31: When the King of Hell calls the roll, the corpse-collecting team turns into a funeral procession.
Early the next morning.
The fog in Ghost Crying Alley was thicker than usual, and the damp, cold air carried a chill that seeped into the bones.
A series of chaotic footsteps shattered the alley's deathly silence.
"Brother Wang, it's already late morning, and there's not a single sound from inside. That kid must be dead for sure."
The speaker was a burly man with a face full of fierce features, carrying a worn straw mat on his back and a hook and body bag hanging from his waist—clearly a professional "Body Collector."
Walking ahead was none other than the sharp-faced, monkey-cheeked Shopkeeper Wang from the Brokerage House yesterday.
He was rubbing two iron walnuts in his hand, a barely concealed greedy smile on his face: "The female ghost in Listening to Rain Pavilion is extremely fierce. Sucking dry a kid who just entered the Origin Opening Realm? That's as easy as breathing."
"Heh, that's right," the burly man fawned. "What a pity about that five hundred taels of gold deposit. If only..."
"Idiot!"
Shopkeeper Wang glared at him, lowering his voice to curse: "Gold is nothing! That kid must have other valuables on him! Yesterday, I saw him spend lavishly, casually handing out gold notes. Who knows how many Spirit Stones are hidden in his Storage Pouch."
"When we go in later, be quick. Drag the body out. The Storage Pouch is mine; the body and other miscellaneous items are yours."
"Got it! Just watch me!"
The four of them arrived menacingly at the main gate of Listening to Rain Pavilion.
The vermilion gate was tightly shut. Unlike yesterday, no black Qi seeped from the cracks; instead, it seemed... unnervingly quiet.
"Let's get to work!"
The burly man spat into his palm, stepped forward, and raised his foot to kick the door.
Creak—
Before his foot could touch the door, the heavy gate slowly opened on its own.
A fresh morning breeze blew in their faces. None of the imagined rot or Yin Evil Qi was present.
"Huh?"
Shopkeeper Wang was taken aback, instinctively leaning in to look inside.
At that sight, his entire body froze. The iron walnuts in his hand clattered to the ground, hitting his foot, but he didn't even feel the pain.
The originally overgrown, grave-like courtyard was now neatly arranged.
The weeds on the ground had been completely pulled out, and even the dirt between the bluestone slabs had been cleaned. The stone table by the dried-up well was polished to a shine, almost reflective.
Beside the stone table, a youth in a blue robe sat upright, holding a cup of hot tea, savoring it carefully.
And beside the youth, the Red-clothed Female Ghost that had terrified the entire Nanjun Outer City yesterday had now restrained her ghostly Qi. Holding a large palm-leaf fan, she was... fanning the stove to boil tea for the youth?
"The fire's too big; less wind," the youth said calmly.
"Yes... yes, Master," the female ghost replied meekly, quickly fanning more gently, afraid to anger him.
"This... this is an illusion, right?"
Shopkeeper Wang rubbed his eyes and pinched his thigh hard.
It hurt! It wasn't a dream!
"Oh, you all came quite early."
Lin Que put down his teacup, turned his head, and looked at the four dumbfounded people at the door, a gentle smile on his face:
"Bringing straw mats and hooks... here to send me off?"
"You... you're not dead?!"
Shopkeeper Wang pointed at Lin Que, his voice cracking, then pointed at the female ghost boiling tea, his eyes nearly popping out: "Red-clothed! You... why are you boiling tea for him?! Don't you hate living people the most?!"
Hearing this shout, the Red-clothed Female Ghost paused her fanning.
She slowly raised her pale, paper-like face and gave Shopkeeper Wang a resentful look.
Hate living people?
Of course I do!
But do you know what this guy did to me last night? That feeling of having my Soul repeatedly fried in oil—she never wanted to experience it again! Compared to Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, boiling tea is a blessing!
"It seems Shopkeeper Wang is quite disappointed."
Lin Que patted his sleeves but didn't get up, remaining lazily seated on the stone stool.
"Since you're here, don't be in a hurry to leave."
Shopkeeper Wang, after all, was an old hand who had been around the Outer City for years. After a brief shock, he quickly regained his composure.
If this kid wasn't dead, it meant he must have a heavy treasure specifically designed to suppress ghosts!
And judging by the female ghost's servile demeanor, she was clearly completely suppressed and couldn't use her strength!
A kid who just entered the Origin Opening Realm, without the female ghost's threat, was just a piece of fat meat!
"Damn it, playing tricks!"
Shopkeeper Wang's eyes flashed with malice. Since the underhanded method didn't work, he'd use force!
"Brothers, this kid must have a heavy treasure on him! Since the female ghost won't kill him, let's help him meet his end properly!"
"Charge together! Hack him to death with random blades, then split the loot evenly!"
"Kill!!"
The three body-collecting burly men were desperadoes to begin with. Hearing about a heavy treasure, their evil intentions surged.
The burly man threw aside the straw mat, drew a butcher's sharp knife from his waist, and charged in with a roar.
"Die!!"
The first one aimed his blade straight at Lin Que's heart, with powerful force.
Facing this fierce attack, Lin Que didn't even lift an eyelid, nor did he reach for the poison pill in his robe.
He simply took a small sip of tea and said calmly to the female ghost beside him:
"Red-clothed."
"Weren't you complaining about being hungry last night?"
Lin Que put down his teacup and pointed at the three charging men:
"Breakfast is here."
As soon as the words fell.
The previously meek, fan-wielding, tea-boiling Red-clothed Female Ghost trembled violently.
The next second.
Boom!
An extremely terrifying Yin Evil Ghost Qi erupted from her body in an instant!
Her pale face instantly twisted into a hideous grimace. Her originally smooth hair danced wildly like black snakes, and her bright red wedding dress fluttered in the Yin wind!
The resentment pent up all night finally found an outlet!
"Hungry... I'm so hungry!!"
The Red-clothed Female Ghost let out a shrill scream, her form instantly turning into a red blur as she pounced on the burly man at the front.
"Wh... what?!"
The burly man only saw a blur before a cold, piercing ghostly face pressed against the tip of his nose.
Those eyes, with only whites and no pupils, stared fixedly at him.
"Is your blood... warm?"
Thud!
A pale ghostly claw effortlessly pierced through the burly man's chest, directly gripping his still-beating heart!
Unlike last night with Lin Que's transferred pain, this was the most primitive, brutal physical attack!
"Ah!!!"
The burly man let out a short, sharp scream, his body visibly withering at a rapid pace. All his essence, blood, and vitality were instantly drained by Red-clothed!
"Gh... ghost!!"
The two accomplices behind were scared out of their wits, turning to flee.
"Think you can run?"
The Red-clothed Female Ghost licked the blood from the corner of her mouth, emitting a chilling, sinister laugh.
Swish! Swish!
Two strands of black hair shot out like spears, instantly wrapping around the two men's necks, dragging them back forcefully!
"Crack!"
"Crack!"
Two crisp sounds.
The two burly men didn't even get a chance to beg for mercy before their necks were twisted into pretzels, their heads hanging limply.
Three breaths.
In just three breaths.
Three Body Collectors notorious in the Outer City had turned into three withered corpses, lying haphazardly in the courtyard.
And the Red-clothed Female Ghost stood among the corpses, her red dress now even more vividly crimson, her ghostly Qi more condensed than before.
She turned and looked at the last remaining Shopkeeper Wang.
By now, Shopkeeper Wang had collapsed to the ground in terror, his pants warm and emitting a foul smell.
Looking at the female ghost standing among the corpses like a demon, and then at the youth still sitting on the stone stool drinking tea, without even a wrinkle in his clothes, he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
What... what kind of person is this?!
The Red-clothed Female Ghost was as obedient as a dog in front of him, yet killed like a demon!
"Are... are you full?"
Lin Que put down his teacup and asked softly.
The Red-clothed Female Ghost instantly retracted all her Evil Qi, reverting to her meek, subservient appearance. She floated to Lin Que's side, wiped the blood from her ghostly claw on her clothes, and said cautiously:
"Answering Master... half-full."
"Hmm."
Lin Que nodded, his gaze falling on the trembling Shopkeeper Wang.
"Don't... don't kill me!!"
Seeing Lin Que's gaze, Shopkeeper Wang was scared out of his wits, kowtowing frantically, his forehead thudding against the bluestone slabs:
"Immortal, spare me! I was blind! I was foolish! Please, Immortal, spare me!!"
A flash of desire appeared in the Red-clothed Female Ghost's eyes as she looked at Lin Que: "Master, this one... can I eat him? That fatty has a lot of meat."
Hearing this, Shopkeeper Wang's eyes rolled back, nearly fainting.
"This one can't be eaten."
Lin Que waved his hand, his tone indifferent: "Keep him; he's still useful."
He stood up and walked over to Shopkeeper Wang.
"Shopkeeper Wang, look up."
Shopkeeper Wang trembled as he raised his head, tears and snot covering his face, his eyes filled with fear.
"First, clean this up," Lin Que pointed at the withered corpses on the ground. "Don't dirty my courtyard."
"Yes, yes, yes! I'll move them right away! I'll even replace the soil for you!" Shopkeeper Wang felt as if pardoned from death; he'd do anything as long as he wasn't eaten.
"Second."
Lin Que crouched down, staring into Shopkeeper Wang's eyes, his tone eerie:
"You're in the brokerage business, so your connections should be wide, right? I need a large amount of waste pills, defective Magical Artifacts, even cursed ominous objects. The more, the better; the more poisonous, the better."
"I have connections! I know people in the waste yards of several major Sects in Southern Commandery!" Shopkeeper Wang nodded desperately.
"Good."
Lin Que patted Shopkeeper Wang's sweaty, plump face and pointed at the Red-clothed Female Ghost floating in the air:
"I won't place any Restrictions on you, nor feed you poison."
"But remember, my 'Maid' here has a keen nose."
"No matter where you run to the ends of the earth, as soon as I will it, she'll... come to your bedside tonight to chat with you."
The Red-clothed Female Ghost cooperated perfectly, splitting her mouth open to reveal rows of ghostly teeth, making a "throat-slitting" gesture at Shopkeeper Wang.
"Ah!!"
Shopkeeper Wang screamed, kowtowing heavily again: "I wouldn't dare! From now on, I'll follow the Immortal's lead! Absolutely no disloyalty!!"
Compared to poison or Restrictions, this fear of being hunted by a fierce ghost at any moment was the most direct and effective.
"Get lost."
"Yes! Right away!"
Shopkeeper Wang scrambled to drag the three withered corpses on the ground, mustering the greatest strength of his life, and rushed out of the courtyard like dragging dead dogs.
The courtyard returned to quiet.
Lin Que stretched lazily and glanced at the still-unsatisfied female ghost beside him.
"Alright, stop drooling."
"Watch the house properly. If you behave well in the future, there will be plenty of chances for you to 'snack.'"
"Yes, thank you for your grace, Master!" The Red-clothed Female Ghost joyfully bowed, picking up a broom to continue sweeping.
Lin Que looked up at the gradually dispersing fog, a slight curve forming at the corner of his mouth.
The demonstration of power was over.
Now, no one should dare to easily cause trouble at Listening to Rain Pavilion.
"Next..."
Lin Que touched the deflated Storage Pouch in his sleeve.
"Time to get some real resources."
He turned and went back inside, preparing to go out and check out Southern Commandery's "Black Market."
After all, relying solely on Shopkeeper Wang as an errand boy wasn't enough. He needed to see for himself how much "trash" in this vast Southern Commandery was waiting for him to turn into treasure.