Chapter 3: A Beauty in His Arms

The hallway of the old apartment building was long and echoey. At the doorway stood a bloated old woman, dripping wet from head to toe, leading a pale, waterlogged little boy with one eye. They cautiously peeked inside.

"Hehehe, the old woman smells food being served. Haohau, there must be something tasty here!"

The old woman stood at the door, dripping water all over. On the couch, Lin Feng sat with a frozen expression, his eye twitching slightly.

Lin Feng looked up, and by the faint light from his computer screen, he saw that the person standing at the door was Mrs. Zhang from upstairs. She had drowned with her grandson last month while playing at the park. It had taken a week to recover their bodies from the lake; hers was bloated, with half of her face decayed, and her grandson's eye had been plucked out by a fish.

The lights in the living room were off, so Mrs. Zhang couldn't see Niu Meng, but she could see Lin Feng's twitching face.

Lin Feng pressed his forehead, his heart bleeding. Two blue tasks and a purple one? What a rip-off!

"Mrs. Zhang? You're still up?" Lin Feng glanced at the troublemaker, his emotions mixed.

Mrs. Zhang's eyes curved in surprise, "Lin? You can see me?"

Lin Feng shrugged nonchalantly.

After her initial shock, Mrs. Zhang let out a creepy smile and pointed to her grandson. "Haohau is hungry. Can you get him something to eat?"

Lin Feng sniffed the air. The little boy licked his lips, his face still smeared with blood. The room reeked of decay—it was clear that the boy had recently fed on something, likely a corpse. Human energy is strong, so they probably wouldn't harm people, most likely feeding on stray cats or rats instead.

Forcing a smile, Lin Feng said, "Mrs. Zhang, if your grandson's hungry, why not take him home to eat? You should have offerings there, right?"

Waving her hand, Mrs. Zhang replied, "My son and daughter-in-law are traumatized. I don't want to scare them."

Lin Feng thought to himself, So you're okay with scaring me?

"Just go. There's nothing here for you to eat." Lin Feng didn't want to continue the conversation and waved his hand dismissively. Mrs. Zhang had a sharp tongue, was rude, and always gossiped behind people's backs. No one in the community liked her. Her grandson was spoiled rotten—rude, domineering, stealing toys, scratching cars, and throwing tantrums when caught misbehaving.

Lin Feng himself had been spat on by that brat once. He didn't want to hold a grudge now that they were dead.

Mrs. Zhang bared her teeth, and a foul stench filled the air as she spoke, "Lin, we're neighbors. Why are you being so heartless?"

Heartless? You're a ghost talking to me about being heartless!

Lin Feng, getting annoyed by their persistence, snapped, "Mrs. Zhang, we're all from the same neighborhood. Why come to me? Did I offend you somehow? I've seen a few things in my time, but what if you scared someone else to death? Who'd be responsible?"

The little boy stared at Lin Feng, drooling as his mouth opened to a terrifying width. "Grandma, I'm hungry. He smells so good. I want to eat him!"

Lin Feng was momentarily stunned, his face darkening. He grabbed a flashlight from the table and shone it at them. "Old woman, out of respect for our neighborly ties, I'll let your grandson off this time. Don't push your luck!"

The little boy, still a newly-formed ghost, shrieked in pain as the light burned his skin, smoke rising from his face.

"Haohau!!" Mrs. Zhang screeched as her grandson writhed in agony. The flashlight's bulb shattered, and she glared at Lin Feng, her mouth wide open with malice. "Lin, not only did you refuse to feed my grandson, but you dare to harm him?"

Her arm began to wither, turning black and shriveled like a chicken claw. Her pupils vanished, and her eyes became completely white as she lunged at Lin Feng with her mouth open wide.

Old woman, you really don't know your place.

Suddenly, a tall figure appeared in front of Mrs. Zhang. His semi-transparent form solidified, radiating authority though devoid of ghostly energy. The figure had the body of a human but the head of an ox, with hooves instead of feet and chains wrapped around him. A plaque hung from his waist. As Mrs. Zhang lunged, the ox-headed figure swiftly kicked her.

Lin Feng couldn't bear to watch. A poor, lingering spirit, kicked squarely in the face by Niu Meng's hoof—how tragic. Mrs. Zhang let out a wail as her face caved in from the impact, her body compressing before bursting into nothingness.

"Haohau! Run!" Mrs. Zhang's sharp voice echoed through the room. Seeing his grandmother obliterated, Haohau tried to flee but was caught by a chain that pierced through his chest, yanking him back.

Terrified, Haohau screamed. Lin Feng flipped his hand, revealing an urn, and tried to seal the boy inside. The urn hummed for a moment.

Ding! The ghost is too weak. Sealing failed.

"Damn it... This urn is too picky. It won't take weak ghosts. Niu Meng, take this brat away."

"A puny ghost daring to cause trouble in the living world!" Niu Meng, not known for his patience, slapped Haohau across the face, leaving him dizzy. Niu Meng's sheer presence was enough to subdue the boy, who didn't dare resist, taking his punishment quietly.

"Brother Kun, I'll escort this little ghost back to the underworld."

Lin Feng pointed to the refrigerator. "Take the corpse of this woman to the mortuary while you're at it."

Niu Meng's eyes widened. "But Brother Kun, weren't you... going to use her tonight?"

"Are you crazy! Get out!!" Lin Feng roared, his face dark.

For Lin Feng, mornings were usually his time to sleep. As a mortician, he worked from 4 p.m. until midnight. Ever since he entered this line of work, Lin Feng hadn't had a girlfriend. Even though the funeral home director and his relatives had introduced him to several women, none dared to date him once they heard about his profession.

Fortunately, Lin Feng was somewhat handsome. One day, he ran into a tipsy neighbor, Sister Li, on his way home, and one thing led to another—they developed a romantic relationship.

Sister Li, whose full name was Li Xi, was 30 years old. She took good care of herself and looked no different from a young girl fresh out of college. It was said that she had been married three times, but each of her husbands had passed away. People found her somewhat eerie, and the men who associated with her seemed to suffer bad luck. As a result, no one dared to approach her.

At 3 p.m., Lin Feng finally woke up. Lying next to him was a sweet-looking woman.

Her long eyelashes fluttered, and her fair skin glowed. Remembering last night's passion, Lin Feng pulled her into his arms and kissed her. The woman awoke, blushing shyly.

"You're awake? Let me make you some breakfast."

Lin Feng grinned mischievously. "I'd rather eat you."

With that, he scooped Li Xi into his arms, and they dove into another round of passion.

Afterward, Li Xi tidied her sweat-dampened hair, lowering her head in a bashful way. "You rascal, trying to wear me out first thing in the morning. Aren't you afraid I'll bring you bad luck?"

Lin Feng laughed heartily. "Bring me bad luck? Unless you can drain me dry, I don't believe it! Maybe in the next life."

He wasn't worried—he'd encountered his share of ghosts and monsters, and his fate was as tough as they come. The funeral home director even said his destiny was "Black Dog Accompanying Heaven," meaning his fate was incredibly strong. Lin Feng didn't believe a woman could bring him bad luck.

Hearing this, Li Xi snuggled up against Lin Feng, her soft body pressing against him, wearing a satisfied expression.

Lin Feng felt rather pleased with himself. Having a strong fate seemed to have its perks—like winning over this stunning older woman. What more could he ask for?

After having a meal at Li Xi's place, Lin Feng went home, took a shower, changed clothes, and hopped on the bus to the western suburbs.

Sitting on the bus, Lin Feng snapped out of his thoughts about last night's events and glanced at the tasks in his taskbar. His head started to ache.

[Blue Task]:

A hanging ghost is haunting the old textile factory site in Longhuai District. Subdue the ghost.

Task reward: Level +1, Merit +300, part of the "Thunder Talisman" (collect 3 parts to complete).

Head to Yuetan Mountain in the northern suburbs and find clues to the 11.13 murder case.

Task reward: Level +1, Merit +100, a mystery item, and unlock Main Task 2.

[Purple Task]:

Find the Soul-Nailing Post at the Nanyang Bridge and pull it out, releasing the Water Monk.

Task reward: Level +4, Merit -100, one Yellow Springs Ancient Boat, and unlock Main Task 2.

The higher the task's level, the simpler the description, which was what made ghost tasks so tricky. You never knew how much danger was hidden behind the simple descriptions. When Lin Feng hadn't yet figured out the ropes, he had taken on a blue task once. It was the same as Blue Task 1 this time.

Most of the ghost-related tasks involved paranormal incidents happening around him. In these situations, Lin Feng acted more like an exorcist.

The hanging ghost at the textile factory site in Longhuai District was a level-18 entity—a Qing Dynasty corpse that was on the verge of transforming into a vengeful spirit. Construction work at the factory's new site had disturbed its sealing talisman, releasing it. With just one look, the ghost had shattered Niu Meng. It had taken him three days to recover his strength. If it weren't for the ghost fearing Niu Meng's status as an underworld enforcer, she would've killed him long ago.

This time, Lin Feng wasn't going to provoke her further.

As for the purple task involving the Water Monk, the fact that it would increase his level by 4 and deduct 100 merit points made it obvious that it wasn't a good task.

Damn it! All I want is 30 experience points so I can level up and unlock Horse Face's summoning ability sooner! Damn it, I should've stuck to three white tasks instead of getting greedy!

In a sour mood, Lin Feng finally reached the funeral home after 6 p.m., just as the sun was setting.

"Uncle He, have you eaten yet?" Lin Feng greeted the gatekeeper. Several vehicles were parked inside the funeral home, indicating a busy night ahead.

Uncle He, holding a newspaper, ignored Lin Feng, fuming instead. "Good riddance! Lin, that scumbag deserved to die a long time ago!"

Lin Feng was bewildered: Uncle He, what are you talking about? What do you mean, 'Lin, that scumbag deserved to die'?