Arriving at the station, Yu Daochen bought a ticket to Jiangsu.
It was past seven in the evening when he boarded the train, and Yu Daochen habitually took the window seat.
As the train slowly started, recalling the events of the past half month, they flashed through his mind like phantoms.
The train was moving when he heard people ahead discussing.
"Have you heard about the incident in Xiaotun Village? The whole village just vanished."
Someone replied, "Didn't the authorities say it was an accidental explosion?"
A middle-aged man shook his head, "What explosion? I'm from the village next to Xiaotun. I was there that day and saw four beams of white light fly towards the sky above Xiaotun Village. This must be the work of demons."
The crowd found his story unbelievable and accused him of bragging. The man's face turned red with anger.
Just then, a man walked over and sat in the seat next to Yu Daochen.
As soon as the man sat down, Yu Daochen's expression suddenly changed, and he instinctively reached for the Kanglong Jian on his lower back.
Seeing Yu Daochen about to make a move, the man said, "Little Daoist, there's no need to be nervous."
Yu Daochen looked at the man, his brow furrowed. "You are human, yet you carry demonic energy. Are you a spirit medium?"
The man nodded, "I am from the Liu family, Liu Tianbao."
Liu Tianbao, the fifth of the five great immortal families of the Northeast, known as Master Liu the Fifth.
Yu Daochen cupped his hands. "So it is Master Liu the Fifth. Forgive my rudeness."
The man waved his hand. "It's alright, it's alright. I happened to pass by Xiaotun Village and heard that the Golden Toad had appeared but was sealed again."
Yu Daochen nodded. "The Golden Toad did indeed appear half a month ago."
Just as Master Liu the Fifth was about to speak, he frowned. "It seems the time has come. Little Daoist, we shall meet again."
After saying that, the man shivered and looked at Yu Daochen with a confused expression, introducing himself, "My humble name is Wang Fubao." He then shook Yu Daochen's hand.
Yu Daochen nodded and introduced himself as well. "Yu Daochen." He then sized up the man.
It was rumored that summoning immortal spirits would shorten one's lifespan, and to summon a spirit like Master Liu the Fifth would cost at least six years of life per summoning. But judging by his appearance, he must have done it many times.
Seeing Yu Daochen's confusion, Wang Fubao explained, "Brother Yu must be wondering how many times I've summoned an immortal spirit."
Yu Daochen nodded. Wang Fubao said, "More than thirty times."
Yu Daochen looked at Wang Fubao in surprise. "More than thirty times? That would mean over 180 years of lifespan!"
Wang Fubao nodded. "However, my destiny is strong and my fate is special. Summoning a spirit like Master Liu the Fifth only reduces my lifespan by six months."
Yu Daochen looked at Wang Fubao, who was clearly a middle-aged man in his forties. "May I ask how old Brother Wang is this year?"
Wang Fubao brushed his hair back and said, "Brother Wang is twenty-three this year."
Yu Daochen stared at Wang Fubao in astonishment. This was the result of summoning immortal spirits more than thirty times.
At the age of twenty-three, he looked forty-three.
They chatted for the rest of the journey, and three days passed quickly.
Upon arriving at the station, as Wang Fubao prepared to get off, he patted Yu Daochen's shoulder. "Brother Yu, if you encounter any difficulties in the Northeast, just mention my name."
After saying that, he had Yu Daochen note down his number and then got off the train.
Yu Daochen was helpless.
Since he hadn't told Old Man Xu and the others that he was back, no one came to pick him up.
Yu Daochen simply hailed a taxi and headed towards the shop.
He got off the car at the entrance of the shop.
Looking at the three large characters "Midnight Spirit Shop" on the plaque, Yu Daochen let out a sigh of relief.
He opened the door. It was the same as always, unchanged. There was no dust on the tables, meaning Xu Yaya must have cleaned it regularly.
He put his backpack in the back room and rested for a while, preparing to open for business in the evening.
At midnight, Yu Daochen opened the shop for business punctually.
He placed the teapot on the pottery stove to heat and lay down on the rocking chair, resting with his eyes closed.
Before long, he heard the roaring sound of two cars approaching the shop.
Yu Daochen glanced over and saw a middle-aged man in a suit and tie step out of one car, followed by five burly men with dragon and tiger tattoos.
Yu Daochen ignored them, continuing to rest with his eyes closed on the rocking chair.
The middle-aged man walked into the shop. Seeing that Yu Daochen was ignoring him, he instructed the five men behind him, "Go and wake that kid up."
The leader of the men nodded and walked towards Yu Daochen.
Seeing the men approaching him, Yu Daochen opened his eyes and stood up. "Do you gentlemen require anything from the shop?"
The middle-aged man looked at Yu Daochen. "I'm looking for Master Yu."
Yu Daochen pointed to himself. "That's me."
The middle-aged man sized up Yu Daochen. "Kid, if you're trying to trick me, you'll know the consequences."
He then nodded to the five men beside him.
Receiving the order, the leader of the men tilted his neck and shouted to the other four, "Go and teach him a lesson."
As he spoke, they walked towards Yu Daochen. Just as Yu Daochen was about to make a move, the lights outside suddenly went out.
The middle-aged man shivered and ran towards the five men.
Yu Daochen looked at the pitch-black street outside, his brow furrowed.
Something was coming.
The middle-aged man looked at Yu Daochen. "Quick, deal with that thing."
Yu Daochen did not reply, his eyes fixed on the outside.
Author's Note:
The author is in seclusion, practicing writing. This book is abandoned.