Folklore and Strange Tales: At the Start, You Retrieve the Sea-Suppressing Black Iron

Chapter 120 Yin Blood Disrupts Feng Shui, Living Creatures Lift Manhole Covers

"Huguo Temple called."

As soon as Tong Kexin put the phone to her ear, Aunt Liu's loud voice boomed from the receiver.

"Kexin, a few guys in floral shirts came by the street corner, swaying like they're drunk, and they're heading straight for your pot."

Cheng Xiaojin stood up from his chair, and Tang Wanqing placed the silver needle in his hand across his sleeve.

"Sit back down."

"My ears still work, but my legs haven't been incorporated into Zhenlong's lineage yet."

Tong Kexin placed her phone face down on the table.

"I'm going back."

Master Ma glanced at Cheng Xiaojin's hands, which were wrapped in thick cloth.

"Don't touch old things, water, or iron."

Cheng Xiaojin wrapped the cloth around his wrist.

"I'm going to see what's going on."

Tieguai Li picked up a wrench.

"You might just be watching a spectacle, but it could end up being a funeral."

Zhou Banxian had already put the beautiful compass into the cup.

"The fire at Huguo Temple cannot be extinguished. The third incident was just about to be discovered at that well when the pot went out, and the water source below the well was empty."

Tang Wanqing put the silver needles back into her needle pouch and wrapped the red thread back around her wrist.

"I'm following you. If you dare to reach out, I'll numb your throat first."

Cheng Xiaojin gave Tong Kexin a smile.

"See? Our team now has rules and regulations."

Tong Kexin ignored him and turned to leave the courtyard.

Master Ma stayed behind to guard the ashtray.

Han Shaobai had just finished washing his shoes and was squatting by the doorway hanging his socks to dry when he heard about the incident at Huguo Temple. His face twitched.

"And what about me?"

Tieguai Li turned around.

"Guard the courtyard."

"Myself?"

"Master Ma, an ashtray, a bronze plaque with the character 'Shen' on it—aren't those enough to keep you company?"

Han Shaobai glanced into the main room.

The copper plate was still on the lid of the teacup, and a faint smell of burning emanated from under the rim.

"I suddenly think Huguo Temple is pretty good too."

Master Ma picked up his teacup.

"Leave."

Han Shaobai immediately straightened his back.

"Okay."

The stove on Huguosi Street is still lit.

At the entrance of the alley, a large iron pot was bubbling with soup, oil swirling around its edge, and the aroma of braised meat wafted into the street against the night wind.

Sister Zhou's pancake cart was parked next to the well. A red ribbon was tied to the handlebars, and a cracked bowl of batter was upside down on the cart, with a layer of white frost on the rim.

Aunt Liu stood by the pot, holding the lid in her hand, while Aunt Zhang stood beside her, a rolling pin held horizontally in her palm.

Old Li hid behind the tofu pudding stall, holding the strainer upright more precisely than a token.

Three men in floral shirts strolled in from the street corner, their collars open, the smell of alcohol barely concealing the stench of rotting flesh.

Tong Kexin didn't stop walking.

"Who let you in?"

The leader grinned.

"Have a bowl of braised pork."

"Sold out."

The chunks of meat were still floating in the soup.

The man looked down at the pot.

"Aren't there still some left?"

Cheng Xiaojin added a sentence afterward.

"That's for feeding people; your kind needs to line up at the zoo."

Tieguai Li laughed out loud.

The man in the floral shirt's face darkened, and he used his toes to lift the folding table next to him.

Bowls and chopsticks rolled all over the floor. Taking advantage of the chaos, the two companions rushed towards the stove. One ran towards the gas cylinder, while the other pulled out a small glass bottle from his pocket.

The bottle contained sloshing black and red blood plasma, the mouth of the bottle was sealed with yellow wax, and a black line was wrapped around the bottom of the bottle.

Tang Wanqing stumbled, and the red thread first wrapped around the pot rack.

"Don't let the bottle go into the stove."

Tong Kexin had already reached the pot and kicked the side of the wooden box.

The wooden crate slid along the ground, blocking the hand reaching for the gas cylinder.

Cheng Xiaojin stared at the black line at the bottom of the bottle, his playful expression fading.

"The blood of corpse-raising in Southeast Asia".

Liu almost snatched the pot lid off course.

"What the heck?"

"It's a disaster."

Cheng Xiaojin flicked the toe of his shoe and picked up the bag of dried ginger on the ground.

"Once it's in the stove, dead bodies should be crawling out of the well tonight."

He picked up a bottle and smashed it.

The bag of dried ginger flew halfway and struck his wrist.

The ginger slices scattered in the air and smeared half of his face.

"what!"

The bottle slipped from his hand and slammed diagonally into the sewer grate.

Tieguai Li rushed forward two steps, his prosthetic leg sweeping across the outside of the man's calf.

The bones cracked, the leader knelt on the ground, the bottle smashed against the iron grate, and the yellow wax cracked.

Black blood splattered out.

As soon as the blood touched the hot ginger powder and the ashes by the stove, white smoke rose up close to the ground, and the smell was so strong that Aunt Zhang had to hold the rolling pin to her nose.

"What is this stuff? Even spoiled pig's blood is better than this."

Cheng Xiaojin took half a step back.

"Don't smell it, use the pot lid to fan it, and hurry to the street corner."

Liu immediately swung the pot lid.

The wind was stirred up by the pot lid, pushing the white smoke outwards. A street lamp at the street corner flickered twice, then was stopped by the window light that came on upstairs.

The other two in floral shirts tried to run away, but Aunt Zhang hit one of them on the shoulder with a rolling pin.

"Did you ask Aunt Zhang before you came to Huguo Temple to cause trouble?"

When Old Li saw someone fall, he rushed out from behind the stall and slapped another person on the back with a strainer.

"Go ahead and kick the table, go ahead and kick it!"

Tong Kexin held the iron spoon, pressing the rim against the leader's throat.

"Who sent you?"

The man's face was covered in ginger powder, and his tears and snot were mixed together.

"I don't know, I'm just doing my job for the money."

Tieguai Li pulled a piece of black thread from his collar, the end of which was tied in an ouroboros knot.

"The dirty hands under Boss Lin."

Cheng Xiaojin glanced at the section of wire.

"Boss Lin is making things easier now; he doesn't even teach people to speak properly."

Tang Wanqing squatted down next to the iron grate, not touching the blood, but only testing the edge with the red thread.

"Something grows in the blood."

The black blood didn't seep into the cracks between the bricks; instead, it shrank down along the iron grate.

A faint gurgling sound came from under the iron grate, as if something was licking against the hole entrance.

Zhou Banxian placed the compass close to the manhole cover.

The dial needle circled the third position, then sank half a position down.

"The sluice gate has moved."

Tong Kexin turned her head to look at the well.

Sister Zhou's pancake cart wobbled slightly.

The bicycle bell rang once, and the frozen, cracked bowl of dough was moved half an inch off the cart.

Cheng Xiaojin's wrist ached through the thick cloth, so much so that he hid his hand inside his sleeve.

"Keep the stove burning."

Aunt Liu immediately called for help.

"Add some firewood, Old Li, and bring me some hot water!"

Old Li had just turned around when the blue brick under his feet bulged.

Two clanging sounds came from under the manhole cover.

Aunt Zhang is holding a rolling pin.

Who's knocking on the door downstairs?

No one replied.

Ding, ding, ding~

The manhole cover was lifted up by about a finger's width, and black water squeezed out from the crack, the stench mixed with the fishy smell of rotten water plants.

Tieguai Li wedged the wrench into the edge of the manhole cover.

There's something alive down there.

The man in the floral shirt collar twitched one corner of his mouth upon hearing this.

"You can't hold out."

Tong Kexin smashed the spoon handle into his mouth.

"Shut up."

Cheng Xiaojin squatted down, his ear still half a foot away from the floor tile, when Tang Wanqing grabbed him by the back of his collar.

"Get away from the ground."

"I won't stick close, I'll just listen for any noise."

The sound of a wet cloth being slammed against the wall came from under the manhole cover, dragging water and panting.

Zhou Banxian's face turned pale.

"This is not a Yin Water Sha (煞)."

When Master Ma wasn't around, no one responded.

Cheng Xiaojin filled in the missing part for him.

"You've grown taller."

Tieguai Li held a wrench horizontally.

"A corpse demon crawling out of the water?"

Tang Wanqing took out the Bagua mirror, and as soon as the mirror was aligned with the well opening, water vapor covered it, and it couldn't be wiped away.

Aunt Liu took half a step back and then held the pot lid back to her chest.

"Kexin, shall we add more firewood?"

Tong Kexin stared at the manhole cover, while her other hand gripped the salt bag next to the edge of the pot.

"Tian, ​​it's your fault for letting the fire go down too low. Don't come to my stall on credit tomorrow."

The manhole cover was lifted up and then smashed back down.

The commotion startled several windows, causing them to dim their lights, and some people upstairs closed their windows halfway.

Cheng Xiaojin immediately shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Don't close the windows! Huguo Temple is giving away free entertainment tonight; closing the windows will be a loss!"

Aunt Zhang joined in the cursing.

"Turn on the lights! Anyone whose window is dark will have to pay higher prices for groceries tomorrow!"

Several windows lit up again.

Some people poked their heads out, while others stood behind the door carrying enamel basins, making the soup in the pot boil even louder.

The object under the manhole cover was startled by the voices, and the metal cover jumped three times.

Tieguai Li braced his feet against the edge of the well, tightening the wrench firmly.

"If I keep doing that, my wrench will break."

Cheng Xiaojin swept the area around the stove.

"Bring me all the ashes from the stove and dried ginger, and also get a tattered cotton quilt and soak it thoroughly with hot water."

Tong Kexin paused for a moment as she picked up the bag of salt.

"Coming from the water, are you afraid of ash and ginger?"

"Try it first."

Cheng Xiaojin took the cigarette out of his mouth and stuffed it into his shirt pocket.

"I made a mistake, Brother Li, so just seal me up along with the well."

11

Tieguai Li cursed.

"Stop giving me pointless tasks."

The manhole cover made a noise again.

This time, a bluish-black finger extended from the edge of the iron cap, its nail bent into a hook, and its nail crevices filled with water plants.

Old Li, carrying a bowl of hot water, moved a little closer.

The hand suddenly grabbed his ankle.

The enamel basin tipped over, spilling hot water all over the floor.

Old Li fell headfirst into the well.

"Help me!"

"Grab my waist!"

No sooner had Cheng Xiaojin spoken than Tieguai Li lunged at the well, grabbed Old Li's cotton-padded coat from behind, and with his other hand snatched a wrench, smashing it down on the dark blue arm.

The wrench skimmed the wet leather, missed half an inch, and hit the edge of the well, making Tieguai Li's hand go numb from the impact.

The arm slid along the edge of the well, its skin covered with a film of water, and only a clump of rotten water plants were pulled off by the wrench.

Old Li's leg had already slid halfway into the well, his shoe sole scraping against the blue bricks, leaving two black mud marks.

"Don't hit your hand, hit the edge of the well!"

Cheng Xiaojin turned and roared at Liu.

"Keep going when the pot lid starts rattling!"

Liu picked up the pot lid and slapped it down along the edge of the stove.

Bang, bang, bang~

The noise from Huguosi Street caused chaos.

People were peeking out from upstairs, touching washbasins, and banging on enamel mugs on the windowsill.

Amidst the commotion, the strange hand's dragging motion slowed by half a beat.

Tang Wanqing flicked out the red thread, and the end of the thread wrapped around Old Li's other ankle like a live snake.

"Iron-Crutch Li, don't let it raise its head!"

The manhole cover was tilted to one side, and half a head was sticking out of the well opening.

The thing's hair was bubbly like seaweed, its face was swollen, its nostrils were flared out, its lips were puffed up, and rows of fine teeth were sticking out.

It climbed upwards, squeezing out the sound of a baby crying from its throat, which frightened several children on the street into tears.

Aunt Zhang almost hit her own foot with the rolling pin in her hand.

"What is this thing?"

Zhou Banxian took a step back, holding the compass.

"Water monkey!"

Cheng Xiaojin grabbed a handful of glowing ashes from the side of the stove, burning two black spots onto the outside of his thick cloth gloves.

Tang Wanqing's face immediately darkened.

"Cheng Xiaojin!"

"Since it didn't get wet, and I didn't touch any old items, the kitchen utensils aren't considered a violation."

When he rushed to the edge of the well, Tieguai Li's knees were already touching the well rim, and his cotton trousers were ripped by the thing dragging him.

The water monkey also reached up with its other hand, its five fingers digging into the cracks between the bricks.

Cheng Xiaojin didn't touch its skin; instead, through the thick cloth, he patted the stove ash and dried ginger powder onto its mouth and nose.

With a hiss, yellow smoke billowed from the water monkey's face.

The cry shattered instantly, so shrill that the windows upstairs shook violently. It loosened its grip on Old Li's hand and shrunk half its body into the well.

Taking advantage of this momentum, Tieguai Li dragged Old Li back, then kicked the well cover open half a foot, wedging it against the water monkey's shoulder.

The water monkey kicked twice on the edge of the well and flipped back into the black water.

A series of muffled thuds came from below.

Old Li had three black gashes on his calf, the blood just starting to ooze out before turning dark again.

Tong Kexin squatted down and pressed a dry cloth against the outer edge of the wound.

"Don't let the blood flow into the well."

Tang Wanqing took out silver needles and sealed two acupoints on Old Li's legs.

"Ginger water, the hotter the better."

Aunt Liu turned around and went to get it.

Cheng Xiaojin stood one step outside the well edge and did not move forward.

The sound of wet bricks being laid came from inside the well wall, a soft, fragmented sound, indicating that something was definitely climbing up from below.

Tieguai Li shook off the water plants from the wrench, his chest heaving violently.

"This thing is slipperier than a loach."

Cheng Xiaojin stared at the patch of rotten grass at the wellhead.

"Loach isn't that wicked."

Zhou Banxian used a piece of yellow paper to pick up a piece of waterweed, and the edge of the paper immediately turned black.

"It was soaked in yin water for six hundred years, and then it was revived by the corpse energy. The third water vein opened up, and things started to grow underneath."

Aunt Zhang looked unwell, but she remained defiant.

"Why would you raise them? To open a seafood stall?"

Cheng Xiaojin immediately looked over.

"Aunt Zhang, this is a valuable line. Keep going and don't let the neighbors shut up."

Aunt Zhang slammed the rolling pin into the ground.

"Did you all hear that? Don't be mute! If someone has a pot, they bang on it; if they don't, they bang on the table. That thing under the table cries, and we'll be even louder than it!"

The sound really did ring out upstairs and downstairs.

Some people were banging on washbasins, some were banging on window frames, and some were shouting through the windows.

"Old Li, don't you dare die! You still owe me a bowl of tofu pudding!"

Old Li was sweating profusely from a headache, but he could still curse back.

"You owe me a damn debt! Want to try some water monkey brains?!"

Laughter spread from behind the window, and the black water in the well receded half an inch.

Tong Kexin poured ginger water on the edge of the wound, making sure the water didn't touch the well.

The black blood was forced out by the heat and landed on the dry cloth, which quickly turned yellow.

She looked up at Cheng Xiaojin.

"Can it be saved?"

Tang Wanqing put away the needles.

"My life is safe, but whether my legs get bitten again tonight depends on whether I survive."

Old Li's face fell.

"Miss Tang, could you please choose a few words that are more pleasing to the ear?"

Cheng Xiaojin squatted down next to him, her shoe tips avoiding the blood.

"Charging by the bowl if it sounds pleasant."

Old Li grinned.

"Then I'll bear with it."

Tieguai Li used the edge of the pot lid to stir up the weeds at the wellhead.

"It's afraid of dust and ginger."

"Ash for the mouth and nose, dried ginger to dispel cold and dampness."

Cheng Xiaojin touched the yellow soot stains on the brick with the tip of his shoe.

"It went soft in three breaths, and the problem is that those three breaths are enough for it to drag a person away."

Zhou Banxian clutched the yellow paper, his face darkening.

"Then we can't let it peek out."

Tong Kexin stood up and looked at the well.

"Where are the manhole covers?"

Tieguai Li shook his head.

"If the bottom can be opened, weld it shut here, and the water vapor can escape through other holes, then all the manhole covers on the street will jump up at once, and no one can hold them down."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the entire street of Huguosi.

The fire in the pot was still burning, and people were still talking. Sister Zhou's pancake cart was parked next to the well, and the red cloth on the handle was being blown by the cold wind and stuck to the iron pole.

"They chose to come from here because they were heading towards the third living anchor. If any one of the following is missing—the cooking fire, the voices of people, or the well—the Zhenhai Iron is like being buried in an empty grave."

Aunt Liu hugged the pot lid to her chest, her face tense.

"Then nothing will be missing."

Aunt Zhang called out along with it.

"Whoever runs away is a coward!"

An old man leaned out from upstairs.

"I'm too old to be a grandson."

Tieguai Li looked up.

"Then you can be the ancestor and bang on the pot!"

The old man actually brought out the enamel basin and banged it louder than the people downstairs.

After treating Old Li's wound, Tang Wanqing tested the red thread by wrapping it around the well opening.

The moment the thread touched the edge of the well, it absorbed moisture and its color darkened.

She pulled the thread back and nailed it to the leg of the wooden table next to her.

"No, the moisture will drain the thread; it won't last long."

Cheng Xiaojin didn't look at her, tilting her ear towards the well, but Tong Kexin reached out and grabbed the back of her collar.

"Stand back."

"I'll hear the numbers."

"You're not allowed to stick the well sticker even if you miscount."

The sound of a large number of animals crawling could be heard coming from the well.

The wet skin rubbed against the pipe wall, and fingernails scratched at the bricks, climbing upwards layer by layer.

Tong Kexin turned up the heat of the braised pot, and oil bubbles appeared on the soup noodles.

"Do you need more stove ash?"

"One lap."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at Aunt Liu.

"Breakfast stalls, sesame seed cake ovens, tofu pudding ovens—bring any ash you have. Hot ash is best, but don't mind if it's cold ash too."

Liu opened his mouth wide.

"Don't hide it! Ashes are worthless, but lives are!"

Tieguai Li asked, "Just scatter ashes?"

"The skin is covered in ash, the ginger is soaked, and it's still missing a layer to make a living."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the tobacco pouch at Zhou Banxian's waist.

"Old Zhou, how much tobacco oil do you have left?"

Zhou Banxian immediately covered the cloth bag.

"Don't even think about it. I've been saving it up for half a year."

"Help."

Zhou Banxian gritted his teeth and pulled out a small porcelain bottle.

"It's only half a pound, you'll have to pay for it if you waste it."

"I'll compensate you with ten pounds."

"What will you use to compensate me?"

Cheng Xiaojin pointed to the street corner.

"Han Shaobai."

Tieguai Li was amused.

"This deal is negotiable."

Tang Wanqing saw Cheng Xiaojin's toes moving towards the well again, and she flicked the silver needle between her fingers.

"You stand at the back and give directions."

Cheng Xiaojin tucked the scalded thick cloth into his sleeve.

"I know, tonight I'll be the one talking."

Tong Kexin glanced at him.

"Keep your mouth away from the well."

Ash began to be sent down from upstairs and downstairs.

The young man from the pancake shop ran over carrying half a bucket of hot ash, losing one of his shoes in the process, but he didn't look back.

Behind the tofu pudding stall, ashes from the stove were discovered. The breakfast stall owner brought over a basin of soot from the bottom of the pot, scolding her husband for being too slow as she walked.

Liu poured the dried ginger slices onto the cutting board.

Aunt Zhang crushed the dough into powder with a rolling pin, cursing as she did so.

"I'll let you crawl, I'll let you bite people, and I'll give you some ginger powder to eat with your rice."

The first water monkey in the well has surfaced again.

This time, Tieguai Li didn't use a wrench. He grabbed a pot lid, placed it horizontally on the edge of the well, and used his prosthetic leg to push the well ring down.

Cheng Xiaojin called from behind.

"Don't hit its head, force it to lie down!"

The water monkey braced itself against the edge of the well with both hands, about to use it to leap up, when Tong Kexin splashed a ladle of stove ash and ginger powder at it.

The dust covered his mouth and nose.

The thing opened its mouth but couldn't cry out; only a muffled sound came from its throat. It rolled over and fell back into the well.

A crashing sound immediately followed, the wet sack falling into the black water making that noise.

Tieguai Li peeked out and then quickly backed away.

"It knocked down two of them."

Cheng Xiaojin used his sleeve to wipe away the burnt ash from the thick cloth.

"Then let's make this their gravesite."

Zhou Banxian handed the tobacco pouch to Tong Kexin, his face contorted with pain.

"Save it!"

Tong Kexin uncorked the bottle and poured it into the stove ash and dried ginger powder.

"Don't worry, this life-saving stuff won't be wasted on your smoking addiction."

Zhou Banxian opened his mouth, but couldn't retort.

The dark ash was spread out, and as soon as the tobacco oil touched the hot ash, a pungent and fishy smell immediately spread to the edge of the well.

The damp, cold air from the wellhead was forced down a bit, and the braising liquid in the pot churned even more vigorously.

But the sounds of movement underground did not diminish.

The entire well wall was making a noise, and wet hands were stuffed into the well shaft, squeezing upwards along the brick seams.

The little bell on Sister Zhou's pancake cart suddenly rang by itself.