Chapter Fifty: The Sealed Artifact

Chapter Fifty

In this world, vengeful ghosts run rampant, and the lives of ordinary people are harsh and unforgiving. Since Zhao Fusheng’s rebirth, everyone she had encountered—from the Fan brothers to Paper Zhang—had been cold, cunning, and ruthless. Liu Yizhen was by no means a pure-hearted man, yet he was clever and steady, making dealings with him the easiest of all.

He had, at just the right moment, shown Zhao Fusheng a measure of goodwill and made clear his willingness to cooperate. Zhao Fusheng smiled, nodded in agreement, and said, “Alright.”

With this brief interlude, the two found themselves more relaxed in conversation. Liu Yizhen, curious about Zhao Fusheng’s origin, asked how she came to lead the Demon Suppression Bureau.

It was no great secret; Zhao Fusheng quickly recounted how “she” had been bought into the Bureau by the Fan brothers as a scapegoat, and how her parents had been killed by vengeful ghosts.

The matter of her soul inhabiting another’s body was her own deep secret, one she would never divulge, so she invented a plausible excuse: “...I was lucky to survive and managed to command the Bureau’s vengeful ghosts.”

“So that’s how it is.” Hearing her account, Liu Yizhen was surprised by her experience.

Those who survive great calamity are often favored by fortune. She had not only escaped the clutches of a vengeful ghost but had also subdued it. Given this, it was no wonder she dared to venture alone into Beggar Alley and ultimately resolve the Beggar Ghost’s curse.

“But you must be careful,” Liu Yizhen cautioned. “After a vengeful ghost is dismembered, it falls dormant for a time, but the period is never long. Once it awakens, its killing rules may change.”

“Will it then seek its missing ghostly arm?” Zhao Fusheng’s mind stirred as she asked.

Conversing with the intelligent was always less taxing.

A smile flickered in Liu Yizhen’s eyes as he nodded, “The vengeful ghost at the Confucius Temple was summoned by Su Long using a human as a vessel—”

He had taken a liking to Zhao Fusheng. After exchanging lists of names, they were now mutually bound, and he saw potential in her. He was willing to offer her advice, not wanting her to die too soon, and so he spoke candidly.

Of course, this was also because the ghost calamity at Beggar Alley had been resolved—Zhao Fusheng had proven her power.

But more importantly, Liu Yizhen sensed that the new Commander of the Demon Suppression Bureau was unlike any ghost controller he had heard about. She carried the aura of a vengeful ghost, concealed as it was, yet he felt it acutely, being sensitive to the presence of spirits. He could sense she had wielded ghostly power.

Yet her gaze was calm, her speech measured, her mind and reactions sharp. Liu Yizhen could not fathom how she could use the power of a vengeful ghost without falling into madness, but every soul harbors secrets, and he was not inclined to pry.

He understood that with Zhao Fusheng’s intellect, she might have already deduced the origin of the Beggar Ghost from its killing rules, appearance, and their fragments of conversation.

When the Beggar Ghost returned, it lacked its right arm—the one it used to seek objects—

Liu Yizhen looked at Zhao Fusheng, sensing another ghostly presence beside that of a vengeful spirit clinging to her.

“The method we used in those days was untested; it was a desperate gamble,” he explained.

The Han Dynasty had long suffered from ghostly disasters. All knew the terror of vengeful ghosts and their immortality, but how ghosts were born remained a mystery, and none could control them.

“For generations, Zhang Xiongwu’s family studied the transformation of humans into vengeful ghosts. Su Long needed ghosts to subdue other ghosts. My grandfather offered rewards, and the three joined forces in cooperation.”

He spoke calmly of the past. “Beggar Alley was full of beggars. My grandfather, with the advantage of the Liu family, chose a beggar whose birthdate and hour were auspicious. Zhang Xiongwu killed him using corpse-crafting methods.”

During this, Su Long harnessed ghostly power to ‘summon’ the spirit. Their agreement: after the beggar’s death by special means, he would be enshrined at the temple, the Liu family’s wealth used to draw countless homeless souls to reside there, feeding the vengeful ghost by ‘buying life’ from the masses.

Many innocent people, grateful for the Liu family’s free porridge at the Confucius Temple, sought a brief reprieve from death without realizing they survived by selling their own ‘fortune, longevity, and prosperity.’

This method of summoning ghosts was cruel and bloody, but ultimately, it succeeded.

The beggar, killed by special means, was reborn as a vengeful spirit, yet was soon suppressed by the Headless Ghost and confined within the Confucius Temple.

The two ghosts differed greatly in power, but Liu Huacheng’s method of ‘borrowing life’ through charity tipped the balance, and so the ghosts achieved equilibrium.

That Liu Huacheng could deal with two vengeful ghosts in his lifetime showed he was no ordinary man.

Perhaps because his grandfather was involved, Liu Yizhen glossed over Liu Huacheng’s history, mentioning only his death.

“On my grandfather’s hundredth birthday, he already knew his own death was approaching and ordered me to go to the Demon Suppression Bureau.”

Zhao Fusheng was already familiar with the subsequent events, so he did not elaborate.

When Liu Huacheng died, the mutual restraint between the Headless Ghost and the Beggar Ghost ended, and the Beggar Ghost, suppressed for forty years, awakened.

It begged for food in life; in death, it demanded lives.

There are no rules governing who becomes a vengeful ghost, yet a ghost’s killing rules often reflect its life.

Each night, it would patrol the streets, randomly choosing a family, knocking on their door to beg for ‘food.’

Those chosen died at the ghost’s hands.

For forty years, the Beggar Ghost, under the Headless Ghost’s control, abided by certain rules: Liu Huacheng offered porridge to appease the Beggar Ghost, which in turn siphoned the life force of thousands to sustain the Headless Ghost.

Thus, when it revived, it not only killed but also feasted before taking a head, purposefully calming the Headless Ghost.

The truth was clear at last.

To raise a vengeful ghost with human lives, then use it to suppress another ghost—

Zhao Fusheng sighed deeply.

It was an ugly business, and perhaps Su Long, still retaining some measure of shame, had not recorded its full details.

“Its begging arm represents its killing rule.”

Whether knocking or collecting heads, that ghostly hand was crucial.

Now Zhao Fusheng had forcibly dismembered it, tearing away its arm, leaving its corpse incomplete. When it revived, its first act would be to seek its missing limb.

“In other words, it will kill for arms, but its ultimate goal is to find me and reclaim its ghostly hand, restoring its body.”

With this, Zhao Fusheng tacitly admitted she possessed the vengeful ghost’s arm.

“Yes,” Liu Yizhen nodded without surprise. “So you must be vigilant.”

“I’ll worry about that later,” Zhao Fusheng said carelessly, waving her hand.

Liu Yizhen smiled, taking her attitude lightly.

She might seem brash, but her mind was keen and suspicious.

The Beggar Ghost’s matter had surely weighed on her mind, and her demeanor was only a ruse to mislead others.

“Besides, ghostly objects are sinister; carrying them, you must take care.” He reminded her again.

Zhao Fusheng nodded, touched.

As Liu Yizhen said, she kept the ghost hand with her, yet was unaffected. Was it because the hand had not revived, or had the Divine Register’s deduction of merit cleansed its influence?

These questions could wait; more important matters required Liu Yizhen’s answer.

As she pondered how to steer the conversation, Liu Yizhen broke the silence: “I’ll remain at the temple. If the vengeful ghost is about to revive, I’ll inform you.”

“You’re not afraid of trouble?” Zhao Fusheng asked offhand.

“No,” Liu Yizhen hesitated briefly. “I have my own means of self-preservation. The vengeful ghost ‘cannot see’ me.”

“The ghost lanterns?” Zhao Fusheng, hearing this, looked up at the Confucius Temple.

Many lanterns hung there, still burning.

—This was something she could never quite understand.

The ghost lanterns from Paper Zhang’s family had a peculiar trait: when no ghost was present, their oil never seemed to burn out, but in the presence of a vengeful spirit, they burned fiercely, and the lanterns would soon rupture.

She recalled her first night in Beggar Alley—when she visited the temple and sensed the vengeful ghost’s aura.

The lanterns behaved oddly, emitting a dreadful stench; soon, the ghostly presence returned, the lanterns shattered, oil boxes broke, and foul-smelling oil spilled everywhere.

She had not understood then, but with hindsight, the ghost lanterns must have protected her from the ghost’s gaze.

In this regard, for all Paper Zhang’s cunning and cruelty, he was indeed skilled at combating vengeful ghosts.

With this thought, another doubt arose: “So many ghost lanterns in the Confucius Temple—” Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she deliberately asked, “Paper Zhang is no benevolent soul. Why would he give you so many ghost lanterns?”

Such treasures were coveted by every Demon Suppression Bureau commander, proving Zhang’s exceptional talent in their creation.

But Zhang Xiongwu was no good man.

Zhao Fusheng did not know the origin of the ghost lanterns, but their name alone was eerie.

And to turn people into ghosts—such magic was sinister indeed.

She had dealt with Paper Zhang; he was ruthless, known for flaying human skin to make lanterns, keeping half-human, half-corpse ghost servants, his hands stained with countless deaths.

Such a man would never do good out of simple kindness.

“In those days, your grandfather used half the Liu family’s wealth to enlist Su Long—”

Su Long still retained some humanity (not moral conscience, but a semblance of humanity), so his greed for Liu’s fortune was only natural.

Zhao Fusheng smiled and asked, “But what did your grandfather offer Zhang’s family to persuade that old man to risk his life repeatedly, accompanying Su Long in and out of the Liu ancestral shrine, haunted by vengeful ghosts?”

She tilted her head, looking at Liu Yizhen: “You said the Headless Ghost is no ordinary spirit and can suppress vengeful ghosts.”

Even a ghost controller like Su Long was restrained before the Headless Ghost. For Zhang Xiongwu to brave such danger with him was tantamount to gambling with his life.

“You’ve guessed it?” Liu Yizhen arched his brow in surprise, but then smiled, as if not surprised at all. “Paper Zhang offending you is hardly good news.”

Her insight was remarkable; no clue escaped her notice.

Since the past had been laid bare, and this ‘disgraceful’ affair could not be hidden from Zhao Fusheng, with their mutual exchange of lists, the two were now bound together, cooperators of a sort. After a moment of contemplation, he said, “My grandfather gifted him an item.”

“It must have been extraordinary?” Zhao Fusheng smiled.

The Zhangs were ruthless killers; to move Zhang Xiongwu to risk his life repeatedly and then gift lanterns, the item must have been a treasure.

“It was a formidable and ominous object,” Liu Yizhen nodded.

Having said what he ought and ought not, he decided, “It was a coffin lid.”

He knew Zhao Fusheng was deeply suspicious and meticulous, questioning every detail in matters of ghosts and mortal lives.

Rather than be led into revealing more by her probing, it was better to disclose everything from the start.

“After the Headless Vengeful Ghost was dismembered, its remains were placed in a coffin.”

He set aside the plaque he had been holding, focusing on the conversation.

“That coffin was a peerless evil object, likely awakened alongside a great ghost. Any vengeful ghost placed within would be suppressed.”

Later, the coffin somehow fell into the hands of the imperial court, becoming one of its most prized treasures.

“The Headless Ghost’s rules were unique. To deal with it, the court used this treasure to seal its body.”

He sighed, “Because of this, the court paid special attention to Wan’an County.”

Not only fearing the Headless Ghost’s revival, but also worried that someone, knowing the truth, might risk everything to steal the treasure.

After Liu Huacheng returned home, most Demon Suppression Bureau commanders in Wan’an County were extraordinary figures, and the county enjoyed a long era of glory and stability.

“Unfortunately—” Liu Yizhen paused.

Zhao Fusheng continued, “Unfortunately, the coffin still encountered trouble?”

“How did you know?” Liu Yizhen asked reflexively.

Then, unable to help himself, he smiled wryly, “Sometimes I wonder if the vengeful ghosts you command can read minds.”

“No,” Zhao Fusheng replied solemnly, shaking her head.

“...” Liu Yizhen gave her a strange look, and Zhao Fusheng grinned, “Just teasing you.”

She then grew serious, “As the saying goes, ‘There are a thousand days for a thief, but never a thousand days to guard against one.’”

“That’s true,” Liu Yizhen nodded. Zhao Fusheng asked, “What part of the coffin was lost?”

He replied softly, “A coffin nail was stolen.”

The coffin was meant to be whole, forming a perfect seal for vengeful ghosts.

Once any piece went missing—even a small coffin nail—the seal’s power was greatly diminished.

After the nail disappeared, the vengeful ghost sealed within revived.