Chapter 57: Battling the Ghost (1 / 2)

I first inspected Zhao Na's apartment. Aside from the chill in the air — a common sign of a place lacking human presence — there didn't seem to be anything obviously wrong.

Then I said to her, "Tell me everything that happened at the gathering, in detail."

"You think the problem started that day?" she asked, puzzled.

I nodded. "The more detailed, the better. Every vengeful ghost has its origin — if we want to resolve this, we must first trace its cause."

Once she explained everything, I immediately understood. That western-style restaurant? I actually knew of it — it was near the Wanda Plaza in Tiexi. Large-scale western restaurants were rare in Shenyang nowadays. With high overhead costs and the rise of fast-food chains like Pizza Hut, such places had taken a hit. But Zhao Na's circle of friends were all affluent, so money was never a concern.

She thought for a moment and said, "I didn't really do anything. I didn't want to drink, so I took a cab there. All six of our dormmates were there. After dinner, we just left."

"What did you talk about at the table?" I asked.

I wanted to fully understand the background of this 'Muffled Ghost' — after all, the documents only mentioned how troublesome it was, but I had never encountered one myself. I needed to know exactly how difficult it was.

Zhao Na pondered for a moment and replied, "Not much really. My roommate Xiaowen got a new boyfriend — his family's from Shaanxi, and they're apparently in politics and quite wealthy. So we chatted about that, and then we talked about our own boyfriends. They asked about you... and I may have gone on a bit. We even talked about... the strange circumstances around my stepmother's death."

"Hold on," I interrupted quickly, "You brought me up? And also mentioned feng shui and Li Qian?"

"Yeah, our dormmates are all close, and we're all into supernatural stuff. We just chatted a bit more than usual. I'd had a little to drink and forgot myself…"

I sighed. Ghosts possess 'Heavenly Clairvoyance', meaning they can sense what you're thinking — especially this Muffled Ghost, who had partially merged with Li Qian's consciousness. And considering his blood connection to Zhao Na, how could he not have heard it? That's why he found her.

When I laid all this out for Zhao Na, she was filled with regret. But fortunately, it was still early in the day. I wanted to face the ghost tonight and see what I was truly dealing with.

After piecing together the cause and effect, I concluded that Zhao Na's casual gossip — a moment of careless pleasure — had become a beacon for a vengeful spirit roaming the earth. It gave him direction.

This kind of clairvoyance is like a natural talent. For example, when someone dies in injustice, their spirit often instinctively knows why after death. But in Li Qian's case, she never got that chance. She was pregnant, had her life essence stolen by feng shui, and then had her death aura taken by the Muffled Ghost. She likely didn't even have a soul left.

I told Zhao Na to stay put while I went out to prepare something.

She clutched my hand, panicked. "Dabao, don't leave me here alone! I'm scared!"

Her tear-streaked face stirred a flicker of pity in me. "If you really don't want to stay, you can come with me," I said, "But I have one condition: you're not allowed to ask anything, and you're not to speak a word to me. If you promise that, I'll take you."

She nodded eagerly and even swore a few oaths. I sighed and let her tag along.

She drove us to the Beier Road wholesale market, one of the most complete markets in Shenyang for toys and small items, second only to Wu'ai Street. Since I'd be dealing with the ghost tonight, I needed to prepare the right tools.

At this point, you might wonder:

"Don't you already have Five Emperor Coins, the Qilin Wind Bell, and the Seven-Star Sword? Why not just throw a coin and call it a day?"

I could only offer a bitter chuckle… I wished it were that easy.

As I explained earlier — Muffled Ghosts are neither dead nor alive, neither yin nor yang. Even zombies have a weakness — their bodies. But this ghost? You say he's a ghost, but he's not. Say he's not a ghost, and yet he is. It's all confusing — and worst of all, he's immune to pure yang artifacts.

Zhao Na followed behind me like a timid little wife. While we stopped at some stalls, some enthusiastic middle-aged women complimented her beauty and even encouraged us to get back together — a reminder of how warmhearted Northerners can be.

After an hour or so, I came across a two-meter-long scroll painting of Guan Yu, holding the Green Dragon Crescent Blade. His face bore a solemn and majestic expression, his hand stroked his beard thoughtfully, eyes half-closed, as if in deep contemplation.

The painting radiated power. I couldn't deny — it was exceptionally well-done.

This was exactly what I was looking for: a spirit altar guardian.

I had wandered around the entire market and hadn't found anything suitable. Plenty of Buddha statues, sure — but today, I wasn't fighting demons, I was catching a ghost.

Historically, Taoist priests caught ghosts; monks subdued demons.

Anyone who's seen The Legend of the White Snake knows this — Fahai was powerful, but he never caught ghosts. Even in A Chinese Ghost Story, the little monk only had golden light to protect himself. Their chants and talismans couldn't catch ghosts — because monks follow compassion and karma.

True Buddhists believe in equality among all beings — man, god, and ghost alike. To a real monk, all grudges stem from karma, and they might even help the ghost, if it deserves release.

(And just to be clear — I mean real monks, not phony abbots like "Master Shi.")

That's why when it comes to battling malicious spirits, Taoists and Immortal Sects take the lead — decisive in their killing, acting on behalf of Heaven.

Speaking of monks… allow me to go off-topic for a moment.

There used to be a renowned monk on Mount Wutai, though I'm not sure if he's still around today. Twenty years ago, when I was just a kid, my mother visited him. She told me that he was extraordinary — able to accurately predict your past, present, and future.

But he only read the fates of those with destiny — and never gave advice.

If it had been a Taoist instead? They'd not only tell you your fate, they'd probably offer to fix it too…