Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 49: Chair

Room 601, Building 4.

After dinner, Zhong Chengshuo locked himself in the bedroom early. As Yin Ren waited for the ghost market to open, he was checking his result papers.

While curses were invalid on Zhong Chengshuo himself, as “King Yama”, he needed to verify the remnants of curses on the spot. Zhong Chengshuo had invited a superb spirit smith to create a set of test strips for such things.

This was his killer weapon to identify unknown curses.

Zhong Chengshuo was a bit reluctant to use the test paper. Unfortunately, he had already exhausted other methods of verification a few days ago.

There didn’t seem to be a curse on him.

This set of precision test strips was his last hope. When he saw that Yin Ren had left for the ghost market, he immediately took out the test strips.

He ran into the bathroom of the master bedroom, mixed his own blood with a potion, and lit the extract on the test strips. The dark red test strips hung one by one, and the atmosphere around the small bathroom became eerie.

The test strips gently shook on the string, like a string of air-dried corpses. Zhong Chengshuo sat on the toilet lid, unmoving, imitating “The Thinker“. Under the bathroom light, his glasses glowed a layer of white.

Time passed slowly. Eventually, the blood potion completely dried up. The color of the test paper didn’t change at all, and there was no trace of water immersion.

There were still no signs of a curse.

This wasn’t good. Zhong Chengshuo continued to contemplate as he sat on the toilet lid.

Since it wasn’t a curse of instant death, the purpose must be to deter. However, using this kind of subtle curse that couldn’t be verified wouldn’t serve as an effective “deterrent” at all—even if he was afraid of Shian finding out, this method was way too oblique.

They lived together, and Yin Ren knew where his parents were, so it wasn’t like he didn’t have other methods of restraint.

This evil qi corruption wasn’t right. Normally, evil qi was like drops of water sliding over a lotus leaf, leaving no traces behind.

After thinking for a long time without conclusion, Zhong Chengshuo silently recycled the test paper and flushed the burned paper ash into the toilet.

When Yin Ren left, his residence returned to its previous quietness. There was no longer the vague music and lines from shows and movies outside his bedroom door, or the laughter and movement of another person. The silence was quite abrupt.

Zhong Chengshuo couldn’t help but open the bedroom door—the opportunity was too good to miss, so he might as well investigate to the end.

Yin Ren liked to stay in the living room. He hardly ever returned to his bedroom. He would only go back to the shower and then lie back on the sofa. Zhong Chengshuo locked his bedroom and slowly approached the sofa in the living room, as if there was some sleeping beast on it.

Mr. Yama took a deep breath and lay down like Yin Ren.

Was there anything special here?

Was it easier to spy on him in his bedroom? Or was it because it occupied the most advantageous combat angle? Zhong Chengshuo laid on the soft sofa and swept his gaze around the living room.

From this angle, he could only see the floor-to-ceiling windows “under his feet”. The floor-to-ceiling windows were inlaid with the night view of Haigu. The lights were extremely bright, giving people the illusion that they were floating among the stars.

Was it because it was “lively”?

After all, Yin Ren did say he likes lively places…

The sofa was soft, and the cushion was indented by Yin Ren. The subtle smell overwhelmed him and made Zhong Chengshuo’s eyelids heavy. Relaxation and vigilance surged at the same time, and his heartbeat became chaotic again.

How terrible.

Heart disease, an unknown curse, and evil qi corruption were ruled out one by one… Was it really a “psychological factor” as Sun Qi’an had said?

Zhong Chengshuo knew he wasn’t good at getting along with others. In order to ensure his identity wasn’t exposed, he would present various scenarios—such as dealing with strange enemies or getting along with friends and family. He even rehearsed in advance countless times the details of being questioned by Shian and getting along with his colleagues.

But Yin Ren was different. The man broke into his territory in a dignified manner that had no semblance of a surprise attack. With such a guy around, Zhong Chengshuo felt he was gradually becoming powerless.

No. He should first speculate on Yin Ren’s purpose.

Looking at Yin Ren’s performance, he had suspicions about his identity and was trying to press him… Yin Ren infiltrated Shian… but also did absolutely nothing… What was his purpose…?

At this point in time, it was already 1 a.m. Zhong Chengshuo slowly closed his eyes.

Hu Tai and Lu Tanfei in the corner: “……”

Hu Tai: “Is he taking a nap? Why did he come to sleep on the sofa?” He even forgot to wear his nightcap.

Lu Tanfei: “Maybe he’s worried about Xiao Yin.”

Hu Tai: “Yin Ren won’t be back for a while. Let’s go, Lu Ge. I’ll teach you—”

Her voice was drowned out by the vibrating sound of a phone.

Zhong Chengshuo instantly opened his eyes and nimbly grabbed his phone.

[Fruit Knife: Zhong Ge, are you there?]

[Fruit Knife: I’m in the ghost market. This is urgent 😱]

Zhong Chengshuo: “……” He knew this guy was being dishonest. Sure enough, something happened!

[Final Fruit: ?]

[Fruit Knife: Can I borrow some money?]

Zhong Chengshuo slowly put down the phone and laid back on the sofa. He probably had fallen asleep in a daze and was dreaming of some kind of plot that “Yin Ren was disturbing his sleep in the middle of the night just to borrow money”.

Unfortunately, the phone didn’t stop vibrating.

[Fruit Knife: Help me! It’s very important. It may be related to the case and can be reimbursed!!!]

[Final Fruit: “May be?”]

[Final Fruit: Forget it. How much do you need?]

[Fruit Knife: 100,000]

[Final Fruit: ………………………]

[Final Fruit: I don’t have that much. Even if I did, I couldn’t transfer it. Do you want me to call the police for you?]

[Fruit Knife: 😖]

……

An hour ago.

“Alright, lead the way,” Yin Ren said.

Old Dog Peng laughed, arched his back, and walked to the corner of the street with Yin Ren.

There were gaps in those weird old houses that were just big enough for a person to pass going sideways. The doors and windows of the old houses were pure black, making those gaps even less noticeable, like ditches overflowing with sewage.

Old Dog Peng led Yin Ren to walk closely to the edge, and soon they stumbled upon two adjacent mansions. One of them looked like an ancient residence, while the other looked like an old-fashioned restaurant, with a slightly wider gap between them, filled with murky night fog.

Unlike the rest of the building gaps, this gap was flanked by red-colored spring couplets on both sides, which seemed to stitch the two large buildings together. The words on the spring couplets looked like chewed bones, making their text indistinct, leaving only the red paper that was bright and dripping, like white silk being dipped in blood.

The stone sculpture of a tomb guardian beast was placed horizontally at the entrance of the gap, looking like a stone threshold.

Old Dong Peng plunged into the alley.

Entering the alley was like entering water. The voices of the ghost market suddenly became muffled. Only the gray mist and the swaying figure of Old Dog Peng were left behind. It was supposed to be a straight road, but the more he walked, the more curved it became. The bluestone road gradually turned into mud and would make a squishing noise when he stepped on it.

The two of them turned around and crossed an unknown number of forks in the road.

“Here—” The voice was thin. It should be the facial sore on Old Dog Peng’s body.

Yin Ren raised his head and saw two huge “Pawn” characters in black on a white background in front of him.

The pawnshop was a two-story building with carved columns and paintings, looking particularly grand. It was built at the end of the avenue, with about four-meter-tall walls on either side. The walls were covered with all kinds of uneven red lanterns, painting a layer of red lights.

Looking up, the top was no longer the clear starry sky but a thick darkness.

At some point, they were once again swept up in the crowd, but this time, all the people around them didn’t cover their faces.

There was an old man carrying a bird cage. Inside were small birds bouncing around, and from time to time, they would let out sharp and hoarse screeches. A young man was carrying a trendy bag with a dense pupil reflection lashing through the zipper gap.

A simple peasant woman was carrying a bamboo basket with a few shriveled hands exposed under the covering; their thin fingers would twitch a few times on occasion. There was a child dressed in red running around, giggling. When he took a closer look, the child’s facial features were all on the top of his head, and his laughter floated up toward the sky.

Yin Ren roughly estimated—the strength of the people here was completely different from that of the guests in the ghost market. They were a full level stronger.

He subconsciously held his breath and became more cautious.

“Oh, can you feel it?” Old Dog Peng laughed. “The ghost market is like a marketplace where everyone goes to casually buy some daily necessities. If you have a bit of skill, do you really need to go through that kind of troublesome channel?”

The old man stretched his neck and looked proud.

“The ‘ghost pawnshop’ is a place to scour for quality goods. What you see now is just the ‘middle-level’ among the Nightwalkers. At the level of King Yama, Mud Meat Zhang, and The Great Immortal Wu, no matter what they want, as long as they say it, someone will come and offer it.”

“Who is that?” Yin Ren pointed to the “person” at the door.

It looked clearly like a zombie with long hair dressed in an ancient costume. Its bruised flesh was clinging to his bones, a melon-skin cap was buckled on his head, a pair of gold-wire round-frame glasses hung on the bridge of its nose, and its mouth was puffing… on an e-cigarette.

It kept swallowing clouds while its two glazed eyes kept spinning around.

“That’s the owner of the ‘ghost pawnshop’. Everyone calls him the Lao Jiang*,” Old Dog Peng introduced mysteriously.

*Old Stiff/Zombie

“Zombies are one of the few ‘physical evil things’ in the world. They’re on the verge of extinction these days. Lao Jiang is autistic. He has lived in the ghost market for more than 300 years before leaving his entire body.”

The same “physical evil thing”, Yin Ren, changed the subject. “Will Xiao Mengpo definitely come?”

“She has been every time. She likes to scour for materials here. If not, I’ll write my name backwards*… Let’s go, let’s go.”

*It’s a saying basically referring to I won’t lie to you. If I did, I would do something unbelievable (like if I’m lying to you, then I’m a cat; it’s not true, so that means I’m not lying).

“You don’t have to write it backwards. If she’s not here, you can refund me half the money,” Yin Ren suggested.

Old Dog Peng pretended he didn’t hear it.

The pawnshop seemed like it was only in name. The inside was more like an opera house. There were rows of square tables below with a large number of melons and fruits on them. On the stage, decorated in red and gold, were two black wood couplets hanging from either side. This time, the inscription on it was more serious.

Top couplet: There’s nothing new in love and hate.
Bottom couplet: There are old friends in joy and sorrow.
The horizontal line was crooked and engraved with: Don’t be noisy.

The front row was already full of people. Old Dog Peng dragged Yin Ren through the crowd until they reached a corner where they could stand. This place was far away from the stage, but fortunately, it wasn’t blocked, so he could still see the situation on the stage.

When the area became crowded, Lao Jiang swung to the stage on a white silk. He leisurely put away his e-cigarette, patted the loose silk clothes he was wearing, and pinned a microphone to his collar.

“The auction is about to start.” Unlike his withered appearance, his voice was magnetic. “Same rules as always. I will auction 18 pieces today that I have carefully selected. Take a good look at them, ladies and gentlemen.”

The first thing to be put on was an old-fashioned radio. The antenna was covered with blood, and there was a hoarse chirping sound from the machine from time to time. When Lao Jiang casually pressed a button, the chirp transformed into a human voice.

[…Same rules as always. Today, I’ll auction 22 pieces…]

“A naturally formed spirit weapon, a Black Bull Radio. You only need to put it in a fixed place, and you can retrieve the sound from the past. People, this thing is great for those who want to feel nostalgia.”

Lao Jiang shook his head, causing his thin neck bones to make an unpleasant creaking sound.

“Unfortunately, it can only go back one year. This thing would be an item for our grand finale if it didn’t have so many restrictions.”

There was a buzzing sound in the audience. Many old people showed a look of satisfaction.

Lord Ghost King, who didn’t have nostalgia, wasn’t interested in the radio. Yin Ren scanned the crowd, trying to find the aura of “Xiao Mengpo”.

The radio was quickly sold for 97,000 yuan.

“The next thing is quite good. A 200-year-old pig-killing knife with quite a fierce aura. It’s not as good as a murder weapon, but it can suppress evil spirits. Ghost masters, take a careful look…”

…..

When the “wolf bone carving knife” was sold, Yin Ren finally found Xiao Mengpo. The old lady was sitting in the front row with a tense face. Perhaps it was because despite so many spirit weapons being auctioned today, she hadn’t found the material she wanted.

Yin Ren instantly abandoned Old Dog Peng and began to squeeze in the direction of Xiao Mengpo.

Just as he squeezed near the stage, the next item for auction appeared on the stage.

“This is a chair made of cherry wood of unknown origin. When touched, it can cause convulsions and vomiting. The auctioneer wished to remain anonymous and has handed it over to us for consignment along with a message.”

Lao Jiang took out his phone and read the words solemnly.

“’Let the game of hide and seek commence’… Well, that’s it. Let me show you the details of the workmanship of this chair…”

Yin Ren raised his head and looked at the chair.

At first glance, it was a warm yellow all-wood armchair, but on closer inspection, it was questionable to describe it as “all wood”…

On the warm wooden surface, there was a fine skin texture, and thin hair protruded from the depressions. There were also subtle protrusions and flesh-like gaps at the joints of the chair legs and a hollow in the back of the chair.

The chair trembled slightly, making a whimper similar to a “light cough”. Muddy liquid dripped down the legs of the chair, accumulating into a smelly pool on the table. Every time Lao Jiang’s hands crossed, it would shudder for a few seconds.

Yin Ren stopped in his tracks.

How strange.

As far as he could feel, the position of the chair seemed like it was curled up like half a person. That thing was like a baby in its mother’s womb and was far from having a complete life.

However, it was indeed “alive” with a bit of vitality, which shouldn’t be something a spirit smith could make.

Yin Ren changed his target and squeezed a little closer. He closed his eyes, blocked his ears, and sniffed the chair intently. The stench of filth, along with the sour smell of sweat and the fragrance of wood, mixed together. At the bottom of this smell, he also smelled some evil qi.

The source of corruption in Feng Qi’s case also came from the same evil qi. Even the smell concentration was similar.

…This was also an indirect corruption source.

“50,000!” Yin Ren came back to his senses when someone behind him began the bid.

Yin Ren hurriedly raised his locust wood sign. “60,000!”

“65,000—” Not far away, Xiao Mengpo gave him a glance.

“75,000!” Yin Ren gritted his teeth.

Items related to evil qi wouldn’t appear casually. He intuitively felt that this item was related to Lu Guangzu’s case. Even if it wasn’t, it was enough to open another case.

Apart from being a collector’s item, this chair didn’t have much practical use. Xiao Mengpo most likely wanted to buy it to study its medicinal value. Yin Ren hoped that she would retreat in the face of difficulties.

“80,000.” The old lady snorted coldly.

“80,002…” His salary was almost spent, and the rest could be paid through formal emergency loans. But in his case, he most likely wouldn’t be able to get a loan for that much.

In a hurry, Yin Ren clicked on the apple avatar of Zhong Chengshuo.

……

Comrade Xiao Zhong woke up, but he could only give him moral support.

[Final Fruit: I don’t have that much. Even if I did, I couldn’t transfer it. Do you want me to call the police for you?]

[Fruit Knife: 😖]

[Fruit Knife: I really need it urgently.]

“95,000—” Xiao Mengpo began to increase the price again.

[Fruit Knife: Trust me this time.]

[Final Fruit: ……]

[Final Fruit: Okay, buy the thing first and give me 20 minutes.]

“100,000!” Yin Ren held the locust wood sign high.

Xiao Mengpo made a long face, narrowed her eyes, and surveyed Yin Ren, looking quite unhappy.

“100,000 yuan, going once. 100,000 yuan, going twice—sold!”

Before Yin Ren could step forward, Xiao Mengpo had squeezed to Yin Ren’s side. She stared at him with weasel-like eyes that locked on him firmly.

“I thought you were new to the ghost market and didn’t know your way around? How did you get to the ghost pawnshop?” She smiled miserably. “I was really pecked by geese* and didn’t recognize an insider. You buying medicine yesterday was all a ruse. Rather, you were just trying to find someone.”

*Referring to the idiom hunting geese all day long causing them to peck your eyes. (终日打雁，叫雁啄了眼) It refers to a person who spends his life restraining a person or thing but instead is restrained by it.

Yin Ren didn’t deny it.

“Boy, I saw you hesitate to bid just now. I hope you didn’t buy that chair just to attract my attention. The rules of the ghost pawnshop are very strict.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Yin Ren saw Lao Jiang take out a fan and knock it onto his palm. Two huge rat-like things jumped out from the audience and turned into afterimages as they ran between human legs and rushed straight to Yin Ren’s shoulders.

Yin Ren didn’t move. He let the two strange rats insert their noses into his ears and let them sniff deeply.

“This person doesn’t have enough money!” One of the strange rats shouted.

“Not enough money!” The other one also joined.

“If you don’t have enough money, you’ll make it up in flesh. Take off your mask, take off your clothes, and see how much we can get for your bones,” the two rats shouted in unison.

Around Yin Ren, the crowd consciously receded, forming a circular vacuum zone. The Nightwalkers exchanged pleasantries as they gloated in whispers.

Old Dog Peng had approached at some point while panting hard. “Hey, what are you doing? Why are you bidding indiscriminately?!”

Yin Ren: “But I want that chair.”

“People want a lot of things, but how can they get everything they want?” Lao Jiang jumped down for the stage, causing his hard bones to rattle. “How many years ago was it when someone didn’t have enough money for their bid? Nine? Ten? Old Dog Peng, didn’t you tell him about the rules?”

“This man has been mediocre all his life. He only said he wanted to find someone. The rest is none of my business!”

“But rules are rules,” Lao Jiang said.

“I can make up the money later.”

Walking in the realm of the metaphysic, if you didn’t follow the rules, you couldn’t make a circle*. Since Lao Jiang was in charge, Yin Ren didn’t want to cause a scene. “Wait another ten minutes. I’ll have my people come to deliver the money.”

*Saying refers to people must abide by rules and regulations so that everyone’s life will return to its normal track. Basically, rules are in place, and without them and people following them, it’ll lead to chaos.

“That won’t do. You must hand over collateral first.”

Lao Jiang clapped his hands. The two mice responded by biting off Yin Ren’s mask. The silver facemask slid down in front of Yin Ren and was smoothly caught by him.

The sound of chattering rang all around.

Lao Jiang: “Don’t you have such a good thing to pay for it? With your face, that’s at least worth 1 million alone. You can bet it on me, and I’ll pay you back when the money arrives.”

Countless glances came from all around, staring at Yin Ren’s face.

Unlike the outside world, there was no surprise or desire in those eyes, but different shades of greed. It seemed that what Yin Ren showed wasn’t a face, but a treasure chest full of gold. In an instant, he seemed to have completely transformed from “guest” to “cargo”, from a living person to a dead one in the eyes of everyone.

“Why not take it on the spot.” An unpleasant voice came from the crowd. “I’m missing a good face here—”

Before he could speak, Lao Jiang moved. He saw a black light flash from the crowd and straight at Yin Ren’s heart.

In the shadows, Yin Ren casually pulled out a trick. The black light fiercely turned around and came back to where it came from.

It was only a split second.

The next moment, a scream broke through the crowd. For a brief moment, the crowd flowed before a complete human head rolled from the ground. A section of its neck was still sizzling with smoke.

Yin Ren: “Oh, is this a backlash? So serious?”

After saying this, he smiled again and turned to Lao Jiang. “So you guys can take other people’s flesh as property. You should have said so.”

His voice was neither high nor low, but the crowd that was moving instantly quieted.

Yin Ren picked up the head. “Here, can this be worth 10,000? 20,000? I don’t need much.”

Lao Jiang narrowed his eyes and looked at Yin Ren suspiciously.

He had lived for more than five hundred years and had seen countless practitioners, but in the confrontation just now, he couldn’t see the reason.

The person who took the shot just now was someone Lao Jiang recognized. It was a spirit smith who wanted to enter Sunken Society and would often be up to no good. However, that person’s level wasn’t bad… Was he really eager to nab that face that his magic backfire?

Lao Jiang couldn’t see through it, but he also didn’t intend to.

“Enough.” Lao Jiang calmly took the head. “Ah, I’ve said it a few times, don’t be noisy and make a fuss… Who is to blame for this backlash?”

“Boss is quite generous. I’ll definitely bring enough money next time.” Yin Ren smiled.

“Interesting.” Xiao Mengpo raised her hands and didn’t say anything more.

While the two large rats ran away holding their heads, Lao Jiang jumped back onto the stage. He sat in the void while fanning himself. “You said ten minutes? There’s less than half a minute left. Shall we wait for this little friend—”

The last of his speech was covered by the roar of a motorcycle engine.

A man in pajamas, wearing a helmet, rushed in on a motorcycle with a “Are You Hungry” food delivery driver sitting in the back seat.

“19 minutes and 44 seconds,” Zhong Chengshuo said as he took off his helmet.

“I have asked for permission to use our mission funds. If it’s confirmed that the case is related to Shian, it will be reimbursed. If it’s not related, the interest will be converted according to the average loan and deducted from your salary.”

After he said all this in one breath, he looked at his watch again and breathed a sigh of relief.

“…Do you support credit card swiping here?”

---

The author has something to say:

Don’t learn Xiao Yin. Don’t spend in advance, let alone borrow large sums of money from others casually…

Learn from Xiao Zhong. Don’t blindly borrow large amounts of money but go directly to your official supervisor.

By the way, don’t touch e-cigarettes… Lao Jiang’s lungs are already dry (……

——————

Xiao Zhong: Seriously thinking

Xiao Zhong: zZzZzZzZzZz

Xiao Yin: Alright, lead the way.

Xiao Yin: …The biggest enemy is that there is no money!

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 48: Human Fragrance

Perhaps it was the idea of “waiting for his grandson” that turned into “tracking down a criminal” that after Lu Tanfei signed the ghost contract, he didn’t return to the dilapidated home.

There were still a few vacant rooms in Building 4, so Hu Tao took the lead and arranged for the old man to go to one of them. However, the old man still waited stubbornly in the corner of Zhong Chengshuo’s living room. He was barely able to maintain his human form as his eyes followed Yin Ren.

The old man didn’t make a fuss, but the dismay in his eyes was truly heartbreaking.

“Grandpa Lu, it’s not that I won’t let you intervene.”

Yin Ren had lost his appetite, and the comedy he was watching didn’t seem funny anymore.

“Just because you can smell Lu Yuanyuan on Lu Guangzu doesn’t mean he’s the culprit. Lu Guangzu may be an accomplice or even a henchman. If he’s killed, Yuanyuan will be even harder to find.”

“I was too impulsive. I’m just so worried about the child…” the old man murmured. “I’m sorry, good sir. Don’t be angry. I’ll try my best to control myself in the future and work like a horse* in the afterlife.”

*(做牛做马) Idiom referring to a person willingly be driven to be used by others. This expression is mostly used to express the deep sincerity of a grateful person.

The old man’s tone was humble, as if he was afraid Yin Ren would kick him out of the investigation.

“I don’t need anyone to work like a horse.” Yin Ren rolled over and laid flat on the sofa, staring at the ceiling. “The best thing is for you to eat well.”

“Okay, okay.” The old man nodded desperately.

Yin Ren glanced at the time. The time displayed changed from 22:59 to 23:00. He sorted out his clothes and knocked on Zhong Chengshuo’s door.

“I want to go to the ghost market again,” Yin Ren said.

“Didn’t you just go there yesterday?” After a few seconds of silence, Zhong Chengshuo responded from inside the room.

“We were busy yesterday investigating the case, so I didn’t get to take a serious look around. Don’t worry. I won’t buy anything. I’ll be home around 2.”

Zhong Chengshuo didn’t answer. A rustling came from inside the room. In the next moment, Zhong Chengshuo opened the bedroom door and was neatly dressed.

“I’ll go with you.”

“No, no. You can sleep. I’ll go find Xu Jie to lead the way since she formally cooperates with Shian.”

“I’ll go with you,” Zhong Chengshuo repeated. “I’m your partner, and I must ensure your safety.”

Yin Ren: “……”

Yin Ren: “This time it’s for my personal interest. I won’t reimburse my expenses.”

“Then AA,” Zhong Chengshuo replied as he stood at the door, motionless.

“For goodness sakes, it’s not like I’ll get lost.” Yin Ren vigorously wiped his face. “Zhong Ge, do you think if you start a family, you’ll follow me around like this every day? Be careful what your future wife will think.”

“I’m a non-marital person.” Zhong Chengshuo replied solemnly.

Yin Ren was speechless. He could only lower his head and start to call a taxi.

If he continued to talk about it, it would make things look suspicious. Besides, he wasn’t lying. On this trip, Yin Ren really didn’t plan to buy anything, but in a sense, it wasn’t really of personal interest either…

Something was wrong with Lu Guangzu.

While Lu Guangzu undoubtedly was breathing and had a heartbeat, showing his vitality wasn’t fake, Yin Ren saw a dead look between his eyes.

By definition, this man should already be dead.

However, the aura of death wasn’t obvious. Committing taboo on death, colliding with evil spirits, borrowing longevity against the heavens, and putting a brain into a corpse… This was too much. Yin Ren decided to check for more prominent clues first.

After all, there was more than just the “dead look” that wasn’t right.

There was a subtle, uncoordinated smell of herbal medicine on Lu Guangzu’s body. There was more than one scent of herbal medicine, all of which were not readily available at a local pharmacy. They were not commonly used in medical prescription and were more useful in the metaphysical world.

Unfortunately, the herbal smell was so well blended that Yin Ren could only sniff off a few pungent flavors.

Since Lu Guangzu was a Nightwalker, these strange medicines were most likely bought at the ghost market. If he asked a few sellers some questions, it was possible he could find a recipe. At home, Yin Ren was being constantly stared at by Old Man Lu, and it made him uncomfortable. He thought it would be a good idea to go out to the ghost market for a stroll while also checking up on this.

Who would have thought that Zhong Chengshuo would be so stubborn. He clearly struggled to stay up late the night before, but today he insisted on accompanying him, sticking to him like a skin plaster.

Yin Ren simply didn’t know whether to be moved or wary.

“The taxi is here. Let’s go. Don’t blame me for your insomnia,” Yin Ren said bitterly.

Seeing the two of them visit again, Xu Jie wasn’t surprised. She smiled and said, “Young people are so curious,” then led them to the ghost market.

“Since you’re here, you guys go ahead and stroll around. I’ll go register Xiao Yin,” she said. “Xiao Yin is a ghost master and has to learn how to lead the way. Otherwise, it’ll be difficult to come here every time.”

“Just take the main road. Don’t go into the alley.” She warned them before they left.

The weather was good tonight. The sky was full of stars above the ghost market. The two wore face masks, one gold and one silver, and stood in the middle of the bustling street.

Even with this weird dress code, few passersby gave them looks.

In order to conceal their identity, people on the street wore whatever they wanted. Ordinary people would wear proper masks, while more fashionable ones replaced them with gas masks and motorcycle helmets. Some people even put brightly painted “big-headed doll” hoods on their heads that had exaggerated smiling faces, looking particularly creepy in the night.

Without Xu Jie watching them, the surrounding air instantly became sticky. Sights and whispers were like sewage crawling through the eaves of an old house, flowing over the bluestone slabs on the ground as they came from all directions.

Some of the whispers came from the crowd, while others came from unoccupied corners. Countless glances swept over the two of them, whispering to the beat of the lantern wick, as they circled around them.

The night mist spread across the wet stone road and flowed along the roots of the mottled walls. There was an indescribable fishy sweetness in the air, like rotten fruit mixed with grease.

The liveliness on the street had changed with the bustle as the living walked along like ghost soldiers passing through. Their movements were full of coldness and oppressiveness.

In this distorted atmosphere, Zhong Chengshuo, who was wearing the gold mask, extended his hand. He stood quietly with his palm facing upwards, as if he were inviting Yin Ren to dance.

Yin Ren didn’t react for a moment. “What’s wrong, Zhong Ge? Do you want to change places?”

Zhong Chengshuo: “…Your hand, to prevent you from getting lost.”

Xu Jie, the guide, didn’t even worry this much. Sometimes this person was really too serious. Yin Ren stretched out his hand helplessly—Zhong Chengshuo’s hand wasn’t warm, but fortunately, it wasn’t sweaty, and his skin felt good to touch.

While maintaining a posture of holding hands, Lord Ghost King began to search for a red lantern stall.

The ghost market looked chaotic at first glance, but upon closer inspection, Yin Ren saw a bit of mystery in it.

The old houses on either side of the street in the ghost market were either in good condition or dilapidated. Most of the things in front of the dilapidated houses were junk, while the gloomier mansions that had red lights stalls had more reasonable goods.

The red lantern stalls were roughly divided into three categories: selling completed spirit weapons, selling metaphysical information, and selling materials. Yin Ren sniffed around and quickly found a big medicine stall.

The stall was placed in front of an uninhabited mansion. It had a plaque that read “Practice Medicine to Help the World*” hanging on the gate of the dark entrance. Most likely, the owner of this stall had some background.

*(悬壶济世) A saying normally use to praise doctors for saving people from illness.

The stall owner was curled up in the darkness, breathing very lightly. There was some faint smoke floating out of the shadows now and then.

In front of the gate, eight red sandalwood medicine boxes were neatly placed on the red cloth. Based on their style, they looked quite old. Unlike the usual medicine chests, each small wood drawer was engraved with runes, and several still had yellow talismans attached to them. One of the boxes would move from time to time, as if something imprisoned inside was struggling to escape.

“The hair of the dead—the sand at the bottom of a coffin—the age is quite good. The goods are sold at the same price as any store—”

The stall owner stretched out a pipe from the darkness and knocked it on the slate floor, accompanied by strange chanting.

What fell out of the pipe wasn’t soot but something that looked like a blood scab. They jumped and bounced on the ground. Suddenly, a weird aroma enveloped the two of them.

Yin Ren glanced at Zhong Chengshuo, then turned around and asked, “What are these things you have here that have no labels?”

The stall owner retracted their pipe, snorted, and ignored him.

Yin Ren had no choice but to continue, “Do you sell prepared medicine packs here? Something similar to that of malva nuts, the kind that you can make tea with…”

With Zhong Chengshuo on the side staring at him, he had to rack his brain to pick a topic.

The heaviest smell on Lu Guangzu’s body was rat eye goji berries. This thing only grew on the corpse of flesh-eating rats. The fruit was black and white, similar to that of a rat’s eye.

After this thing was dried, it could be used to make tea to dispel filth. It had a rotten smell after heating, so few people would drink it. As far as Yin Ren knew, it would only be used in some extremely unorthodox prescriptions.

“I’ve come across a lot of dirty things recently, and I don’t feel well. I heard there are many elixirs in the ghost market, so I came here specifically to ask an expert… I don’t know much of this stuff. Please don’t take it personally if I have inadvertently offended you.”

Yin Ren squatted in front of the stall, sounding pitiful.

“Your side is the best stall I’ve ever seen. I hope this master will give me some pointers…”

The breathing in the dark stopped, and a gaze swept at Yin Ren from head to toe.

“Rat eye goji berries, 3,600 a tael*, artificially cultivated.” The cold voice belonged to an old lady. “Buy a tael. Soak them in water every morning and evening and take ten capsules. After drinking, you should be good.”

*About .083 lbs.

“Has anyone bought this stuff recently? Please help me out. The consulting fees of intermediaries are too high. I want to ask about people in similar circumstances,” Yin Ren said earnestly. “Do you recall? I’ll pay 7,200 for a tael, okay?”

“Yes, there was one. I’m afraid that what you want to cure and what he wants is different. His isn’t a disease.” The old lady chuckled. “I don’t need the extra money I didn’t earn.”

“You can tell just by looking at the medicine?”

“The man also bought plum roots and living teeth. Those things can’t be soaked in water.” The old lady knocked on her pipe again. “3,600 a tael, no haggling.”

Seeing Yin Ren take out his phone, Zhong Chengshuo said, “Didn’t you say you wouldn’t buy anything?”

The old lady paused for an instant when she knocked on her pipe. “?”

Yin Ren laughed dryly. “I wouldn’t need to if you didn’t come, but here you are. Miss, please help me pack tael.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “If you’re not feeling well, you can go to the doctor—”

“One tael, thanks.” Yin Ren raised his voice and grabbed Zhong Chengshuo’s hand violently.

Zhong Chengshuo said sincerely, “Your grip is hurting me.”

The old lady revealed a QR code on her pipe and took something that looked like dried eyes from a medicine box. She leaned out into the darkness after receiving payment and quickly wrapped a small paper bag.

“Listen to my advice. If you’re looking for a good friend, you should find someone who’s clever, not a wooden one.” She picked up the paper bag with her pipe and stretched it out in front of Yin Ren as she spoke in a smiling tone.

Zhong Chengshuo planned to continue asking, but he was dragged away from the stall by Yin Ren.

“You’d better go to the hospital first to get checked out.” When the two walked far away enough from the crowd, Zhong Chengshuo spoke with some aggrievance. “The origins of these things are unknown, and their hygiene can’t be guaranteed. Don’t use them.”

And it was frighteningly expensive, even more than good-quality tea.

Yin Ren knew that, in the eyes of this person, he was probably suckered. He cleared his throat. “Look at that grandmother’s stall. She must have some background. We’re not familiar with the ghost market, so it’s best to make friends. That opens more options for us.”

Zhong Chengshuo thought for a moment, then nodded reluctantly.

Yin Ren breathed a sigh of relief and began to quickly recall it in his heart.

Rat eye goji berries, plum roots, living teeth…

The rat eye goji berries were added to a flesh primer to remove filth, then it was grounded and mixed with plum roots to form a base. Then it was soaked in various materials to mask the odor, and finally mashed in a pestle with living teeth to shape it. Finally, they added lamb fat as a deodorizer to add a “human fragrance”.

For the living, human smell had no smell at all, but for evil beings, human smell could overwhelm the user’s smell, making evil beings mistake them as the owner of the “flesh primer”.

…It may not be Lu Guangzu who was stained with Yuanyuan’s aura.

It was possible that someone smeared the real culprit’s smell onto Lu Guangzu, then told him to go to the police station to “surrender himself”. Thinking about it, “blending human fragrance” was a job that could be done by a master spirit smith. Lu Guangzu was just a low-level ghost master and wouldn’t possess such a skill.

Yin Ren turned around abruptly and walked quickly towards the road.

Unfortunately, he was a few steps too late. They had only been gone for seven or eight minutes, but the old lady had already closed her stall and disappeared to who knew where.

“Do you want to return it?” Zhong Chengshuo asked in confusion.

“No, it’s fine.” Yin Ren scratched his head in frustration. “I forgot to ask her whether to soak in cold or hot water.”

Following the trail, he might be able to find the spirit smith. It was a pity that time couldn’t be delayed too much. It was better to come back to visit the old lady another day.

“My advice is not to drink it.” Zhong Chengshuo spoke while yawning. “At least first go to…”

“I know, the hospital.” Yin Ren interrupted the other’s repetitive nagging, raised his clenched hand, and released his fingers.

Zhong Chengshuo: “?”

“Someone was moaning that he was in pain. We need to check to see if you need to go to the hospital.” Yin Ren fiddled with the marks on the back of Zhong Chengshuo’s hand. “…Well, seems fine. No problems. Zhong Ge, you’re not young anymore, so I won’t blow on it for you.”

Sure enough, Zhong Chengshuo’s focus was immediately deflected. He froze in place, trying to understand the logic between the two topics.

Yin Ren said in amusement, “What? You really want me to blow on it?”

Before Zhong Chengshuo had time to deny it, he saw Yin Ren lower his head and slightly lift the corner of his mask.

“Wh—”

A cool breath brushed the back of his hand as if the softest silk had slid across his skin. It seemed as if a cat caught Zhong Chengshuo’s tongue as he speechlessly withdrew his hand. This time, he was a step slower. Despite pulling back, the touch still climbed up his nerves and made his scalp numb for a moment.

He didn’t know if it was because of the irregularity in his work, but Zhong Chengshuo had suddenly started experiencing heart palpitations.

Beside him, Yin Ren had already straightened up and didn’t care about Zhong Chengshuo’s electrocution-like reaction. “Let’s go find Xu Jie—it’s almost 2. You’d better go back to bed.”

……

In the morning, a few hours later, Yin Ren sat numbly in Haigu’s municipal hospital.

Wasn’t this a bit much for Zhong Chengshuo to stay up two nights in a row?

In the morning, he watched Comrade Xiao Zhong crawl out of bed on time and called Lu Xiaohe directly to ask for leave.

“Going to a doctor” was the reason he succinctly provided. “I applied for Yin Ren to come along to help him recall the process of seeing a doctor in a hospital so his side can be recorded as normal attendance.”

Then Yin Ren was abducted by his partner to go to Haigu’s municipal hospital. He accompanied Zhong Chengshuo in a daze as he registered.

Zhong Chengshuo had registered with the cardiovascular department. Yin Ren felt that these words were a bit familiar.

Before he could respond, the number [1013—Zhong Chengshuo] jumped on the screen in the waiting area, and a loud announcement: “1013 Zhong Chengshuo, please go to the No. 2 consultation room” exploded in his ears.

Ten seconds later, Sun Qi’an, Yin Ren, and Zhong Chengshuo were looking at each other in the clinic.

Sun Qi’an was relatively at ease. She quickly accepted the medical records and insurance card. “Weren’t you fine just a few days ago? What happened? Uncomfortable because you stayed up all night?”

Yin Ren: “…” The divine doctor really hit the nail on the head.

Zhong Chengshuo shook his head. “I began to feel unwell in the early morning of July 24. The symptoms include arrhythmia and occasional palpitations. In severe cases, my body temperature would rise, accompanied by slight hand numbness and dizziness.”

While Zhong Chengshuo was talking, Yin Ren searched for the symptoms on his phone. Before Sun Qi’an could speak, Lord Ghost King’s face changed. “It’s over. Doesn’t this look serious? Should Zhong Chengshuo be hospitalized?”

Sun Qi’an laughed as she looked at Yin Ren tenderly, and Yin Ren slowly put down his phone under the coercion of that “tender” gaze.

“Don’t be too nervous. First we’ll check your blood and electrocardiogram, and then we’ll look at the results.” After making sure that Yin Ren was no longer indiscriminately investigating, Sun Qi’an turned her gaze back to Zhong Chengshuo.

An hour passed.

“Myocardial enzymes are normal, and there’s no problem with your ECG… You feel uncomfortable. It may be that you are under too much stress or lack of rest. Pay attention to your sleep and don’t get too tired.”

Sun Qi’an gazed at the results.

“Hand numbness and dizziness may also be caused by cervical and spinal problems. Is you’re really unsure, we can check on these two things.”

Zhong Chengshuo stared at the test results in silence, as if waiting for the numbers to explain themselves.

“He’s fine?” Yin Ren asked.

“Healthier than most people.”

“That’s good.” Yin Ren nodded. It was simply unreasonable if Zhong Chengshuo wasn’t healthy based on his bad habits.

“Too much stress…” Zhong Chengshuo didn’t join the conversation. He frowned and mumbled, “Am I under too much stress…?”

“Yes, you have been investigating many cases recently. It’s natural for you to be stressed.” Sun Qi’an comforted him. “Thinking about it, is there a common trigger in your situation?”

For example, facing corpses, tracking suspects, and the like. Considering that there were other patients outside, she didn’t want to say these things too bluntly.

Zhong Chengshuo slowly turned his head and glanced at Yin Ren. “Yes.”

‘For example, a few special contacts with someone,’ he thought.

“Well, it may just be caused by psychological factors such as tension,” Sun Qi’an said. “I won’t prescribe you medicine yet. If you still have this symptom after resting, you can come visit again, and we’ll have an ECG monitor you for 24 hours.”

Zhong Chengshuo nodded solemnly.

Yin Ren was waiting drowsily. When he saw that the diagnosis was over, he suddenly became energetic. “Zhong Ge, the doctor told you to sleep well, so tonight I’ll go by myself—eh, why are you grabbing me?”

“Too much stress.” Zhong Chengshuo muttered solemnly, as if he couldn’t wait to send Yin Ren into a hospital lab.

In the evening, the two of them each carried a bunch of examination results and left the hospital in disgrace.

“How great. We’re both so healthy.” Yin Ren squeezed the words out of his teeth. “Ah, I remember how to go see a doctor now. I completely remember. Thank you, Zhong Ge. I’m really thankful.”

When Zhong Chengshuo grabbed him to drag him around the andrology department, Yin Ren was absolutely terrified.

“I’m going to practice the technique of entering the ghost market tonight and I might take a little stroll along the way,” Yin Ren continued to gritted teeth. “Are you going to stay with me for a third night?”

“I see. You can go by yourself tonight,” Zhong Chengshuo replied while hanging his head in a daze.

He thought that, under a sudden attack, the hospital could find out the truth. The result was that Yin Ren was healthy in all aspects, and even his initial malnutrition was gone. It seemed that the pressure of “pondering over Yin Ren” would continue, which was quite a headache for him.

Yin Ren gave him a sideways glance but wasn’t annoyed with him. “It’s so late. Let’s eat out. Why don’t we have a bowl of mutton soup?”

“Nn.”

“Your treat?”

“Nn.”

“Do you know ‘King Yama’ of the Nightwalkers?”

“I don’t.”

……

It was almost early in the morning. Yin Ren followed Xu Fang’s tutorial and stood on the stairwell of Building 4.

Their home was on the sixth floor, so there were enough stairs.

Yin Ren took out something to illuminate. He held his breath, recalled the technique, and went down the dark corridor step by step. Sure enough, a minute later, he returned to the familiar street of the ghost market.

Yin Ren buckled back his facemask and stepped into the night fog.

Without Zhong Chengshuo watching him, Yin Ren didn’t do useless work this time. He rushed straight to Old Dog Peng’s stall. Seeing this man rush over aggressively, Old Dog Peng’s hand shook, and he almost knocked over the incense burner.

“So it’s you. What are you doing here again?” After confirming Yin Ren’s identity, the old man stretched out his head and looked around.

“Information.” Yin Ren got straight to the point. “Do you know the old lady who sells things under the plaque, ‘Practice Medicine to Help the World’?”

“68.” Old Dog Peng made a gesture but wasn’t intentionally trying to make it tantalizing. “I do know Xiao Mengpo who sells medicine. She’s quite a powerful person. She also comes here to deal with leftover defective products, which she usually disdains.”

“How do I find her?” Yin Ren transferred 68 yuan on the spot.

“1,888.” Old Dog Peng grinned, revealing not many teeth left. His face floated in the darkness, and the corner of his mouth was hanging high, looking like crumpled human skin.

“648.” Yin Ren still remembered the results of bargaining. “I’m not investigating a case, so I can’t be reimbursed.”

“This information can only be sold at 1,888.” Old Dog Peng snorted, causing the sore on his chest to squirm. “If you had come yesterday or tomorrow, I would’ve sold it to you for 648, but not today.”

“Why?”

“Xiao Mengpo is photographing things in the ghost pawnshop. If I tell you how to find her, you’ll earn a way to enter the ghost pawnshop for nothing, causing me to lose out.”

Yin Ren clicked his tongue and transferred the money again.

“Take me to that damn pawnshop, right now.”

Seeing the money arrive, Old Dog Peng narrowed his eyes and smiled. He quickly put away his stall and stood tremblingly beside Yin Ren.

“You’re too brave for a youngling.” He hummed an odd tune that sounded like a song. “You have to go by yourself. I’m not responsible for anything that happens afterwards… Don’t blame me if you get cheated. A ghost master is nothing without his ghosts.”

Yin Ren turned the phone in his hands and smiled slightly.

“Alright, lead the way.”

---

The author has something to say:

Everyone should remember Xiao Zhong’s repeated nagging. If you are uncomfortable, you must go to the [regular top three hospitals] to see a doctor. Take it seriously. Don’t blindly believe in home remedies—you must go to a good doctor.

Xiao Yin: This person quietly took away my hair, has a hidden identity related to metaphysics, and monitors me from time to time. He must be suspicious of me.

Xiao Yin: Let’s do some friendly provocation.

Xiao Zhong: (Walking to the Department of Cardiology in silence)

“Provocation”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 47: The Dead

“…Give me your birthdate first, and I’ll help you with the rest of the formalities.”

Evil being: “?”

Xiao Wu: “???”

Wu Jiayi was dumbfounded.

It had been ten years since he came into contact with the ghost master business. Xiao Wu was born as a Nightwalker and had seen all kinds of messy ghost contracts. However, no matter how unorthodox things were, the principle was still the same…

Ghost contracts had at least three steps.

First, the person must choose a dark time of the night and successfully communicate with the ghost to make sure the other party wasn’t malicious. If the ghost didn’t resent the ghost master, then they could proceed to the next step.

The second step was to prepare a talisman frame. The frame of the talisman must be made of high-quality acacia wood, roughly split into strips, and tied into a human shape. The ghost master must personally make all 108 charms by hand, list the rules on them, and then sing them step by step before pasting them in order onto the talisman frame.

The third step was the most critical. If the evil spirit hadn’t regretted it by this point, the ghost master would take the ghost’s ba-zi, determine their birthdate, and use his own blood to make a talisman seal. Finally, they would ignite the talisman frame above good incense. If the talisman frame could be burned, then the ghost contract would be completed.

After the ghost contract was completed, the ghost could leave their place of death. The ghost master would bear the ghost in his body.

Considering their limited ability to withstand, most ghost masters were quite cautious. They would never casually recruit ghosts, especially newly dead ghosts who were still delirious.

…So what was this guy doing?

It was barely “dark” due to the overcast and could barely fulfill the “no malice” condition, and Yin Ren didn’t even have any preparations to do the rest of the procedure. How was he going to take Lu Tanfei away? Lie to the ghost?

Xiao Wu had read his information from Shian. Didn’t Yin Ren accept Hu Tao from Ping’An Manor? How could he still make such a rookie mistake like this?

“Xiao—Xiao Yin, fierce ghosts don’t like it when you fool around with them so casually.” Wu Jiayi took a breath and put his hand on the charm in his pocket. “Newly dead ghosts are different from old ghosts. That Hu Tao is an old acquaintance of Shian. Lu Tanfei won’t give us face—”

Yin Ren smiled at him and took out a piece of yellow paper from his pocket.

“Come on. You can just tell me, and I’ll write it down.”

The six eyes of the evil thing looked at him without blinking and said in an eager tone, “Do you want to help me find Yuanyuan? Can you find Yuanyuan?”

“Don’t agree!” Wu Jiayi shouted as he was drenched in cold sweat.

“Yes, I’ll help you find him.”

Yin Ren patted Wu Jiayi soothingly while his eyes were still fixed on the ghastly evil being.

“People don’t just disappear into thin air, old man. I’ll do my best to help you find him. If you think I’m unreliable, then you can always leave… Now that you have so many extra legs, it’s such a waste for you not to go out and walk around.”

The evil thing looked at him in silence. His thin and deformed legs moved like insects’ legs. Ten seconds later, the old man reported his birthday in a hoarse voice.

“Very good. I need you to enter a little evil qi. Just press the fingerprint button.”

The evil thing stretched out its slender hand, and his fingertips clicked on the yellow paper with words written on it. Where his fingertips touched, the paper was pockmarked with a corrosive-like texture.

Yin Ren didn’t mind and lit the yellow paper on the spot.

Xiao Wu gulped. He was deeply regretting it at this moment. If he knew this newcomer was so reckless, he should have brought his food delivery box with him. Well, it should be fine. This person didn’t even make a talisman frame…

“It’s okay. Wu Ge, look.”

The yellow paper burned cleanly. Yin Ren finally moved his gaze away from the evil thing. He quickly took out his phone and shook it at Wu Jiayi.

In the internal group “What to Eat Today”, several new messages quickly surfaced.

[Lu Tanfei: ?]

[Hu Tao: ?]

[Lu Tanfei: ???]

[Hu Tao: !!! 🍉*]

*It’s actually eating melon emoji.

Wu Jiayi: “……”

He hesitated to speak and looked at Yin Ren, then at the phone screen.

Wu Jiayi: “You, are you…”

“The essence of ghost contracts is rules and consensus. This thing can be slowly read after the fact, just like how living people don’t read user agreements when they register for things.”

Yin Ren’s tone was relaxed.

“This phone is a spirit weapon given to me by Shian. It just happens to be able to make ghost apps, so I customized one. Without it, I wouldn’t be able to do these things.”

Xiao Wu breathed a sigh of relief. “So it’s the function of a spirit weapon. Then that’s fine. What a fortuitous encounter.”

In this way, this person simplified the most troublesome step of inviting ghosts, but the essence of the process hadn’t changed.

“I don’t understand these things very well. As a layman… Wu Ge, there won’t be any problems, right?” The 1,000-year-old Ghost King sincerely added.

Wu Jiayi looked at Lu Tanfei’s six puzzled eyes and pushed Yin Ren lightly. “Kid, you really dared! The old rules aren’t open to change. Are you not afraid of death?”

“If you want to do this in the future, ask the big guys in Shian.” Xiao Wu warned with lingering fear. “A newborn calf that isn’t afraid of tigers*…”

*(初生牛犊不怕虎哦) Idiom referring to young people who have little worries in their mind and dare to act.

“Understood,” Yin Ren said solemnly.

But he would definitely dare next time.

With the ghost contract concluded, Wu Jiayi had no need to protect the two of them, so he left first. Suddenly there was only one person and two ghosts left in the small room.

Lord Ghost King happily sat down by the bed and started typing.

[Yin Ren: Welcoming Elder Lu who’s temporarily joining us! Grandpa Lu, this is so I can take you out 🥰]

[Yin Red: @Lu Tanfei, Just say whatever’s on your mind.]

[Lu Tanfei: ……]

[Lu Tanfei: I see. Sorry, I’m not used to this.]

[Yin Ren: @Hu Tao, this is a newly added member, Grandpa Lu, Lu Yuanyuan’s grandfather. You should have heard of him.]

Miss Hu Tao had brushed on enough drama and news, so she was quite well-informed. Sure enough, Hu Tao’s attitude immediately improved.

[Hu Tao: It turns out you’re a new ghost. Haha, I guess I’ll have to call you Ge according to your age.]

[Hu Tao: Lu Ge, feel free to ask me anything you don’t understand.]

[Lu Tanfei: Okay.]

[Yin Ren: ……]

[Yin Ren: Grandpa Lu, I’m busy here too.]

[Hu Tao: 🤔 🤔]

Yin Ren didn’t wait for her response and decisively closed the app. The human spider evil thing was quietly huddled in the corner, obviously still adapting to this new way of communication.

Yin Ren stood in front of him, carefully separated a trace of evil qi, and pointed it at the monstrous body. He murmured something softly, causing the twisted and thin body to gradually straighten and stretch. The wrinkled, dead skin turned into clothes.

Half a minute passed, and there was no longer an evil thing in the corner but an old man.

Lu Tanfei stood in the corner blankly. He was wearing a formal gray-blue shirt. His white hair was neatly combed, and he wore thick reading glasses that hung on the bridge of his nose. Flesh and blood were added to his skeleton-like thinness, giving him a scholarly look. Lu Tanfei stood in the night, like a bamboo plant in the late autumn.

“You can change into your former appearance, which makes it easier to communicate with people,” Yin Ren said softly. “Remember this feeling. Just ask Hu Tao next. She has a lot of experience in this.”

Lu Tanfei opened his mouth but couldn’t make a sound. He stared at the empty room for a while, then habitually took off his glasses and wiped away non-existent tears.

“I thought it was a dream.” He sighed. “It would be nice if it were all a dream…”

Yin Ren: “Just give yourself some time. We’ll go to the Public Security Bureau tomorrow, and I’ll find you then.”

“Ah, okay… okay.”

“Finished?” Seeing Yin Ren get up, Zhong Chengshuo spoke.

“Nn, I’m done. We’ll call this a day. Zhong Ge, call us a taxi.” Yin Ren stretched out his waist and joked, “…Speaking of which, since you can’t see Elder Lu, do you think Wu Ge and I are weird?”

“Okay.” Zhong Chengshuo quickly called a taxi and nodded towards the empty corner of the wall. “Mr. Lu, good night. See you tomorrow.”

At this moment, Lu Tanfei had already walked to the window. Seeing Zhong Chengshuo greet the empty corner, the old man was stunned.

Yin Ren: “…Pfft.”

Zhong Chengshuo turned his head suspiciously.

“Nothing. Grandpa Lu is just saying goodbye to you.”

……

After their all-nighter, they still had work as usual, but in the afternoon. Zhong Chengshuo struggled to take a shower after returning and didn’t go to bed until around 4. Yin Ren was in good spirits. He got up on time at 7 a.m. and opened the refrigerator to find food.

He would be fine if he didn’t sleep, but he would miss a meal if he were to sleep. Lord Ghost King’s calculations were very clear.

Yin Ren hummed a little tune as he toasted his bread and fried up some eggs. He cut the beef into thin slices and fried it up in butter. While checking the recipe in the video, he whipped avocado and hard-boiled eggs into a sauce.

Zhong Chengshuo was still sleeping, so Yin Ren didn’t mind using a little magic to skim all the milk skin from the yogurt back into the milk carton.

“You’re adapting quickly.” Watching Yin Ren grind black pepper, Hu Tao snorted and floated in the kitchen with great interest.

“I just have amnesia, not dementia.” Yin Ren tried a mouthful of the avocado egg sauce with satisfaction. “These utensils aren’t difficult to use. Even children can get it right.”

“Mm-hmm, you have amnesia.” Hu Tao changed her floating posture and floated upside down above Yin Ren, as if she were snorkeling in an invisible sea.

“If you want to eat, I’ll give you some later.”

“Forget it.  You might as well give it to the old man… Who knows how long it has been since he had a proper meal, that poor man.” Hu Tao shook her head. “But it’s okay. There hasn’t been such a ghost in Haigu in a long time, so now I have someone to talk to.”

Her evil qi was too heavy, and she didn’t know anything about the metaphysical world, so the ghost masters didn’t really want to accept her. It was only a mysterious “rookie” like Yin Ren who would dare make a contract with her, which was why Hu Tao hadn’t seen someone who was “communicable” in a long time.

She really hoped Lu Tanfei would stay for much longer.

Yin Ren hummed. “The old man may not be used to this kind of food. I’ll give him porridge with tea eggs later.”

With a ding, the bread popped out of the toaster. The surface was crisp and browned, and the unique aroma of baking filled the kitchen. Yin Ren applied a thick sauce to the bread and layered it with meat, eggs, cheese, and vegetables—this dish didn’t require much actual heat, so he was confident he could make it well.

The plate full of sandwiches was steaming. Melted cheese seeped into the tender red fried meat slices, and the smell of fat and spices tickled his heart.

Zhong Chengshuo’s door creaked open.

The person’s eyes weren’t fully opened as he swayed to the refrigerator like a ghost. After opening the refrigerator door, Zhong Chengshuo blindly grabbed several times at the place where the bread was placed but found nothing.

Then he raised his eyelids and swept his gaze towards the empty position.

“Hey, I thought you didn’t eat breakfast, so I used it all.”

Yin Ren glanced at the time and was a little shocked. It was a little before 7:20. Zhong Chengshuo hadn’t slept for even four hours yet.

Was this the power of the biological clock? He couldn’t help being in awe of “science”.

“I was going to buy a fresh one after work,” seeing Zhong Chengshuo’s accusatory expression, Yin Ren hurriedly added. “Do you want to eat a beef sandwich? I just finished making them.”

Zhong Chengshuo looked at the sandwich on Yin Ren’s plate for a moment, and his gaze paused on the melted cheese for two seconds.

“Eat, thank you,” he muttered. “One is enough.”

Yin Ren took one from the wobbly mountain of sandwiches, served it with yogurt, and made a separate portion. Zhong Chengshuo was still wearing his nightcap, which swayed from side to side as if he were about to knock his head on the table.

Even if this person was sleepy like this, Yin Ren still smelled the fresh smell of mint toothpaste on him.

“Why bother?” Yin Ren pushed the sandwich plate towards him. “You even got up and brushed your teeth. It won’t hurt to sleep a little longer.”

Zhong Chengshuo answered him in a series of dream-like responses. Yin Ren barely made out short sentences such as “cavities prevention” and “regular three meals a day”. Zhong Chengshuo was muttering and forgot that he was still slowly stuffing his sandwich as his eyes were about to close again.

Not afraid of choking to death. Yin Ren shook his head.

Yin Ren took a bite of his sandwich. The bread was crispy, and the aroma of beef instantly exploded in his mouth. It was the first time he ate avocado that was served with a salad dressing and black pepper. The taste was fresh and refreshing.

Opposite him, Zhong Chengshuo’s eyes were bleary. He had completely lost his previous sober and sharp temperament.

…It’s really suitable for casually teasing. No, let’s test it out.

“Hey Zhong Ge, is the sandwich delicious?” Yin Ren asked while chewing.

“Nn.”

“Next time, I plan to add ghost peppers. What do you think?”

“Nn.”

“A long pink dress really fits Minister Fu.”

“Nn.”

“Do you know ‘King Yama’ of the Nightwalkers?”

“…” Zhong Chengshuo propped up his eyelids and ate the last bite of his sandwich. “I don’t. Why do you ask?”

“It’s nothing. When I was teasing that Old Dog Peng, I felt you were quite in line with the characteristics of ‘King Yama’.”

Yin Ren grinned at Zhong Chengshuo and picked up another sandwich.

“Next time, I’ll ask ‘do you know the boss of Sunken Society’. Be prepared.”

“…Nn.” Zhong Chengshuo wiped his mouth and went back to the bedroom like a zombie. With a bang, the wooden door was tightly closed again.

Inside, Zhong Chengshuo hesitated for a few seconds in front of the wardrobe containing the Evil Fruit. When he finished hesitating, he didn’t open the wardrobe but yawned wildly and fell back to the center of the big bed.

……

In the afternoon, Haigu, Public Security Bureau.

After 8 hours of full sleep, Zhong Chengshuo’s spirits were much better. However, the consequences of staying up late still lingered. Comrade Xiao Zhong’s face was stiff and looked a little sullen.

Yin Ren, though, still had a look full of vitality.

After interrogating Lu Guangzu for a day, they were finally going to intervene in the case as “security personnel”.

There was no one in the interrogation room. Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo stopped just outside. Through the one-way glass, they could clearly see the interior. Stubble appeared on Lu Guangzu’s face, and he collapsed on the chair like an octopus in an indifferent posture.

It was Sun Qinghui who greeted them. Officer Sun frowned, and his body smelled like tea.

Sun Qinghui: “Do you have any clues? We sorted out information on missing people and tried a round of testing, but this kid is very stubborn, so it’s difficult to get through him.”

“We sort of have a clue,” Yin Ren said.

Coffin Nail, “What to Eat Today” internal group.

[Yin Ren: @Lu Tanfei, Grandpa Lu, come and look. Does this person have the smell of Yuanyuan on him?]

Within two seconds after he was sent out, the temperature outside the interrogation room plummeted.

The thin old man quickly appeared beside Yin Ren, staring into the room with his eyes closed. His lips opened slightly, exhaling murky black air.

The ghost had limited influence on science posts. Zhong Chengshuo was fine, while Sun Qinghui just had goosebumps. Inside the interrogation room, Lu Guangzu couldn’t sit still anymore. He quickly shrank up, and his lips turned blue.

[Yin Ren: How about it? Any clues?]

However, Lu Tanfei didn’t respond to him.

Evil things were always sensitive to those with karma.

The old man trembled in place. His mouth, nose, and hair twisted into flesh, and his six human eyes appeared on his face again. His joints made a chilling creaking sound, and his skeleton-like feet protruded out.

Ten seconds later, a twisted human spider lay down on the glass, screaming silently.

“Yuanyuan—”

A hoarse and sharp voice spat out from the mouth of the evil thing as poisonous evil qi flowed down the one-way glass.

“Yuanyuan! Yuanyuan come home!” The six eyes became bloodshot, and they turned in different directions. “Why wasn’t grandpa the one who disappeared? Why wasn’t it me?!”

[Yin Ren: @Hu Tao, do me a favor and comfort the old man.]

In the next moment, the figure of a young girl appeared behind Yin Ren. She first looked around with interest for a while and was then startled by the crazy spider.

“Shh—shh—Lu Ge, it’s okay, Lu Ge.” She hurriedly floated forward and comforted the old man’s ghostly spirit. “This is the police station. Everyone has been caught. The police will definitely be able to solve it… Let’s not worry, ah.”

As a cooperative unit of Shian, the one-way glass here was specially made. The human spider’s hands and feet pounded desperately on the glass but failed to destroy it. Seeing his attack was ineffective, the evil thing gradually fell to the ground. His body trembled, and he let out intermittent cries.

Hu Tao patted the old man’s twisted back and nodded to Yin Ren.

“I’ll take him home first to calm him down.”

She snapped her finger, causing black smoke to rise, and the figures of the two ghosts disappeared in an instant.

Yin Ren pulled on Zhong Chengshuo. “Lu Yuanyuan’s disappearance is related to this person. Let’s go, Zhong Ge.”

Zhong Chengshuo stepped forward, took a deep breath, and turned on the microphone.

“I’m Zhong Chengshuo from Unit 9 of Shian’s Special Investigation Group, science post, field department. Lu Guangzu, Lu Yuanyuan’s disappearance is related to you.”

He spoke in a very affirmative tone.

Hearing the words Shian, Lu Guangzu reflexively jolted, but he quickly steadied himself and put on the appearance of a dead pig that wasn’t afraid of boiling water*.

*(死猪不怕开水烫) Idiom referring to someone who’s thick-skinned, rogue-like, domineering and unscrupulous.

“Yes. You guys are quite capable, huh?”

Lu Guangzu squeezed out a smile at the empty interrogation room. His tone was full of arrogance.

“Lu Yuanyuan was the first person I killed. A 9-year-old isn’t that big. Are you sure you want to start with him? Hey, why don’t you beg me more and put my reputation…”

Zhong Chengshuo decisively cut off the communication, leaving Lu Guangzu to provoke the air.

“New clue,” Zhong Chengshuo said. “Hang him here for a while longer.”

Sun Qinghui nodded in agreement. “Very good. Let’s go through the information again immediately.”

Yin Ren: “……What? What new clue?”

Sun Qinghui gave a tired smile. “It’s almost time to get off work. Let’s talk while eating. How about you guys just come to my place to eat?”

……

Officer Sun’s home was similar to that of Zhong Chengshuo’s parents. His residence had a slightly larger room, with many miscellaneous items and fishing gear placed around the edges. The living room had a photo wall, which was filled with a series of photos of a girl from kindergarten to doctoral graduation.

The protagonist of the photos was sitting at the dining table with a helpless smile on her face.

“Sun Qi’an.” The young girl stood up and introduced herself.

The girl was wearing a long-printed skirt. Her hair fell just above her clavicle, and the tips of it were slightly curled. Her brows were small and delicate, looking a bit like the ladies in ancient paintings.

“I have heard so much about you, King Zhong, from the Department of Biology at A University.” The girl smiled. “B University, one year above you. I have admired you for a long time.”

“Ah, you’re the senior sister, the Medicine King of B University.” Zhong Chengshuo recalled for a few seconds before replying.

“Hey, that’s just their label for me,” Sun Qi’an smiled softly. “I saw you guys in the hospital some time ago when I went to the department of cardiology at the municipal hospital.”

Seeing that the young people were getting along, Officer Sun entered the kitchen with satisfaction to make room in the dining room.

Just after her father left, Dr. Sun scratched her hair vigorously, and her quiet demeanor disappeared without a trace.

“I just came back for dinner.” She slapped her forehead. “Ugh, how come I still can’t escape…”

“Escape what?” Yin Ren interjected curiously.

Dr. Sun looked at him for a while before replying, “Soft matchmaking, haa. Since he’s met you two, my dad has been talking about it for a while.”

As she spoke, she gave a “hey” to Zhong Chengshuo.

“In fact, I heard you were embroiled in blowing up the dorms. My friends at A University were going crazy with rumors. Good job, Xiao Zhong.” She gave him a thumbs up.

Zhong Chengshuo responded with an “Nn” and stared at Dr. Sun quietly, unknown what he was thinking.

Officer Sun made two simple dishes and quickly returned to the dining room. Under the calm guidance of Dr. Sun, the topic quickly returned to business.

“Thanks to Xiao Yin and Xiao Zhong, we can further narrow the scope.”

Sun Qinghui waved his chopsticks excitedly.

“The Lu Yuanyuan case was three months ago. The murderer was skilled. We went through all the surveillance but couldn’t catch anyone, so a sloppy kidnapping case was ruled out. According to Lu Guangzu’s statement, the other victims may not be children.”

“The only unsolved missing child case in the last six months is Lu Yuanyuan. I thought we were looking in the wrong direction, but now it seems that the murderer’s criteria for selecting his target may have nothing to do with age.”

“Dad, I’m still here. Aren’t I considered an unrelated person? Isn’t it bad to talk like this?” Sun Qi’an whispered a reminder.

“Oh, I’m used to it… I was treating you as if you were your mother. When is she coming home again? Tomorrow?”

“The day after tomorrow,” Sun Qi’an said.

“My mother is a forensic scientist in the municipal bureau. She just went out for a conference these two days,” she explained in a low voice.

“Just send us a copy after the task force finishes sorting out the materials.” Zhong Chengshuo cut off the topic. “We’ll follow up to see if Shian needs to intervene further.”

Sun Qinghui’s cooking skills were average. The dishes tasted homey and made people feel comfortable.  Under the scorching sight of the veteran criminal police, the young people reluctantly exchanged contact information.

Even with such an episode, Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo still arrived home on time.

Yin Ren didn’t immediately lie down on the sofa. He ordered a few vegetarian dishes for the elderly and silently served them to Lu Tanfei.

After meeting with Lu Guangzu, he also had some new clues, but unfortunately, it was inconvenient to talk about them at the table.

For example, Lu Guangzu, who was sitting in the interrogation room, seemed to be dead.

---

The author has something to say:

The 1,000-year-old Ghost King is self-reliant and makes beef sandwiches.

Unfortunately, he was caught by his partner and the number of sandwiches -1

It can be said that it’s a struggle for Xiao Zhong to maintain a normal 3-meals-a-day diet!

---

Kinky Thoughts:

Just a note, but Lu Guangzu is not related to Lu Yuanyuan. They’re different Chinese characters.

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 46: New Employee

Old man: “I am ‘King Yama’ of the Nightwalkers.”

Zhong Chengshuo stood blankly in place. The old man’s tone was indifferent, but in his eyes, he could see the old man stick his hand into his collar to scratch, and after scratching, he sniffed his fingers; his movements were quite careless.

A liar. They didn’t need to waste time on this person.

As a result, before he could speak, Yin Ren was one step ahead.

“So you’re King Yama!” Yin Ren exclaimed.

As Yin Ren spoke, he fiddled with the incense burner curiously. The incense ash in the burner was reddish brown, exuding a faint smell of rust… It seemed to be mixed with scraps of rust, which caused Zhong Chengshuo to slightly twitch his nose.

“Yes, I can provide any information you want and find anyone you’re looking for.” The old stall owner hummed softly. “Depending on the price—”

The old man lengthened his tone meaningfully.

“I really want to find someone, so the price is negotiable.” Yin Ren’s smile was mostly obscured by the shadow. “Can you help me?”

“Naturally.”

“Yin… Fruit Knife,” Zhong Chengshuo uttered loudly. “Let’s take a look again. King Yama won’t come forward so easily.”

Yin Ren turned to look at him. “Jackie Chan Ge, how do you know if you don’t ask? Anyway, I haven’t paid yet so there’s no loss just by asking.”

He didn’t know why, but when Yin Ren said this, he clutched his phone extremely hard.

“…Okay, you can ask.” Zhong Chengshuo pinched the bridge of his nose.

Old Man: “Hehe, the young man knows his stuff. I have been in the metaphysical world for many years. How can I fool the younger generation?”

Yin Ren leaned closer. “Then I’ll ask. Is it okay to describe the characteristics verbally?”

“Go ahead.” The old man spoke confidently.

“The person is about 23 to 57 years old, of unknown gender, and is in good health and strong.”

“Your conditions are too broad.” The old man clicked his tongue. “In just Haigu alone, there’s probably a million people who meet this condition. Young man, even if I’m King Yama, I still need enough clues.”

Yin Ren’s slender fingers fiddled with the fragrant ash. His eyes turned a little red under the light of the red lantern.

“Oh, that’s true.”

There was still a smile in his voice. “Then let me add something. This person isn’t involved in our metaphysical circle, and his work involves traveling around, but it doesn’t attract a lot of attention.”

“Personality wise, this person is cautious and serious, and he’s very likely to live alone. There’s a high probability that he has received formal education and knows how to cover his tracks so even Shian can’t find him.”

“For example, to make a deal, that person will never come forward in person, let alone use payment through the internet. Let’s see. He’ll probably ask someone to put cash in a designated location, exchange it for other items, and then ‘transfer it’ under various guises.”

“And in order to reduce contact with others, that person will not take small jobs, but will only choose the ones with the greatest reward and the highest risks… Are these clues enough?”

Old man: “Young man, you…”

“Oh, I forgot to mention his most important feature.”

Yin Ren curved his eyes, pulled his fingers away from the incense ash, and blew twice in the direction of the old stall owner.

“The Nightwalkers call him ‘King Yama’, the same title as you. Well, how much will it cost to find him?”

The old man could no longer maintain that indifferent voice. In anger, two voices came out of him, one thick and one thin. “Playing with laozi? Today, I’ll show you what it means to mess with King Yama. Kids are so hard to deal with!”

Yin Ren agilely stood up and moved behind Zhong Chengshuo with a swish. “Why? You ask me for more clues. Did I not give them to you?”

Zhong Chengshuo raised his arms reflexively to guard Yin Ren. He instantly felt something was wrong, and his arms stiffened in mid-air.

Zhong Chengshuo: “……”

Zhong Chengshuo looked at the old man. “Ah, he’s just joking…?”

It could be because his tone was uncertain that the old man’s expression became angrier. The old man sneered and was about to take something out of his pocket—

“Hey, Old Dog Peng. You’re cheating youngsters again!”

A hearty voice sounded.

Yin Ren turned his head and saw a young man with a simple and honest face approaching.

The man was wearing a rider’s helmet with the words “Eating is a Blessing” written on it and was dressed in gray and yellow clothes. The front lapel had “Are you hungry” written crookedly on it. Unlike ordinary food delivery drivers, he didn’t ride a motorbike at this moment, and there wasn’t a food delivery box on him.

A practitioner with quite good strength.

Yin Ren squinted at the stall owner—in the darkness, there was a nervous swallowing sound.

“Xiao—Xiao Wu, why are you here?”

“Why can’t I be here? After getting off work, Shian doesn’t limit side jobs.” The rider, Xiao Wu, scratched his helmet. “It’s not like you don’t know how well it pays for jobs at the ghost market. Come on, give me some face. Don’t create a ruckus.”

In the dark, the old man spat.

“Count yourself lucky,” he said unhappily.

Yin Ren went around from behind Zhong Chengshuo. “I really have something to inquire about.”

“No.”

“Grandpa Yama, we want to inquire about this person named Lu Guangzu.” Yin Ren pretended not to hear.

Old stall owner: “……”

Hearing this name, Xiao Wu became instantly jubilant. “Okay, Old Dog Peng, you dare lie to a layman like this? If you’re King Yama, then I’m an Evil Spirit.”

The stall owner was obviously afraid of this food delivery driver named “Xiao Wu”. He moaned and groaned in the dark for a while.

“Forget it. I really know who Lu Guangzu is. So, 1,888 for the information.” The old stall owner lowered his voice and coughed uncomfortably.

“1,888 is too high,” Xiao Wu said. “After all, this is my junior, so I have to cover him. Can’t you make it cheaper?”

Yin Ren raised his brows a little unexpectedly—they had never seen this “Xiao Wu” before. Although he knew this person was related to Shian, he didn’t expect to be recognized.

“Then 688… It’s not like you can’t be reimbursed.”

“You can’t cheat the public through reimbursement. 600. I also know something about Lu Guangzu, so I won’t take jobs tonight and accompany you to talk about him.”

“648. Not going any lower. Since Xiao Wu is here, you can pay after we finish talking.” The old stall owner grunted unhappily and flashed out of the dark shadows.

The old man had a sharp-mouth and thinning white hair on his head. He wore a shirt fit for an old man that had started to yellow. There were two bands around his neck, each with a payment code printed on it. The incense burner and the red envelope were put away in his handbag. This person looked like a retired grandpa that one would often see on the streets.

However, at the neckline of the old man’s shirt, the thin cloth stretched out a protruding outline of a human face. The thing made a thin gurgling sound, blowing the fabric slightly.

Face sores. No wonder there were two voices just now. Yin Ren stared at the old stall owner for a while but quickly lost interest.

“This is Old Dog Peng. He has been in the ghost market for more than 10 years and likes to deceive newbies.”

Xiao Wu took off his helmet, revealing his messy hair. He had thick brows and big eyes, and his skin was red and tanned due to being exposed to the sun. In the dim light of the lantern, only two rows of conspicuous white teeth stood out on his face.

“I’m Wu Jiayi, also from Shian. I’ve hung out with the Nightwalkers before, so I’m very familiar with this place. Let’s go, brother will show you around.”

Xiao Wu casually carried his helmet and pointed to the misty streets of the ghost market. Yin Ren didn’t know if he was seeing things, but this person had the posture of an elder bringing a junior back home.

Zhong Chengshuo: “How did you recognize us?”

“Didn’t we just finish fighting in Ping’an Manor a while ago? When we prepared for the battle, we had to look at the information of all nearby friendly forces first,” Xiao Wu said sincerely. “You guys look great. Don’t use this kind of mask next time. Just wear a normal mask next time.”

Yin Ren suddenly realized why this person’s aura was so familiar.

“It’s because I didn’t think about it. Next time, I’ll prepare some in the store.” Seeing the heated conversation, Xu Fang took a few steps forward.

She narrowed her eyes and looked at Xiao Wu for a while. “Hey, it’s me. Xiao Wu, since you’re not busy, I’ll go back first—my kid will definitely stay up late if I’m not there. Next time you come to the shop, I’ll give you a free meal.”

“Go, go!” Xiao Wu smiled and waved his hands.

As soon as Xu Jie left, the old man and three young people formed a group and walked slowly along the ghost market.

Zhong Chengshuo was questioning the old man while recording him. Yin Ren’s mind was already distracted—the stalls on both sides were full of strange things, which was extremely different from his era.

As he walked, he couldn’t help but stop in front of a stall. “What is this?”

He picked up a large cube embedded with small squares.

“It’s a Rubik’s cube that’ll be restored to its original state in the middle of the night. You can buy this for children to play with. There’s also a makeup mirror that can show you the back of your head while you look at it from the front. These sell pretty well… Hey, hey, don’t touch. That’s a fidget spinner coated with corpse oil. It’s very expensive.”

“What about this?” Yin Ren pointed to two black plastic blocks. These things had a slightly stronger evil qi.

Faced with these messy things, he suddenly had the illusion of returning to Shian’s warehouse.

Stall owner: “Hmph, these are rare goods. Have you heard of the videotape that will kill you three days after you watch it*?”

*Clarity: Loose reference to The Ring (which is 7 days instead of 3).

“But now everyone doesn’t use VCRs anymore, right? They seem to be buying discs.” Yin Ren recalled what he saw in his life. “What’s the use of buying this?”

“Collectibles! It has sentimental values, get it?” It seemed he had poked the stall’s owner as his voice became sharp. “It’s not like I don’t have discs. So, are you gonna buy or what?”

Yin Ren looked around but found no discs. “Let’s see.”

Since the disc wasn’t displayed, could it be the curse was through touch? Previously, only when one touched evil things would they be cursed. The cursed spirit weapons of this era were quite up to date.

The stall owner grunted again and handed out a black leather bag from the darkness. “These are powerful products. If you like it, take it yourself.”

Strangely, there was no feel of sealing technique on the lather bag. Yin Ren unzipped the zipper suspiciously…

<Spring Night of Love>, <Fate of Ten Worlds>… The cover of the disc was roughly printed, and the color was gaudy with bright, fleshly color.

Yin Ren: “……”

He breathlessly picked up a box, looked around, but didn’t find any curses on it.

Seeing that he was speechless, the stall owner hurriedly struck while the iron was hot. “You don’t like? I also have men’s and women’s ones, which are good quality and very cheap.”

You have quite an extensive business. Yin Ren let out a sigh. Before he could refuse, a hand stretched out in front of him and took the disc away.

Seeing the sight full of mosaics, Zhong Chengshuo said calmly, “Don’t buy this. It’s not legal.”

Yin Ren: “No, I didn’t want to…”

Zhong Chengshuo nodded expressionlessly. Yin Ren didn’t know if he wanted to express “I understand” or “You don’t have to say anything, I get it”. Lord Ghost King wiped his face, only to feel that there was a small stain on his reputation.

Wait, do evil beings even have a reputation? Yin Ren thought seriously for a moment.

Five minutes later, the stall owner was kicked out by the ghost market manager, who heard the news.

“Sorry.” Facing the three Shian employees, the city manager wiped off the sweat from his forehead. “There are always people who mix contraband from the underground and sell it in the netherworld. It gives us quite a headache. Thank you for helping us.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “…You can buy and sell contraband here?”

“Don’t take it too seriously. It’s just a saying. Just treat them as ‘special collections’.” The city manager knew he made a gaffe and quickly tried to correct himself.

……

“Hold onto me and be careful of getting lost.” After dealing with this episode, Zhong Chengshuo turned to Yin Ren.

He was busy interviewing Old Dog Peng just now, and when he looked up, his partner had disappeared from his sight. This time, it was Zhong Chengshuo who took the initiative to stretch out his hand and hold onto Yin Ren’s wrist.

Yin Ren knew he was in the wrong, so he didn’t try to break free.

After looking around, Lord Ghost King didn’t wander around and look at the odd products anymore and instead decided to behave well and listen carefully to the two of them talk about Lu Guangzu.

The fog on the side of the street was heavy, and in the dim night, the faces of pedestrians were blurred.

A few people walked slowly; the lanterns at their feet glowed green and red. There were only soft whispers on the entire street, revealing an eerie sense of tranquility, which made quite a good atmosphere for storytelling.

Lu Guangzu, according to Old Dog Peng, was even worse than what Lu Xiaohe had told them.

Lu Guangzu was a standard low-level Nightwalker—he had a bit more power than an ordinary person, but he had no other abilities. This person was a bully and was lazy. He couldn’t catch ghosts and didn’t bother trying to make a decent living, instead sticking to the black intermediary* business.

*(黑中介) Term refers to behavior of defrauding large amount of public and private property for the purpose of illegal possession, using fictitious facts, or concealing the truth. || Basically fraudsters. Usually, how it works is they make some kind of pie-in-the-sky promise, charge an intermediary fee (along with other fees) after the contract is signed, then keep the fees without ever fulfilling their promise or push off the work to someone else while paying for a lot less (which is where the ‘intermediary’ comes from).

“Black intermediaries” weren’t uncommon among Nightwalkers.

They would first find unsuspecting customers, defraud them by charging them exorbitant prices with their sweet words, and then take 70-80% of the “intermediary fee” and subcontract the work to other ordinary Nightwalkers.

But these people had the conventional “three pits”. One was to not deceive minors or the elderly. Two, was not to deceive public-related business. And three, was not to deceive the working class at the bottom of society.

Lu Guangzu broke all the rules, and he especially liked to brag about it, which made many black intermediaries look down on him.

A few years ago, he suddenly kept a low profile. For a while, everyone thought he had reformed his ways. Who would have thought this name would appear again and that it was actually tied to a serial murder case?

“As far as I know that kid doesn’t look like the kind of person who dares kill people.” Old Dog Peng hissed. “He’s bad, but also a coward. Let alone killing people, his legs would go soft just seeing chickens slaughtered.”

“But he provoked King Yama. Is this some kind of trap for King Yama? Doesn’t seem right. He also named Shian as well.” Xiao Wu sighed. “Haa, my partner is better at these things.”

“Speaking of finding corpses… Lu Guangzu did mention the ‘disappearance case’.”

Old Dog Peng held his payment card and pretended to be profound.

“Listen, this is the most valuable information. Just a few months ago, I went drinking with Lu Pi… We happened to run into Lu Guangzu, who suddenly started talking to me about the disappearance on Bianzhu Street. He hadn’t mentioned these things before.”

Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo looked at each other. Seeing Zhong Chengshuo’s drowsy face, Lord Ghost King consciously picked up the conversation, asking, “Didn’t he mention these things before?”

This person was so sleepy that his hands were becoming soft, and he could barely hold onto Yin Ren. Yin Ren smoothly changed his grip and clenched the man’s hand tightly.

Zhong Chengshuo shuddered a little, and his face became more sober.

“Yes, Lu Guangzu didn’t care about cases like this, so I found it quite strange that he would mention it. Uh, you guys know about the disappearance case on Bianzhu Street, right?”

The three of them nodded silently.

As long as people lived in Haigu, they would more or less hear about it. Even Yin Ren, who had just woken up, had brushed many short videos on it…

The missing person in the disappearance case on Bianzhu Street was a 9-year-old boy named Lu Yuanyuan.

The case itself was ordinary. The boy, who went out to buy ointment for his grandfather, ran into a dead end and then disappeared from the world.

The explosive point in this situation was Lu Yuanyuan himself.

The child’s parents were both migrant workers. They passed away in an accident a year ago. The only living relative was his grandfather, who was in poor health. In the absence of volunteers, Lu Yuanyuan took on a lot of the chores and took great care of the old man. Despite the hardship, the boy always had a smile with deep dimples on his face.

That smile was very contagious, which spurred the neighborhood community to film a video in order to organize a donation. Who would have thought the video would garner such momentous attention? Everything seemed to be moving in a good direction.

Then, on a sunny spring day, Lu Yuanyuan disappeared.

His grandfather sat on a wooden stool and waited at the door frantically, asking everyone about his grandson’s whereabouts. Volunteers came to deliver food every day, but the old man refused, saying he would eat at his neighbor’s home.

The police searched vigorously but found nothing. The boy wasn’t involved in an accident, so most likely he was either kidnapped or killed. The criminal was extremely cunning, as there were no clues left behind. Shian had assisted in the investigation but was unable to proceed due to insufficient clues.

The boy was like a drop of rain that merged into the sea, disappearing silently into the corner of the city.

And his grandfather just waited quietly, looking in the direction of the street. One night, two weeks later, he collapsed in front of his home.

After Lu Yuanyuan disappeared, the old man hardly ate, and his body weakened quickly.

After that day, the news of “The internet celebrity grandson disappeared and the seriously ill old man starved to death” made headlines, causing an uproar on various websites that took two months to calm down.

“Could it be that Lu Yuanyuan is one of the seven victims?” Zhong Chengshuo asked while frowning, trying to hold back a yawn.

Old Dog Peng dangled the payment code in front of the two of them. “I only know that Lu Guangzu mentioned this. He said the boy wasn’t easy—I have no idea what that means. He just said that. As for other things, I don’t really know.”

Yin Ren scanned the code to pay. “Thank you, Master Peng.”

“Ah, you’re welcome.”

Being thanked by Yin Ren made Old Dog Peng a little uncomfortable. He shrank his head and pondered for a bit while his facial sore poked out of his chest.

The big bulge-like pancake thing twisted and said in a low voice, “I will give you another piece of information… Lu Yunayuan’s grandfather became a powerful ghost and is still staying in the old place. You can stop by and question him. As long as Wu Jiayi accompanies you, he can’t hurt you.”

Wu Jiayi: “Fucking great. Why didn’t I expect this?”

“It’s too late now. We can’t trouble you. Bianzhu Street is in Jintang District.” Yin Ren shook his head quickly. “Wu Ge, how about this. When we go to work tomorrow, we’ll formally apply with Shian…”

Zhong Chengshuo was a person who went to bed early and got up early. At this moment, his face was full of pain from his biological clock being disrupted, so Yin Ren couldn’t bear to look at him closely.

Wu Jiayi: “Hey, it’s no trouble. If you want to question a ghost, it’s not so easy during the day.”

The ghost market was an interesting place. The exit was at the end of the street that led straight into darkness. Wu Jiayi waved goodbye to Old Dog Peng and took the two of them straight to the exit.

After holding their breath and following the way, the darkness cleared, and they were standing at the intersection of Bianzhu Street.

“The exit is here?” Zhong Chengshuo’s drowsiness completely dissipated. This was too coincidental, wasn’t it?

“It’s the same as how you enter. The guide chooses it.” Wu Jiayi patted his food delivery clothes and buttoned on his helmet again. “Otherwise, everyone will go in and out like a market every night, and they will be noticed.”

It was already 2 a.m. at this point, so Bianzhu Street was empty.

This street connected to the old town and had old shops and houses on either side, along with sparse trees. The entire street was like a dead man’s arm—cold and stiff, exuding a decaying smell.

Wu Jiayi: “Forget Xiao Zhong. Xiao Yin, be careful. Lu Yuanyuan’s grandfather is very powerful.”

“How powerful?” Lord Ghost King humbly asked.

“It’s about the same level as the ghost in Ping’an Manor.” Wu Jiayi’s expression became solemn. “Lu Tanfei—Lu Yuanyuan’s grandfather—has registered with Shian. We were barely able to restore some of his sanity, but he’s a new ghost and would get confused from time to time, which makes things quite dangerous.”

Yin Ren thought for a bit about Hu Tao in his work group. “I should be fine.”

“Alright, watch yourself.” Wu Jiayi nodded.

With Lu Yuanyuan’s disappearance and Lu Tanfei turning into an evil being, their home was left uninhabited to this day.

It was on the first floor of a red-brick apartment building. The door was green with a mottled blessing on it. The couplet was also on the same red paper, with strong and powerful calligraphy. From a glance, it looked like it was written by hand.

The windows were rusted with poor-quality security bars. The glass was covered with dust, and the inside was dark.

Yin Ren subconsciously let go of Zhong Chengshuo’s hand and got closer. However, before he could take a few steps forward, he saw six brownish-red spots in the murky darkness.

Those bright spots wavered and would extinguish from time to time. Yin Ren was just about to take a closer look when he saw them approaching quickly, pressing tightly against the window.

Those were six crisscrossed human eyes.

They were crookedly embedded in an old man’s head, covering his entire face, replacing the facial features that should’ve been there. Among the wrinkles, they blinked from time to time as they stared outside.

Yin Ren stared back for a while.

Yin Ren: “How wonderful. Wu Ge, the old man is at home.”

Xiao Wu responded with an “oh” and opened the iron gate. “I’ll go in first. You two follow me.”

The moment the door rang, the strange face on the other side of the window disappeared.

The musty smell unique to unoccupied rooms came from the door. Xiao Wu fumbled for a while before he managed to find the cord for the electric light.

Click.

Dim lights filled the small room.

Yin Ren didn’t look around at first and instead naturally raised his head…

An evil thing in the shape of a spider was hanging from the ceiling.

It looked more like a twisted human body than a real spider.

Six eyes were randomly embedded in its wrinkled head, and its thin neck was almost retracted into its chest cavity. Near the chest and abdomen, the old man had two pairs of thin, bony legs and feet. This “person” was thin, looking quite out of shape, but his abdomen looked like it had ascites and was raised high.

“Where’s Yuanyuan?” The evil thing had no mouth, but it could call out in a hoarse voice. “Did you find Yuanyuan? Is Yuanyuan back?”

“It’s usually like this,” Xiao Wu whispered. “Ghosts can’t leave their place of death. Hurry up and ask your questions while he’s still lucid…”

Yin Ren didn’t say anything. He looked at the evil being up and down, as if he were evaluating something.

Ten seconds later, he took two steps forward. The evil thing in the form of an old man climbed down the wall silently, stretched out his neck, and put all six of his eyes close to Yin Ren’s face.

“Here’s the deal.”

Yin Ren cleared his throat.

“Comrade Lu Tanfei, we have found a clue about your grandson. Please come with us… Give me your birthdate first, and I’ll help you with the rest of the formalities.”

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The author has something to say:

Human facial sores* is a well-known (?) legend. You can look it up if you’re interested.

*Disease passed down in ancient times. It’s basically a sore that develops into a face that can eat and drink. With the rise of modern medicine, it’s now defined as a kind of parasitic fetus, which should be removed by surgery. || In a sense, similar to conjoined twins but not badly to that extent.

Xiao Wu is a member of Unit 6. His partners are Li Xiaozhen and Li Xiaoli. The two girls shouldn’t be discharged from the hospital yet, so he’s relatively free.

Hu Tao: Great, I am no longer the only part-time worker!

Xiao Zhong: Yin… Fruit Knife

Xiao Yin: ? Something wrong, Jackie Chan Ge?

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