“How did you figure out he was a Skinning Ghost?” Tao Yao Ye asked the question that Steward Zhang would never know the answer to, repeating it to Lu Yang.
Lu Yang was busy cleaning up the aftermath of the battle, using a broom to gather the ashes of the Skinning Ghost into a small pile. Tao Yao Ye took out a dustpan to help.
“It’s simple. Just remember what the parrot said. ‘Who are you? Where is Steward Zhang?’”
“When we met Shang Yuan, she deliberately drove us away, telling us to stay away from the Shang family.”
“This shows that the current Steward Zhang is no longer the person Miss Shang knew, and he is extremely dangerous.”
“There are three possibilities for Steward Zhang’s identity change.”
“The first is that Steward Zhang was possessed. But if an old monster possessed him, why would they stay in the Shang family for so long? If it were me, after possessing someone, the first thing I’d do is leave Taiping Village and find a good place to continue my cultivation. Plus, Steward Zhang doesn’t have much talent; possessing the head of the Shang family would be better than possessing him.” Lu Yang thought about it from a different perspective.
“The second possibility is that someone disguised themselves as Steward Zhang. But that doesn’t make sense either; the Shang family doesn’t have anything valuable. Why pretend to be the steward? Do they have a hobby of serving others? Even if the Shang family had something valuable, they could just rob it. With his late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, he could crawl through Taiping Village without anyone bothering him.”
“The third possibility is that he is a Skinning Ghost. Skinning Ghosts love to collect human skin and disguise themselves as humans, continuing their habits of disguise while living among people.”
A Skinning Ghost was once human, but after death, they became a type of ghost that cultivates. Most types of ghost cultivators have some kind of psychological issue.
For example, Skinning Ghosts are very sensitive about their identity being exposed. They will try hard to convince themselves that they are human, speaking and acting like humans. Once they get tired of their current skin, they will change it and start a new identity, repeating this cycle.
Lu Yang’s reasoning was sound, and Tao Yao Ye looked at him with admiration, completely forgetting the timid Lu Yang from the flying boat.
Tao Yao Ye understood the knowledge he had, but she didn’t think as deeply as he did at that moment; it was a difference in their thinking sensitivity.
“Keep the ashes safe; this is our proof of completing the task.” Lu Yang took out a white porcelain jar about two hands high and put the ashes of the Skinning Ghost inside.
The Skinning Ghost was an extension of their mission, considered part of it. Killing the Skinning Ghost would definitely earn them more rewards than finding the parrot.
Outside, there was a sound of running. The footsteps stopped at the door, as if several people had woken from a dream and were coming to check the situation but didn’t dare to enter.
It wasn’t hard to guess the identities of the people outside. Lu Yang laughed loudly, “Shang Family Head, come in! The Skinning Ghost has been killed by me, and it’s safe here.”
With a loud bang, the wooden door was pushed open by the Shang Family Head. Behind him stood his wife, daughter, and a total of twelve servants, all showing signs of having survived a disaster.
“Thank you, two immortals, for taking action to kill the Skinning Ghost and saving the lives of my twelve family members!” The Shang Family Head knelt down with a thud, and the others followed suit.
The Skinning Ghost was unpredictable; once it grew tired of its steward identity, it would likely kill all the members of the Shang family!
“Shang Family Head, don’t mention it. Exorcising demons and upholding justice is what disciples of the Wandao Sect should do.” Lu Yang had never seen such a scene before and was startled, quickly helping them up one by one.
“Please forgive us, two immortals. The Skinning Ghost appears and disappears mysteriously, and I don’t know where it came from.”
“Ever since this Skinning Ghost impersonated Steward Zhang, we haven’t been allowed to leave the Shang family. If someone visits, we can’t speak of its affairs; if it finds out, it would be a dead end!”
At this point, Shang Yuan also looked guilty. She was a gentle young lady, and all her cold actions in the room were just to keep Lu Yang and the others away from danger.
The Shang Family Head continued, “It’s a pity that I have retired to the countryside, and all my possessions as a cultivator have been exchanged for gold, silver, and jewels, which are useless to you two. I can’t repay you. If you have any needs, I’ll sell my property to fulfill them.” The Shang Family Head was not just being polite; he genuinely wanted to repay the life-saving favor.
To the disciples of the Wandao Sect, his wealth was practically worthless, like scrap metal.
Lu Yang actually had a need.
“I heard that you encountered a life-and-death crisis while tomb raiding, which made you decide to wash your hands of the cultivation world. I wonder what happened back then?”
Tao Yao Ye looked at the Shang Family Head with great interest. Tomb raiding, life-and-death crisis, great terror, washing hands of the situation—these words all sounded like they had a story behind them, and perhaps even a great opportunity. She loved exploring mysterious places.
Lu Yang wasn’t as interested in the unknown as Tao Yao Ye was, but he enjoyed hearing strange tales.
The Shang Family Head’s eyes twitched. To be honest, he didn’t want to recall those terrifying past events, but since his life-saving benefactors asked, he couldn’t refuse.
He sent everyone away, especially dismissing Shang Yuan, who tried to stay behind secretly, leaving only Lu Yang and Tao Yao Ye.
“This can’t be told to anyone else.”
Lu Yang and Tao Yao Ye nodded.
After receiving their confirmation, the Shang Family Head began to recount the events from twenty years ago.
“Thirty years ago, I, Shang Zhongtian, was somewhat famous in the tomb raiding world during the Qi Refining stage. I wouldn’t say I was notorious, but I was at a level where people disliked me.” The Shang Family Head placed his hands on his hips, reminiscing about the glorious golden days.
Lu Yang and Tao Yao Ye didn’t quite understand why the Shang Family Head seemed so proud while talking about this.
What they didn’t know was that in this line of work, tomb raiders were often rivals, and having a good reputation meant he was skilled.
“I was always very careful while tomb raiding. I never touched large tombs or ancient tombs. Everyone in our line of work knows the saying: large tombs have ghosts, and ancient tombs have immortals.”
The ghosts mentioned here were not the small ghosts like the Skinning Ghost but powerful beings that ruled over other ghosts.
“Qi Refining cultivators are poor, and the valuable items are usually given to their descendants, leaving no burial items behind. I never touched the tombs of Qi Refining cultivators; there was no profit in it.”
“Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core stages have some wealth. After they die, they usually give most of their wealth to their descendants, leaving only a small portion for burial. That small portion is enough for me to make a big profit.”
“Unfortunately, you walk by the river so often, how can you not get your shoes wet? One time, I was digging in a Golden Core cultivator’s grave, and in the end, I found out it was a grave within a grave. The Golden Core grave was the burial item, and the main grave was for a Nascent Soul cultivator!”
“In our line of work, it’s against the rules to dig graves that are too high above your own cultivation level. But at that time, I was so excited that I lost my head. I thought I was at the peak of Qi Refining. If I really ran, my speed could match that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Tomb raiding doesn’t involve fighting, so rounding it off, I could consider myself at the Foundation Establishment level. Digging a Nascent Soul grave that fell from the sky didn’t seem dangerous.”
“So, I offered incense to my ancestors and prayed for their blessing before starting to dig the Nascent Soul grave.”
(To be continued)
(End of chapter)