"It's finally over."
Chen Miao let out a breath.
It was exactly six in the morning when Chen Miao left the cold storage room.
After returning to his dorm room, Chen Miao threw himself onto the bed without even washing up.
As soon as he relaxed, exhaustion washed over him.
Still, he fought off sleep and opened the book, his eyes half closed.
[Name: Chen Miao] [Age: 24] [Occupation: Funeral director] [Karmic merit: Two qian] [Current status: None]
His karmic merit had increased by one qian, and the status field was now empty.
He kept turning the pages.
The [Skill list] remained unchanged, but a new entry had appeared in the [Miscellaneous arts list].
[Six Jiangzhen Secrets]
Chen Miao brushed his finger over that line, and the incantations and their corresponding information appeared in his mind one after another.
The so-called [Six Jiangzhen Secrets] were incantations recited with Jiangzhen Incense for six different situations.
"Descending the True Grievance-Resolving Incantation": Could be recited while offering incense to those who died violent or unnatural deaths, such as accidents, murder, or traffic collisions, to dispel the departed soul's resentment.
The incantation read: "May the wronged soul's obsession now dissolve; let Jiangzhen's pure fragrance deliver your spirit. Resolve injustice, dispel resentment, cleanse karmic hindrances; pass on to the Eastern Pole Court of Eternal Joy."
"Descending the True Soul-Calming Incantation": Could be recited while offering incense to those who died of illness or natural causes, such as prolonged sickness or old age, to soothe the departed soul and help it pass on.
The incantation read: "A wisp of Jiangzhen pierces the nine heavens; the soul returns to the purple mansion, its sins and karma cleansed. Let the three souls and seven spirits return to their rightful places; escape reincarnation and ascend the bridge to immortality."
"Descending the True Transcendence Incantation": Could be recited while offering incense to those who took their own lives, such as by hanging, drowning, or poisoning, to help them transcend their suffering.
The incantation read: "Four sticks of Jiangzhen pierce the netherworld, illuminating the Yellow Springs Road. Let mountains of blades and trees of swords become lotus thrones; let lakes of blood and seas of suffering become the Jade Capital."
"Descending the True Child-Deliverance Incantation": Could be recited while offering incense to infant spirits, including those lost through abortion, early death, or miscarriage, to help them reincarnate.
The incantation read: "Drifting clouds of incense approach the lotus throne; little infant spirit, grieve no more. Be born again into a family that does good; do not fall into the Underworld Bureau to suffer calamity."
"Descending the True Universal-Salvation Incantation": Could be recited while offering incense to unattended wandering souls—ghosts with no one to make offerings for them—so they could receive incense offerings and pass on.
The incantation read: "A wisp of true incense summons the ten directions; wandering souls and lingering spirits come to the ritual ground. Jiangzhen smoke curls as sacred food is bestowed; escape eternal suffering and depart for the land of immortals."
"Descending the True Evil-Subduing Incantation": When troubled by malicious spirits or plagued by yin energy, one could hold Jiangzhen Incense to exorcise evil and invoke Demon Suppression!
The incantation read: "Radiant and blazing, the sun rises in the east. Wherever Jiangzhen burns, myriad ghosts bow and hide. Any who dare trespass shall turn to dust and frost. Divine might descends, forever suppressing ill fortune."
As he absorbed the details of those incantations, Chen Miao even felt an urge to find a ghost right away and try them out.
But drowsiness soon overwhelmed that impulse.
Half asleep, Chen Miao turned to the [Item list] and saw something new.
[Old Wang's memory fragment]
"What... is this?"
Chen Miao brushed his finger over the line, willing himself to take it out.
But the moment he conveyed that thought, he could no longer fight off his drowsiness. His eyes closed, and he fell asleep.
At the same time, [Old Wang's memory fragment] was gradually erased from the item list.
Chen Miao had a dream, a very long, very tedious dream. He knew he was dreaming, yet he could not wake up.
In the dream, he was the caretaker of a funeral home's cold storage room. He could clearly perceive everything his dream self experienced, but he could not control that body.
Day after day, he received bodies and moved them out.
In his spare time, he read books, watched the news, or played Spider Solitaire and Minesweeper.
He also left the cold storage room, but the very next second, he stepped through its doors again, as though the scenes outside had been cut out.
The repetitive, monotonous routine bored him.
Every night, he heard all sorts of faint noises in the cold storage room. He wanted to investigate, but his body would not obey him.
The days passed, and he had no idea how many days and nights went by like this.
He gave up. He stopped struggling and began going along with his body.
When his body moved corpses, he followed its movements. When his body watched the news, he immersed himself in it.
That gave him the feeling that everything was happening of his own free will.
Gradually, his restless heart settled, and he began to enjoy those days.
He could sit at the computer desk in the cold storage room all day without feeling bored. He could read with people constantly coming and going around him. He could close his eyes and rest amid all the noises in the cold storage room at night, quietly waiting for dawn.
Until one day, his mechanical routine changed.
Holding a bottle of liquor, he staggered into the area where the refrigerated cabinets stood, leaned against one, and fell asleep.
In the dream, he fell asleep. In reality, he woke up.
Chen Miao opened his eyes and stared at the dorm room ceiling. Those memories had not vanished from his mind when he woke.
"Were those Old Wang's memories?"
Something occurred to Chen Miao, and he turned to pick up the book beside his bed.
[Old Wang's memory fragment] had disappeared from the [Item list], but a new status had appeared on the [Author information] page.
[Current status: Iceheart]
Chen Miao touched the word "Iceheart" and instantly received its information.
While this status was active, once he focused his attention, outside disturbances were less likely to distract him, and his concentration improved.
Chen Miao could not help recalling how Old Wang had been in the dream—shutting out the world and focusing solely on the corpses in storage—and felt a stir of emotion.
He checked the time. It was already four in the afternoon. He had slept for ten hours.
After getting up and eating, Chen Miao returned to his dorm room, since there was no work to do. He studied the book for a while without any results, then resumed studying relevant folk traditions, especially those involving Jiangzhen Incense.
But he found no mention of the Six Jiangzhen Secrets.
The night passed uneventfully.
The next day, Chen Miao got up early.
Qian Xiaomei's memorial service was at seven thirty that morning, followed by her cremation.
Chen Miao checked the contents of the book. Seeing that nothing had changed, he felt fairly good.
After breakfast, Chen Miao began organizing the arrangements for Qian Xiaomei's memorial service.
At six thirty, Chen Miao went to the cold storage room and asked the staff to wheel Qian Xiaomei into the preparation room to see whether her makeup needed touching up.
After the touch-up, Qian Xiaomei would be wheeled into the Funeral Hall, where her relatives could pay their last respects during the memorial service.
At seven, Chen Miao changed into a white shirt and black suit in the office, took the printed documents, and headed toward Yongning Hall.
Tianmen Funeral Home had three farewell halls: the main farewell hall, Yongning Hall, and Nanshan Hall.
The main farewell hall was large and expensive, so memorial services were usually held in the other two smaller halls.
Qian Xiaomei's memorial service was in Yongning Hall.
By the time Chen Miao arrived, the preparations in Yongning Hall were almost complete.
Still, Chen Miao went through all the required procedures.
After checking the deceased's name, cremation time, funeral music, and other details with the service office staff, Chen Miao personally inspected the arrangements in Yongning Hall.
The wreaths, funeral couplets, and sound system were all in order.
When his gaze passed over the memorial portrait, Chen Miao paused for a moment before looking away.
At seven twenty, Qian Xiaomei's parents arrived first. Chen Miao went forward to greet them. After confirming the deceased's name, he showed them the family attendance list and eulogy.
Once everything was confirmed, Chen Miao led Qian Xiaomei's parents to the Funeral Hall.
When Qian Xiaomei's mother saw the makeup on her daughter's face, she began crying again.
"Whatever you like... you can have it your way..."
Chen Miao quietly watched from the side as Qian Xiaomei's parents sank into grief.
He had witnessed this scene over a hundred times in the past two years.
As seven thirty approached, Chen Miao asked them to leave the Funeral Hall and return to Yongning Hall.
By then, Qian Xiaomei's relatives had arrived. Chen Miao guided them through putting on white flowers and signing the register, and the appointed time drew near.
After making his preparations, Chen Miao stood at the lectern at the front of Yongning Hall.
He counted down from ten and began presiding over the service at exactly seven thirty.
"Please switch off your phones and remain silent."
"Thank you all for coming to see Qian Xiaomei off on her final journey."
"Cherry blossoms fall like rain, and spring is all too brief; pear-blossom clouds disperse, leaving the moonlight cold. I now declare the farewell ceremony for Qian Xiaomei officially open."
As the funeral music began, Chen Miao's slightly sorrowful voice rang out again.
"Qian Xiaomei once said, 'I want to live every day in the colors of the rainbow.' Today, as we stand here looking at her bright eyes and fluttering skirt in this photograph, we finally understand—she truly did!"
"Though fate cruelly pressed the pause button, the value of a life is never measured by its length!"
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