At the same time, the chill came and went quickly. The clouds were blown away by the wind, and sunlight once again bathed the area. Fan Bisi was utterly confused, wondering if the momentary strangeness he had felt was just his imagination.
Meanwhile, inside the carriage, Zhao Fusheng listened with some regret to the notification in her sea of consciousness: Failed to absorb malevolent spirit.
Although the Investiture of the Gods List had already warned her that Hell's level was too low to contain malevolent spirits above the Ferocious tier, she still tried to use Hell's unique properties to send away the malevolent spirit she controlled. Ultimately, as she expected, it failed.
However, Zhao Fusheng had anticipated this, so she was not discouraged. Instead, she thought for a moment, took out the cold ghost hand hidden in her sleeve, and once again activated Hell. The shadows silently engulfed the ghost hand. The moment the shriveled ghost hand entered Hell, it rapidly began to expand, and the human skin paper it held in its palm dropped with a 'snap.' But after the ghost hand recovered, there was no movement; it was restrained by Hell's power.
Zhao Fusheng's divine sense was closely linked with Hell. At this moment, she could clearly feel that she could 'touch' and find the location of the ghost hand and the fallen human skin paper at any time. Everything in Hell was within her will; this feeling was too profound.
But she could vaguely sense the ghost hand's uncontrollability. The ghost hand opened and closed, as if instinctively searching for its main body, attempting to break through Hell's blockade. The Beggars' Ghost itself had already reached the Sha-tier. Although Zhao Fusheng had decomposed it, the separated ghost hand itself represented the Beggars' Ghost's killing law and was the strongest part of the Beggars' Ghost's body—therefore, for the current Zhao Fusheng, it was still somewhat difficult for the first layer of Hell to completely control this ghost hand.
The benefits of Hell were also obvious. Once the ghost hand was absorbed into Hell, it seemed completely isolated from this world, as if they were in two different dimensions.
As Zhao Fusheng pondered, she sensed the ghost hand's struggle. With a thought, she 'grabbed' it, pulling both the ghost hand and the human skin paper out simultaneously. The moment the ghost hand was pulled out of Hell, it immediately tried to kill by instinct. Zhao Fusheng's expression darkened, and she shoved the human skin paper into the ghost hand. At the same time, the Investiture of the Gods List in her sea of consciousness prompted:
Sensed ghost hand resuscitation, deducting 5 Merit Points for suppression.
Overuse of Hell caused agitation in host's controlled ghost entity, deducting 10 Merit Points for pacification.
"..."
Zhao Fusheng hadn't expected that in this single in-and-out maneuver, her remaining Merit Points would be further deducted by 15 points, leaving her with only 25 Merit Points now. She frowned, looking at the ghost hand, which had shrunk back into a miniature arm in her palm, clutching a piece of human skin paper tightly.
Through this test, although Zhao Fusheng lost some Merit Points, she also gleaned several important pieces of information:
The use of Hell is not unlimited, especially when her current Merit Points are insufficient and her own bargaining chips are lacking, frequent use of Hell may trigger the resuscitation of the malevolent spirit she controls.
When a controlled malevolent spirit is put into Hell and then released, it will lose control again—for example, this ghost hand, which she had originally subdued using the law of controlling ghost entities, but after going in and out of Hell, it still triggered the ghost hand's law again.
Most importantly, after the ghost hand revived, its 'appetite' seemed to have grown, and the human skin paper could no longer satisfy its needs for pacification. If not for the Investiture of the Gods List using Merit Points to suppress it at a critical moment, the ghost hand might have lost control again.
After clarifying these rules, Zhao Fusheng unconsciously let out a long sigh of relief. This experiment was completely worthwhile. The useful experience gained from prematurely consuming Merit Points could prevent her from making mistakes in critical moments in the future. It now seemed that Merit Points were truly a good thing, and she simply didn't have enough.
"Fusheng, just now—"
Outside the carriage, Fan Bisi, after much deliberation, felt that the gust of eerie wind just now was a bit strange. Wan'an County was no ordinary dangerous place now. The appearance of the ghost mist had caused the imperial court to abandon this area. Ordinary ghost tamers dared not set foot on this land easily, fearing a one-way trip—once they arrived, affected by the ghost mist, the malevolent spirits they controlled would accelerate their revival, leading to their death there. In such a situation, any slight disturbance made Fan Bisi anxious, fearing that a ghost was at work.
Although the eerie wind came and went quickly, Fan Bisi still felt more and more uneasy the more he thought about it, so he bit the bullet and asked. Zhao Fusheng unhurriedly tucked the shrunken miniature ghost arm back into her sleeve. Hearing Fan Bisi speak, she said, "It's nothing, I was just testing the ghost's power just now. No problem."
'Hiss!'
'Gasp!'
Magistrate Pang and the others gasped, and Fan Bisi's doubts were also swallowed back into his throat. The two brothers instinctively turned their heads and glanced at each other, their eyes filled with shock. They had both been adopted by Zhao Duan, grew up with Zhao Qiming, and accompanied Zhao Qiming to Wan'an County for his appointment. They had personally witnessed Zhao Qiming controlling malevolent spirits and later losing control due to their influence. Every additional bit of the malevolent spirit's power used would lead to more assimilation by the ghost, making one cold and cruel, losing human emotions, allowing more instincts and a sense of slaughter to take over.
The ghost entity Zhao Fusheng controlled was the same one that Zhao Qiming had lost control of. That day at the Demon Suppressing Division, she had already used the malevolent spirit's power to suppress the revived Zhao couple. And this time, when she entered Beggars' Alley, to decompose the malevolent spirit within, she must have also used the malevolent spirit's power. How could a newcomer who had fortuitously controlled a malevolent spirit completely subdue such a fierce malevolent spirit after controlling it, and even use its power twice, yet appear to be unaffected by it in the slightest? She even dared to fiddle with the malevolent spirit casually; wasn't she afraid of being retaliated against by the ghost?
Fan Bisi's heart was full of questions, but he dared not ask easily, fearing to enrage Zhao Fusheng. He even thought with some unease and darkness: Zhao Fusheng's behavior was too strange. She was literate, numerate, and had a sharp and calm personality. After controlling the ghost, she was unhurried. Was she herself a hidden, extraordinary ghost tamer? And did Paper Man Zhang know all this? If Paper Man Zhang was completely unaware, how could such a coincidence exist in the world? If Paper Man Zhang had known about Zhao Fusheng's extraordinary qualities all along, and had accepted the goods that day, guiding his brothers to shift the blame, was he intentionally trying to create enmity between his brothers and Zhao Fusheng? The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he became, and his gaze towards Zhang Chuanshi even carried a hint of hatred.
Zhao Fusheng was unaware of his thoughts. After testing the use of Hell, she couldn't help but try to activate the second layer of Hell again. In her sea of consciousness, the Investiture of the Gods List's response came:
Host's Merit Points are insufficient (less than 1000 points). Failed to activate the second layer of Hell.
The feedback of failure was within Zhao Fusheng's expectations, but she still frowned upon learning that activating the second layer of Hell required 1000 Merit Points. By now, she could basically confirm that the acquisition of Merit Points was related to the size of the ghost cases she handled, the tier of the ghost entities, the scope involved, and the number of people saved. Although 1000 Merit Points was a considerable amount, it was not an unattainable astronomical figure for her. What made her somewhat uneasy was that the Merit Points required to activate the second layer of Hell were exactly 10 times that of the first activation. If subsequent activations of Hell were calculated at this multiple, then she would be quite busy.
"No money is one thing, but not enough Merit Points either—" she mumbled to herself: "Looks like I need to work hard at catching ghosts."
Outside the carriage, Zhang Chuanshi vaguely heard her mention 'no money,' and then heard her say she would work hard at 'catching ghosts,' and couldn't help but shiver, wondering if he had misheard.
After that, no more strange things happened. Magistrate Pang and his group returned to the Demon Suppressing Division as per Zhao Fusheng's instructions. Zhao Fusheng had stayed in Beggars' Alley for three days and needed to wash up. She got off the carriage without exchanging pleasantries with Magistrate Pang and the others and went straight back to her temporary residence within the Demon Suppressing Division.
After the Fan brothers returned from completing the tasks she had assigned them that day, they had obviously found someone to clean the Demon Suppressing Division again. The bloodstains in the yamen hall were cleaned, and broken areas were simply repaired. Zhao Fusheng's room had also been tidied beforehand. Clean clothes, shoes, and socks were all placed on her bed, and the bedding and other supplies had been replaced. The Fan brothers didn't know if she would return this trip, but they had certainly done their superficial work.
In this world, where strength was revered, once she displayed power worthy of fear, life suddenly became much more convenient.
Zhao Fusheng simply washed up. When she came out in clean clothes, the yamen runners and some of the onlookers had already temporarily left. In the courtyard outside the main hall, a large table was set with food, and Magistrate Pang and several elderly gentry members were still waiting. Seeing her emerge, everyone rushed forward to bow, and Magistrate Pang said: "We should have held a welcoming banquet for you, but fearing your fatigue, we saved the grand banquet for later. Today, several elders from the county, grateful for your功, have specially sent some humble gifts and would like to ask you to grace us by accepting them."
As he spoke, Magistrate Pang beckoned, and the Secretary quickly called out. Outside, five or six people entered in single file, each carrying a wooden box about a foot long. The several people stood in a row. The Secretary scurried forward and lifted the lids one by one, revealing shining silver ingots inside.
It was an unwritten rule for the newly appointed Director to receive offerings from the local gentry and prominent figures; this was also a hidden 'protection fee.' Fan Bisi secretly looked up, stealing a glance at Zhao Fusheng from the corner of his eye. She came from a humble background, had once been bought for five copper coins, and later was plagued by money troubles, unable even to afford coffins for her parents' burial, relying on coaxing and threats to 'borrow' from Zhang Chuanshi. Generally speaking, some Directors within the Demon Suppressing Division, like the Zhao Qiming father and son, came from hereditary families, while more were individuals who fortuitously achieved ghost-taming success. These individuals were not of prominent birth, and the newly rich often shared a characteristic: initially, they were extremely avaricious. Later, most would resort to extortion and oppression, exploiting the local populace, and eventually fearing death, seeking opportunities for survival. Once they realized there was no way out and they were doomed, they would no longer restrain their true nature, becoming fierce and cruel, feared like ghosts.
Fan Bisi watched as Zhao Fusheng's gaze circled over the silver. She remained calm and collected, showing no signs of greed or joy. She merely nodded. "Put it away."
Fan Bisi was stunned for a good while, then suddenly came to his senses, nudged his brother's shoulder, and the two brothers quickly stepped forward to collect all the silver. Seeing her accept the silver, Magistrate Pang and the elderly gentry immediately looked pleased. Magistrate Pang, eager to show loyalty, said, "Director Zhao, you are now aware of the situation in Wan'an County. Ghost cases are frequent in various places. I know you are busy with official duties, so for general ghost cases, we will inform the towns and villages in advance and try not to disturb you, but if it is truly—"
He didn't finish his sentence when Zhao Fusheng waved her hand, her expression serious as she said, "No!"
Upon hearing her say this, everyone's faces fell. In contrast, the Fan brothers and the cowering Zhang Chuanshi, who was hiding nearby, showed expressions of joy.
When facing ghost cases, ordinary people and the Demon Suppressing Division had two extremely different attitudes. Magistrate Pang and the county's gentry and wealthy feared ghosts and feared the ghost-taming Director equally. The former feared for their lives, while the latter were like bloodsuckers. But sometimes, with a knife at their throat, even if they knew the Demon Suppressing Division's Director was difficult to deal with, compared to their lives, money was an external possession; sometimes it had to be used. As for the people of the Demon Suppressing Division, money was easy to come by, but life was unique. Especially as the sacrifice rate for Directors had always been extremely high, the Fan Bisi brothers now sought not wealth but to preserve their lives. Zhao Fusheng refusing to take on ghost cases was, to them, a great piece of good news.
"Then—" Magistrate Pang was sweating profusely, his mouth dry, unsure how to sweet-talk Zhao Fusheng, when he heard her say with a smile, "If there are ghost cases, report them as much as possible. If I have time, I naturally won't stand by idly."
This trip to Beggars' Alley had allowed her to earn Merit Points and activate Hell, giving her the temporary ability to absorb a malevolent spirit. With a ghost hand in her possession, she naturally had the confidence to speak her mind. Having experienced all this, Zhao Fusheng realized the potential of the Investiture of the Gods List and naturally wanted to catch more malevolent spirits to exchange for Merit Points, striving to quickly advance and apotheosize the malevolent spirit she controlled.
The sudden shift in her words immediately changed the expressions of the two groups of people. Magistrate Pang and the others went from joy to shock, while the Fan Bisi trio went from shock to fear. Neither side knew how to respond to her words, and for a moment, they looked at each other, not daring to speak.
During this meal, everyone ate without taste. Magistrate Pang and the others barely touched their chopsticks. Although Zhao Fusheng had drunk some soup to fill her stomach, Granny Meng's soup, though good, wasn't very filling. She had been hungry all the way back, so she kept eating at the dinner table. When she was full and put down her chopsticks, the other people accompanying her also put down their chopsticks as if relieved.
Afterwards, Magistrate Pang and the others exchanged a few pleasantries before bidding farewell and leaving one by one. As soon as these people left, Fan Bisi's expression immediately changed. "Fusheng, are you really going to handle more ghost cases?"
He hadn't spent much time with Zhao Fusheng since her rebirth and ghost taming, but in their interactions, he had grasped her personality and knew that her previous words were not spoken in jest. Magistrate Pang and the others thought she was just casually responding, but only the three of them from the Demon Suppressing Division knew that she spoke from the heart. Therefore, they felt uneasy, and only after seeing off the guests did Fan Bisi voice his question.
"Yes."
Zhao Fusheng nodded. As she spoke, she leaned back against the chair, simultaneously lifting her leg onto another chair. Zhang Chuanshi, seeing this, readily stepped forward and pushed the chair, allowing her to adjust her posture to recline more comfortably. She smiled coldly at Zhang Chuanshi without speaking. The old fellow chuckled dryly, his eyes glinting, but he dared not meet her gaze.
"But—" Fan Bisi was about to speak again, but Zhao Fusheng waved her hand. "There is no 'but.'" Her attitude was strong. After handling the Beggars' Alley ghost case, she had thoroughly established her position in the Demon Suppressing Division, making her decisions unquestionable. "I've said it before, we eat the ruler's bounty and serve the ruler's affairs. As Director and Envoys, protecting the common people of this land and upholding justice is what we should do."
"..."
"..." The Fan Bisi brothers exchanged helpless glances, but they didn't give up on trying to persuade her to stop.
Zhao Fusheng ignored them, turning to look at Zhang Chuanshi beside her. "Old Zhang."
At her call, Zhang Chuanshi's body trembled, and his shoulders quickly slumped. Before Zhao Fusheng could speak again, his knees gave out, and he dropped to the ground with a 'thud'—then the old man quickly shuffled forward on his knees, kneeling beside Zhao Fusheng: "Director Zhao, spare my life, Director Zhao, spare my life! Everything has nothing to do with me—"
Zhao Fusheng almost burst out laughing at him. She hadn't even asked a question, and Zhang Chuanshi was already yelling 'spare my life.' "What has nothing to do with you?" she asked Zhang Chuanshi with a smile, her demeanor relaxed, showing no signs of joy or anger. But the more relaxed and casual she was, the more vigilant Zhang Chuanshi became.
🚨 Note : Consider to Support this Story on Patreon.com/Flokixy to access +300 advance Chapters & 2 Chapters Daily and To Support The Daily Update