I used folk talismans to ward off the evil spirit.

Chapter 83 Phoenixes Take Flight, World in Turmoil (Bonus Chapter! Happy Labor Day!)

A chicken farm in a county town in Central China.

Old Zhou's chicken farm has been open for twenty years, and everyone within a ten-mile radius knows that his chickens are of excellent quality.

Especially the big rooster, which had been raised for five years. It was much bigger than the other chickens, with a comb like a burning fire, bright and piercing eyes, and feathers that shone with a metallic luster in the sunlight.

Its crowing is loud and clear, carrying throughout the entire village, and it is more punctual than an alarm clock every morning.

Grandpa Zhou loved this chicken the most when he was alive. Every morning he would go to the chicken coop, feed it first, and then feed the others.

He often said that this chicken was intelligent and was the "chicken king" of the flock.

Someone offered a high price to buy it, but he refused to sell. Someone suggested killing it and making soup, and he glared at them.

Not long ago, Grandpa Zhou passed away. Even the rooster's crowing seemed a little softer now.

On this day, the slaughterhouse came to collect the chickens. This is an annual routine; the broiler chickens in the chicken farm are ready for slaughter after a certain number of days.

Old Zhou's son, Zhou Xu, was busy negotiating prices, weighing goods, and loading them onto trucks, working up a sweat.

He glanced at the rooster, hesitated for a moment, and said to the slaughterhouse worker, "Take this one away too."

"This one?" The foreman glanced at it. "This one is of such good quality, it's a waste to kill it. Wouldn't it be better to keep it as a breeding stock?"

Zhou Xu shook his head: "My dad's gone, there's no one to take care of it. Killing it will save trouble." In fact, his dissatisfaction with the chicken had been brewing for a long time.

He suffers from severe insomnia and goes to bed very late. Unfortunately, this rooster crows very loudly in the morning, giving him a headache.

I didn't dare do anything about it before because of my father, but now it's time to get rid of it.

The rooster was put into a cage and piled on the truck with other chickens awaiting slaughter. Zhou Xu turned away to attend to other matters and didn't look at it again.

The truck started and headed towards the slaughterhouse. The road was uneven, the cages jolted, and the rooster huddled in a corner, motionless.

After a while, it stood up, tilted its head, and looked at the cage door. The door was made of wire and secured with a bolt.

It pecked at the pin with its beak, but it didn't budge. Then it pawed at it with its paws, and the pin loosened a little. It pecked and pawed repeatedly until the pin finally slid out.

The cage door opened.

The rooster didn't fly away immediately; instead, it crawled out of the cage and pecked open the latches on several other cages with its beak.

One, two, three—more and more chickens escaped from their cages, causing chaos and commotion on the truck, with chicken feathers and droppings everywhere.

The driver panicked and slammed on the brakes, bringing the truck to a wobbly stop on the side of the road.

Zhou Xu was eating when he received the call. He threw down his chopsticks, got on his motorcycle, and sped off.

When he arrived at the scene, he saw chickens running around all over the roadside. Some had run into the ditch, some into the wheat field, and a few were standing on the roof of the car, tilting their heads and looking at him.

His face turned bright red, and he spotted the big rooster immediately.

It was standing on the truck's rearview mirror, as if scrutinizing him.

"Grab it!" Zhou Xu rushed over.

Several people gathered around to help.

The rooster jumped off the rearview mirror, squeezed through their legs, and ran into the wheat field.

It darted swiftly through the wheat stubble, occasionally flapping its wings and flying low for a short distance. The people who tried to catch it were exhausted and panting for breath.

Finally, they cornered the rooster. Surrounded by the river on three sides and people on the other, it had nowhere to escape.

Zhou Xu, panting heavily, approached step by step.

Suddenly, the rooster spread its wings, raised its head, and crowed at the sky.

"Ooh ooh ooh"

The sound wasn't loud, but it carried clearly throughout the entire field.

Then, flames erupted from its body.

Golden flames emerged from the gaps in its feathers, enveloping its entire body and remaining dazzling in the sunlight.

It flapped its wings, took off from the ground, flew higher and higher, and circled once in the air.

It flew over wheat fields, over chicken farms, and over Grandpa Zhou's grave.

At that moment, everyone stopped what they were doing.

Many people knelt down, put their hands together, and chanted "The phoenix has appeared."

Zhou Xu stood there, mouth agape, unable to utter a single word.

After circling once in the air, the rooster flew away into the distance. Its figure grew smaller and smaller until it transformed into a golden dot of light and disappeared into the clouds.

Zhou Xu stood there, stunned, for a long time.

He suddenly remembered his father's words: "This chicken has a spirit; don't hurt it."

He didn't take it seriously at the time, but now he deeply regrets it.

*

In the Kemet region of Africa, on the edge of the western desert, lies a savanna.

This place is far from the hustle and bustle of the city, and also far from the rapidly rising organization of the Ghost Riders.

The Saler tribe has lived here for generations, herding livestock and harvesting dates, repeating the way of life of their ancestors in the cycle of dry and rainy seasons.

In the center of the village stands a Cape Willow, fifteen meters tall, which has reached the limit of this species.

The trunk is thick, requiring three adults to encircle it. The bark is dark brown, with crisscrossing cracks, resembling the wrinkles on an old man's face.

The branches drooped down, almost touching the ground, and the narrow leaves rustled in the wind.

The elders of the tribe say that this tree is older than the oldest shaman and has even seen European artillery.

It is the soul of the tribe.

The Saler people would smear oil on the tree trunks, hang colorful strips of cloth on the branches, slaughter goats under the trees, and sprinkle the blood on the roots.

They believed that the willow tree was a symbol of life, resurrection, and rebirth; it could protect women during childbirth, cure diseases in cattle and sheep, and bring rain during the dry season.

After the Abyss descended, everything changed. Some people made contracts with strange creatures and became monster tamers. Many of them went to the big cities.

Hassan stayed. He was in his forties, with a full beard. He had served in the capital for several years and somehow acquired a strange object, achieving spiritual fusion. He was now a "strongman" at the Fusion Realm.

In big cities, those who can merge with the realm of demons are as numerous as hairs on a cow, but in the Sal tribe, Hassan is an invincible existence.

He began to question the willow tree's spirituality: "What power can a tree have? The real power is mine!"

At the tribal gathering, he shouted: "What has it given you? When monsters descend, can it protect you? No!"

It was me! I drove away those monsters with the strange objects!

Gradually, those who worshipped the willow tree were ostracized, ridiculed, and beaten. Hassan forced everyone to abandon their sacrifices and instead "worship" him.

He sat under the willow tree, receiving the worship of the people, like an ancient pharaoh.

Anyone who dares to disobey will be hung from a tree and exposed to the wind and sun until they beg for mercy.

On this day, Hassan felt it wasn't enough. He wanted to completely destroy the willow tree.

He had someone bring a chainsaw and pointed it at the opponents kneeling under the tree: "You, who's going to do it?"

No one moved.

Hassan sneered and pulled a thin little girl out of the crowd.

The girl's name is Fatima, and she is seven years old. Her grandmother was the last shaman in the tribe. She died last year, and before she died, she touched the trunk of a willow tree and told her, "The spirit of the willow tree will protect us."

"If your father doesn't come, I'll hang you from a tree," Hassan said coldly.

Fatima's father, Jamal, trembling, stepped out of the crowd and took the chainsaw. His eyes were red and his fingers were shaking, but he dared not refuse.

His daughter cried out behind him, "Daddy, no! Grandma said the spirit of the willow tree will protect us!"

Jamal's hands were trembling. Before the chainsaw teeth even touched the bark, the willow branches suddenly moved.

It's not the kind of movement caused by the wind, but rather like an arm stretching out.

The branch gently wrapped around Jamal's waist, pulling him away from the tree trunk and knocking the chainsaw to the ground.

Then, more branches, like snakes, reached out and wrapped around Hassan's limbs, hoisting him high into the air.

Hassan was shocked and activated his natal artifact, a black scimitar.

With a "snap," the willow branch struck the curved blade, producing a crisp metallic clang. The eerie aura emanating from the blade was suppressed by a layer of clear light, and the blade vibrated with a buzzing sound.

The willow branch lashed out again, and the curved knife flew out of his hand, severing the connection between the monster and its master in that instant.

Hassan was hung upside down in the air, like a sheep waiting to be slaughtered.

The entire room fell silent.

A few breaths later, a cheer erupted from the crowd.

The elders of the tribe were the first to kneel down, their foreheads touching the ground, and they recited ancient prayers.

The young people also knelt down. Some cried, some laughed, and most just stared blankly at the willow tree, at the faint light shining on its branches.

Fatima raised her head, and willow branches gently brushed against her hair, like her grandmother stroking her head.

That night, Fatima had a dream.

In her dream, everything was gray and white, with mist and whispers. She huddled in fear, not knowing where she was.

Then, a kind voice rang out, in the same tone as when Grandma used to tell stories, carrying a reassuring power.

"Weave nets from willow branches and hang them on doors and windows. Monsters will not find you."

When she woke up, the morning light shone directly on her face.

She ran out of the tent and found her father: "Daddy, Daddy, I dreamt of the spirit of the willow tree! It told me that if I weave nets from willow branches and hang them on the doors and windows, evil spirits won't be able to get in!"

Jamal was skeptical, but he still broke off a few willow twigs and wove a crooked little net according to his daughter's gestures, which he then hung at the entrance of the tent.

Other close relatives, upon hearing this, also did it, hoping it might work.

A few nights later, cats invaded from the depths of the desert. They passed by Jamal's tent but could not find their way in.

However, in two nearby families, someone died tragically.

The news spread quickly. People broke off willow branches, wove them into nets, and hung them in front of their doors.

Most of the branches of the cape willow were broken off, but a few days later, new branches grew back, even more lush than before.

Hassan was hung up for three whole days before being taken down. His eerie creature was broken by the willow tree, and its eerie energy dissipated, leaving him an ordinary person.

He stumbled away from the tribe and never returned. Some say he died of thirst in the desert, others say he went to the capital and became a vagrant.

The Saler tribe has resumed its sacrificial rites.

This time, however, they did not slaughter the goat, but instead sang and danced around it. Fatima said that the spirit of the willow tree dislikes human sacrifices and prefers lively celebrations.

After the ceremony, everyone would break off a few branches from the willow tree, weave them into a net, and hang it on the doors and windows.

The name of that net is "Ghostly Prohibition".

No one knows how to write these three characters, but everyone knows what they mean and that they can protect themselves.

*

In Europe, in an abandoned castle.

The castle sits atop a hill, its stone walls covered in dead vines, and its windows like empty eye sockets.

In the first year after the Abyss descended, the castle was abandoned. The original owner and his family disappeared in a strange disaster, and no one has dared to approach it since.

But young people are always skeptical.

A group of six people, three men and three women, carrying backpacks and carrying flashlights, pushed open the rusty iron gate.

They were college classmates, on an adventure during their vacation. The leader was named Lucas, a rugby player, burly, blond, blue-eyed, and with a hearty laugh.

He liked a girl on the team named Anna, but Anna seemed more interested in another boy.

The boy's name was Michelle. He wore glasses, was tall and thin, and always carried a book. Everyone called him "the bookworm."

Lucas was very unhappy. He had hoped to find an opportunity to prove himself and impress Anna during this adventure.

But Michel was always by Anna's side, helping her with her backpack and telling her about the history of the castle, giving him no chance at all.

The inside of the castle was even more gloomy than the outside.

The hall was covered in dust, and a portrait of the original owner still hung above the fireplace, its eyes seemingly moving as people moved.

Anna's flashlight flickered, and she gasped, hiding behind Michelle. Lucas's face darkened further.

What they didn't know was that Lucas had been here once before.

He paid a low-level ghost tamer to hide in the shadows and control the ghosts, helping him stage a "hero saves the damsel in distress" scenario.

But he didn't expect that the ghost tamer had messed things up, attracting not just one or two scattered ghosts, but a whole horde.

Everyone screamed and ran outside, wishing they had more legs!

As Michelle ran, she glanced back to make sure Anna had left the hall.

It was this turn of his head that caused Lucas to shove him, leaving him at the very back.

Several ghosts blocked his path.

With nowhere to run, he leaned against the wall, reached into his pocket, and felt a clove of garlic. His grandmother had given it to him before he left, saying it could ward off evil spirits.

He found it ridiculous at the time, but he still put it in his pocket. His grandmother was old, and he didn't want her to feel disappointed.

Now, he has no choice but to try anything, even if it seems hopeless.

He took out a clove of garlic and held it in front of him.

The ghost stopped.

The smell of garlic may be just pungent to an ordinary person, but to a ghost, it is deadly.

The closest ghost screamed and retreated, its form becoming blurry, as if it had been burned by something.

The others also avoided the area, not daring to approach.

Michelle was stunned.

Just then, Anna rushed back. Seeing Michelle surrounded by ghosts, she ran over without a second thought.

She lost her backpack while running away; it contained no equipment.

She frantically rummaged through her clothes and found a plastic bag containing the salt packet she had left over from eating fries at noon.

She grabbed the bag of salt and threw it at the ghost.

Salt grains fell on the ghost, making a sizzling sound like raindrops falling on a red-hot iron plate.

A ghostly figure trembled violently, screamed, and turned into a wisp of green smoke, dissipating into the air.

The other ghosts were frightened by this scene and retreated back into the walls, restoring silence to the hall.

Anna, panting heavily, stared blankly at the salt bag on the ground.

Lucas peeked out from the door and saw Anna supporting Michelle's shoulder, the two of them very close. His face turned ashen.

Didn't the monster tamer say that monsters can only be dealt with using supernatural objects and divine artifacts? What's with the garlic and salt?!

His heart was in turmoil, but he forced a smile: "You're all alright? That's great!"

Anna rolled her eyes at him, didn't reply, and helped Michel out of the castle.

Lucas stood in the hall, vaguely sensing that some unknown force was changing the world.