Chapter 303: Chapter 303: Cloning Gao Tianxiang
 

Huang Xiaolong had a great sleep in his new home, not getting up until well into the next day.

He went out for a casual lunch in the afternoon and then bought a heap of items to bring back home.

Villa’s living room.

Huang Xiaolong was knee-deep in his work.

Ehem…

He was crafting paper dolls!

Yes, just making paper dolls! To put it bluntly, it’s just the type of dolls that sold in funeral parlours.

The art of paper-crafting in our country originally stems from funerary customs.

It is a folk art that integrates crafting, pasting, paper-cutting, clay molding, and painting techniques.

Huang Xiaolong proved adept at crafting paper dolls, a slender and tall male figure done in no time.

Following this, Huang Xiaolong picked up a brush, dipped it into mingled cinnabar, and started to paint the blank face of the doll.

Nose, mouth, eyebrows… and finally, eyes.

You should know, paper dolls aren’t meant to have eyes, because once they have eyes, they come alive.

Of course, many paper doll shops these days don’t understand these rules, so they end up painting eyes on paper dolls. After all, nowadays many only see it as a way to make money by selling these items for people’s worship practices.

Real veterans in paper crafting, however, are different. The items they create carry great significance. Paper bridges could guide souls through crossings, avoiding the capture of spirits by Yin soldiers. Paper horses, boy and girl dolls could guide the departed soul, fending off the interference of lost spirits.

As the proverb says, ‘A dragon takes life from the finishing touch of its eyes’. After Huang Xiaolong drew eyes on the paper doll, strikingly, the doll resembled one of the Four Young Masters of Binhai – Gao Tianxiang!

Be it physique, facial features, or demeanour, the doll was an impressive likeness of Gao Tianxiang, right down to his innately proud air.

At this moment, the paper doll of Gao Tianxiang that lay on the floor seemed unsettlingly real, especially with its painted eyes which occasionally gave people the illusion that they were moving. If this paper doll were placed on the street in the night, it would possibly scare a passerby into fainting.

After finishing the doll, Huang Xiaolong laid out five offerings and two cups of water, and stuck in three incenses.

Then, he took out a few talismans from his canvas bag and attached them to the forehead, internal organs, limbs and other areas of the doll.

He then began to chant a spell

“Soul spirit, paper spirit, the nine orifices are all clear, the exterior housing the four elements, the interior complete with the five organs”

The term “soul spirit, paper spirit” meant to enable the paper doll to possess a certain level of thinking ability;

“Nine orifices are clear” would enable the doll to have vision, hearing, smelling, taste, and speaking capacities;

“Exterior housing the four elements” was to make the limbs of the doll lively;

“Interior complete with the five organs,” on the other hand, meant to give the paper doll the functions of all the internal organs, such as breathing, excreting, digesting, detoxifying… and so on and so forth.

The spell was completed, then the next second!

Boom!!!!

All the talismans affixed on the paper doll ignited, and lines of golden light circulated through the doll!

Immediately after, something eerie happened!

The paper doll came to life!

Not only did it come alive, but it was basically a carbon copy of Gao Tianxiang! It was as if they were identical twins!

Moreover, Huang Xiaolong’s paper man-making skills were extraordinary. This paper man had body temperature, heartbeat, the ability to think and could eat, drink, excrete, and sleep like a normal person. Its only weaknesses were fire and wind.

“Master…” the paper man Gao Tianxiang knelt on both knees before Huang Xiaolong and kowtowed.

“Hehe, it’s been many years since I last made one, and my skills have not only been maintained but have also improved a lot.” Huang Xiaolong grinned.

Then, he took out a soul cylinder and removed the lid. “Come, get a yellow-clothed ghost—a male one.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a black mysterious light shot out from the soul cylinder, directly entering the body of the paper man Gao Tianxiang.

“Crack crack” the paper man flexed its limbs. With a sinister glint flashing in his eyes and a grin, he laughed, “Hahaha This… this paper man is great… Possessing this paper man feels no different from being alive… Hahaha Master, your paper man-making skill is definitely top-notch… Hahaha”

Huang Xiaolong directly made a yellow-clothed ghost possess the paper man.

Yellow-clothed ghosts have a strong yin energy. The paper man, now protected by this layer of yin energy, could completely withstand fire, light, and wind, and have extremely strong destructive and killing power.

“Stand up,” Huang Xiaolong said, staring at the clone of Gao Tianxiang he’d crafted in satisfaction.

“Yes, Master.” The paper man, while striding, pinched himself. “Too real, Master. It’s just like I’ve lived again! Hehe~~~~~”

“Listen, from now on you are ‘Gao Tianxiang’, one of the Four Young Masters of Binhai… Your grandfather will celebrate his eightieth birthday in a week. You have to behave well then… Hehe… Go hide somewhere for now and don’t show yourself easily.”

After speaking, Huang Xiaolong took out a couple of hundred yuan bills. “This is human money, keep it safe, and don’t use joss paper money.”

“Yes, yes, Master.” The paper man, grinning ear to ear, accepted the money. “Master, can… Can I look at myself in the mirror?”

“Go ahead.” Huang Xiaolong waved his hand.

Ghosts are actually most afraid of looking in the mirror, because they see themselves grievously harmed. Now, this yellow-clothed ghost, possessing a paper man, couldn’t wait to look in the mirror, imagining itself alive again, seeking a bit of psychological comfort.

“Gao Family… Grand Old Sir Gao, your eightieth birthday is in a week’s time, I swear I will give you a big surprise… Hmm.. you shouldn’t have gone after my uncle. We are all adults, and we should pay for the mistakes we make.” Huang Xiaolong’s eyes flashed with an almost malicious light.

After sending away the paper man, Huang Xiaolong took a nap.

In the afternoon, his phone’s ringtone woke him from his nap.

It was Wu Shanshan who was calling.

He answered the phone.

“Uh… Fatty, do you miss me?” Huang Xiaolong teased.

“Yes, I missed you.” Wu Shanshan was not a sentimental woman, she replied cheerfully. “Little Long, you’re a pervert. Why haven’t you contacted me recently? Have you forgotten about me?”

“Of course not! I’ve been busy with classes and earning money.” Huang Xiaolong quipped. “Fatty, how about we have dinner tonight, and then…”

“And then what?! Anyway, Little Long, I have something to tell you.” Wu Shanshan’s voice was slightly embarrassed, “It’s like this, Little Long, you… you must not get angry after hearing this.”

“What’s up?” asked Huang Xiaolong.

“It’s like this, there’s a guy who’s been bothering me recently…” Wu Shanshan said weakly. “Little Long, don’t get me wrong, it’s all one-sided.”

“You kiddin’? Fatty, aren’t you pretty violent? If a guy bothers you, beat him up! I heard when you were in police school, you didn’t hesitate to hit a man.” Huang Xiaolong was somewhat speechless.

“Little Long… I wanted to hit him, but… it’s not really convenient for me to act against him.” Wu Shanshan stammered. “This is what happened. I used to live in a big yard, and this guy’s parents and my parents had a good relationship. You know, those ties are closer than distant relatives. You could say, our two families have been household names for generations… I was a tomboy when I was little, and he always used to play with me. I was too young to understand anything… Then we both moved out of that place. Lost contact. But somehow, this guy found me a few days ago… He keeps asking me out… I guess he might have intentions… But Little Long, trust me, I definitely don’t like him. I’ve never liked him since we were little, and I don’t like him at all now. The relationship between him and me is just siblings…”

“Got it. Fatty, your childhood playmate guy came back!” Huang Xiaolong didn’t take this matter to heart and even made fun of it. “I’m finished, I now feel threatened… my wife will be kidnapped…”

“Little Long! Will you please be serious? I’ve told you, I have no feelings for him… But my parents and his parents have a good relationship, I can’t physically hit him, right? So, I told him… that I… I… hehehe, I, um, have a boyfriend…” Wu Shanshan shyly said. “Can you come out for a while? Let’s cut off his thoughts!”