Upon hearing the scream, Lao Jiang’s face trembled, and he rushed faster than Yin Ren himself. The road in front of the Ghost Pawnshop was also considered his territory, and causing trouble in the Ghost Market was already a violation of the rules. Causing trouble at the doorstep of the Ghost Pawnshop was even more of a slap in his face.
Yin Ren had cleared most of the divination traces, leaving only a black line as a guide, and he almost flew out of the door. He saw Lao Jiang’s eyes glowing red with his mouth wide open, almost tearing his face apart. His poisonous teeth were pressing against the neck of a burly man, whose hands were covered in blood, struggling in pain—his arm was unnaturally bent, bones piercing through the skin, bloody and protruding.
A few steps away lay a peculiar child with facial features growing out of the top of his head. His neck was now softly broken, bleeding from seven orifices. The face that was originally on top of his head was now facing forward, resembling somewhat of a “normal person”.
The deformed child had soiled himself and his body was stiff, devoid of life. It seemed that there were no adults accompanying him. The remaining customers of the Ghost Pawnshop had gathered in their original places, whispering among themselves, their voices echoing between the lantern walls.
Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo exchanged glances.
“Shian Special Investigation Unit 9.” Yin Ren presented his work ID, clarifying his identity, and then he quickly formed a seal. Suddenly, sand and gravel rose, enveloping the man like a beggar, rendering him immobile.
On the other side, Zhong Chengshuo reflexively dialed 110.
As soon as the Shian team arrived, Lao Jiang had to retract his teeth. He looked at the burly man with a resentful gaze. Yin Ren had no doubt that if Shian hadn’t been present, the situation with the burly man would have been “internally digested” in a physical sense.
“Daring to disrupt the rules in front of my door.” Even after the burly man was captured by the arriving Shian personnel, Lao Jiang’s copper-colored fangs were still visible, muttering incessantly. “Those who break the rules must die…”
His mouth, which was stretched beyond its limits, hadn’t completely closed, and his entire skull seemed to have cracked open from the back. Thin strands of sticky mucus hung between the filthy teeth of the zombie, and yellow-green gas occasionally sprayed out from its mouth.
Shian completely subdued the man, but Lao Jiang still stared fiercely at the burly man; the red light in his eyes growing stronger. He didn’t hide his murderous intent and malice. At first glance, it was no different from an ordinary, mindless evil creature.
“Must die, must die, must die…”
Zhong Chengshuo turned his dark eyes towards the muttering Lao Jiang. Lao Jiang still remembered the sense of crisis this face brought, and despite his strange state, he reflexively protected his chest.
This movement seemed to wake him up, as Lao Jiang immediately coughed twice, finally returning to a somewhat normal state.
The murderous intent and malice diminished instantly. Zhong Chengshuo withdrew his gaze and continued observing the burly man who had killed someone.
“What did I do wrong?”
As he was being pulled away, the veins on the burly man’s neck bulged, and he roared in confusion.
“That kid has a face on top of his head. It’s really unsettling to look at. I just wanted to set him straight! Can’t you people from Shian handle things properly? I did it for everyone’s comfort. What did I do wrong? Ah?”
“You’re treating my good intentions like donkey liver! You claim to be good people, but when I do a good deed, I won’t be rewarded!”
Yin Ren frowned slightly as he watched the struggling figure of the burly man.
This person didn’t seem to have much ability, and his previous words seemed genuine, although lacking coherence. Besides that, the burly man was almost indistinguishable from the other people present.
On the other hand, this person had no connection to his divination black line, and there were no traces of special magic on him. The Ghost Market indeed had its fair share of odd people, but could he simply be a regular lunatic? The timing of this disturbance was also too coincidental.
But if this person had ulterior motives and killed an oddity with no background, what benefits would there be?
Swish.
Upon hearing a sound behind him, Yin Ren turned around and saw Huang Jin with a look of disdain, taking two steps back.
“What’s wrong with you?” Ge Tingting was puzzled.
“Thoughts.” Huang Jin covered his mouth, his complexion turning slightly bluish. “Everyone around is thinking about this matter, and they’re getting a bit panicked. The number of thoughts is increasing rapidly.”
In the world unseen by others, Huang Jin was almost overwhelmed by the surging tide of thoughts. Anyone would need a break when there was a lunatic capable of taking lives walking beside them. Even though there weren’t many people in front of the Ghost Pawnshop, these rapidly multiplying thoughts of panic were quite troublesome.
Yin Ren looked in the direction where the burly man had disappeared for a while and said, “Let’s keep our distance for now and continue the investigation. Boss Jiang, can we trust your words?”
This old thing couldn’t help but be sarcastic during his divination, and Yin Ren remembered it quite clearly.
“Well…” Lao Jiang, who had regained his composure, touched his withered cheek. “I did say I’d accompany you to the end, but that doesn’t mean I have to follow your every move. You see, I have a business to run, and you don’t need this old skeleton every day, do you?”
He took out an e-cigarette, adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, and was completely different from the terrifying monster he had shown just now.
“I was just joking with you.” Yin Ren seized the opportunity. “I only have one question, and I hope you answer honestly.”
“I will speak the truth.”
Although his mouth said that, Lao Jiang deliberately adjusted his posture and assumed his usual defensive stance.
“Compared to usual, was the murderous intent you had towards that person different?” Yin Ren asked straightforwardly. “I’ve also broken the rules in front of you before, but you didn’t… act so directly.”
Lao Jiang glanced at the black divination line on the ground and then looked at the Yellow Millet pendant hanging from Yin Ren’s phone. In the end, he took a puff of his e-cigarette and leisurely walked towards a corner of the wall. Yin Ren understood and followed, completely distancing themselves from the crowd still discussing the situation.
“I don’t like owing anyone favors. This time, I’ll speak the truth, and from now on, we won’t owe each other anything. Whatever promise I made to you is also null and void.”
Lao Jiang reverted back to his polite tone, but there was no sincerity in it. He elongated his speech, and the smoothness between his words made people feel uncomfortable.
“To be honest, it’s nothing. I’ve never liked people who break the rules—businessmen don’t like those who slap their faces in front of them. That kid earlier stained my doorstep with blood, and I got carried away in the heat of the moment…”
“You don’t have the physiological condition to get carried away.” Zhong Chengshuo muttered towards the desiccated and shriveled zombie.
Lao Jiang replied, “It was just a surge of anger overwhelming me for a brief moment…”
“You were in an abnormal state for a staggering 23 seconds,” Zhong Chengshuo continued to mutter quietly.
Lao Jiang slowly turned his head. “All of you Shian people are here, and I was already nervous and under a lot of pressure. Everyone has moments of losing control. Honestly speaking, I was genuinely angry for a split second, thinking of biting open that person’s windpipe. That’s when I felt satisfied in my heart.”
“Really, it was like that. I admit that I’m usually not so easily angered. Today, I may have lost control a bit. Don’t take it to heart, everyone.”
After saying that, Lao Jiang deliberately moved away from Zhong Chengshuo.
Despite the tense situation, Yin Ren almost burst out laughing, but he managed to hold it back and just squeeze Zhong Chengshuo’s hand. Lao Jiang was a slick corpse and had been mingling in this Ghost Market for hundreds of years. Even if he noticed something off about himself, he was reluctant to admit it directly in front of Shian personnel.
On the other hand, Zhong Chengshuo seemed to want to express something, scratching and clawing at Yin Ren’s palm. Yin Ren understood and purposely adjusted his stance, blocking the view of Huang Jin and Ge Tingting, then leaned closer to listen.
“…Did you say that biting and killing that man would bring you satisfaction?”
After listening to Zhong Chengshuo’s muttering, Yin Ren raised his voice.
“Hey, are you really going to harp on this? To put it bluntly, even though I’m an evil creature, I didn’t actually harm anyone, and you have no reason to investigate whether I did or not, do you?”
“It’s not about assigning blame; just a simple inquiry—did the satisfaction you mentioned earlier come from ‘killing him’?”
Lao Jiang quietly patted his chest to confirm all the conversations had been recorded, and then he answered “yes” in a low voice.
Ge Tingting looked at Lao Jiang and then at Yin Ren, seemingly realizing something. She took out her phone and quickly typed a line of notes.
[Investigating the Ghost Market at night. Someone was killed in front of the Ghost Pawnshop in the early hours. Lao Jiang, the owner of the Ghost Pawnshop, showed obvious murderous intent but didn’t cause any clear harm.]
[Their motives seem to be related to finding ‘satisfaction’ in their actions.]
……
At the end of the black line, there was a small stall on the main street of the Ghost Market. The stall’s owner was also a familiar headache.
“Well, well, if it isn’t Xiao Yin and Xiao Zhong!” Old Dog Peng had a smile on his face as he poked his white- and sparsely-haired head out from behind the door. His neck was adorned with two payment QR code cards that swayed with his movements.
The divination black line, concealed by the night, led straight to this person’s stall.
This time, Old Dog Peng’s stall still had a red lantern hanging. However, he had set up a ground stall, neatly displaying a variety of small items, not much different from the other stalls around.
As soon as Ge Tingting saw someone related to Lu Xiaohe’s mother’s disappearance, she wanted to rush over, but Yin Ren held her back with one hand.
The seriousness on Yin Ren’s face disappeared in an instant, and for that moment, he reverted back to the carefree and relaxed appearance he had when he first joined Shian.
“Master Peng, it’s good to see you. We happen to be nearby for some business, and I even made a bet with Chengshuo that this stall must be yours.”
“Good eyesight.” Old Dog Peng’s old face, along with his facial sores, smiled. “How about taking care of our business?”
With that, he straightened his chest like a dried duck, exuding a strong aura as a “Shian insider”, and even the few strands of hair on his head seemed to shine a bit.
“Of course, we’ll take care of it. Any new arrivals?” Yin Ren replied with a smile.
“From the Ghost Pawnshop. They’re all good stuff,” Old Dog Peng said mysteriously. “We’re old acquaintances, so I won’t hide it from you. Have you heard of Pinduoduo*? There might be some top-quality treasures hidden among the miscellaneous goods. It all depends on your eyesight and luck.”
*Chinese online retailer with a focus on traditional agriculture industry. It’s an e-commerce platform that connects farmers with consumers directly.
Yin Ren’s gaze quickly scanned over the assorted items on the red cloth.
Old Dog Peng’s stall had just been set up, and the folds on the red cloth were very distinct.
Yin Ren was certain that over ninety percent of the goods on the red cloth came from Pinduoduo, with outrageously high price tags that followed the pattern of “construction workers finding relics at construction sites”. About ten percent were likely genuine spirit weapons of worrying quality—behind them, Huang Jin’s eyes nearly rolled up to the sky.
At the end of the black divination line, it pointed directly to something.
It was a roughly carved wooden talisman in the shape of a cartoon rabbit. This image should have appeared clumsy and warm, but the rabbit’s dark eyes reflected a dim light, and a hint of cold and sinister aura quietly lingered on the wooden talisman.
There was a faint evil qi that was similar to that on the protective charm.
Yin Ren casually picked up the wooden rabbit talisman, ignoring the price tag of 668 yuan below it. “64 and 8 yuan*, sell it or not? My partner likes this kind of thing, so this is to make him happy.”
*Clarity: The item was originally listed at 668 yuan. 668 is considered an auspicious number in Chinese culture. Yin Ren changed the price to 64 + 8 Yuan (instead of 648). While 6 and 8 are auspicious numbers, 4 is actually considered an unlucky number, so in total, Yin Ren is paying only 72 yuan.
Old Dog Peng’s expression instantly turned as if he had been punched. After a while, he coughed twice. “A special discounted price, take it if you like.”
“Haa, it hasn’t been peaceful these days. Someone just died in front of the Ghost Pawnshop, so the workload has increased again.”
Yin Ren casually placed the wooden talisman in its proper position, speaking in a conversational tone.
“Haha, I saw it!”
Old Dog Peng laughed again, but this time his smile was overly bright. His toothless mouth stretched wide, revealing darkness within.
“I was at the scene when that guy strangled the child. Unfortunately, I was too far away to see clearly. You know, it’s been a while since something like this happened in the Ghost Market.”
“But, don’t tell anyone. Occasionally having something like this happen is quite exciting.”
He said with a laugh.
“It’s truly satisfying.”
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