Chapter 30: Head-On Clash

In no time, Old Man Jiang finished drawing three talismans and handed them to my mother, instructing her, “This talisman is the simplest type of warding talisman. Stick one at the main door, one at the door of this bedroom, and one at the head of the bed. I do not want to harm that evil ghost for now, only block it and make it retreat on its own. Three warding talismans are enough for that. Everything else will have to wait until I make a trip tomorrow to fully resolve it. After dealing with the evil ghost, we will go find your second daughter’s lost soul.”

My mother quickly followed Old Man Jiang’s instructions and placed the three talismans exactly where he had told her.

After that, there was nothing else to do. Everyone simply waited in silence, all of them tense. Only Old Man Jiang and I were calm. I had an inexplicable sense of trust toward him. Although I disliked his indecent behavior, at this moment all my attention was focused on my curiosity about him.

As for Old Man Jiang, perhaps this kind of situation was nothing more than child’s play to him. He showed no sign of nervousness at all.

Time passed quickly, and soon it was eleven o’clock.

In the past, when it struck eleven, the female ghost would come to harass my second sister silently. But today, just as eleven arrived, there was suddenly a knocking sound from outside the main door of the house, “Boom boom.”

“That thing has come to the door.” Old Man Jiang said calmly as he stood up and walked a few steps with his hands behind his back.

“Master Jiang, why do I feel like this ghost has become more vicious? It used to come silently. Why is it knocking on the door today?” My mother asked, her face slightly pale as the sound unsettled her.

“It is not knocking on the door. The warding talisman at the entrance is blocking it. It is struggling with the talisman. But that kind of warding talisman cannot hold it for long. Just watch.” Old Man Jiang said calmly. As expected, just as he finished speaking, the knocking stopped. Then a gust of wind blew in, and the talisman that had been firmly stuck on the door suddenly spun loose and fell off.

Because of the angle, all of us saw this scene clearly and could not help but feel a chill run down our spines. Only Old Man Jiang remained completely calm. He took a sip of tea and said, “Second one.”

The second talisman was pasted on the bedroom door. All of us stared nervously at it. Sure enough, in the blink of an eye, the second talisman began to move on its own, accompanied by a “rustle rustle” sound.

“Hey, old man, do you think these three talismans can block that female ghost? What happens if they cannot?” My personality has always been straightforward. Earlier I felt guilty that I had brought the ghost to my second sister, but now that she was better, I felt more at ease and even swore I would treat her better in the future. Having shaken off that burden, I could not help but ask.

“Smack.”

What answered me was not Old Man Jiang’s gentle reply, but two fingers striking heavily against my head. The sound was crisp, and I finally understood what it meant to see stars.

“Brat, everyone in the world may show me disrespect and it is nothing more than a passing breeze. But you cannot. What do you mean ‘old man’? Do you even understand respect for your teacher?” Old Man Jiang scolded me in a way that left me completely baffled. I held my head and did not dare speak back. In truth, I was grateful to him. He was saving my second sister, and I believed he had real skill, so I endured it.

After scolding me, Old Man Jiang explained, “I calculated these three warding talismans precisely. They are just enough to exhaust it and force it to retreat. Besides, even if they cannot hold it back, am I not here? What are you panicking for? Cultivators must avoid emotional instability. An unstable mind disrupts one’s aura, weakens fortune, and leaves openings for exploitation. Calm yourself.”

But after explaining, he immediately turned around and scolded me again. I did not understand half of what he said. I simply shut my mouth and cursed myself for talking too much. That old man never scolded anyone else, only me.

At that moment, the second warding talisman also drifted down. Everyone sitting in the room immediately felt a wave of cold wind rushing toward them. That chill made everyone shiver, except for Old Man Jiang.

“Heh heh, such heavy resentment. Two little warding talismans, and you think you can act like this? But do you really have the ability?” As he spoke, Old Man Jiang suddenly began stepping in a strange pattern, circling around where we were sitting.

He finally stopped at a certain position, one foot raised slightly but not yet touching the ground.

As soon as he made this movement, the cold wind in the room suddenly stopped. The next moment, I saw the pillow cloth at my second sister’s bedside suddenly lift, as if something was blowing it toward her. I could clearly feel it.

Old Man Jiang let out a cold snort and placed his foot down lightly. He stared in that direction with a cold gaze. After a moment, the talisman at the head of the bed drifted down as well. Old Man Jiang closed his eyes slightly as if sensing something, then said, “So reckless? Hmph… do you think you can break my Soul Locking Knot?”

As he spoke, he suddenly stepped forward and reached the front of my second sister’s bed. One hand was placed behind his back, the other stretched forward. His lips moved in silent chanting. At the same time, his extended hand rapidly changed gestures. The moment his chanting stopped, his hand seal was complete.

With the completion of the hand seal, his entire aura changed instantly, becoming upright and powerful. The hand he extended looked like an iron trident, giving the impression of something sharp and forceful.

“I did not want to make you scatter into nothingness. You cannot break this Soul Locking Knot either. If you continue to provoke me, I will have no choice but to suppress you today.” Old Man Jiang shouted, and his hand seal was about to strike forward.

At that moment, the entire room suddenly felt warm, as if something had just left.

Old Man Jiang also relaxed completely. He looked at my second sister’s condition and said, “This evil ghost has extremely heavy resentment, a rare case. The first two warding talismans enraged it. After entering the house, it tried to attack your entire family. I immediately used the step pattern technique, and at the final moment invoked divine possession invocation to drive it away. It was unwilling and tried again to target your second daughter. Even after being exhausted by the talismans, it still relied on its hatred to force its way toward her.”

He continued coldly, “But my Soul Locking Knot is not something it can break. Even so, I will not allow it to act so arrogantly. I used the Iron Trident Finger. If it had dared to act up even slightly, I would have made it scatter into nothingness.”

His words made my blood boil with excitement. So impressive. Just a few movements were enough to drive away an evil ghost. It was even more impressive than the tiger claw amulet hanging around my neck. If only I could learn a few of these techniques.

Just as Old Man Jiang was explaining everything to the family, he suddenly stopped and turned to look at me with a smile, as if he had seen through my thoughts.

“Third Child, are you envious of my skills? Very well, call me master now. Once your second sister’s matter is fully resolved, I will take you up the mountain to complete the apprenticeship ceremony.”

I immediately refused. I jumped up and shouted in the room, “I do not care about your skills. When I grow up, I am going to be part of the Red Army. I am not going to become some Daoist!”

In my mind, Old Man Jiang was a ghost catcher, and that meant he was a Daoist. For me to grow up and become a Daoist? Impossible. Absolutely impossible. That was too far from my dream of becoming a battle hero.

Seeing me jumping around, Old Man Jiang just chuckled. Then after laughing, he took a few steps forward, and in the blink of an eye, I was lifted up in his hand.

What was going on? What was happening?

I was lifted three feet off the ground. I panicked. I had only just met him, and I had already suffered twice. Was this going to be a third time? His movements were too fast. I did not even feel how he grabbed me.

After grabbing me, I struggled, but Old Man Jiang ignored me completely. Right in front of my parents and my eldest sister, he pulled down my pants, placed me on a stool, and before I could even cry out, Smack, a crisp slap landed on my backside.

“You rotten old man, you dare take off my pants!”

My face turned red as if it were about to bleed. My eldest sister was right there. This old man had stripped the pants off a boy who dreamed of being a hero. If Su Rou and the others found out, my reputation would be ruined.

“Lacking respect for your teacher.” Old Man Jiang muttered and ignored me completely. Smack, another strike landed.

“I am going to fight you! You rotten old man, if you have the guts, fight me properly! Do not use this kind of method!”

“Rebellious.” Smack.

“Rotten old man…”

Smack smack smack.

No matter how I shouted, all I received in return was the crisp sound of my backside being struck.

At first, I was furious and did not feel much. But after a while, the burning pain became unbearable. This old man’s hand was even heavier than my father’s fist.

“Waaah… I was wrong…”

I gave in. I had no choice. I was both furious and humiliated. My parents just watched as I was beaten by a stranger, and I even saw my eldest sister trying to step in, only to be held back by my mother.

What kind of parents were these? Selling out their own son!

After more strikes, I finally could not take it anymore and admitted defeat.

“Oh? Where were you wrong?” Old Man Jiang smiled as if he had not had enough and was still unsatisfied.

“I… I lacked respect for my teacher… I… I was rebellious… I… I refuse to change my ways…”

I sobbed as I repeated everything he had just scolded me with, looking completely defeated.

Old Man Jiang chuckled and let me go. “With that attitude, and you still want to be a Red Army soldier? Ten slaps and you already gave up. That is basically a traitor.”

This old man really knew where it hurt.

I quickly pulled up my pants and stood properly, gripping my waistband tightly. Then I said with a determined expression, “I was just lowering the enemy’s guard. I will never submit.”

Yes, a hero does not need to wear pants properly. I was just lowering the enemy’s guard so I could put them back on.

“Heh… heh… good… good…” Old Man Jiang smiled without anger. No one knew what he was thinking. I only felt increasingly uneasy and instinctively stepped back a few paces.

“Third Child, do you think I will not beat you? Do you even know who he is? Back when you were a child and were tormented by a hundred ghosts, it was Master Jiang who saved you. Do you think the tiger claw amulet around your neck was given by just anyone? It was given by Master Jiang. Are you not asking for a beating right now?” My father finally spoke up after staying silent the whole time. His tone was stern, clearly trying to stop me from being so disrespectful.

Of course, it was also a kind of concern for me. In my father’s eyes, Old Man Jiang was someone impossible to fully understand, sometimes dignified and terrifying, sometimes careless and lazy, and it was impossible to tell which version was real.

Even though my father knew Old Man Jiang saw me as a disciple and cared about me, he also knew that when he disciplined me, he did not hold back at all. With his unpredictable temperament, there was no telling what trouble I might get into next, and as a father, he could not easily interfere.