Home (4)

After graduating from high school, Ding Shi became an apprentice at a repair shop in which Wang Meng held shares. At the time, Wang Meng was still a lackey, while his boss was already terminally ill. This repair shop was far from ordinary. One of its services was called automobile cleaning, specializing in helping people dispose of evidence inside cars.

For example, if A killed B inside a car and called for automobile cleaning, Wang Meng would take people over. They would handle things differently according to the client's requests: clearing away fingerprints and hair left by the client, disposing of the body and cleaning the car, or staging the scene as a suicide.

Ding Shi had worked as an apprentice for two and a half months when his superiors deliberately arranged a small accident, catching Wang Meng's eye. After earning Wang Meng's trust, taking over the repair shop, and gaining a bit of money and influence, Ding Shi bought a luxury car.

The owner of the luxury car had struck someone while driving drunk and immediately sent the car to the repair shop. Ding Shi and the others fixed it up. When the authorities came knocking the next day, they gave the car a cursory inspection, found no flaws, and concluded that the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run had fake plates.

The owner was rich and superstitious, so Ding Shi acquired the car at a very low price. Besides being a manual, its gearshift was unusually located to the right of the steering wheel, commonly known as a column shifter. Ding Shi was unaccustomed to it at first, but gradually got the hang of it. Though he already had a C2 license, he specifically went on to get a C1 license for it.

Brother Kai was quite talkative. As they rummaged through trash together, Ding Shi gained a more complete understanding of the team members. In short, no one on the team was a bad person.

At noon, they ate boxed lunches together. The team's morale was fairly high, and their conversation revolved around Ita World.

Brother Kai asked, "Chu Yu, why are you so rich?" After bringing Ding Shi into the group, Chu Yu had exchanged another 450 instance coins at a rate of 100 dollars.

Chu Yu said, "I caught a wanted criminal, and the authorities rewarded me with 300 dollars."

"300 dollars?" Everyone stared in astonishment. Sun Heaven asked, "Where was the wanted criminal?"

Chu Yu said, "There are three identities in Peach Haven Village that can come into contact with the wanted criminal. The first is the night patrolman, who is the first person to discover him. The second is the volunteer. The third is the village chief's assistant. The night patrolman finds a house that has been empty for days, only for someone to move in during the middle of the night. Upon questioning him, he learns that he is a villager who had been working elsewhere."

"On the sixth day, the volunteer learns about Yaya's situation and decides to seek help from Yaya's uncle. Yaya's uncle is the wanted criminal."

"Before the ritual begins, the village chief's assistant conducts a census of those who had returned to the village from working elsewhere. The wanted criminal is among them."

Ding Shi asked, "Yu Yu, but how did you know which one was the wanted criminal?"

Chu Yu answered, "The newspaper."

Ding Shi asked, "What newspaper?"

Chu Yu said, "The newspaper on the minibus to Peach Haven Village. It's on the last row, and it has a portrait of the wanted criminal."

Everyone pressed a hand to their foreheads. There were plenty of seats on the minibus. Who would sit in the most uncomfortable last row?

Next, Sun Heaven told them about his Peach Haven Village experience.

He had been a member of the Night Patrol Team. Honest and good-natured by disposition, he dutifully patrolled at night as instructed. On the third night, he discovered a weasel carrying off one of a villager's chickens. He chased it with all his might to a dilapidated house on the eastern side of the village and found the chicken, which had been bitten to death. The chicken was beneath a three-legged table. Following procedure, he brought it back to the village and returned it to the villager. When he bent over to pick up the chicken, he saw a playing card stuck to the north side of the table: the three of hearts.

Mu Mu cut in, "I know that quest. The night patrol player in my village didn't find the chicken. The next day, the village chief's assistant issued a quest to find the thief. If you find the weasel's den, you'll discover a stash of treasure worth between 50 and 100 dollars."

They all felt as though they had missed out on a fortune and regretted not digging deeper.

Brother Kai asked, "Sun Heaven, do you know what the playing card is for?"

Sun Heaven shook his head. "No. I asked the other players, but they had no clue either."

Chu Yu asked, "Brother Kai, did you find a playing card too?"

Brother Kai said, "There was a player in our village, A, who somehow heard that there was an ancient tomb on Peach Garden Mountain. He disappeared for a day and a night before returning with the ten of diamonds. We laughed at him for making it up, but he described it so vividly. He said the card was a priceless treasure. Player B provoked him, and to prove he was telling the truth, A traded the card to B and let B inspect its information. B simply took the card."

Sun Heaven asked in surprise, "You could put up with that?"

Brother Kai said, "No. They fought. B had training and beat A half to death. I asked B to return the card to A, but he asked why I was helping an idiot. I had gotten along fairly well with B before, while A was a loner. In the end, the matter was dropped. Still, fools have fool's luck. A was sent to Doctor Qian's place, and somehow he got two bottles of Summer Insect Red Potion. They say the red potion can bring the dead back to life and regenerate flesh and bone. As long as someone still has a breath left, after taking it, whether from external injuries or grave illness, they can regain a healthy body."

Ding Shi suddenly understood. He recalled the incident where Doctor Qian saved Sun Qi. He had not investigated Doctor Qian any further.

All four had spoken. Not wanting to leave Ding Shi out, Chu Yu said, "Ding Shi, tell us about your Peach Haven Village."

"Mine?" Ding Shi raised his head and thought for a while. "It wasn't quite like yours."

Everyone asked doubtfully, "How was it different?"

Ding Shi said, "Only the village chief and I survived in my Peach Haven Village."

The four asked in shock, "Why?"

Ding Shi said, "First Ghost Granny appeared, then a flying zombie came, along with an evil ghost. White Cloud Daoist was also harmed by a treacherous villain. The entire ritual became a slaughterhouse. Not even chickens or dogs were left alive in the village."

The four looked at one another. After a long while, Brother Kai asked, "Ding Shi, were you playing the same instance as us?"

Ding Shi said, "Probably. I was the village chief's assistant."

Brother Kai looked at the others and asked, "Have any of you seen ghosts? Seen zombies?"

The other three shook their heads together.

Mu Mu asked, "Who is White Cloud Daoist?"

Ding Shi said, "The old Daoist living at White Cloud Temple on Peach Garden Mountain. The zombie was at White Cloud Temple. It was Third Lady's original body."

Chu Yu said, "No, Ding Shi, this was just a ritual event. How did you end up with ghosts?"

Ding Shi said, "I didn't bring them out. The groom did. I was only responsible for the zombie."

Sun Heaven shook his head. "I don't understand."

Ding Shi explained, "The groom raped the bride, so Third Lady went berserk."

Mu Mu asked, "Third Lady from White Cloud Temple?"

Ding Shi said, "No, Third Lady from Third Lady Temple."

Mu Mu said, "You said Third Lady was at White Cloud Temple."

Ding Shi said, "Third Lady's soul was at Third Lady Temple. Blind Zhao, in order to achieve his own goal, lured me to White Cloud Temple and released Zombie Third Lady, using her to avenge his grandfather."

Everyone was stunned. "There was even a Blind Zhao revenge storyline?"

"Yes. His grandfather had once been a menial disciple serving White Cloud Daoist's master... In the end, he stabbed White Cloud Daoist to death while White Cloud Daoist was suppressing Ghost Third Lady. Ghost Third Lady blasted out of the temple, and the situation completely spiraled out of control. Blood flowed like a river in the bridal chamber. Corpses and zombies could be seen everywhere in the village."

The four were utterly bewildered. They suspected Ding Shi was spouting nonsense, but they had no proof.