Jiangli paid no attention to the owner's mockery and asked Xia Xin expressionlessly, "Did you bring the Talisman Paper?"
"Ah?" Xia Xin was taken aback, not having expected her to ask such a question.
Jiangli asked impatiently, "Did you bring it?"
Seeing her frown, Xia Xin's heart leaped fiercely, as if pierced by a sharp blade, and he said in panic, "I did, I did..."
In a rush, he fumbled out several unused sheets of Yellow Ritual Paper from his pocket and handed them to Jiangli.
Taking the paper from him, Jiangli turned to the owner, "Do you have a writing brush?"
The owner, confused, said, "...A writing brush?"
"You don't use writing brushes here anymore?" Jiangli asked with some hesitation upon seeing his reaction.
Xia Xin, catching on, took a ballpoint pen from the table and handed it to Jiangli, anxiously saying, "We, we don't really use writing brushes anymore. These days, most people use this kind of pen."
Jiangli looked at the thing that resembled a transparent stick in front of her and for the first time showed a slightly troubled expression.
"This, this is how it's used..." Xia Xin, realizing that if Jiangli truly was an ancient ancestor, she certainly had never seen such a thing before, immediately took it up, removed the cap, and handed it to Jiangli, "You can write with this end!"
Jiangli gave him a glance, took the ballpoint pen, examined it closely, made a few gestures, and began to write.
It was unexpected that this peculiar object could actually draw anything.
The owner was feeling increasingly uneasy and turned to look at Jiangli, only to see that, once she had learned how to use the ballpoint pen, she started writing like a deity, holding it in the manner of a writing brush and swiftly drawing a talisman on the Talisman Paper.
Even to the owner, a common man, it was clear that the scribbles, which looked like chicken scratch, held some significance.
Xia Xin, seeing this, was also stunned.
He had seen the Taoist draw talismans many times, but every time his master drew a talisman, he had to prepare for three days beforehand, setting up an altar, lighting incense, summoning the divine, purifying himself, his hands, his mouth, his pen and paper, ink and inkstone, praying before starting, whipping up the brush in one go, spraying it with ritual water, praying again, bowing, and sending off the divine, without missing a single step...
There were also specifics regarding the use of Vermilion and the brush.
Just now he was so anxious to explain the use of a ballpoint pen to Jiangli that he had forgotten to wonder what she wanted the pen for.
It was unexpected that Jiangli would actually use it to draw!
While he was lost in thought, Jiangli had finished the talisman in one stroke and then paused for a second, as if thinking of something.
The next second, with a frown of annoyance, she bit her finger and pressed it over the top of the Talisman Paper.
"What, what is she doing?" the increasingly perplexed owner asked Xia Xin.
Xia Xin said hesitantly, "My master told me, this is called 'activating the mark.' Only when both consecration and activation are complete does the Talisman Paper take effect. Usually, it's with chicken blood and feathers, but when these are not available, sometimes human blood is used..."
As he spoke, he suddenly understood.
No wonder she had appeared to be looking for something just now; she had been searching for something to use for the activation. Unable to find it, she had to use human blood instead.
The owner listened in complete bewilderment.
In the meantime, Jiangli quickly marked the talisman's head, heart, and foot with blood.
After finishing, the owner and Xia Xin saw a dark red luminescence streak across the Talisman Paper, flickering like a light and then quickly disappearing.
The owner blinked hard, suspecting he was seeing things, "Xiaoxin, did you just see that...?"
Before Xia Xin could reply,
Jiangli picked up the Talisman Paper, flicked it in the air, and it suddenly burst into flames with a rumbling sound.