Lucky Mutual Aid Society (20)

Inuyama Heita asked strangely, "Didn't you say it wasn't important before?"

"Are you an idiot? Not important?" Qian Xiaoyi looked at him with a strange expression and said, "That little girl was outside at the time, how could I let you say those things? What if she treated me as another cult member?"

"That's true, but speaking of which." Inuyama Heita threw out another question, "Mr. Qian, how did you know she was eavesdropping outside?"

Qian Xiaoyi's expression became even stranger, "I'm starting to doubt if it was the right decision to assign the intelligence gathering mission to you... When I returned to the office to meet you, she was in the convenience store opposite, hiding her face with a magazine, pretending to read and watching you the whole time. You didn't even notice such clumsy tracking, you were too careless! Didn't I tell you to be careful about being seen coming to me?"

Inuyama Heita mumbled, "I thought you meant to be careful of Matsui or other members secretly following me. I was indeed guarding against them, but I didn't expect the person following me to be Suzuki..."

"It's a good thing it was her." Qian Xiaoyi said, "Otherwise, your situation would be a little dangerous. Alright, now tell me what happened when Matsui found you. This is very important intelligence, it can determine whether our subsequent plan will be implemented or not."

"Okay." Inuyama Heita began to narrate what happened after Matsui brought him into the private room.

In the bar's private room, after confirming the door was closed, Matsui turned around. His previously smiling and composed expression changed to a serious one as he said, "Heita-kun, I have something important to ask of you. No matter what you see later, don't panic, and don't reveal it to anyone else. I will explain everything to you. Others and I need your help."

Inuyama Heita swallowed, feeling a bit nervous, but said with a firm tone, "Mr. Matsui, please rest assured, everyone is a very good person, and I will help everyone with all my might."

"Is that so, you're truly reliable, Heita-kun." Matsui seemed relieved. He took out a soft twig from the bag he brought and handed it to Inuyama Heita, saying, "The rest is up to you, Heita-kun. Remember, no matter what you see later, don't panic, it won't harm you."

As he spoke, Matsui actually began to take off his shirt in front of him. This action made Inuyama Heita take a step back, and a different kind of fear arose within him.

Fortunately, Matsui didn't do anything else. He simply unbuttoned his suit's inner lining, revealing what was underneath.

—In the dimly lit private room, his not-so-muscular body was covered everywhere with small, bruised handprints, and even terrifying bite marks. A baby, covered in black bloodshot veins, crawled like a gecko from behind Matsui onto his chest. Its head was rotated 180 degrees, and it stared at Inuyama Heita with eyes that had no whites, baring its teeth at him. It was cruel yet childlike, as if it were looking at a doll it couldn't wait to tear apart.

This scene almost made Inuyama Heita cry out. He stumbled backward, so scared that he fell onto the sofa. However, he covered his mouth and didn't make a sound.

"As expected, you're scared. I'm so sorry." Matsui's expression was full of shame. He said with some difficulty, "...What you see now is the biggest secret of our Lucky Mutual Aid Society, Heita-kun. Don't be nervous, I'll tell you everything, including the truth about how we change our luck."

"Mr. Matsui, why has your body become like this?" Inuyama Heita asked in horror, "What happened!"

"This is the secret to everyone gaining 'luck'." Matsui said, "I can't see these marks on my body myself. Only true psychics can see them, and you are the one with this talent. Heita-kun, have you heard of a Southeast Asian sorcery called 'Kuman Thong'?"

Inuyama Heita hurriedly shook his head, "No."

"Heh heh, don't make that face. This isn't some evil sorcery, though it does look quite terrifying." Matsui smiled and said, "I learned about this sorcery in a temple when I was traveling abroad. There, it's a very normal sorcery, and many people are proud to have these children. Do you know why?"

Without waiting for Inuyama Heita to respond, Matsui continued on his own, "Because they are all abandoned or stillborn infants who died shortly after birth. They finally came into this world but didn't experience life due to the manipulation of fate, so their resentment is very strong. Kuman Thong is a sorcery created by local monks to eliminate the resentment of these children, and do you know how to eliminate their resentment?"

Inuyama Heita pretended to have a flash of insight and replied, "Could it be... the previous ritual? Letting them live with people?"

"You're very smart." Matsui returned to his formulaic smile. He spread his hands and said, "That's right, this is the method to eliminate their resentment: letting them interact with people, using humans as vessels, and taking them to experience what it's like to be alive. This way, their resentment from being abandoned and dying young can be gradually worn away. And as long as you treat them well, you will receive corresponding benefits. They will do their best to help their masters. When their resentment is eliminated and they completely achieve Buddhahood, as a reward, those who brought them to experience the joys of life will receive their blessings. This is the truth of changing luck."

"But your body..." Inuyama Heita trailed off.

"Of course, completing this process isn't as simple as you might imagine." Matsui said, "The marks on my body are proof. You know that children need discipline, right? As the price for changing luck, the resentment of these children needs to be borne by the carrier. The more painful their death, the greater their resentment, and the more disobedient they will be, even posing a danger to their owner. Mine is the one with the greatest resentment among these children, but there's no other way. Someone has to appease this child, so it has to be me."

"Mr. Matsui, you are truly a kind person..." Inuyama Heita said, trembling, but inwardly sneering. His voice trembled because he had almost burst out laughing. The so-called clever lie is to mix a false statement with nine true ones. Most of what the other party said was true, but according to Qian Xiaoyi, the purification rituals for these Kuman Thong required specific scriptures and rituals. Moreover, the entire process would only weaken the resentment of the little ghosts. It was like the one Qian Xiaoyi kidnapped; it didn't have much resentment, nor those terrifying bloodshot veins, and its eyes were incredibly clear, nothing like the evil ones he saw on other members, including Matsui.

This meant that the other party was lying. He was simply using those little ghosts for profit, not to help them transcend and achieve Buddhahood!