From Paper Craftsman to World-Suppressing Immortal

The officials from the Tianjin government arrived quickly. Squads of police officers, carrying flashlights, shone so brightly at the entrance to the underground cave that people couldn't open their eyes. The voices of these officers and the crisp sound of their leather boots hitting the ground mingled together, completely breaking the silence of this abandoned and dilapidated house.

Zhang Zhixuan leaned against the cave wall, using the effects of the Qingling Pill to regain some strength. He looked up and saw that the police officers had already entered the cave under the command of their leader.

Soon, the area was completely sealed off, and police officers with guns at their waists and solemn expressions were on guard duty everywhere.

The captain with the small mustache who had been talking while lying at the cave entrance had now arrived in front of Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen.

"Master Pei! You are truly the pillar of stability in our Jincheng! This series of disappearances that has been causing widespread panic, you solved it all with a single move! I admire you from the bottom of my heart, I admire you wholeheartedly!"

"Captain Lu, you're too kind." Pei Shouzhen said in a flat tone, clearly unmoved by such flattery.

"Who is this?" At this moment, the bearded officer noticed Zhang Zhixuan, who was still resting against the cave wall.

"Zhang Zhixuan, the lay Buddhist, was the one who solved this case with me."

"Oh my, Mr. Zhang Zhixuan, it's a pleasure to meet you! Let me introduce myself. I am Lu Bingyi, the captain of the patrol team of the Tianjin Prefectural Police."

"Captain Lu, it's the middle of the night, you must be tired," Zhang Zhixuan said.

"Oh, not at all. You two are the ones who have worked hard. You two should rest first, and I'll arrange for my people to get back to work."

After exchanging pleasantries with Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen, Lu Bingyi waved his hand and loudly ordered, "Everyone listen up! Immediately seal off the entire area! One guard every three steps, one sentry every five steps! No unauthorized personnel are allowed to approach! Inventory the bodies, rescue the trapped civilians, and protect the evidence at the scene. Not a single mistake is allowed! Do you understand?"

"Yes, Captain Lu!"

The detectives responded in unison, quickly setting up a cordon, moving the body, and the paramedics, each performing their duties and acting swiftly.

Pei Shouzhen nodded slightly, his tired expression still tinged with worry. He then stepped forward and instructed Lu Linyi, "Captain Lu, there are still some witchcraft and evil artifacts remaining here. Please tell all the detectives to be extremely careful during the operation. Also, I have given all the people inside the cocoons a specially made Cleansing Pill, which will help expel the poison from their bodies. In addition, the two corpses here are the perpetrators of this case, who have already been executed. These two were cult witchcraft practitioners with many evil artifacts on their bodies. Please have someone from your department properly seal them away."

"Master Pei, please rest assured, I understand! I understand!" Lu Bingyi still had that charming smile on his face. He smiled and agreed, then waved his hand, summoning several tall and strong detectives from the police station to take Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen away from the cave.

Just as the group left the witchcraft cave, a series of chaotic and hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the dilapidated house, followed by a jumble of voices and the crisp clicking of camera shutters.

Hearing the sudden noise, the group looked in the direction of the sound.

Soon, a group of reporters, armed with pens and paper and carrying cameras, stormed through the outer perimeter of police officers and broke through. The reporters swarmed over and surrounded the three men.

"Captain Lu, is this the case that shocked Tianjin with its series of disappearances?"

"What was found in the cave? Is it demons or evil spirits harming people?"

"Have all the missing people been rescued? Were there any casualties?"

"Excuse me, are you two the Taoist detectives who solved this case?"

The reporters' noisy questions rose and fell, and flashes of light shone frequently in the night, dazzling the eyes.

Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen were also surrounded by reporters, leaving them in a very awkward situation, unable to move forward or backward. Flashbulbs kept going off, and questions kept coming in, causing the scene to briefly get out of control.

Lu Linyi was clearly much more at ease in this situation.

He quickly stepped forward, spreading his arms to block the crowd of reporters, and loudly proclaimed in an authoritative tone, "Dear reporters! Please calm down! Please calm down! This case is of great importance and is not yet fully closed. Details cannot be disclosed at this time! Your two experts have worked tirelessly all night and are exhausted, in dire need of rest! We, the police department, will release all further updates on the case as soon as possible, without any concealment!"

As he spoke, he subtly signaled to his subordinates, and several police officers immediately stepped forward, gently but firmly separating the reporters to form a human wall.

Lu Bingyi bowed and gestured for Pei Shouzhen and Zhang Zhixuan to proceed, then lowered his voice and said, "Daoist Master, Layman Zhang, this place is not suitable for you to linger. I have arranged a car to take you both back to your lodgings to rest. Leave all other matters to me!"

Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen nodded and said no more.

Just as the group was about to leave, a slender figure suddenly emerged from the chaotic crowd. The person picked up a camera and snapped a series of photos of Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen's faces.

The blinding camera flash made Zhang Zhixuan instinctively raise his hand to shield his eyes. At the same time, he also saw the reporter clearly. She was a young woman wearing a black wide-brimmed hat, a white shirt, and overalls. She had short hair that reached her ears, and her eyebrows and eyes were delicate and sharp. She was holding a camera and constantly trying to take pictures from various angles.

Upon seeing the young female reporter in overalls, Lu Bingyi immediately felt a headache coming on and quickly stopped her; "Oh my, my dear young lady, what are you doing here? If something happens to you, I can't bear the responsibility..."

As Lu Bingyi was speaking, he was about to reach out to stop her, but the young female reporter slipped past him as nimbly as an eel, grabbed her camera, and ran straight toward the entrance of the witchcraft cave.

"Master Pei, Layman Zhang, a car has been arranged outside. Please go back and rest. I have other matters to attend to, so please excuse me..." After saying this, Lu Bingyi quickly went to chase after the female reporter.

Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen finally managed to escape from the crowd of reporters. Accompanied by two police officers, they arrived at a black sedan. The driver respectfully opened the door, and the two bowed as they got into the car.

The soft seats slightly relieved my fatigue and temporarily isolated me from the noise and flashing lights of the outside world.

The car slowly started and drove through the streets and alleys of Tianjin late at night, heading towards the Tianhou Temple.

About half an hour later, the black sedan came to a steady stop in front of the Tin Hau Temple.

Zhang Zhixuan and Pei Shouzhen got out of the carriage, turned around, pushed open the temple door, passed through the front hall, and headed straight for the side hall.

The old lady, who had already gone to bed, heard the noise outside, put on her clothes, got up, and went out to check.

Upon seeing Pei Shouzhen and Zhang Zhixuan return looking disheveled, the old lady sighed softly, her voice filled with concern: "Master Pei, Layman Zhang, what happened in the middle of the night? Quickly clean yourselves up, I'll get you something to eat, fill your stomachs, and then you can get a good night's sleep!"

Hearing this, Zhang Zhixuan felt a long-lost warmth welling up in his heart. He and Pei Shouzhen agreed and went to take a bath and change into clean clothes before going to the kitchen.

The old lady cooked two bowls of clay pot noodles and also took out a few fragrant and crispy oven-baked sesame cakes.

The casserole contained fresh shrimp soup, which was delicious and flavorful. After taking a sip, Zhang Zhixuan felt completely relaxed, and his fatigue was instantly relieved. He then took a couple of bites of the crispy sesame flatbread, and he felt that there was no better way to enjoy the food than this.

As they ate, they talked about the many mysteries of the day. Zhang Zhixuan told Pei Shouzhen in detail how he obtained the jade cicada and the story of the paper wife appearing in his dream that night.

"Looking back now, the scene of that dream, that strange coldness that spread from my hands to my chest and almost crawled into my forehead, must have been caused by that strange jade cicada."

Pei Shouzhen remained noncommittal: "Presumably, that evil spirit intends to use this jade cicada to burrow into your brow, thereby controlling Zhang Jushi's physical body..."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhixuan pondered the matter carefully and suddenly remembered the mystery that had been troubling him.

He couldn't understand why, on that day, the paper bride had so coincidentally possessed him just as he finished making the paper figure and needed to deceive his uncle, thus helping him out.

"Could it be that the evil spirit of the paper wife initially targeted the original owner's physical body, but Zhang Zhixuan, who had transmigrated from another era, happened to take over it first, so it could only temporarily possess the paper figure..."

"It seems that the Paper Bride's original goal was to obtain Zhang Zhixuan's physical body."