Chapter 42

In the hall, Old Man Zhao's body was still trembling slightly, as if it could rise at any moment, as if the fierce ghost that had possessed it was still lingering inside.

Old Man Zhao, who had not entered the netherworld for a long time, had gradually turned into a fierce ghost. He began to hover around his body, trying to force the ghost out of it.

Seeing Old Man Zhao trying to reclaim his body, Old Hai shook his head. He and Old Man Zhao had a history, and seeing his old friend unable to rest in peace, he felt very sad: "Old friend, seeing you like this, I feel so much worse."

"Grandpa!" Zhao Qian performed a ritual, using ox tears to cleanse her eyes, and saw her grandfather hovering there. Her sadness was evident.

Just as she was about to run over, I stopped her.

"Alas, Zhao Zhou, Zhao Zhou, look at what you've done. Your father has become like this, do you feel better now?" Lin Feiyu sighed.

Zhao Zhou clenched his teeth and turned his head away: "At home, I was the one my father never favored! I've been scolded by him countless times since childhood. He wanted to leave everything to the eldest, I hate him!"

"But even a tiger doesn't eat its own cubs. He never intended to harm you, you wretch. You even prevented him from entering the netherworld, making him a wandering ghost?" Old Hai said, then took out a paper figure, muttered some incantations, and wrote Old Man Zhao's name on it. He called out: "Old brother, your body is here."

Old Man Zhao turned his head, walked over in a daze, looked at the paper figure, and then disappeared in front of Old Hai.

"Uncle, you must consider the old friendship with our father and help us. We can't let our father not enter the netherworld." Zhao Xi and Zhao Yuan were crying, begging Uncle Hai for help.

Zhao Zhou pondered Old Hai's words, remained silent, and then recalled past events, tears streaming down his face.

"I know, if you don't say, Uncle wouldn't understand." Uncle Hai sighed, looked around, and saw the altar Zhao Qian had set up.

"Xiao Lin, the one in the room is yours, Zhao Qian, I'll borrow your altar. Uncle needs to summon a ghost officer." Old Hai told Lin Feiyu and Zhao Qian, then placed the trembling paper figure in front of him, rearranged the altar, burned incense, drew talismans, and chanted incantations.

Lin Feiyu nodded and walked toward the hall: "Brother Hai, if you don't say, I would have..."

Before he could take out his tools, Xijun pounced, quickly pulled out the fierce ghost from the body, and looked at me. After I nodded, she began to devour it. To her, it was a delicious meal that could enhance her power, and she wouldn't share it with anyone.

"Little Brother Xia, couldn't you let Uncle Lin show off a bit first?" Lin Feiyu looked at me in a daze, smiling bitterly.

"Old Lin, there's a bigger one waiting for you to deal with later. This small thing, why should you, the main force, act now?" I smiled and said.

"Yes, you're right, you know your place!" Lin Feiyu nodded and laughed.

Just as we were joking, Uncle Hai clicked his tongue and then shook his head, his face pale: "No, I asked the netherworld and the local land god. The land god said that the ghost officer who was supposed to take Brother Zhao hasn't returned to the netherworld, so the netherworld blamed him. He can't send another ghost officer, and he wants to punish the relevant people."

The family members, upon hearing this, immediately wailed. Even Zhao Qian was sobbing, crying on me with tears and snot.

Lin Feiyu, who wasn't good at communicating with the netherworld, asked: "Brother Hai, you see, the family is like this. The funeral is tomorrow. What should we do? Everyone is waiting for you to act."

"There's no way. It's very busy down there now. But the netherworld said the ghost officer should still be alive. Unless we can find that ghost officer for them." Old Hai shook his head, looking around, as if searching for the ghost officer.

Hearing this, I also started looking. My gaze swept over and landed on Zhao Zhou: "Hey, Wu Zhenghua took your father's soul, and there was a ghost officer with him, right?"

Zhao Zhou was crying. Hearing my question, he said: "We didn't dare to touch the ghost officer, so we let him wander. Master Wu said the ghost officer's yin energy is low, and he was hiding in the corner."

He pointed to a corner of the hall.

I looked over and saw Xijun gnawing on something. When I saw it, I was stunned, my hair standing on end.

The ghost officer had been reduced to half a leg by Xijun!

"Xijun! You're going to get me in trouble!" The veins on my forehead bulged as I glared at Xijun.

Xijun looked at me innocently and put away the half leg of the ghost officer. She thought all ghosts could be eaten, regardless of whether they were yin souls or ghost officers. The ghost officer's yin energy was cool and fragrant, and it tasted good.

Old Hai and Old Lin could see Xijun, and the scene of her eating the ghost officer was clear to them. Although the ghost officer's yin energy was minimal, they could still see a bit of it, so cold sweat dripped from their foreheads.

"This is not good." Old Hai looked at Xijun, then at me, shaking his head like a rattle.

Lin Feiyu stomped his foot, not daring to speak.

I looked at the family members, who were all staring at me, not knowing what had happened. I was terrified. If the ghost officer was eaten by my little ghost, Old Man Zhao wouldn't be able to enter the netherworld, and they would blame me.

I quickly pulled Old Hai aside and said awkwardly: "Old Hai, if the ghost officer is dead, what will happen?"

"The netherworld will definitely come for you. What should we do?" Old Hai's face was pale, and he was very scared.

"It's already eaten. Is there no way to save it?" I asked again.

Old Hai thought hard and finally said: "Sigh, this can't be entirely your fault. I'll try to communicate more with the netherworld. But how did your little ghost cause such trouble? The netherworld will send someone to take you in three days at the latest. From what I see, the ghost officer seems to have a subtle relationship with the netherworld. Just apologize sincerely and agree to their conditions, don't argue with them, remember."

"Thank you, Old Hai. I can only wait for the netherworld to come." I thanked Old Hai and ordered Xijun to come back.

Xijun reluctantly returned after eating the hidden half leg. When she entered the soul jar, I noticed the jar was on the verge of breaking. Perhaps this led to Xijun's overreaction, and I could only blame myself for underestimating the situation.

"Let's go to the back mountain and see what that old man Wu Zhenghua is up to." Lin Feiyu suggested.

"Yes, that's the only way. I'll first collect Brother Zhao's soul, dispel his resentment, and communicate with the netherworld. Maybe I can send him down. I'll stay in the village for the next two days." Old Hai said, took out a black box from his backpack, and placed the paper figure with Old Man Zhao's soul inside, attaching a talisman.

Old Hai and the Zhao family had a deep relationship, and many relatives trusted him. Since he said so, they had no choice but to agree.

"Uncle, be careful. Wu Zhenghua is very cunning and has high Daoist skills." Zhao Xi said from the side.

"Don't worry, your uncle has fought with him before, and he can't do anything to me. Now, with Uncle Lin here, there's no problem. Even if we two can't handle it, there's still Little Brother Xia." Uncle Hai said, handing the box to Zhao Xi: "You're the eldest son. This box contains your father's soul. Take good care of it, burn incense, and then bury your father. The funeral will be at 9 AM tomorrow."

"Okay, Uncle." Zhao Xi trembled as he held his father's soul, his face pale. He was very afraid of his father becoming a fierce ghost. What if he accidentally removed the talisman?

The relatives were all pale, very scared, and wanted to stay away from Zhao Xi but didn't want to be rude.

"Let's go to the back mountain. I'll lead the way."

Zhao Qian suggested, actually wanting to avenge her grandfather. I understood, but it was night, and we were unfamiliar with the terrain. I also didn't trust her, so I said: "Old Hai, Old Lin, let Zhao Qian and Zhao Yi lead the way. Han Shanshan will wait here for reinforcements. Captain Huo should be here soon."

"Sure, but be careful. Each of you take a ghost-avoiding paper figure." Uncle Hai said, taking out the paper figures from Xiaoyi Village and giving one to each of us.

After a while, the sound of police cars came from outside the village. Captain Huo brought several people, and it was dark, so he must have just woken up.

After a brief handover, the five of us headed toward the back mountain.

Wu Zhenghua must have set up a stage on the back mountain, waiting for us to make our appearance. But I couldn't let this old man off, so even knowing the danger, I didn't hesitate. Besides, we were three people.

This old man probably thought his Confucian Daoist skills would克制 Xia Xiaobrother, and he might not have expected us to come, hehe.

On the way, Lin Feiyu didn't find Wu Zhenghua particularly challenging.

"We have the advantage of numbers, but we still need to be careful. Don't forget, others may not know, but we know this kid used to be a disciple of Mount Maoshan, even if it was just the basics, his skills are really formidable. I might have to run if I fight him alone." Uncle Hai frowned, indirectly warning Lin Feiyu not to underestimate the enemy.

I could see that Uncle Hai's Daoist skills were stronger than Lin Feiyu's. After all, Uncle Hai had safely come out of Yinfeng Town, and even the city officials had to bring him to investigate Xiaoyi Village, which showed his strength.

The drizzle continued. After about one or two kilometers from the village, the trees became denser, and the yin energy in the forest increased. Zhao Qian was shivering from the cold, so I took off my jacket and put it on her.

Zhao Qian blushed and wanted to thank me, but Uncle Hai spoke first, warning us: "We're in the mountains now. Everyone be careful. Don't panic no matter what happens."

"How do the Daoist sects deal with such people?" I asked curiously. To be honest, I had experience fighting ghosts, but no experience in Daoist duels.

"So, a group of people just go up with weapons and start swinging? That's illegal! You, Lin Feiyu, are still a police officer!"

Lin Feiyu thought for a moment and said: "Usually, each person uses their own skills..."

I was puzzled. What does 'each person uses their own skills' mean?

Uncle Hai chuckled and said: "Xiao Lin didn't explain clearly? Just wait and see. You don't need to act. This is our generation's business, and you young people just need to watch."