The Object They Sought

Something important?

Lin Tianlu looked closely and saw the girl produce a metal token about the size of a palm with a flip of her hand.

"This is..."

"My younger sister and father have both passed away, so I had people sort through their belongings. I never expected them to find so many rare objects."

When the subject turned serious, Cheng Yishi's expression grew slightly solemn. "The surface of this token gleams like gold and does not fear fire. Even the renowned craftsmen in the county could not identify what it was made of."

How miraculous?

Lin Tianlu was astonished. He took it and turned it over a few times in his hand.

There were no traces of mechanisms or joints on it. It was a heavy, solid piece. But when he saw the crossed skull carved into the center of the token, his expression turned somewhat strange.

What the heck is this...?

Some pirate crew's emblem?

"I had originally intended to have those craftsmen smash the token open and examine its internal structure, but its material was extraordinarily hard and indestructible. Even when struck forcefully with an iron hammer, it did not leave the slightest—"

Crack!

"..."

The girl's words faltered, and the two of them immediately stared at each other.

After a moment of silence, Lin Tianlu gave an embarrassed grin and placed the token, now broken into two pieces, back on the table. "S-sorry, Miss Cheng. My curiosity got the better of me, and I accidentally damaged the token."

"...It was my lack of consideration."

Cheng Yishi soon revealed the calm smile she had clearly expected. "With Mister Lin's great ability, this so-called indestructibility was merely a tiresome joke."

"Miss Cheng, you flatter me."

Lin Tianlu smiled awkwardly and clenched his right hand, hidden within his sleeve, twice.

This token had clearly looked extraordinary in material. How had it become as fragile as Wang Wang Senbei?

He had never even squeezed the bowls and chopsticks at home until they snapped.

"Mister Lin need not take it to heart. In the end, this is merely a token."

Cheng Yishi teased him softly before returning to the subject. "The pattern on this token should represent the emblem of some faction. I happened to see it once in a letter written by my father."

"Over the past few years, I did not spend much time with my younger sister, but I still understood my father somewhat. He would occasionally remain alone in his study to write letters. Yet he rarely had anyone deliver them. Instead, he would hand them to my younger sister, as though plotting something in secret. As for what they discussed, it concerned the 'Ghost Practitioner.'"

"Ghost Practitioner?"

Lin Tianlu gave a soft exclamation.

That sounded rather familiar.

It seemed that when he had encountered a ghost at the cloth shop some days ago, the ghost had struck a comical pose and muttered something with a frigid expression. Since the pose had been rather funny, he had not paid much attention at the time.

"It seems to involve borrowing the sinister power of ghosts to control a technique known as 'yin arts,'" Cheng Yishi said solemnly. "Although they remain living people, their methods are equally strange. And my father... should himself have been a Ghost Practitioner."

Lin Tianlu rubbed his chin, deep in thought.

Put simply, they're similar to those so-called ghost cultivators and demon cultivators?

But the two ghosts he had encountered before had both spoken of them with disdain. The status of these Ghost Practitioners seemed rather low.

Although...

He truly had not sensed any supernatural ability from Cheng Yanghua at the time. If she had not told him, he really would not have known.

"We also found quite a few ritual-like vessels in their residence, but they were covered in dust and rust, clearly unused for a very long time. This, however, was the most peculiar object."

As she spoke, she took an exquisite bundle of cloth from her bosom and placed it on the table. After gently unwrapping it, she took out a jade hairpin carved with patterns.

Lin Tianlu glanced at it curiously.

Its entire body was slender and silvery-bright, while the emerald-green jewel at the top seemed to contain a thread of strange radiance.

"We found it by chance in a hidden compartment beneath the bed. Seeing that it was as pristine as new, the servants in the Household initially wanted to take it out directly. But a strange power seemed to lurk within the jade hairpin, filling them with fear and unease and making them afraid to approach." Cheng Yishi chose her words carefully. "Perhaps this object is related to the cultivation of the Ghost Practitioners."

Lin Tianlu narrowed his eyes slightly.

Gray energy coiled around the jade hairpin. Although it could not compare to a ghost, it was certainly not something an ordinary person could touch casually.

Could it have been dug out of some graveyard?

His thoughts stirred, and he chuckled. "Still, there should be no harm in keeping this jade hairpin by Miss Cheng's side."

Cheng Yishi's beautiful eyes widened slightly. "Mister Lin, do you mean that I..."

"When you hold the jade hairpin, do you feel chills throughout your body?"

"Never."

The girl's expression froze slightly. In a low voice, she said, "Is it because I have now... become no different from those ghosts?"

"Although I was fortunate enough to draw out the baleful yin energy within you, the erosion caused by yin energy over many years is difficult to reverse." Lin Tianlu's expression turned serious. "Miss Cheng, you are now half human and half ghost. Naturally, you do not fear these sinister objects."

Cheng Yishi fell silent.

Her gaze was complicated as she gently brushed the snowy-white hair over her chest. Her skin, reflected in the candlelight, looked slightly pale.

Everyone said that her hair had turned white overnight because of her family's deaths. But she knew the truth in her heart. She knew that her body had certainly undergone a tremendous change, and now she had confirmation—

After a brief silence, the sorrow in her expression gradually eased away. Soon, it vanished entirely, and her usual warm, faint smile returned. "According to Mister Lin, the difference between human and ghost lies in a single thought, and neither is inherently good or evil... I am at peace now."

Lin Tianlu smiled and cupped his hands. "Then I must congratulate Miss Cheng on resolving the knot in her heart and welcoming a new life."

"This is all thanks to Mister Lin."

Ripples stirred in Cheng Yishi's eyes as she said softly, "Looking back now, my words and actions at the time were indeed far too self-destructive. I actually wanted to abandon everything and die. I was truly weak and cowardly. I will never forget the grace of Mister Lin's life-saving guidance."

"Miss Cheng, there is no need to be so polite."

Lin Tianlu shook his head with a laugh and waved his hand. "I only hope that Miss Cheng will cherish her life. In the decades ahead, live this life with all your heart and soul, and never do anything that harms yourself or others."

Cheng Yishi lowered her eyes, her silvery eyelashes trembling twice.

"But... I truly do not know how to repay Mister Lin. This grace of rebirth could hardly be repaid even if I gave away my entire fortune. After all, with Mister Lin's great talent and virtue, I fear these worldly possessions are no more than dung in your eyes."

Lin Tianlu immediately gave an awkward laugh. "Miss Cheng, you need not treat me as a sage. Wealth may be something external, but if I refuse to touch a single coin, I'll end up sleeping in the open and eating whatever I can find."

Cheng Yishi covered her lips and laughed softly twice, the corners of her mouth unconsciously lifting.

"So after thinking it over, I realized that now that I am all alone, perhaps there is only one thing that could satisfy Mister Lin."

"What thing?"

"Me."

"..."

Lin Tianlu froze for a moment, almost thinking there was some hidden meaning in her words.

"Wait, Miss Cheng, you mean—"

"Me."

Cheng Yishi suddenly emphasized her words and rose to her feet, walking toward him. "These past few days, I have tossed and turned, unable to sleep, thinking of your words at every moment. Even in hazy dreams... it seemed I met you on an immortal mountain. Sadly, I could only watch from afar, leaving me filled with regret, my heart sour and bitter."

Lin Tianlu felt that the atmosphere had grown somewhat strange and hurriedly stood up.

"In the past, I never believed in the love between men and women. I only thought that so-called affection was truly the root of all evil, the pointless moaning of ignorant women. But only now have I understood—"

She walked gracefully before him and raised her delicate head. In her crystalline eyes, beautiful as blood jade, the stunned face of the man before her was reflected. Her vermilion lips trembled slightly. "This is love at first sight."

Lin Tianlu's lips twitched.

"Before coming to Mister Lin's residence, I was still somewhat uneasy. But upon seeing you again, I became certain." Cheng Yishi leaned forward slightly, crimson clouds blooming across her lovely face. Her expression was coquettish, almost petulant. "Mister Lin, you are in my heart—"

"Hold on!"

Lin Tianlu hurriedly raised his hand to stop her and backed away two steps with an awkward smile. "Miss Cheng, don't joke like this. Such painfully mushy words leave me at a loss."

"Then fine. I will stop speaking in such roundabout ways."

Cheng Yishi continued pressing forward step by step. A bewitching smile, almost crazed, lifted her lips. With a delicate hand, she caressed herself, and beneath her white hair, the thin garment and shoulder straps quietly slipped loose, revealing shoulders and a jade-like neck. She smiled faintly and murmured:

"Please... cherish me."

"..."

Lin Tianlu's smile stiffened.

He had never imagined that this girl was actually serious.

Were women from the Tang and Song Dynasties really all this passionate and uninhibited?!

—Wait!

His gaze shifted, and he happened to notice strange patterns emerging across the girl's body, resembling lotus-flower markings.

As yin energy spread through her body, the strange markings wound up her delicate neck like venomous snakes. Crimson light flowed through her silk-soft, enchanting eyes, their allure rippling like aged wine that tempted one into intoxication—wonderfully indescribable.