Everyone from the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation was silently observing. Aside from Gao Liang and a few directors under his command, no one seemed to understand why both the former and current Chairmen of the Religious Affairs Commission were so worked up over a single soul. Taking advantage of the moment, I sidled up to Xiao Heshang and asked in a low voice, "Old Xiao, what kind of ghost is that? A ghost with a shadow—that's got to be top-tier, right?"
Just then, Wu Rendi was already sauntering down from the Ghost Gate. As he passed by me, he casually said two words: "Blood-Forged Ghost." It was like he wasn't even talking to me—more like muttering into the air. Then, without looking back, he headed straight for the tent. I had heard him say those words earlier to Min Tianyuan, but now they came without any context. Watching his back, I couldn't help but wonder, "Were you talking to me just now?"
Wu Director's casual comment had another effect: everyone nearby, including Gao Liang, looked at me with a hint of surprise. Sun Fatty came over and gave me a sour glance. "Lazi, not to pry, but when did you and Wu Director get so chummy?" I ignored him and continued questioning Xiao Heshang: "Old Xiao, what did Wu Director mean by 'Blood-Forged Ghost'?"
Xiao Heshang had been staring intently at Wu Rendi's back. My repeated questioning finally got his attention. Turning toward me, he explained the origins of this so-called "Blood-Forged Ghost."
Refining Souls was a specialized ghost-taming technique, distinct from the more common Five-Ghost Method. Legend had it that when the art reached its peak, the controlled soul could break free of both the Yin and Yang realms and resist the Three Lights (sunlight, moonlight, and starlight), blending human and ghostly traits. Even celestial immortals would be wary of such beings. Thankfully, Min Tianyuan clearly hadn't reached that level yet.
This soul-control art had all but vanished during the mid-Qing dynasty, and any records related to it had completely disappeared by the time the Religious Affairs Commission came into power. If Min Tianyuan hadn't let it slip today, no one would have guessed he was a surviving inheritor of this ancient path.
There was also a defining trait of the Blood-Forged Ghost technique: the soul being refined must be a blood relative of the practitioner. The closer the relation, the better the outcome. That was one of the main reasons this art had nearly gone extinct. Hearing this, I finally understood why Min Tianyuan was so desperate to keep that soul.
While Xiao Heshang was explaining, Wu Rendi had already entered the tent where Min Tianyuan and Hao Zhengyi were. At Wu Director's arrival, both their expressions turned grim. Min Tianyuan even subtly positioned himself between Wu Rendi and the soul. The tent was too far for me to hear anything, but I saw Wu Rendi say a few things. Hao Zhengyi listened with a blank expression, then shot a glance at Min Tianyuan.
Min Tianyuan froze on the spot like a clay figurine. Then Wu Rendi lost his patience, tilted his head, and said something else. That seemed to hit a nerve—Min Tianyuan suddenly shuddered like he'd been shocked. Wu Rendi then briskly walked up behind him, grabbed the soul, and shoved it straight back into Min Tianyuan's body.
Once the soul was secured, Wu Rendi turned on his heel and walked out of the tent without another word. Min Tianyuan and Hao Zhengyi followed closely behind. They stopped when they reached the Ghost Gate.
Wu Rendi said, "The last one. Let it out."
Min Tianyuan hesitated, but Wu Rendi didn't wait. He reached out and pulled the soul straight from Min Tianyuan's body. Before the soul could even react, he tossed it directly into the Ghost Gate and then slammed the gate shut. Then Wu Rendi took a small porcelain vial from his pocket, uncorked it, and let a few drops of red liquid fall onto the Ghost Gate. The liquid ignited in midair, bursting into small fireballs that clung to the Ghost Gate. Within minutes, the entire structure had burned to cinders. I had no idea what kind of fire that was, but it was terrifyingly effective.
With that, the mission to send the souls through the Ghost Gate was complete. After it was reduced to ashes, Hao Zhengyi supported the former Chairman of the Religious Affairs Commission off the site. Without Hao's help, Min Tianyuan probably wouldn't have stayed on his feet. He hadn't even reacted like this when his second brother was sent through the Ghost Gate. Blood-Forged Ghost or not—it was still just a soul. I couldn't understand why it affected him so deeply.
Once the two Chairmen left, Gao Liang pulled Wu Rendi aside and they whispered for a long while. I seized the chance to ask Xiao Heshang, "Old Xiao, they just burned the Ghost Gate like that? What about the ghosts still lingering around here?"
"You've got a kind heart," Xiao Heshang chuckled. "That Ghost Gate was a private channel the Bureau opened to smuggle souls across realms. Technically speaking, it was illegal. Burning down such an obvious contraband pathway? Not surprising at all."
We hadn't spoken for long before Xiao Heshang was called away by Gao Liang. The two of them took most of the team back to the Bureau, leaving Xiong Wanyi in charge of me, Sun Fatty, Ximen Lian, and a few other investigators to clean up the scene.
Sun Fatty and I were assigned to sweep up the ash left from burnt joss paper. I hadn't even picked up my shovel when someone suddenly shouted, "Reporting for duty—leave this to me!"
The voice sounded oddly familiar. I looked up—it was the Buffoon from the trio of uncle, nephew, and idiot. Or more precisely, the pickpocket possessing his body had already made his way to my side. Seeing him, I froze for a second.
"You—you're supposed to have gone through the Ghost Gate. Didn't you?"
"He can't leave," Xiong Wanyi said helplessly to Bangchui. "Don't know if he's lucky or just plain unlucky—this guy's soul has a congenital defect. Back on the train, he got startled, and when the Gate of the Dead was opened, his soul actually got separated from his body. Everyone was too distracted watching Wu Rendi and Min Tianyuan to notice, and Bangchui's original soul just drifted with the crowd through the Gate. By the time we realized it, the Gate was already reduced to ashes."
After hearing the whole story, I still couldn't make sense of one thing. I glanced at Bangchui, who was standing nearby with a sheepish smile, and asked Xiong Wanyi, "Even if nobody else noticed, how could he himself not know his own soul had left?"
Xiong Wanyi glared at Bangchui and growled, "You think he'd tell us? With things like this, occupying a body is basically seizing a scapegoat—it's a clean escape from being a wrongful ghost. As long as he holds on until Ghost Festival next year, he can enter reincarnation through the Underworld. The rest of the souls, including Bangchui's original, probably won't even get a chance to reincarnate in the next two or three years. How could they be as lucky as this little thief?"
Xiong Wanyi had been assigned to watch over these three, specifically to prevent something like this. Now the damage was done, and they'd have to face the consequences back at the Bureau. The thought made him so furious his teeth itched. He kicked Bangchui hard in the rear.
Bangchui didn't dodge, just grinned and took the kick like he deserved it. Still fuming, Xiong Wanyi looked like he wanted to keep kicking him, but Sun Fatty came over and grabbed his arm. "Hey, Bear Bastard, that's enough. Come on, what are you doing getting into it with a little ghost?" Judging from his words, Sun Fatty had clearly overheard our conversation. He shoved the iron spade in his hand at Bangchui and pointed at the pile of burned joss paper in the distance. "Don't tick off Old Xiong. Go clean up that pile of ashes."
Bangchui was more than happy to escape the situation. He grabbed the shovel and bolted off. Sun Fatty flashed a grin at Xiong Wanyi, pulled out a cigarette, and passed one to each of us. After lighting up and taking a puff, I asked Xiong Wanyi, "We've still got Bangchui, but what about the other two? They didn't stay behind too, did they?"
Xiong Wanyi blew a smoke ring and looked at Bangchui's retreating figure. "You think everyone's like him? The old man and that dimwit dropped their bodies the moment the Gate opened. They went straight in. Only this Bangchui stuck around to annoy me."
Sun Fatty chuckled and asked, "Not to pry, Bear Bastard, but did Chief Gao say what we're supposed to do with this Bangchui?"
Bangchui, who had been shoveling the ashes nearby, slowed down conspicuously and tilted his head, obviously eavesdropping.
Xiong Wanyi looked like he'd just bitten into a bitter gourd. His face scrunched up so tightly even I—who'd known him a long time—had never seen him this miserable. With a forced smile, he said, "Director Qiu practically chewed me out to death just now. Chief Gao's got bigger things to worry about, but he did say he'll decide what to do with this Bangchui after we get back."
We cleaned up the burnt offerings and the Gate remains, dismantled a few tents, and erased any traces of what had happened. Then our team of investigators, along with Bangchui, boarded a coach left behind by Gao Liang to return to the Bureau. We hadn't slept for a full day and night. As soon as the bus started moving, most of the team dozed off, half-leaning and slumped in their seats. I was just about to catch a nap myself when I heard Sun Fatty's voice from the front row:
"Hey, Big Man, say something. What exactly did Director Wu, Min Tianyuan, and Hao Zhengyi talk about in that tent?"
That jolted me wide awake. I was very curious about that conversation too.
Ximen Lian, sitting next to Sun Fatty, gave a weary shrug. "Come on, Dasheng, you give me too much credit. How would I know what they said? If you're that curious, why don't you ask Consultant Xiao?"
Sun Fatty chuckled. "Xiao Heshang? He might know something. But Big Man, seriously—besides those three in the tent, you're the only one in the Bureau who knows what they said."
That's when I understood what Sun Fatty meant—Ximen Lian could read lips. Thinking back, he had been nearby when the meeting took place. It wasn't so strange he'd know.
After some persistent pestering from Sun Fatty, Ximen finally relented. He glanced around, saw that most of the investigators were asleep, and then lowered his voice: "Director Wu hit Min Tianyuan's weak spot—his ghost refining subject was his own son…"
The words instantly drove all sleep from my mind. I'd known that refined ghosts had to be close blood relatives, but still, this truth stunned me.
Ximen Lian didn't know the full details. When he "saw" that line come out of Director Wu's mouth, Hao Zhengyi—who had been silent and facing away—suddenly turned and glared at him like he had eyes in the back of his head. Ximen felt like he'd been electrocuted, his whole body went numb, and his head spun. If Xiong Wanyi hadn't caught him, he probably would've collapsed on the spot. When he came to, the Gate had already burned to charcoal.
Sun Fatty wasn't quite satisfied with that answer, but no matter how he prodded or questioned the scene, Ximen couldn't give any more detail. He really only knew that much.
Seeing that the conversation had run dry, I leaned back in my seat. Before long, I drifted off into sleep.
The long bus ride was miserable—sore back, stiff limbs. Aside from a short stop at a gas station for a bathroom break and some stretching, we spent the entire day on the road. Lunch was just some dry bread and sausages. It wasn't until past 8 p.m. that we finally reached the Bureau.
As soon as we got off the bus, Xiong Wanyi took Bangchui to report to Qiu Bulao. The rest of us headed straight to the dorms. No one had the energy to wash up. We stripped down and crashed in bed. By the time I opened my eyes again, it was already the next morning.
It was the 25th of the twelfth lunar month. Other departments had probably already handed out year-end bonuses and were preparing for the holiday. But at the Bureau, there wasn't even a whiff of New Year spirit. Gao Liang spent the whole morning in meetings with several department heads. Naturally, Director Wu was absent as always. Speaking of which, Director Hao from our dorm had also gone missing. Rumor had it he'd gone straight to the third basement level upon returning and hadn't come out since. What happened with Hao Zhengyi had clearly shaken him hard. Looked like he was going to lie low for a while.
By lunchtime, Sun Fatty and I were in the canteen. We'd just gotten our food and barely taken two bites when Xiong Wanyi walked in and looked around. Spotting us, he came straight over.
"You two, hold off on eating," he said. "The Chief wants to see you—now."
Hearing that Chief Gao had summoned us, I immediately put down my chopsticks and stood up. Sun Fatty, on the other hand, stuffed two more spoonfuls of food in his mouth before asking, "Bear Bastard, what's the rush? What's the Chief want with us?"
Xiong Wanyi snorted. "Like he'd tell me? I just happened to be passing his office when he grabbed me. If I'd known, I'd have taken the long way around. Oh, and I think I heard Consultant Xiao's voice in the office too—probably something to do with him…"
Sure enough, when we entered the Director's office, Xiao Heshang was sitting opposite Gao Liang, smiling at us.
Once we were seated, Gao Liang got right to the point. "There's a job I'm assigning to you two and Consultant Xiao."
Xiao Heshang then explained: the terms for the exchange involving Huang Ran had already been settled with Min Tianyuan at the Gate of the Dead. With the New Year fast approaching, the Religious Affairs Commission was getting antsy. Early this morning, Hao Zhengyi had contacted Chief Gao—they'd stayed up all night preparing the items for the exchange and wanted to carry it out as soon as possible.
The items to be traded had been negotiated long ago, and surprisingly, Chief Gao hadn't tried to raise the price at the last minute. The only sticking point was the location. Neither side trusted the other: the mainland was Bureau turf, while Taiwan was the Religious Affairs Commission's stronghold. No one wanted to risk doing the deal on the other's home ground.
After some back-and-forth, they finally settled on neutral ground—Hong Kong.
Still, because of mutual distrust, neither side would send its own agents to conduct the handover directly. Each would appoint a third-party representative to handle and verify the exchange.