Lu Fei wasn't here to do charity; he was here to collect an evil object.
Only if the other party offered the item to him would he take action.
"I understand the rules," Su Liguo decided firmly. "Rest assured, Little Lu. If you can save my family, you'll be our benefactor! Not only will I offer it, but I'd even give it as a gift without hesitation."
However, Su Mingxuan expressed concern, "Dad, if Master Yang couldn't handle it, can he? What if he's just trying to scare us..."
"Shut up!" Su Liguo glared at him coldly. "How could our family have raised such a foolish son? That Yang guy isn't even worthy of being mentioned alongside Little Lu!"
Truthfully, he didn't fully trust Lu Fei, but compared to Yang, the difference was obvious. He wanted to see how Lu Fei would handle this.
Su Mingxuan dared not argue, lowering his head in frustration.
Master Yang remained silent, not daring to speak a word.
Su Liguo turned and nodded to Lu Fei, "Little Lu, I leave it to you."
"I'll do my best."
Without hesitation, Lu Fei turned his gaze to the menacing stone statue of the Buddha Mother.
A single drop of True Sun Splash was only a temporary suppression. He needed to quickly identify the evil spirit and how to counteract it.
Stepping on the red carpet, Lu Fei approached the statue.
The strange fragrance in the air had vanished, replaced by an indescribable earthy smell.
It was somewhat like the earthy scent after rainfall.
"An evil spirit with a tail… What could it be?" Lu Fei walked behind the offering table and suddenly noticed a fist-sized hole at the back of the Buddha Mother statue.
The unpleasant earthy odor was coming from this hole.
"Is it hollow inside? It seems that the evil spirit must be hiding in there, and this statue is just a surface disguise."
Lu Fei turned on his phone flashlight and shone it into the hole.
It was too dark inside, and the angle was limited, so he could only see a grayish-white mass curled up within, but couldn't make out what it was.
"Little Lu, did you discover anything?"
The others were right behind him, tense and curious.
Master Yang, however, was left alone, fully aware that he was done for. He had nearly brought disaster upon the Su family, and while they didn't have time to address him now, he knew there would be repercussions later.
Lu Fei put away his phone and said to Su Liguo, "Su Dong, to find the evil being's true form, we'll need to break open this statue."
"That's not a problem. Just tell me what to do, and I'll fully cooperate." Su Liguo immediately ordered the housekeeper, "Old Zhang, go call for help right away..."
"Hold on, Mr. Su!" Lu Fei interrupted, "The statue is the evil being's protective shell. If we rashly break it, it will surely become desperate and fight us to the death."
"Then what should we do?"
"Ideally, we should find something to restrain it. The problem is, we can't see the true form of this evil being yet… What kind of spirit could it be from Nanyang?"
Lu Fei paced back and forth in the side hall, deep in thought.
The others followed his movements, heads turning as they waited eagerly for his answer.
Unknowingly, Lu Fei had become the backbone for these people.
"A tail, a pointed face, an earthy smell..."
Lu Fei thought carefully, and suddenly a spark flashed in his mind. He seemed to have figured it out.
But it wasn't enough—this was the fate of the entire Su family at stake, so he had to be certain.
"Mr. Su, let's talk outside." He glanced at the sinister Buddha Mother statue. Discussing how to deal with an evil spirit in front of it could provoke a deadly response.
"Alright, please lead the way, Little Lu."
As they moved out, they noticed that Master Yang had disappeared.
"That scumbag sure knows how to run!" Liu Fugui cursed.
Su Mingxuan craned his neck, looking around, but there was no trace of Master Yang, leaving him with a dejected expression.
Su Liguo didn't care; the Su family had plenty of ways to settle accounts later.
Back in the spacious and luxurious living room, the housekeeper sensibly served tea to everyone.
Lu Fei didn't have time to drink. He asked, "Mr. Su, may I ask the zodiac signs of your family members?"
"Zodiac signs? You mean everyone?"
"The four who are sick, as well as you and your son… ideally, all direct relatives."
"My mother is a Horse, my older brother and sister-in-law are a Monkey and a Goat, and my wife is a Rabbit." Su Liguo wasn't sure why Lu Fei was asking this, but he answered carefully.
"I'm a Tiger, and Mingxuan is a Snake… Oh, and I have a daughter, she's also a Rabbit."
Lu Fei nodded, "If I'm not mistaken, if the evil being isn't contained in time, your daughter will be the next to suffer."
"Why?" Su Liguo was shocked; he seemed very concerned about his daughter.
"Because of the zodiac signs," Lu Fei explained calmly. "That evil spirit doesn't dare target those with the signs of Tiger, Dragon, or Rooster, and it avoids the Snake sign."
"Why is that?"
Not only Su Liguo but everyone else looked puzzled.
"Because that evil being is a snake!" Lu Fei said confidently, "But not a living snake."
The earthy smell was actually the scent of a snake.
"A snake?!"
Everyone shivered.
Snakes are inherently ominous creatures, and if one had turned into a spirit, no wonder it was so powerful.
Lu Fei asked again, "Mr. Su, where is your daughter currently?"
"She's studying abroad. Will this affect her?"
"As long as she doesn't return, she should be fine," Lu Fei said with some relief. "There's no time to lose. I need to prepare some countermeasures."
"Whatever you need, just say the word, and I'll have someone get it," Su Liguo said.
Liu Fugui interjected, "To deal with a snake, would something like realgar work?"
"Nonsense! Snakes don't like realgar simply because of its strong odor, but it doesn't actually restrain them. Even medicated oil would be more effective." Lu Fei dismissed the idea.
"The best counter is a natural predator, like a hawk that preys on snakes. If we could get a hawk's beak, it would be ideal. But hawks are protected animals, so we can't break the law."
Su Liguo grew anxious, "Then what else?"
"Buy a black cat; cats represent tigers. In the clash of Tiger and Dragon, a tiger can counteract snakes. But that's not enough on its own. It would be best to also get a rooster over five years old. In folklore, roosters are known as the Morning Star God, and they eat bugs, which can suppress snakes. These two items should be easy to find, and I believe we can subdue the spirit within today!"
Without waiting for orders, the housekeeper said, "I'll go buy them right away!"
He rushed out immediately.
"Until the countermeasures arrive, everyone should stay together. If anything unexpected happens, we can watch out for each other."
"Agreed!"
Su Liguo nodded solemnly, finally able to relax a bit. He now had complete trust in Lu Fei and began to view the young man in a new light.
As he was reflecting on this, his phone suddenly rang. He picked it up, only to see it was his daughter calling.
"Xiaoning, why are you calling at this time?"
"Dad, which hospital are Mom and Grandma in? I want to visit them!"
"Focus on your studies. They're fine and should be discharged in a few days..."
"You're lying! Mom and Grandma are both seriously ill. I'm already at the airport; I'm coming to see them..."
Su Liguo's expression changed drastically.
"What? You're already back?"