Taboo Mage - Chapter 128 - Blood Reishi

The Buddha amulet is a type of Yin-Yang amulet from Thailand, similar in purpose to the life amulet in China. Both use the amulet as a medium to channel a spirit into the amulet to achieve the creator’s desired goal.

In China, there are two prominent yin-yang life amulet master families, and our Gu Family is one of them. We are also the only one still in existence today. As for the other, I once heard Grandfather mention it.

During the first ten years after the founding of the country, the sole Heir of the other amulet-making family was beaten to death in a cowshed, which led to the extinction of their lineage.

Grandfather was wise enough to hide in a remote corner and even got married and had children during that time.

When the ten-year period ended, Grandfather reemerged with his family, and naturally, we became the sought-after remaining family.

Now, back to the Buddha amulet-Chinese people emphasize virtue, especially with the possibility of backlash like in our family, making the creation of malevolent amulets quite rare.

However, Thai amulets are different. In Thailand, there aren’t as many considerations, and thus fewer restrictions, leading to the frequent emergence of extremely ominous Buddha amulets.

The Buddha amulet that Du Jun gave me earlier was so hot to the touch that it’s clear the spirit inside is definitely not benign.

Even if it isn’t extremely sinister, it must at least be a Resentful Spirit.

I looked down at the Buddha amulet, contemplating how to handle this situation. Du Jun was still babbling beside me, hoping that I could cleanse the amulet.

“This job requires a business trip.”

I crossed my arms and frowned at the person in front of me. Given that the Buddha amulet is from Thailand, the spirit inside must also originate from Thailand. If I take on this task, I’ll have to try the local method first.

If that doesn’t work, then a trip to Thailand would be necessary.

Upon hearing my words, Du Jun immediately smiled, “No problem! As long as it can be resolved, I’ll sponsor a two-week tour of Thailand for you!”

“Why just him? Can’t our assistant go too?” Lin Huan immediately stood up and shouted.

Du Jun quickly nodded, “No problem! No problem! As many as you need can go!”

I glared at Lin Huan; I hadn’t even agreed, and he was already thinking about the trip.

“To be honest, doing this kind of business means having your head hanging by a thread. It’s not that I don’t want to help, but it’s a bit beyond my capabilities.” With that, I stood up, ready to show Du Jun out.

Lin Huan watched in confusion, wondering why I was throwing away such a lucrative opportunity.

In my mind, I was considering the issue of backlash. I still haven’t found a way to solve the Gu Family’s backlash curse. Even though Du Jun’s situation might not cause major backlash, it would definitely affect me to some extent.

Unless absolutely necessary, I don’t want to risk my well-being. Of course, I couldn’t share these thoughts with Lin Huan or Du Jun.

Du Jun looked at me in disbelief, not understanding why I seemed ready to agree a moment ago, even having discussed the price, only to suddenly change my tune.

I didn’t bother to explain further and went upstairs with the little fox in my arms.

Recently, I’ve been working on something. Although the little fox stays with me like a pet, it’s still a fox spirit. Its true form can receive the influence of Buddhist teachings with Jue Chi, but remaining speechless and static like a samoyed isn’t ideal.

While I can’t assist with its spiritual practice-that’s up to its own fate-I think I can figure out a way to solve the latter issue.

To this end, I spent several days studying ancient books, and with help from the Chi Family in Shenyang, I finally found a way for the little fox to speak.

According to ancient records, my ancestor once encountered a spirit beast that he was particularly fond of but regretted that it couldn’t speak. So, he focused on studying the art of life amulets.

My ancestor was far more skilled than I am. After more than two years of research, he succeeded, but by then, the spirit beast had been captured by a mystic and became a mount.

Although my ancestor felt regretful, he accepted that he wasn’t destined to be with the spirit beast and documented the experience in ancient books. When I first read about it, I took it as a story, not expecting I would find it helpful now.

I went upstairs with the little fox, spread the ancient books on the bed, and called the Chi Family to ask how things were progressing.

According to the ancient records, the most crucial ingredient for crafting a life amulet for a spirit beast is a blood reishi.

While it sounds impressive, in reality, it’s a small mushroom that grows on coffins, nourished by corpse qi. The older the coffin, the more potent the blood reishi becomes.

Coincidentally, when I called Chi Rui to express my gratitude last time, he mentioned that some of their juniors were planning to explore a tomb soon. So, I casually asked if they could help me acquire a blood reishi.

To my surprise, Chi Rui agreed right away.

The little fox rested its soft paws on the ancient book, eagerly pressing the page with the spirit beast illustration. I glanced at it with a smile and then dialed the phone.

Chi Rui told me I was quite fortunate. Blood reishi is so rare that sometimes you might not find any after exploring a hundred tombs, but this time the tomb they ventured into was an ancient one.

The coffin lid in the main burial chamber was almost completely decayed, and the small mushrooms on it were thriving.

I excitedly squeezed the little fox’s hind paw and laughed, “Little fox, you are unbelievably lucky!”

The little fox chirped excitedly. I hung up the phone and started preparing to craft the life amulet. According to Chi Rui, the blood reishi would arrive within two days.

Blood reishi cannot be exposed to light for long, or its potency will dissipate. This means that I need to have everything else ready before it arrives.

I figured Du Jun must have left by now, so I took the little fox downstairs. All the materials for the life amulet were in the basement storage, and I couldn’t afford to lose any more time.

However, as soon as I reached the stairs, I saw Du Jun happily chatting with Lin Huan. They were sitting at the foot of the stairs, effectively blocking my way.

I reached out and smacked Lin Huan on the head, “What are you doing?”

Du Jun turned to look at me, showing no embarrassment about overstaying his welcome. Instead, he smiled and said, “Mr. Gu, if you have things to do today, I can come back tomorrow.”

I waved my hand dismissively, “No need, I’m busy tomorrow too.”

“What about the day after?”

“Busy then as well!”

“So…”

“I’ll be busy until the day I die!”