Chapter 80: Eightieth Day of Retirement: Do You Understand What Sustainable Utilization Is?
Mingxin's attention was completely absorbed by the thick, dark, ghostly aura that swirled like a snake. It wasn't until the aura exploded like fireworks, its scattered aura carried away by the wind, that he suddenly reacted. He stuffed the half-empty gift back into his pocket, threw his backpack to the ground, and let out a terrifying, soul-stirring cry: "Fuck!"
Those memories that were deliberately obscured and covered up are like the sunny day after the rain, with layers of dark clouds being penetrated by the scorching sun, leaving nothing to hide.
Seeing his exaggerated reaction, Sang Qiqi held her chin and said lazily, "It seems like he's finally reacted."
Mingxin gritted his teeth: "Of course."
Sang Qiqi: "Then tell me, what exactly did you encounter in Beiqing Village?"
The story begins when Mingxin senses a strong ghostly aura swirling in the wind. As he follows it, he's already on guard. A disciple of Liuyun Temple, he's encountered numerous demonic spirits during his years of training. Furthermore, it's rare for him to consult a fortune teller, and the hexagrams consistently point to grave danger, so it's hard not to be on high alert.
While chasing, he quickly took out all the necessary tools from his bag.
He held a whisk in his hand and also carried a peach wood sword, ready to fight against evil spirits at any time.
But what Mingxin could never have imagined was that what he encountered was completely different from what he had imagined.
He followed the ghost into the morgue of the funeral home.
Mingxin had been to this morgue during the day. Back then, the entire funeral home was incredibly busy, the morgue overflowing with coffins, leaving no room to rest. But now, it was completely different. Without the rows of coffins, the morgue seemed completely empty. The windows were all open, and the wind blew the curtains, creating a spooky and eerie atmosphere.
But what was even more creepy was that there was a golden statue placed in the middle of this empty venue. The golden statue was only as long as Mingxin's forearm. Although it was not large in size, it was made very delicately. The facial contours of the statue were very clearly outlined, and the appearance was very upright.
It looks like a very decent statue, but the inexplicable appearance of a statue here really makes people think too much.
When Mingxin hesitated and wanted to approach, he suddenly saw that the face of the statue had changed. The originally solemn and dignified expression suddenly disappeared, the golden eyes seemed to be covered by a layer of thick ink, and the pursed mouth below was actually flattened little by little, and at a certain moment it suddenly curved.
All the solemnity and dignity turned into extreme weirdness in this second.
But Mingxin had no time to react.
"In the few seconds I saw the statue transform, I felt light all over, my head turned to mush, and I was completely dazed. I only vaguely remember falling to the ground. Two figures walked out from the corner, walked up to me and talked for a while, and then I fainted."
Mingxin frowned and continued, "The next morning, I woke up by the flower bed in the funeral home. I had only one thought in my mind—I had thoroughly investigated the entire Beiqing Village, and there were no ghosts haunting the funeral home. The crematorium and the exploding and cracking urns were all quality issues."
With this awareness, Mingxin naturally would not stay in Beiqing Village for long, so he packed up and left.
"Do you remember what they whispered in your ear?"
"It seemed like they were just complaining about me coming over to check on the situation. One of them wanted to kill me, but the other one stopped him, saying that if something happened to me in Beiqing Village, the police and Sang Qiqi would be here to investigate the next day."
Sang Qiqi was a little surprised when she heard her own name, but she soon figured it out.
Mingxin was a well-known streamer on the Lizi live streaming platform, and many people knew him. The members of the Jiuyou Tongshen Society were mostly Taoist priests, so it was perfectly normal for the younger generation to pay attention to Mingxin.
"Shit." As Sang Qiqi pondered, Mingxin grew angrier and angrier. He couldn't help but clench his fist and punch himself. He grumbled to Sang Qiqi and the others, "I noticed something strange the moment I entered Beiqing Village. The people in Yulan Town were clearly still speculating that Beiqing Village was haunted. But when I got to Beiqing Village, everyone from the old men and women at the entrance to the hearse driver reacted violently to my suggestion of a ghost, like a cat with its tail stepped on. Everyone told me there were no ghosts, only problems with the quality of the crematorium and urn. I dismissed them at the time, but damn, the next night, I ended up being the cat with its tail stepped on!"
When Mingxin thought about Sang Qiqi calling him to ask about the progress in Beiqing Village, and his answer that was no different from that of the Beiqing villagers and his silly look, he wanted to bang his head against the wall.
Seeing his fury, Sang Qiqi halfheartedly tried to comfort him, "Think about it from another perspective. Didn't the Taoist priest at Huanlongtai also get caught in the trap?"
Mingxin: “…”
He gritted his teeth and retorted, "Under normal circumstances, he should have been the one to get hit. I'm sober now. I'm going to save his life regardless of past grudges. I'm going to spread the reputation of my Liuyun Temple and let his little Huanlongtai know that Liuyun Temple is the most awesome Taoist temple in the country!"
But now it's the same, so no one should blame anyone else.
Ming Xin collapsed on the sofa, his whole body filled with an air of despair: "You must not let my senior brother know about this, otherwise he will definitely mock me eight hundred times."
"Don't worry about whether your senior brother mocks you or not. We may need to contact the disciple from Huanlongtai first."
Mingxin was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized: "You want to ask about what happened before he got infected?"
Sang Qiqi said, "This is just one of them."
Mingxin: "What is the second one?"
Sang Qiqi listened to his innocent question with a rather helpless expression. She looked at him as if he were the idiot son of a landlord. She sighed and asked, "You didn't think you were joking when your ancestor told you fortunes three times and they told you three bad omens, did they?"
Mingxin: “…Wh, what do you mean!”
Although he was infected, isn't he still alive and well now?
"The evil spirit that clouded your memory and bewitched you can absorb human flesh and blood." Duan Sui walked over to Sang Qiqi's side and casually explained. When he noticed Mingxin's expression suddenly turned pale, he comforted him with a few words, "But it's only a tiny wisp. Even if it can absorb your flesh and blood, it will take half a year to turn you into a dried corpse."
The members of the Jiuyou Tongshen Society did have some common sense after all. They were worried that Mingxin would die tragically as soon as he left Beiqing Village, which would still attract the attention of someone with ulterior motives.
Mingxin: “…”Okay, you are not allowed to say anymore.
He jumped up from the sofa and immediately said, "Then you guys contact Pengqiu first. I'll go home and burn three incense sticks for the ancestor."
Judging by his past errors in divination, this time, three divinations had yielded dire predictions. Just as Sang Qiqi had said, his ancestor had clearly run out of options and was desperately trying to save him. And yet, he refused to flee and instead offered himself up. If it weren't for Sang Qiqi and Duan Sui backing him up... Mingxin could already picture him lying in a small, unnoticed building, a horrific scene six months from now, a dried corpse, surrounded by flies.
If this were to get out, all the Taoists in the country would laugh their heads off.
Knowing Mingxin hadn't recovered from the shock of his near-death experience, Sang Qiqi didn't stop him. She simply said, "Keep in touch," and headed to Luming Society to find the account of Pengqiu, the Taoist priest from Huanlongtai. It was unclear whether it was Sang Qiqi's luck or Pengqiu's luck, but when Sang Qiqi found the account, a small green dot lit up in the lower right corner of his profile picture, indicating that Pengqiu was online, perhaps browsing the various posts.
Before sending a private message, Sang Qiqi's finger hovered a few millimeters above the screen and turned to look at Duan Sui: "Do you think Pengqiu's situation is the same as Mingxin's?"
Duan Sui read Sang Qiqi's implication and asked, "Are you worried that Pengqiu's claim that Beiqing Village has no ghosts might be due to him being assimilated by the members of the Jiuyou Tongshen Society?"
"After all, we've never had any contact with Pengqiu before." Sang Qiqi frowned, "Aren't we being too cautious?"
"No, being cautious is a good habit." Duan Sui nodded, "Let's find an excuse to ask him out first."
If you want to ask a Taoist priest out, there is a simple way.
A haunted house just one foot away from a funeral service.
In a dark and deep room that was deliberately designed to create a gloomy and ghostly atmosphere, Jing Yu hid in a puppet with a stern face. In front of him was Sang Qiqi who was holding up her mobile phone to record.
Director Sang pointed at him and said, "Be more natural later, but you must also reveal your flaws so that Pengqiu can realize your true identity."
Although Jingyu usually receives guests in person, there is still a difference between being in person in front of guests and being in person in front of Sang Qiqi.
First of all, it is impossible to achieve the goal of "naturally".
Stared at by Sang Qiqi's bright almond-shaped eyes, he felt stiff and embarrassed.
He asked, "To put it another way, couldn't you just go to Pengqiu's house, knock him out, and bring him here?"
Sang Qiqi: "What's wrong with you, kid? A civilized society requires civilized methods. Besides, if I really knocked someone unconscious, wouldn't Lin Yanluo deduct points from me if he found out?"
Jing Yu: "Why don't you just pass the blame to Duan Sui?"
Sang Qiqi: "You're throwing everything at him. What if he's crushed? Do you even understand what sustainable development means?"
Jingyu: "...You go out, I'll take the photo myself."
Sang Qiqi: "Are you sure?"
Jingyu nodded.
Seeing this, Sang Qiqi didn't make things difficult for him. She placed her phone on the stand, turned it on, and went to the next room to eat Bai Yingxin's snacks. When Bai Yingxin saw her coming, she asked curiously, "Aren't you filming my boss?"
Sang Qiqi bit the dried mango she handed over and said vaguely, "I don't know what's wrong. He said he felt uncomfortable playing a ghost when I was there."
"I understand, I understand. It's like playing dirty in front of an acquaintance." Bai Yingxin chuckled, "My boss has this kind of shy personality. You'll get used to it."
Jingyu worked incredibly fast. Within five minutes, he strode into the lounge and tossed his phone to Sang Qiqi. As Sang Qiqi was about to open the video, he said, "Go back next door and watch it."
Sang Qiqi: “…”
After returning to the next room to save face, Sang Qiqi sent a WeChat message to Jingyu to inform him: I'm going to start watching.
Jingyu: "..."
He rolled his eyes and temporarily blocked Sang Qiqi's account, thinking out of sight, out of mind.
Elsewhere, Sang Qiqi, having finally opened the video, watched with fascination as Jingyu's ghost possessed a wooden doll. In the deep, ghostly darkness, a chilling wind blew, and the doll, which had been gently swaying in the breeze, as if dancing, suddenly began to twitch, its joints clicking. It raised its face, its exquisite features vividly animated. Its wooden mouth opened, and an unknown tune hummed out, a voice that sounded like a man or a woman, giving goosebumps all over its body.
Sang Qiqi was about to praise Jingyu for being a haunted house owner and for his understanding of horror atmosphere, but the next second, the singing stopped and turned into a crazy cry and laughter. The shrill sound pierced her eardrums and made her head buzz.
Next to him, Zhang Lin, who was also frightened, trembled his hand, and the ceramic urn he had just taken out of the storage room flew towards the cashier counter in a parabola. The moment it fell to the ground, it was gently wrapped in a black mist and floated back into his arms.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
Sang Qiqi breathed a sigh of relief. Rubbing her ears, she sent the video private message to Pengqiu and said, "Hello, Master Pengqiu. Here's the thing: I opened a haunted house and bought a puppet at a second-hand recycling market. I originally thought this puppet, with its grimy, indelible paint, would be perfect for a haunted house NPC, but now it seems a little too suitable." /Tears. Master, do you think this puppet is normal?
After Sang Qiqi sent the private message, she left the page hanging. After a while, her phone made a ding-dong sound. She looked down and saw that it was Pengqiu's reply.
"You reply very quickly." Sang Qiqi changed her posture and lay on the sofa.
The other party gave a very simple reply, saying: It’s not normal.
Sang Qiqi then jumped in: "There's a ghost, right? I told you this puppet must be possessed by a ghost! My husband refuses to believe it! Could you please come over and help me fix it? The cost is negotiable!"
Pengqiu was watching the video for the fourth time when he received the message. The demon's voice was sharp and full of energy. Furthermore, from the footage captured by his phone inside the haunted house, all the windows were closed, and the puppet's wedding dress had been blown up by the wind, clearly showing the spread of demonic energy. This couldn't be just a small demon... but it was just dancing, singing, and screaming, seemingly with no intention of harming anyone.
It would be better to go and take a look.
He thought about it, replied "OK", and then went out under the cover of night according to the address given by Sang Qiqi.
It was already eight o'clock in the evening when Pengqiu arrived at the door of the haunted house.
The haunted house is right next to Sang Qiqi's funeral home. The light at the door of the former is a little dim, but the latter is extremely bright. The light shines on the wild boar, outlining its sturdy outline.
Pengqiu had heard of this funeral home.
Just as he was about to look away, he happened to bump into Sang Qiqi emerging from the house. She leaned against the wild boar, gazing towards Pengqiu. This Huanlongtai disciple had an unexpectedly… gentle and refined demeanor, completely at odds with the image of a disciple Mingxin had described as prone to using curses.
Pengqiu politely nodded to Sang Qiqi and was about to knock on the door of the haunted house when he heard Sang Qiqi say with a smile, "Master Pengqiu, right? I sent the information about the haunted house. Please come over here."
Was the information about the haunted house sent by Sang Qiqi?
Pengqiu frowned, his heart filled with doubt. After a few seconds of hesitation, he finally followed Sang Qiqi's steps and walked into the funeral service. The light inside was bright and gentle. A child who looked barely adult was huddled in a corner, packing boxes. In front of the sofa, a handsome young man raised his eyes, his gaze fixed on his solar plexus. Before Pengqiu could understand the meaning of this look, the man hooked his finger. His head suddenly sank, and then a strange feeling came from his mind.
With a snap, the black ghost energy completely emerged from the solar plexus, swam rapidly into the man's palm, and was crushed by him.
Pengqiu stood there, stunned for a few seconds, and his face suddenly turned ugly.
He murmured: "Beiqing Village——"
Sang Qiqi listened to him muttering, exchanged a glance with Duan Sui, and then beckoned them to sit on the sofa. Although the process was a bit tortuous, Sang Qiqi was relieved when she saw Pengqiu the first time and confirmed that he had encountered the same situation as Mingxin.
She didn't want Pengqiu to be turned into a subordinate of the Jiuyou Tongshen Society. After all, Huanlongtai, to which they belonged, was not a small Taoist temple. If Pengqiu returned to Huanlongtai with the Jiuyou Tongshen Society's expectations and hopes, while not everyone in Huanlongtai would betray them, there would definitely be those with ulterior motives.
By then, it will be troublesome to deal with.
"Master Pengqiu, please sit here. We want to hear what happened to you in Beiqing Village."
"How do you know that I'm in trouble in Beiqing Village?" Pengqiu had obviously realized that Sang Qiqi was doing this to attract the evil spirit in his head.
"Because there was an unlucky guy who got hit just like you, and we just dealt with his problem more than two hours ago."
"Mingxin?"
"You know?"
"I follow his Li Zi account and saw a video he posted earlier, saying he was going to Beiqing Village." Peng Qiu briefly explained and then brought the conversation back to his experience in Beiqing Village. He said, "I followed Chen Hong... the man who came to your store to buy an urn. When we arrived in Beiqing Village, Chen Hong's family came to greet us. But at the time, Chen Hong's parents thought the crematorium and urn were normal. But when they heard I was a Taoist priest and was here to help check the village for any strange phenomena, their expressions looked a little strange."
"Not long after, Chen Hong came to me to complain that his parents actually blamed him for bringing a Taoist priest home."
This is obviously unexpected.
Because it was Chen Hong's parents who first told him about the strangeness of Beiqing Village. According to Chen Hong's description, when the three of them were video chatting as a family, his father said mysteriously that the villagers had seen a real ghost in the funeral home in the middle of the night.
"I realized something was amiss and wanted to avoid Chen Hong's parents and go investigate the village after dark. But that afternoon, Chen Hong's parents brought a strange man to their home and pointed at me, saying I was a Taoist priest from outside. After the man knew about it, he didn't show any hostility towards me. After asking me a few simple questions, he offered to take me to the funeral home. I refused, but the other party suddenly took out a golden statue... I subconsciously looked at the statue, and by the time I realized something was amiss, it was too late. When I woke up, I seemed to have forgotten everything that happened in the afternoon. Then I told Chen Hong that since there were no ghosts here, I would go back to Jingbei. Chen Hong also looked very apologetic, saying that I had come here for nothing and had caused a misunderstanding, and wanted to help pay part of my fare."
After hearing this, Sang Qiqi rested her chin on her hands and muttered, "It's the same method as Mingxin's. They both saw the statue."
"Then..." Sang Qiqi thought for a moment and asked, "Did you bring any camera equipment with you at the time? Perhaps you took a picture of that strange man?"
"No." Peng Qiu shook his head, but the next second when Sang Qiqi showed a regretful expression, he said, "But I remember his appearance. I can draw it. I learned sketching."
Sang Qiqi: “……?”
Pengqiu explained, "When I first started learning to draw talismans, my lines were too shaky, so my master took me to a painting class. After entering the world, I was not well-known, so I was once mistaken for a liar. I was even beaten up by an angry man and had my legs broken. I spent all my savings. So I could only apply for jobs at painting agencies and worked as a sketching teacher for two years."
Sang Qiqi: "...Then you do have a lot of experience."
Pengqiu sketched quickly. Without the ghostly aura clouding his memory, he gradually sketched a face that looked vaguely familiar to Sang Qiqi and Duan Sui onto the A4 paper. Sang Qiqi raised an eyebrow calmly, and as Pengqiu finished writing, she nodded and said, "I've got that. Is there anything else you'd like to add about your experience in Beiqing Village?"
Peng Qiu shook his head. "It was probably no more than two hours between my arrival at Beiqing Village and the time I was infected."
That's even worse than Mingxin.
Sang Qiqi sighed inwardly, holding up the portrait and said, "Okay, it's getting late, so let's stop here for now. Let's add your contact information first. If I have any questions later, I can always ask you. Is that okay with you?"
"Of course, but...you're going to Beiqing Village?"
"Well, something's not right over there. We need to deal with it."
Pengqiu opened his mouth, wanting to help, but fell silent after Sang Qiqi said, "I suggest you stay in Jingbei and maintain the illusion of being deceived by the statue of Beiqing Village."
If he returned to Beiqing Village, he would definitely attract attention from the village. In comparison, it was more appropriate for him to stay in Jingbei. However, the thought of being tricked in Beiqing Village made him feel uncomfortable.
He sighed silently, rubbed his forehead, and nodded: "Okay, thank you for your hard work."
After watching Peng Qiu leave, Sang Qiqi closed the door to the funeral complex and pulled Duan Sui aside to discuss their next plan. She slapped the sketch on the table, then pulled out her phone and found the photos Shen Yucheng had taken at the full moon banquet for his son in Ningchang. She enlarged one of the photos and pointed at the long-faced Taoist priest with a mole on his chin in the corner, saying with certainty, "That's him."
"I have an idea." She hooked her finger at Duan Sui, and as he leaned in, she whispered something in his ear, growing increasingly excited, and Duan Sui's ears grew redder and redder. But she obviously didn't notice. When she finished, her eyes sparkled as she asked, "What do you think? Jue Jue Jue? Can it piss off those idiots in the Jiuyou Tongshen Society?"
Duan Sui's ears, red as if about to bleed, said calmly, "I didn't hear clearly."
Sang Qiqi: “…”
How could I not hear it clearly!
She leaned over and chattered again, and this time she finally got a nod of approval from Duan Sui: "I think it's very good."
Sang Qiqi's eyes lit up even more. "Then I'll go ask Pengqiu if there's a new temple built in Beiqing Village."
The deities being worshipped are almost taking shape, so this temple definitely exists.
Beiqing Village was so quiet late at night that only a few dogs barking and chickens crowing could be heard.
Sang Qiqi and Duan Sui appeared silently at the village entrance. The former pulled out a simple map, pointed to their location, then moved northeast and lowered his voice, saying, "Pengqiu said there are two temples in Beiqing Village. One is in the very center of the village and has been built for decades. The other is just to the northeast and was completed a few days ago. The village even organized a temple fair. Chen Hong mentioned it to him, saying that everyone was very interested in the fair and that the entire village was out on the day of the fair."
"In addition, there are special people in the village who carry the Bodhisattva throughout the village, passing by every household. Most of these households will place offerings, incense and candles at their doorsteps in advance, and when the Bodhisattva passes by, they will look at it, worship it, and make a wish or something."
"It's worth mentioning that Chen Hong's parents complained to him about ghosts haunting the village two days before the temple fair. I suspect the villagers were more concerned about the temple fair because of the ghosts. It turns out the Bodhisattva statue that was carried around the village was the same one Mingxin and Pengqiu encountered, and the statue used this to confuse everyone in the village."
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