I thought for a while, glanced at Huang Jiu, and said in a flattering tone, "Master Jiu, how about calling your disciples for a little help?"
"What for?" Huang Jiu looked at me warily.
I chuckled and replied, "Let them cooperate with me to put on a little play."
"Have them run toward that little Taoist while I chase from behind. Even if the little Taoist is alert, the scene will be chaotic, which will distract him. That'll give you a chance to act."
"No way!" Huang Jiu shook his head like a rattle, "Too dangerous!"
I said, "Your disciples aren't even spirits yet. They won't pose a threat to a few ordinary... immortals. The little Taoist won't bother attacking!"
Huang Jiu shook his head firmly.
I straightened my face, "Master Jiu, the Danxiang (a kind of incense) helps with your cultivation, right? You can come to my house anytime in the future, how about it?"
Huang Jiu snorted coldly, "Enough with the empty promises. You're always trying to tempt me with things that don't exist."
I scratched my nose, "If you keep thinking like that, I can't help you. But if you help with this, we can look out for each other in the future."
After a few days, I realized one thing: a single tree can't stand alone.
Compared to humans' deceit and tricks, Huang Jiu, who wears his desires on his sleeve, made me feel more at ease.
Huang Jiu's eyes darted around. "Look out for each other, huh?"
"Yes!" I confirmed.
Huang Jiu asked, "Do you mean it?"
I grew a little upset, "When have I ever lied to you?"
Huang Jiu muttered, "She's still not awake. Who knows?"
I fell silent.
At this point, the decision was in his hands.
After hesitating for a few minutes, Huang Jiu threw his head back and made a few calls.
Being surrounded by deep mountains and forests, his voice didn't seem out of place.
Soon, four small yellow weasels appeared.
I checked, and noticed his son wasn't among them.
Huang Jiu hung one paw, stood up with his lame leg, and gestured and chirped for a while. The four little yellow weasels understood and, after glancing at me warily, ran toward the old house.
"Master Jiu, hold on tight," I reminded him. Then I stood up from behind the mound and followed the weasels, cursing, "Damn yellow weasels, dare to steal my chicks, see if I don't kill you!"
As I cursed, I threw stones at them.
As soon as I made a sound, the little Taoist in the yard stood up cautiously.
In just a dozen meters, the four yellow weasels had already reached the gate.
When they saw the Taoist, they stopped in fear.
I furrowed my brows and threw a stone at them.
This time, I wasn't just playing around.
The four little weasels, startled, panicked and ran around the Taoist before rushing into the yard.
I wanted to chase after them, but the Taoist blocked my way, looking very wary, and his hand moved toward the yellow bag at his waist.
Plans were falling apart, so I had to stop and said with feigned surprise, "Huh? Who's this foreigner blocking my path? Get out of the way. I'm going to peel their skin today."
The little yellow weasels were startled by my words and started running wild in the yard.
The Taoist said nothing, sizing me up from head to toe.
I felt a chill in my heart and thought, "This could go terribly wrong."
After hesitating, I turned sideways, blocking Huang Jiu on my back, and threw a small stone at the weasels to divert the Taoist's attention.
The weasel hit by the stone let out a painful cry, but it was different from the usual. It sounded like a child screaming.
I was stunned.
These little creatures had been hearing Huang Jiu speak human language for so long that they'd picked up a little. They couldn't help but speak out in panic.
The Taoist was curious and turned around to look at the little weasel.
I immediately shouted, "Master Jiu, now's the time!"
Before my voice faded, I grabbed the Taoist's hand, preventing him from pulling anything from his bag.
The Taoist was startled, but by that time, Huang Jiu had already popped his head out from my shoulder and unleashed a wave of demonic energy, covering the Taoist's face.
The Taoist was quick, though. He was already preparing to bite his tongue the moment he was enveloped by the demonic energy.
A Daoist disciple can channel their Qi to their tongue, and with a bite, they can release the "True Yang Spill," which is highly lethal.
The Taoist, being young, likely still had the power of a "child's body," which would make it even more powerful.
Earlier, I had been observing the Taoist, and there was golden light emerging from his abdomen, which should have been his Dao Qi.
If he released his "True Yang Spill," Huang Jiu's demonic arts would be nullified, and he might even be heavily injured.
In a panic, I grabbed the Taoist's chin, forcing his mouth shut so he couldn't bite his tongue.
At that moment, Huang Jiu's demon magic had already captured his soul, and the Taoist's struggle gradually faded, his eyes becoming dazed.
Seeing this, I let go of the Taoist and grabbed a wooden stick, hitting him hard on the back of his head.
The Taoist didn't even groan as he collapsed motionless to the ground.
Huang Jiu watched with horror, then grinned, "Brother Li, do you have a grudge against other people's heads or something?"
It was then that Huang Jiu seemed to recall something unpleasant, and the way he addressed me changed.
But now wasn't the time for me to be smug. That old Taoist could return at any moment. The golden light in his abdomen was much brighter than the young Taoist's.
I quickly snatched the "Seeking Corpse Plate" from the Taoist's hand, turned around, and was ready to head back to the mountain. However, my peripheral vision caught sight of the Taoist's yellow bag on his waist, and I paused. I took the bag and slung it over my shoulder.
Huang Jiu used this opportunity to disperse the little yellow weasels.
Once out of the old house, I didn't dare to stop for a moment. I sprinted toward the cave, moving along the field ridges.
Along the way, I grabbed some dry branches and, upon reaching the cave, I quickly blocked the entrance with a simple barrier.
After finishing that, I leaned against the rock wall, panting heavily.
Huang Jiu, limping, eagerly rummaged through the bag I had taken from the Taoist. He pulled out a stack of yellow talismans, and after counting them, I found there were exactly twenty.
My grandfather spent a lifetime collecting only seven, treating them like treasures and refusing to use them. Yet, here was a Taoist, just a little child, with twenty of them.
Indeed, wild grass can't compare to the flowers in a garden.
Seeing the difference made me feel a little melancholy.
Huang Jiu immediately pulled out a golden sword. The moment he held it, I could tell it was a high-quality item.
My grandfather's sword, compared to this, was nothing but junk.
I wiped it with my hand and strapped it to my waist.
"Hey!" Huang Jiu exclaimed, pulling out a jade token from the bag.
When he saw the inscription on it, he took a sharp breath and said, "Looks like we've poked the hornet's nest this time."
"Mount Lao," I was surprised.
Huang Jiu had mentioned this sect before. It was one of the biggest sects, comparable to Maoshan.
I hadn't expected such a big sect to be involved in this remote mountain region.
As for whether they'd let this slide, I wasn't worried.
Even if I hadn't stolen their things, they would have come after me anyway.
While I was organizing the yellow talismans, a faint smell of corpse began to waft out from the cave.
Here they come again.
I felt a headache coming on. The "Seeking Corpse Plate" on the side began to glow faintly with a red light, and the needle spun, pointing toward the woman's location.
Seeing how sensitive it was, I was secretly relieved I acted first.
But the next moment, my brows furrowed.
This was a "Corpse Seeking Plate."