Chapter 055: Surgery, I’m a professional.

Chapter 055: Surgery, I’m a professional.

"Are you okay?"

A concerned voice came from the back seat.

A pair of hands reached over from the backseat, swiftly gathering the driver's fallen head, while another steadied the steering wheel.

"Thank you, thank..." The driver's words of gratitude halted abruptly. He had only one passenger; so why were there three hands?

Chi Shen had already repositioned the driver's head onto his neck and reattached the hand, cautioning the panic-stricken driver, "Keep your eyes on the road."

"Okay, okay." The driver grasped the steering wheel with his newly reattached hand, the third hand from the backseat finally retracting.

The driver tentatively lifted his repositioned head and followed the trajectory of the retreating hand, glancing through the rearview mirror to see only one young man seated behind.

He remembered only one young man getting into the car.

From where did the third hand emerge?

His gaze shifted slightly downwards, alighting on the shadow cast by the streetlights outside. The young man's solid shadow confirmed his corporeality, dispelling any ghostly theory.

The driver's fear intensified, his grip on the steering wheel shaky. Seeing the hand threatening to fall off again, Chi Shen quickly reached out, steadying the driver's arm, and advised with a smile, "Be careful."

Via the rearview mirror, the driver caught Chi Shen's benevolent grin. Strangely, under that warm gaze, an icy chill pervaded his being, cold sweat pouring from his brow.

From Chi Shen's perspective, however, it wasn't sweat but blood seeping from the driver's scalp.

Observing the driver's state, Chi Shen deduced his tragic fate: most likely ambushed from behind in his seat, sustaining a head wound, and then dismembered. Hence the driver's proclivity for shedding body parts. Chi Shen reassured himself that even if the legs fell off in the cramped space, they wouldn't roll far.

As for the third hand on the steering wheel, it was Ji Xingchen's. Ji Xingchen had extended a hand from the shadows to steady the wheel during the driver's moment of panic. Once the driver regained control, Ji Xingchen withdrew his hand.

Although the ride was punctuated by the driver losing parts and blood dripping from his head, he professionally delivered them to the front of the old mansion.

"I'll probably be inside for about twenty minutes and will be right out. Please wait for me," Chi Shen requested.

The driver seemed hesitant, frequently glancing in the rearview mirror, struggling for words.

Reading the situation, Chi Shen smiled, "I'll pay extra."

The driver queried, "Ten bucks?"

Chi Shen countered, "Twenty."

The driver replied, "Deal!"

Afterward, Chi Shen fetched the newly bought suitcase from the trunk and carried it into the old mansion.

Upon seeing that everyone had left, the driver adjusted his rearview mirror, fixing his disheveled appearance. He hoped he hadn't appeared too frightening earlier and scared the passenger.

But that person from earlier seemed quite terrifying too... Nevertheless, he paid extra!

After cleaning the blood off his face and double-checking to ensure his limbs and head were intact, he settled back in the car, staring at the dark mansion, waiting for the young man to come out.

Once inside the mansion, Chi Shen first went to his room. He shattered the mirror where the red-clothed female ghost resided. Preparing to take her with him, he'd bought a new mirror for her, albeit a smaller one for portability.

Entering the room, the red-clothed female ghost eagerly emerged, and Chi Shen smilingly presented the small mirror he had bought.

A pink heart-shaped design adorned the mirror, which, when opened, revealed a heart-shaped reflective surface surrounded by a string of colorful chasing lights.

The expectant expression on the red-clothed female ghost's face froze, and she subtly stepped back, her fingers scratching the floor.

Even the ghost face sneered, "Isn't that the popular magical girl toy from a while ago? The one they use to scam little three-year-olds out of their money?"

Ji Xingchen, adjusting his glasses nonchalantly, remarked, "I advised him to choose a different model. This one is not only expensive but also impractical. Yet, he insisted this mirror suits female ghosts."

The ghost face looked between the cutesy heart-shaped mirror flashing colorful lights and the menacing red-clothed female ghost - wondering how they could possibly match.

"I find it perfectly fitting," said Chi Shen, approaching the female ghost with the mirror in hand. "Don't you think its cute, pinky design is just like you? Would you like me to help you move into it?"

The red-clothed female ghost retreated rapidly, fearing Chi Shen might force her into the mirror. She swiftly vanished into a red paper telephone, her voice emanating from it, "This one, I like this one! I'll reside here!"

A touch disappointed that the red-clothed female ghost had declined his pink mirror, Chi Shen placed it and the paper telephone in his backpack. He also packed the broken bowl once inhabited by Ji Xingchen and allowed the ghost face to enter the backpack too.

After gathering his spectral companions from his room, Chi Shen headed to Bai Wan's annex, stowing her memorial tablet in his backpack. He then dragged the large suitcase towards the main house.

It was precisely 2 a.m.

As Chi Shen had previously arranged with the main house's haunting spirit, he felt no emotions when he approached the river of feelings this time. The exterior of the main house was silent and uneventful.

This time, Ji Xingchen accompanied Chi Shen into the main house.

A potent smell of blood hit them immediately.

In the vast expanse of the main house, thick chains bound a man's legs. One of the chains pierced through the man's heart, suspending him upside down from the ceiling. Crimson blood dripped from the chain that ran through his heart.

As the door opened, the wind made the talismans affixed to the chains flutter eerily in the night.

Within this space, a few broken chains lay scattered on the floor, the talismans on them turned to ash. The suspended man's posture seemed somewhat askew.

The bloodied hand that Chi Shen encountered on his first visit was absent now. The man hung quietly in mid-air, even the surrounding malevolent aura had retracted.

Glancing over the broken chains on the ground, Ji Xingchen remained silent for a moment. He seemed contemplative before asking, "Is this what you meant by 'coming to an agreement'?"

"Sometimes, you need to communicate in unique ways, otherwise your friend might not understand you, right?" Chi Shen replied without a change in expression, then turned to Ji Xingchen, "How do we take him away?"

Ji Xingchen explained, "These talismans should keep him subdued. Remove them, and place him inside the suitcase with them. That should do."

"Step aside," Chi Shen said, lifting his eyes to the man hanging overhead.

Ji Xingchen retreated outside the main hall, watching Chi Shen intently.

Dark energy swirled around Chi Shen's hand, rapidly taking the form of a large cleaver. Once formed, the blade materialized in his hand.

In ancient times, such cleavers were used to behead horses.

Now, Chi Shen intended to use it to sever the chains binding the malevolent spirit.

With a spring in his step, Chi Shen leaped high into the air, the blade slicing through like moonlight reflected on water. Talismans attached to the chains fell like snowflakes. The blade, with ease, severed the chains binding the corpse, which then began to descend rapidly.

Chi Shen too landed gracefully, the blade dissipating back into dark energy. He reached out, catching the falling body. An icy and violent aura emanated from the corpse, indicating that even though it had promised to sleep, it was not in a deep slumber.

To ensure compliance, Chi Shen had previously weakened the spirit by dissipating some of its aura.

As he caught the body, Chi Shen distinctly felt a heartbeat.

Was this man truly dead?

But how could a living person survive with a chain piercing through his heart?

Chi Shen observed the chain that ran through the man's heart, attempting to move it. But a rush of blood spurted out, forcing him to abandon the idea. He then carried the body towards the suitcase.

The pungent smell of blood was overpowering. The dormant hostile aura began to stir. Ghostface, waiting outside, had its eyes turn crimson, inflated its size to that of a basin, and slowly opened its mouth, aiming for Ji Xingchen's neck.

Ji Xingchen was occupied with the small mirror Chi Shen had given him, collecting and arranging talismans inside the suitcase.

As Chi Shen placed the body inside, he had to adjust it due to its long limbs. Standing up, he then playfully squeezed the inflated Ghostface, causing it to shrink back to its normal size. Confused, Ghostface asked, "What just happened?"

"You're being influenced. Take a moment to cool down and stay away from here," said Chi Shen.

Gui Lian instantly recoiled in fear, taking several steps back.

Chi Shen then

Previously, the corpse was hung in the shadows of the rafters, obscured from view. From his distance, Chi Shen couldn't make it out clearly. Now that he could see it up close, he found the face eerily familiar.

Chi Shen stared at the corpse for several moments before suddenly looking up at Ji Xingchen, "He looks a lot like you. Is he your brother?"

Ji Xingchen placed a talisman over the corpse inside the suitcase and replied, "I don’t know."

Chi Shen studied the corpse’s face further, noting its striking yet gentle features. "Although you two resemble each other, he's more handsome than you," he remarked.

As Ji Xingchen placed the last of the talismans into the suitcase, he glanced at Chi Shen's appreciative gaze on the corpse and took off his glasses, "Are you perhaps face-blind?"

Chi Shen's gaze darted between the corpse and Ji Xingchen repeatedly. Finally, he said, "You two look exactly the same."

The ghost face, climbing out of Chi Shen's backpack, chimed in weakly, "Not 'look alike' but 'are the same'!"

"Are you twins?" Chi Shen inquired again.

Zipping up the suitcase, Ji Xingchen replied, "I don’t remember anything about that."

He paused, then added, "If you prefer, I can go without glasses. Now that I'm a ghost, my myopia is gone."

"Keep them on," Chi Shen, taking a brief look at the glasses before handing them back, said, "I'm more accustomed to seeing you with them."

Ji Xingchen silently put his glasses back on.

"Let’s go. Off to our new home!" Chi Shen said cheerfully, backpack slung over his shoulder and pulling along the large black suitcase, heading towards the mansion’s exit.

Ji Xingchen followed him out.

The midnight rideshare driver, true to his word, was still waiting outside. As Chi Shen loaded the corpse-filled suitcase into the trunk, he turned to see the driver's head had fallen to the ground.

Ghost face crawled out of Chi Shen’s backpack, greeting the driver cheerfully, "Hello there! Still working rideshares this late?"

The driver, taken aback by the horrific sight of the ghost face so close, nearly lost his composure.

"Don’t scare him," Chi Shen said, scooping the ghost face back into his backpack.

Seeing Chi Shen taking Ghost Face away, the driver's decapitated head strewn on the seat almost wore an expression of gratitude. A moment later, the grateful look froze on his face.

From his backpack, Chi Shen pulled out a red thread, smiling kindly at the disassembled driver on the seat. "Driving in this state seems unsafe; let me help you."