"Uh... a good guy?"
Looking at Li Hai's fierce face and his overly burly build, the Daoist stammered, "You... you don't exactly look like one either."
"Don't change the subject."
Li Hai said bluntly, "What are you doing here? And..."
He raised the large handful of talisman papers in front of the Daoist. "What are these things?"
"Hey, hey, brother, there's no need to be so aggressive."
The Daoist smiled and explained calmly, "You know this place is haunted, right?"
"I do." Li Hai nodded. "I've already wiped them out."
"So I was planning to... Huh? What did you say?"
The Daoist had just started speaking when Li Hai's offhand remark left him rooted to the spot in astonishment.
Then he hurriedly pressed him, "You mean you've already... exterminated the ghosts in this evil, haunted place? Really?"
"It's true." Li Hai said indifferently. "There's no point lying about it."
"Phew." The Daoist let out a long breath. "That's wonderful. Truly wonderful."
After speaking, he straightened his clothes and gave Li Hai a respectful bow.
"Huh?" Seeing this, Li Hai asked in confusion, "What are you doing?"
"This humble Daoist is Zhang Miaoji."
The Daoist raised his head and said sincerely, "On behalf of the common folk here, I thank you, brother."
"No need, no need!"
Li Hai waved his hand and laughed heartily. "Hahaha, I was just passing through and happened to see them, so I wiped them out while I was at it. I didn't give it much thought."
"Is that so? It seems there's a great deal you don't know, brother."
Zhang Miaoji explained, "As the saying goes, dead souls and fierce spirits are all born with a vicious nature. If no one provokes them and they haven't tasted blood, they're usually harmless enough. They tend to remain where they died, lingering for a long time.
"But once they've harmed someone and tasted blood, or been roused by the living, their viciousness will grow greatly. Then, when night falls and yang wanes while yin waxes, they'll leave the place of their death and go on a rampage nearby, killing people."
He then gestured around them. "And places like this, where you and I are standing, are especially prone to spawning large numbers of ghosts.
"If they stay here, there's no harm done. But today, Old Man Guo, who governs this fortified settlement, took leave of his senses for some reason and recklessly set fire to this haunted place."
At this, Zhang Miaoji shook his head with a sigh. "All ghosts abhor open flames. If even one evil ghost survives that raging inferno, its terrifying viciousness will have been stirred up. For the people in the surrounding area, that would spell a great calamity."
Hearing this, Li Hai pondered. "So I basically prevented a ghost disaster before it could happen?"
"Not only that."
Zhang Miaoji stroked his beard. "I observed this place earlier and surmised that the one who survived might be a ghost that retained its full intellect. A clear-minded ghost like that is far more frightening than a mindless fool."
"Hmm."
After stuffing the dozen or so sheets of yellow paper into his pocket, Li Hai rubbed his bald head. "All right, then... if there's nothing else, I'll be on my way."
He'd already learned all the Daoist's skills, so what was the point of staying?
He'd learned quite a lot. Li Hai was very satisfied.
"Hey, wait."
Zhang Miaoji hurriedly grabbed his arm and smiled ingratiatingly. "Don't rush off, brother. We still have more to discuss."
"What is there to discuss?" Li Hai clicked his tongue and turned back. "Keep it short. I'm busy."
"Of course, of course. Here's the thing, brother."
Zhang Miaoji explained, "Would you like to slay more ghosts in the future?"
"Hm?" Li Hai raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Heh heh."
Zhang Miaoji smiled. "Though you look somewhat fierce, I can see that your heart is filled with a righteous spirit soaring to the heavens. Otherwise, you wouldn't have dared to charge into this place alone and exterminate the ghosts, bringing blessings to the common folk here.
"And your martial arts must have reached the Steel Sinew Iron Bone Realm, right? Otherwise, you couldn't have beaten that vicious soul and fierce spirit."
"And then?" Li Hai said calmly. "Go on."
Zhang Miaoji straightened his clothes again and spoke solemnly:
"This humble Daoist, Zhang Miaoji, serves as an unofficial Talent Recruitment Officer for the Great Jing Demon-Slaying Division. I hereby formally invite you to join our ranks, slay ghosts and demons, and bring blessings to all under heaven."
As he spoke, he bowed once more.
"The Demon-Slaying Division?"
Li Hai asked curiously, "You're with the Jing Dynasty's government? What brought you to Coiling Dragon Mountain? Isn't this a lawless region?"
Zhang Miaoji merely smiled at that.
"There's something you don't know, brother. 'Lawless' doesn't mean it can't be governed, only that no one wants to bother. If Great Jing wanted to govern this stretch of Coiling Dragon Mountain... no one would dare defy it."
Then he added, "Most importantly, the Demon-Slaying Division doesn't concern itself with human affairs. Border defenses, military affairs, changes in officialdom—we don't touch any of it. We only slay ghosts."
"Oh." Li Hai nodded in understanding. "Sounds like a pretty focused organization. You must have plenty of intelligence on ghosts from all over the place, then?"
"Of course," Zhang Miaoji said with a smile. "That's exactly what we do."
"Hmm. What's the pay like?" Li Hai asked.
After hearing the Daoist's pitch, he was rather tempted. The main draw was the intelligence on ghosts.
"As for the pay..."
Zhang Miaoji explained, "Once you join the Demon-Slaying Division, even the lowest-ranking Wood-Rank Lieutenant earns nine hundred Great Yuan a month!"
Li Hai had no idea what nine hundred Great Yuan meant, but Zhang Miaoji sounded quite proud of it. The Great Yuan probably had considerable purchasing power.
"I don't care much about the money."
Li Hai asked another question. "What matters most is whether your Demon-Slaying Division has many experts. I love fighting experts."
Experts meant new skills, which also meant his strength would grow.
So Li Hai had to ask. Otherwise, if the place was full of weaklings, joining would only waste his time and energy.
"Then you've come to the right person."
Zhang Miaoji smiled proudly. "The Demon-Slaying Division is one of the finest martial organizations in the world, packed with experts as numerous as the clouds and the crowds. It's in a league of its own compared to those martial sects.
"Not only that, our Demon-Slaying Division is also exceptionally well supplied with resources like cultivation methods, weapons and armor, and medicinal pills. As long as you successfully slay a ghost, you can claim all..."
"That's enough! No need to say more."
Li Hai raised a hand to cut Zhang Miaoji off and said decisively, "I'll join the Demon-Slaying Division. Is that good enough?"
"Hahaha, excellent!" The Daoist beamed. "It wasn't easy, but I've recruited another great talent."
As he spoke, he pulled a letter that had already been written from his sleeve and handed it to the bewildered Li Hai.
"This is a letter of introduction. Head southwest. After eighty li, you'll reach Ox-Horn Town in Zhou Family Fort. There's a place called Tea Hall there. Find someone named Master Tea and give him this letter."
"Oh." Li Hai took the letter, glanced at it, then put it in his pocket. "What about you? Where are you going?"
"Me?"
Zhang Miaoji straightened his Divination Banner and smiled. "I'll keep wandering the world, recruiting worthy people, of course."
Before you continue