The door of the crematorium was wide open. Although the light inside was very bright, when it shone on the signboard, it emitted an eerie green glow—strange and terrifying. I couldn't fathom what Christoph was thinking. A signboard like this—was he trying to scare people to death?
Then again, upon reflection, it wasn't really a problem. No living people came to the crematorium, and most who ended up here were already dead.
I'd been to this place before. I wouldn't say I was familiar with it, but I knew my way around. After entering, I noticed the mute corpse carriers were absent, and the entire crematorium was eerily quiet, sending a shiver down my spine.
I knew the way to Christoph's room and didn't dare to look around or wander aimlessly, so I headed straight there.
But as I passed the incinerator, I suddenly spotted a little girl with twin braids squatting by the furnace door, constantly feeding firewood into the flames.
This startled me. Since when was that a toy for children? What if she accidentally hurt herself? In my panic, I didn't overthink it and rushed forward to stop her.
"Hey, kid! Stay away from there! Where are your parents?" I immediately dashed over, intending to carry her away. Whose child was this? How utterly irresponsible—what kind of person would leave a kid here?
This was an incinerator! How dangerous must it be for a small child to approach? The parents must have nerves of steel.
But as I got closer, the little girl suddenly turned around—and that was when I slammed on the brakes, my face twisting in sheer terror.
The other side of her head… was just another back of the head, also adorned with twin braids!
Where was her… face? Both sides were just the back of a head with braids?
Fear rooted me to the spot. My legs went numb, as if paralyzed, and cold sweat drenched my back. This was downright horrifying.
"Uncle, do you want to play with me? Come inside!" After saying this, the little girl suddenly dove headfirst into the incinerator. Then, a grayish-green hand shot out and yanked me toward the flames.
"Play my ass! Get back! Cause trouble again, and I'll press your ashes into the cesspool—let you stink for years to come!" A booming voice suddenly rang out behind me, its tone dripping with menace.
The moment those words were spoken, the hand immediately retracted. After that, the incinerator fell still, and the little girl never reappeared.
I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead, then turned back and instantly saw Christoph, who was holding a large sunflower fan and was bare-chested. He yawned when he saw me.
"Great nephew, sorry, haha! I just fell asleep. I was planning to work overtime to burn this corpse before calling it a day, but I didn't realize I dozed off in my room. Haha, it didn't scare you, did it?" Christoph laughed.
"That thing just now was…?" I pointed at the incinerator and asked. Saying it didn't scare me wouldn't be true—I was still a little stunned.
Christoph dismissed it as a naughty little girl and told me not to worry about her. Then he asked if I had come to find him for something.
He warned me that, at this hour, I should come to the crematorium less often in the future because his crematorium always faced west with its door open, so some eerie occurrences were normal. But he told me not to be afraid—as the saying goes, people fear ghosts by three parts, but ghosts fear people by seven. Normal ghosts wouldn't harm people; some were even afraid of humans. Unless they were ghosts of resentment, vengeful spirits, or evil ghosts.
If I encountered those, there was no need to fear either—just see if I could run or fight. If neither worked, I could just report his name, so I could at least die a little more decently.
I laughed bitterly. This old man was quite the joker, cracking cold jokes in the middle of the night. Did he think he was being humorous?
I didn't bother wasting words with him and directly stated my purpose: I wanted a *Tattoo of Gods and Ghosts—Five Ghosts Fortune-Bringing*.
Christoph said it was no problem—he had a ghost in stock for three years that he couldn't sell.
This ghost wasn't ordinary; it was extremely cunning. Its name was Kairos. When he died, he was about fifty years old. He had been a hustler in life, winning a lot of money through gambling. But once he was caught cheating, he was thrown from the 20th floor—a terrible way to go!
This time, I found it a little strange. Before, Christoph would simply state a ghost's cause of death when selling them, but this time, the information was way too detailed, wasn't it?
Christoph sighed and said it was a long story. This ghost was too cunning—it took him over a year to catch it. If he hadn't investigated its background and fully understood it, he probably wouldn't have succeeded.
His words piqued my curiosity, and I hurriedly asked what had happened. From what I'd seen, he was quite capable—ghosts usually behaved in front of him. How had this one been so difficult?
Christoph said he'd never met such a cunning ghost in his life. That thing had actually hidden in the women's bathhouse—how was a grown man supposed to go in there? Later, it hid in the women's locker room for a while. Luckily, during the Ghost Festival, it possessed a gambling addict looking for a meal, and Christoph seized the chance to catch it.
This kind of ghost made for an especially effective Yin-inspired tattoo. But Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts were unique to my family—if I didn't want it, he didn't know who else could sell it. Could ghost cultivators want this thing? They also raised little ghosts and female ghosts—ones that would obey and even serve in bed at night.
Christoph started whining incessantly. I thought he was just venting about his hard work, but it turned out all this was just padding for his price hike. He opened with 30,000, saying this was the hardship fee, that the amount wasn't excessive at all, and that he was already giving me a discount - an extremely affordable price at that.
I'm no pushover. The Five Ghosts Fortune-Bringing tattoo only costs 100,000 total, and he wants to charge me 30,000 just for the pigment? That's practically fleecing me!
I flashed a sinister smile and said, "Christoph, didn't you just say it yourself? I'm the only Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts practitioner who'd want this. Otherwise you wouldn't be able to sell it. I'll take this ghost, and considering your hard work, I'll throw in an extra 5,000 - 15,000 total. Otherwise, let's just say goodbye!"
At this Christoph slapped his forehead and said: "Damn it, too hasty! Why did I have to say that out loud? Now you've got leverage. Fine, I'll sell it to you at a loss. Keeping it any longer would just cost me money in upkeep. Wait here."
After speaking, Christoph turned to go back to his room. As soon as he left, I heard movement all around - the two coffins placed nearby seemed to have something jumping inside. When Christoph returned, everything became quiet again.
Christoph came out holding a bamboo tube. He told me to secure it properly, warning that this ghost was extremely cunning and if it escaped, it would be hard to recapture.
I nodded to show I understood, then quickly transferred the money to Christoph.
After purchasing the ghost, I didn't linger. Late at night, the crematorium was especially eerie. Christoph had offered to let me "sample the goods" - he had a fresh female corpse inside, said he wouldn't charge me - but I wanted none of that. I immediately turned tail and ran.
What the hell? I've got Vervecity's famous Iceberg Beauty available to me, why would I want your damn female corpse? Do I have brain damage?
They say you should strike while the iron's hot, but if the iron's already cold, what's the point? Get the hell out of here!