Chapter 106: The Phantom of the Red Gate

Chapter 106

Zheng He’s chaotic thoughts were swiftly pulled back to reality by Fan Wujiu’s words.

Gu Jiansheng also gasped sharply.

Amid the astonished gazes of the onlookers, Zheng He fixed his eyes on the main gate—and at that moment, he couldn’t help but exclaim in awe: “Hss!”

Before them stood the bright vermilion door of the Sun Mansion. Zhao Fusheng’s hand hovered near the door, and from the center of her palm, an invisible, oppressive shadow spread out, forming a palpable pressure.

It was unclear what she had done, but it seemed as if an unseen thin film on the door was being torn open.

Countless pitch-black handprints appeared all over the mansion’s door.

The copper rings used for knocking, the marks from pushing the door, even the motions of closing it—all seemed to be recorded, as if the door were a living entity, preserving the fingerprints of every person who had ever touched it.

“This is—”

Zheng He could hardly believe his eyes.

“Are these fingerprints?”

“Are these the prints left by those who knocked, opened, or passed through this door?”

This extraordinary sight frightened Zheng He, causing him to immediately set aside the earlier ringing of the golden bell in his mind.

His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Zhao Fusheng.

“Y-You, how did you manage this—?”

The previous magistrate of Wan’an County was Zhao Qiming, who controlled a fierce ghost—the same ghost once commanded by his father.

As an elder of the Demon Suppression Office, and with the two counties neighboring each other, Zheng He had paid attention to Zhao Qiming before, knowing that the ghost’s rule was to give before taking.

Zhao Fusheng herself admitted that she had nearly been killed by this ghost but succeeded in controlling it by chance—which meant she had inherited Zhao Qiming’s ghost.

Yet even Zhao Qiming’s ghost had no such ability.

How had she managed to make the door reveal the traces of every passing imprint, as if she could trace the door’s entire history? This was akin to the legendary “Footsteps of the Departed,” a power bordering on the divine.

Zheng He’s mind was in turmoil as he stared at Zhao Fusheng, desperate for an explanation.

But she had no time to indulge him.

The moment she saw the two vermilion doors, the thought to use hellish power to verify her suspicions immediately arose in her mind.

The wooden planks upon which the Zhao couple had died bore ghostly shadows, making the two door panels of the Demon Suppression Office unparalleled instruments of horror.

The method by which the vengeful ghost killed was traceable.

If the people of the Sun Mansion had died at the hands of the Zhao couple, then the door panels would surely bear the ghost’s imprint.

Her current hell power had trapped the Time-Space Ghost Bell, which possessed the ability to traverse the currents of time and space and could trace targets—it was the guiding force of the ghostly carriage.

With a thought, Zhao Fusheng cast hell’s shadow over the door panel, borrowing the ghost bell’s power. Under the dark shade of hell, the prints on the door gradually became visible.

“...”

Zheng He was utterly astonished, while Er Fan and Gu Jiansheng, staring at the dense handprints before them, were so shocked that they were speechless.

Zhao Fusheng did not answer Zheng He’s question; she continued her work.

Hell’s shadow covered the entire vermilion door. Er Fan, Gu Jiansheng, and the others could not see the presence of hell with the naked eye, but Zheng He already sensed its threat.

Yet the most terrifying sight was not even these fingerprints.

As the first layer of hell enveloped the entire door, just when everyone thought Zhao Fusheng would stop, a strange occurrence happened again.

All the revealed fingerprints gradually faded away, and a faint, sinister aura emerged from the door.

Black mist seeped from the center of the door panel, instantly engulfing Zheng He in fear, causing the hairs on his body to stand on end.

The dark mist slowly took shape, forming a bizarre “human figure” about seven feet tall—no, more accurately, it was no longer a mere shadow but a ghostly apparition!

“What is that!!!”

Zheng He could no longer contain himself and shouted in alarm.

The figure’s face was indistinct, shrouded in black mist interwoven with bloodlight, radiating murderous intent so strong that it chilled the very soul.

Er Fan and Gu Jiansheng were horrified to the point of scalp tingling and hair standing on end; the tight bun on Gu’s head tugged painfully at his scalp.

“Ghost—It’s a ghost!”

Gu Jiansheng’s legs went weak at the sight of the apparition.

Only now did he understand why Zhao Fusheng had scolded him earlier, warning him not to touch things recklessly.

Zhao Fusheng remained silent. After fully enveloping the door with hell’s shadow, the ghostly figure manifested.

The black mist swirled as the vengeful ghost’s imprint was revealed on the door.

The Sun Mansion was deathly silent; the ghostly mist roiled, almost shaking the three exorcists to flee in terror.

At first, Zheng He was also stunned by the sudden appearance of the ghost.

But as an exorcist himself, he quickly discerned that this was not the vengeful ghost itself, but a residual image—a ghostly imprint somehow forced to manifest by Zhao Fusheng’s power.

Gu Jiansheng was the weakest. At the moment the ghost appeared, he collapsed in fear.

By contrast, the pair of twin exorcists from Wan’an County, though pale, managed to stand their ground and did not attempt to flee.

A surge of anger arose in Zheng He’s heart at Gu’s shameful collapse, wishing he could kick him to death.

“Stop your ghostly wailing.”

He raised his leg and kicked him.

Zheng He’s strength was immense. If Zhao Fusheng were not right beside him, he might have broken Gu’s bones with that blow.

Even restrained, Gu Jiansheng screamed in pain.

“It’s just a ghost’s imprint, not the real ghost.”

In agony, Gu Jiansheng finally snapped out of his terror and relaxed a bit upon hearing Zheng He’s words.

Yet despite knowing it was not the real ghost, the horrific image on the door terrified him so much he dared not raise his head.

Now he deeply regretted ever pushing the door earlier, wishing he could cut off his own hand.

He tried to get up but his legs felt as weak as noodles.

Zhao Fusheng slowly withdrew her hand and turned to the other half of the sealed door:

“Looks like the other door doesn’t need prodding—it should bear the ghostly imprint of my mother.”

By this point in the case, there could be no doubt about the identity of the vengeful ghosts.

At the sight of the apparition, Er Fan recalled the door panels of the Demon Suppression Office and silently nodded upon hearing Zhao Fusheng’s words.

Zheng He dared not speak.

Two ghosts acting in concert was beyond his ability.

He could not handle this ghost case alone nor deal with two ghosts at once. He had to rely on Zhao Fusheng and defer to her in all matters.

“Sir, do you have any leads on this case?” Zheng He adjusted his mindset and asked.

“Two ghosts. Based on past cases, they probably appear at night,” Zhao Fusheng responded, glancing once more at the door before spending five merit points to quell the hell power.

As the hell power withdrew, the ghostly figure on the door faded, and the mottled fingerprints slowly vanished.

The vermilion door remained as before, stained with dried, irregular blood marks, but none dared to look directly at the two doors again after the earlier strange display.

“After the two ghosts commit their crimes, their imprints are left on the door panels. I suspect the ghost’s killing rule centers on the door panels.”

Hearing this, Zheng He realized she was summarizing the case rules. His heart tightened as he quickly committed her words to memory.

“Vengeful ghosts kill primarily within one household. After killing, their images leave marks on the door panels,” Zhao Fusheng recalled the fingerprints and added:

“Anyone who touches a door marked by a ghost’s imprint will be marked by the ghost. Then the ghost follows the fingerprints to claim victims one by one.”

From the moment Zhao Fusheng arrived at Baozhi County and mentioned the ghost case, to now reaching the Sun Mansion, barely over an hour had passed, yet she had already distilled so many rules from a case that had left Zheng He utterly helpless.

Before he could respond, Zhao Fusheng asked him:

“Did the people at Kongyun Temple die in a similar manner?”

“Y-Yes… yes.”

Hearing her question, Zheng He quickly answered:

“The officers reported they all died the same way—by having their abdomens slit open by ghosts…”

“Were similar bodies found lying on the door panels?” Zhao Fusheng pressed further.

Zheng He’s face stiffened. He glanced at Gu Jiansheng on the ground but could not answer.

The 27 deceased at Kongyun Temple were monks or poor scholars lodging there. Since their deaths were suspected to be caused by ghosts, Zheng He had avoided the scene, never daring to investigate.

The officials who were forced to go were from Baozhi County.

Involving a ghost case, these ordinary men were terrified and dared not observe details, only reporting broad information with no specifics.

Zheng He was left speechless and whispered:

“I’ll have someone look into it carefully.”

“Good.”

Zhao Fusheng nodded and said:

“Handling ghost cases is life and death. No detail can be overlooked. If we misjudge the ghosts’ rules or traits, there may be no chance to rectify the mistake.”

Zheng He’s expression showed skepticism.

He was already half-buried in the earth, with little time left. He neither wanted nor planned to work on ghost cases, only wishing to live comfortably for two more years before dying.

He believed his experience from three cases was enough to command his jurisdiction. Zhao Fusheng might be skilled, but he did not want to learn from her.

Yet these thoughts he dared only keep to himself.

But Zhao Fusheng was sharp; even Zheng He’s blank expression and silence told her much.

She was not angry. Everyone has their destiny. If Zheng He would listen, fine; if not, she would find a way to absorb Baozhi County into Wan’an County’s jurisdiction and push him out when she had the chance.

“You should check whether the doors at Kongyun Temple are opposite each other. In the past half month, among the households of those killed by the ghost, has anyone visited Kongyun Temple before the outbreak of the ghost case and been marked?”

Without solid evidence, Zhao Fusheng dared not make hasty judgments. She needed Zheng He to gather the information before confirming.

Yet her meaning was clear, stirring Zheng He’s heart:

“You mean the monks at Kongyun Temple might have been inadvertently marked by the ghost, and then massacred, as the temple’s doors were temporarily possessed by the vengeful ghost. Thus, anyone who touched the doors could have been marked.”

In other words, all who had been to Kongyun Temple were on the ghost’s hunting list.

“Exactly.”

Zhao Fusheng nodded.

In fact, by her judgment, the monks at Kongyun Temple were likely innocent victims marked by the ghost.

The ghost had been searching for a door imbued with great malice and had inadvertently found the temple’s door, leading to the monks’ slaughter.

The temple’s door was not the malevolent object the ghost had possessed before; after killing, it left marks on the door panel and began hunting those who had touched it.

Zhao Fusheng added:

“At this point, it may no longer be just Kongyun Temple’s door. Any household that has suffered ghost calamity and been hunted by the ghost may have a marked door panel.”

She looked at Zheng He with a grave expression:

“Anyone who has had contact with these victims is very likely the ghost’s next target.”

Zheng He was no fool.

With Zhao Fusheng’s clear words, he immediately grasped the severity of the problem.

What had been a complex case became suddenly clear after her analysis.

Before, Zheng He felt helpless facing the unknown ghost case; now, he understood the ghost’s killing pattern.

According to Zhao Fusheng, if he could compile a list of previous victims and then list everyone who had contact with them, they might even predict the ghost’s next move and possibly forecast the next household to be attacked.

“...”

This thought stirred a wave of excitement and hope within Zheng He.

“Zhao Fusheng is truly remarkable!” he thought, then glanced at Er Fan.

“Where on earth did Wan’an County find these two exorcists? It’s as if they were born to solve ghost cases.”

She wielded ghosts without being affected by them.

She controlled a ghost whose rule was to give before taking, yet seemed to possess an additional hidden ghost able to track the ghost’s movements.

None of this would have shocked Zheng He, but her use of ghost power seemed effortless, as if there were no cost. She wielded the vengeful ghost’s power like a treasure, inexhaustible and without consequence.

The feared ghost cases in her hands seemed trivial.

She appeared unafraid of the vengeful ghosts, calm and composed when discussing them—making her ghost investigations appear free from emotional disturbance.

“If we can compile such a list, we might be able to anticipate the ghost’s next move,” Zheng He said.

“Yes,” Zhao Fusheng nodded.

“Once the list is compiled, we can send people to the households on it—”

At this, Gu Jiansheng, still trembling on the ground, turned his head toward Zheng He and quietly said:

“Sir.”

Zheng He looked up, and Gu warned him:

“This is a ghost case.”

Ghost cases are unlike ordinary ones.

Vengeful ghosts have no fear of officials. Even if we know the ghost’s whereabouts and predict its moves, what good is that?

Just as Zheng He was convinced by Zhao Fusheng’s deductions, Gu’s words felt like a bucket of cold water poured over him, sobering him up.

“That’s right, we can’t send people to those households—”

Not to mention ordinary people, even exorcists risk their lives dealing with ghosts.

If those sent to the listed households encountered the ghost, it might result in total annihilation.

Thinking of this, Zheng He immediately calmed down considerably.

(End of chapter)