Afterlife Department

"So, so… You Ri was... her soul… by Lin Weng…?" Jiu Ye stammered because of shock while Bai Wu was stupefied…

… well, he has always been stupid.

"This is unforgivable!" Jiu Ye said as he clenched his fists in anger.

They all nodded in agreement.

"I and your father… ehem, vice-chief, still haven't figured out what should we do next." Bai Liu spoke. "How to solve this problem…" he heaved a sigh.

No one spoke since they are also at a loss.

"Insubordination… I can still accept that mistake. We can transfer him to other departments." Bai Liu spoke. "But this… he even left us a big problem ah!" he said and kicked the leg of the table.

Yi Bing and Huo Ling left to check their rooms and Hao Baiyun tagged along with them.

"We definitely can find a solution to this problem." Wu Yi comforted Bai Liu.

"If you are talking about exorcists, then I know some things about them!" Hao Baiyun spoke.

They all turned to him and saw him floating towards them while Yi Bing and Huo Ling descended the stairs.

"What do you know about exorcists?" Bai Liu asked, completely forgetting that it was him who wanted to make Hao Baiyun leave earlier as an 'NPC'. Since they are now going against Lin Weng, an exorcist, then they definitely have to find more information about exorcists!

Know yourself and know your enemy; win the battle and yours is the glory!

"The only ones who believe about the exorcists are the aristocrats." Hao Baiyun started. "My family is one! Ever since everyone accepted the existence of the ghosts, everyone feared them and done everything to protect themselves." He spoke. "But, only the aristocrats believe in the exorcists." He told them.

"Why is that?" Jiu Ye asked.

"Because they have money while the common people don't." Yi Bing answered.

Huo Ling nodded. "The common people have nothing to lose being poor unlike the aristocrats. So…" he shrugged.

Hao Baiyun smiled albeit he is also an aristocrat. "That's right." He agreed. "The aristocrats, afraid of losing their accumulated wealth over the years, but more afraid of losing their lives." He said.

"Oh…" they now are enlightened.

"So, they hired exorcists to protect them." Hao Baiyun continued. "Exorcists, as they claimed, have gone a life-and-death experience so they are able to see ghosts. Because during that near-death experience, they themselves have turned into ghosts." He looked at them.

Silence fell upon them. The lights inside the house became dim, making the surroundings appear dimmer. The background has become a suitable place to tell ghost stories, and they should feel afraid of having such an atmosphere.

But, they are grim reapers. Why would they be afraid of ghosts? It should be the ghosts who are afraid of them!

"But, because they are able to live again, they are able to see ghosts." Hao Baiyun continued. "As to how they are able to exorcise them, thus naming themselves as 'exorcists'… I don't know this." He told them.

"Interesting." Yi Bing smiled.

"It is an undeniable fact that they have skills, so they should be able to exorcise ghosts." Huo Ling spoke.

"Why?" Bai Wu asked.

"Because they are able to hide their own presence from us, including a ghost's like You Ri." Huo Ling answered.

Jiu Ye was shocked. "W – what?! It was them who are hiding our targets from us?!" he exclaimed.

"Yes." Wu Yi nodded. "They sure do have skills. As to where they got them, we have yet to know." He spoke.

Bai Liu nodded in agreement. "As to why they overpower us, it's because of this world's rules." He said.

"Yes." Huo Ling agreed. "As to how we will defeat them…" he looked at Yi Bing.

Yi Bing also looked at him. The others also looked at him, waiting for his answer. 

Huo Ling looked away. "… we will cross the bridge when we get there?" he asked and tilted his head.

Everyone. "…"

"Hahahaha!" Hao Baiyun laughed.

Huo Ling awkwardly smiled and scratched his cheek, feeling guilty of making their hopes up.

…

Gu Xingfeng tiredly thrown himself on his bed, unaware that his office was entered by a ghost and two grim reapers. But, even if he knew, he wouldn't care… well, that was a lie. He will care, but not of the two grim reapers.

The ghost – Hao Baiyun. As to why he knows that Hao Baiyun is a ghost, it's because he recognized his face. And as to why he recognized his face, he saw him. Yes – he saw Hao Baiyun, a ghost. As to why he can see him… it is because he had a near-death experience.

It happened long agp, when he was fourteen years old. But, although he was fourteen years old, but he looked like just eight or nine years old. It was due to his illness, which made his body frail and stunted his growth. He hated his illness. He could've played with his peers but he was staying at home all day, every day and unable to even leave their house or walk down the street because he will faint.

Then, it happened that day. His mother was about to give birth and he suddenly had an attack. His father immediately carried him and his mother in the car and drove fast to the hospital, only to cause a bus to overturn when it avoided them and all the passengers, including the driver, to die.

But, how can his father stop now? He can only continue driving to the hospital, or he would lose three more lives – his wife, his sick son, and the unborn child. Fortunately, the accident was big and other people have seen the bus overturning so the police and ambulance arrived, trying to save the people in the bus. However, they knew that no one can be saved, since the bus caught fire and later exploded.

When their family finally reached the hospital, a miracle happened. The mother safely gave birth and the newborn baby was saved. The seriously ill child's condition became better and has a sigh of recovery. He can get rid of his illness! But, there is a price to pay.

The father was jailed for causing the car accident, and he carried many lives on his shoulders. The mother and two children were left and the mother has to feed her children while being worried for her husband who only did his duty as a father. Their wealth was used up because of her complicated pregnancy and giving birth, and also her first child's serious illness.

The mother, years later, fell into a depression and forgotten to take care of her children. Her depression became worse after their wealth was depleted. One day, amidst the storm, she jumped down the raging river where the car accident years ago happened, as if repaying the lives lost that their family has caused.

The two children were orphaned. Because the mother has failed to take care of the baby, the baby became sick and it turned to an illness. The orphanage has already many children to look after to, and they couldn't take care of a sick child, especially a baby. Thus, the one-year old baby regrettably died one winter.

The family of four before has only one person now left. His young mind became more matured and then realized that the fortune their family received that year was now taken back from them. So, he didn't wait for the karma to find its way to him. He will find it himself. Thus, he enlisted in the army, and year after year, he signed up for dangerous tasks, hoping for death to find him and not just misfortune.

But, until this year, he was still alive. Just why? The people around him pitied him and finally can't see him that way so they 'demoted' him as a chief of a police station in the city.

"Why am I still alive?" Gu Xingfeng asked himself as he stared at the ceiling. He then remembered what happened today.

Haoming Company – the company of Hao Baiyun's elder brother. Hao Baiyun… he remembered him. He remembered his face because he saw him that fateful day, before their bus overturned and he curiously looked outside the window when he heard a loud noise outside their car.

There, he saw him sitting by the window and also was curiously looking outside. His youthful face has a smile. That smile was frozen in his mind, and haunted him every night. The next morning after and he wanted to seek death again. Because he owed him a life. His family owed him a life, like the other passengers on that school bus.

"Go away!" he yelled and flung his arm when he felt a malevolent spirit inside his room.

Light flashed in the darkness and a shriek was heard before it disappeared, along with the owner of that shrill voice.

"Just why…" Gu Xingfeng panted as he placed an arm on his forehead.. "Why am I still alive… and had this power?" he asked.