Chapter 105 - 104: [Master Doesn’t Take... Pfft! He’s Not Receiving Visitors.]

Chapter 105: Chapter 104: [Master Doesn’t Take... Pfft! He’s Not Receiving Visitors.]

When he saw the word "fee," He Xiaotian’s heart lurched.

And that was just the beginning. The chat window that appeared next made his heart sink.

[Cute Nannan]: "To delete all footage of you since you moved to Shanghai, let’s start with five hundred thousand. As for the footage shot by the Cleaners, that’s a non-negotiable five million. And if you want me to delete the data they’ve collected on you, I’ll do it for ten million. So? What do you think?"

"This is daylight robbery!!"

He Xiaotian was a man who could squeeze a ghost into serving as his private driver. Asking him to fork over millions, just like that, was practically a death sentence.

’You’ve changed.’

’You didn’t even blink at five hundred thousand back then, and now you’re actually charging me!’

[Cute Nannan]: "Suit yourself. But if the Cleaners find you, it won’t be long before that ’so-called evil organization’ of yours does too. It’s a shame they discovered me so quickly last time, or I could’ve browsed a lot more of their information."

’Devious! Cunning!’

’As expected of someone from a family of merchants. She has me right where she wants me.’

"Can we negotiate a lower price? How about this—I’ll marry into your family. That way, we’ll be family, and my money will be your money. We’re lovers; we shouldn’t be talking about money."

He Xiaotian had clearly tossed all his integrity out the window for the sake of money.

He couldn’t believe he’d actually said something so impulsive.

[Cute Nannan]: "...I’ve really got to hand it to you... I never knew someone so utterly shameless could exist in this world. You’re willing to stoop so low for money that you’d even offer yourself to a computer program you can’t even fuck."

Back when He Xiaotian made his entrance at Tuanjie Residential Area, "cool" didn’t even begin to describe it.

He was just unbelievably, ridiculously, over-the-top badass.

After all, he’d arrived in a Ghost Car. How’s that for a grand entrance?

And now... heh.

All that impressive style, gone without a trace.

’You’ve clearly never been poor,’ He Xiaotian thought.

’What good is style? Showing off?’

[Cute Nannan]: "So, are you in or out? If not, I’m gonna go binge-watch my shows!"

"You win. Fine, I’ll do it. But fifteen and a half million is too expensive. How about we negotiate? Say, five hundred thousand?"

BIU~~

The TV shut off. Clearly, Liu Nan felt there was no point in continuing the conversation with He Xiaotian.

Who starts haggling by going straight for the jugular?

You might as well have asked me to do it for free!

"One million? One and a half? Two million! I can’t go any higher! It’s not easy for me to make money. Miss Liu, you have to sympathize with us poor folk!" He Xiaotian bargained desperately, but Liu Nan was unmoved. The television screen remained dark.

"Five million!"

[Cute Nannan]: "For five million, I’ll delete the footage from your arrival in Shanghai and the videos the Cleaners have, at most. If you want the data files erased... considering you wiped out those evil spirits that attacked me, I’ll do a package deal. Ten million, and I’ll handle everything. Stop haggling. That’s my final offer."

"Fine, I agree, alright? One more thing—from now on, whenever I show up on a surveillance camera, you’ll be responsible for deleting the footage. How about that?"

[Cute Nannan]: "Fine. It only takes a single thought, anyway."

SOB...

’Could you please not type that out on the screen?’

’You made ten million off me with a single thought.’

’That’s faster than robbing a bank and a hell of a lot easier than me busting my ass to beat down ghosts.’

But He Xiaotian was helpless. What could he do? She was the one with that kind of power.

He could only bow his head to the ’evil forces’.

Just the thought of losing ten million made a mournful tune play inexplicably in his heart.

’Lying low and getting stronger is the way to go,’ he told himself. ’It’s just ten million. No big deal. I’ll just have to beat down a few more ghosts, and I’ll make it all back, right? I might even turn a profit.’

At that moment, his powers of self-deception reached their zenith.

「The next morning.」

He Xiaotian woke up early, washed up, and went downstairs for breakfast, preparing to head to the Daoist Alliance’s stronghold in Shanghai.

He hadn’t slept well at all the previous night.

He was still secretly mourning the loss of his ten million.

The "Kidney Deficiency Temple" that Captain Su had mentioned was located on Snake Mountain, in the suburbs of Shanghai.

The mountain was quite well-known locally.

It was the second-highest peak in the region, practically Shanghai’s backyard.

It was home to the Xiudaozhe Pagoda, Moon Lake, and the Observatory, as well as a National Forest Park and a major Catholic pilgrimage site, the Basilica of Our Lady.

Even outside of public holidays, it still drew plenty of tourists from out of town.

Under the unfazed gaze of the breakfast stall owner, He Xiaotian boarded a bus headed for Snake Mountain.

He sighed in resignation as he looked at the bus packed with people.

’I’ve made all this money and haven’t even had a chance to enjoy it!’

Over eighty minutes, eighteen stops, and two bus transfers later, He Xiaotian finally arrived at the foot of Snake Mountain.

Aside from a mask on his face, he wore no other disguise.

He only wore it because he was meeting with someone from the Daoist Alliance and was afraid the relevant authorities might learn what he looked like from them.

Normally, he would have had to go to much greater lengths to conceal his identity.

But after the ’painful loss’ of ten million, he now had an un-you-know-what-able computer person to clean up his messes. Since she would delete any footage of him that appeared on surveillance cameras, it was no longer necessary.

He Xiaotian started up the stone steps toward the summit.

With physical conditioning that far surpassed an ordinary person’s, he reached the top in just a few moments.

About three hundred meters ahead, a quaint, ancient Daoist temple came into view.

The temple faced south and was symmetrical along its east-west axis.

It featured a red sandalwood archway, three-dimensional brick carvings, decorative screens with auspicious cloud and bat motifs, and antique latticework doors and windows in a starry pattern. Interlocking brackets supported floral panels depicting fortune, prosperity, longevity, and happiness. The roof had upturned eaves covered in small green tiles, set against red walls and dark roof ridges, with wind chimes hanging from its four corners.

It was the very picture of an authentic Jiangnan-style Daoist temple.

The only thing was, the words on the plaque were different from what he’d imagined.

It read: Divine Void Temple.

It had nothing to do with kidneys at all.

Carved into the frame beside the two-ton South African red sandalwood doors were two lines of text.

"A single hairpin—it must be picked up before it can be put down. The twin gates of the Dao—they cannot be opened if they are not seen through."

It was said to have been inscribed by the vice-chairman of the Daoist Association.

He Xiaotian’s eyes went wide with greed. He wished he could come back in the middle of the night, hoist the two massive doors onto his back, and sell them for cash.

He stepped into the temple, where a spacious, Y-shaped path led directly to the main hall.

There were no tourists inside, only a few Daoists scattered about, sweeping the courtyard.

"Supreme Celestial Venerable. May I ask what brings you here, Layman? Incense, a ceremony, a rite for the dead, a donation, a prayer for blessings, or a Summoning God ritual?" a young Daoist of about eighteen asked with a smile, stepping forward as soon as he saw He Xiaotian.

"???"

’Are all Daoists this direct these days?’

’If I shake my head, is he going to kick me out?’

"Daoist Master, I’m here to see Daoist Master Shouyangzi."

"Layman, I’m not worthy of the title ’Daoist Master.’ Besides, my master doesn’t normally receive visitors."

Hearing this, the corner of He Xiaotian’s mouth twitched.

The three words "doesn’t see visitors" were chosen quite skillfully.

If you just changed them a little, he thought, they might sound a lot more... alluring.