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墨書 Inktalez
The moment I pulled the blanket over my head, I truly felt myself relax. Unlike most people, sometimes I enjoy the darkness because it allows me to see less, and with fewer distractions, my thoughts become clearer.
Reflecting on the events of that short day, it wasn't exactly a brush with death, but it was certainly thrilling. It all began when the three of us went to investigate Tsuchiya. I encountered that strange copper lock, then rushed to wash my hands in that broken water jar and ended up getting poisoned. When I regained consciousness, Master Li was already treating me. Later, because Master Li left the Gu Poison Jar and the bell behind, my body was controlled by the Insect of Sorcery. Fortunately, Master Xiao arrived just in time to pull me back from the brink of being poisoned again.
On the surface, it seemed I was indeed quite unfortunate. Both times I was controlled by the sorcery were due to my own actions; they had nothing to do with anyone else. Aside from Master Li leaving the Gu Poison Jar and bell in my room, everything else seemed to follow a natural course. Then again, if this was truly a deliberate act by Master Li, what could he possibly gain? As a highly respected elder, he had no motive to target a young junior like me. If he intended to use my body to nurture sorcery, that was even more impossible; both My Master and Master Pan were present. No matter how bold he might be, he wouldn't dare do such a thing. Besides, he seemed so approachable that he hardly resembled a deceitful person.
I recalled that the Gu Poison Jar here was identical to the one in Tsuchiya. My understanding of sorcery is shallow; I only know that such things exist. This alone doesn't explain much; these Gu Poison Jars are mass-produced, so it's normal for them to look alike.
Feeling stifled under the covers, I threw off the blanket and saw Master Xiao humming a tune while tearing open a bucket of instant noodles by the TV cabinet. The kettle next to him was steaming hot; he had already started preparing his meal. Watching his carefree demeanor stirred something in my heart, and I raised my left hand to pat my forehead, thinking perhaps I was overthinking things.
Seeing me uncover myself, Master Xiao asked, "Do you want some instant noodles?" Before I could respond, he continued on his own, "By the way, that girl said you can't eat anything for eight hours. Ha ha."
"Where did you get those noodles?" I asked.
"From that cabinet over there; there are plenty of other snacks too," Master Xiao pointed to a small cabinet near the door.
"Oh come on, those noodles are from my room; I have to pay for them. Even if I treat you this time, let's call it even," I replied calmly.
Master Xiao turned to look at me seriously and said, "So you're saying your life is worth just a bucket of instant noodles?"
"Are you implying that your life-saving grace is only worth one meal? Young man, lighten up a bit; stop being so calculative. It makes you seem particularly stingy. You already don't have much going for you in looks; being so picky will make it hard for you to find someone in the future," I said earnestly.
Master Xiao rolled his eyes and replied, "You're right; fine then, we're even." After saying this, he turned back and focused on tearing open his noodle packaging.
There were two sharp knocks at the door. Without looking up, Master Xiao said, "The door's not closed; come in."
"Brother Liu, are you alright?" Xiaorou walked in as she spoke.
I turned around with a grin and said, "I'm fine; just feeling a bit weak. A good sleep will fix it. How did you come back so quickly? Have you finished eating?"
Xiaorou was searching for something in the room as she replied, "Nope. My master didn't take his Gu Poison Jar and bell because he saw some Taoist seniors coming over and wanted to drink with them for a while. Plus, since there's sorcery in that Gu Poison Jar, it's not suitable to take it out to eat."
"Placing it here is fine, but you didn't warn me not to touch it. I almost drank what was inside your Jar," I said with a chuckle.
Xiaorou frowned at my words and replied, "You didn't accidentally touch that bell, did you?"
I responded, "Yeah, what kind of bug is that? It's so powerful. I just kicked the bell by accident, and after it rang once, my body went out of control."
Xiaorou laughed lightly and said, "It's nothing serious. That bug was cultivated from a Yin spirit. I'll explain more later. I'm here to take the Gu Poison Jar and the bell back to give to Master."
At that moment, Master Xiao had perfectly torn open the noodles, and hot water had already been poured in. With a fork in his mouth, he said, "The bug in your Gu Poison Jar has already been burned away by me. I don't know if it was completely destroyed. You're the expert; can you check?"
After hearing this, Xiaorou nodded, picked up the Gu Poison Jar, and also grabbed the bell from the ground. "This bug is harmful with no benefits. Even if you didn't burn it completely, my master will handle it when he takes it back. So there's no need to worry. I'm off now, bye!" With that, she turned to leave.
At the door, she didn't go out immediately but set down the Gu Poison Jar and the bell, saying, "Brother Liu, may I use your restroom?"
"Sure, feel free to use it, Xiaorou. And remember to thank Master Li for me," I replied as I slowly closed my eyes and prepared to sleep.
"Got it," came Xiaorou's voice from the bathroom.
It was already late, and after all the commotion, I was exhausted. As soon as I closed my eyes, I fell asleep within seconds.
In the middle of the night, I heard the sound of a drill and some banging noises but paid no mind; they were probably fixing the door.
Around two in the morning, Master Xiao woke me up from a distance. Yawning, he said to me, "I can't hold on any longer; I'm going back to sleep. Your master said you should rest well tonight. Tomorrow morning we'll head to Tsuchiya to set things up for tomorrow night’s work. We’ll leave at five; since you're familiar with the route, it'll just be the four of us going. Your Alarm Clock is already set."
I nodded and said, "Thanks; you should go get some rest." Although Master Xiao could be a bit single-minded at times, he was considerate when it mattered. He noticed I hadn’t fallen asleep yet and didn’t leave until he really couldn’t stay awake any longer.
After he left and closed the door behind him, I shut my eyes again and tried to sleep. A question lingered in my mind: why didn’t Master invite Brother Zhou and the others along? But I didn’t have the energy to ponder it further; soon enough there would be answers.
However, as soon as I fell asleep, nightmares began to plague me—swarms of insects tearing at each other around me before slowly crawling onto my body. Some even burrowed into my skin. There was no pain, but that nauseating feeling jolted me awake.
When I woke up drenched in sweat, my left hand throbbed faintly with pain. Glancing at my bedside clock revealed it was still just past two o'clock—less than ten minutes since Master Xiao had left after putting me to sleep. The nightmare had come swiftly and ended just as quickly.
This kind of dream is quite unusual; we call it the New Sleep Nightmare. It occurs as soon as one falls asleep, without any prelude, plunging directly into a nightmare that jolts one awake immediately. I’ve heard from my master that some unscrupulous practitioners use this method to harm others. Once someone falls victim to it, they can hardly sleep at all, as they will be startled awake every time they doze off. Within just a few days, it can torment a person to the point where they seem neither human nor ghost, which is truly cruel.
I sat up in bed and formed a sword gesture with my fingers, drawing a Hand Spell on my forehead—the same Hand Spell I taught everyone earlier to dispel nightmares. After completing the Hand Spell, I lay back down and didn’t dream again, sleeping soundly until the Alarm Clock rang.
When the Alarm Clock went off, Master Xiao was already knocking at the door. I twisted my neck and stretched a bit, feeling much better. Aside from a slight fatigue, I felt fine; the wound on my left hand no longer hurt. I thought to myself that Xiaorou’s ointment really is quite effective.
I got up to open the door for Master Xiao, who was already standing there with his Cosmic Bag on his back. He said, “You wash up first; I’ll go call the two masters. After you’re done, gather in My Master’s room.”
I nodded and turned to head into the bathroom.
Looking at myself in the mirror, although my complexion was still slightly pale and there were fine black marks on the mirror’s surface, it didn’t detract from my overall spirited appearance. After giving myself a confident and charming smile, I began to wash up.
My left hand was injured; although it no longer hurt, I still couldn’t get it wet. Washing my face and brushing my teeth while also trying to wash my hair with one hand was quite a struggle. The hotel environment looked decent enough, but the hygiene in the bathroom was rather average. There were tiny black spots on the packaging of the disposable toothbrush and toothpaste, and similar spots on the toilet lid. Fortunately, I’m used to bringing my own toiletries when I travel, so it didn’t affect me much.
The update for six o'clock is here; don’t forget to vote, everyone! I've already been pulled down from sixth place. After reading this, please cast a golden ticket if you can. Thank you! I won’t often ask for votes—just this month is crucial in October; please bear with me a little more.
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