I'm not sure if it's just my imagination, but whenever I find myself in a place that's deep in the hustle and bustle yet devoid of light, I feel a sense of oppression. It's like the entire building is a predator lurking in the dark, waiting for the right moment to pounce, watching us through the shadows.
As the car drew nearer, Huang Jiu couldn't help but comment, "Are the people at the museum blind? There are so many other roads to take, yet they choose to go this way?"
My vision is no worse than Huang Jiu's, and I too noticed that around the truck, there were five men wearing glasses. One of them had graying hair, while the other four were in their thirties, well-mannered, and seemed like cultured individuals. But despite the truck breaking down and the coffin leaking a blood-like liquid, the five of them weren't scared at all. They were busy checking the coffin.
It seemed like another group of naive, science-faithful individuals. People like this, hiring us, didn't they just want to make fun of us?
I turned to my second uncle and said, "They're just a bunch of bookworms. They probably hired us as a last resort, hoping for a miracle. Do you think it'll work?"
My second uncle replied, "They hired you to make money, not to date. As long as they're willing to pay, it doesn't matter. Just don't talk, follow my lead."
The truck reached the base of the building, and the entire road was shrouded in its enormous shadow. To be called a 'ghost building' is no exaggeration.
The more than thirty-story building became increasingly ominous as we went higher. By the middle floors, my spiritual vision began to blur, and when we reached even higher, everything was a chaotic blur.
I knocked on my bag and asked Huang Jiu, "Does your offer still stand?"
Huang Jiu blinked at me in confusion.
I stretched out my hand and said, "The Buddhist relic, I need it now."
As Taoist practitioners, the energy inside us is a nemesis to evil spirits, but like water putting out fire, it depends on the situation. I felt that in this case, my efforts would be like trying to put out a massive fire with a cup of water—futile. To deal with this properly, I needed the Buddhist relic.
My second uncle slowly stopped the car beside the small truck, and only then did Huang Jiu reluctantly pull out the Buddhist relic from his pocket and hand it to me.
Holding the Buddhist relic, I felt a sense of relief.
My second uncle got out of the car to communicate with the elderly scholar, while I stayed inside, observing the truck through the window.
The blood-red liquid leaking from the coffin had already seeped down the side of the truck and onto the road. I frowned slightly.
Huang Jiu also commented, "This situation won't be resolved without a few old hens."
I was somewhat speechless and also a bit curious. Did Huang Jiu really think that five thousand yuan was worth just a few old hens? Because that's exactly what he'd been demanding after the five thousand from Zhang Ying and the others—it all boiled down to a few old hens.
At this moment, my second uncle returned after finishing his discussion with the old scholar and said in a low voice, "The old man is only willing to offer five thousand."
As expected, Huang Jiu immediately curled his lips and said, "A few old hens? Who's going to take that job?"
I suddenly thought this guy was too cute, like he had a love for trouble.
But five thousand, that really was a bit too little. I said, "Is the Provincial Museum really that poor?"
My voice was a bit loud, and a middle-aged man in the car heard me. He angrily retorted, "All you think about is money, are you obsessed with it?"
Huang Jiu wanted to retort but I quickly covered his mouth and whispered, "These people are from the antiques field. If you speak out, you'll be included in their research."
When Huang Jiu heard this, he hurriedly shut his own mouth.
My second uncle, knowing that I had a better sense for these things, said in a low voice, "Five thousand isn't too much or too little. It's up to you whether we take the job."
I wasn't hesitating over the money, but rather weighing my own abilities.
If I had the necessary skill, five thousand could be earned with minimal effort, which wouldn't be bad. But if it was a dangerous situation, five thousand would indeed be too little.
While I was still contemplating, the old man walked over and looked at me in the car before saying, "Mr. Li, five thousand is already our maximum. In recent years, the museum's budget has all been spent on preserving relics. It's really…"
The old man awkwardly rubbed his hands.
It was this gesture that made me think—people like him, much like Song Quezi, were not uncommon in this world.
But I was curious and asked, "Old man, with the truck broken down, didn't you consider calling a tow truck or getting another vehicle?"
The old man pushed up his thick glasses and said, "We must have encountered an Earthbound Spirit. The coffin is full of Yin energy. Even if we change the car, we won't be able to leave."
I opened my mouth in shock and stared at him in disbelief.
The four men in the truck heard our conversation and saw my surprised expression, giving me a look that seemed to say I had never seen such things.
I asked again, "You know this is unusual, aren't you afraid?"
As soon as the words left my mouth, I realized I was the fool.
The embarrassment was on them instead.
One of the middle-aged men in the car couldn't help but say, "We've seen this sort of thing plenty of times. What's there to be afraid of? Besides, we can't just leave the relics here, can we?"
I wanted to give him a thumbs up. No wonder they were all fine staying here—being at peace with themselves, the evil spirits couldn't get near.
Without saying another word, I opened the car door, grabbed Huang Jiu, and got out. I walked around the truck, inspecting it. Nothing seemed out of place, so I jumped onto the back of the truck.
The coffin was made of stone, very heavy. It was still covered with a layer of dirt that hadn't been cleaned off, and now it was soaked in the red liquid, forming a "blood mud."
The four young men remained silent, following behind me like they were learning, their expressions serious and attentive.
One of them said, "Based on our experience, the corpse inside should have started to bloat."
My grandfather had told me about many strange things, but he wasn't an expert in everything.
Bloating corpse?
I stopped and looked at the young man.
He habitually pushed his glasses up and explained, "When a coffin is buried deep underground, even if it's soaked in coffin fluid, the body will gradually shrink. However, under certain circumstances, like the strong Yin energy here, it can cause the body to bloat."
He paused before continuing, "In your terms, this would be a corpse transformation. As the body expands, it breaks the seal of the coffin, causing the coffin fluid to leak out. If it's not dealt with quickly, the corpse will break free."
Another one added, "From the color of the coffin fluid, it seems like it's a green zombie."
My eyes widened in disbelief.
I couldn't tell if they were the Taoist practitioners or if I was the Taoist practitioner.
The four men saw my astonished expression and looked at me with what seemed like a "big-eyed" look.
But their gazes didn't carry any mockery.
They simply thought I was someone who had never seen such things.
The white-haired old man leaned forward and said, "Young sir, we can handle the coffin, but the Earthbound Spirit, this is the first time I've encountered one. You should get out of the car and take a look under the truck."
I felt a bit embarrassed.
I understood that I should be under the truck right now, not sitting in the car.