Chapter Sixteen: The Battle with the Old Woman Resumes

Afterwards, I stayed by Huang Ying’s side constantly, fearing that the moment I left, something might happen to her.

After sitting for over two hours, I felt truly hungry; I hadn’t eaten all day.

I rushed to the kitchen, only to realize I didn’t know how to cook a single dish, so I had no choice but to eat instant noodles. If Huang Ying were well, I wouldn’t have to worry about such trivial matters!

Holding the cup of noodles, an overwhelming bitterness washed over me.

“Huang Ying, I’m hungry. Please get up and make me something to eat,” I said, sitting on the edge of the bed, gazing at her.

But she kept her eyes tightly shut and ignored me completely.

At that moment, I suddenly noticed a crack forming on the yellow talisman attached to her. After tomorrow, its power would cease. I truly didn’t know what to do. I tried to think of a solution, but I was utterly clueless.

My only source of comfort was my grandfather, so I called him again.

“Grandpa, can you come here?” I suddenly thought that if he came, maybe he could help.

There was a long pause before he replied, “Even if I come, I can’t do anything.”

“There must be a way! If you come to the city, there will be a way!” I pleaded desperately.

“No,” he refused outright.

I suddenly felt that my grandfather was cold-hearted.

“Please, I’m really scared for her...”

“If I come, it will only bring her greater disaster!” After a moment of silence, he declined my request with that reason.

“Why? You’re here to save her, so how could it bring her greater disaster?” I thought he was just trying to deceive me.

“You’ll understand in time. Even if I came, I truly couldn’t help,” and then he hung up.

I knew my grandfather had never been to the city. If he did come, he might simply ignore you or, worse, scold you severely. Was there really some deep concern?

Staring at Huang Ying’s fading body, the anxiety in my heart was beyond words.

If it were possible, I’d gladly give her my own soul, but neither I nor my grandfather knew how, and Huang Ying wouldn’t want that either.

Tomorrow might be the last day I spend with her.

That night I couldn’t sleep, staring at her constantly. Now that the corpse oil’s effect had worn off, I couldn’t even touch her!

I thought the famous line from “A Chinese Odyssey” should be changed: the most painful thing in the world is to have the one you love in danger and only be able to wait for the deadline, watching her vanish before your eyes.

I dared not imagine how I would feel when she disappeared tomorrow. I preferred not to think about it! Perhaps she would suddenly wake up that night and blush as she cooked for me.

I picked up the computer and searched through the night: how to gather souls, how to search for souls, how to extract one’s own soul!

But none of the results were what I desired.

---

In the end, I leafed through many books on Taoism and geomancy, but still found no answer!

Was there truly no way?

“Huang Ying, if you dare disappear tomorrow, I’ll strip you naked and watch as much as I want!” Knowing she was shy, I said this on purpose.

But even so, she lay there without so much as a change in expression!

I was disappointed. I don’t know how I passed that night. The next day, I checked the time—only eighteen hours remained until the three-day deadline.

The talisman on her forehead was even more cracked.

I panicked and hurriedly grabbed the bottle, running toward the mass graveyard.

This time, I didn’t ask my grandfather for help. Instead, I tore two strips of skin from my fingers and smeared my face with my blood. This time, the effect was a bit better!

I felt my soul draining slowly, but every time I chanted the incantation, a sharp pain pierced my head!

Half an hour later, I returned with the bottle and called my grandfather.

“Grandpa, I’ve captured more spirits. Could you help transfer these souls to Huang Ying?”

After a moment’s silence, he told me to place the phone by Huang Ying’s ear.

The effect was still minimal; her body only recovered slightly!

“I’ll go again!”

“Don’t. If you keep doing this, you’ll harm her!”

I understood what he meant and stopped.

Now only seventeen hours remained until midnight!

If I had known the process would be this painful, I should have died back then. Even if heartless, it would still be better than now.

“You shouldn’t have saved me. It would have been better if I never liked you. Then you could just walk away. If I hadn’t meddled two months ago, we’d both be better off now!” I complained ruthlessly.

At six in the evening, I sat dazed at the bedside. The yellow talisman on her forehead was in tatters.

“There has to be a way. There has to be a way!” I clenched my fists.

“If my soul can be absorbed by others, then others’ souls can surely be absorbed by Huang Ying. Others’ souls...”

I quickly grabbed the phone and called my grandfather.

“Grandpa, teach me how to extract souls, quickly!”

“What are you trying to do?” he asked warily.

---

“I want to capture that old woman,” I said. My grandfather knew that old woman was the one who had taken my soul, and with some doubt, he taught me the method.

After learning it, I immediately ran out. I wasn’t going to capture the souls of other living people; my grandfather had told me to stay sane, and I wasn’t at that point yet!

I searched all around the neighborhood. I could sense she was nearby.

It was already night. I checked every dark corner but found no trace of her!

I was desperate. Did I really have to capture another living person’s soul?

“Wait, the room opposite mine is the most eerie place around.”

I sprinted up to building B, tore down the police tape, kicked the door open, and went in.

The living room was empty. I kicked open the bedroom door where I had found that woman before.

Sure enough, the old woman was inside.

From that room, she could clearly see everything in my room. I had every reason to believe she had witnessed everything I had done these past days.

My feelings toward her were nothing but fury and deep resentment. When she saw me burst in, she immediately stood up and shakily approached me. Her flesh was almost completely gone, her face unrecognizable.

“Young man, I got separated from my daughter-in-law...”

The same words again. My anger flared. I had trusted her and tried to help, and this was the result. How dare she say that?

“Son of a bitch!” I quickly pulled out a bottle of red viscous liquid from my pocket.

“Go to hell!” I was ready to send her to meet the Buddha. That much should be enough to drown her.

But just as I was about to throw the liquid at her, I stopped myself, fearing it would damage her soul.

“Young man, I got separated from my daughter-in-law. Can you help me get home?” Then I felt my soul beginning to erode again. I immediately bit my finger—not hard, just enough to draw blood.

After smearing the blood on my forehead, the sensation of erosion lessened noticeably.

“This is your debt to me.” I took out some copper coins from my pocket. Though they looked grim, they were extremely yang in energy.

Then I took out a small bottle and carefully dripped the liquid inside at the northwest, northeast, south, east, and north positions—Qian, Gen, Li, Zhen, and Kan, respectively.

Qian represents heaven, Gen represents young men, Li represents fire and women, Zhen represents wood and the Azure Dragon, and Kan represents men. These five positions are extremely yang. As soon as she stepped in, I would make her skin peel off layer by layer!

After finishing, I held my head and stepped out of the room because I couldn’t bear the pain in my head any longer! This method, taught by my grandfather, forcibly separates a person’s soul from their body!

Then I took out the glass bottle. This time, besides dripping blood on the mouth, my grandfather told me to add a yellow talisman on it! Enduring the intense pain deep within my soul, I waited slowly outside. As soon as the old woman entered the formation, I would chant the spell. It had to succeed this time; failure was not an option.

After about thirty seconds, I stood at the doorway. She stopped just outside the formation, one step away from entering, but hesitated.

“Damn it!” Seeing this, I couldn’t help but curse. This was the most frustrating thing—like knowing the answer but being unable to write it down!