“Chapter Twenty-Six”

"Chapter Twenty-Six"

"Death may be terrifying, but the most torturous pain is always in living."

"Jiang Lin agreed with Shen Wang’s words."

"Amid Liu Zhengyi's continuous pleas of 'I want to live,' Jiang Lin floated out from the black fog. At the sight of him, Liu Zhengyi screamed, fell to his knees, and began kowtowing, 'Brother Jiang, I was wrong, I shouldn’t have fabricated news. I have elderly parents and young children, please spare me...'"

"Qian Liangjun, as if facing a formidable enemy, mustered his last strength to attack the daringly exposed vengeful ghost. However, a hand as white as jade rested on his shoulder, and Shen Wang’s calm voice came from above."

"'This is their grudge. As long as no lives are taken, why interfere?'"

"'Exorcising demons is a Taoist's duty, to eradicate evil at all costs. Shen Wang, your dubious magical abilities are one thing, but aiding an evil spirit? I’ll report this to the Metaphysical Association, see how you handle that!' Qian Liangjun glared at Shen Wang, his gathered spiritual energy dissipated, uttering threats."

"Shen Wang looked down at him, speechless: 'Are you reminding me to eliminate the root to prevent future trouble?'"

"Qian Liangjun stiffened: 'Murder is a crime.'"

"As soon as he spoke, he realized his folly."

"'Do you need my help?' Jiang Lin’s head rotated 180 degrees, his blood-red, pupil-less eyes fixed on Qian Liangjun."

"Qian Liangjun bluffed with a stiff neck, 'Shen Wang, if you direct this evil spirit to kill me, you’ll become a completely evil cultivator, hunted by the entire metaphysical community!'"

"Jiang Lin, brimming with murderous intent, waited for just a word from Shen Wang to engulf the foolish Taoist and the unconscious one on the floor in black fog..."

"Shen Wang, rubbing his forehead in frustration, said, 'Hurry and resolve your own issue. With all this commotion, the Metaphysical Association and special departments will soon be here, and you won’t be able to escape.'"

"For Jiang Lin, his mortal enemy who caused his death was more important than a Taoist who merely discomforted him."

"Jiang Lin’s neck rotated another 180 degrees back to the front, staring at Liu Zhengyi, his voice chilling and terrifying, 'Do you want to die, or do you want to live?'"

"The scene was so terrifying that Liu Zhengyi almost fainted from fear. Worried Jiang Lin wouldn’t let him wake up if he did, he bit the inside of his mouth to stay conscious, oblivious to the taste of blood, 'I want to live! Brother Jiang, I want to live, I don’t want to die, please give me a chance, I want to live!'"

"Jiang Lin and Shen Wang exchanged glances, and then Jiang Lin said, 'I want you to publicly apologize to me online and confess all the wrongdoings you’ve ever done!'"

"Alright, alright, I agree! I agree to everything!" Liu Zhengyi hastily consented without hesitation.

Under Jiang Lin's watchful eye, Liu Zhengyi didn't dare to stand up. Crawling on all fours, he reached for his phone thrown on the ground, shakily typing a message in the memo app.

After finishing, he turned to Jiang Lin with a flattering smile, holding up his phone respectfully: "Look, is this okay? How would you like me to change it?"

Before Jiang Lin could speak, Shen Wang took the phone, glancing over it briefly; "Your apology to Jiang Lin seems sincere enough, but what about the others you’ve slandered? Write them all in."

Liu Zhengyi shuddered. If he exposed all the dirty deeds he had done since starting his career, it would mean the end of his professional path... Despite inwardly cursing, with a vengeful ghost watching, he dared not resist and took back his phone to continue writing, his face a picture of misery.

This time, Shen Wang only glanced briefly: "You’re on the brink of death and still trying to be deceitful. Since you don’t wish to live, I won't bother with you anymore."

At these words, Jiang Lin instantly realized Liu Zhengyi was trying to fool him. Angered, he let out a loud shout, and black fog instantly surged into Liu Zhengyi’s body, tormenting him into continuous screams.

Liu Zhengyi’s skin swelled and burst as he writhed in agony, smearing the floor with blood, eventually becoming too weak to roll, curling up like a shrimp, emitting faint groans.

"Refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit." Jiang Lin then withdrew the black fog, using a wisp of it to lift the phone and throw it beside Liu Zhengyi, "Next time, I’ll take your life."

Everyone present could distinctly feel his uncontrollable murderous intent.

This was not just an empty threat. If there was a next time, he would undoubtedly kill Liu Zhengyi.

"He’s about to kill someone, aren’t you going to do something?" Qian Liangjun’s pupils contracted. This evil spirit hadn’t yet tainted his hands with blood. If he broke the taboo of murder, the next to die would surely be him.

Shen Wang, with his arms crossed, watching the drama unfold, replied in surprise to this remark: "He is he, I am I, we’re neither kin nor kindred. Why should I intervene? Besides, he showed restraint, didn’t he?"

"Shen Wang, infuriated by being blatantly lied to, nearly spat blood, while Qian Liangjun clenched his teeth: 'With that ghostly energy inside him, Liu Zhengyi will be weak and ill for at least a decade, possibly tormented by sickness for the rest of his life... And you call that restraint?'"

"Shen Wang nodded: 'Isn’t he still alive? He's the evil ghost you speak of, yet he controlled his instinct to kill and merely taught a small lesson. Don’t you think he was very restrained, very well-behaved, and deserves praise?'"

"Shen Wang’s eyes were filled with big question marks: This is an evil ghost, what more do you expect?"

"With a 'pfft,' Qian Liangjun, who had been holding back blood in his chest, spewed it out, splattering at least a meter away."

"Immediately jumping back as he began to bleed, Shen Wang looked down at his shoes and sighed in relief: 'Good thing it didn’t get on my shoes. They're expensive, cost me two hundred.'"

"Qian Liangjun, so angered he saw black spots, was speechless."

"Jiang Lin, while intently watching Liu Zhengyi write his confession, listened to Shen Wang and Qian Liangjun's conversation."

"Upon hearing the praises, the pale hue on Jiang Lin’s ghostly face seemed to fade slightly, the swirling black resentment around him calmed, obediently hovering near him."

"Liu Zhengyi, unaware of Jiang Lin’s good mood, had a racing heartbeat and trembled all over."

"After encountering a mysterious event and realizing he was haunted by an unknown ghost, he was extremely panicked, only thinking about how to exorcise and capture the ghost."

"When he actually saw the ghost and knew it was someone he knew, a kind and upright person, Liu Zhengyi was still scared, but less afraid, and even started scheming subconsciously."

"Write less, or omit a few people, Jiang Lin wouldn’t know all the bad things he had done... Minimize the impact on his career as much as possible."

"Just get rid of this ghost, and he was sure to find a more powerful Taoist to exorcise it."

"As he thought, Jiang Lin, a good person in life, turned out to be an easily fooled ghost after death. Unfortunately, the savior he summoned, Shen Wang, turned out to be the harbinger of his doom."

"After being harshly taught a lesson, Liu Zhengyi finally realized, Jiang Lin was a good man, but he was dead. Now, standing before him was a vengeful evil spirit."

"Carefully writing down all his past misdeeds without omitting a single detail, and after getting Shen Wang’s nod of approval, he posted it from his personal account and then logged into Chengnan Daily's official account to share it."

"Liu Zhengyi watched as his phone began to vibrate uncontrollably the next second, thinking bitterly, it's all over now."

"As an official account with millions of followers, Chengnan Daily's repost caused a rapid influx of hundreds of comments within seconds."

"Everyone was shocked upon seeing what was reposted."

"[What is this... a journalist from Chengnan Daily?]"

"[Isn’t Chengnan Daily notorious for chasing hot topics regardless of the truth? Finally, someone has realized this issue.]"

"[I've seen all the news this journalist reported… falsely accusing a kind-hearted guy of causing an accident, blaming a child’s suicide on a teacher’s molestation, reporting a sibling quarrel as a couple fighting over dowry...]"

"[The child’s suicide one was the most absurd news I followed. Clearly, the teacher was female, yet they insisted a female teacher couldn’t molest a child. Even after the story was debunked, the teacher was still fired...]"

"[Were all these news stories written by him? No wonder they all felt so sensational.]"

"[How can such a person even be a journalist? My God, it’s terrifying. ]"

"[@Chengnan Daily, you used to be a reputable newspaper. I used to buy it every day, but look at what you’ve become now. ]"

"[The scariest part is he took money to smear others. Not only lacking journalistic ethics but basic human decency as well. ]"

"[He must be arrested, he’s too hateful, taking money to smear celebrities and companies. Whatever you pay him for, he smears... No wonder that old domestic brand suddenly had so many scandals. ]"

"Liu Zhengyi had written countless viral news stories. Almost everyone who had been online had seen his reports. Now, they realized they had been tools in Liu Zhengyi’s manipulation of public opinion."

"For a moment, everyone who saw the article was filled with immense anger, harshly condemning the unscrupulous journalist."

"Chengnan Daily quickly noticed something was amiss and deleted the official account's repost, but it was too late. The situation had already escalated, quickly soaring to the top of trending searches."

"'Are you happy now?' Shen Wang asked Jiang Lin."

"By this time, the man and the ghost had already left Liu Zhengyi's house, checking the aftermath of the incident online."

"'He's experienced everything I did, of course I'm happy!' Jiang Lin cackled, his eyes almost glued to the smartphone screen."

"Jiang Lin, caught between the levels of a vengeful ghost and a fierce ghost, could only manipulate objects with black fog and couldn't perform delicate actions like using a phone, so he had Shen Wang refresh the feed for him."

"Shen Wang looked down, casually refreshing with a finger, observing the screen filled with curses. He said nothing, just tirelessly kept refreshing."

"Liu Zhengyi had unscrupulously chased after popularity and traffic, and now, he became the biggest hot topic, experiencing everything he had falsely accused others of."

"And this was just the beginning."

"Perhaps because the matter escalated too greatly, in less than half an hour, Chengnan Daily quickly distanced itself from Liu Zhengyi, announcing his dismissal."

"Following this, the State Administration of Press and Publication also issued a statement, revoking Liu Zhengyi’s press credentials."

"From then on, Liu Zhengyi's cherished career was utterly ruined. In the field of journalism, he became a universally despised pariah."

"But this still wasn’t enough."

"Only when Jiang Lin saw that the police had arrested Liu Zhengyi and initiated an investigation did he finally feel completely satisfied."

"The comment section was full of praise for the development."

"[Serves him right! Such an unethical journalist deserves to be arrested.]"

"[Accepting bribes, fabricating facts... it’s already a criminal offense. I hope the police give him a good lesson.]"

"[He has harmed so many people, it's infuriating. Take Shen Wang's recent case, for example, I never expected it was him accepting money to slander...]"

"[But I'm curious, Shen Wang has no power or money, who would go to such lengths to smear him?]"

"[Did anyone investigate the background of that good Samaritan? Has anyone found out who it is?]"