Lying in bed, I couldn't fall asleep, my mind filled with thoughts about tomorrow—especially about Rachel Lan, which worried me the most. On top of that, there's been a personnel shift: Chief Stone is being reassigned tomorrow, supposedly by urgent orders from above.
In my dream, I found myself once again in that long corridor, empty and cold, with moonlight streaming in. But this time, Helen Chen was nowhere to be seen—only that girl with blood-red eyes stood by the window, her face awash with sorrow.
"You've come again, Ethan Zhang."
I gasped, staring at her. Suddenly, the girl turned her head and revealed a wicked, seductive smile.
"Who are you, really? What do you want?"
"Who I am doesn't matter. I'm just here to help you."
I gasped again, watching her as I walked closer.
"You're a ghost, aren't you?" I blurted out without thinking.
The girl nodded, smiling. Those blood-red eyes seemed as if they could suck a person right in.
"Why are you helping me?"
"Don’t you realize how serious this is now?" I walked over and grabbed Rowan Luo by the collar.
"Hmph, what, Ethan Zhang? You want to spend a few days in jail too?"
Suddenly, Hugh Thompson grabbed the back of my collar and yanked me away.
"Heh, Director Luo, this has nothing to do with Ethan Zhang. Heh."
Hugh Thompson walked over with a smile. In that instant, I saw Rowan Luo's face change dramatically. Somehow, Hugh Thompson was now holding a small knife, pressing it against Rowan Luo's neck.
Suddenly, I saw a dozen guns aimed straight at Hugh Thompson.
"What are you trying to do? Hugh Thompson, do you know what kind of crime this is?"
"Director Luo, charge me with whatever you want. Right now, I hold all the cards. Tell them to get out of the way, or else."
As he spoke, Hugh Thompson's knife suddenly sliced Rowan Luo's neck, blood trickling out. Rowan Luo screamed, and the SWAT officers surrounding us quickly stepped aside.
"Get out of the way!" Over a dozen Ghost Burial Squad members shouted, grabbing a few SWAT officers and snatching their guns.
"Are you all insane? Do you even know what you’re doing?"
With a loud bang, Howard Lee grabbed a pistol and struck Rowan Luo’s head with the grip, then pressed the barrel to his skull.
"Make another sound and I’ll blow your brains out."
"So what if it’s jail? Out there we risk our lives every day, never knowing when we’ll die. It’s been years, and our pay is still pathetic. Spend a little money and they scrutinize every cent—damn it."
One of the Ghost Burial Squad shouted. Soon, we piled into four vans, barreling out of the school toward Chenshire Village, taking the unconscious Lily Qian and holding Rowan Luo hostage.
In the car, Rowan Luo didn’t dare say another word.
"I don’t know how you got transferred here and made director, but there’s only one real leader of the Ghost Burial Squad—Chief Stone. Let me warn you: go back and tell those big shots at the top, times aren’t peaceful now. Ghosts are surging. If they want safety, they’d better bring Chief Stone back. Otherwise, we won’t care about their lives anymore."
After Hugh Thompson finished speaking, the car stopped and they threw Rowan Luo out.
"Step on it! Get to Chenshire Village, fast."
Hugh Thompson grabbed the radio and shouted. The four vehicles sped down the road.
Howard Lee and two members of the Ghost Burial Squad were preparing something in small bags. I saw cooked meat, rice, and some incense and joss paper inside.
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"What are you guys doing?"
"Brother Ethan, I knew the moment Chief Stone left, things would go south. I just got out of the hospital last night, and when I heard what happened, I talked it over with the rest of the brothers. Today’s a real mess. At least before we fix things, we can’t get caught by the cops. So, we’re going to summon a few ghosts to stall the police chasing us."
I nodded. It seemed that after everything that had happened, none of the Ghost Burial Squad members thought much of it.
"They say the 23 missing Ghost Burial Squad members were found at the mouth of a stone cave underground. There’s a subterranean river inside. They’re a bit malnourished, but otherwise fine."
At nine o’clock, we entered Chenshire Village. The construction crew had already left; the ground was pitted and uneven from digging, and some houses had collapsed.
Howard Lee called out, and three members of the Ghost Burial Squad went over. Together, they quickly set up a makeshift altar. Howard lit three sticks of incense, placed straw dolls, rice, baijiu, and meat on the altar.
Then I saw Howard Lee take out three small yellow flags, each inscribed with the word "ghost," and plant them before the altar.
Hugh Thompson kept his eyes on his phone, his expression grave.
"Howard, hurry up. They’ll catch up in twenty minutes at most."
"Relax, Hugh. It’s fine. We’ve got time."
Howard Lee lit three sticks of incense. Two Ghost Burial Squad members burned joss paper. He tied a red cord around a straw doll, pricked his finger, and let blood drip onto it.
Then Howard Lee took out a peachwood sword. After three kneelings and nine bows, he leapt up, brandishing the sword and chanting.
"Heaven is clear, earth is spiritual, soldiers obey the seal, generals follow the command. Disciple Howard Lee, by the order of the Maoshan Patriarch, respectfully summons the Five Ghosts of the Center—Yao Bisong; the Five Ghosts of the North—Lin Jingzhong; the Five Ghosts of the West—Cai Ziliang; the Five Ghosts of the South—Zhang Zigui; the Five Ghosts of the East—Chen Guixian. Hurry to the road, cloud minds, confuse directions, heed the order, move swiftly, by the Maoshan Patriarch’s decree, go..."
When Howard Lee finished chanting, he pointed the peachwood sword at the straw doll. Instantly, the doll began to move. A gust of wind blew, scattering ashes everywhere. Suddenly, I saw several shadows rushing down the road, accompanied by laughter.
Howard Lee hurriedly took out a bagua mirror, placed it on the altar, and lit an oil lamp.
"Xiaoming, pay attention. When the oil lamp’s about to go out, burn the joss paper." Howard handed the lamp to a squad member. The others brought over several boxes of joss paper.
"No need to worry for now. This much paper should last until tonight. Let’s go."
Hugh Thompson spoke. The Ghost Burial Squad grabbed their gear. We skirted the pitted ground and headed deeper into the village.
"The entrance to the underground river is over there."
I looked over. After walking for more than ten minutes, we reached the edge of the village—a stretch of abandoned fields and a small hollow.
"We need to set things up quickly while it’s still daytime. Don’t go in yet—wait a bit."
After a difficult trek, we arrived at the cave entrance. A small river flowed out from the cave, but most of the surrounding area was dry.
Howard Lee took out a compass, calculating the directions.
"This place faces north, always in shadow, never sees the sun. The yin energy is heavy. Later, set up the formation near the Yin Gate. Tonight, we finish off that ghost—don’t let her escape."
The cave was pitch black inside, nothing visible. Lily Qian’s vital signs were stable—no major issues—but she was still unconscious.
The Ghost Burial Squad got busy. Just then, laughter echoed from the cave—a woman’s shrill, ghostly cackle. A chilling wind blew out from the darkness.
Lily Qian’s eyes snapped open.
"What’s going on? In broad daylight?" Hugh Thompson muttered. Lily Qian’s face twisted into a sinister smile.
"None of you are leaving tonight."