In the blink of an eye, all seven escaping ghosts were killed by the Chi Mei Wang Liang.
Seeing this, the numerous ghosts present were all filled with apprehension and fear.
Even many ghosts now knelt on the ground, not daring to look up at the Chi Mei Wang Liang.
The Great-Eyed Chi Yin Cha swept his gaze across the gathered ghosts and spoke coldly:
"Does anyone else wish to escape?"
As he spoke, an invisible pressure emanated.
None of these lesser ghosts dared to respond, merely lowering their heads further in fear.
"This is unsatisfying; I haven't eaten enough yet!"
The Camel-Mouthed Liang Yin Cha smacked his thick lips, saying with a lingering taste.
Following this, the Dog-Eared Mei Yin Cha looked at me and Old Mo and said:
"You invited us over, only to send these few little ghosts down?"
Having witnessed the might of these four lords,
Neither I nor Old Mo dared to show any slack.
Hearing the other party speak, we both nodded repeatedly:
"Yes, we wanted to invite some officials to help send these ghosts down."
"Indeed! We have neither the means nor the energy to differentiate these ghosts, so we must trouble the four officials."
After speaking, Old Mo and I clasped our fists.
However, the Pig-Nosed Wang Yin Cha snorted coldly:
"Hmph, I thought it was something major!
So it's just such trivial matters, wasting our time."
In his words, this Wang Yin Cha appeared somewhat angry.
The Camel-Mouthed Liang Yin Cha added disdainfully:
"Exactly, our tasks are so heavy.
It's truly not worth delaying for so long for these mere hundred or so wandering souls!"
The Mei Yin Cha shook his head:
"We thought it was some big case.
Turns out, you just wanted us to escort a few ghosts down.
This kind of task can be handled by the lowest-ranking soul-escorting errand boys.
You didn't need us to act at all, kid, you're making a mountain out of a molehill!"
The Great-Eyed Chi Yin Cha also lowered his face at this moment:
"Kid, for this matter of yours.
We brothers have been delayed quite a bit!
Do you know that delaying Yin Cha duties is a serious crime?"
As they spoke, all these Yin Chae looked at me and Old Mo.
Their gazes seemed angry, intending to scold and blame us.
But their eyes held a deeper meaning…
The talk of serious crimes was a pretense; what they truly wanted was benefits.
Old Mo became somewhat flustered and whispered in my ear:
"Old Qin, these lords are turning on us so quickly, what should we do?"
But a slight smile curved my lips.
If they truly cared about that bit of time, would they have been stuffing their faces here for so long?
Would the Great-Eyed Chi Yin Cha still have played a game on my phone?
On the surface, they were threatening us, but in reality, they were subtly hinting, reaching out for benefits.
After all, the rules are similar in both the Yin and Yang realms.
Without money, how can you get others to do things?
I signaled Old Mo to stay calm; I had experience with this sort of thing:
"Go and bring those two packages over there!"
Old Mo nodded and walked to the side.
As I spoke, I stepped forward and clasped my fists towards the four Yin Chae, Chi Mei Wang Liang:
"You four officials are legendary Yin Chae; who in both the Yin and Yang realms doesn't know of you?
It's only natural that your work is busy.
Today, this humble Taoist never expected to be able to invite four officials.
It is our, my and Mo's, great honor…"
A round of flattery, well-delivered.
The four ghosts, Chi Mei Wang Liang, all puffed out their chests, looking quite pleased.
A hint of arrogance even flickered across their lips and faces.
Seeing that the moment was right, I continued:
"Because of our trivial matter, we have delayed the official duties of the four officials, and we are deeply guilty.
We feel too ashamed.
Therefore, we must ask the four officials to be accommodating…"
As I spoke, Old Mo had already brought over the two packages.
Inside these packages were paper-cut gold ingots, all gleaming yellow.
Each gold ingot sold for ten yuan in our shop.
They were considered one of the most precious types of冥货 (goods for the underworld).
I took one package, opened it directly, and flashed it before the faces of the four ghost officials.
The four ghosts, Chi Mei Wang Liang, tilted their heads and glanced into the opening of the bag.
With that single glance, the four ghosts saw that the bag was filled with shining yellow gold ingots.
Each of them trembled slightly, their eyes shining.
Although these four lords were legendary ghosts,
And renowned among the populace, they were also too ugly and didn't hold significant positions.
Therefore, they received little incense offering, or rather, no one offered them any.
Down below, they were merely slightly higher-ranking salaried workers.
Famous but low-paid, with no place to skim extra income.
Upon seeing a bag full of gold ingots, their emotions surged with excitement.
The Wang and Liang ghosts even swallowed their saliva.
The Chi and Mei ghosts stared intently.
Seeing the desired effect, I chuckled, closed the bag:
"Four officials, a small tea fee, it's nothing significant!"
Upon hearing this, the four Yin Chae snapped back to attention.
"Cough cough," the Chi Yin Cha coughed twice and said to the other three:
"Well, well, Yin Ze and Yang Ting, after all,
Also, also for the common people, and for peace under heaven.
Our, our slight delay, it's really nothing.
Right?"
As soon as he said this, the other three ghost officials nodded repeatedly.
"Big brother is absolutely right.
Yin Ze, after all, is practically an external staff member of our Yin Division.
It's not impossible for us to lend a hand.
"Yes, in fact, Yin Ze and Yang Ting did the right thing.
Reporting to the Yin Officials promptly, preventing evil spirits from escaping and harming the innocent, is commendable.
We absolutely must help with this, we can't let them feel disheartened."
"…"
In an instant, the attitude of the four ghosts towards us underwent a 180-degree transformation.
No longer calling us "kid," they began to address us by our Taoist designations…