"Someone will return the City God Seal? Has this guy been fooled into stupidity by the skinny monkey?" Zhang Dabiao scratched his head, utterly bewildered, watching Xu Yi walk confidently ahead.
Truth be told, it wasn't just him who didn't understand what was going on; even I was completely baffled.
If I were the City God, even if the City God Seal were truly stolen, I would find a way to retrieve it myself. If I needed help, I'd seek out someone I knew and trusted, and certainly not a stranger from the outside.
The loss of the City God Seal was a matter of grave importance. It would be more prudent to conceal it rather than to easily reveal it to outsiders, especially living ones.
If someone with ill intentions found the City God Seal, they could do as they pleased. At the very least, they could significantly extend their lifespan and become a powerful figure after death. This was no different from Li Zuoquan's pursuit of the Tiger Kui Seal.
Seeing my prolonged silence, Zhang Dabiao nudged me. "Shall we leave now?"
I shook my head and gave a wry smile, glancing back at the tightly shut courtyard. "Having learned so much, do you think it will let us leave so easily?"
Whether living or dead, their fundamental nature is evil. It's just that the living try their best to control their darker side, which is what people often call being good.
Ghosts are different. After death, they have fewer inhibitions and act as they please. This is why entities like mountain gods exist.
Zhang Dabiao's expression turned serious, and he glanced back at the closed mansion gate with a hint of disdain. "Does he dare to harm living people? Isn't he afraid of being captured by Yin messengers and sent to the eighteenth level of hell?"
I pursed my lips and said softly, "What is there to fear? Don't forget the saying 'the whip cannot reach the horse's tail.' Besides, this City God City is remote, and with the mountain god here, even the underworld might not send anyone."
While we were talking, Xu Yi had already reached the corner. Seeing us lingering, he stopped and looked back at us.
At this point, we absolutely could not let Xu Yi disappear from our sight. Although his conversation with the skinny monkey was brief, it completely excluded me and Zhang Dabiao.
He had explained what he discussed with the skinny monkey, but in my heart, I didn't believe him. If he wanted to inquire about Fang Huixin and the others' whereabouts, he could have done so in front of us. There was no need to ask privately, excluding me and Zhang Dabiao. If there wasn't some hidden agenda, it wouldn't fool anyone, not even a ghost.
The residence the skinny monkey led us to was across the street from the dilapidated City God mansion. While we were talking, Xu Yi had already crossed the road and was craning his neck to look at us.
"Let's go! Brother Zhang, if we talk too much, it might arouse his suspicion."
"Mm!"
As soon as we regained our footing, Xu Yi asked, "What were you two whispering about, so mysteriously?"
I shrugged and replied, "Nothing much. We were in a hurry earlier, and I was worried about Brother Zhang's health, so I checked on him." I casually offered a fabricated excuse.
Returning to the dilapidated City God mansion, the mood among us was somber. We had spent over an hour with the skinny monkey without gaining any useful information, and we were even compelled to help him retrieve the City God Seal from inside.
"Let's go in!"
The City God mansion did not occupy a large area. The gatehouse had already collapsed by half, and both large doors were gone, leaving a dark, gaping hole like the maw of a beast ready to devour.
"Brother Xu, this place seems a bit eerie. Should we ask someone else?"
If I hadn't suffered a setback at the old house west of the village before, I would have entered without hesitation. But having learned from experience, I felt a certain reluctance towards these uninhabited residences. Moreover, this was the City God City. Coupled with Xu Yi's hushed conversation with the skinny monkey earlier, I felt a sense of unease.
Before Xu Yi could reply, a voice came from behind us.
"You don't need to be afraid. There's no danger inside. Just go in boldly."
Turning around, we saw the skinny monkey had appeared behind us at some point, a faint smile on his face.
This made me frown, and I couldn't help but wonder, why is he here?
"Since you're here, why don't you tell us what the situation is inside? If the City God Seal is in there, why don't you go in and get it yourself?"
The skinny monkey shook his head and said, "This place is protected by a barrier. Only the living can enter."
The skinny monkey walked a few steps forward and leaped past us. Before he could even get close to the entrance, a visible blue ripple appeared before our eyes, followed by a bolt of lightning striking towards him.
Fortunately, he was prepared and quickly retreated, narrowly avoiding the lightning. However, a half-meter-deep pit was left on the ground.
"Now do you believe me?" The skinny monkey clapped his hands, as if he had done something trivial.
But the three of us were stunned. Fortunately, we hadn't barged in recklessly earlier, or we would have been struck senseless by the lightning.
Xu Yi, who had been so confident moments ago, swallowed hard and looked at the skinny monkey with a pale face. "You said there was no danger just now. Did you f***ing lie to me?"
The skinny monkey chuckled at Xu Yi's outburst.
"You can't say that. How did I lie to you? I've already told you the people are here. In exchange, you help me retrieve the City God Seal from inside. This is a very fair deal!"
"You..."
Xu Yi pointed at the skinny monkey's nose, so enraged he couldn't speak.
Although their exchange was brief, I had a rough idea of the deal Xu Yi had struck with the skinny monkey when they left.
It was likely that Xu Yi agreed to help the skinny monkey retrieve the City God Seal, and in return, the skinny monkey would tell us the whereabouts of Fang Huixin and the others.
This made me suspect that the skinny monkey might have lured Fang Huixin and the others here, and now wanted us to help him get the City God Seal.
After roughly piecing together the events, I didn't blame Xu Yi for making a deal with the skinny monkey without consulting us. After all, Xu Yi was a living person, and even if he made a mistake, we were still on the same side.
"City God, if we say we're not going in, and their lives have nothing to do with us, can you let us leave?"
Before the skinny monkey could speak, Xu Yi interjected anxiously, "Brother Song, how can you say that? Didn't we agree that you would help me..."
"You still have the nerve to say that? Making a secret deal with him, did you ask us?"
Zhang Dabiao's words turned Xu Yi's face beet red. If there had been a crack in the ground, I imagined he would have crawled into it.
The skinny monkey slowly shook his head. "No. Retrieving the City God Seal is not just helping me, but also helping yourselves."
"Helping ourselves? What does that mean?"
The skinny monkey asked in a deep voice, "Were you driven here by those dark entities outside?"
"How did you know? Did you summon those things?"
The skinny monkey's words made me suspect him. Those dark, neither-human-nor-ghost entities had been lurking around us all the way until we reached the vicinity of the City God City, and only then did they disappear. Sudan Novel Network
"No! They are伥鬼 (chānguǐ - spirits of people who lured others to their death and became demons themselves)."