"Now that we have a direction, I will prepare some things first and then find the materials." Perry said firmly. He knew that things could not be delayed for too long. If it is not resolved quickly, I am afraid that the time to be a chef will be longer and longer.
However, he had just taken a few steps and had not found the exit when Alma's voice suddenly came from behind him, nailing him in place like a nail: "Wait, don't leave in a hurry. Take off your shirt."
Perry was stunned and froze in place, his head did not turn around for a while. He turned his head, with a trace of embarrassment and confusion on his face: "What? Take off your shirt? Why?"
Alma raised his eyebrows, with an impatient arc at the corner of his mouth: "Don't think wrongly, kid. You still have the breath of the shadow on you. If you don't draw a protective spell on you, you will probably be swallowed again when you meet it next time. "
Perry couldn't help but feel nervous at this, and his heart sank. He swallowed, he wasn't going to sleep for a week. "Okay... please. But will it hurt?"
"It's a small matter, but it will hurt a lot." Alma raised a meaningful smile at the corner of her mouth, as if to deliberately scare him, and shouted to the side: "Crock, move the stool over and let him sit down."
"How much pain will it probably be?" Perry asked with gritted teeth, unable to hide a trace of uneasiness in his tone.
"It's like the pain of a knife cutting into the skin. "Alma said calmly, as if she was describing the weather. Before she finished speaking, Perry's face immediately turned pale, and cold sweat almost broke out.
Crock sighed helplessly, threw the book in his hand aside, stood up and moved a wooden stool over. After he put the stool in place, he turned around and took out a small box from the cabinet and handed it to Alma, and at the same time comforted Perry: "Grandma's mouth is really not good at explaining... Perry, don't be too nervous. She has drawn exorcism spells on me several times. When I was a child, I was also hit several times because of my mischief. It really didn't hurt that much. "
"You don't feel the pain because you have thick skin, but it hurts a lot for ordinary people. "Alma put on her red-framed glasses to see clearly.
Perry didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and his heart was full of mixed feelings. He didn't know who to believe. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, slowly took off his shirt, and exposed his body to the cool air. The slightly cool touch made him shiver. He sat on the wooden bench, feeling a little uneasy: "Please be gentle."
"Stop talking nonsense and sit down." Alma waved her hand impatiently and opened the small box. Inside was a bottle of ink as red as blood. The color was deep and rich, exuding a faint but strange breath, as if some kind of power was surging in the ink.
Perry glanced at the ink, and his nerves tightened. He swallowed his saliva, and his tone was a little hesitant: "This ink... is it the same thing as the rune drawn on the quilt before?"
Hearing this, Alma looked up and glanced at him, and snorted coldly: "You are smart. This is a special underworld ink, which uses a lot of taboo materials. Ordinary ink can only play a normal role and cannot touch the soul at all. This ink can directly affect your soul. It is the only medium that can activate these runes. "
"Directly touch the soul?" Perry was stunned, his body was as tense as a string, and cold sweat oozed from his forehead. "What will happen if I fail?"
"Failure?" Alma glared at him, with a bit of teasing in his tone, "Boy, you really worry about nothing. The possibility of failure is zero, the premise is that you don't move around."
Crocker stood by, helplessly holding his forehead, trying to cheer Perry up: "Relax, grandma's craftsmanship is first-class, there will be no mistakes."
Although Perry still had concerns, at this point, he knew there was no way out. He nodded, took a deep breath, and relaxed his body as much as possible: "Okay, let's get started... the sooner the better."
As she spoke, Alma picked up the brush and dipped it in ink. The fragrance of the ink mixed with a hint of coolness filled the air. She turned her wrist lightly, the tip of the brush was suspended in the air, and then it landed steadily on Perry's back, like an artist depicting a delicate painting. As the brush slid, deep and complex runes gradually emerged, with some ancient and mysterious rhythm. Every stroke across the skin brought a cool touch, as if a thin needle pierced deep into his nerves.
Perry involuntarily tensed his body and felt his muscles as stiff as stone. He could feel that the runes were like some kind of secret language, being engraved into the depths of his soul bit by bit. His breathing became shallow and rapid, and fine cold sweat oozed from his forehead.
"Relax, kid." Alma's voice came from behind, with a bit of impatience and mockery in his tone, "If you keep stiffening like this, I'm afraid the rune will be crooked. If the spell goes wrong, you will suffer in the end."
Perry laughed dryly, took a deep breath, and tried to relax his body, but the tension in his heart was like a big stone pressing down on him, and he couldn't let it go. He turned his head to look at Crocker who was leaning against the table, trying to distract him with a conversation: "Does she often draw this kind of spell for others?"
Crocker grinned, crossed his arms, and said with a bit of sarcasm: "Yes, she likes to help many people recently. In the past, she only cared so much about her family, and even we had to coax her to do it. However, despite her poisonous words, her hands are still first-class. Grandma is the most famous witch in this area, and her runes have saved many lives."
After hearing this, Perry had more trust in Alma's ability. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the tingling feeling in his back, but the runes seemed to be not just painting on the skin, it seemed to penetrate his surface and directly touch the depths of his soul. Every stroke affected a certain power in his body, bringing an indescribable pain.
He couldn't help but frown, his fingers tightly grasped the edge of the chair, and the whole person seemed to be nailed to the spot. Crocker glanced at him, seemed to have some sympathy, picked up a piece of cloth from the table and handed it to Perry's mouth: "Bite it, be careful not to bite yourself. This process is not pleasant for anyone."
Perry hesitated for a moment, bit the cloth, and indeed relieved the pain a little, but sweat dripped from his forehead and even slid to his chin. He tried to distract himself by counting, but time seemed to be infinitely stretched, and every second seemed to be tortured.
Behind him, Alma was still focused, her wrist trembling slightly, as if she was fighting against some invisible force. When the last stroke was completed, she finally put down the brush, breathed a sigh of relief, and looked at her work with satisfaction. As the ink dried, the rune emitted a faint light, like a living thing wandering on Perry's back.
"Okay." Alma patted Perry's shoulder, with a hint of pride and seriousness in his tone, "This spell can temporarily block the perception of the shadow, but remember, it's only temporary. If you stay outside for too long, the spell will fail and the shadow will still find you."
Perry bit the cloth and slowly exhaled, feeling that his whole body was exhausted as if he had just experienced a battle. He slowly raised his head, his face was pale but there was a hint of determination in his eyes.
Perry put on his clothes and tried to move his shoulders. He felt a faint heat on his back, as if he was enveloped by some invisible force. The warmth was accompanied by a slight sting, but it disappeared in an instant, like a tide that was smoothed. He reached out and pressed his back to make sure there was nothing wrong, then stood up and bowed deeply to Alma: "Thank you, Grandma Alma. This is really important to me."
Alma looked up at him, as if to confirm his attitude, then waved her hand, her tone still casual: "Remember this, young man, running away when you encounter danger is the best way, after all, life is more valuable than anything else. I hope you can come back alive."
"I'll remember it." Perry nodded, although there was a relaxed smile on his lips, but his heart was particularly heavy. He knew that Alma was telling the truth, but the task at hand did not allow him to retreat. He turned and walked towards the door, and before leaving, he looked back at this shabby little house full of mysterious power for the last time.
Just as he stepped out of the door, Crocker's voice sounded from behind: "Hey, Perry! Wait, I'll take you back. By the way, this map is my treasure, don't lose it, do you hear me?"
Perry stopped and turned back to raise the slightly old map in his hand. The corners of the paper were yellowed due to time. He smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll be careful." Although he said so, his eyes involuntarily fell on the dark red area on the map. The area marked particularly prominently was like a mark suggesting danger, which made his heart sink unconsciously.
"Bye, grandma!" Crocker waved goodbye to Alma in the room loudly, with a bit of mischievous intimacy in his voice, "I'll take Henry back to school!"
Alma glanced at them, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just shook her head and sat back in her chair. Perry said goodbye to Alma and followed Crocker out the door.
Crocker quickly activated the teleportation spell. The scene in front of him changed after a slight shake. When Perry came back to his senses, he found himself in a messy office. Books, documents, medicine bottles, and instruments were piled up randomly, with almost no place to stand. The nameplate on the table was engraved with the words "Doctor Crocker", and it was obviously Crocker's studio.
"Ah, sorry, I let you see such a mess." Crocker scratched his head, smiled awkwardly, and then quickly turned around and pushed Perry out the door, "In fact, I have arranged some companions to help you. After all, it's too difficult for you to complete so many things in a short time by yourself."
Perry raised his eyebrows in surprise, and felt relieved, as if the burden on his shoulders was shared. He asked hurriedly, "Really? Someone is willing to help? That's really lucky. Who are they?"
Crocker seemed to be keeping Perry in suspense. She smiled, patted Perry on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, they will gather here soon, and you will know when the time comes." She blinked mysteriously, "But I have to clean up this place first. Otherwise, when they see such a messy studio, they will probably think I am an unreliable doctor." After that, she immediately rolled up her sleeves and began to clean up the scattered documents and items. Her movements were so quick that Perry was a little stunned. Her hands flexibly sorted the instruments on the table and put them back in place, and even picked up the small tools on the ground one by one and carefully put them back in the toolbox. Perry stood at the door, following her busy figure with his eyes, and couldn't help but sigh at her efficiency. He wanted to step forward to help, but as soon as he took a step, Crocker raised his hand to stop him. "Don't touch these!" She glared at him, her tone revealing an unquestionable determination, "The order of these documents and tools is very important, I need to sort them out myself. If you help, you will mess them up."
Perry was stunned for a moment, then he withdrew his hand awkwardly, and returned to the door with a wry smile: "Well, it seems that I can only stand and watch."