Wang Si spoke up and said, "Um... where's that young man? Why didn't Zhang Tian Shi come with us?"

Muyu's face looked a bit complicated. He touched his abnormally intense heart which was beating due to nervousness and looked at Wang Si's suspicious expression. Since he had no clue himself, he didn't want to make Wang Si lose confidence in him. Muyu had to speak confidently and pat his chest saying, "It's just calling a spirit, don't worry, I can handle it alone without any problems."

After finishing speaking, Mu Yu was sweating nervously inside, but he smiled with great confidence on his face. This skill was taught to him by Master Zhang. Master Zhang said that even if they, as Taoists, were uncertain or unable to do something, they still had to reassure others with confidence.

Wang Si nodded somewhat hesitantly and sighed, "Great teachers always create great students." It's unclear whether he said those words to comfort himself or to boost Mu Yu's morale.

After hearing those words, Mu Yu couldn't help but smile bitterly. He is not yet a disciple of Zhang Tianshi, and it seems that he cannot let Wang Si know for the time being. If Wang Si knew that he had used his son's life to practice his skills, he might even try to kill him.

For the next two hours, Wang Si led Mu Yu along the small path, visiting all the places where he used to take the child, but there was still no sign of anything.

In Wang Si's heart, the little expectation he had was completely extinguished during these two hours. He couldn't help but think of the situation where Zhang Tianshi told him that he couldn't capture the soul...it was possible that it was taken away or swallowed up by Jin Li.

Wang Si's face, which was already particularly bleak, was tinged with some sadness. He forced a bitter smile and looked up at the night sky, seemingly in despair.

Muyu felt a little reluctant to see him in this state. She took the white lantern from Wang Si's hand and walked straight to the last location, which was by the river where Wang Si's wife often went to wash clothes.

It had been two hours of wandering around in the night, but Mu Yu's fears had already been worn down to a state of tranquility. All he saw were just wandering spirits of the children, not like the ghost child he had encountered last time.

Just as Mu Yu's feet touched the river bank, a child's laughter suddenly rang in her ears.

Muyu's body stiffened, and he turned in the direction of the west bank of the river with the white lantern in his hand. Despite the lantern's dim light, he couldn't see anything, but he felt an intuition and a connection that led him to believe that the child was in that direction.

Muyu simply listened quietly to the silence around her. She took a light step in the direction and walked over. With each step, her heart trembled slightly.

"Xixi......"

Another burst of laughter resounded.

Mu Yu's hair stood on end. The voice was right in front of him, maybe about ten steps away. He raised his lantern and took five slow steps forward.

In the dim light, a small figure appeared in Mu Yu's eyes.

"The child was crouching with their back facing him, their hands stroking or patting something. Mu Yu guessed that the child was probably playing with a pile of sand."

Muyu gathered up her courage and softly called out, "Yoning, do you want to go home?"

As soon as the words fell, the child turned his head and looked at him, revealing what was covered by the child.

The first thing that caught Mu Yu's attention were two glowing eyes, followed by a cat's body that blended seamlessly into the darkness of the night. This was a black cat.

Mu Yu's eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at the black cat. But to her surprise, the cat's eyes were not wild at all. Instead, they were gentle and calm. There was even a hint of stupidity in that gaze, as if the cat was... a fish staring back at her.

"Mu Yu tentatively reached out his hand towards the child and said, 'Youning, come to big brother, let big brother take you home.'"

The child got up when he heard the words, swayed a bit and stood up, then turned around and took a step towards Mu Yu. The black cat also followed and took a step forward.

Mu Yu carefully looked at the black cat and asked, "Youning, can big brother come over and hold you?"

At this moment, the black cat let out a meow, lazily and as if it were coquettish. It gently pawed at the child's pants leg, with a look that seemed reluctant to let the child go.

Mu Yu couldn't manage so much, he quickly rushed up with a steady step and "carried" the child up, while the black cat was scared by Mu Yu and took a few steps back.

"The child had no weight at all. Mu Yu could only see the appearance of the child, but holding it was like holding air."

"The child was just being 'held' up by the hands when he reached out to the black cat, lightly grasping at the air with both hands and saying 'Hug...kitty...'"

"Miao..." The black cat looked up at the child's gesture, hesitated for a moment, and then walked over to Mu Yu's feet, gently rubbing against them, as if to show its friendliness.

"Meng Yu's brows furrowed as she watched the child's hand constantly grabbing. After grabbing a few more times and still not getting what he wanted, the child's expression looked like he was about to cry. Meng Yu had no choice but to use her left hand to "drag" the child while switching the lantern in her right hand to her left. With her right hand, she tentatively approached the black cat's face."

The black cat glanced at its paw, then looked at the child. It climbed up directly following Mu Yu's hand, and with a tug on the black cat's behind, Mu Yu lifted it up as well.

Mu Yu relied on the light of the lantern to keep his eyes fixed on the black cat, only able to sweep the road with his peripheral vision. He walked forward cautiously, every step filled with unease. He tried his best to not look, not think, and not feel nervous.

Wang Si was still standing on the path, stunned, until he noticed a glimmer in his line of sight. He then snapped back to reality and watched as Mu Yu, with an odd gait, slowly approached. In her empty hand, she cradled a black cat, the very one that had devoured the golden carp!

Wang Si was about to exclaim in surprise, but he was stopped by a sideways glance from Mu Yu. Wang Si swallowed his saliva and took a step back, making way for Mu Yu.

As for Zhang, who had secretly followed them through the grass, he frowned upon seeing the situation. He was unsure about what was happening and had to hold off on making any moves. He instructed Mu Yu to send the soul home first before discussing the matter of the black cat. If his eyes didn't deceive him, the black cat had already been possessed by a Golden Carp. However, the docile and seemingly foolish behavior of the Golden Carp was still a puzzle to him.

"Jinli was slaughtered and stewed by the mother of this child, and Yuyuan was also very likely responsible for the death of this Jinli fish. But why did this Jinli fish listen to the child so obediently and calmly?"

According to normal thinking, this Golden Carp should have swallowed the child's soul, and then retaliated against Wang Si and his family. But... it's not going the way they thought. Could it be that this Golden Carp is also waiting for an opportunity to act?

"No, this black cat doesn't have any aura at all. Aura is something that can't be hidden. Could it be that this Golden Carp doesn't blame Wang Si and the others for killing it? Or is there something that Zhang Tianze has overlooked?"

"Half an hour later."

Muyu followed the small path and trembled as he returned to the front door of the dilapidated house. Just as he stepped onto the threshold, the candles in the lantern went out, signaling the end of tears. Muyu's heart tightened in response.

Mu Yu paused for a moment and felt relieved that there was no movement in her arms. Just then, the kerosene lamp in the hall was lit again and sitting in front of it was Wang Si's wife.

When Wang Si's wife saw Mu Yuzi in a strange posture and holding a mysterious black cat in her arms, she immediately restrained herself and didn't speak to disturb her.

Mu Yuchong smiled at Wang Si's wife, crossed the threshold, and entered the house holding a black cat and a spirit.

As soon as Mu Yu entered the room, she first placed the black cat at the foot of the bed. Then, she "assisted" the soul to lie on the child's body. The soul lamp on the child's head had not yet extinguished. Mu Yu took out a long red rope and tied the child's entire body, then she performed complex soul-locking knots on his acupoints. She stopped only after she had completed fourteen knots in one breath.