The Wei family had always placed great trust in Lao Mo's and my abilities.
Now, seeing that we had even brought back a talking white fox, their admiration and worship for us grew even stronger.
They were so impressed, they almost wanted to lift us onto an altar and worship us.
Having been on the move all night, Lao Mo and I were both exhausted and injured.
With everything settled, we sat down to rest.
However, shortly after sitting down, both Lao Mo and I succumbed to our fatigue and fell asleep.
When we finally woke up, it was already eight o'clock the next morning.
Once again, I jolted awake from a dream.
Just like the previous two times, I had dreamt of that yellow weasel trying to take my life...
I sat on the sofa, my expression grim, and wiped the cold sweat from my forehead.
Ignoring the soreness in my body, I recalled the events of my dream.
This time, I wasn't tied to a tree. Instead, I was being chased by a yellow weasel formed from black mist.
It kept shouting, "Give me back my life!" and clawing at me with paws made of black mist.
I ran and ran in the dream, only to be caught by the black mist yellow weasel. Just as I was about to be devoured, I woke up.
If having one nightmare was normal,
and having two similar nightmares might be a coincidence,
then having three similar dreams for three consecutive nights,
all involving a yellow weasel demanding my life, was too much to dismiss.
Could it possibly still be a coincidence?
I had a premonition that I might have fallen prey to Huang Jiuniang's influence.
To put it plainly, I might have been under some sort of sorcery without realizing it.
However, I wasn't entirely sure about this.
I would have to wait until we returned to the shop to seek my master's help.
With this thought, I took a deep breath and leaned back on the sofa.
Lao Mo and the little fox were resting against the other side, fast asleep.
I didn't want to disturb them.
I took out my phone and checked the time.
I noticed I had WeChat messages and missed calls.
Upon opening them, I saw messages from my master and a call from Grandma.
My master was asking if I had finished dealing with things and when I would return to work.
Yesterday, when Lao Mo and I arrived at Qingshi Village, we had both requested leave from our respective masters, explaining the situation briefly.
Neither of our masters had any objections, urging us to resolve the matter quickly and return.
If we couldn't resolve it, we were to contact them.
Both of our masters were righteous Taoist priests,
not charlatans who set up stalls to tell fortunes and scam people out of their money.
Perhaps they were worried because we hadn't sent any updates for a day.
I sent my master a voice message, saying that we had handled everything and expected to return tomorrow.
My master quickly replied after receiving the message.
With a single word: "Mm."
It seemed my master had agreed.
After that, I called Grandma back.
Grandma, upon receiving my call, asked many caring questions.
She was also quite worried about me.
I reassured her not to worry, stating that I would be back by noon at the earliest.
As soon as I hung up the phone, I heard footsteps approaching.
Soon, Wei Laoda and his brothers entered the house.
Seeing that I was awake, they hurried over.
"Daoist Qin, you're awake!"
"Yes! Has Old Master Wei's body been cremated?"
I asked, nudging Lao Mo awake.
It was time to attend to business.
Lao Mo stirred and gradually woke up.
Wei Laoda nodded:
"It has been cremated. Old Fourth is bringing back the urn. He's already at the village entrance and will be back shortly.
I've also found helpers, and we're waiting for Daoist Qin's instructions."
Hearing this, I nodded:
"Alright, once Old Master Wei's ashes are brought back.
We will proceed with his burial, to let him rest in peace in the earth."
"Excellent, everything will be done as Daoist Qin instructs."
Wei Laoda said respectfully.
The Wei family's trust in me was immense.
Lao Mo sat up groggily, rubbing his eyes:
"Oh, the sun is up already?"
I smiled. It was past eight, so of course it was bright.
"Let's get ready and go bury Old Master Wei.
We can head back after it's done."
Lao Mo collected himself and nodded in agreement.
This was my first time assisting with a burial.
So, I lacked some experience.
Fortunately, Lao Mo had started earlier and, under Uncle Master Tang, had performed burial rituals several times.
He was quite knowledgeable and familiar with this matter.
Therefore, the task of assisting Old Master Wei into the coffin fell entirely to Lao Mo.
As Old Master Wei had chosen his burial plot beforehand,
it saved us quite a bit of trouble.
When it came to geomancy and feng shui, Lao Mo and I were both still novices.
We were far from being able to assess locations and feng shui for others.
Soon, Old Master Wei's ashes would be returned.
The Wei family had also summoned many relatives,
including their children who had temporarily gone to the town to avoid trouble.
There were about thirty or so people.
Along with them were some curious villagers.
After all, Old Master Wei's soul had been sent off, and his body cremated.
The Wei family could finally have some peace.
Lao Mo performed the rituals with great composure: offering incense, making libations, and setting up the altar, all in a practiced manner.
Though we were young, our performance of the rituals was very proper.
Initially, some villagers and Wei family relatives were skeptical.
After all, they had hired two young Taoist priests.
They were still dirty, even with bloodstains on them.
It made them feel we were unprofessional, unsuitable, and even suspected us of being con artists...