I used folk talismans to ward off the evil spirit.

Chapter 61 Suppressing the Hungry Demons, The Old Story of Yuanguang

Jiang Jun wielded the Crimson Flame Sword, engaging in a fierce battle with his opponent, but secretly felt the strain.

The monstrous body was too powerful; although the lightsaber could pierce its flesh, it could never truly harm its core.

To make matters worse, its hunger pollution intensified with the fighting.

Although Cai Liang and Huang Jing Tongzi were protected by Jiang Jun, the distance was too close and the pollution concentration was too high, which the two of them could not withstand at all.

Cai Liang's face turned pale again, and Huang Jing Tongzi's little face scrunched up.

"If this continues, I'm afraid we won't be able to protect them."

While maintaining the sword formation, Jiang Jun took out the Bright Red Lotus Seed and held it in his palm.

During a lull in the battle, he sent a wisp of his divine sense into it.

Inside the lotus seed, only six runes were slowly circulating, far fewer than in the golden lotus seed. This also meant that it might be much easier to comprehend them.

The runes were bright red, radiating a warm yet firm light. They appeared chaotic, yet subtly possessed an inner order.

Jiang Jun had no time to ponder it carefully; he simply forced himself to arrange and combine them one by one using his divine sense. Once, twice, three times…

Suddenly, the six runes trembled simultaneously, merging into an ancient Sanskrit character that fell into Jiang Jun's sea of ​​consciousness.

A sudden realization dawned on Jiang Jun, and he opened his eyes, softly chanting, "Mēi—"

A bright red radiance flew out from the lotus seed, like a warm glow, and landed on the other person.

The monster froze, its eerie aura melting away as quickly as snow doused with hot water.

Its movements slowed down, its roars weakened, and the eerie flames in its eye sockets flickered, clearly indicating that they were being suppressed.

Jiang Jun was overjoyed and continued chanting the mantra.

Waves of bright red light fell upon the starving ghost, stripping away the layers of pollution surrounding it.

The eerie figure became somewhat ethereal, and its movements became much slower.

Jiang Jun took the opportunity to activate "The Strange Encounter" and "The Divine Chicken Talisman".

With the aid of the bright red light, each strike of the Crimson Flame Light Sword left a deeper wound on its body.

Black blood gushed out, and its aura weakened noticeably, even less than that of an ordinary elite-level monster.

However, even when suppressed to such an extent, it still shows no signs of extinction.

Jiang Jun tried to pierce its head several times with his lightsaber, but failed to kill it.

It possesses a peculiar power that sustains its existence.

It is a quality that transcends the Refining Realm; it is indescribable and inexplicable, yet it truly exists.

Jiang Jun suddenly realized: This must be the characteristic of the extraordinary realm.

He had vaguely heard that there was a fundamental transformation in the extraordinary realm, and that it was very difficult for those below the extraordinary realm to truly kill those above it.

Although this monster is extremely weak, its power level is still intact, so it cannot be killed.

If that's the case, then suppress them.

Jiang Jun took out the "Gourd that Swallows Ghosts," aimed the gourd's mouth at the starving ghost, and activated its power to suppress it.

A suction force enveloped the monster, slowly dragging it toward the mouth of the gourd.

Despite its desperate struggle, the opponent's resistance was futile under the dual suppression of the bright red light and the crimson flame sword.

A few breaths later, the lord-level monster was put into the gourd.

The gourd's belly bulged slightly, and a dull thud came from inside before it quieted down after a while.

"Teacher! That's amazing!" Cai Liang ran over, his face pale with relief, his eyes shining brightly. "You were able to suppress such a powerful monster! You're practically a god descended to earth!"

Huangjing Tongzi also ran over with a "da da da" sound, his little face full of excitement, calling out "Ah bei ah bei", and approached Jiang Jun's hand, curiously examining the new lotus seed, reaching out his little hand to touch it.

Jiang Jun gently patted Huang Jing Tongzi's head: "Good boy, you can't play with this yet."

Huangjing Tongzi pouted but didn't make a fuss. He just hugged his lotus seed, tilted his head, and stared at the bright red lotus seed.

Jiang Jun held the gourd in his palm and carefully sensed it.

Inside the Devouring Gourd, the power of suppression is dissipating the eerie aura of this lord-level monster.

Sealing it within the gourd's ghost-detecting space will ensure its safety for the time being.

Only then did he have the mind to ponder the bright red Brahma Lotus Seed.

Unlike the amber lotus variety, this one is made of agate, as bright as a rosy sunset, and also exudes a sacred aura.

In the Six-Syllable Great Illumination Mantra, "Mi" corresponds to the hungry ghost realm.

Buddhism speaks of the six realms of reincarnation, among which the beings in the hungry ghost realm have bellies as large as drums and throats as thin as needles, and are constantly hungry and thirsty.

Although this lord-level monster doesn't quite match the description, it does bear some resemblance.

No wonder the "Mi" mantra is so effective at suppressing it; it is a mantra specifically designed for the hungry ghost realm.

But there is a problem.

The Brahma Lotus Seed is merely a faint-light level divine object, corresponding to a skirmisher level monster.

This "Hungry Ghost" is a lord-level creature. Even though it has been suppressed for countless years and is extremely weak, its rank is still far above that of the Lotus Seed.

How could a luminous, divine being possibly suppress a lord-level monster?

Jiang Jun pondered for a moment, and two guesses came to mind.

Either someone severely damaged it back then, almost causing it to dissipate, and then used some ritual to suppress it with lotus seeds.

Either this monster wasn't initially a lord-level creature, but rather rose to that level later, and due to some ritual, it hasn't escaped yet.

Regardless of the speculation, it all points to one thing: these two Brahma Lotus Seeds are more valuable than he had anticipated.

In the distance, several figures were rapidly approaching.

Jiang Jun looked up and saw several figures walking on the lake. The leader was Su Tie, followed by two police officers at the peak of the Refining Realm.

They had clearly sensed the battle commotion here and rushed over to investigate and deal with it.

Upon seeing Su Tie, Cai Liang quickly waved and greeted him, "Hello, Director Su!"

Su Tie nodded slightly, but his gaze had already fallen on Jiang Jun.

Cai Liang withdrew his hand, inwardly grumbling, "Just like in the movies, the Supernatural Affairs Bureau always arrives only after everything's over..."

Su Tie landed in front of Jiang Jun, his gaze sweeping over the ravaged lake and the ruined island, his expression grave: "Senior, what... happened here?"

"A lord-level monster emerged from the underwater cave, but I have already suppressed it."

Jiang Jun spoke calmly, holding up the gourd in his hand, and gave a general account of the matter of the hungry ghost and the lotus seed.

The cycad's pupils contracted slightly.

Lord-level monsters correspond to the transcendent realm.

Although he was confident he could handle it after advancing to the extraordinary level, he could never deal with it as casually as Jiang Jun.

Judging from the aftermath of the battle, the engagement had a wide impact, with the lake churning and small islands collapsing, indicating that a fierce battle had taken place.

Jiang Jun, on the other hand, showed no signs of dishevelment; not even the hem of his clothes was wrinkle-free.

Su Tie's assessment of Jiang Jun rose to another level. This was definitely not an ordinary Transcendent Realm cultivator; he was at least at the second or third level of Transcendent Realm.

His gaze fell on the lotus seed in Jiang Jun's hand, and suddenly he frowned and examined it carefully.

After a moment, he looked surprised and doubtful: "Senior, this lotus seed... I seem to remember it."

Jiang Jun remained calm and said, "Oh?"

Su Tie pondered for a moment, then his eyes suddenly lit up: "I remember now! More than ten years ago, there was a Yuanguang Temple in Qingjiang City, and the abbot was a highly accomplished monk."

"He possesses a mystical object, said to be a red lotus seed capable of suppressing evil spirits. I once saw a photograph of it in an old file!"

"Yuanguang Temple?" Jiang Jun raised an eyebrow slightly.

He remembered this Yuanguang Temple.

It's that temple that tried to use Buddhist teachings to subdue the evil spirits, but the evil spirits turned against them, leading to the abbot's self-destruction and his entire family falling into the abyss of evil.

That manuscript by the abbot of Enko-ji Temple is still in his home.

"Later, when Yuanguang Temple was destroyed, this miraculous object disappeared. I never expected it to be here," Su Tie said with emotion. "And I never expected that it would be one of the lotus seeds corresponding to the Six-Syllable Great Illumination Mantra."

Jiang Jun nodded slightly, without saying anything more.

He put the bright red lotus seed into his sleeve and said to Su Tie, "Now that this matter is settled, I'll head back. Contact me again if needed."

Su Tie clasped his hands in greeting: "Take care, senior."

Jiang Jun, along with Cai Liang and Huang Jing Tongzi, disappeared into the realm of ghosts.

Su Tie remained silent for a long time, then turned and instructed his entourage: "After we get back, retrieve all the files of Yuanguang Temple. I want to take a close look at them."

"Yes," one of them replied.