Chapter 0088: Intimacy Before the Underworld Tablet
A large urn that had been prepared in advance was brought over. Frank Fang placed the head inside and secured the urn with a wooden lid, sealing the edges tightly with sealing wax. Ajarn Mo Teng bit his left middle finger and used the fresh blood to write several protective mantras on the lid. He told the group, "When the sun rises at dawn, this head will die as the spell breaks. After a few days, once it has completely rotted away, you can dispose of it however you wish."
Rangjie and his father were profoundly grateful to Ajarn Mo Teng and Frank Fang. However, the situation with the gambler was not as positive. The area on his abdomen where the head had bitten him was rapidly rotting and festering, posing a risk of abdominal perforation. Rangjie wanted to take his cousin to the hospital, but Ajarn Mo Teng stopped him: "A hospital cannot cure this kind of ailment. A Necromancer practicing the Flying Head Curse has demonic toxins within his body; a bite allows Yin energy to invade the victim's flesh. I will call my apprentice in Siem Reap immediately and have him bring several types of medicinal herbs. I will then perform a ritual on your cousin to expel the Yin energy. There may still be time."
After the call, everyone waited in anxious suspense. It wasn't until noon the following day that Ajarn Mo Teng's apprentice arrived in Pattaya with the herbs. By then, the wound on the gambler's stomach was a rotting mess swarming with flies, emitting a foul stench. The man was delirious, muttering nonsense and acting violently.
Ajarn Mo Teng had his apprentice crush the herbs into a paste, bake them dry into cakes, and then grind them into a fine powder. He sprinkled the powder over the wound and around the gambler's belly, forming a circle. As Ajarn Mo Teng chanted mantras, he struck a match and brought it close to the powder. It ignited like gunpowder. Holding a bottle of clear water, Ajarn Mo Teng continuously splashed the wound.
The water that ran off was pitch black, like ink. Finally, Ajarn Mo Teng bandaged the wound with gauze and instructed them to tie the gambler's hands and feet to the corners of the bed. After struggling for a while, the man fell into a deep, heavy sleep.
"He will recover in seven days. The matter of the Flying Head Curse is resolved; you need not worry further," Ajarn Mo Teng cautioned Rangjie's family. "But do not speak of this to anyone. If a headless, rotting corpse is discovered in a nearby house one day, you had better keep your mouths shut, or the police will arrest you as murderers."
Rangjie and his father thanked them repeatedly and immediately produced one million Baht in cash for Ajarn Mo Teng. The notes were all brand new, filling a travel backpack carried by the apprentice. That night, Rangjie hosted a lavish feast for Frank Fang, the master, and the apprentice at a nearby grand hotel. They departed the following morning.
After leaving Rangjie's home, the two parties parted ways in Pattaya. Ajarn Mo Teng had his apprentice count out five hundred and fifty thousand Baht from the backpack and hand it to Frank Fang. Both were very pleased. Ajarn Mo Teng remarked, "You are more capable than I. This money was earned quite comfortably for you, whereas I have killed a fellow Necromancer. Someone may come seeking revenge in the future."
Frank Fang smiled and said, "I have already instructed Rangjie and his family to keep their lips sealed. No one will find you in Cambodia!"
Having successfully resolved the Flying Head Curse incident, Frank Fang had made a net profit of five hundred thousand Baht. He spent five consecutive days indulging himself at KTVs, getting drunk every single night. However, he did not let success go to his head; instead, he saw an infinite business opportunity. But how could he spread the word so more people knew that Frank Fang dealt in Amulets and Kuman Thong? He organized his thoughts and identified three viable channels: first, newspaper advertisements; second, word-of-mouth among specific groups like gamblers, prostitutes, and bar staff; and third, referrals between customers. He planned to pursue all three simultaneously for maximum effect. Newspaper ads were easy—you just had to pay. He also printed many small cards to distribute in restaurants, KTVs, and bars across Pattaya. Finally, he established a rule for his successful clients: if they directly or indirectly referred a new customer, they would receive a commission upon the completion of the deal.
These tactics were highly effective. Frank Fang's mobile phone rang constantly with people seeking consultations. He traveled to many temples in Pattaya, Bangkok, and Chiang Mai, and proactively contacted various Black Robe and White Robe Ajarns living across Thailand and Cambodia. He gained a thorough understanding of the functions and prices of Light Amulets, Dark Amulets, Kuman Thong, and Ghost Children, ensuring his supply lines were always open and his knowledge was current.
As his business grew, so did Frank Fang's reputation and his workload. He now only occasionally visited the casinos he used to frequent for a bit of relaxation. The owner of a small casino a block away, a man named Khun Na who was well-acquainted with Frank Fang, approached him one night as the casino was closing. Seeing no one else around, Khun Na asked, "Your Amulet business is doing well lately, isn't it? Making a lot of money? You're hardly gambling anymore."
Frank Fang smiled. "It's alright."
Khun Na idly picked up a few playing cards from the table. "Business has been slow lately. That new large casino at Old Song's Seafood Restaurant has stolen a lot of my customers. I went to sneak a look; they've really set it up well. Not only is the place big and the equipment new, but they've also brought in several young Malaysian girls who accompany the guests while playing cards—naked. How could that not attract people?"
"Such a good thing exists?" Frank Fang's interest was instantly piqued. "At Old Song's Seafood? I must go see!"
Khun Na said, "I didn't tell you this so you'd go play. I want to ask if you have any way to make my business better."
Frank Fang replied, "Sure. Have your wife accompany the guests while they play cards too."
Khun Na cursed, "Get lost! Don't let me see you again!"
Frank Fang burst out laughing. "I get what you mean. You're asking if I have any offerings to boost business and wealth, right?"
Khun Na laughed too. "I knew you were a smart man. Exactly."
Frank Fang said, "I know a master living in Ban Bueng named Ajarn Pong. He specializes in making Dark Offerings. The wealth-attracting tablets he makes are very effective and the price is fair—only thirty thousand Baht. What do you think?"
"That expensive?" Khun Na grimaced.
Frank Fang said with disdain, "You want to get rich but complain about the price? Someone like you wants to change their luck?"
Khun Na asked, "What if it doesn't work?"
Frank Fang told him that as long as the offerings were made according to the ritual, it was impossible for them not to work. The Amulets and mantras used by Sangchai and Darinka were from that same master, and Khun Na knew better than anyone how well they had worked. After a moment of hesitation, Khun Na gritted his teeth, went to his safe, and pulled out thirty thousand Baht in cash. He handed it to Frank Fang and told him to get it done as quickly as possible.
With the money in hand, things were easy. Frank Fang set out for Ban Bueng the next day to find Ajarn Pong and acquired a newly made Wealth-Attracting Dark Tablet for ten thousand Baht. Although called a "tablet," it was actually a black-and-white photograph of a middle-aged man embedded in a square clay slab. Ajarn Pong explained that this was a local man from Ban Bueng who had committed suicide by jumping into a river after his wife cheated on him and his business failed. After his death, Ajarn Pong had guided his soul into the Dark Tablet; the material for the slab was soil from the man's grave. Ajarn Pong also mentioned several taboos: the room where the Dark Tablet was kept could not contain statues or images of Mahayana Buddhist figures like Guanyin or Maitreya; no sexual acts could occur in the room; and no filth could be splashed upon it. These were not difficult to follow.
After receiving the Dark Tablet, to be safe, Khun Na kept it in a separate room that he usually kept locked.
A few days later, the Pattaya police suddenly launched a raid and shut down Old Song's casino entirely. Khun Na had fortunately closed his casino for a day to attend his nephew's wedding, allowing him to escape the crackdown. The gamblers, with nowhere else to go, flocked back to Khun Na's establishment. Overjoyed, he said to Frank Fang, "Is this the power of the Dark Tablet? My nephew's wedding date was set long ago, so I think it might just be a coincidence."
Frank Fang snorted. "Coincidence? Is the police station run by your family, that they just happened to raid the place on the day of your nephew's wedding? Changes in fortune always manifest as coincidences. Did you expect that after offering to the Dark Tablet, you'd have to trip over a bag of cash in the street for it to count as its effect?"
Khun Na was speechless and began to dedicate even more care to his offerings. One night, he and his wife went out to dinner with friends and had quite a few drinks. When they returned late at night, they fumbled in the dark and entered the wrong room—the one where the Dark Tablet was kept. Khun Na's wife realized the mistake and tried to leave, but Khun Na, emboldened by the alcohol, pinned her to the rug and forcibly stripped her. Caught up in the moment, they engaged in intimacy right there.
By the time they woke up, it was nearly dawn. Khun Na realized they were both naked in that room and immediately remembered the taboos Frank Fang had told him. He quickly woke his wife and left the room. He didn't dare tell Frank Fang, thinking that since it wasn't intentional, it probably wouldn't be a big deal. He figured he'd just be more careful about keeping watch during future games.
A few days passed. Late one night, after closing the casino, Khun Na returned to his bedroom and stripped off his clothes to be intimate with his wife. His wife said dizzily, "You just finished and you want more already? You're certainly in high spirits tonight."