Chapter 116: Opening the Altar
Master Yuan stepped forward, first taking Dodo's wrist to check her pulse, then frowning.
The child's pulse was steady; she wasn't sick.
He then pulled open Dodo's eyelids to look at her, his expression suddenly changing:
"Quick, let's go inside the temple!"
"Mrs. Yuan, bring a chair."
Master Yuan handed a wooden spoon to Mrs. Yuan and immediately led Ronan Chen towards the temple in the center.
Marcus followed closely behind, entering the temple.
Mrs. Yuan had long since developed a tacit understanding with Master Yuan; seeing his expression, she knew that this time, the child had definitely encountered something supernatural.
She hurriedly brought a chair, blessed oil, and ritual items.
"What's meant to happen will happen!"
Master Yuan looked at Dodo and sighed.
"This is fate." He clasped his hands together and bowed three times to the altar.
Mrs. Yuan also clasped her hands together, placed them on her forehead, and bowed as well.
Hearing this, Marcus felt somewhat frustrated; how had he gotten involved with fate again?
The previous world was filled with the entanglement between Kane and the Soul Collector, known as destiny. However, facts have proven that fate can be changed, provided one has enough power.
He disliked the word 'fate.'
Because these two words gave one the feeling of having one's life predetermined, like a puppet being manipulated.
"Is the child named Dodo? I'll wake her up first."
Master Yuan had Ronan Chen place Dodo on the chair.
Then he went to the altar and picked up the ritual staff hanging beside it.
The staff was wooden, about a foot long, carved with protective symbols, and blessed with sacred oils.
Master Yuan held the staff in his left hand and picked up a ceremonial blade in his right, circling around Dodo's chair.
He kept chanting prayers, waving the staff and the blade around Dodo's body as if cutting something.
With a loud invocation, the staff was raised, pointing at Dodo's face.
Then, the seemingly light staff required great effort by Master Yuan to lower. After doing so, a layer of fine sweat appeared on his forehead.
"Bad Man!"
Dodo shouted as she opened her eyes.
After looking around, she saw Ronan Chen and breathed a sigh of relief: "Daddy, the Bad Man is gone."
Ronan Chen quickly knelt down, wiped Dodo's forehead, touched her face, and comforted his daughter.
Mrs. Yuan also helped Master Yuan wipe his sweat. Master Yuan rested for a while before speaking:
"The curse on this little girl is very deep. It seems that she was already bound by a contract with an evil entity before she was born. If this level of curse is forcibly expelled, it will also destroy her life."
"What is your relationship with this child? How could this happen?"
Master Yuan looked at Ronan Chen. He could see Ronan Chen's relationship with Dodo. Compared to him, Marcus was like an observer.
"I am her foster father. The situation here is complicated."
Ronan Chen hesitated for a moment and looked at Marcus. Only then did Master Yuan understand the situation.
Marcus recounted the story of Li Ronan and the Mother Buddha Deity to Master Yuan in detail. Since he needed Master Yuan's help, he needed to clarify who the enemy was.
Marcus suspected that when Li Ronan came to Master Yuan in the original story, judging from her behavior, she must have been hiding something.
"Even monsters don't harm their young... Alas!"
Master Yuan sighed after hearing Marcus's words.
"What a tragedy." Mrs. Yuan also bowed to the altar again.
"We cannot remove the curse from this child's body with our own strength. There is only one way to remove it, and that is to invoke divine intervention!"
"But divine forces do not manifest easily, and the human body cannot withstand it, so we must find a way to prepare."
"Everyone has impurities in their body. In spiritual practice, purifying these impurities requires twenty-one days."
"Few people can do that. What this child needs to do is fast for seven days, without eating or drinking, in order to cleanse her spirit temporarily."
"Only when divine intervention occurs can this child withstand it, thus eliminating the curse within her body."
After saying this, Master Yuan stared intently at Ronan Chen:
"You decide for yourself whether you want to choose this method."
Ronan Chen hesitated upon hearing this. Dodo was only a six-year-old child; if she didn't eat or drink for seven days, she might die from dehydration.
He turned to look at Marcus.
Ronan Chen had seen Marcus's abilities and preferred to trust him.
"Master Yuan, are you confident that this child won't die from weakness?"
Marcus felt that Master Yuan must have considered certain factors to propose this.
In fact, even if the Mother Buddha Deity wanted Dodo dead, it wouldn't let her die before the sacrificial ceremony was completed.
On the contrary, it might even protect Dodo if she was in danger, but this was like a shepherd protecting sheep; the shepherd protects the sheep, but the sheep will ultimately be slaughtered.
"There's no absolute certainty. This child's life will be tied to ours. Success or failure is in divine hands."
Master Yuan didn't make any promises, only solemnly stating the price he was willing to pay.
But that was enough.
Marcus nodded to Ronan Chen. At this point, Ronan Chen had no choice. Even if he disagreed, Marcus would make him agree.
Divine intervention was definitely necessary; this was something Marcus had planned long ago.
"Then let's use this method. I'm counting on you, Master Yuan."
Ronan Chen bowed to Master Yuan in thanks, and Mrs. Yuan helped him up.
Master Yuan took a green herb from the altar and tore it into three pieces.
Marcus recognized it; it was a blessed herb.
Such herbs are believed to ward off evil and bring spiritual protection.
It is used in many exorcism rituals and spiritual practices.
Master Yuan himself swallowed a piece of the herb, and his wife swallowed another piece, then fed the third piece to Dodo.
Dodo obediently opened her mouth and swallowed it. Master Yuan made a blessing gesture over Dodo and breathed a prayer over her.
It was as if he were binding her life to theirs.
After seeing Master Yuan do all this, his wife said to Marcus and Ronan Chen with some concern:
"You must remember, for seven days and seven nights, you must not let the child eat or drink anything."
"This involves our lives."
"We need to maintain the ritual for these seven days. You can come back after seven days."
The same choice, the same instructions.
Marcus greatly admired Master Yuan and his wife. They were willing to risk their lives to save a stranger's child.
This was something Marcus could never do.
Unfortunately, in the original story, Li Ronan readily agreed, but then immediately fed Dodo, causing Master Yuan and his wife to fail in their ritual, suffer a backlash, and be killed by the Mother Buddha Deity.
Later, she still had the audacity to approach Master Yuan, only to find the couple's corpses; even the temple's altar had turned dark.
Such a person wouldn't even be blessed by sacred ground.
"Since Dodo can't eat, let's just leave her here; it's safer that way."
At this point, taking Dodo, who could be tracked by the Mother Buddha Deity, around would be more dangerous; the deity would definitely try to get Dodo to eat.
It's better to leave her here; the Mother Buddha Deity wouldn't dare enter before Master Yuan suffers the backlash.
Marcus then showed Master Yuan his Blessed Cross and Holy Seal:
"If anything unexpected happens, I can also protect you both here."
Master Yuan looked at Marcus with surprise. He could tell these two sacred artifacts were powerful; he hadn't expected Marcus to have such abilities.
(End of Chapter)
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