Taboo Mage - Chapter 68 - Finally Leaving

I jumped up from the meditation cushion and followed Jue Chi towards the altar in front of the Buddha statue.

Two middle-aged women were kneeling on the meditation cushions, reciting words that suggested they were praying for a second child. I grabbed Jue Chi by the sleeve and hurried over, the two women staring at us in surprise.

I didn’t care much about their reactions. Jue Chi leaned close and whispered, “Look at those two incense candles.”

“Incense candles?”

I followed Jue Chi’s gaze to see two incense candles placed at the forefront of the Child-Giving Guanyin statue, one on the left and one on the right, perfectly aligned with the main door. They seemed ordinary at first glance.

I reached out, placed my hand on one of the candles, and closed my eyes to chant the Incantation.

Sure enough, a chill seeped from my palm into my bones! I shivered and pulled out a soul-capturing bottle and yellow talisman paper from my pocket.

The yellow paper had been pre-soaked in glutinous rice water and black dog blood. I stuck it onto the candle and positioned the mouth of the soul-capturing bottle towards the candle, continuing to chant the Incantation.

A white smoke rose from the candle and went straight into the bottle. I quickly capped the bottle and took a rune from Jue Chi, sticking it onto the cap.

Having captured the spirit, I breathed a sigh of relief, turned to call Jue Chi to head back quickly, only to find the two women on the meditation cushions staring at us, dumbfounded.

“We’re just filming here, sorry everyone.”

I chuckled and pulled Jue Chi as we ran out.

When we got back to Du Qiang’s house, it was just past seven. Du Qiang was pacing in the living room. Seeing us return, he immediately asked how things went.

I reassured him, then took out the amulet and dried it with the flame from the burnt yellow paper.

The process of making the life amulet was straightforward.

I first made a small cut on Du Qiang’s hand, smeared his blood on the amulet, and then drew the spirit into it, imprisoning it with the yellow paper.

Finally, I drilled a hole at the top of the amulet and threaded it with red string. With that, it was essentially complete.

“Place this amulet around Li Meng’s neck, then take good care of her. Having a child is only a matter of time.”

I handed the amulet to Du Qiang. He carefully took it from me and quickly ran to the bedroom to put it around Li Meng’s neck.

After everything was settled, I stretched lazily and went back to my room to catch up on some sleep. After all, I had to get up early the next morning, and if I didn’t sleep now, I would miss the ride and who knows when I could leave.

The next morning, before four o’clock, my alarm clock went off. I woke up Jue Chi, and we hurriedly packed our things, ready to leave.

As we opened the bedroom door, Du Qiang and Li Meng were already waiting for us at the entrance, and the couple escorted us to the pickup point.

When we arrived, the truck was already waiting there. Du Qiang went to greet the driver while Jue Chi and I threw our bags onto it. It was a long-haul truck.

As I came down from the truck, Jue Chi was talking to Li Meng, who was holding a fertility amulet in her hand. She smiled and thanked me.

I waved my hand, telling her to take good care of herself.

Seeing Li Meng’s slightly haggard face, I decided to find time later for Jue Chi to recite a sutra to help her recover faster.

The truck continued along the highway, and as I watched the scenery speeding by, I unintentionally fell asleep.

When I opened my eyes, it was already bright outside. Jue Chi was holding a book and reading. The truck driver, probably looking for someone to talk to, saw me awake and smiled, saying, “You sleep a lot. You’ve been sleeping since we left, and it’s been over three hours now.”

I chuckled, “My body can’t handle much, unlike you guys who are on the road every day?”

“Yes, I’ve been doing this for over a decade now, so I’m used to it… What’s your relationship with Du Qiang? He just called me a while ago, specifically asking me to make sure you get to Shenyang safely. I’ve never seen him so concerned before, even offering to pay extra for fuel.”

“Just a friend, we met on the road. It’s fate, I guess.”

I chuckled nervously. Du Qiang, I knew from the first glance that he wasn’t exactly a saint, but he wasn’t a bad guy either.

Nowadays, how many young people drifting around are truly innocent? Still, I appreciated his intentions deep down.

The truck driver chatted with me throughout the journey. He had just come from Northeast China and was planning to head back after delivering a batch of goods.

“In our area, there are lots of fun and tasty things. Hey, Brother Gu, what are you up to this trip?”

“Just doing a bit of business. The past few years haven’t been great in Southern China, and I heard the Northeast has some goods, so I came to check it out.”

I snatched a book from Jue Chi’s hands and glanced at its colorful cover. Here was a monk who, instead of focusing on his scriptures, had learned to enjoy romance novels-a real sin.

The truck driver suddenly gave me a meaningful look and said, “Brother Gu, so you guys are dealing in that, huh…”

“What…what are you talking about?” I was taken aback. I hadn’t even realized what I had said, and there he was, looking at me in shock.

“Du Qiang is up to no good, getting involved in those dealings. He’s really trying to get me killed.” the truck driver cursed as he turned to spit out the window.

“Did you misunderstand something?” I asked, sensing something was off, my voice growing stern.

The truck driver turned back, smiling, “I didn’t mean anything by it. I can’t be part of this deal. When we get to the toll station, you’ll have to switch vehicles.”

“What happened? You’re dropping us off midway-where are we supposed to find another vehicle?” I frowned, my tone cooling.

“I don’t mean to offend, but I’m an honest man. That stuff might make a lot of money, but I have a family to support. One false move and if I get locked up, my family will starve.”

I was completely confused by his words.

Jue Chi, who had been quiet, suddenly chuckled and said, “You might have misunderstood. We are legitimate businessmen. We’re going to Shenyang to purchase a batch of medicinal herbs. We came in person because we’re concerned about the quality.”

“Medicinal herbs?” The truck driver eyed me suspiciously in the rearview mirror.

I nodded, “Yes, really, it’s just medicinal herbs. Why would we lie to you?”

Seeing how earnest we both were, and with Jue Chi looking every bit the honest man, the truck driver finally let go of his suspicions.