The name Nine-Turn Soul Suppression Formation—Jiu Zhuan Yi Hun Zhen—at first hearing, immediately conjured up scenarios of ancient lore in Kuang Feifan’s mind, the kind described in storytelling ballads about formations like the "Eight Gates Golden Lock Array" or the "Ambush from Ten Sides."

However, it was clear this formation bore no relation to those tales. Every gaze in the room settled upon the old Daoist priest.

At that moment, the old Daoist seemed to ignore everyone present. His entire being appeared utterly lost in contemplation, desperately searching the depths of his mind for an answer.

Feng Tian and Kuang Feifan were handling the wait relatively well, but Ji Ping was growing increasingly impatient. He started to speak several times, only to have his words cut off by stern looks from the other two.

Finally, he could bear it no longer and murmured, "Why don't we just go into that room and take a closer look? It shouldn't be that hard to get down from the roof anyway."

Kuang Feifan had actually considered this very suggestion but hadn't voiced it. Now that Ji Ping had spoken first, Kuang Feifan instinctively looked toward Feng Tian, waiting to see if he had any objections.

Before Feng Tian could offer an opinion, the old Daoist, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke: "No, absolutely do not enter that room."

His voice ringing out unexpectedly startled the people in the room. Looking back at him, they saw that he seemed to have returned from his reverie to the present, though his expression was grim, and his spirit appeared somewhat depleted.

"Why?" Ji Ping asked.

The old Daoist seemed to summon immense resolve, glancing at each person in turn before stating, "Because it looks like we are all going to die."

This abrupt, contextless statement left everyone momentarily stunned.

Without waiting for further questions, the old Daoist continued, "This Nine-Turn Soul Suppression Formation is not actually a Daoist art. In fact, you could call this formation an evil sorcery. Because while its surface purpose appears to be soul suppression, its rumored function is actually soul transference."

Ji Ping's restless state caused him to interrupt without restraint: "Soul transference? What do you mean by soul transference?"

"It is simple: transferring one person's soul onto another. However, the function of this formation is to transfer the soul suppressed within the formation onto a specific person," the old Daoist said, his reason gradually returning and his complexion starting to normalize.

Yet, his description still shocked everyone in the room, primarily because the application of this formation sounded so utterly fantastical.

Kuang Feifan asked with a measure of disbelief, "Daoist Master, are you saying the formation set up in that room is actually intended to transfer the suppressed spirit onto someone else? Onto whom? How does it transfer? Why would it do that?"

This rapid-fire interrogation caused the old Daoist to offer a bitter smile. After a moment of thought, he began to answer each point. "It appears so. I don't know why it would be this way. My Master explicitly told me that a haunting spirit was suppressed in that room. I have strictly followed his instructions, setting up altars and performing rituals on specific dates, hoping to dissolve the spirit’s resentment. I never imagined that this formation was actually inside that room. Could it be that my Master..."

When the Master was mentioned, the old Daoist could no longer continue. Although he said no more, everyone understood his implication. Hearing the function of the Nine-Turn Soul Suppression Formation, it was clear that what the old Daoist’s Master had told him years ago was not the whole truth. The supposed suppression of a spirit was merely a smokescreen. But could his true intention have been to transfer the spirit within the formation onto someone else?

For a time, numerous questions still swirled in everyone's minds, seeming to multiply, until they no longer knew which one to ask first.

Exchanging glances, Kuang Feifan spoke up first. "Right, Daoist Master, you just told us not to enter that room. I want to know if there is any danger in there. Also, you said we would all die? What... what does that mean?"

The old Daoist let out a long sigh and said gravely, "Nine-Turn Soul Suppression. The reason I call it an evil art lies in those nine turns. The condition for soul transference requires nine lives. Using the souls of these nine people as a medium, the soul trapped in the formation can then be transferred to the designated person."

It certainly sounded sinister.

Feng Tian, standing nearby, frowned and murmured to himself for a while before suddenly raising his voice: "No way, nine people. Does that mean that starting with Luo Jingjing, this formation has already begun its work?"

The old Daoist seemed to have anticipated this. Hearing Feng Tian's words, he merely nodded: "Not just Luo Jingjing, but everyone subsequently involved counts."

Ji Ping couldn't help but interject, "I'm included in that?"

Feng Tian’s expression darkened; he was clearly deeply displeased. He retorted, "Of course. Let’s just count: Luo Jingjing, Old Hou, Wang Hai, Miss Zhang, Zhao Hongcheng, me, you, Kuang Feifan, and the Daoist Master—exactly nine people. The problem is, who will the soul in the formation ultimately transfer to?"

The old Daoist appeared surprisingly composed, as if he had accepted the full impact of the situation. Continuing Feng Tian's thought, he stated, "The target of the transfer is among these nine people. As for who that is, it should be related to the incantations within the formation, but I only know these things by hearsay; I don't understand how to operate the array."

Kuang Feifan said thoughtfully, "If the spirit suppressed in that formation is that servant and that young lady from years ago, does activating the formation now mean their goal is to transfer themselves onto others?"

The old Daoist nodded. "It seems to be the only possibility."

Kuang Feifan shook his head slightly, confusion etched on his face. "But why? And the first person to have trouble was Luo Jingjing. By rights, she is a member of the Luo family, possibly even a descendant of that young lady’s child. Do they disregard bloodline just for soul transference?"

No one seemed able to answer this question. The records the old Daoist had previously investigated contained no related information.

It was Feng Tian who suddenly spoke up: "Unless we're wrong, and Luo Jingjing isn't a descendant of the Luo family."

The others paused. A notion sparked in Kuang Feifan's mind, and a vague memory surfaced. He turned to Ji Ping. "By the way, do you still have the record from when you gave your statement at the gas station?"

"What for?" Ji Ping countered.

Kuang Feifan waved his hand. "It doesn't matter if you have it or not, do you remember the content? Besides Luo Jingjing being surnamed Luo, was there anyone else surnamed Luo at that gas station?"

Ji Ping thought for a moment and shook his head. "I don't think so."

Kuang Feifan let out a disappointed 'oh,' then pressed on with reluctant determination. "What was the surname of the person in charge of the gas station?"

Ji Ping recalled. "I think his surname was Lu. What’s wrong? Do you think he has something to do with this?"

Kuang Feifan nodded. "Perhaps. I had a fleeting thought before, and now I feel more and more that something is suspicious. You haven't forgotten, have you? How quickly they shut down the gas station after the incident. If what others said is true, no one at the station should have known why Luo Jingjing was working there, and Zhao Hongcheng, the only one who knew, was unconscious that night. But right after they had trouble, the manager shut the place down. Isn't that suspicious?"

Normally, Ji Ping would have expressed skepticism about such an assertion, finding the evidence insufficient to point to suspicion. But under the current circumstances, he dismissed the lack of proof and followed Kuang Feifan’s line of reasoning, nodding involuntarily.

"You mean that Manager Lu knew about Luo Jingjing's situation all along and simply let her stay at the gas station. That means he might understand what's going on."

Kuang Feifan nodded noncommittally.

Ji Ping gritted his teeth. "Fine. I’ll find him again right now and ask him directly."

Kuang Feifan waved his hand, signaling him to wait. He then turned back to the old Daoist. "Regarding this formation, is there anything else we should be aware of?"

The old Daoist blinked, not quite grasping the meaning of the question.

Kuang Feifan quickly clarified, "I mean, what method does this formation intend to use to kill us?"

Seeing Kuang Feifan’s apparently indifferent demeanor while asking such a question, the old Daoist felt a surge of emotion. He hadn't expected Kuang Feifan to be so unconcerned about life and death. In truth, it wasn't that Kuang Feifan wasn't afraid to die; rather, his recent experiences had led him to unconsciously develop a coping mechanism: the greater the trouble ahead, the harder he tried to relax.

"I don't know what method, but it is rumored that every time someone dies, a flame will ignite on the copper dish within the formation, and the grease in that dish is actually corpse oil."

Kuang Feifan involuntarily grimaced, connecting this to what he’d seen on the surveillance monitors moments ago. A chill ran down his spine, and the others involuntarily recoiled, looking distinctly uncomfortable.

Ji Ping asked with some confusion, "I didn't see any flame on the monitor earlier. If Luo Jingjing was one of them, shouldn't a flame have appeared when she died?"

"It is said that the flames ignited within the formation cannot be seen by the naked eye; you can only feel them upon contact. But if you touch it—even a slight brush—the invisible fire can reduce you to ashes, thereby becoming another flame in the formation," the old Daoist said, his voice sounding somewhat eerie, perhaps only in Kuang Feifan's imagination.

Ji Ping shivered. No wonder he forbade everyone from entering the room earlier; if there was an invisible flame inside, and someone accidentally touched it, wouldn't they fall right into the killing mechanism of this wicked formation?

"Damn it, so what do we do now?" Ji Ping blurted out, extremely frustrated.

Feng Tian asked the old Daoist with some uncertainty, "Is there any way to break this Nine-Turn Soul Suppression Formation?"

The old Daoist shook his head. "I don't know. I’ve never heard of a way to break it."

Kuang Feifan asked hesitantly, "Judging by the current situation, apart from Luo Jingjing, none of us has encountered anything that seriously threatened our lives. Is the formation's method of killing like cutting meat with a dull knife—slowly?"

This time, before the old Daoist could answer, Feng Tian seemed to have realized something and picked up where he left off: "If my guess is right, the reason we are safe right now is because of Old Hou and Zhao Hongcheng, who are in the hospital—or rather, because of Old Hou, since he used talismans to destroy Luo Jingjing's corpse."

Kuang Feifan didn't quite understand, but the old Daoist couldn't help but nod. "That's possible. Perhaps Old Hou’s unintentional action, using the talismans, caused a backlash in the formation. However, I doubt it could destroy the activated formation."

Before his words fully faded, their phones rang almost simultaneously, one after the other. Both men pulled out their phones at nearly the same instant. Seeing the caller ID on their respective screens, they were startled and exchanged a look.

"Aunt Hou," Feng Tian said with a frown, sounding worried.

"Wang Hai," Kuang Feifan stated, his eyes similarly filled with apprehension.