The police officers had no idea what had transpired in the secret passage. All they saw when they entered were the vicious criminals kneeling on the ground, trembling uncontrollably.
Normally, when they apprehended petty thieves, those criminals would put up at least a token resistance.
The people before them were clearly far more formidable than ordinary thieves, yet they showed no intention of struggling. In fact, they were remarkably cooperative, readily extending their hands to be handcuffed.
Their commonality was an intense apprehension towards Yan Shouyi, as they kept as much distance from him as possible.
"Mr. Yan is truly a remarkable individual!"
The young police officers exclaimed with admiration. However, they had no idea what methods Yan Shouyi had employed to subdue these criminals, nor that just moments before, there had been over thirty ferocious specters with green faces and fangs in this secret passage.
Xia Zhi, their superior, had always instilled in her subordinates the principle: "Don't ask questions that don't concern you."
Therefore, no officer dared to inquire how Yan Shouyi had subdued the criminals.
Following Yan Shouyi's instructions, the police officers thoroughly searched the suspects, checking only their pockets or looking for hidden compartments.
The man in the baseball cap's face was grim, his eyes darting around as if hatching a plan.
However, the long-haired man beside him suddenly kicked the baseball cap man and warned him with his eyes not to act rashly.
Seeing this, the baseball cap man suppressed his urge to attack the officers, thinking:
"The elder is so patient, likely because that young man is present. But the elder must have a backup plan. Once we're in the police car and outside, we'll find an opportunity to escape!"
In reality, those in their line of work had long prepared for the worst. Thus, each of them carried a life-saving talisman, concealed in the most private of places.
The police officers' search had not uncovered these talismans.
A police officer ran up to Xia Zhi. "Report, the search is complete!"
"Mm, take them to the police car and back to the station for interrogation," Xia Zhi nodded.
*Heh!*
The long-haired man sneered inwardly. He believed these officers were indeed too young and had given them an opening.
Currently, the confined space and Yan Shouyi's presence prevented them from acting rashly.
But once outside, the situation would be different.
Just as the long-haired man was reveling in his hidden glee, Yan Shouyi suddenly spoke:
"Are you sure you've checked everything?"
The officer hesitated. "We've checked, sir, but according to regulations, some private areas need to be examined back at the station."
"There are no such rules here."
With that, Yan Shouyi led the officers directly to the baseball cap man and said, "Did you check inside his underwear?"
The officer's face flushed with embarrassment. "This... isn't this inconvenient to check?"
The baseball cap man angrily retorted, "You're violating my human rights!"
Yan Shouyi sneered, "I am proficient in the art of Qi Men Dun Jia. If you have anything you shouldn't have on you, I can make it ignite remotely with just a snap of my fingers. Would you like to test that?"
Upon hearing this, the anger on the baseball cap man's face subsided, replaced by a look of distress.
Finally, he sighed and confessed, "I have a talisman hidden in my underwear."
As he spoke, the others also lowered their heads.
It wasn't entirely the baseball cap man's fault; after all, no one wanted to be a "burnt chicken."
The long-haired man let out a long sigh, his last glimmer of hope extinguished.
The officers searched again and indeed found the talismans on them.
Although they didn't know the talismans' purpose, the officers were still impressed by Yan Shouyi's "keen insight."
Once all the talismans were retrieved, and it was confirmed they had no further hidden items, Yan Shouyi smiled and said,
"I was just tricking you. How could Qi Men Dun Jia control someone else's talismans!"
"You?!"
Upon hearing this, the long-haired man and the others nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
This kid actually conned us?!
Even more infuriating, we actually fell for it!
"However, if you hadn't been honest just now, I might have killed the chicken to warn the monkeys and played around with burning a few crotches."
Everyone gritted their teeth. At this moment, they suddenly realized that they weren't bad people at all.
The truly wicked person was this young man before them!
After everyone had been thoroughly checked, they were all escorted out through the back door and loaded into the police cars.
Meanwhile, Long Feicheng and Xia Zhi searched the secret passage, examining the belongings left behind by the suspects.
Yan Shouyi walked to the entrance of the secret passage. While the others were busy, he calmly contemplated for a moment.
He realized he had underestimated these people's backgrounds.
The so-called elder from before was actually just a novice who had barely begun.
His skill level might have been even weaker than Long Feicheng's back then.
He only knew how to use talismans but was completely ignorant of their principles and creation. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so easily deceived and confessed to hiding a talisman in his underwear.
So, where did these talismans come from?
More importantly, to deal with him, the long-haired man had summoned over thirty evil spirits at once.
One had to understand that evil spirits didn't appear out of thin air, unlike palm lightning talismans, which could be drawn as many times as needed.
Behind each evil spirit was a living soul.
Thirty-odd evil spirits meant thirty-odd lives. With the skill level of that motley crew, where could they have obtained so many evil spirits?
The forces behind them were undoubtedly not simple.
While he was contemplating, Xia Zhi and Long Feicheng also made significant discoveries.
Xia Zhi dragged several file boxes and said in a deep voice, "This is all stolen money, over six million."
Six million was no small sum. One wondered how many talismans they had sold.
Long Feicheng held a file bag. "This bag is full of talismans."
"Let me see."
Yan Shouyi was not interested in the stolen money; these talismans were what he cared about.
He casually drew out a few talismans and discovered they were all methods for harming others.
Curses of misfortune, hexes, and possession by evil spirits were the most common types of talismans.
There were also many talismans for accumulating wealth, attracting romance, and bestowing children.
Although the latter might not seem like harmful talismans, their danger was no less than the former.
If talismans were obtained from reputable temples or monasteries, they would indeed have such effects. However, the talismans in Yan Shouyi's hands came at a price.
For instance, a wealth accumulation talisman actually exchanged the luck of those around the user for wealth. For example, if a wife used it, her husband might die in a car accident, and she would receive millions in compensation.
The romance talisman was even more direct: after use, it could bewilder the target, making them obedient and compliant, only to forget everything upon awakening.
The child-bestowing talisman, however, violated the laws of nature. Birth, aging, sickness, and death, the cycle of reincarnation, were the natural order. Not being able to have children meant the time was not yet right. If a child-bestowing talisman was used, it would randomly cause nearby wandering spirits to be reincarnated.
Such wandering spirits, upon reincarnation, would often be mentally deficient. Disabilities and mental retardation were minor issues; if they grew up to become murderers, that would be a grave sin!
"The person who drew these talismans is utterly unforgivable!"
Yan Shouyi's eyes were sharp and filled with immense anger.