"Oh dear, disaster has struck! Oh my goodness! Granny Fan, if I had known it would come to this, you could have broken both my legs and forced me to go, but I still wouldn't have set foot in that place!" Young Master Liu, seeing that Tian Guoqiang and the other two showed no signs of recovery, was riddled with regret. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as if he had grasped a lifeline. He turned to Granny Fan, pinching her arm with a sly smile, "Granny, I know you're incredibly capable. How about you trouble yourself one more time, go alone, and take care of all those monsters? Our village will be peaceful from then on."

"Cough, cough... Ugh, cough, cough..." As soon as Young Master Liu finished speaking, Granny Fan's face immediately flushed a deep purplish-red, and she kept pounding her chest, coughing violently. Didn't she know her own limitations? Even the previous confrontation was purely down to luck; thankfully, that snake spirit was inherently suspicious, allowing her to deceive and trick it. Otherwise, she wouldn't even be alive now. This child talked a good game—going alone to wipe out all the demons and monsters—unless she were an old tortoise hanging from a beam, inviting death.

"Granny, what's wrong with you now? Don't tell me your tracheitis has flared up? This cold weather is just right for that ailment! Here, let me check on you." Young Master Liu stepped forward, patting Granny Fan's back while eagerly fawning over her. As the saying goes, unwarranted attentiveness usually signals ill intent. His manner truly sent shivers down Granny Fan's spine, and she quickly backed away, trying to escape his attention.

"What is truly wrong?" Young Master Liu finally noticed the strange look on Granny Fan's face. He dropped his hand and knitted his brow.

"Heh heh." Granny Fan let out two bitter laughs. "Child, Granny understands the saying: if you don't cut the weeds by the roots, they’ll grow back with the spring breeze. Granny wishes to completely eliminate this scourge and ensure lasting peace for our village. But Granny hates it! Hates that her spiritual power is too weak, truly lacking the ability!" As she spoke, a shameful flush of red crept onto her face.

"Weak spiritual power? Who said your power is weak? Granny, you personally drove away that female ghost just now! I, my father, Village Head Tian, and everyone else present witnessed it with our own eyes!" Young Master Liu pointed his fingers in succession, gesturing in front of the crowd.

"Nonsense, this Village Head saw nothing," Village Head Tian grumpily turned his head away.

"Perhaps you didn't know! Well, you can't keep a secret wrapped in paper forever. Granny will tell you clearly now!" At that, Granny Fan laid out for Young Master Liu, step by step, exactly how she set the trap for the snake spirit, how she put on an act, and how she faked her ultimate move. Young Master Liu was sharp; once she explained it, combined with what he had seen and heard at the time, and the loopholes in her words and actions, he immediately smacked his head. He understood instantly, and the first words out of his mouth were: "Brilliant! Truly brilliant!"

"Granny, I really didn't expect you had such a trick up your sleeve! You acted the immortal so convincingly!" Young Master Liu burst into hearty laughter, but as the laughter subsided, cold sweat broke out on his back. He naturally knew the immense danger and hidden currents woven into that performance. If Granny Fan had shown the slightest flaw to the snake spirit, or if the snake spirit had remained unconvinced and fought the exhausted Granny Fan, she would have truly died in service, and he and the others would not have escaped a fatal end.

"Circumstances forced my hand. I was thinking quickly out of desperation, and it was just luck," Granny Fan shook her head.

"But Granny, I still have one question that puzzles me completely."

"Ask it!" Granny Fan nodded.

"I remember you relied on an artifact in your pocket to scare away that female ghost and snake spirit. I clearly saw you put your hand into the pouch, and it was bulging, truly looking like some formidable object." Young Master Liu voiced the many questions he held, immediately following up with, "If this involves your secret and you're not comfortable sharing, just pretend I never asked."

"Heh heh... Child, do you really think Granny is hoarding some treasure?" Granny Fan smiled. "If I truly possessed a treasure, I would have used it long ago, why bother tricking that female ghost? I know you want to know what was in my pouch. Fine, I’ll show you!" Saying this, Granny Fan unhooked the yellow cloth pouch hanging from her waist and tossed it directly to Young Master Liu. Young Master Liu hastily untied it, fumbled out the round object inside, then pursed his lips, looking helplessly at Granny Fan, who mirrored his expression of helplessness.

That was hardly an artifact; it was clearly a bright red apple.

"Granny likes to eat apples, so I carry one in my pocket every day. I never expected it could be useful at such a critical moment," Granny Fan scratched a yellow tooth and smiled sheepishly. Thankfully, the snake spirit had left. If she had overheard this conversation between the old woman and the youth, and understood what this supposed ultimate move truly was, she would probably have spat three liters of blood and smashed her head into the ground.

"I see," Young Master Liu's expression darkened, and he instantly plummeted into despair.

"Child, don't lose heart; where is your fighting spirit?" Granny Fan understood what Young Master Liu was thinking and tried to comfort him, "Although Granny isn't very powerful, I am still confident I can save these three children."

"Really?" Young Master Liu suddenly lifted his head and asked excitedly.

"Yes."

"But I need someone to do me a favor! It’s not a small thing, nor is it insignificant."

"Can I do it?" Young Master Liu pointed at himself.

Granny Fan's eyes, narrowed to slits, hesitated for a moment before spitting out one word from her withered mouth: "Fine!"

"Fan Xidou, what scheming idea are you cooking up now?" Village Head Tian sneered.

Granny Fan’s lips curved slightly. "The souls of the three children were lost starting from the Lingguan Temple area, so naturally, we must start the search there. For now, someone must be entrusted to go back to the Lingguan Temple and use my talisman to bring back the trace of soul they left behind. Only when the victim's soul is partially restored can the subsequent soul-summoning proceed smoothly."

"Go—go—go back to the Lingguan Temple?" The mention of the Lingguan Temple caused Young Master Liu's previous soaring ambition to vanish into the clouds. His young face turned deathly pale, his timid expression returning, and he began to stammer.

"Exactly!" Granny Fan stated firmly. "Originally, Granny intended to go herself, but alas, my body is too weak. Being thrown by that snake spirit has left me completely depleted, so someone must be inconvenienced to complete this task for me."

"Granny, can't we skip the Lingguan Temple? Can't we think of another way? I know you're smart and have many methods," Young Master Liu pleaded with a grim face.

"No!" Granny Fan completely extinguished Young Master Liu's last flicker of hope. "This is, as of now, the best and only method. If we don't retrieve this trace of soul soon, before venturing to the Underworld to pull back their remaining spirits, the three children will completely pass away in seven days. By then, even Granny will have no recourse."

Looking at his brothers, Young Master Liu could only grit his teeth, stomp his foot, and agree: "Damn it, I agree! Isn't it just running an errand? I don't believe it can eat me alive."

"Good, courageous!" Granny Fan smiled and nodded, then slowly rose. She fumbled through the pile of scattered belongings on the ground and pulled out a sheet of yellow paper, folding it quickly into a lifelike little paper crane. Then, she picked up a wolf-hair brush, dabbed a speck of cinnabar onto the crane's eyes, blew on it, and repeated the process to fold two more paper cranes. She handed these, along with a yellow talisman inscribed with swirling dragons and phoenixes, to Young Master Liu.

"Remember, when you reach the temple, first burn some joss paper for the statues, appease the lonely spirits wandering the temple to prevent them from causing trouble and disrupting the process. I don't have joss paper, so you need to prepare it yourself. After burning the paper, light this talisman. Remember, you must wait until this talisman has completely turned to ash before releasing the three paper cranes. At that point, the cranes will lead you back. Don't lose them, because once they leave the temple, the cranes will carry Guoqiang's and the others' souls." Granny Fan instructed carefully.

"Mm, I remember everything," Young Master Liu nodded.

"Although it is still daytime, I can't shake this feeling of unease. How about finding an adult to accompany you?" Granny Fan suggested.

"No need, I can go alone," Young Master Liu replied.

"Originally, I was counting on your father; he is capable and upright, but sadly, he is bedridden now, so that’s out. Gou Dan's father is naturally timid, and now he's scared stiff, so he won't do either. Who should I find to accompany you then?" As she spoke, Granny Fan intentionally glanced in the direction of Village Head Tian.

Village Head Tian sneered, "Isn't it just entering a temple? What's the big deal? I'll accompany our grand-nephew."