At that moment, several security guards carrying a stretcher emerged from the New Orient Grand Hotel, followed by two burly men with fierce faces, each wielding an AK-47. The security staff, clearly used to scenes like this, walked straight to the corpse of the middle-aged man, swiftly loaded him onto the stretcher, and headed down a side alley next to the hotel. The two armed men stepped forward, barking at the gamblers, "Don't crowd around here! Move along! Get lost, all of you!"
The gamblers, seeing the body taken away, scattered in a rush. Their faces lit up with excitement as they hurried back inside to gamble, convinced they'd just absorbed a bit of the 'Gambling Ghost's' luck! Naturally, they couldn't wait to try their luck at the tables.
"Idiots—gamble all you want! Hope you lose so bad you can't even afford underwear! Hmph—"
"Ha! Dream on if you think praying to the dead will make you rich! Keep dreaming!" The two armed men cackled, shaking their heads as they walked back into the hotel. The once-crowded street quickly emptied out—everyone was too eager to get back to their gambling.
Once the crowd had dispersed, Shawn Young told Rainie Bai to stand behind him. He placed a bowl of rice on the street, not far from the corpse, stuck two chopsticks upright into the rice, then had David Yu light a cigarette and stick it into the bowl as well. Next, Shawn twisted open a bottle of baijiu, pouring the liquor in a circle around where the man had been lying.
After finishing the setup, Shawn Young channeled Celestial Essence from within. He raised his hands, releasing a faint white glow from his palms that quickly formed a powerful magical barrier around them. This was to prevent the vengeful spirit from escaping, and to keep outsiders from seeing what was happening inside—perfect for what he planned next.
Then Shawn crossed his hands, forming a sword-finger with his left and placing it in his right palm—casting the Soul Suppression Mantra. He began chanting the Vajra Demon-Subduing Spell: "Heaven's circle, earth's square, ninefold decree, humans and ghosts diverge, yin and yang in balance, sun rises in the east, moon waxes and wanes, all spirits subdued, Vajra Demon-Subduing, seize soul and spirit, by decree—grant release!"
With the incantation complete, Shawn lifted his left hand—"Whoosh!"—a dazzling white light shot from his fingertip, piercing the circle made by the liquor. Instantly, something strange happened: a hazy white mist began to rise from the spot, spreading and drifting into a corner, swirling into a vague vortex. The place where the corpse had lain glowed with a faint, eerie white light, which gradually coalesced into a human shape. Soon, it became the figure of the middle-aged man, hair disheveled, face deathly pale and smeared with blood. His expression was blank and lifeless, and most bizarre of all, a huge chain and iron shackle hung around his neck. He shuffled forward, dragged by the chain, as if some invisible hand was pulling him toward the swirling mist.
"Ah!" Rainie Bai, hiding behind Shawn Young, let out a terrified scream and clung tightly to his shirt, her face pale as a ghost. It was her first time witnessing such a bizarre, supernatural event—if Shawn hadn't been there, she would've bolted in a heartbeat.
"Uhh—" David Yu wasn't doing much better than Rainie Bai. He was so scared he could barely breathe and suddenly felt the urge to pee. But seeing Shawn Young standing there so calm and collected, his courage grew a bit.
Shawn Young pressed his hands together, chanted a strange incantation, then suddenly called out to the vengeful spirit of the middle-aged man, "Leon Chang, halt!"
At Shawn's command, the ghost of the middle-aged man froze, then slowly turned to face him. His eyes rolled like dead fish, staring at Shawn Young, motionless—a truly eerie and unsettling sight.
Rainie Bai sneaked a peek from behind Shawn Young, her heart pounding wildly before she quickly ducked back out of sight. David Yu was just as tense, terrified the ghost might suddenly rush over and drag him straight to hell.
Spreading his hands, Shawn Young addressed the swirling mist, "Temporarily seal the soul of Leon Chang. Ox-Head and Horse-Face, accept my offering—let him pass!"
As soon as Shawn finished speaking, the vortex of mist suddenly surged, transforming into two white phantoms that enveloped the bowl of rice on the ground. After a series of strange noises, the phantoms vanished, leaving the bowl spotless—the rice and the cigarette had completely disappeared.
Shawn Young smiled, picked up the empty liquor bottle, and called out, "Leon Chang's soul, heed my command—come in, now!"
The ghost opened its mouth, its entire body instantly dissolving into a hazy shadow, then morphing into a red light that hovered in midair, swirling for a moment—"Whoosh!"—before darting into the empty bottle in Shawn's hand. Shawn quickly screwed on the cap, chanted another spell, and shook the bottle three times.
With that done, Shawn Young nodded and handed the bottle to David Yu, saying, "Alright! Soul captured. Make sure you hold onto it!"
"Ah—I, I'm scared—" David Yu's face was ghostly pale; he didn't dare take the bottle at all.
"Come on! Just hold it! Stop whining! You want to turn your luck around or not? I'm telling you, if this bottle breaks, you can kiss your comeback goodbye!" Shawn Young warned him sharply.
"Alright, alright! I'll hold it, okay?" David Yu swallowed hard and took the bottle, his hand trembling so badly he was sure the ghost inside was just waiting to jump out and strangle him.
"What's there to be scared of? Hold it tight, I've still got to negotiate with this guy! Don't you dare drop it! Otherwise, he'll really haunt you for life!" Shawn Young shot David Yu a stern look.