Wu Daoqing lowered his head, his voice tinged with a hint of helplessness and embarrassment as he slowly explained the situation.
“A few days ago, the Heavenly Master Association received a request from a wealthy merchant.”
“There is a bizarre occurrence in his family. No one related to him by blood, whether male or female, lives past the age of thirty-five. It has been like this for generations, without a single exception.”
None lived past thirty-five.
Compared to a real curse like this, the fake curse of the Bai family—where one would die if they didn't marry by age thirty—was truly child's play.
There was no distinction, no selection; as long as you carried the family's blood, you were doomed to die before thirty-five.
Judging from what she had learned from reading over the past few days, Bai Ci knew this was far beyond the scope of ordinary spirits causing trouble or negative energy clinging to a body.
In this instance world, when ordinary evil spirits harmed people, they followed the laws of grievance and retribution. They would strike as soon as they had enough power and found an opportunity, never acting in such a rigid, systematic manner.
Moreover, what did it mean for a curse to completely cover every single person who carried this bloodline?
It meant the grievance was immense.
Just how immense it was, Bai Ci had no concept of, but Ming Yi did.
If the wealthy merchant had not exaggerated the situation, the level of this grievance was no longer a simple matter of wiping out the family; it would even require several overlapping conditions.
Bracing himself, Wu Daoqing continued his honest explanation.
“If the merchant didn't lie about the situation, and there are no misunderstandings, then this isn't just a simple case of a spirit causing trouble. It's definitely not something an ordinary heavenly master can resolve.”
“And although the merchant offered a generous reward, it's merely mundane money, which is utterly useless to us cultivators.”
Hearing this, a wave of realization washed over Bai Ci.
This was a classic scenario: a troublesome task that no one wanted to do was passed around until it finally landed on the newcomer's head.
What's more, he was a newcomer who enshrined a Ghost Immortal, which made it easy to justify on paper.
They could confidently claim: “He's a talented young man, so we should give him more opportunities to grow and gain experience.”
“So they kept passing the buck until it landed on you? Silly child, you really are too honest.”
Having his thoughts laid bare, Wu Daoqing's cheeks flushed slightly. His tone was filled with embarrassment and a touch of bewildered helplessness.
“I... This disciple didn't plan to agree at first. This matter is so complex that a novice like me can't possibly handle it. Besides, I couldn't just rely entirely on Lady Ming's help while doing nothing myself.”
“But the president came to see me. He said he just wanted to chat and wasn't forcing me to agree. Then, as we talked, I don't know how, but I ended up agreeing in a daze.”
Bai Ci shook her head inwardly.
It was far from a daze.
It was clearly the sly president exploiting the newcomer's inability to say no. With a few psychological tricks, he had easily led the naive young man into a trap.
A troublesome, unwanted, dead-end job was thus effortlessly dumped onto the newcomer.
It was a classic workplace tactic. Unfortunately, this boy was too honest and didn't understand the ways of the world at all.
Bai Ci did not expose the truth, nor did she reply immediately. She simply remained silent.
She knew her boundaries. Her current role was merely the benevolent soul occupying the body; she understood some basic common sense and could facilitate communication and ease the tension.
But the actual ability to deal with evil spirits belonged entirely to Ming Yi.
For a supernatural event that required real action, she, who only spoke, had no right to make decisions. The authority lay entirely with Ming Yi, the one who would have to do the heavy lifting.
Ming Yi understood her silence instantly.
In the depths of her consciousness, that sharp male voice took control of the body once more. Though his tone carried a hint of impatience, he still addressed the matter.
“As our tribute-offerer, you have already taken on this task. Now that things have come to this, do you think I can just stand by and avoid making this trip?”
The next day, the exit of the City A airport was bustling with crowds.
Beyond the crowd, a luxury black car was parked quietly by the roadside.
A middle-aged man with a straight posture stood by the car. His expression was steady and his gaze sharp. Seeing Wu Daoqing wearing his blue-gray heavenly master robe, he checked a photo to confirm his identity and immediately stepped forward.
“Are you Daoist Master Wu—Daoist Wu? I am Zhou Zhong, the butler of the Zhao family. I came here specifically to wait for you, Daoist Master. It must have been a tiring journey, please get in.”
The two of them got into the car one after the other, and the driver started the engine, slowly steering away from the main airport road.
As for Bai Ci, rather than sitting in an empty seat, she had a way of sitting that she really wanted to try.
When Ming Yi did not deliberately use his power to maintain a physical form, both he and she existed in spiritual form.
Others could not see them, and they were not bound by the laws of physics.
Thus, Bai Ci simply floated up onto the roof of the car. Although she looked as if she were sitting on top of it, she was essentially floating in a state of relative rest relative to the roof.
So this is what the view from the roof of a car looks like.
The view was vast. The scenery of heaven and earth, along with the sights along the way, all fell into her eyes. Furthermore, because she was a spiritual entity, she wasn't affected by the wind generated by the car's speed. It was an exceptionally pleasant experience.
The car drove all the way out of the bustling city, gradually leaving behind the urban commercial districts filled with high-rises. It turned onto a fork of a winding mountain road, and the air shifted from the hot, murky atmosphere of the city to the fresh scent of mountain plants and trees.
The winding mountain road twisted and turned, spiraling upward as the terrain gradually rose.
They passed a bluestone signpost engraved with two words in black ink: Fog Mountain.
After driving on the mountain road for about ten minutes, a manor built against the mountain finally appeared at the end of their vision.
The manor as a whole was in a retro Chinese courtyard style, with blue bricks, black tiles, and upturned eaves, gracefully situated on a flat stretch of land at the mountain summit.
The outer walls were mottled with the marks of time. It was obvious that it had been built long ago and possessed a rich history.
Butler Zhou, sitting in the passenger seat, introduced timely, “Daoist Wu, this manor was personally built by Mr. Zhao's grandfather, who selected the site himself. It has been nearly fifty years since then.”
“The old manor looks ancient and weathered, but the interior has been completely renovated. Water, electricity, and smart home appliances are all fully equipped, so you don't have to worry about any inconvenience, Daoist Master.”
As they spoke, the car slowly drove through the courtyard gates, passed through the front yard planted with precious greenery, and finally came to a steady halt beneath the bluestone steps in front of the main building.
“The bizarre occurrence in our home this time is highly troublesome and concerns the future path of our family, so everyone in the Zhao family attaches great importance to it,” Butler Zhou continued in a low voice as he opened the door.
“Therefore, besides you, Daoist Master, Mr. Zhao's brothers have also reached out to their respective connections and invited several individuals of extraordinary ability. They thought that having more people would bring more ideas, allowing everyone to discuss together how to break this curse.”
“They have already moved into the manor by now. Later, at the dinner table, Mr. Zhao will introduce everyone to each other.”
Bai Ci, who was slowly drifting down from the roof of the car, immediately understood what was going on.
Individuals of extraordinary ability?
In all likelihood, they were just players of various classes.
Come to think of it, since they were specifically invited to solve a supernatural problem, did all the players in this instance have classes related to the supernatural?
Bai Ci realized.
Rate on N.U.
