Chapter 156 - 155: My Old Home

Chapter 156: Chapter 155: My Old Home

Gu Qingyin turned a blind eye, pretending not to see.

Ghost souls devouring each other was an instinct born from the desire to evolve. Suppressing it too much would be counterproductive.

The Evil Ghost, of course, resisted with all its might, but even at full strength, it couldn’t stop Huo Yunjing. After being bitten a few times, it was even less of a match for him.

Only after Huo Yunjing had eaten his fill did he put on a show of force, suppressing the Evil Ghost in one fell swoop.

Gu Qingyin pursed her lips and turned to Zhou Qi. "Come on over. Hit him however you want. You don’t have to worry about him fighting back."

Zhou Qi blinked in confusion. "What?"

Gu Qingyin smacked her forehead. "Look at my memory, I forgot to open your Yin Yang Eye." She walked over and said, "It’s a little scary, but you can just treat it like a 5D ghost movie. No need to be afraid."

Zhou Qi nodded. A moment later, a cool sensation passed through her eyes, and the scene around her instantly changed.

The room, once just dimly lit, was now filled with streams of black energy that had appeared out of thin air. Most importantly, two figures had materialized in front of Gu Qingyin.

One glance was enough to tell they weren’t living people. The one on top was handsome, which lessened the fear he inspired. As for the one below him, she wasn’t scared of him at all. That face only made her fists itch with fury.

"Lin Hongtao!"

Zhou Qi, her eyes blazing with fire, strode forward, raised her fist, and brought it down.

The suppressed Lin Hongtao remained utterly unrepentant, even shooting her a disdainful glance.

But in the next second, a dull ache spread from his cheekbone.

Lin Hongtao was incredulous. "You can touch me?"

Zhou Qi said nothing, only sneering as she relentlessly threw punches. She didn’t stop for a full three minutes, finally pausing, out of breath.

"Ready to behave?" Gu Qingyin looked down at Lin Hongtao. "We don’t mind swapping someone else in to continue the beating. Me, for example."

Lin Hongtao was about to be beaten into a daze. Although Zhou Qi wasn’t inflicting any real damage on him, the pain was genuine.

"I’ll behave, I’ll behave."

’Becoming a ghost didn’t make me an idiot,’ Lin Hongtao thought. ’This woman is obviously backup Zhou Qi called in. And she has such a vicious ghost with her... she might even be one of those legendary Heavenly Masters. If she took over, I wouldn’t last more than a few hits before dissipating.’

Gu Qingyin pulled Zhou Qi to sit on the edge of the bed. She took the Fire Burning Stick out of her shoulder bag, slammed it onto the floor, and threatened in a low voice, "Confess and you’ll be treated with leniency. Resist..." She pointed a hand at Huo Yunjing. "And I’ll let him eat you!"

Huo Yunjing froze, a sudden pang of guilt striking him. ’Did she see me sneaking those bites?’ But on the surface, he cooperated with Gu Qingyin, baring a set of chillingly white teeth.

Having just been bitten several times, Lin Hongtao believed Gu Qingyin’s words without a shred of doubt, a terror gripping him to his very soul. His eyes darted around as he quickly recounted, "After I became a ghost, I killed Sun Miao first, then Qin Zheng. Zhou Qi was my last target."

He glanced cautiously at Gu Qingyin, then his gaze fell on Zhou Qi. "She was the one I loved most. I wanted to take her with me."

Zhou Qi immediately spat in disgust. "Ptooey!"

"Who is Sun Miao?" Gu Qingyin ventured. "The secretary you were cheating with?"

"That’s her." At the mention of Sun Miao, Lin Hongtao’s face twisted with savagery. "That bitch! I gave her so much money, but she was never satisfied! Just because I wouldn’t marry her, she sold my company’s secrets and bankrupted me!"

"Not only did I kill her, I devoured her soul!" Lin Hongtao cackled, "Anyone who crosses me comes to a bad end!"

Gu Qingyin couldn’t stand to watch anymore. She smacked him on the head with her stick and said coldly, "Who do you think you are? You’re nothing but a toad in a well—arrogant and utterly clueless."

Before, Lin Hongtao would have certainly been defiant, but now that he was suppressed, he had no choice but to submit.

Seeing Lin Hongtao remain silent, Gu Qingyin asked Zhou Qi, "Is there anything else you want to say?"

Zhou Qi looked at Lin Hongtao and said softly, "Leaving you is the thing I regret least in my life. Meeting Qin Zheng was the luckiest thing that ever happened to me."

Hearing this, Lin Hongtao’s eyes turned scarlet, his ghost energy threatening to spiral out of control.

Gu Qingyin grinned to herself. ’Damn, Zhou Qi. Talk about a psychological blow. Brutal!’

She shook her head and took a Rebirth Talisman from her cloth pouch. "If there’s nothing else, shall I send him off?"

Zhou Qi agreed. "When you do something wrong, you have to accept the punishment."

Gu Qingyin activated the Rebirth Talisman and threw it at Lin Hongtao.

Seeing this, Huo Yunjing took a large step back, terrified the talisman might accidentally touch him.

Gu Qingyin shot him a sideways glance. "Don’t trust my aim?"

Huo Yunjing watched as Lin Hongtao closed his eyes and slowly turned transparent amidst a soft glow. "Better to be safe than sorry," he said, his heart still pounding.

Gu Qingyin just snorted. She went downstairs, checked and reinforced the surrounding talismans, and instructed, "You can take these down in three days."

Zhou Qi: "Okay. Thank you, Master Gu."

Gu Qingyin looked back and said jokingly, "If you’re really thankful, you can send over the final payment sooner rather than later."

Worried that Zhou Qi would be scared on her own, Gu Qingyin waited until dawn before leaving.

Zhou Qi was extremely grateful. When she sent the final payment, she added an extra 20% as a thank-you bonus.

Gu Qingyin didn’t refuse, and simply replied: "If you need my services again, I can give you a 12% discount."

Zhou Qi gave a wry smile. Dealing with something like this once was more than enough; she certainly didn’t want a second time.

This commission was easier to handle than she’d expected. After all, it was just a newly-formed ghost. Even though it had devoured two souls, its growth was limited, making it easy to deal with.

Since it was a rare trip out, Gu Qingyin wasn’t in a hurry to go back. Instead, she looked up a travel guide and started exploring Hang City.

Huo Yunjing naturally accompanied her the whole time. Although he couldn’t materialize, Gu Qingyin wore an earpiece and chatted with him openly.

When she got excited while having fun, she became less careful with her words. For example, while buying a sugar figurine, she asked Huo Yunjing, "Which of these two do you think looks better?" and was nearly mistaken for a lunatic by the stall owner.

Of course, Gu Qingyin always managed to cleverly smooth things over.

She spent five days sightseeing. The night before she planned to head home, she saw a little girl outside a tube-style apartment building in an old district—or to be precise, the soul of a little girl.

The girl looked a bit younger than Gugu. Her soul body was translucent, as if it were about to dissipate at any moment.

Gu Qingyin was a little surprised. ’A soul this pure is truly rare.’

Glancing around, Gu Qingyin walked over and squatted down beside the little girl. She copied her, tilting her head back to look up, but saw nothing special.

"What are you looking at?" Gu Qingyin couldn’t help but ask.

The little girl turned to look at her and asked uncertainly, "Are... are you talking to me?"

Gu Qingyin turned her head to look directly into the girl’s eyes and smiled. "There’s no one else here." After a pause, she added, "No other ghosts, either."

The little girl was both surprised and delighted. "Wow, you can see me! You’re the first person who’s been able to see me since I became a ghost! You’re amazing!"

Gu Qingyin didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ’This is what she considers amazing?’

"So, what were you looking at?"

The smile on the little girl’s face faded. She raised her hand and pointed upward. "The window with the light on, on the fourth floor. That used to be my home."