Chapter 106 - Snow Pear Flavored Dead Gong (5)
Translated by Hua Li ^_~
Gou Liang held the bronze wine jug in his left hand, formed hand seals with his right hand, and chanted, “Invoke the earth deity, the most spiritual of G.o.ds. Connect heaven and earth, traverse the realms of the living and the dead.”
The bronze wine jug flew out of his hand, rapidly spinning. The black aura in the cauldron infiltrated the talisman on the paper and dispersed in all directions. Gou Liang formed another hand seal and said, “Azure Dragon on the side, White Tiger guarding the front. Vermilion Bird in the sky, Black Tortoise lurking on the ground. Influence the eight directions, search for the soul and pursue the spirit. Manifest!”
As he finished speaking, the talisman trembled violently, about to reveal the results. However, it suddenly burned into ashes, and the bronze wine jug fell to the ground.
Gou Liang didn’t bother to pick it up; he sat on the ground, disheartened, and grabbed a few potato chips from Bi Xia’s hand, munching on them as if venting his frustration.
Bi Xia’s gaze shifted from the movie to him, and he chuckled, “Another failure?”
Gou Liang gave him a glare; this guy never had any expectations for him.
These past two days, he had used both the bronze sword and bronze wine jug to search for Bi Xia’s soul. This time, he even used the ghost energy from a strand of Bi Xia’s hair, but in the end, he found nothing.
Gou Liang half-knelt and propped himself up, cupped Bi Xia’s face, turned it toward him, looked into his eyes, and asked in a low voice, “I can calculate the fate of everyone in the world, but I can’t see through you. Do you know why?”
Bi Xia thought for a moment and said seriously, “Is this a line from a TV drama?”
Gou Liang: “…You guessed it right.”
Gou Liang smiled with gritted teeth, pinched his face fiercely, and when Bi Xia was about to retaliate by throwing a potato chip at him, Gou Liang bit into it, smirking triumphantly. Seeing this, Bi Xia had a hint of a smile on his face and no longer minded his provocation. He just moved away Gou Liang’s hand and comforted him, “Your skills are still shallow; it’s normal not to find my soul. Don’t force it.”
Gou Liang didn’t appreciate such straightforward comfort; he secretly rolled his eyes and, seeing Bi Xia attentively watching the movie again, he followed suit.
The movie was now at the point where two armies were clashing, and the poorly dressed and disheveled female lead was tied to a cross, loudly shouting at the male lead not to care about her.
Gou Liang, observing Bi Xia’s focused expression, couldn’t help but ask, “How does it feel?”
Bi Xia replied seriously, “Sending such a person to lead troops shows that the emperor is incompetent. The downfall of the country is not far off. But here, he still manages to win and save the beauty. People really love to deceive themselves and others.”
Gou Liang chuckled, “Our emperor is wise; everything you say is correct.”
Bi Xia didn’t care about him teasing his name. Shaking his head, he said: “In these times of peace and prosperity, there are no wars. You don’t know the art of war, so it’s okay to entertain yourself like this.”
Gou Liang said unconvinced: “Who said I don’t know the art of war?”
Bi Xia laughed, “It’s my mistake. Aning is well-versed in astronomy and geography, well-read in ancient and modern, a wide-ranging scholar. Ordinary people cannot be compared.”
Gou Liang jokingly bowed, “Brother, you praise me too much. I am honored.”
Bi Xia was about to tease him for his lack of humility, but Gou Liang’s phone rang at this moment.
Seeing it was a call from Master Zhang, Gou Liang perked up.
As expected, Master Zhang told him that a special event had occurred at a hospital in the capital and asked for his a.s.sistance the next day.
He also added that this was his first mission in the department, and he had to handle it well, not to disappoint the expectations from the organization.
Gou Liang readily agreed.
The next day before heading out, Gou Liang specially burned a new set of clothes for Bi Xia. Although he didn’t need to appear in front of people today, Gou Liang still dressed him up carefully.
Gou Liang also didn’t neglect himself. The charming young man in the mirror neatly folded the collar of the white shirt, rolled up the sleeves to reveal a fair forearm, tousled his hair, put on sungla.s.ses, resembling a fashionable runway model. With Bi Xia, who had no idea about couples outfits, he drove his big-eyed car towards the hospital.
Unexpectedly, while parking, he was one move short, and a luxury car occupied the parking s.p.a.ce.
The owner of the luxury car came down, knocked on Gou Liang’s car window arrogantly, and after seeing the well-dressed Gou Liang, who had retrieved the ten yuan banknote for parking fee from his fingers, whistled and said, “Bro, quite stylish. Be faster next time, I’ll go first. Bye~”
He swaggered away.
Gou Liang sat silently in the driver’s seat for two seconds, raised his hand and formed a hand seal. The man in the rearview mirror suddenly stepped on his left foot with his right foot, performing a spectacular faceplant.
Gou Liang leaned out of the car window, shook the phone in his hand, which had already taken evidence photos, and smiled, “Bro, safe journey.”
Bi Xia patted his head; the phantom fingers pa.s.sed through Gou Liang’s hair, bringing a refreshing sensation. He laughed and said, “Aning, truly youthful.”
Gou Liang snorted coquettishly.
Unexpectedly, today’s encounter with the luxury car guy is not limited to this. The guy was surprised to see him and extended his hand, saying, “It’s a small world. I am the team leader for this operation, Zhang Dou. Nice to meet you.”
“Consultant, Meng Qining”
Gou Liang coldly shook hands with him, but as he was about to retract, the guy grabbed it.
Heard Zhang Dou’s ambiguous words, “Our encounter is like a movie plot. How about, Mr. Meng, going on a romantic journey of life with me?”
Gou Liang forcefully pulled his hand back, wiped it with a tissue, and casually stuffed the crumpled tissue into the expensive leisure suit pocket, then walked away, leaving behind a casual remark, “Uncle, we’re not making an appointment.”
Zhang Dou’s corner of the eye twitched.
Bi Xia turned to look at him, lowered his head, and asked Gou Liang, “What did he mean just now?”
Gou Liang smiled and said, “My Emperor, I knew you wouldn’t understand such a fresh and free-spirited invitation. He was inviting me to do things with him, what you call, cutsleeve, enjoying each other’s favor. Understand?”
Bi Xia frowned and then coldly glanced at Zhang Dou.
The resentment of a three-thousand-year-old ghost is not to be underestimated. With just one look, Zhang Dou, surrounded by golden aura, felt his stomach twist, covering his belly and tightly clamping his legs, rushing towards the public restroom with a loud cry.
Gou Liang smirked, raised his hand to embrace Bi Xia’s shoulder, saying, “Long live the emperor!” As his arm pa.s.sed through Bi Xia’s body, Gou Liang suddenly realized, inserted his hands into his pockets, and looked up at him with a smile, “Well done!”
Bi Xia said, “This person is so frivolous in his actions; Aning should have less contact with him.”
But obviously, this was not realistic.
Zhang Dou was still reliable in his work. Although he had a questionable taste in attire, when he explained the situation in the elevator, he looked quite professional.
“In the beginning, we received a call from the family. When they were preparing the deceased for cremation before sending them to the crematorium, they found unexplained injuries on the bodies. Upon examination, it was discovered that one organ was missing.”
“Three such incidents were discovered consecutively, which attracted attention from higher-ups.”
“The organs taken were the heart, lungs, and liver. The common factor among these three deceased individuals was a chain car accident near the hospital. They were brought to this hospital for rescue but died. It has been confirmed that the organs were taken while they were still alive, on the operating table. One of the victims was even proven not to have fatal injuries, and the cause of death was not excessive bleeding, as stated in the hospital report, but rather live organ harvesting.”
“We initially suspected illegal organ trafficking in this hospital, but the investigation did not find any suspicious individuals. It wasn’t until we reported to your department that someone in the surveillance footage identified a ghost—here, it’s this person.”
Zhang Dou showed him the surveillance footage, and Gou Liang exclaimed, “Master Wu?”
“It seems you’ve had dealings with it before.”
Zhang Dou said, “The ident.i.ty of this body has been verified. His name is Wu Tian, forty-one years old. He experienced brain death a month ago, but his body disappeared without a trace.”
Obviously, the soul inside Wu Tian is definitely not a regular person.
Zhang Dou clicked his tongue and said, “You see, even ghosts these days have questionable aesthetics, choosing such an ugly vessel; it hurts the eyes.”
Gou Liang curled his lips, “You can discuss this issue with it.”
At this time, someone on the floor above pressed the elevator b.u.t.ton and the elevator slowly rose.
Zhang Dou casually pressed a floor number and said, “Thank you for your information. According to the speculation above, he will likely come to harvest human organs soon. Our mission is to monitor, and if he appears, we catch him. If we can’t catch him, we request a.s.sistance.”
Gou Liang nodded and whispered, “Based on the current situation, it seems he doesn’t want Wu Tian’s corpse; he wants to create one himself. Tsk, this is a rebellion…”
“What? Did Consultant Meng discover something?”
Gou Liang didn’t answer him, calculated on his fingers, and smiled at Bi Xia, “Very well, today I will succeed in everything I wish for.”
Zhang Dou took Gou Liang’s sungla.s.ses off and put them on himself, saying, “Bro, you’re not being fair. We are now frontline comrades fighting together. It’s not polite not to share information with me.”
Ding! The elevator reached its destination. Zhang Dou was still muttering when suddenly he heard a clear and pleasant female voice saying, “Sir, are you here for your wife in the Obstetrics and Gynecology department?”
Zhang Dou said, “No… Ugh.”
Involuntarily answering, Zhang Dou suddenly took in a breath of cold air. If he remembered correctly, there shouldn’t be anyone else in the elevator except him and Gou Liang.
Gou Liang laughed and said, “You misunderstood; ‘he’ needs to visit the gynecology department.”
The nurse smiled, “Sir, you’re really humorous.”
She walked out first, and Zhang Dou followed her for two steps, scanning the crowded hospital corridor. When he took off his sungla.s.ses, he realized that at least half of the “people” in the corridor had disappeared!
Zhang Dou swallowed hard and tried to whistle, but it didn’t work. He put the sungla.s.ses back on and looked at this amazing scene, marveling, “This is too incredible.”
He also noticed that the nurse who had just heard the ward call rushed over. Admiringly thinking that she was a dedicated little angel, he had the sungla.s.ses taken away by Gou Liang.
Zhang Dou was not satisfied, “Consultant Meng, let me play a bit more. Don’t be so stingy.”
Gou Liang smirked, “Weren’t public servants not supposed to take anything from the people, not even a needle or thread? Captain Zhang’s ideological awareness is still not high enough.”
At this moment, a fierce ghost made a scary face at Gou Liang, and Bi Xia waved his hand. The ghost screamed and disappeared, turning into ashes on the spot. Gou Liang, hearing the sound, took off his sungla.s.ses to look. Not a single ghost shadow was left in the corridor. It seemed they were scared away by Bi Xia. Gou Liang smiled and casually hung the sungla.s.ses on his shirt pocket.
Bi Xia then realized that the sungla.s.ses had completely different functions for Gou Liang and others. It could open the third eye for others and hide Gou Liang’s third eye.
Gou Liang warned him, “If you sense him later, don’t take action on your own, okay?”
After spending time in the Soul Nurturing Jade, Bi Xia’s soul had stabilized a lot. The rune that Gou Liang added in the Soul Nurturing Jade was to conceal Bi Xia’s ghostly aura. Otherwise, when he stepped into this area, ghosts within a ten-mile radius would have fled long ago, where would they wait for him to take action.
With Gou Liang’s reminder, he was afraid Bi Xia might act too harshly and accidentally harm the ethereal soul. Who would he cry to if he did?
Zhang Dou said, “Bro, which beautiful girl are you talking to? Let your brother see too.”
“Great handsome guy, a thousand-year-old ghost, do you want to meet him?”
Gou Liang said.
Zhang Dou obviously didn’t believe it, raised his hand, and said to Gou Liang, “Consultant Meng is just making fun of me for not understanding the business.”
Gou Liang, seeing Bi Xia raising his hand, quickly moved aside as Zhang Dou tried to put his hand on Gou Liang’s shoulder. Gou Liang warned him, “Don’t use your hands and feet.”
Bi Xia pursed his lips—Gou Liang was protecting Zhang Dou. He couldn’t help but glance at Zhang Dou again. Gou Liang, wearing sungla.s.ses, didn’t see a wisp of black air dissipating from Bi Xia into Zhang Dou’s body. The golden aura all over Zhang Dou’s body dimmed for a moment. Bi Xia, in a seemingly casual manner, asked him, “Do you like this talkative man?”
[Ding! Master, please note that the target’s favorability just fluctuated a bit, with an upward trend!]
Gou Liang was stunned.
He suddenly burst into laughter, revealing two sweet dimples on his cheeks.
Gou Liang said, “I only like you, no matter what you are.”
Bi Xia, knowing that people in this era always talk about liking or loving, and considering it a joke, couldn’t help but feel a bit happy inside. He cleared his throat and said seriously, “He’s here. Be careful in everything. Don’t be too bold.”
[Ding, target favorability updated, current favorability: +61! Master, keep up the good work, I believe in you!]
Gou Liang’s smile became even brighter. He said, “With you around, I’m not afraid.”
Bi Xia showed a slight smile and took a step closer to him.
Zhang Dou looked at him curiously. Gou Liang probably didn’t know how enchanting his smile was, making Zhang Dou begin to doubt if the object he was talking about was indeed a handsome male ghost. Just as he was about to ask, his Bluetooth earpiece rang with a notification sound: “Reporting, Captain, the target has appeared, currently taking Elevator 3 to the sixth floor, Internal Medicine Department. Repeating…”
Zhang Dou hastily said, “He’s here, don’t just focus on flirting with male ghosts.”
The team member responsible for monitoring stopped the elevator and, at the same time, plainclothes officers on this side of the building placed maintenance signs on the elevators, evacuating the crowd.
When the elevator was about to reach the fifth floor, it suddenly stopped.
“Master Wu” looked around inexplicably, while Gou Liang and the system exchanged silent glances at the blind spots in the elevator—truly a significant part of the target, refusing any onlookers in a simple and brutal manner.
Fortunately, Zhang Dou was well-prepared, opening his handheld computer with pre-connected elevator monitoring.
“Master Wu” calmly followed the instructions inside the elevator to dial for help, and Zhang Dou couldn’t help but laugh, saying, “It seems like this is a modern ghost; his spiritual cultivation must not be too high. I can rest a.s.sured… Consultant Meng, why does your expression look so strange? Did I say something wrong?”
Gou Liang looked seriously at him, “Are you sure Wu Tian has already experienced brain death?”
Zhang Dou said, “I am sure. I’ve even seen the hospital’s surveillance. After Wu Tian’s brain death, he was taken to the morgue and disappeared half an hour later, after waiting for recognition. This process is enough for doctors to determine that there is no possibility of him recovering.”
Gou Liang frowned.
Brain death means that the person’s three souls and seven spirits have already left the body, and the soul will be absorbed by the underworld at the first moment. Even if there are ghosts unfamiliar with the way, the escorting ghost will be prepared in advance to guide the soul to the underworld when it leaves the body.
In other words, only when the three souls and seven spirits are completely taken away can the human-made machine display brain death.
However, Bi Xia had already confirmed that his one soul and one spirit were still inside Wu Tian’s body—humans are divided into three souls and seven spirits, with the heavenly soul being the soul that governs intelligence. If this soul is missing, the person will either be mentally handicapped or suffer from dementia. “Master Wu” shouldn’t have such high intelligence and actions.
If Wu Tian has indeed experienced brain death, it means that “Master Wu” has swallowed a living soul and obtained that person’s memories and intelligence.
This would be troublesome.
If Bi Xia’s soul consumes too many living souls, completely merging into a new and complete three souls and seven spirits, it will no longer be possible to cleanly and clearly separate them. Even if recovered later, Bi Xia will have many memories and a changed temperament, possibly losing his true self. And he is already preparing for a new body, indicating that he has already swallowed many living souls and plans to recreate three souls and seven spirits.
Thinking about this, Gou Liang’s expression became unpleasant.
He didn’t want Bi Xia’s soul to be stuffed into something impure and unclean.
Soon, the personnel in maintenance uniforms rushed over. They told Master Wu, “Can you hear us? Please don’t panic, stay calm, and don’t make any sudden movements. We will open the door now to rescue you.”
Master Wu was very polite and said, “Okay, thank you.”
“Please give us your hand, we’ll pull you up.”
The staff said.
Master Wu did not suspect anything and extended his hand without any precautions. When his body was halfway up, his hands and neck were suddenly bound by specially-made immortal binding locks.
However, this thing couldn’t possibly trap a three-thousand-year-old ghost.
Realizing that the intruders were not friendly, “Master Wu” effortlessly left his body, turning into a wisp of black energy and preparing to leave—
“Stop.”
Gou Liang shouted.
The black energy turned its head and actually stopped.
Floating to Gou Liang’s side, a strand of black energy “licked” Gou Liang’s face, and a sinister and low voice chuckled, saying, “You look very delicious.”