Chapter 166: Devouring a Person

Ghost Friend circled the house a few times without spotting anything worth his attention. It looked like an ordinary commercial property.

"This doesn't make sense. Even though the ones I summoned are just wandering souls and wild ghosts, they should be more than enough to deal with an ordinary person." Refusing to believe it, he walked into the back alley and stopped at the sunless side of the small shop. "I didn't expect you to actually have some skill. It seems you knew I was coming and made preparations in advance."

Ghost Friend's gaze grew malicious. "But for a mere mortal like you to oppose a Ghost Cultivator is truly overestimating your abilities. I didn't plan to take your life, but since you've made a fool of me, you can pay off this debt with half your lifespan!"

With a wave of his hand, he brought out four Lesser Vehicle Talismans. A hint of pain flashed across his face; to an ordinary cultivator, Lesser Vehicle Talismans were already incredibly rare.

"Heaven's eternal water, earth's eternal water, metal's eternal water, three waters merge into one! I call the greater ghosts, invite the lesser ghosts, and command four Little Ghosts to push fate! Push forward and turn right, push backward and reverse! Sixth Lord of the Southern Dipper, Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper, by the decree of the Supreme Venerable Sovereign, swiftly execute!"

Finishing the incantation, Ghost Friend pulled out a handful of Underworld Coins and scattered them into the night sky. Before long, several blurry, hideous ghost shadows appeared. In the end, only the four dark figures that picked up the Underworld Coins remained.

This perfectly proved the saying: with money, even ghosts can be made to push grindstones. Ghost Friend pointed toward the interior of the shop and tossed out another handful of Underworld Coins.

Following the command, the four ghostly figures swiftly entered the shop.

"These four ghosts all died unjust deaths. Although they haven't transformed into fierce ghosts yet, their lingering resentment keeps them trapped in the mortal realm. You can handle ordinary wandering souls, but let's see how you fend off these wild ghosts and their magical power!"

Using four Lesser Vehicle Talismans took a heavy toll on Ghost Friend. If it weren't for his desire to pocket the Black Talisman given by his master, he would never have been willing to spend such precious capital.

Ten minutes passed. Ghost Friend paced back and forth over the scattered Underworld Coins with his hands behind his back.

The night wind blew gently. Fifteen minutes passed. Ghost Friend tightened his collar, pulled his clothes snug, and squatted at the shop's entrance.

Twenty minutes passed...

"Absolutely no movement at all?!" Ghost Friend pressed his ear against the wall, wishing he could phase right through it. "The ghosts summoned by four Lesser Vehicle Talismans can't do anything to him? Does this guy worship Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva?"

He pursed his suddenly dry lips. To complete the task given by his master and Jiang Chen, he had no choice but to take out the Black Talisman again.

"The Talisman Paper is pitch-black, and the talisman core is red beneath the black. It definitely harbors a fierce ghost with deep resentment. Although this is only a Lesser Vehicle Talisman, it is extremely rare." He felt a pang of reluctance. To a Ghost Cultivator, this kind of ghostly entity was incredibly attractive.

"It's almost dawn; I can't afford any more mistakes. Let me investigate first. If the other party really is a reclusive master of great virtue, then I won't waste this talisman for nothing." Making up his mind, Ghost Friend rolled up his sleeves and climbed the pipes to the second floor like an agile monkey.

The curtains were thick, blocking everything from view. He pulled a doll folded from white paper out of his pocket and stuffed it into the window crack.

It was unknown what ghost art Ghost Friend used next, but the little paper figure swayed as it stood up and slowly unlatched the window lock.

"You're still too green to fight me." Ghost Friend pushed open the window and hopped inside. At a glance, he spotted the coffin resting in the middle of the room.

"This coffin seems able to gather yin and evil energy, and there's a formation drawn on the ground. It seems I've run into a fellow cultivator." Far from panicking, he revealed a look of curiosity. "Ghost Cultivators love yin and evil energy, but this is the first time I've seen someone place a coffin in their bedroom. This coffin is thick, imposing, and wreathed in yin energy. It's probably no ordinary item. What is the homeowner's purpose here?"

"The room is cramped, the feng shui is ordinary, and it's not a treasured yin acupoint. Why would he put a coffin here?"

Ghost Friend really couldn't figure it out. Driven by curiosity, he ran his palm over the coffin lid. "The surface is smooth, but a careful feel reveals the stickiness of blood. This texture... it's somewhat like the rumored Lacquered Wooden Coffin."

Most coffins were made of three types of wood: sandalwood, nanmu, or fir, as these three woods possessed excellent anti-corrosion properties.

A Lacquered Wooden Coffin was not actually made of lacquered wood. Instead, it was an ordinary coffin that had undergone a transformation after being buried deep in a yin acupoint or a place with treacherous feng shui. An extra layer resembling bloody lacquer formed on its surface, giving it a unique texture—like dipping one's hand into coagulating blood. Hence its name.

"In the dozen or so years I've practiced ghost arts, I've never seen a Lacquered Wooden Coffin. This has certainly been an eye-opener." His palm stroked across the coffin lid, resting upon it as if touching a beautiful woman's skin, unwilling to pull away.

'This coffin's value is immeasurable. Wouldn't the ghost lying inside be even more precious? Should I take a look?' Once this thought emerged, it grew wildly in his mind like weeds. 'I'll just take one look. After that, I'll immediately report the situation here to Master. He should be even more interested in a Lacquered Wooden Coffin than I am.'

Unable to resist the temptation, Ghost Friend hooked his fingers under the lid and slowly pushed it open.

The inside of the coffin was pitch-black.

"An empty coffin?" He leaned down. Just as he stuck his head over it, a massive swathe of black hair shot out from the red soil inside!

It wrapped tightly around Ghost Friend's neck, dragging him alive right into the coffin!

"Bang!"

The coffin lid slammed shut. In the heavy night, it was as if nothing had ever happened.

Sleeping on the first floor at the time, I heard the noise and immediately opened my eyes. I didn't move recklessly, however. I let my eyes adjust to the dark first before getting up, pulling a stun gun out of a drawer, and gripping it tightly.

"Did someone break in?"

Bai Qi was already awake, staring vigilantly upstairs.

I didn't even bother putting on clothes. Gripping the stun gun, I quietly slipped up to the second floor.

The door was slightly ajar. When I pushed it open, there was no one inside. Only the window was open, the night wind howling and blowing the curtains about.

"That's not right, I definitely locked the window before going to sleep." Walking to the window and looking out, I saw scattered Underworld Coins fluttering across the ground.

"What is this?" There was also a paper doll resting on the windowsill. I picked it up and tucked it away. "Could it be that the old man's wronged soul has returned?"

There was nowhere to hide in the room, except for that coffin.

I pushed against the coffin lid with both hands, but just like back in the sugarcane field, no matter how much strength I exerted, I couldn't open it.

"Looks like something else went inside." Calling Bai Qi over, I hugged him and stood guard next to the coffin until dawn, but nothing else unusual happened.

When sunlight poured into the room, I shoved the coffin lid again, but it remained firmly shut.

"How bizarre. The Fate Ghost is still inside. Is it planning a rebellion?"

I puzzled over it endlessly but couldn't figure it out. I went downstairs to check the street corner surveillance cameras and found nothing, save for a fleeting glimpse of a dark shadow slipping into the back alley.

"This must be the person who scattered the Underworld Coins." There were many people in Jiangcheng who disliked me and wanted to deal with me. For a moment, I couldn't pin down the culprit's identity.

"Meet force with appropriate tactics. Right now, the only thing I can do is make myself stronger as quickly as possible."

Returning to the shop, I cultivated a cycle of the Profound Truth Mental Method. Then, I took out the prescription for the Foundation-Solidifying and Origin-Cultivating Pill that I had exchanged during the last livestream. This pill could regulate breathing, unblock internal qi, soothe muscles and bones, and nourish the flesh. For someone like me, who had suffered multiple injuries and harbored constant hidden ailments, it was the most suitable medicine.

'This prescription is too precious to hand over to Ganding Pharmaceuticals. I have to gather and brew all the ingredients myself.' Some things could be shared, while others could not—especially after Huang Boyuan refused to give me the painting scroll. He kept offering money as compensation, completely exposing his true nature as a businessman.

Leaving Bai Qi behind to guard the house, I tightly shut the doors and windows. I found two thin threads and wedged them against the window and around the coffin. This way, if the threads snapped, I would know someone had touched the coffin.

Leaving Ting Tang Road, I took the initial payment Huang Boyuan had given me and ran all over Jiangcheng, buying only one or two medicinal herbs from each traditional Chinese medicine shop.

By noon, I checked my haul against the prescription. There was only one herb left that I hadn't managed to buy: Huang Xue.

Only after asking a shopkeeper did I learn that in all of Jiangcheng, only the pharmacies owned by Ganding Pharmaceuticals stocked this rare herb.

Left with no choice, I hailed a cab and headed to Jiangcheng's largest traditional Chinese medicine market, located near the Bell and Drum Tower in the Old Town District.

This was where Huang Boyuan had first made his fortune. After Ganding Pharmaceuticals went public, Huang Boyuan developed this place into the largest raw medicinal herb market in all of South Central China.

It was my first time visiting a place like this. The architecture had an antique charm, and a faint scent of medicine wafted through the air. Several streets were lined entirely with traditional medicine shops. At first glance, I almost thought I had time-traveled back to ancient times.

I asked around at several pharmacies, but none of them carried the Huang Xue herb. As I was walking dejectedly through the crowd, someone suddenly tapped my shoulder.

I turned my head and saw a sexy, mature woman resting her hand on my shoulder. "Don't speak. Come with me."

"Are you... Huang Lan?"