As the owner left, the other apprentices and servants turned astonished, envious gazes toward Chen Miao.
Two people went into the room and soon carried Ma Jie's body out.
By the moonlight outside, Chen Miao saw Ma Jie's eyes staring open in death and smelled the stench of urine and feces drifting on the wind.
Ma Jie hadn't actually needed to die.
He had known both that tongue-tip blood could be spat at evil spirits and that paper offerings were vulnerable to water and fire.
In fact, it was precisely because Chen Miao had heard Ma Jie casually mention these taboos surrounding paper offerings that he had looked up related accounts and gained the confidence to resolve this incident.
Yet when the crisis came, Ma Jie lost his usual composure. All that remained was fear, and in the end, he died with his eyes still open.
Chen Miao stood there for a long time before turning and returning to the room.
The communal bed could sleep six people, but now Chen Miao was its sole occupant.
Lying in bed, Chen Miao tossed and turned, seemingly unable to sleep.
Only after the faint, concealed aura of the soul body beside him disappeared did he truly breathe a sigh of relief. He stopped pretending, but still did not open his eyes.
Who knew whether the owner of the Paper Effigy Shop had other tricks? Better to be cautious.
Time slowly passed as Chen Miao kept his eyes closed, thinking and remaining on guard.
Chen Miao didn't know what had happened. After staying up through the night, when dawn seemed close, a sudden wave of drowsiness overcame him. Unable to resist, he fell straight asleep.
When he opened his eyes again, he saw the ceiling of the room in the Funeral Home's little