How to Break Evil Witchcraft

Hearing my father's words, I frowned. Although none of the old men had approached me directly, I had seen one - an old man who looked exactly like the depiction of Peng Zu on the human skin. The crucial point was that after following him, I had stepped on a ghost flag - the same ghost flag depicted on that human skin.

I wondered how my father knew about this.

"You've seen that old man? But didn't recognize him, did you?" My father pressed when I remained silent. "His name is Peng Zu. He came to see me at the bar. His identity remains a mystery, and I dare not meet him unless I can determine once and for all what he truly is."

"I haven't seen any old man," I said abruptly.

Too much had happened tonight. I didn't want to discuss anything further, and my attitude toward my father remained ambivalent at best. This was our first meeting, yet his words had overturned everything I'd known and believed for the past twenty years. Moreover, his willingness to disregard human lives for profit left me deeply unsettled.

"Is that so? You may go then. I'll be in touch," my father said calmly.

"Wait." I stopped him. "I have one more question. If I made a contract with that three-tailed evil fox, how could I break it?" Harper's situation suddenly came to mind.

"There is no salvation," he replied gently. "Either you harm others to continue feeding the evil fox, or you wait to die." His words made me gasp.

What kind of horrific witchcraft was this? No counter-spell existed? Survival required victimizing others? This was tantamount to pushing someone to the cliff's edge with no path of return.

"If you ever practice such magic again, consider our relationship severed," I said coldly.

This newly-met father of mine left me profoundly disappointed. Part of me wished he'd never reappeared. The truth of his claims remained uncertain, and his actions bordered on unconscionable. Whatever his reasons might be, they could never justify harming innocent people.

He remained silent - which I took as tacit disagreement. With a snap of his fingers, a man entered and escorted me out.

The uneven path felt the same as before, though blindfolded, I couldn't see my surroundings. Judging by the terrain and crisp mountain air filled with insect sounds, we were likely deep in wilderness.

My return journey mirrored my arrival, though this time Ledesma didn't accompany me. My calls for him went unanswered, and my current escorts maintained mute silence throughout.

When the car finally stopped, I found myself back in the tattoo parlor's alley. The vehicle sped away before I could remove the blindfold. By the time my vision cleared, it had vanished completely.

I walked back into the tattoo parlor. Stein greeted me excitedly the moment I returned. Stella and Harper were still there too, their faces lighting up with joy when they saw me. Antonio turned his head to look at me, the corners of his mouth curling slightly upward.

"Ror, where have you been? We were worried sick! Where did that Ledesma take you? Who did you meet?" Stella fired off questions rapid-fire.

I sat down and took a sip of water before replying flatly, "My dad."

"What the hell? So Ledesma is your father!" Stella's chin jerked up in surprise, then her mischievous brow furrowed slightly. "Now that you mention it, you two do look somewhat alike. Wouldn't be surprised to hear you're father and son - both equally ugly."

"What the fuck? I said I went to see my dad," I snapped, wondering if the girl was being deliberately obtuse or if her logic circuits were genuinely faulty.

"So you're saying your dad owns that group of black-clad men and Ledesma?" Stella pressed.

I nodded. "I guess so." I wasn't entirely clear on the specifics, but the group did seem to take orders from him and had been trained by him.

This struck me as odd. Our Tang family's Yin-related magic was the Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts. Why was he teaching people to raise evil foxes? Another strange thing - Webster had mentioned something about my parents being in a coffin deep in the mountains.

Could the place I'd visited have been deep in the mountains? Was that so-called house actually a giant constructed coffin?

It wasn't impossible. Next time I went, I'd have to find a way to investigate what that place really was. My father had remained hidden for twenty years without anyone discovering him. That location must be extremely well concealed.

"That would be perfect," Stella suddenly interrupted my thoughts. "Have him break Harper's contract with the evil fox."

I gave a bitter laugh. "He said it can't be broken. Either continue harming people to feed the evil fox or wait to die."

Harper's hopeful expression collapsed. She'd clearly been regretting her choices and wanting to turn back. At my words, despair washed over her, her face going pale.

"Damn it! This is all your dad's fault!" Stella exploded. "What's the point of this Evil Witchcraft? Is your dad some kind of monster? Take me to him. This debt needs settling - I don't care who he is!"

But Harper grabbed Stella's arm in a death grip, shaking her head frantically. "Don't go! I have only myself to blame. I willingly signed the contract with the Fox Fairy. Don't go - it's too dangerous."

"What Fox Fairy nonsense? Wanting immortality with three tails? Dream on! It's just a people-harming evil fox." Stella patted Harper's hand reassuringly. Their bond was remarkably strong. Stella wouldn't stand by and let something happen to Harper - she'd help her no matter what.

"Ror, lead the way. I want to settle the score with your father. What, you want to protect him? Think I won't beat you up too?" Stella confronted me.

I gave another bitter laugh. "I went there blindfolded with a black cloth. I don't know the way back. How could I take you?"

"Aiya! A son meeting his father needs blindfolding? You taking me for a fool?" Stella lashed out with a kick that I barely dodged.

While Stella was being unreasonable, I wasn't lying. It was the truth.

"Enough, stop giving Ror a hard time. Maybe this is my fate," Harper said, pulling Stella back.

"No way! I won't let anything happen to you. Absolutely... not!" Stella declared firmly.

"Thank you, Stella." Harper's eyes reddened as she pulled Stella into a tight embrace.

"It's okay, good girl. I'm here. Don't worry." Stella comforted Harper while shooting me a nasty look.

"What the hell? What scheme are you plotting now? You wouldn't... do that to me, would you?" I hugged myself protectively.

"Ugly as you are, your thoughts are quite beautiful... Since this is your father's doing, if I kidnap you to threaten him, wouldn't that solve the problem?" Stella smirked smugly, as if she'd conceived a genius plan.

"Stop. This Evil Witchcraft is inherently difficult to break. The real problem is that three-tailed fox. Confronting him won't help," I argued.

Just then, a demonic wind suddenly rose outside the door. A red sedan chair descended from the sky, landing slowly before my tattoo parlor.

"Speak of the devil! Such demonic aura!" Stella eyed the doorway warily.