Dongzi blinked, certain the money the manager had given him moments ago was a crisp hundred-yuan note when he left; how had it suddenly transformed into such a high-denomination Tiandi Bank spirit note? He instinctively took another step back, disbelief etched across his face.

Hong Kun supported Dongzi from behind, his gaze immediately falling upon his junior apprentice’s face, which was now shrouded in a dark, ashen pallor.

“Bad news, isn't this the Black Death Qi?” Hong Kun instantly pulled out an amulet and tucked it into Dongzi’s pocket. “Where did you pick up the Black Death Qi?”

Dongzi, at this moment, seemed utterly lost, as if his soul had momentarily departed. He had no comprehension of what was happening to him; Hong Kun's words sounded like the buzzing of a fly in his ears, completely inaudible to his inner self.

“Stop playing dumb! You bought the duck, now pay up, or I swear I’ll turn nasty.” As he spoke, the duck seller hefted his knife and advanced on Dongzi.

Hong Kun fished fifty yuan from his own pocket and handed it to the duck seller. “Hurry up and buy me some vinegar, and black pepper too—just enough for one dose. Keep the rest as your trouble fee. Go!”

“Huh?” The Duck Brother stared at Dongzi for a moment. “Is he actually sick? I thought he was trying to dine-and-dash. Heh, fine, for the sake of the money, I’ll run the errand; it’s not far anyway.” In a flash, the duck seller was gone and back with the items.

Dongzi remained rooted to the spot, his eyes fixed blankly on some unseen point. Sweat beaded on his forehead like tiny drops of rain, and soon, his body began to tremble violently.

“Master Hong, the things are back. Here!”

Hong Kun took the vinegar and black pepper, mixed them together, and held the concoction in his mouth. Then, using a paper charm to contain the mixture, he smeared the entire contents onto Dongzi’s face. Instantly, the layer of Black Death Qi that had coated Dongzi’s face vanished without a trace.

“Dongzi, let’s go. We need to get back to Fushoutang immediately so the Master can see what’s going on with you.” With that, Hong Kun pulled Dongzi toward the market exit. Once in the car, Dongzi’s breathing slowly regulated, but his eyes remained rigidly fixed straight ahead, completely unmoving.

Hong Kun drove recklessly fast. Upon reaching Fushoutang, he half-dragged Dongzi inside. Before they even reached the stairs, he shouted up, “Master! Master! Dongzi’s been hit! Please, come look!”

Thump-thump-thump. Zhou Huan’s light footsteps, almost a trot, descended the stairs. Seeing Dongzi’s rigid expression, coupled with the faint Black Death Qi clinging to his face, Zhou Huan immediately stripped off Dongzi’s outer shirt. “Help him into the room, lay him down, and call Da Luobo out.”

Da Luobo, hearing that her man was in trouble, nearly erupted. She rushed forward, intending to embrace Dongzi, but Zhou Huan pulled her back sharply. “You can’t touch him right now; there’s something wrong with him. You have me here—what are you afraid of?”

It was said that Zhou Huan commanded great respect. At his word, the impulsive Da Luobo restrained herself. Hong Kun helped Dongzi into his own room and laid him onto the bed.

Hong Kun then looked at his hands, which were now covered in a black, turbid residue. Zhou Huan immediately commanded Shi Bingyuan and Tian Xiong, “Get me glutinous rice, and quickly—also nuomi jiu (sticky rice wine)!”

In a short while, the rice wine and glutinous rice were arranged inside Dongzi’s room.

“Hong Kun, you first. Wash your hands with the glutinous rice, then take a sip of the rice wine and go rest in your room. You don’t need to stay here; you’ve absorbed some Black Death Qi yourself, so don’t exert yourself too much.” As he spoke, Zhou Huan grabbed a handful of glutinous rice and vigorously rubbed it between his palms. He then took a sip of the wine, swallowing half, and sprayed the remaining half directly onto Dongzi’s face. Immediately, the black energy on Dongzi’s face began to slowly dissipate. Zhou Huan then used the glutinous rice to scrub Dongzi’s chest until the rice grains were rubbed slick and oily black. Only then did he instruct Shi Bingyuan to help Dongzi sit up and force him to drink the rice wine. After two great bowls were consumed, Dongzi’s body began to shake uncontrollably, and cold sweat poured from him, carrying a faint, fetid odor and a somewhat murky color.

“Dongzi! Dongzi!” Zhou Huan shouted his name while slapping his cheek. “Dongzi, wake up! Wake up!”

In just the time it took to complete this, over two hours had passed. Hong Kun had managed to nap and had come downstairs again.

“Master, how is Dongzi?” Hong Kun asked as soon as he entered the room.

Zhou Huan didn’t answer, continuing to slap Dongzi’s face and call out his name repeatedly. After another short wait, Dongzi’s cheek convulsed violently, and a stream of black fluid was forcefully ejected, heavily scented with alcohol.

“Master, what on earth is going on? Why have both junior apprentices been afflicted?” Bingyuan asked anxiously.

Zhou Huan finally found a moment to pause. “Give him another mouthful of wine, and he’ll be fine soon. Let’s talk outside.”

Zhou Huan was drenched in sweat. He stepped out, wiped his brow with a towel, and sat down in the main hall, where his disciples assembled in their usual places.

“Master, what happened to Dongzi? I saw he was completely covered in Black Death Qi! Isn’t that the poison of the Black Death Zombie?” Tian Xiong inquired of Zhou Huan.

Zhou Huan nodded and took a sip of tea. “Anyone can recognize the Black Death Qi, but this particular Qi has a characteristic: it won't manifest until two hours after contact. The poison takes hold three hours in, so generally, no one can detect it before it activates.”

“Master, so that means Dongzi might have contracted it three hours ago when he was buying vegetables at the market? Was it then?” Hong Kun recalled the scene at the market but couldn't pinpoint the exact moment of contamination. However, his strongest suspicion centered on that spirit note. He then recounted everything that had happened at the market to the group.

Zhou Huan rested one hand on his chin. “That is the most suspicious element. Dongzi’s money must have come from his manager, or perhaps the duck seller switched the money when the purchase was made. But I deal with Brother Duck often; he is not a malicious person and wouldn’t usually resort to such tricks.”

“Then the most likely culprit is Dongzi’s manager. He must be the poisoner, or perhaps he is the Black Death Zombie!” Hong Kun analyzed with alarm.

Zhou Huan nodded, but then a thought struck him. “Bad! If the problem truly stemmed from that money, then the duck seller must also be infected! Quick, Tian Xiong, take the glutinous rice, rice wine, and charms, and go find Brother Duck immediately! If he’s fine, all the better; if he’s afflicted, treat him right away.”

“Understood!”

“Do exactly as I did with Dongzi, chanting the Jing Shen Zhou (Purification Incantation) in your heart,” Zhou Huan instructed Tian Xiong one last time.

“Master, what’s our next move? It seems the manager is deliberately trying to trap us!” Bingyuan remarked.

Zhou Huan fell into deep contemplation for a moment, then turned back. “No matter. This is manageable. Tonight, we proceed with our Grand Offering to Summon Souls as planned, acting as if nothing happened. Tomorrow, we’ll have Dongzi return to work, and we will follow him discreetly. However, one rule remains: since this person is so cunning, from this moment forward, someone must always be stationed at Fushoutang. No one leaves the premises empty.”

“Master, how about this: I’ll stay home to guard the place. If anything happens here while you are out, I can handle it.”

“Agreed. Then Bingyuan comes with me, and Tian Xiong follows me. Dongzi will continue to serve as bait. I want to see what entity is lurking behind these dead men,” Zhou Huan snarled, grinding his teeth together with a loud ka-ka-ka.

Just then, Dongzi slowly walked out of the inner room. The first thing he said to Zhou Huan was, “Brother, what happened to me today? I feel so groggy, constantly running into these bizarre things.”

“It’s nothing, you’ll be fine soon. Stay here at Fushoutang for now; even ordinary spirits probably won’t dare trespass on our grounds. Oh, and didn't you mention that your company's driver was acting strangely in Hu Tingting’s room?”

“Yes, he kept saying his eyelids were twitching and that if he won money tonight, he’d burn a horse for Tingting. I’m afraid he’s going to have some problem tonight.” Dongzi’s analytical ability was surprisingly sharp at this point.

Zhou Huan considered the matter deeply. “Here’s what we’ll do: tonight, you and Bingyuan will conduct the soul-summoning here at home. Once Tian Xiong returns, I’ll take him to find that driver.”