Taboo Mage - Chapter 44 - Demon

I slapped the top of my head with my hand, it hurt a bit… I wasn’t dreaming…

“Who exactly are you?” I eyed the person across from me warily. Decades had passed yet his appearance hadn’t changed; he must be a demon.

Subconsciously, I clenched the only piece of talisman paper in my pocket, ready to perish together with him if something were to happen.

Chen Qi lifted his eyelid, as if he saw through my little movement.

“I think, before your Father passed away, he must have told you about the Cycle of Cause and Effect in Yin-Yang life amulets. If one forcibly tries to defy fate and change one’s destiny, the stronger the spiritual power of the life amulet, the greater the backlash the life amulet master will suffer. Looking at your current situation, if I had arrived two days later, you might have already gone to reunite with your parents.”

Chen Qi completely ignored my threat and spoke coldly. Then, he stood up, walked over to me, and placed his right hand on top of my head.

Instantly, a warm current surged from the top of my head to the soles of my feet, spreading throughout my body, the sensation indescribably soothing. I involuntarily closed my eyes, with my legs crossed and seated on the meditation cushion.

I don’t know how much time had passed before Chen Qi withdrew his hand. When I opened my eyes, Chen Qi had already returned to his seat. Apart from a few beads of sweat on his forehead, there seemed to be no change in him.

But I knew, from the moment Chen Qi’s palm left the top of my head, the Yin Energy in my body had almost been exorcised in an instant. Even someone as powerful as Jue Chi could only barely control the Yin Energy to converge at one point, preventing it from invading my entire body.

But this Chen Qi in front of me, in just a few short minutes, had managed to exorcise the long-accumulated Yin Energy within me, his abilities too profound and mysterious.

“Are you, that person?” I suddenly looked up, my eyes intently staring at Chen Qi.

“If the person you are referring to is the same person I’m thinking of, then I believe I am.”

Chen Qi spoke in a roundabout way, and I surprisingly didn’t get dizzy from it, a testament to my sharp mind.

Jue Chi, who was supposedly knocking on a wooden fish, appeared beside me unexpectedly as we spoke. A faint smile crossed his face, and his fingers unconsciously curled around his prayer beads.

I glared at him. When had he become such a sly eavesdropper?

It felt like we were spies in the time of the Republic of China; after verifying credentials and secret codes with Chen Qi, we finally connected properly.

In the days that followed, Chen Qi was constantly by my side, nurturing my health. Even though the Yin Energy had been exorcised, the backlash had severely weakened me, nearly to a critical state.

With Chen Qi’s help, my condition rapidly improved. Following my instructions, Lin Huan emailed me daily updates about Li Mi and Xu-Jie.

One day, as I was checking my emails on my laptop, Chen Qi appeared behind me unnoticed.

With his arms crossed, he glanced at the screen and asked, “Haven’t you settled your clients’ issues yet?”

I nodded, seeing no need to hide anything from Chen Qi. I explained everything to him in detail, eager to hear his thoughts.

When I mentioned how Xu-Jie’s appearance had aged overnight, a barely noticeable frown crossed Chen Qi’s face. He interrupted me, asking, “You mean the female ghost you saw vanish into ashes reappeared?”

I nodded again, puzzled by the most incomprehensible part of the story. I looked at Chen Qi, hoping he could provide an answer.

Chen Qi, rubbing his chin with his right hand, urged me to recount the events from when I first met Xu-Jie, especially the parts I had deliberately omitted earlier.

My face turned red; when I first encountered Xu-Jie, I was almost bewitched into acting indecently. Of course, to preserve the dignity of the Gu Family, I had intentionally left out that part of the story.

To my surprise, Chen Qi knew about it! I started to wonder if this creepy man had the ability to read minds!

Chen Qi saw the blush on my face, chuckled, and shook his head. I coughed awkwardly and repeated the part where I had been seduced by Xu-Jie.

After listening, Chen Qi suddenly smirked coldly, “Just as I thought.”

“What… what do you mean?” His gaze startled me, and I quickly felt around my body. There was nothing unusual, so why was he looking at me like that?

Chen Qi scanned me from head to toe, “I didn’t expect you to have such strong resolve. You truly are a rare life amulet prodigy of the Gu Family.”

Prodigy? This was the first time someone had described me with that word, and it came from the mysterious and profound Chen Qi!

I couldn’t help but feel a bit elated, lifting my hand to touch my forehead, chuckling to myself.

I had always found the situation with Xu-Jie strange, but seeing Chen Qi’s expression, I realized there was much more to it than I had thought.

Chen Qi told me that there are many realms in this world that remain beyond human comprehension, yet can be profoundly felt.

I listened, confused and unable to grasp the essence of his words, so I humbly asked him to explain it more directly and deeply.

Chen Qi lifted his eyelids, glanced at me, said something to himself, and then got up and returned to the meditation room.

I pouted. People who are profound love to be mysterious. If he won’t explain, I’ll just have to guess!

As a result, I sat on the meditation cushion facing the Buddha statue and guessed all morning without figuring anything out.

At noon, I consulted Jue Chi about this, but he just shook his head, smiling silently. Annoyed, I kicked him under the table.

After being quiet for a few days, Lin Huan reappeared, this time cradling a large stack of cash. He handed me an envelope filled with money, grinning.

It turned out that Xu-Jie’s condition had slowly improved, and she had even begun to regain her former beauty. Knowing that I had been seriously injured because of her, she sent me the money once she was well.

Facing Chen Qi and Jue Chi at the dining table, I was too embarrassed to give Lin Huan a meaningful look. This Lin Huan, showing no respect for me even in front of the master!

Lin Huan asked me, bewildered, “Master Jue Chi already knows what you are like, what’s there to be embarrassed about?”

“Shut up!”

I threw a chopstick at Lin Huan, who dodged and jumped away, laughing. Clearly, with everything slowly improving, his spirits had lifted significantly.