Chapter 3: Who Is Lying

　　Xie Yao froze in place, her face filled with shock.

　　She was stunned for a good three to four seconds.

　　"What did you say? I'm lying, why would I lie?"

　　"You should ask yourself that! I admit your story is well-crafted, but Sinisterium Pawnshop deals in evil objects, not stories." Lu Fei said sternly.

　　"You...If you can't take this evil object, just say so! There's no need to use such a laughable excuse!" Xie Yao felt insulted and clenched her fists in anger.

　　Lu Fei picked out a bundle of long black hair from the jewelry box.

　　"Miss Xie, is this what you want to pawn?"

　　The hair had no trace of any malevolent energy; it was just the most ordinary hair.

　　"That's not right!"

　　Xie Yao was greatly alarmed; she stood up abruptly and snatched the jewelry box, examining it repeatedly.

　　"That was clearly a necklace, how did it turn into hair?"

　　Then, she grabbed her bag and poured all of its contents onto the coffee table, rummaging through them in a panic.

　　"Where is it?"

　　"I clearly put the necklace in this box before I left, how did it turn into hair?"

　　Her expression did not seem feigned, and more importantly, the dirt on her body could not be faked.

　　Lu Fei thought for a moment and came up with a guess. He said, "Miss Xie, if you are not lying, then there can only be one other possibility."

　　"What possibility?" Xie Yao stopped what she was doing and looked at Lu Fei anxiously.

　　"You were deceived by an evil entity, causing you to put the wrong thing in the box. It knew that you were going to deal with it today," Lu Fei's voice was somber.

　　"It knew?"

　　"Evil often takes the form of lingering sentiments or grudges, attaching to objects and influencing people, acting purely on instinct. It's quite rare for such entities to know what people are thinking and doing."

　　"Then what should I do? Manager Lu, could you come with me to retrieve it?"

　　Xie Yao felt a chill down her spine, nearly breaking down.

　　She really did not dare to face that necklace alone.

　　Lu Fei was also a bit apprehensive.

　　After some thought, he said, "Alright, but I have one condition."

　　Xie Yao hurriedly responded, "Money is not an issue!"

　　"Miss Xie, no rush. We can discuss the price and terms after I appraise it," Lu Fei picked up his grandfather's business card, "After this is done, I would like to meet the person who gave you this card."

　　Xie Yao was taken aback. She had braced herself for a high fee from Lu Fei, but instead, he made a request unrelated to money.

　　Her expression was a bit strange, but she quickly agreed.

　　"No problem!"

　　"Describe the necklace for me now."

　　"I'm not very familiar with the material, it's a string of beads, made of something between jade and stone, grayish white with a hint of yellow, quite special."

　　"Grayish white with a hint of yellow?" Lu Fei had a hunch. "Wait a moment, I need to prepare."

　　He turned around and went to the back of the shop to get some things, putting them into his backpack.

　　Dealing with evil objects is inherently dangerous, and any carelessness can be fatal.

　　In this line of work, the potential profits are high, but so are the risks.

　　This was his first business deal, and no matter how dangerous it was, he couldn't back down; otherwise, he wouldn't be worthy of being the shopkeeper of Sinisterium Pawnshop.

　　Moreover, the other party had a business card from his grandfather.

　　His grandfather never gave out his business card lightly, so the other party's elder should have a deep relationship with his grandfather.

　　"Miss Xie, we can go now."

　　Locking the door, the two of them hurried out of the antique street and took a taxi to Xie Yao's house.

　　The sun was setting.

　　A small villa, tinted by the twilight, came into Lu Fei's view.

　　"This is my home. I like peace and quiet, so it's usually just me and the housekeeper here."

　　Xie Yao led Lu Fei into the villa.

　　The interior was tastefully decorated and furnished; he hadn't expected her to be so wealthy.

　　"Miss, you're back."

　　As soon as the door opened, a middle-aged woman in her forties came forward to greet them.

　　"Aunt Wu, don't worry about me for now, I have something important!"

　　Seeing that it was getting late, Xie Yao, panic-stricken, rushed upstairs with Lu Fei under the astonished gaze of the nanny.

　　The master bedroom on the second floor.

　　Xie Yao turned on the light and mustered up the courage to look around.

　　"There!"

　　She pointed to the dressing table, where a necklace was placed neatly.

　　Lu Fei took out a pair of leather gloves from his backpack, put them on, and then went over to pick up the necklace for a careful examination.

　　It was ice-cold to the touch!

　　The necklace was made of a string of irregular small beads, which were grayish-white and had taken on an oily color from wear, giving off a faint yellow glow.

　　Each bead was engraved with a strange symbol, with a faint black aura swirling around them.

　　Lu Fei counted; there were forty-nine beads in total.

　　This texture, this yin energy.

　　Confirmed.

　　"A necklace made of human bones!"

　　Lu Fei gave his appraisal result.

　　"What?"

　　Despite her mental preparation, Xie Yao's body still trembled uncontrollably when she heard Lu Fei's answer.

　　"Made from human bones?"

　　"That's right. In the Tibetan Buddhism, there is a type of ornament called Kapala, which is made from the skull or finger bones of high-ranking monks. They believe that such Kapala can assist in their cultivation, and the more powerful the monk's spiritual attainment, the better the effect of the Kapala."

　　Lu Fei looked at Xie Yao with a puzzled expression.

　　"But not everyone can wear a Kapala; ordinary people simply cannot handle it! Very few people would collect such an ominous item. Miss Xie, why did you buy something like this?"

　　There was not even a display shelf for antiques in the villa, and the decoration style was quite modern. She didn't seem like someone who appreciated cultural artifacts.

　　Xie Yao gave a bitter smile: "Would you believe me if I said I don't know? I can't for the life of me remember where this necklace came from. But I can assure you, I did not buy it; I simply don't like these kinds of things."

　　"Of course, I believe you. Evil objects can confuse a person's mind. Not only do they bewitch the eyes, but they can also affect one's memory," Lu Fei expressed his understanding.

　　This brought a small measure of comfort to Xie Yao. She had confided in others before, but they had told her it was just work stress and that she needed more rest.

　　Some things are really hard to empathize with unless you have personally experienced them.

　　She asked, "So, is this necklace a Kapala?"

　　"No, and that's what's strange about it," Lu Fei shook his head, frowning as he examined the bone necklace, "Kapalas are not inscribed. But each bead on this necklace has something engraved on it."

　　"What is it? Does it have any special meaning?" Xie Yao was very puzzled.

　　"I can't make sense of it. It looks like some kind of rune. There are forty-nine beads in total, I'm not sure if there's any special significance to that number."

　　Lu Fei was being honest. He tried to recall the stories his grandfather had told him about evil objects but couldn't think of anything that matched.

　　"Can you take it then?" This was the question Xie Yao cared about most.