"Miss Si is indeed beautiful."
Zhou Xuan greeted politely. Though Si Yuer was truly beautiful, his thoughts were not on her but rather on the tattoo.
He raised his hand and said to Si Ming, "Mr. Si, this tattoo has undergone some unusual changes. I need to take it home and examine it further..."
As he was speaking, the tattoo in his hand suddenly seemed to grow wings and attempted to fly away.
Zhou Xuan held it tightly but felt a fierce force prying open his palm before the tattoo flew upward into the hall and unfolded.
At the moment it unfolded, Zhou Xuan saw the flower-picking handprint in the tattoo beginning to change shape.
The flower-picking handprint was traditionally depicted with the thumb and middle finger pinched together while the other fingers naturally extended.
Of course, there were variations with the thumb and index finger pinched or the thumb and ring finger pinched, all of which were acceptable.
However, the handprint in the tattoo at this moment adopted none of the known flower-picking styles. Instead, the index, middle, and ring fingers were clasped into the palm, leaving only the thumb and pinky extended—resembling a pair of sheep horns.
The two fingers forming the sheep horn handprint trembled faintly, shaking slightly with ghostly shadows.
At that exact moment,
Zhou Xuan suddenly felt as though something had been placed on his back, his body sinking slightly.
Across from him, Si Yuer seemed to experience the same sensation—her neck slightly bent, her body sinking downward.
The movement wasn’t very noticeable; if one didn’t look carefully, it would be hard to discern.
"This handprint is so strange."
Si Yuer gazed up at the tattoo of the sheep horn handprint suspended in mid-air and remarked, "It feels just like the Buddha energy I felt yesterday while Teacher Jing led me in chanting scriptures."
Yesterday at the Blood Well Gathering, Jing Deng led the members in chanting scriptures, but Yun Ziliang mentioned that it wasn’t actually Buddhist scripture—it was the Star Covering Charm’s blessing!
The spell crafted by Alien Ghost Covering Star harmed oneself to harness the Power of Stars, allowing the stars to bestow blessings.
Zhou Xuan checked in with his own feelings at that moment. No denying it—it did bear some resemblance to the sensation of the Star Covering Charm.
"There’s something wrong with this tattoo. What exactly am I carrying on my back? The flourishing Buddha energy from the other tattoos isn’t in this one; instead, it’s replaced by this eerie and malevolent Buddha aura?"
When the sheep horn handprint fell from its suspension and landed on the ground, Zhou Xuan quickly rolled up the tattoo and said to Si Ming, "This tattoo has problems! Both Miss Si and I have something on our backs."
"On my back?" Si Yuer asked upon hearing this. She turned her head to look at her own back but couldn’t see it. She began turning her body to get a better view... But it seemed she forgot—while her body turned, her head turned along with it.
The esteemed eldest daughter of the Si Family suddenly felt something about this was off!
Zhou Xuan poked at his temple and silently mocked her.
"I almost forgot, people can’t see their own backs," Si Yuer said.
Zhou Xuan was now even more convinced—her brain really did have some issues.
"You’re saying you and my daughter both have something on your backs?" Si Ming asked with an expression of serious concern.
"Yes!" Zhou Xuan replied.
This place was the Divine Stealer Hall. Zhou Xuan thought back to the moment he first arrived at Mingjiang Prefecture, at the train station where he encountered Liu Qingguang, the divine thief.
Liu Qingguang’s eyes appeared extraordinary, able to see something that even Zhou Xuan couldn’t.
"Mr. Si, does your hall by any chance have someone named Liu Qingguang?"
"Yes, Lao Liu is the keeper of the lanterns in our hall, specializing in guiding newly entered disciples in their craft."
"Bring him here to have him take a look at Miss Si’s and my back," Zhou Xuan said, then opened up the tattoo map in his hand again.
The tattoo still depicted the "sheep horn handprint"!
If there was an issue with the tattoo, where exactly had it gone wrong?
ps: Dear friends, the two updates amounting to nine thousand words are done, kisses.