Chapter 114 Waiting in the Underworld

Lu Yao gazed at the reflection of her sisters' lives in the copper coin, her fingertips gently caressing the summoning jade, a rare hint of hesitation appearing on her face.

You Qing, her eyes red-rimmed, muttered softly, "Grand Preceptor, they are pitiful people too..."

Lu Yao shook her head: "Pitiful, but unforgivable."

Lu Yao gently stroked the summoning jade, summoning Lin Zhaobei's ghost.

Seeing his sister's funeral clothing shop in front of him, Lin Zhaobei turned to run away, but was pulled back by the golden threads that burst from the summoning jade, which wrapped around his ankle.

Lu Yao raised her eyes to look at the two old women, her voice as cold as frost:

"Lin Zhaonan, you helped the wronged souls seek revenge, but you also caused seventy-eight souls to be forever condemned to the path of vengeful ghosts, making it impossible for them to reincarnate."

"Lin Zhaobei, you sell voodoo dolls and have harmed countless people. If I hadn't intervened in time, Jiang Jinshu would have gone blind because of you."

The two ghosts lay prostrate on the ground, their shadows trembling, yet they remained silent.

With a flick of her finger, Lu Yao summoned the Soul-Summoning Jade, which then floated up, revealing a dark space within the blood-red jade.

Amidst mountains of knives and seas of fire, and churning flames of karma, it resembled a miniature hell.

This is something even Lin Zhaonan didn't know: the most secret function of the Soul-Summoning Jade is that it can both summon and lock souls.

“According to the Celestial Master’s decree, you should have been annihilated.” Her tone softened slightly, “but considering what you suffered in your lives, I will give you a chance to atone for your sins.”

She raised her hand and grabbed Lin Zhaonan's ghost, which was lifted up by an invisible force: "Lin Zhaonan, I punish you by sending you to the Soul-Summoning Jade Hell for twenty-eight years to lessen your sins."

With another arrest, Lin Zhaobei was also brought up: "Lin Zhaobei, your sins are even deeper. You are sentenced to forty-nine years of karmic fire to burn your soul!"

In their final moments as they plunged into the jade hell, the two sisters' ghosts finally locked eyes.

A century passed in their eyes, and all the guilt, regret, and longing turned into silent tears at this moment.

As Lu Yao tied the summoning jade back to her waist, the morning sun shone directly into the funeral shop.

The paper-mache boys and girls turned around in unison, bowing their pale faces to the morning light, as if bidding her farewell.

"Grand Preceptor..." You Qing hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping herself.

What Lu Yao didn't say was that in the deepest part of that purgatory, she had deliberately reserved a quiet place.

There were two embroidery frames there, one holding half of a painting titled "Twin Lotus Blossoms," complete with needle and thread.

Some knots in their hearts must ultimately be untied by themselves.

...

Lu Yao and You Qing returned to the mountain.

As night deepened, Lu Yao started her live stream as usual.

The audience quickly noticed a blood-red jade pendant on her desk, which gleamed faintly under the light.

[Isn't this the summoning jade used when performing the ritual to help Yang Chuyue pass on to the afterlife? Didn't it break back then?]

Did the streamer fix it?

Lu Yao gently stroked the jade surface with her fingertips, a slight smile playing on her lips: "This jade is a supreme treasure of the Xuanmen sect, passed down for thousands of years. How could it be easily destroyed? This originally belonged to my master, but it ended up in the hands of a female ghost after it fell into the hands of the common people. Now it has been returned to its rightful owner, and the female ghost has been sealed within the jade."

[Ahhh, I want to see the ghost-exorcising process! The streamer is keeping some details to himself!]

[I'm so angry! Such a great scene wasn't broadcast live!]

“Let’s not do any divination today.” Lu Yao placed the blood jade on the table. “Do you still remember what happened at Youmeng Lake? After I performed the ritual to release the water ghosts, President Lu promised to donate and build twenty Hope Primary Schools.”

[I've been remembering it! I was just about to remind the host.]

[New fans are shocked, is this for real?]

Lu Yao nodded slightly: "I have entrusted the project proposal to a trusted person for preparation. The plan is now ready, and I would like to invite everyone to discuss it tonight."

That trustworthy person was none other than Gu Jing.

Gu Jing connected online and gave a detailed introduction to her design proposal.

Lu Yao opened the 3D rendering sent by Gu Jing. The red-tiled and white-walled school buildings were arranged in a well-organized manner, and the playground was surrounded by green trees. It was even more exquisite than many city schools.

This isn't a Hope Primary School, it's practically a private academy for the elite!

[For live streamers, appearance is important, but the quality of the instructors is key!]

Lu Yao adjusted the feng shui layout of several proposed sites, then suddenly remembered something: "Lu Jianhong is cunning; he probably wants to renege on his debt."

[Exactly, I could tell he wasn't happy about it at the time. Didn't he later try to find someone else, which almost backfired?]

Lu Yao smiled, pushed the blood jade toward the camera, and said to Gu Jing, "Have You Qing send this over tomorrow. The jade contains two female ghosts, Zhao Nan and Zhao Bei. If he tries anything funny, you can summon them out."

The blood jade glowed with an eerie red light under the lamplight, as if responding to its owner's words.

Gu Jing readily agreed: "Okay! I'll go find Lu Jianhong tomorrow and ask him to send the money."

Lu Yao began to explain in detail the feng shui principles of the school's layout, with a composed demeanor.

Early in the morning, before the mist had dissipated, You Qing drove her Wuling minivan and stopped right on time in front of Gu Jing's apartment building.

"Give."

Youqing took out a red silk package from her canvas bag. "This is something the Imperial Advisor gave you."

Gu Jing took it with both hands, and the moment the red silk was lifted, a bone-chilling coldness shot up from her fingertips.

The blood-red jade artifact lay quietly in the center of the silk cloth, its surface shimmering with an eerie luster.

Gu Jing subconsciously held her breath. This was no ordinary object; even through the silk, she could feel the eerie ghostly aura sealed within it.

"One was named Zhaonan, and the other Zhaobei; they were people from the Republican era," Youqing reminded her again in a low voice.

Gu Jing's heart pounded like a drum; this was a genuine, century-old ghost!

Her hand holding the jade pendant trembled slightly, a mixture of nervousness and excitement.

With the summoning jade in hand, Gu Jing took the business plan and headed straight for Lu Jianhong's company, Daguan Building.

Downstairs, Gu Jing took a deep breath, opened her phone and started a live stream, with the title: "President Lu, it's time to fulfill the promise of twenty Hope Primary Schools."

The live stream was instantly flooded with viewers, and the chat was filled with comments:

[Here it comes! Lu Jianhong is in for a world of trouble!]

Is there something fishy about the streamer's jade pendant? How thrilling!

[The guy escorting Jianhong would be so scared he'd wet his pants - click here 1]

【111111】

Gu Jing took the elevator directly to the top floor president's office and pushed the door open to enter, much to the secretary's astonishment.

Inside the conference room, Lu Jianhong was discussing the quarterly financial report with several senior executives. Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and he looked up with a furrowed brow. "Miss, have you come to the wrong place?"

Gu Jing walked to the conference table and put down the carefully prepared proposal.

"Mr. Lu, the plan for the Hope Primary School has now been finalized. On behalf of Master Qiannian, I am here to fulfill my promise to you." Her voice was neither humble nor arrogant.

Lu Jianhong's eyes flickered for a moment, then he gave a formulaic smile: "Miss, the company is currently holding an important meeting. We can discuss this later."

“President Lu,” Gu Jing tapped the cover of the proposal with her fingertip, “you haven’t forgotten the promise you made by Youmeng Lake in front of hundreds of thousands of people in the live broadcast room, have you? Twenty Hope Primary Schools, there’s video evidence.”

The executives in the conference room exchanged glances. Lu Jianhong's face darkened. "Young man, some things aren't as simple as you think. I'm trying to save face for you, a young lady. If you don't leave now, I'll call security."

Gu Jing took out the blood-red jade pendant from her bag, which gleamed eerily under the light.

"Mr. Lu, Master Qiannian asked me to pass on a message to you: those who break their promises will face the judgment of the underworld."