Yinshan Record

Chapter 170 Paper-Made Skin
"Master, you are back."

Linghu Gong hurriedly returned to his residence in a flash of light. As soon as he landed, the steward of the residence came forward to report.

"Is there a problem?"

"It's like this, the young master Zuo from the Ghost Ancestor Palace is waiting for you. He said he wants to take a stroll in the realm and asked me to tell you."

Linghu Gong now gets a toothache just hearing the words "Ghost Ancestor Palace," and his appetite completely vanishes at the mention of "Young Master Zuo."

Xue Shaojun just led them to "pay their respects" to the Dharma King, but naturally, they didn't get any results.

After discussing it for a while, the group came to the conclusion of "calming the situation with calm".

Linghu Gong also had his own evaluation of these four characters.

The four characters, when written, mean "to calm oneself down," but when read, they mean "to wait for execution."

Even now, you're still so indecisive.

"If he wants to go, he can go. Why are you asking me?"

Linghu Gong muttered to himself, then suddenly remembered something.

What did he do after we left?

"Young Master Zuo, along with Grandfather Chong and his subordinate, toured our manor a few times, and then summoned that Miss Yu Nu..."

He still has the leisure to do that.

No, Lord Linghu frowned. There might be something wrong with that Yu Nu.

What kind of celestial beauty could make a man reluctant to leave his house for four days? Not to mention that the woman was just an ordinary, plain-looking woman, and she just looked awkward no matter how you looked at her.

"Keep a close eye on that Yu Nu."

Linghu Gong thought for a moment.

"Go tell him he's free to come and go as he pleases here. I have other things to do, so I won't accompany him..."

At this point, Lord Linghu suddenly raised his head and asked.

"What's going on outside?"

"Reporting to your master, something has happened outside; it has suddenly started raining."

rain.

Linghu Gong's expression hardened.

"Oh no! You've been guarding the house these past few days, disaster is coming."

The old ghost, about the size of a fist, grabbed his cane and walked outside.

In the garden, Taigong Chong gazed thoughtfully at the sky.

"Why did it suddenly start raining?"

"Isn't it wrong for it to rain?"

Lu Bai looked at Taigong Chong.

“Of course not. The wind, rain, thunder and lightning in this Yin-Yang Realm are all predetermined. This month will be sunny, and it will definitely not rain.” Taigong Chong frowned. “I’m afraid there have been some changes in the realm.”

As they were talking, a ghost servant delivered Linghu Gong's message.

"These things are none of our business."

Su Che smiled and said, "Miss Yu Nu, we're going out to take a look. Aren't you coming?"

"Young Master Zuo, please make yourself at home."

Wuzhiqi covered her mouth with one hand, looking quite shy.

We've been living together for four days now, and you're still playing hard to get?

Lu Bai felt that every single girl his boss met was incredibly strange.

Linghu Gong's villa was located on the edge of Wuyin City. Not far from there, one could see a bustling crowd of ghosts, both big and small, doing business.

The streets of Wuyin City were not much different from those of human cities, with shops along the street displaying banners listing the goods they sold. Only the specific items differed. This was Su Che's first time seeing such a ghost city, and with Taigong Chong as his guide, he decided to ask him all the questions he could.

The shop sells "top-quality paper offerings," and various paper figures of different sizes, both male and female, are displayed at the entrance. Many strangely shaped ghosts flock into the shop, making the entrance crowded with ghosts, suggesting a thriving business.

"Young Master Zuo, please take a look. There are about sixteen or seventeen paper-making shops in Wuyin City, and the Feng family's old shop has the best craftsmanship."

According to Taigong Chong's explanation, these paper offerings are necessities for the lives of the ghosts in the Five Yin City.

There are two types of paper offerings: one is in the shape of a human figure, and the other is in the shape of an object, each with its own uses.

The saying "After death, all things are empty" does not apply to the realm of the living and the dead, where ghosts always have some strange material needs.

Some bald ghosts like to use a comb and a mirror to fix their hair, which never actually existed. Some ghosts want to get some furniture for their homes.

These are all things that everyone needs, but the Yin-Yang Realm is only open for a short time at noon each day. How can we bring in a large number of these things from the outside?

According to Taigongchong, everyone basically had to settle for second best.

If you buy a few paper effigies in the shape of objects from a paper effigy shop at this time, take them home and fill them with yin energy, they will immediately have that kind of appearance. To the living, they are just decorations, but to the ghosts, they can be used as real objects.

The demand for paper effigy in human form is more widespread. Most of the inhabitants of the Yin-Yang realm are strangely shaped. Although they can gradually change their appearance through cultivation, only a few achieve success in cultivation.

But whether in life or in death, a person should always have some dignity, shouldn't they?

No matter how strange the ghosts and monsters that come, once they crawl into these paper effigies, they will probably look like humans when they come out.

Unfortunately, their bodies are rather stiff, and their faces are also quite similar to others.

Su Che felt that this paper offering was basically equivalent to the cheap plastic surgery clinics in his previous life. No wonder walking on this street felt like watching a Miss Korea pageant.

"Paper offerings are convenient to use, but they break down too quickly. They'll only last a few months before you have to buy new ones," Taigong Chong said with a sigh. "The paper offering shops in the city are all businesses owned by the families of the ghost generals."

Su Che looked at the old man beside him and said, "So, you're quite wealthy, Grandma. If there are any expenses today, I'll leave them to you."

"Easy to say, easy to say."

"Young master, how come the old lady has money?"

Lu Bai, who was standing next to him, didn't quite understand.

He had just seen a male ghost on the street take a fancy to a paper effigy. After crawling inside it, he transformed into a woman with a very stiff face and began to pose seductively, while a group of strange and ferocious ghosts cheered him on.

This folk custom greatly shocked Lu Bai, who had been in charge of criminal justice work in the Imperial Guard. He couldn't figure out the connection between the paper effigies being so quickly ruined and Taigong Chong being rich.

Could it be that this paper-craft shop is calculating Taigong Chong's benefits?

"Since paper offerings are used up so quickly, how much money do you think a ghost messenger like the old lady, who can freely enter and leave the realm of the living and the dead, could exchange for just a few things brought in from outside?"

Although I don't know what currency is used in the Yin-Yang realm, Taigong Chong must be very safe.

"You old rascal, you must have done your fair share of petty theft and shady dealings." Lu Bai looked at Taigong Chong with a sly smile. "You'd better be careful when you go out in the future."

Don't let yourself fall into the hands of a real man.

"Hehe, it's embarrassing to admit. You know jewelry is the most expensive. So I used to go to Shanyin County often, and every time I would smuggle some silver from them to use as raw materials. I was worried that the imperial guards would find out and cause trouble, so I didn't dare to take too much. But then a silly monster from Xuanshan took the blame for me. Hehe, I bet those silly imperial guards are still trying to figure out who that unlucky monster is."

So it was you, you old devil.

Su Che wanted to laugh to himself.

"Hey, you know, a while ago a monster wrecked the treasury of Shanyin County, which is perfect for paying off my debts."

“Grandma,” Lu Bai gently patted his shoulder, “my future depends on you.”

"What are you talking about, we're brothers?" Taigong Chong couldn't understand at all, so he turned to look at Su Che.

"Is Young Master Zuo interested in these paper offerings?"

Before Su Che could reply, Taigong Chong continued.

"That's right, all of you from the Beiman lineage love keeping ghost concubines. If we're talking about having fun, then your Ghost Ancestor Palace is the best. Come, come, come with me, I'll take you to a good place."

Grandpa Chong pulled Su Che into another shop not far away.

(End of this chapter)