Xi Mufu felt a pang of regret.
She regretted not moving farther away before using her item—after all, the range was 500 meters. Wouldn’t it have been safer to stay out of the crowd?
But the situation had been urgent, and she hadn’t had time to think.
Facing everyone’s curious gazes, she tried to maintain a calm expression, though inwardly, her heart was racing.
“Comrade, you…” The lead officer was Chief Zhang from the city police. His eyes landed on the knife Xi Mufu held in her left hand. That knife had just been in the criminal’s grip, smeared with the little girl’s blood, and now it inexplicably appeared in the hands of this young woman. It looked bizarre—so bizarre that even the skeptical Chief Zhang couldn’t explain it scientifically.
Xi Mufu said, “Would you believe me if I told you it came to me by itself?”
Zhang: “……”The onlookers: “……”
Believe it? Yeah, right.
At that moment, Grandpa Chen, who managed the local land temple, tottered over and said, “Xiaofu is the owner of the incense shop. Her grandfather wasn’t ordinary—he was a famous Yin-Yang master here!” Lowering his voice mysteriously, he added, “But twenty years ago, after his wife and then his son and daughter-in-law passed away, he stopped practicing.”
The neighbors reacted with recognition:
“Old Xi was amazing. When I was young, I went to him for a fortune. He said I would have three children, and I really did!”“Whenever there was a wedding in town, people sought him out.”“My mom said that when I was seven, I played near the graveyard and got a high fever that the hospital couldn’t treat. Grandpa Xi saved me.”“Old Xi must have passed his skills on to Xiaofu!”
Xi Mufu: “……”
Her grandfather that talented? But from what she remembered, he had always seemed ordinary. He had never shown such abilities, and he never let her touch the incense shop’s business. After she went to university, he had always said she should get a stable job and close the shop. Unfortunately, he passed away before she graduated.
If her grandfather knew she had returned to inherit the shop, he would have been upset. Still, she loved her hometown and a simple life, so she stayed.
Chief Zhang exchanged glances with the officials beside him. The story just kept sounding more and more unbelievable.
Jingning Town was in a region with a strong folk belief in mysticism. The locals trusted such things, but many stories were just legends. As officials, they remained skeptical.
Xi Mufu paused, then looked at Chief Zhang solemnly. “I have something to report to the leadership.”
She decided to confess about trading with the otherworldly visitors. As a patriotic young Chinese citizen, she trusted the state. And with the strange things in her mind, she felt she could only be at ease if she reported them.
·
One hour later, in the office of the Director of the Huaining City Public Security Bureau:
“You’re saying that yesterday you encountered two otherworldly visitors, they bought incense paper from your shop, and then you got a prompt in your mind saying you had received an item and a skill. The knife the criminal held appeared in your hands because you used the Telekinesis Retrieval item?” Chief Zhang repeated her words with furrowed brows.
Several city officials nearby also frowned, as if hearing a tale from a fantasy.
Xi Mufu nodded.
Zhang: “Can you use the item again?”
Xi Mufu: “Not until tomorrow—it’s limited to once every 24 hours.”
“That’s fine, we can wait,” Zhang said after a pause. “You also said you acquired a talisman-making skill?”
Xi Mufu: “Yes.”
She explained everything without holding back, including diagrams and annotations.
“Right now, it only includes the Purification Talisman,” she clarified. “This is an upgradeable skill. The higher the level, the more advanced and varied the talismans. Level 1 is Purification, Level 2 is Protective… later there’s the Five-Thunder Talisman, Wealth Talisman, etc.”
Zhang picked up the diagrams. They looked like a misty blur; the annotations were in Chinese, but difficult to understand.
The officials passed it around, each feeling its mysterious aura.
Talisman-making is a form of mystical art. The officials debated whether to invite the head of Tianyou Temple, Master Shanqu, who was well-known and the vice president of the provincial religious association, an authority in esoterica, to examine it.
Before they could decide, someone knocked on the door. “Master Shanqu is here.”
Zhang: “……”
He had a personal connection with Master Shanqu and sometimes wondered if the man’s reputed powers were real.
“Word has it that Jingning Town produced a mystical prodigy, and you’ve brought her to the city,” Master Shanqu said, white and plump, heading straight to Xi Mufu with a wide smile. “You must be Xi Xiaofu! I hear you used your art to take the criminal’s knife and saved the kindergarten child. Truly an honor for our mystical community!”
The hostage incident hadn’t been widely reported online but had spread locally. Hearing of this prodigy, Master Shanqu had come immediately. Mystical arts had declined; many techniques were lost. Telekinesis Retrieval was unheard of—even Daoists from Longhu Mountain probably couldn’t do it. Xi Mufu was considered a genius.
Xi Mufu: “……”
She wasn’t. She really wasn’t.
Master Shanqu studied her face. “A full forehead, wide ears, a balanced jaw—clearly intelligent and blessed.”
Xi Mufu: “…Thank you.”
Zhang couldn’t hold back and grabbed Master Shanqu. “Why are you so excited? Sit down first.”
Master Shanqu glanced at him. “How can I not be excited? This is a once-in-a-century talent. I must report her to the province and integrate her into our association. Such a genius cannot be left among the common folk!” He pulled out his phone, messaging the provincial religious association. “Our province lost the last mystical competition to the neighboring province’s Longhu Mountain. With Xi Xiaofu, next time we’ll win!”
Xi Mufu: “……”
She really wasn’t a genius.
“Would you like to join our Tianyou Temple?” Master Shanqu asked enthusiastically. “You could even become the head; I’d serve as your deputy.”
Xi Mufu: “……”
No… thanks.
Zhang shook his head. “Provincial honor is at stake, so we support it. But Xi Xiaofu still has matters to resolve. We can’t hand her over yet.”
Master Shanqu wasn’t worried. The prodigy wasn’t going anywhere.
“Oh, are these talisman diagrams?” He noticed the papers on the table, picked them up, and grew excited. “This should be the ancient lost Purification Talisman, with complete diagrams… Modern talismans are incomplete, with reduced efficacy. I’ve never seen such perfection!”
He stared at Xi Mufu. “It must have been passed down by your grandfather. A true family legacy!”
Xi Mufu: “……”
So this talisman-making skill really was that powerful.