The Dong Family's Bounty

Zhou Yan knew full well that apart from the rare few who could retain their pre-death consciousness, most ghosts were filled with soaring resentment, their intellects clouded by malice and a deep-seated desire for revenge.

Since he had thwarted the water ghost's plan to kill and find a substitute, it was ten to one that the creature would come seeking vengeance.

Yet, Zhou Yan hadn't expected the water ghost to be so impatient, arriving to exact its revenge that very night.

Fortunately, he had prepared in advance, seizing the opportunity to deal the ghost a heavy blow.

This was only because he had condensed Profound Yin Essence Blood, which had limited lethality against yin-evil entities like ghosts.

Had he condensed yang-attribute essence blood, a single strike would likely have utterly annihilated the water ghost.

"Ah..."

The water ghost struggled violently, seemingly trying to break free from the peach wood sword.

But Zhou Yan would never grant it such an opportunity; he shoved the peach wood sword firmly into the wall, pulled out a bamboo tube filled with boy's urine, and splashed it directly onto the ghost, chilling it to the core.

Boy's urine was even more lethal to ghosts than to zombies; as the tube's contents hit, the water ghost began to hiss and dissolve as if being corroded.

In the end, only a puddle of foul-smelling black water remained on the floor.

Seeing the water ghost dispatched, Zhou Yan couldn't help but mutter, "The power of this boy's urine is truly not weak."

For him at present, although he possessed zombies, other methods remained somewhat scarce.

In particular, using essence blood magic to deal with evil spirits caused a drain on his Profound Yin Essence Blood, which required time to recover.

Yet, using these old-fashioned methods required no expenditure of vital energy and proved even more effective.

Though it might seem unsightly, for Zhou Yan, as long as the method was effective, that was all that mattered; pride and posturing were things to be saved for after his cultivation had improved.

Three years of living at the bottom of society had made his character increasingly steady, and he no longer placed much weight on face.

Having become a rickshaw puller, exhausted like a dog every day and nearly collapsing several times, what use was there for face!

Zhou Yan cleaned up the floor and drifted back into a deep sleep.

The more his body lacked vital energy, the more he needed sufficient sleep to allow his body to recover faster.

Several days later, Ma Yan suddenly arrived at the new residence.

"You subdued the water ghost in the river?"

As soon as he arrived, he asked directly.

Zhou Yan was slightly taken aback, asking curiously, "How did you know?"

"It's already spread all over outside; they say you saved Old Qi's only son, San Kuazi, and even took care of the water ghost." Hearing Zhou Yan's admission, Ma Yan felt a weight lift from his heart and couldn't help but smile.

After hearing this, Zhou Yan thought for a moment and suddenly laughed out loud.

"This San Kuazi is sharp enough; it seems he's a natural at gathering intelligence!"

Ma Yan was curious and quickly asked for the reason.

Zhou Yan recounted the situation, finally saying, "San Kuazi likely heard about me from Old San and the little sister, which is why he deliberately spread the word. Otherwise, it's been several days, and it only just started spreading; clearly, San Kuazi didn't intend to leak it earlier. This kid is a talent for intelligence work..."

In the end, he sighed once more.

For an eleven or twelve-year-old child to have such foresight and thought was truly extraordinary.

Compared to the children of his past life living in honey pots, the children of this era were tempered early by poverty and hardship, each one of them precocious.

Ma Yan was also somewhat surprised after hearing this.

"If you put it that way, this San Kuazi really is a talent."

Zhou Yan nodded slightly, thought for a moment, and asked, "How is the situation at San Kuazi's home?"

"Old Qi was injured by falling debris a few days ago. Fortunately, it wasn't serious and he wasn't crippled, but he had to take quite a bit of medicine. His injuries haven't even healed yet, and he's already rushed back to work; who knows when he'll collapse," Ma Yan said with a flat expression.

His tone carried a hint of pity and lament, but not much.

After all, in this chaotic world, everyone struggled to survive, and there was little energy left to care for others, let alone the ability to do so.

Zhou Yan pondered for a moment and said, "What do you think about taking San Kuazi into my service?"

Ma Yan immediately objected, "What use is a kid that small? I know you're kind-hearted, but everything you have now was earned with your own life; you can't be so soft-hearted. There are so many pitiful families in this world—how many can you actually save?"

Zhou Yan paused, knowing Ma Yan was right.

Most importantly, if he saved San Kuazi's family, then when other families heard the news and came knocking, would he save them or not?

Though San Kuazi's family was pitiful, they were still holding on.

There were many other families that were already on the verge of total ruin.

He sighed and said nothing more.

In the end, the memories of his past life influenced him too much, making it inevitable that he would occasionally show a soft heart.

In this regard, Ma Yan was an excellent stabilizer.

Seeing the expression on Zhou Yan's face, Ma Yan knew he had given up, yet he still couldn't quite let it go.

He hurriedly changed the subject and said, "Alright, let's talk business."

"I received some news: the Dong Family on Little East Gate Street is haunted. The First Madam was killed by a vengeful spirit, the Second Concubine is bedridden, and a maid has died as well. The Dong Family is currently recruiting sorcerers to deal with the spirit. Should we get involved?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan asked a different question first: "How much money do I have left on hand?"

"Of those one hundred silver dollars, there is less than twenty left. At the current rate, it will only last about half a month..." Ma Yan thought for a moment before replying.

Zhou Yan needed to replenish a massive amount of blood and qi for his daily cultivation.

Therefore, aside from his daily dietary needs, he also had to purchase large quantities of meat and medicinal herbs to sustain his vitality.

Twenty silver dollars for half a month was already extremely tight.

Moreover, Zhou Yan knew in his heart that those one hundred dollars alone could never have lasted this long.

He suspected that Ma Yan had likely been subsidizing them out of his own pocket.

Zhou Yan gave a bitter smile and looked at Ma Yan: "What is the bounty the Dong Family is offering?"

"Fifty silver dollars." Ma Yan held up a hand.

Zhou Yan gritted his teeth slightly and couldn't help but mock, "That Dong Family is stingy as hell. A vengeful spirit has already entered their home, yet they only offer a bounty of fifty silver dollars? They aren't even afraid of losing their own standing."

He immediately added, "The Li Family is the same way."