The most suitable day for chanting the exorcism spell was still three days away at the earliest. Although I deeply disliked this kind of behavior, for Ling's sake, I had no choice but to take three days off.

　　During these three days, Ling accompanied me with utmost tenderness, gradually easing my somewhat gloomy mood.

　　Fortunately, we were living in a time of peace and prosperity, and Hongcheng City had good law and order. There were no urgent tasks at the police station that I absolutely had to attend to. So, I idled away the days at Ling's place.

　　Three days later, the moment for chanting the exorcism spell finally arrived. To my surprise, the Jiang Taoist priest that Ling's father had invited turned out to be the bald old man I had seen at the night burial.

　　This time, the old man was dressed in black. He asked me to sit quietly in a chair and then drew a circle around me with rooster blood. After that, he held a long rod made of folded talismans and kept circling around me.

　　The front end of the rod was on fire, but for some unknown reason, it never seemed to burn out. I stared at the bright flame, feeling extremely curious. My ears were buzzing, and I couldn't make out what he was saying. But inside, I felt extremely exhausted and wanted nothing more than to have a long sleep.

　　I knew that if I fell asleep, it would show that this Jiang Taoist priest had great magical powers.

　　Since I was annoyed, I naturally decided to have a little contest with this pretentious Taoist priest and forced myself to keep my eyes open.

　　The sound of the Jiang Taoist priest chanting the scriptures noticeably faltered. He turned and came to stand in front of me, his eyes suddenly widening as he stared at me. That single glance sent a chill down my spine and left me stunned.

　　I had never seen such eyes before. In the Jiang Taoist priest's round eyeballs, I actually saw countless pupils, as if countless pairs of eyes were glaring at me.

　　Then, I felt a wave of dizziness wash over me, and I noticed that the round eyeball seemed to be expanding. Inside this single eyeball, a marketplace appeared.

　　All sorts of people were bustling about in the marketplace. There were numerous stalls lined up, each one filled with a dazzling array of goods. The vendors were shouting at the top of their lungs, boasting that their wares were the best in the world.

　　In front of each stall, crowds of people gathered, scrambling to pick out goods. Once they had made their selections, they would put the items away. But when it came time to pay, they didn't use money. Instead, some would "crack" off one of their arms, some would "rip" off a piece of their face, and some would "pluck" out their own hearts...

　　"Ah!" I was terrified beyond belief. My mouth gaped open, but not a sound could escape. All I could see was that in the Jiang Taoist priest's eyeball, a sudden gust of yin wind howled through the marketplace. Instantly, those people turned hideous and frightful. Their bodies were mutilated, and their faces were crawling with maggots. "Pop!" Many eyeballs fell to the ground simultaneously, making a crisp bursting sound...

　　My last shred of willpower finally collapsed at that moment, and I was so scared that I passed out.

　　When I woke up, the room was lit by a lamp, and Ling, looking a bit worn out, was keeping watch by my bedside.

　　"Is there a power outage? What time is it now?" I shook my slightly swollen head and asked.

　　"It's the dead of night." Ling said as she turned around and brought me a bowl of pitch-black herbal soup, urging me to drink it.

　　"What kind of medicine is this?" I held the bowl, which looked more like poison but actually smelled quite pleasant.

　　"It's a tranquilizing herbal concoction, unique to our place." Ling said with a hint of pride.

　　"Oh." I obediently finished the medicine, which had a bitter yet sweet taste.

　　"Get a good sleep." Ling tucked me in tightly and was about to leave when I grabbed her arm.

　　My eyes were filled with longing and hope.

　　"No way. According to our customs here, a girl can't share a bed with her husband in her parents' home."

　　"I'm not asking to do anything. I just want you to keep me company." I said, a bit annoyed.

　　"But I'm sleepy." Ling yawned and looked at me apologetically, whispering in my ear, "We'll go back tomorrow, and then you can do whatever you want."

　　"Whatever I want?" I looked at Ling mischievously and said, "You said it. I can do whatever I want?"

　　"Whatever you want!" Ling giggled.

　　We looked at each other and both remembered the sweetest and happiest moment we had together. That was when I liked to sneak up on Ling and grab her in her most ample and rounded place, then warn her, "Get ready. I'm going to use a hundred pounds of force!"

　　"Good husband, can we make it fifty pounds?"

　　"No way. At least eighty pounds!"

　　"How about sixty pounds? I'll do whatever you say at sixty pounds."

　　"Hmph, still daring to bargain? I'll increase it to eight hundred pounds!"

　　My palm suddenly increased its pressure, and Ling cooperatively let out an "Ouch!" Since we had played this game many times, I had already mastered the precise amount of force to use, knowing exactly how much Ling could bear.

　　As I focused on Ling's eyes, a shiver ran down my spine and my hairs stood on end. In Ling's eyes, I actually saw an identical marketplace. There were people "cracking" off one of their arms, people "ripping" off a piece of their face, and people "plucking" out their own hearts...

　　I shook my head to dispel the illusion before my eyes.

　　"What's wrong?" Ling noticed my strange behavior.

　　"Ling, who exactly is that Jiang Taoist priest? I actually saw terrifying scenes in his eyes."

　　"He's a well-known figure around here. He was born with a pair of ghost eyes. It's said that through his eyes, one can see the ghost realm. That's why, apart from inviting him for funerals, the villagers here keep their distance from him out of respect and fear."

　　"Ghost eyes? Ghost realm? Ling, do you believe such nonsense?"

　　"I don't believe it either, but there are indeed many phenomena in this world that science can't explain. Take this Jiang Taoist priest for example. His pupils are actually ashen gray. They're frightening to look at. Normal people don't have ashen gray pupils. Get a good sleep and don't overthink it. After he performs his rituals, everything will be free from taboos and protected from evil spirits."

　　Ling left. She was extremely sleepy, and I really couldn't bear to make her stay up with me until dawn. Her health had always been delicate, and she couldn't afford to overexert herself.