Go all out

Chapter 13: Shop Door, or the Gates of the Underworld?

“Quickly possess this rooster! Don’t come out under any circumstances.” Tian Zhan immediately turned to Zhang Fei’er, who was already at a loss. Zhang Fei’er nodded, and her body turned into a wisp of smoke that slipped into the rooster’s body. The rooster, which had been completely dead, shook its head a few times, staggered to its feet, and then walked over to lean against the hem of my pants. I could clearly feel the rooster’s neck trembling. I was scared, too. My master had told me that seeing a ghostly messenger spells bad luck. There are many of them in the Underworld, each with their own duties. Generally speaking, ghostly messengers who can venture into the mortal realm are spirits with at least several hundred years of spiritual cultivation. When such an extremely yin entity passes by you, the consequences range from catching a cold to, in the worst case, suffering from chronic weakness and frequent illness. That’s why, sometimes when we walk at night, we might suddenly feel a cold breeze blow past our backs—that might be a ghostly messenger passing right behind us… Of course, ghostly officers usually try to avoid such situations, but right now I can clearly feel gusts of cold, eerie wind blowing right in front of me—and the thing is, there’s absolutely nothing there. How unnerving is that? “What should I do, Tian Zhan?” I hurriedly called out to Tian Zhan. “Play dumb.” Tian Zhan said without turning his head. Just as I was about to speak, I suddenly saw him start talking to himself. With that fawning expression on his face, he looked as if he’d run into some big boss—completely lacking the calm and composure he’d shown when dealing with that ghost earlier. Just what kind of figure is this ghostly official who’s just appeared? Was he actually sucking up to him? To anyone unaware of the situation, it would look like Tian Zhan had lost his mind. I quickly looked away. A few seconds later, Tian Zhan suddenly fell silent. I thought the ghostly official had left, and I just let out a sigh of relief. Just then, I felt the rooster at my pant leg suddenly wrap its wings around me, chattering away incessantly. I couldn’t understand what the rooster was saying, but its voice was filled with fear, and my whole body went rigid. I raised my stiff head to look at Tian Zhan. I don’t know if it was an illusion or what, but I kept feeling like a pair of piercing eyes were staring intently at me from the air, causing cold sweat to break out all over my body in an instant. I wanted to run away as fast as I could, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tian Zhan frantically gesturing at me to stay calm. I was on the verge of tears—how was I supposed to stay calm? That feeling lasted nearly ten seconds. A chilling breeze blew gently past me, and I almost collapsed to the ground. Just a moment ago, I felt as if my soul could be snatched away at any moment—it was terrifying. No wonder Tian Zhan’s face had turned pale. “Come out now. That ghostly officer is gone,” Tian Zhan walked over and said to the rooster. The rooster plopped down on the ground and flapped its wings a few times, looking deeply aggrieved. A wisp of light smoke rose, and when Zhang Fei’er materialized again, her face was streaked with tears—she’d been truly terrified. “Let’s hurry back. What if that ghostly officer comes back?” I grabbed Tian Zhan’s arm and started walking back. “Do you think that ghost officer didn’t notice Zhang Fei’er just now?” Tian Zhan said enigmatically. I stopped in my tracks, instantly stunned. “What do you mean?” If the ghostly officer had already spotted Zhang Fei’er just now, why didn’t he take her away? “First, I’ve dealt with this ghostly officer a few times. Although he’s very rigid, he’s not completely without compassion. Second…” At this point, Tian Zhan suddenly gave me a strange look. “Tian Zhan, don’t scare me like that.” I was getting a little scared. If that ghost officer had it in for me, would he take personal revenge and snatch my soul? “Why would I scare you? He just said he wanted to do you a favor,” Tian Zhan said, sounding a bit puzzled himself. “Do me a favor?” I was a bit confused. Did that ghostly officer just have a favor to ask of me? Or was there something he wanted me to do? “You’ll find out in a few days.” Tian Zhan didn’t seem inclined to say more. He glanced at Zhang Fei’er behind me. “There’s more than one ghost officer coming up tonight. You’re coming back with us tonight, and I’ll send you on your way tomorrow night. Got it?” “Okay, thanks, Brother Zhan,” Zhang Fei’er nodded. “What did you just call me?” Tian Zhan’s eyes widened. Zhang Fei’er immediately lowered her head and instinctively took a few steps closer to me. I was speechless inside. Why was he being so harsh with a young lady? Tian Zhan sighed and walked ahead, looking somewhat weary. I was puzzled but didn’t feel comfortable asking any further, so Zhang Fei’er and I followed behind him. Since it was already evening, Tian Zhan and I had no choice but to take a taxi back to the village. When we arrived at the entrance to the master’s shop, I was just about to open the door and invite Zhang Fei’er inside with a smile. Zhang Fei’er shook her head with a smile, which took me by surprise. Generally speaking, ghosts aren’t allowed to enter other people’s homes without permission. My master’s shop is protected by a divine guardian—if a ghost were to enter without the owner’s consent, that guardian would appear and destroy it. But Zhang Fei’er didn’t seem the least bit afraid, which puzzled me. Tian Zhan glanced around a few times, then walked in with a strange look on his face, and Zhang Fei’er followed him in, still smiling. I was taken aback, but without giving it much thought, I went inside and locked the shop door from the inside. Zhang Fei’er sat obediently in a chair, while Tian Zhan glanced around the place a few times before walking out to the backyard on his own, the strange look on his face growing even more pronounced. I was speechless. It wasn’t the first time this kid had been in my master’s shop—so why did his expression change this time? I chuckled. Could Tian Zhan possibly be assessing the feng shui of my master’s shop? “How’s the feng shui?” I asked with a smile. Tian Zhan shook his head, the strange look on his face growing even more pronounced. “Let’s not talk about feng shui for now—I’m not really good at that anyway. But if I told you that where you live, especially your room, still has at least three lingering types of demonic energy, would you be surprised?” “Three kinds?” I was genuinely taken aback. Surely only my mom had ever been here, right? Had other spirits also visited my room? Then how come I didn’t know about it? “Yes, three kinds. And all three of these spirits have considerable cultivation. One of them left behind an exceptionally dense aura of demonic energy—I’m afraid it must have been cultivating for three or four hundred years.” Tian Zhan nodded solemnly. “You’re not joking, are you?” I asked, taking a deep breath. This was simply too hard to believe—besides my mom, at least two other spirits had been in my room?? “Why would I joke about something like this?” Tian Zhan shook his head. I fell silent. Several times while sleeping, I’d felt something furry brush against my face—it must have been my mom. But if those other spirits had come into my room, how come I was still fine? It wasn’t that I didn’t trust Tian Zhan; it was just that everything he was saying was too hard for me to believe. Tian Zhan continued, “Also, I don’t know how your master designed this house. He’s a famous fortune-teller—I won’t say he’s an expert in the art of Qimen Dunjia, but he must know at least a little about it. You’ve lived here for so long—haven’t you felt even the slightest bit that something was off?” “What do you mean?” I was confused. “Look at your shop’s entrance—where have you ever seen a shop entrance facing west? And there are three tiers of steps at the entrance. If I’m not mistaken, these steps are paved with bricks that have been smoked with locust wood. What’s even worse is that the shop door itself is made of locust wood. What is this? To put it bluntly, it’s a ‘Ghost Gate’! It’s specifically designed for ghosts to come and go.” Tian Zhan looked just as astonished as I did. I was startled by what I heard. A ghost gate? Specifically for ghosts to come and go? “Are you sure you’re not seeing things, kid?” I was genuinely stunned. My master runs this clinic specifically to treat people—why on earth would he design a “ghost gate” to let ghosts in? But Tian Zhan wouldn’t have any reason to lie to me. “If you don’t believe me, just do as I say and take a look for yourself,” Tian Zhan said confidently. I forced myself to suppress my surprise, walked up to the shop entrance, put my nose right up to the door to take a sniff, and then crouched down by the doorway to examine the floor closely. But to my embarrassment, I couldn’t make head or tail of it—I didn’t have that kind of insight. “Still don’t believe me?” Tian Zhan walked over. I shook my head. It wasn’t a matter of belief—it was why my master would do something like this. “Then take a good, close look yourself.” After saying this, Tian Zhan reached into his backpack and pulled out a small box. When he opened it, I saw some gray powder inside. Tian Zhan scooped up the powder with his hand and gently sprinkled it onto the three steps, one layer at a time. Just as I stood there completely baffled, a scene that left me stunned slowly unfolded. Where Tian Zhan had sprinkled the ash, a layer of fine dust naturally formed on the ground. But the key was that this fine dust seemed to have been molded—it sank in eerily, revealing countless footprints: some in shoes, some barefoot; some belonging to adults, some to children; and even a row of plum-blossom-shaped footprints emerged from the fine dust. I stood there, completely dumbfounded…