sensed the presence of Yin Qi here. However, based on your descriptions, I believe this ghost is still in the Wánglíng stage, though it's much stronger than an ordinary Wánglíng."
It was Wang Yiming who spoke. He had only used his chopsticks a few times throughout the meal and hadn't touched any alcohol. He had simply listened to the Wu family's accounts, and only after they finished did he offer this summary.
The Wu family members didn't quite understand Wang Yiming's term, and confusion showed on their faces.
"A so-called Wánglíng is what ordinary people commonly refer to as a ghost. It coalesces seven days after a person's death. Ordinary Wánglíng have little offensive power; their only means is to frighten living people in dreams. They are the lowest-level spiritual entities. Of course, if you encounter a Wánglíng that is very skilled at terrifying people, and the person being frightened is particularly timid, then it's quite normal to be scared to death by it."
This time, it was Ma Ling speaking. She explained to the Wu family members between burps, her breath reeking of alcohol after having drunk quite a bit.
"She's right. Wánglíng can indeed only cause mischief in dreams to harm the living. Miss Wu's terrifying experience on the first night actually didn't happen in reality; you were in a dream the entire time. Even when you thought you were scared unconscious, you were still dreaming," Wang Yiming explained.
"Then what about the intermittent crying and laughter that night, the electric lights turning on by themselves, the books flipping on their own, and the small animals that died? " Old Master Wu asked, bewildered.
"As I just said, this Wánglíng is far stronger than ordinary Wánglíng. Precisely because of this, it can do things that ordinary Wánglíng cannot. The reason you heard laughter, crying, and even saw books flipping on their own is likely due to hallucinations. As for the small animals that died inside and outside the villa, they probably lost their lives due to the influence of intense Yin Qi. However. . ."
At this point, Wang Yiming paused, his brows deeply furrowed, his expression not looking good.
Seeing Wang Yiming's expression, the Wu family members felt their hearts tighten. Old Master Wu quickly asked, "However, what?"
"However, this type of Wánglíng is rather tricky to deal with. " The one who answered Old Master Wu this time was still the burping Ma Ling.
"Ordinary Wánglíng can only cause trouble in dreams if they want to harm people. However, Wánglíng are just the lowest-ranked spiritual entities. Above Wánglíng are Evil Spirits. Evil Spirits can not only harm people in dreams but can also set up illusions to harm people, causing hallucinations. The spiritual entity in your villa has only caused you to experience hallucinations and hasn't reached the level of setting up illusions. This suggests it hasn't yet broken through to the Evil Spirit realm. But even so, a Wánglíng capable of causing living people to hallucinate, even if it hasn't reached the Evil Spirit level, is quite close and incredibly difficult to deal with."
Ma Ling explained between burps, and Wang Yiming nodded continuously, his gaze towards Ma Ling also changing slightly.
He had not thought much of Ma Ling before, partly because in his eyes, Exorcists were an undisciplined and disorganized motley crew, whose studies were too broad and not specialized, incomparable to professional Talisman Masters like himself.
Furthermore, Ma Ling was truly too young. At her age, he simply didn't believe she could possess much capability.
But now, hearing Ma Ling's analysis, he had somewhat changed his opinion of her. Regardless of Ma Ling's actual skills, her current analysis perfectly coincided with his own, clearly indicating that she was also an experienced practitioner.
"She's right. The ability to cause you to hallucinate and to use Yin Qi to take the lives of small animals are indeed not things an ordinary Wánglíng can do. This type of Wánglíng is quite troublesome to handle," Wang Yiming said, his face still stern.
The Wu family's expressions all changed. Old Master Wu quickly asked, "Can it be dealt with? Do we need to find more people?"
Wang Yiming shook his head, his expression unchanged. He said, "Not yet. Let's try first. If it truly doesn't work, then Old Master Wu, you can find another capable person."
Although Wang Yiming was not old, only about twenty-two or twenty-three, he was unsmiling and spoke with an aged solemnity, entirely unlike what one would expect from someone his age.
Yang Haoran ate and listened to their conversation, gaining some understanding of Wang Yiming and Ma Ling. There was no denying that both of them possessed some skill, and their analyses were logical and well-reasoned.
When it came to dealing with entities like "Spirits," no other sect in this world was more professional than their Underworld Office. Because of this, his understanding and perception of "Spirits" far surpassed that of Wang Yiming and Ma Ling.
The current Yang Haoran was no longer the novice he once was. After a month of continuously collecting souls, he had encountered tough opponents, but he had ultimately collected them into his Soul-Gathering Bead, accumulating some experience in this area.
Wang Yiming and Ma Ling's analysis was not without merit. However, as a Night Watcher, he had a deeper insight into the haunting of the Wu family villa.
Yet, he did not speak carelessly, continuing to eat and listen on his own.
At this moment, the Wu family's attention was entirely drawn to Wang Yiming and Ma Ling. No one else noticed him until Wang Yiming's gaze fell upon him, and only then did the Wu family members recall this other 'expert. '
"Yang Haoran, what's your take on this? " Wang Yiming asked.
Upon hearing this, Yang Haoran gently put down his chopsticks and smiled as he said, "Your analyses are very thorough."
After that single sentence, there was no follow-up. The Wu family members, except for Old Master Wu and Wu Senior, couldn't help but show expressions of disappointment.
Setting aside their abilities for a moment, based on the current situation, Wang Yiming and Ma Ling had already won them over with their words. They had expected to hear Yang Haoran's profound insights but were met with such an unenthusiastic remark.
Old Master Wu and Wu Senior were far more shrewd. Although they were also somewhat disappointed by Yang Haoran's response, the father and son did not show it on their faces. Given their experience, they always felt that Yang Haoran was far from simple, and not offering a lengthy opinion didn't mean he lacked ability.
Wang Yiming frowned, clearly dissatisfied with Yang Haoran's answer. He suddenly stood up and said, "I need to prepare. It's best to handle this matter this afternoon. When night falls, Yin Qi intensifies, and the spiritual entity's strength will increase, making it even more troublesome to deal with."
"What do you need to prepare? I'll arrange for someone to do it," Old Master Wu quickly stood up and said to Wang Yiming.
Wang Yiming waved his hand, saying, "I need to draw talismans. Outsiders can't help me. You just need to find a quiet room for me."
Using talismans was the Talisman Order's primary means of combating enemies, and their strongest method. Since Wang Yiming had decided to take action against the spiritual entity in the villa this afternoon, it was essential for him to specifically draw some talismans. If he encountered trouble without the corresponding talismans or insufficient preparations, he would certainly be at a disadvantage. He would not make such a basic mistake.
The villa was large, so there were certainly quiet empty rooms. However, since he also had to accompany Ma Ling and Yang Haoran, Old Master Wu did not personally lead Wang Yiming, but instead had Wu Senior handle the matter.
"Miss Ma Ling, what do you need to prepare? " Old Master Wu looked at Ma Ling and asked directly.
Ma Ling drained the wine in her cup in one gulp, exhaled a plume of alcohol-laced breath, and burped. "I'm not as troublesome as that guy named Wang. Just prepare a black dog, a black cat, and a large rooster for me, to keep as spares. Remember, they all need to be adults, don't bring me newly weaned ones."
Old Master Wu quickly affirmed and immediately arranged for the butler to prepare them with the utmost speed, without any delay.
What Ma Ling needed the black cat, black dog, and rooster for was naturally to deal with spiritual entities. As for how she would operate, not only did the Wu family not know, but Yang Haoran also had no idea.
Different professions were like mountains apart. Although they were all practitioners, they belonged to different systems, each with their own methods. This was especially true for Exorcists, whose knowledge was so varied that their methods were the most unpredictable.
"Young Brother Yang, do you need anything prepared? " Old Master Wu looked at Yang Haoran.
Yang Haoran smiled, then shook his head.
His reaction not only left Old Master Wu puzzled, but even Ma Ling looked at him with a strange expression.
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