Once I had confirmed the location, Liu Peng took the dagger from Uncle Huzi and began to dig.
This guy's curiosity was insatiable.
He just wanted to find out whether another funeral nail could be unearthed.
Just like last time, he dug only twenty or thirty centimeters down before—sure enough—he found another one.
"Wu Jie, you're incredible! There's one here too…"
I smiled and was about to lean closer for a look when, all of a sudden, a streak of crimson energy shot up from the ground and struck Liu Peng squarely in the face.
This surge of energy was invisible to ordinary people, but I saw it clearly.
My breath caught. I tried to rush forward, but it was already too late.
The moment it hit him, Liu Peng shuddered violently, then fell stiffly backward.
On the ground, he trembled all over, teeth clenched tight.
Uncle Huzi and I lunged forward. I pried open Liu Peng's mouth and shoved a twig inside to keep him from biting his tongue.
Li's father hurried over, his face pale. "What's wrong with him?"
"He's been hit by 冲煞—clash of malignant energy," I explained while quickly checking Liu Peng's condition.
The veins on his face bulged, his blood vessels stood out sharply, and between his brows the skin had turned a purplish-black.
I glanced at the freshly dug-up funeral nail. Beside it lay a copper Bagua mirror.
This wasn't just for warding off evil—it was designed to reflect the deadly energy contained in the Extermination Curse, turning it back on whoever disturbed it.
Whoever set this trap clearly anticipated that someone might try to break it, so they'd placed this mirror right next to the nail.
If it had been me digging instead of Liu Peng, I would have been struck as well—not only failing to break the curse, but likely losing my own life in the process.
Uncle Huzi had always followed me around, but he knew nothing of Feng Shui or occult arts—he couldn't have saved me.
Fortunately, Liu Peng could still be saved.
Ignoring the funeral nail for the moment, I picked up Uncle Huzi's dagger, wiped it clean against my clothes, and made a small incision between Liu Peng's brows. Immediately, thick black blood oozed out.
I took a Breaking-Evil Talisman from my pocket and smeared the black blood onto it.
Only when the blood flowing from his brow turned bright red did I stop.
By now, the talisman was almost entirely stained black.
"Uncle Huzi, get me some water," I instructed.
He still had half a bottle of mineral water. I sliced the bottle open with the dagger.
Holding the talisman, I began to chant:
"A mouthful of sacred water flows to the East,
Let all spirits scatter and none obstruct,
Should any dare resist this law,
The sword shall leap from its sheath and strike them down…"
As I spoke, the talisman suddenly ignited with a whoosh.
Li's father's eyes widened—he could hardly believe a bloodstained scrap of paper could catch fire by itself.
When it had burned to ash, I sprinkled the ashes into the water, swirled it a few times, and had Uncle Huzi feed it to Liu Peng.
The Bagua mirror could only work once—now it was useless.
I removed the second funeral nail and pocketed the mirror as well.
"Uncle Li, watch over Liu Peng. He'll wake in about half an hour. I'm going to continue breaking the curse," I said.
Li's father looked at me with newfound respect and nodded, dragging Liu Peng aside.
I gripped the dagger and headed for the third focal point of the formation—I wanted to dig this one out myself.
"Master, let me do it," Uncle Huzi said nervously. "What if you get hit this time?"
"I'll be fine. I know what I'm doing."
I squatted down and started digging. As I worked, I pressed a talisman to my brow—one that blocked malignant energy.
Fortunately, it wasn't needed. This third nail wasn't guarded by any mirrors or devices. I pulled it out without trouble.
Even with three nails removed, the malignant field of the Extermination Curse had not fully dissipated.
One last object remained—the most crucial element sustaining the curse.
Feng Shui can nourish life—or take it.
Some malicious practitioners twist its principles to harm others, conduct despised by all righteous geomancers.
I'd known exactly what the first three nails were, but I wasn't entirely sure about this final anchor.
Circling Li Na's grave, I calculated once more.
"Uncle Huzi, dig four inches deep, directly south of the grave head, at four feet and four inches from the center," I instructed.
He complied, and when he was nearly done, I took over.
From my pouch, I pulled some cinnabar and drew a symbol inside the hole. When it shimmered faintly red, I dug another four feet deeper. My dagger struck something—a clay jar.
It was sealed with a black talisman, the script on it unfamiliar to me.
Carefully, I lifted the jar from the earth and set it on the ground.
Uncle Huzi peered at it. "Master, what's in the jar?"
"I don't know. But I can tell you it's nothing good."
"Should I open it?"
"I'll do it. You might break something you shouldn't."
I removed the seal and pried the jar open.
A wave of stench hit me so hard my head spun.
Uncle Huzi staggered back several steps, gagging violently, nearly vomiting.
I quickly sealed the jar again.
Even seven or eight meters away, Li's father caught the smell. "What in the world is that?" he called out.
When I'd peeked inside earlier, it had been pitch black. I couldn't make out details.
But the stench was enough for me to guess.
It was likely filled with rotting flesh from several human bodies—something known as a Flesh-and-Blood Urn.