They both stared at me, and I couldn’t help but shudder.

　　“So… what should we do? Deal with them?” I asked, clueless.

　　Master let out a sharp snort, pulled out his wine gourd, took a sip, and leaned back against the sofa, still gazing up at the ceiling, lost in thought.

　　Senior Sister, noticing his mood, walked over to me and whispered, “Junior Brother, those wandering souls are probably the spirits of death-row prisoners—people who died bitter, forced into death with unresolved grudges. If that’s the case, after all these years, they’ve likely turned into vengeful spirits!”

　　“V-ve-vengeful spirits?” I stammered, recalling how Master had warned me about them just a few days ago. And now, here I was, right in the middle of it!

　　“Yeah, and they’re a huge problem. Vengeful spirits are tough to deal with, especially when there’s a bunch of them,” Senior Sister said seriously, her tone leaving no room for doubt.

　　“No wonder Master looks so troubled,” I mumbled.

　　Senior Sister sighed. “Yeah, we need to let him figure it out.”

　　Time dragged on. I sat there pretending to read, while Senior Sister busied herself with making dinner. Suddenly, Master spoke up, “Gouwa, let’s go!”

　　I jumped up. “Yes, Master!”

　　We rushed out the door.

　　“Master! Junior Brother! Where are you going? Dinner’s almost ready!” Senior Sister called after us.

　　“We’re skipping it. Lock up early tonight, don’t wait for us!” Master said without looking back.

　　As we wandered through the old town, looking around, I couldn’t hold back any longer.

　　“Master, did you come up with a plan?”“What plan? We’ve got no choice but to face it head-on. Luckily, they’re only yin spirits, not full-on vengeful ghosts. If they were, even I couldn’t guarantee handling so many,” Master sighed.

　　I hesitated for a moment before blurting out, “But Senior Sister said they might’ve already turned into vengeful ghosts.”

　　Master shook his head slowly. “Hard to say. Even if there are a few, it’s probably not the majority. If they were all vengeful ghosts, it wouldn’t just be a few dead workers—it’d be a much bigger disaster. And don’t forget, we’re sitting on a dragon vein here. That would weaken any spirit, even a vengeful one.”

　　“But, Master, if they’re vengeful ghosts, why didn’t they hurt the students? And why are they only being noticed now, after all these years?” I asked, my voice trembling slightly.

　　Master shot me a look. “Because of the stone tortoise.”

　　“Stone tortoise? You mean it’s been suppressing the spirits this whole time?”

　　“Exactly. Now, hurry up, follow me!”

　　I rushed to keep pace as Master led us up the city wall tower. From up there, you could see the entire expanse of Guangji below.

　　By now, the sun had dipped below the horizon, leaving just a faint glow where the sky met the earth.

　　“Master, what are you looking at?” I asked, trying to see what he was so focused on.

　　Master scanned the landscape for a while before finally speaking. “The mountains cradle the city, the rivers flow in embrace. Energy converges from all four directions. Backed by the Xuanwu Mountains, facing the Vermilion Bird Hall, with the Azure Dragon on the left and the White Tiger guarding the right—this ancient city, blessed by feng shui, is one of the most powerful places in the entire country.”

　　Intrigued, I mimicked his gaze. “The books say this place produced countless top scholars in the past, and because of its natural energy, it’s been highly regarded by the royal family.”

　　Master pointed to a distant mountain range. “Mountains bring people, rivers bring wealth. The terrain here is extraordinary… but there’s one problem.”

　　“What’s wrong, Master?” I asked, sensing the shift in his tone.

　　He pointed again, this time at a break in the mountains. “Look over there. The mountain range is severed. The flow of energy weakens from west to east and eventually vanishes entirely. The mountains and the rear no longer align. What a shame.”

　　Confused, I scratched my head, trying to piece it together.

　　Master chuckled softly. “The dragon vein here is broken.”

　　“Broken?” I echoed, stunned.

　　“That’s right,” Master said, turning to leave. I followed him closely, not wanting to fall behind.

　　---

　　“They say the dragon vein under Guangji was severed. In the feng shui world, that’s a huge deal—every feng shui master knows about it,” Master said, his tone grave.

　　“That really happened…?” I muttered to myself, still trying to wrap my head around it.

　　Master continued, “The story goes that when they were digging and hit the dragon vein, blood started seeping out of the dirt wall, right out of nowhere!”

　　“Blood? The wall bled?”

　　“Yeah, that’s what they say.”

　　By this point, we’d made it down from the city wall. Master suddenly stopped, turning to look at me, and asked, “Gouwa, do you believe it?”

　　“I…,” I stammered, unsure of how to respond. Honestly, I didn’t know what to believe anymore. Since meeting Master, I’d seen too many strange things to be sure of anything.

　　Seeing my hesitation, Master just smiled and didn’t press further.

　　We kept walking for a while longer until we found a place to settle down for the night.

　　“Gouwa, let’s get some rest. Tomorrow, we’ll take care of this,” Master said, as calm as ever.I nodded, knowing he was talking about those spirits.

　　Master fell asleep quickly, his soft snores filling the room, but I lay wide awake, my mind still racing with thoughts of Guangji. I couldn’t help but wonder what Master had planned—was he going to capture them, or send them away like he did with Li Xiaoniu’s spirit?

　　If things were really as Master and Senior Sister had said—that they’d died unjustly and turned into vengeful ghosts after being suppressed for so long—then there was a good chance their hatred had driven them insane. If that were the case, Master might not have any choice but to capture them.

　　I let out a sigh, my thoughts swirling until I eventually fell asleep without even realizing it.

　　The next morning, after we had breakfast, Master and I headed straight to Senior Sister’s rental apartment.

　　“Xue Rou, I need a peach wood sword. Can you find one?” Master asked, getting right to the point.

　　Senior Sister paused, thinking it over. It wasn’t exactly something people just had lying around. She lived a pretty simple life, shuttling between work, school, and her apartment, so she didn’t know many people around here. She looked a little uneasy.

　　“Don’t worry about it, I’ll figure something out,” Master reassured her.

　　“What if we can’t get a peach wood sword? Would just the wood itself work?” Senior Sister suddenly asked.

　　“That’ll work! Definitely!” Master replied, his excitement showing.

　　“Alright, give me a little time,” she said, and hurried out the door.

　　When she finally came back, it was already noon, and she was carrying a piece of peach wood that looked quite old.

　　“This peach wood’s pretty ancient, Senior Sister. Are you sure it’ll do?” I asked, eyeing the piece she brought back.

　　“You don’t get it, do you, Junior Brother?” she said with a knowing smile. “Peach wood is one of the Five Sacred Woods, also called the ‘Immortal Wood.’ The older it is, the better—especially for making a peach wood sword. Trust me, the older, the better.”

　　“Really?” I said, astonished.

　　“Yup!” Senior Sister handed the wood to Master, who examined it and remarked, “Not bad at all!”

　　“Hehe!” Senior Sister’s grin revealed her dimples, making her look even more charming. Seeing her smile made me grin too.

　　“Hand me a knife!” Master instructed as he headed outside with the wood. Senior Sister quickly found a knife and followed him, and I closely trailed behind.

　　With just a few swift strokes, the shape of the peach wood sword began to take form. Senior Sister and I watched, our jaws dropped in awe.

　　How was he working so fast? Even a skilled carpenter would struggle to keep up!

　　Master flashed us a smile as he continued refining the sword with a smaller knife. Before long, the peach wood sword was complete.

　　It was meticulously crafted, with a Tai Chi yin-yang symbol etched into the hilt. The sword was three feet seven inches long and one inch two wide, exuding a subtle, pleasant aroma of peach wood.

　　“All done!” Master declared.

　　He gave the sword one last look before going back inside. There, he carefully affixed a yellow talisman to it, then picked up a calligraphy brush, dipped it in red cinnabar, and made a precise mark in the center of the yin-yang symbol, focusing intently.

　　“Senior Sister, what’s Master doing?” I asked, curious.

　　“He’s consecrating the sword.”

　　“Consecrating it?”

　　“Yeah, once consecrated, the peach wood sword can dispel evil and ward off demons, spirits, and all sorts of supernatural entities.”

　　“Got it!” I murmured, captivated by Master’s every move.

　　After finishing the mark, Master suddenly formed a hand seal and chanted, “By the power of the Great Mystic, sever the demon, bind the evil—activate!”

　　To our amazement, the peach wood sword floated into the air, shimmering with a brilliant golden light. Senior Sister and I were wide-eyed, utterly astonished.

　　“That was just a basic consecration?” I asked, completely dumbfounded.