Chapter 83

The production team was in a complete panic-they had no idea what was going on. They had clearly watched with their own eyes as Sudi, Shao Yizhou, Yuan Gaoming, Ren Kun, and Xia Li entered the house, and yet the people themselves had simply vanished! They turned the place upside down, searching every possible nook and cranny, rummaging through boxes and cabinets, but not a single shadow of a person could be found.

At first, they thought maybe the guests were deliberately doing something for dramatic effect, trying to avoid the cameras and pull some tricks to spice things up for entertainment. But after waiting for quite a while with no one coming out, they realized that dragging it out any longer was not going to work. So, they tried to contact Ren Kun through his earpiece-and only then did they discover something was wrong. They couldn’t reach him at all.

They rushed over to check, only to find that not a single person was left in the house-they had just vanished into thin air!

It was only then that they realized even Gu Feiyin, who was playing the Ghost Actor, was missing! And they had no idea when she’d disappeared.

There were still so many people watching at the camera, all of them had seen the five go into the house-no one had come out the front, so how could they just disappear? These were living, breathing people!

Everyone looked at each other, bewildered and shocked, a strange chill rising from the soles of their feet.

Only the director of “Investigation” had a foreboding feeling in his heart. He thought of the previous haunted amusement park incident and cursed inwardly-maybe they’d run into something dirty again! Who knew if Ren Kun and the others were even still alive? If they were dead, what then?

His face turned white with fear. He immediately ordered his assistant to fetch every Monk, Taoist, and fortune-teller in town, no matter what the cost!

The assistant was utterly baffled by this command-the director must have lost his mind from fear. If people were missing, of course they should call the police! Why was he suddenly indulging in feudal superstitions at a time like this?

“What are you standing around for? Hurry up and go!”

The assistant’s heart pounded from being shouted at, and, intimidated, he had no choice but to comply, thinking that the director’s career was finished. If today’s incident got out, he’d be skinned alive! But just as he stepped out of the alley, he was blocked by three Monks: an old monk leading two young monks, all standing solemnly before him, the old monk’s face smiling like the Maitreya Buddha.

“Amitabha. Shizhu, I see you are in a hurry. May I help relieve your worries and difficulties?”

This was like finding an oasis in the desert, salvation in dire need. These conmen had walked right into his trap. The assistant said immediately, “Come, come, come, follow me!”

He led the three Monks back, figuring their presence would at least calm the director, and meanwhile he’d make a proper call to the police.

Liao Yuan’s eyes sparkled with excitement, looking positively gleeful. Even his bald head seemed to be shining. Truth be told, he’d been wandering outside for ages, finally seizing a chance to sneak in-how could he not be excited? He just wondered where Sis Gu was and whether she was busy with work right now.

Jingxing, however, was growing ever more suspicious about his Shifu’s relationship with Shizhu Gu. He’d never seen his Shifu so invested in anyone before-not only had he followed all the way from Baiyu Town to City A, but now, even a few steps apart had him anxious and restless, completely lacking the air of a great monk. And yet, Shizhu Gu’s attitude toward Shifu was quite ordinary, treating him no differently than anyone else.

Such a stark contrast-it really left him puzzled.

If he got the chance, he’d have to ask about it.

Zhen Du, on the other hand, thought nothing of such matters. With his arm in a sling, he focused solely on walking; he didn’t dare let his mind wander. If he wasn’t careful, he might break his other arm too, and then he wouldn’t even be able to eat-he might actually starve to death on the street, becoming a lonely wandering ghost.

The closer Liao Yuan and the others got, the more they saw people running around in a panic, making them feel uneasy. It wasn’t until they turned a corner and saw, at the end of the alley, a house shrouded in darkness that Liao Yuan understood. “Did something happen to someone?”

The assistant, distracted, was poking at his phone, messaging his colleagues on WeChat: when would the police arrive? If they still hadn’t come, they’d better hurry up-these missing people were all big stars. If anything happened to any of them, they’d all be finished! He wasn’t so enthusiastic about the three “conman” monks anymore, and besides, the star disappearance was confidential-how could he casually share it with these monks?

Jingxing glanced over and said, “Shifu, I think there must be an evil ghost causing trouble there.”

Zhen Du said, “Let’s go take a look.”

Only then did the assistant look up and scoff, “Evil ghost, my foot. Don’t talk nonsense and try to scare people. This is a scientific society-where are there ghosts? Just because you’re monks doesn’t mean I’ll believe your superstitions. Careful or I’ll accuse you of spreading cult beliefs and harming the public.”

Liao Yuan remained calm and serene, not at all annoyed by the assistant’s words. He pointed to the two-story building at the end of the alley, “There’s something strange about the aura there-someone must be in danger. If it isn’t stopped soon, it could cost lives.”

Jingxing frowned, clearly disapproving of the assistant. Zhen Du said, “Little Shizhu, has something happened to someone here?”

The assistant was startled by this question. Looking again, he realized these monks were talking about the very house where Ren Kun and Sudi had disappeared, leaving him even more astonished. He finally looked at the three monks properly, speaking in disbelief, “You’re just guessing, right? Or did you hear something and come here on purpose to fool me?”

Jingxing chanted “Amitabha” and said, “Shizhu, if you do not believe us, just take us there and you will know. If what we say is untrue, you can call the police and have us arrested, it won’t be too late.”

Zhen Du added, “A monk does not speak lies. Shizhu, saving people comes first.”

The assistant pondered for a moment, thinking, well, desperate times call for desperate measures-maybe these monks really do have some special skills? Coincidentally, the director had asked him to find some monks or Taoists, so he turned and led them directly to the director. The director was pacing anxiously downstairs, and the moment he saw three monks arrive, he jumped nearly two meters high in excitement, shouting that they were finally saved!

Only now did Liao Yuan, Jingxing, and Zhen Du realize that someone was truly in danger. They didn’t know if those people had disappeared or what, but clearly, everyone entered the room-yet they just couldn’t be found. They had tried every method, but nothing worked.

“Among the missing are our host and a specially invited extra, and we have no idea how they’re doing now. We’ve sent people to search everywhere, but found nothing.”

The kind boss also rushed over when he heard the news, anxious beyond words. “Xiao Gu better not be in trouble! She’s just a girl-what would she do in such a situation?”

Don’t be fooled by Liao Yuan’s ninety-eight years-his hearing and eyesight were still sharp. “Xiao Gu?”

Jingxing and Zhen Du also looked at the kind boss at once. Xiao Gu… could she be Shizhu Gu?

The kind boss prided himself on knowing the world’s deepest secrets, and now, seeing monks, he was all respect, quickly explaining, “Xiao Gu’s real name is Gu Feiyin, she’s a girl with long hair, about 1.65 meters tall and very slender. She’s our colleague at the haunted house. She was in the room where the incident happened and has now disappeared together with Sudi, Shao Yizhou, Ren Kun, and Yuan Gaoming!”

“I guess they’re still together. Master, please, when you go to rescue them, see if you can find Xiao Gu. Please, you must save her!”

What? How could this be?

The moment Liao Yuan heard Sis Gu was also in that room, his eyebrows shot up. He turned, chest out and full of vigor, and charged upstairs, his old but nimble legs moving at lightning speed-he looked just like an old firecracker going off, and Jingxing almost couldn’t keep up. Zhen Du had to jog to follow.

The director, assistant, and kind boss exchanged glances, then couldn’t help but follow as well.

“Can they really do it? Director, I still think we should wait for the police. What if there are terrorists in our crew and Ren Kun and the others have been taken? If we keep dragging this out, they’ll be dead!”

“You don’t understand. If this was really the work of terrorists, do you know how many people would have died by now? Just shut up.”

“Yes, don’t worry. It must be something wrong with that room that swallowed them up. I think that Liao Yuan monk looks very capable. I believe in them.”

The assistant was helpless, heh, just waiting to get slapped in the face! Anyway, he’d done all he could.

As they reached the second floor, they saw Monk Liao Yuan standing in front of a wooden door, chanting incantations none of them could understand. His wrinkled hand traced shapes in the air, and then, with a low shout, his palm drew a golden light through the air! That golden light seemed to take form, dazzling and brilliant, and gradually, a crack opened in the air, widening and spreading outward. It was as if an invisible barrier was being torn open, finally revealing the room’s original scene.

-Inside, the room was a chaotic, filthy mess, the stench of blood thick in the air, and the floor was littered with broken, dried bones. On top of the bones lay Yuan Gaoming in a faint, and by his side, several men frozen in grotesque, rigid poses! Weren’t those the missing Sudi, Shao Yizhou, and Ren Kun?

At this moment, the men were crouched on the floor, heads tilted upward, trembling as they stared at the strange woman ahead-bent at the waist, hands hanging limp, and a long mane of hair floating eerily…

…What the-?!

The director, assistant, and kind boss-all who had just rushed over-were stunned by the ghastly sight, rubbing their eyes in disbelief before instinctively stumbling back a few steps, shivering with fear.

The assistant was now both terrified and regretful. Who would’ve thought these three Masters were the real deal? They weren’t the frauds he had assumed. If he’d known, he would have shown them more respect-was there still a chance to make up for it?

“What happened? Am I seeing things?”

“No, you probably aren’t… Is that a ghost inside? The Long-haired Female Ghost? Has Yuan Gaoming already been killed by her?”

“No way, is this a crime scene? Master, Master, hurry up and save them!”

“Hurry, call an ambulance!”

Honestly, the scene before them truly resembled a crime scene: the chaos, the eerie atmosphere, the grown men crouched miserably as if awaiting execution, and the sinister Long-haired Female Ghost standing over them. No matter how you looked at it, it all screamed murder scene.

The shouts from outside finally snapped those in the room out of their trance. Their necks stiffly turned as they looked back in terror, only to see three otherworldly monks standing at the doorway, and the director and others frantically waving at them, clearly urging them to get out…

Sudi, Shao Yizhou, and Ren Kun were overjoyed, trembling with excitement, nearly moved to tears. They were saved, finally saved!

Now, their minds were filled with only one thought: run! No matter what, they had to run out!

However, just as they were excitedly preparing to drag Yuan Gaoming along, they noticed the long-haired ghost shaking her long hair, twisting her body as she looked towards the door. This movement froze the director, the assistant, and the kind boss in place, sending chills down their spines. Even through the curtain of hair, they could feel a sinister gaze falling upon them. They dared not make a sound, desperately trying to shrink back to reduce their presence.

Meanwhile, the three Masters stood still, not moving an inch.

This sight startled Sudi, Shao Yizhou, and Ren Kun, wondering why the long-haired ghost wasn’t afraid at all. Did she intend to fight the Masters? Was she really that formidable?

Just as they were uncertain and suspicious, they indeed saw the long-haired ghost move, taking two eerie steps towards the door. Then she raised her twisted arms, lifted the long hair from her forehead, and widened her eyes to look over. Seeing familiar faces, she grinned happily and said in a ghostly voice, “I thought the voice sounded familiar, turns out it’s you guys, hehe.”

Director: “…?”

Assistant: “…?!”

Kind boss: “…?!!”

Upon suddenly seeing the face beneath the long hair, they were all shocked, mouths agape in disbelief, as if they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

Only Liao Yuan, Jingxing, and Zhen Du seemed relatively calm, though their eyes were fixed, staring without moving, looking as if they were scared stiff.

Seeing them so frightened, the others in the room were even more horrified, thinking the face under the long hair must be terrifying enough to leave them speechless.

As they were puzzled, the long-haired ghost suddenly turned her head, revealing a familiar yet eerily strange face beneath the lifted hair. On her forehead was a clear bite mark, her dark eyes gloomily staring at them, grinning with a gap-toothed smile, her cold voice sounding even more eerie: “Shao Yizhou, Sudi, come, come quickly, don’t be afraid, let’s go out…”

Sudi: “…??!”

Shao Yizhou: “…!!!”

Ren Kun: “…!!!!”

Wasn’t this long-haired ghost the Master Gu they had been longing for day and night?!

…

Yuan Gaoming fainted from fright, but fortunately, he was not seriously harmed, with Ren Kun accompanying him. Xia Li was carried to the hospital; she hadn’t suffered fatal injuries, just lost some vitality after being possessed by a ghost, looking somewhat weak. Additionally, she had been bitten several times during the fight with the “long-haired ghost,” leaving bite marks on her forehead and shoulders. When she woke up dazed, she felt pain all over her body but had no idea what had happened.

She had no memory of being possessed by the ghost.

Sudi thought it was good she forgot; if she remembered being possessed and eating human bones, she might not be able to cope mentally, possibly even going insane. After all, not everyone could be like Master Gu, picking up bones from the ground to eat, even collecting the extras in a bag as if storing snacks.

As for the little ghost that possessed “Xia Li,” it was said to have been beaten half to death by Master Gu, its soul nearly scattered, then sold to Master Liao Yuan for thirty yuan. Master Liao Yuan sent it to the Underworld to be boiled in oil, not even giving it time to cry before chanting it into hell-no one cared about its origins now-Master Liao Yuan, with personal motives, even punched it a couple more times.

Monk Liao Yuan was heartbroken, not expecting that after being away for such a short time, his Sis Gu would injure her waist and hand, even having a clear bite mark on her bald forehead, making her already unwatchable face even worse. Could he not be angry? Only punching twice was already his utmost benevolence.

Gu Feiyin was lying on the table, with two patches on her waist to relieve the pain from the sprain, as the pain was so severe she couldn’t straighten her back. Her forehead was smeared with some yellowish disinfectant, which didn’t look good, affecting her appearance. She didn’t forget to twist her arm to stuff small bones into her mouth, “crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch,” making everyone’s scalp tingle.

Shao Yizhou, with a mournful handsome face, looked at Master Gu with grievance: “I was almost scared to death by you just now, I thought I was going to be eaten, I even prepared my will.”

Sudi nodded silently, he too, nearly scared to madness by Master Gu, not eaten by the little ghost.

Gu Feiyin blinked at them and said, “I was calling you all along, but you ignored me, crunch, crunch, crunch…”

Shao Yizhou and Sudi choked, well, sorry for making you feel wronged.

Monk Liao Yuan said, “You couldn’t even recognize Shizhu Gu, clearly not good friends of Shizhu Gu.”

Shao Yizhou and Sudi were once again stunned, realizing it was indeed their fault for not recognizing Master Gu. But the problem was, who would have thought that the living, breathing Master Gu would suddenly transform into a long-haired monster, bent over with arms hanging down, surrounded by hair everywhere? They couldn’t even see her face; they didn’t have X-ray vision, nor did they understand metaphysics. It was no wonder they couldn’t recognize her.

Sudi couldn’t help but glance at the small bone held by Master Gu, which he had seen her pick up from the ground and had eaten from the table earlier. Now, looking at it, he felt horrified. “This thing…”

Gu Feiyin handed the bone to him, “Do you want to eat it?”

“No, no, no, I don’t want to eat it!” His hand almost shook like a rattle drum. “Master Gu, this thing is very strange, you shouldn’t eat it either!”

Gu Feiyin looked at him, then at the small bone, and with a gentle squeeze of her hand, the small bone turned into a cloud of Black Mist, which fell into her palm, looking eerie and bizarre.

Both Sudi and Shao Yizhou were dumbfounded. The bone actually turned into smoke?

Liao Yuan, the monk, said, “This is the little ghost’s illusion. There’s no human bone; it’s something she conjured with her own Resentment Energy. It’s not as scary as you think.”

Sudi asked, “Wouldn’t eating this thing be bad for the body? After all, it’s something from a ghost, and we’re humans.”

Jingxing entered with a basin of water, handed a wet cloth to Shizhu Gu, and said, “It’s bad for you, but for Shizhu Gu, it’s a good thing.”

Sudi suddenly understood, realizing that while the Resentment Energy was harmful to ordinary people like them, it was beneficial for Master Gu, who was a cultivator. Her method of Cultivation was quite special, so this thing was advantageous to her. With this realization, he felt the thing wasn’t as frightening anymore.

Gu Feiyin used the wet cloth to wipe the dirt off her face and hands, and also patted the dust off her hair. She had rolled on the ground several times, getting quite dirty, so it was just right to clean up. However, her hand was somewhat inconvenient; she wanted to move left, but it insisted on going right; she wanted to go forward, but it went backward; sometimes it even rotated 360 degrees without any control, stiff and unresponsive, as if it were a prosthetic limb.

Everyone in the room was stunned, and Zhen Du almost couldn’t resist helping her. If it weren’t for his own hand being in a sling, he might have actually lent a hand. He was quite puzzled, “Liao Yuan Shifu, what’s wrong with Shizhu Gu’s hand? It was fine before, why is it suddenly like this?”

Liao Yuan, the monk, looked at Sis Gu’s body, which was enveloped in an even more brilliant Golden Light of Merit, along with the thick, heavy aura of Resentment Energy.

Liao Yuan said, “It’s the Five Defects and Three Shortages.”

In fact, the Five Defects and Three Shortages occur whenever someone alters another’s predetermined fate, causing a certain backlash. During that earthquake, he had seen the faces of many who were supposed to die, yet they survived for various reasons. This would lead to countless changes, rewriting not only the book of life and death but also the Merit-Sin Ledger.

Such opportunities are not achievable by everyone, no wonder Shifu once said that Goddamn Heaven favors Sis Gu.

Jingxing and Zhen Du suddenly understood what the Five Defects and Three Shortages were, but Sudi and Shao Yizhou were still confused. What were the Five Defects and Three Shortages? After Liao Yuan explained, they couldn’t help but feel a deep respect and admiration for Master Gu.

Suddenly, Sudi remembered something. He had met Master Gu once before, and at that time, her leg was not functioning well. Later it got better, and he didn’t ask much. Could that have been the Five Defects and Three Shortages too? He couldn’t help but ask, and Gu Feiyin nodded while munching on the small bone, rolling her eyes to the sky, “Yes, you should have died. I accidentally saved you, and Goddamn Heaven messed with me.”

…Ah?!

Sudi was almost frozen on the spot, staring blankly at Gu Feiyin, who was expressionless, eerily munching on snacks. His eyes suddenly reddened, and he lowered his head, not speaking for a long time.

He never imagined that if it weren’t for today’s accidental revelation, he might never have known that someone not only saved his life but also suffered a great deal because of him.

Liao Yuan couldn’t help but glare at Sudi enviously. Sis Gu was too good to this young man!

Why hadn’t Sis Gu thought of him yet? He felt sour.