The Tale Never Ends Chapter 142 Zero Remorse

Lin Feng was already up, working on his combat skills training when I reached the Center. If he had noticed me coming in, he certainly made no sign of it. His pa.s.sion for training was equaled only by Chongxi's compulsion for food.

I went straight upstairs and delivered a kick into the b.u.m of a Chongxi who was still salivating into his pillow in his sleep. "Come on, get up! It's time for your workout!" Chongxi spun in his bed, rubbing his behind painfully. "What are you talking about... Sleeping's... fine..."

I looked down at Chongxi, exasperated beyond words. Oh, what a troublesome one this is, I mused, we had already agreed to take a look at the weasels today! Then a wicked idea came to me. I walked to the door. Just before walking out, I feigned surprise and exclaimed, "Yo, Xiao Yu? What brings you here so early in the morning?" Immediately a thud came from behind. I turned and saw Chongxi almost finis.h.i.+ng dressing up, looking completely wide-awake!

He rushed past me to the door, only to discover that he was tricked by me. He came back and punched me in my arm before he shuffled languidly into the bathroom.

We got just in time for Lin Feng to complete his training, and we immediately rushed to the farmer's fields without having breakfast. When we got near, we saw the farmer already there, waiting for us. His electric cart was parked just beside the field. I could see that he was slightly anxious, his brows littered with beads of sweat as he walked around the fields in circles. At the center of the field, a group of weasels was running in a line as if they were in a race. The farmer was relieved to see us. "I can't walk into the fields, Master! Is this a spell of yours? The weasels ran past me, missing me barely by inches, but I can't seem to touch them!"

His worried demeanor sent us into fits of laughter. More compa.s.sion, less judgment, I advised the farmer. The beasts have been through a regimen of penance, so there was no need to harm their lives, I added.

But the weasels seemed to have heard our talking and laughter. They looked distressed and worried; their heads jerking everywhere to locate the source of our voices but they can't seem to see us as if their visions were blinded. I raised a hand and signaled to the four ghosts that I had enlisted to sentry the field for them to cease their magic. I went to the car and took out some ritual offering. I burned them all for the four spirits and said my thanks for their help.

With the magic of the Ghost Barrier undone, the weasels finally regained their sense of sight and direction and bolted into the bushes to their safety. Everyone laughed at their antics. The farmer fished out a wad of notes as payments to us, but I only picked out a 100-yuan bill. We shook hands. "Thanks for your breakfast treat then," I muttered, and we left. We headed straight for a roadside stall for breakfast, during which Lin Feng grumbled glumly, "It's 100 yuan for all the trouble... I'm afraid..." But before I could react, Chongxi chuckled. "The money's only for breakfast. The matter is still far from over." Lin Feng looked at me inquiringly. I nodded and muttered, "Just you wait!"

But the peace only lasted for a day. On the third day, the farmer came to the Center again.

After letting the weasels go, everything was fine that day. But the second night, all h.e.l.l broke loose. The farmer was jolted awake by a loud bang and his house shook. Then another bang, and again, and the noise and shaking never ended. Someone was raining bricks and tiles at his house! The farmer got up and opened his door to go out, only to be driven back by a brick that missed him merely by inches! Horrified beyond wits, he slammed the door shut at once and waited out the hailstorm of bricks and mortar until daybreak. When he went out in the morning, his entire compound was scattered with debris, bricks, tiles and splintered shards of gla.s.s!

Yuan Chongxi stomped his foot with rage. "How could they! We only punished them lightly for what they did! How dare they come back for revenge! The bunch of mongrel pups has a death wis.h.!.+" I waved to Chongxi for restraint. I offered the farmer a cigarette and lighted one for myself. "The weasels must have had help. They do not have enough brains between them to know that they have been tricked by the "manure feint" of my friend's here. Yet, they returned in the second night, falling for the ruse completely; and now, they come pelting bricks and tiles in revenge! Very well, we'll do all we can to help you. Where are the debris and tiles now?" "I have piled them just outside my compound!" I nudged with my head toward the door, saying, "Let's go then!"

Leading us at the front, the farmer drove his electric cart all the way back with us following us behind. The farmer was about to lead us into his house but I stopped him. Lead us to the pile of debris and bricks, I said to him. We went to the mound of debris and I took out my Spirit Gourd, waving its mouth over the pile. "It's okay. You can go on with your work. We'll settle the weasels!" I conjured my spirit eagle and we followed it to a warehouse to the north of the village. The warehouse used to be a plastic materials factory and had long been abandoned, its welded pipe gates now locked.

Chongxi approached the gate and studied the lock. "Easy!" He chuckled and took out a metal hairpin. He stuck it into the keyhole of the lock and it snapped open with a metallic c.h.i.n.k. He pursed his mouth smugly and tossed the opened lock on the ground. He held up the contorted hairpin he used to pick the lock and said, "Time for a new one!" Apparently, the hairpin was supposed to be a gift for Xiao Yu, and now he would need to get her a new one.

We made our way inside. The spirit eagle had returned to my Gourd but my spirits wolves were now at the front, spearheading our incursion. Suddenly the wolves' heads raised and they sniffed the air. As if on command, they immediately surrounded a locked section that looked like a production area. Chongxi took out his hairpin and picked the lock. The wolves slithered in headfirst and led us to a corner just beside rows of electrical switches. Some yellow earth was peeking in at us from outside. The lower part of the metal wall panel was bent outwards, a showcase of the lamentable building standards in rural parts of the country. A hole had been dug under the pried-opened panel and judging by the direction of the tunnel. I would guess that it led to a small hut just outside the wall of the factory's compound. The little windowless shed was the factory's power supply substation, with generators and transformers inside, and was now the lair for the weasels.

Very well, there shall be no need for mercy this time!

I took out a yellow-colored strip of paper, a talismanic charm and burned it. But this was not the same type I used to summon h.e.l.l Guards; this kind of charm summons evil spirits to me! There was no longer any need for any shred of leniency since the weasels disregard the courtesy we showed them!

The vaporous silhouettes of eight evil spirits slowly came in to form amidst the whorls of fumes from the burning charm. With their advent, we could feel the evil aura churning from their very beings that also smothered the warmth of the air around us, shrouding our surroundings with a chilly and macabre atmosphere. They bared their fangs at the prospects of devouring us when they see us. But as they realized who I was, they turned relatively tamer. Their malicious urges held back in restraint in fear of me. These were lesser evil spirits which I can handle with tremendous ease. "You are summoned here to a.s.sist me. I believe you know who I am," I addressed them and none of the beastly ent.i.ties dare to answer me.

I stationed all eight of the spirits around the shed and the hole, commanding them to keep their Ghost Barrier magic sustained indefinitely until my say-so. Then we looked around and found a blackboard. With some chalks from the rail at the bottom of the blackboard, I left a message on the concrete floor just outside the hole, saying, "This is a penance for what you did. Come to the De Chang Center for Paranormal Studies for negotiations!" A cheeky Chongxi added a touch of his own just below, "Delay and you shall suffer the consequences!" We then decided to leave and wait for the fish to take its bait.

We reached back to the Center just in time for lunch. We were famished for not having breakfast and it was already noon. I suggested going out to eat and Lin Feng concurred. But Chongxi declined, citing the cold weather. He requested that we buy something back for him. I merely nodded and Lin Feng and I walked out the door.

We reached the nearby restaurants, but every one of them was terribly packed with patrons. It took us quite a delay before we finally found a restaurant that still has available seats for us. We sat down and made our order, topped with some beers. Serviettes laid across the table bore printed messages: All-new Laba congee for a warm and happy Laba Festival! We have been so busy that we did not realize that the Laba Festival is already so close!

Lin Feng too noticed the message. He lighted himself a cigarette and heaved a breath. "The year is nearing its end; the Laba Festival is already looming near," he muttered off-handedly, "Shouldn't we start looking into Chongxi's matter now?"