Chapter Fourteen: Ill-Gotten Gains, The Half-Faced Phantom

Earlier, when Lin Yi and An Miaoyi discussed matters, An Miaoyi had mentioned a term—the ninety-nine regions of mist. These places had already been classified as ominous, and the energy emanating from within was known as baleful energy. All sorts of detection instruments relied on this baleful energy as their basis.

Now, Lin Yi sensed that the man before him carried a trace of this baleful energy, though it was barely perceptible. After further observation, Lin Yi was certain that this man was indeed human, not some ghoul or demon.

The man didn’t look particularly shifty, but his eyes were constantly darting about, avoiding direct contact. Anyone who watched him carefully for a few seconds would come to the same conclusion: something was off about him.

The eatery Lin Yi had chosen was nothing fancy, known mostly for its generous portions. If Lin Yi hadn’t worried that his prodigious appetite might land him on some trending news thread, he wouldn’t have wandered from place to place, eating at ten different small restaurants in a row.

He glanced again at the man, noticing the gold and silver jewelry he wore—he seemed quite well-off. Yet the food he ordered was nothing more than simple home-style dishes.

Once the man had eaten his fill, he stood up and left. Lin Yi followed.

As the saying goes, a cigarette after a meal is better than being immortal. At the entrance, the man took out a lighter and lit a cigarette. To Lin Yi’s surprise, it was none other than the legendary “Da Qianmen,” a brand of filterless cigarettes long out of circulation—an enviable rarity these days. Yet, as he lit it, his hand trembled slightly, and Lin Yi noticed one of his hands seemed to have been injured before.

Lin Yi approached with a smile. “Brother, could you spare me one of those legendary Da Qianmen cigarettes?”

The man was startled by the sudden greeting, but after a quick glance at Lin Yi, he grinned, revealing two gold-capped, yellowed teeth.

“Sure thing, kid. You’ve got a good eye—these are Da Qianmen. They don’t sell them anymore, but lucky for me, I’ve stashed away several tons.”

If anyone else had said this, Lin Yi would have dismissed it as boasting. But with this man, he believed it. The man wore a jade thumb ring worth tens of thousands by itself; it wasn’t hard to imagine he might have hoarded tons of these cigarettes.

That was part of the reason Lin Yi had paid him special attention—the man’s table was full of ordinary dishes, yet he ate with relish.

Perhaps Lin Yi’s tacit approval pleased the man, for he said, “You’re all right. Didn’t call me a braggart. Here, have one, see what the big deal is. By the way, kid, you look young—are you a student at the nearby university?”

Lin Yi nodded. “That’s right, brother, I’m a university student. But I have another occupation…” He deliberately drew out the words, piquing the man’s curiosity before continuing.

“I hunt demons and exorcise evil.”

Clink.

The cigarette slipped from the man’s fingers and fell to the ground.

After a few coughs, the man pretended to fumble with his phone. “Sorry, brother, I’ve got to run, something’s come up—see, my phone’s ringing. Someone’s looking for me. But hey, we’ve got fate on our side. If you ever need anything, come find me—my name’s Li Zhancheng!” As he spoke, his hands shook even more violently. Sweat began to bead on his brow, perhaps out of some internal weakness.

He was preparing to leave, flustered and anxious.

But Lin Yi wasn’t about to let him go that easily.

“Not easy, is it, being an accomplice in evil? Spending ill-gotten gains must weigh on you. Li Zhancheng, right? Brother, I think you need my help. Let me ask you again—do you want me to save you?”

Lin Yi pressed forward relentlessly.

The jade thumb ring, golden rings, necklaces, and jade bracelets Li Zhancheng wore all appeared to be antiques. But on closer inspection, each piece exuded a particularly sinister aura. Though they looked old, the distinctive matte finish revealed them to be newly made—just artificially aged.

This meant all the items on Li Zhancheng had been manufactured recently, only made to look ancient. The recent origin and the ominous energy lingering on them convinced Lin Yi that Li Zhancheng was definitely entangled with something unworldly. And Li Zhancheng’s current demeanor all but confirmed it.

As Li Zhancheng tried to make his escape, Lin Yi glanced around and spotted an iron railing nearby. Smiling, he reached out and gripped it. With a slight effort, the metal groaned and twisted—five clear finger marks appeared, pressed deep into the iron.

Li Zhancheng, who had been about to bolt, froze, mouth agape, trembling all over. Whether or not Lin Yi really hunted demons, that display of brute strength alone was enough to keep him rooted to the spot. If Lin Yi could twist such a thick iron bar into a pretzel, what would happen if that hand gripped his bones?

Lin Yi watched the man’s fear with a faint smile. “Not running anymore, brother?”

Li Zhancheng nodded vigorously, like a woodpecker.

“I’m not running, not running. I wouldn’t dare! If you squeezed me like that, I’d fall to pieces. I’m a good man, I swear—please don’t kill me, please, I haven’t done anything wrong…”

“Whether you’ve done anything wrong, you know best. Justice will have its say. Now, take me to the place where you struck it rich…”

With the Demon-Slaying Sutra at his side, Lin Yi was bolder than ever.

He noticed a few people on the street casting glances their way, especially at Li Zhancheng. Feeling this was not ideal, Lin Yi hurried things along, placing a firm hand on Li Zhancheng’s shoulder.

Lin Yi was tall and well-built, especially after constant cultivation with the Great Cavern True Scripture; he was growing even taller, his clothes stretched tight over his frame, lending his formerly thin body a latent explosive power. Li Zhancheng, meanwhile, was scrawny and trembling, making it look all the more like Lin Yi was bullying him.

But even with onlookers about, Li Zhancheng had no intention of crying for help—not because he didn’t want to, but because he didn’t dare.

He did as Lin Yi asked and led the way.

Soon, they reached Li Zhancheng’s car—a battered secondhand Buick.

Lin Yi told Li Zhancheng to drive and sat in the passenger seat. With a flick of his hand, Lin Yi crushed a metal ornament on the dash. After that, Li Zhancheng had nothing more to say. He started the car and headed for Erlong Mountain.

Face drawn and miserable, Li Zhancheng grew more and more terrified the closer they got to Erlong Mountain. Especially when he caught sight of Lin Yi’s faint, inscrutable smile—he felt like a fish on the chopping block, utterly at his mercy.

At last, the car pulled up at the foot of Erlong Mountain.

Erlong Mountain was a famous scenic spot in Shengjing, situated on the southern outskirts of the city. Legend had it that two dragons once appeared atop Erlong Mountain, battling from sky to earth, until they both perished and turned into two great stones. Over centuries, these stones gradually transformed into two intertwining mountain ridges.

Two dragons at war, both dead and turned to stone.

Such was the origin of Erlong Mountain. This marvelous legend had drawn many visitors. A temple, Erlong Temple, had been built there, incense burning day and night, prosperity unending.

“All right, time to explain yourself. I told you, I hunt demons and exorcise evil—I can tell truth from lies, so don’t even think about deceiving me. Speak!”

It sounded like a threat, and indeed, it was.

Lin Yi picked up the crushed metal ornament, kneading it again and again. It was pure cast iron and took real effort to deform.

At last, Li Zhancheng’s psychological defenses collapsed completely.

Anyone would break, faced with such a monster.

Shaking all over, Li Zhancheng confessed.

“I… I really haven’t done anything bad. I made my fortune because I… discovered a spot on the northern peak of Erlong Mountain. All sorts of gold and silver jewelry just fall from the mountain. All these things—I just picked them up… But I know, this isn’t right… I saw people go up the mountain, and then… the things they were wearing fell down…”

“There were tiger roars, screams, snarls… One time I even saw a ghostly figure in old swordsman’s garb, with a single pale, lifeless eye staring at me—he only had half a head… Soon after, blood would drip down, and there’d be blood on the jewelry too… But… I really just picked it up. Those ghosts and monsters—they’ve got nothing to do with me…”

Inside the car, Li Zhancheng, utterly broken, stammered out the truth.

As expected—there was something amiss! None of these riches were honestly come by!

There was something on that mountain!

Tiger roars, a half-headed swordsman in ancient garb… Li Zhancheng’s words made Lin Yi think of a fierce tiger’s spirit lingering on after death, becoming a vengeful ghost. Even in death, a tiger’s might is undiminished—it continues to wreak havoc as a ghost! Just like wicked men who, even after dying, remain evil and turn into malevolent specters, harming others still.