Young Master Liu managed a smile: "It's just that I'm worried this mountain might have... might have... something unclean on it. If we had some talismans or something, that would be good!"

Su Yougui suddenly interjected, "I have newspapers, will that work?" Fan Debiao was about to chide the young man for his foolishness—what could newspaper possibly have to do with talismans?—when he saw Young Master Liu clap his thigh in delight: "That’s perfect, bring them quickly!"

Fan Debiao could hardly believe his ears. "Newspapers work too? I have some on me, for smoking!"

Young Master Liu took a few sheets of newspaper and carefully tore them into neat strips. Frowning, he asked, "There are no brushes here. Which of you is still a virgin?"

Huang Shitou asked, "What’s a virgin?"

Fan Debiao impatiently explained, "It means someone who hasn't touched a woman..."

Huang Shitou replied, "Well, I'm not then. I held hands with a girl in primary school!" Fan Debiao nearly fell over laughing. Only after a more detailed explanation did everyone realize that Huang Shitou was, in fact, still a virgin. Fan Debiao stared at Su Yougui, thinking: This kid is quite something, to have achieved that by eighteen...

Young Master Liu plucked a thorn from an acacia tree and swiftly pricked a tiny hole in Huang Shitou's thumb, using the sharp point to draw blood. With that single drop, he sketched several blood talismans on the paper strips. "These are ghost-expelling talismans," Liu announced. "Keep them in your pockets, just for peace of mind!" After the commotion of the previous night, everyone vaguely felt they could no longer trust what they read in books. They silently took the talismans and tucked them away. Huang Shitou clutched his hand, asking fearfully, "Mr. Liu... Mr. Liu, do we need to draw more talismans?"

Young Master Liu cut in, "We'll draw more only when needed. Drawing them now would be a waste!" Hearing this, Huang Shitou nearly burst into tears.

Fan Debiao, finding this quite intriguing, asked, "Say, little brother Liu, I often hear people talk about Daoist priests drawing talismans. Can you tell me what use these charms actually have? Do ghosts actually fear the ones drawn by people?"

Young Master Liu chuckled, "I can't speak for other Daoists. But the talismans passed down from our Dragon-Tiger Mountain... they aren't for ghosts to look at—they're for people!"

Fan Debiao became interested. "Brother, back when we were smashing the 'Four Olds,' I caught some so-called masters. They all claimed these talismans were useless nonsense, just a trick. What's your take on that?" Since this concerned the reputation of his sect, Young Master Liu grew solemn. "Look at this ghost-expelling talisman I drew. It has a specific design, called the 'Diagram of Vitality.' See how these strokes flow? They are full of vigorous life force. Ghosts are formed from death; what they fear most is qi—living energy. Humans are different; when people look at this drawing, their own spirits lift considerably!" The explanation was perfectly reasonable; the men nodded constantly, thinking: This man is truly different from those fraudulent peddlers!

They walked on as they spoke. The hilltop wasn't large, and the trees weren't dense. But after walking for a long time, they still hadn't descended. Ge Shuanwa grew impatient and swung his machete, hacking into a nearby tree: "How long is this going to take? Damn it all..."

Young Master Liu surveyed their surroundings and said, "Don't rush. Let's walk a bit further and see!" The group walked on for a while, then Young Master Liu suddenly called out loudly, "It is just as I thought! We must have entered an illusion array!" The others were confused. Liu pointed a hand, and they looked—the fresh cut mark from Ge Shuanwa’s recent swing was visible on a tree ahead!

Fan Debiao’s heart sank: "We’ve been walking in circles for half the day?" Young Master Liu was also perplexed. Good heavens, an illusion array set up in this desolate wilderness?

Fan Debiao asked, "What do we do now? Do we have to break some kind of formation?" Young Master Liu replied, "If the array is set up in this ridge, its foundations must be deep and wide. Digging it out would take until nightfall!"

Seeing the anxious looks on everyone's faces, Young Master Liu reassured them, "It's alright. The fact that there is an array means we’ve found the right place!" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I sensed this place wasn't simple long ago."

Just then, Ge Shuanwa’s machete fell to the ground with a clatter. His whole body seized up, and he pointed a trembling finger toward a spot in the woods. Everyone looked up and saw a woman in red, her hair disheveled, standing amidst the trees ahead...

Huang Shitou immediately spun around backward. Being short, he slammed directly into Young Master Liu’s nose. Liu inhaled sharply in pain and sputtered, "Hey, can you watch where you're going? Don't injure your own side before we even meet the main character!"

Huang Shitou dared not turn around, his teeth chattering: "Mr. Liu... that... that woman..." The other four men were already frozen in place, too terrified to move, but they heard Young Master Liu say calmly, "Look closely, don't be afraid..." Then, he actually started walking toward the woman in red. Fan Debiao was usually quite brave, but facing such strange phenomena, he simply couldn't match Young Master Liu's composure. Seeing Liu’s unexpected boldness, he couldn't help but admire him inwardly.

Young Master Liu strode over, grabbed the woman's hair with a swift yank, and pulled. What he held was merely a red cloak with a fur-lined collar. The group let out a collective sigh of relief. Young Master Liu laughed heartily, "It's a costume! It’s from that opera performance years ago—Mu Guiying Takes Command. They don't let them perform it anymore, so you kids haven't seen it. But I recognized it instantly... Haha!"

Having shown off his knowledge, Young Master Liu felt quite smug and a little condescending. Seeing how tense everyone still was, he squinted and lectured, "The sun hasn't even set yet! How could any real ghost dare to come out? If one did, it wouldn't be an ordinary ghost, at least a Sha! Stop scaring yourselves. I tell you, back when they performed this play, that actress playing Mu, when she snapped her whip and threw this cloak, the fur on the collar stood straight up—so magnificent! Are we mere men lesser than a woman? As the saying goes..."

Before Young Master Liu could finish, a pig-slaughtering scream echoed from Huang Shitou. The other four men were already stumbling backward, fleeing. Su Yougui’s legs gave out, and after crawling a few times on the ground, he finally sprang up. Young Master Liu shook his head, only to see the cloak in his hand instantly disintegrate into black ash fragments. A chilling, oppressive yin energy swept over him from behind, and he inwardly cursed, Not good! He whipped around instantly.

Two tiny shoes, embroidered with mandarin ducks dipping into water, were dangling right before his eyes. Realizing the gravity of the situation, his heart began to pound as he looked up. A female Diao Gua (a hanged ghost, often in opera attire) was suspended from a tree behind him. Her face, thickly coated in white paste, was as green as a bitter gourd; her protruding eyeballs looked ready to pop right out of their sockets, and a three-inch tongue lolled out of her mouth. This sight nearly exploded Young Master Liu’s heart, yet the Diao Gua curved the corner of her mouth and actually smiled at him.

Young Master Liu immediately wet his pants. With a move he called a 'dry-land bamboo shoot,' he leaped straight backward, covering nearly three meters in the air, shouting mid-flight, "My dear ancestors!" While Liu possessed genuine skill, he couldn't handle sudden frights. If a fierce ghost slowly approached, he’d immediately dare to fight it—truly, he was the sort who wouldn't question a fierce spirit's origin, nor an outlaw's age; but if someone suddenly yelled behind him, he might break out in a cold sweat. In modern terms, he lacked mental fortitude; his improvisational skills failed him under sudden duress.

As soon as he landed, Young Master Liu sprinted away madly. All the techniques Zhang Enpu had taught him—stepping on the Big Dipper, gathering the Five Qi to the Yuan—were scared off to the Ninth Heaven.

The five men, led by Fan Debiao, ran with their guts twisted in fear, terrified that if they looked back, they would see the hanged ghost behind them. Who had time to worry about Young Master Liu? Su Yougui, the slimmest, was leading the charge, flying as if riding the clouds like the Monkey King. He ran an unknown distance when suddenly a dark shadow shot diagonally across his path, aiming straight at him. Terrified, he let out a shriek, "Waaah! Ah!" and heard a cry from the other side before they collided solidly. Both fell to the ground.

Su Yougui thought: I couldn't escape after all. He braced himself to wait for death with his eyes closed. Then he heard the other person curse loudly: "Ow, my unlucky nose... You damn it..." Peering through the dust, he saw it was none other than Young Master Liu!

Huang Shitou scrambled up to help Liu, saying, "Oh, Mr. Liu, are you alright? We were actually running to save you!" As he helped him up, he glanced back and gasped—the knife mark Ge Shuanwa made was on that same tree! They had been running for half the day and were still going in circles? His eye sockets reddened with agitation. Young Master Liu was furious inside and pointed at the group. "Are you still looking for Huang Peng? Do you want to get to the bottom of this or not? If you don't, I’ll take you all back right now!"

The four men fell silent for a moment. Fan Debiao coughed twice, stood up, and said, "Mr. Liu, let me speak for these fellows: we must investigate this. Firmly. We can’t just accept that this person vanished without a trace, body or corpse unseen!"

He glanced back at the others, then continued, "We are respectable men. We can't let seeing a few strange things scare us away. If people say we ran from a mere ghost, everyone will laugh at us—that life would truly be unlivable!"

Once Fan Debiao declared his stance, the others felt they had found their anchor. Ge Shuanwa declared, "Damn it, relying on gods or men is less reliable than relying on ourselves! Let's steel our hearts. I’m set on sorting out my brother’s affair!" Su Yougui and Huang Shitou also voiced their commitment. Huang Shitou, especially, said tearfully, "I can't let the reason for my brother’s death remain unknown! I thank you all here. From now on, if I, Huang Shitou, run away again, may lightning strike me dead!"

Young Master Liu had always admired those cadres in the corps or village who could wave their hands on stage during mobilization meetings and proclaim, "We will achieve this and that..." Now, seizing this opportunity, he stood in the middle of the group and boomed, "I remember our Ancestor Master’s writings state that between Heaven and Earth, humanity is the upright force. No matter how fierce a ghost or monster, it remains inherently evil. As long as one holds righteousness in their heart and has the will to step in when injustice is seen, how can one fear ghosts? If we work together to clarify this matter, even if, in the worst case, we can't get off the mountain, at least we will have died honorably, as true heroes!"

As the men grew stirred with fervor, he suddenly chuckled, "But just in case, I’ll draw a few more talismans for you to carry. A little extra insurance never hurts!" The others nodded eagerly in agreement. Young Master Liu called out, "Huang Shitou, come here again..."

Huang Shitou’s face turned white: "Master, again...? Do we have to...?"

Young Master Liu drew several more 'Clear Heart Talismans' and 'Luo Zhenjun Talismans' for the group, using the acacia thorn. One was placed on each man's chest and one on his back. He added, "The key is having the right mindset yourself, and believing in the talisman; only then will those monsters dare not approach!"

Seeing Young Master Liu still busy, Huang Shitou asked, "Mr. Liu, I’m a bit unclear. You said this was an illusion array—how is it set up? And how did a Diaozi ghost end up in here?"

Young Master Liu pondered for a moment and replied, "This kind of illusion array confuses people and confuses ghosts differently. People walk by relying on their eyes; ghosts walk by relying on terrestrial energy currents (Dì Qì). To confuse people, you dazzle their eyes with objects, and they follow the layout of the array. To confuse ghosts, you disrupt the flow of the terrestrial energy. I think the person who set this array up created a human-confusing array, but fearing it wasn't malevolent enough, they hanged a dead person inside. That ghost cannot escape the array to reincarnate, and over time, it too becomes fierce. This array, I fear, grows more ferocious the longer it remains!"

At this, Su Yougui suddenly interjected, "I heard that a master consecrates objects, which can break these illusion spells and ward off evil. Is that true?" Young Master Liu nodded. "It depends entirely on who does the consecration. If the person consecrating it is upright, morally sound, and full of righteousness, then the object takes on that light and can indeed repel evil. But if the person merely parades a false reputation to cheat people out of money, then such consecrated items are not only useless but actively harmful. In short, never accept anything consecrated in exchange for money!"

Hearing this, Su Yougui gasped, "Could it be that my item... is real?" Everyone immediately asked what he meant. Su Yougui recounted a story. Before the Liberation, when his mother was a young girl, she went to Guiyuan Temple in Wuhan on the first day of the Lunar New Year to burn incense. They said burning the very first incense of the year brought good luck, so Su Yougui's mother squeezed hard to get inside. While jostling, she saw an old woman fall to one side, with no one nearby offering help. Being kind-hearted, she went over and helped the old woman to a resting place. An old monk sweeping the grounds witnessed this. The monk put down his broom, called her over, and took the string of inexpensive small prayer beads from her neck. He cupped his hands, murmured a few verses, and returned them to her.

Strangely enough, from then on, Su Yougui’s mother rarely fell ill. After giving birth to Su Yougui, his mother, feeling protective of her son, gave the prayer beads to him. Su Yougui hurried on, "When I wore them around my neck, even in the freezing winter, my chest felt warm!"

At this, Young Master Liu's eyes lit up. He quickly said, "Take it out quickly! This is a precious item! With this, breaking the array might be a piece of cake!" Su Yougui mumbled uncomfortably, "That year, when the school was conducting the 'Smash the Four Olds' oath-taking ceremony, I got carried away and smashed it right in front of the teacher..."

"Oh!" Young Master Liu pouted with mock distress. "What a prodigal son you are!"

As they spoke, the five men distributed their weapons. Ge Shuanwa took the lead, carrying a heavy-duty bush knife to the front. Fan Debiao wielded a kitchen knife in the middle, and Young Master Liu took a kitchen knife to guard the rear. All three blades had been 'sharpened' with Huang Shitou's blood. According to Liu, a blade honed with virgin's blood could cleave any common evil entity in one strike. Su Yougui, unassigned a weapon, complained incessantly until Young Master Liu ordered him to hold a stick of dynamite in one hand and a lighter in the other, declaring this the ancient "Thunder That Shakes Heaven," which even demons feared. Huang Shitou was given a pine stick, pointed at both ends. Young Master Liu explained that pine is an evergreen, brimming with life force, which dark entities dread. He scoffed that some Daoists mistakenly used peach wood, which was like discarding a cartload of melons to pick up half a sesame seed.

These five men had been feeling uneasy, but hearing Young Master Liu’s boastful descriptions, they felt as if their very bodies were filled with magical artifacts. They wouldn't just handle one or two evil entities; they could even overturn the Palace of Hell! Their morale soared instantly, and color flushed back into everyone’s faces. Only Huang Shitou, pale from blood loss, leaned on his magical stick as he walked weakly in the center.

Fan Debiao asked Young Master Liu about the Diao Gua. Liu sighed, "I don't know who placed this illusion array here. But by hanging a woman inside, they intended to make the formation even more malevolent. I suspect the person who set this up is hiding something crucial we are not meant to see." After last night’s spontaneous corpse activities, the white dog flying in the sky, and now this fierce illusion array—this mountain was clearly extraordinary. Sigh! Why did I have to run into this?

As the group passed the tree where they had seen the hanged woman, everyone felt a sudden chill. Young Master Liu walked ahead and called out loudly, "Everyone close your eyes! Each person hold the shoulder of the person in front of you. This illusion array only confuses the eyes! Remember, no matter what strange sounds you hear or strange things you touch, you must not open your eyes!" The four men, who had been looking around nervously, were momentarily stunned by this strange command. What if they walked right into the hanged woman’s embrace without their eyes open?

Seeing their hesitation, Young Master Liu grew anxious. "Did you hear me? You must keep your eyes closed. Absolutely do not open them, or you’ll lose your soul!"

Fan Debiao shouted, "Alright! We trust Mr. Liu!" The others then nervously closed their eyes. Strangely, once their eyes were shut, the icy coldness on their bodies subsided somewhat, and their confidence in Young Master Liu increased significantly.

Young Master Liu had Ge Shuanwa hold his shoulder, forming a chain; Huang Shitou, being frail, was placed in the middle. Su Yougui, holding the stick of dynamite, walked at the very back. Young Master Liu held his kitchen knife across his chest, also closed his eyes, and chanted, "May the Star Lord of the North Pole descend in person, supporting this disciple out of the array..." He made a small cut on his hand with the knife, letting a few drops of blood fall onto the blade.

The Star Lord of the North Pole, one of the Four Great Emperors of the Daoist pantheon, governs the celestial paths and commands the star deities of the Three Realms. Merely muttering his name, Young Master Liu felt the knife in his hand shift, pointing in a specific direction. This was a technique from the Zhengyi Talisman Manual to channel one's inherent ability, guided by the flow of terrestrial energy—it wasn't that the Star Lord himself had descended. After all, he was far too busy to bother with a minor figure like Liu.