A serious upgrade

After seeing Chen Ying off, Su Xiong returned to his office and sat in his executive chair, resting with his eyes closed.

"Lord Hung, you just gave something that important to that Chen kid?"

The speaker was Du Ke. Tall and broad, with a knife scar on his face, he had the fiercest reputation among Su Xiong's three disciples.

"What else?"

Su Xiong tapped the desk slowly.

"You're not happy about it."

"Isn't that Chen kid backing Hua Shanrong? If he names Fire Dragon as a target, how are we supposed to hold our heads up in the underworld?"

Du Ke knitted his brows.

"That kid's getting too much attention. Someone needs to take him down a peg."

Su Xiong gave a cold laugh and looked toward Sha Wei on the other side.

"Ah Wei, you've dealt with Chen Ying. What do you say?"

"I don't have any thoughts on it. I do whatever you say, Lord Hung."

Sha Wei's answer was blunt. "If Lord Hung tells me to respect him, I respect him. If Lord Hung tells me to chop him down, I chop him down."

"Ah Zhi, everyone in the underworld says you're the cleverest of my three disciples. What do you make of this?"

Bian Zhi, the shortest of them, glanced at his two fellow disciples on the other side.

"After taking something from us, would Chen Ying have the nerve to target Fire Dragon? Besides, he's offended so many people now. Even a spoiled rich kid should know to rein himself in."

Bian Zhi then looked at Su Xiong. "But with Chen Ying's background, he had no reason to come to us. Could he have some other purpose behind this?"

He pushed up his glasses and continued, "Could something have happened over in Lingnan, and he wants to..."

"That doesn't matter."

Su Xiong brought the discussion to a decisive end.

"What matters most in the underworld? Thinking big!"

"Remember what I told you? Any problem money can solve isn't a problem. It's only a compass. If we could buy one from Ma Qi, there's no reason we can't buy another somewhere else."

Su Xiong rose and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking out at the glittering world of Hong Kong and Kowloon.

"In this world, favors are the most valuable thing, because money can't buy them. You have to pay your respects to neglected gods and tend cold hearths. The Chen family hasn't been active in the underworld for years, and Chen Ying has only just come out into the world. Do him a favor, and it can pay off steadily for years to come."

Su Xiong turned to his disciples.

"Hong Kong dollars? I have plenty. Spending a little means nothing. So what if we throw away a few pieces of trash like Fire Dragon? Even if we lose face, we can regain it."

"Look at the big picture, not the petty accounts. If I don't step forward to rebuild that hospital, I'm just an underworld man who cares about nothing but profit. If I rebuild it, I'm a prominent member of society people can work with."

"If I don't rebuild it, I'll only be dealing with those chiefs. If I do, the people coming to my door will be foreigners and the very wealthy."

"I helped Chen Ying today. Once word gets out, more and more Chen Yings will come knocking. Only then will our business go further."

"Thinking big is what matters most. Groups like Yisheng and Wo On Sing see nothing but brothels, gambling dens, and drug stalls. That's why the cops will still be pushing them around even if they keep at it for ten thousand years. Why? Because no matter how vicious or ruthless they are, they'll never be respectable."

Su Xiong lit himself a cigarette.

"Think a little bigger. Sooner or later, Tung Sing will be yours."

Du Ke hurriedly said, "Thank you for your guidance, Lord Hung. I learned something new today."

Bian Zhi hastened to declare his loyalty. "Lord Hung, Tung Sing can't do without you. We still have a long way to go."

"I wonder what Chen Ying actually wants that compass for."

Sha Wei murmured.

Chen Ying got into the car and told Uncle Qing to drive straight to the Little Building.

The car wove through traffic and soon turned onto a mist-filled lane.

That icy chill seeped into the car.

Chen Ying closed his eyes, carefully comparing it.

The chill along the lane seemed stronger. In other words, the Little Building was slipping from the intersection between "reality" and the "Void Realm" toward the Void Realm.

No, rather, the Void Realm was drawing closer and closer to the Little Building.

This probably counted as a brewing Spirit Disaster too.

As Chen Ying considered this, Uncle Qing's voice suddenly reached him.

"Young master, there's something ahead."

Through the car window, Chen Ying could see a towering figure.

No.

It could no longer be described as a human figure. It was like a mountain of pure flesh.

Countless chunks of flesh had fused together, covered in densely packed stitches. Countless arms reached out from the flesh, waving feebly in the air.

It moved slowly but steadily along the lane.

An evil entity drawn here by the Little Building?

Chen Ying asked, "Can we go around it?"

"We should be able to."

Uncle Qing turned the steering wheel, and the car sped past, almost brushing against the mountain of flesh.

Through the glass, Chen Ying saw that the stitches on the mountain of flesh seemed to form twisted human faces. Their expressions were agonized, their mouths gaping in silent wails.

The car gradually accelerated, leaving the mountain of flesh behind.

Soon, the Little Building appeared ahead, but Chen Ying noticed that its exterior layout had changed.

At some point, a streetlamp had appeared outside the Little Building. It shone with a deep blue light that inexplicably reminded Chen Ying of the ultraviolet lamps used for disinfection in hospitals.

Chen Ying pushed open the car door and got out.

Wu Jie was waiting for him on the ground floor.

"Let's check our time."

Chen Ying took a mechanical watch from his pocket.

"Two hours and twenty-three minutes have passed on mine."

"The clock has also advanced two hours and twenty-three minutes. That means we still have seven hours..."

"That's enough."

Chen Ying looked outside.

"There's a new streetlamp over there."

"A streetlamp?" Wu Jie thought for a moment. "I don't think I ever heard Granny mention one."

"It'll probably attract ghosts."

Chen Ying thought for a moment. "There are still empty rooms on the fourth floor."

Wu Jie looked at Chen Ying.

"You mean..."

"We have to prepare for the worst."

Chen Ying's expression was grave.

"I got the item from Su Xiong. It works even better than I imagined."

Chen Ying explained the compass's specific effects.

"So?"

"I wanted to check the Little Building's situation with you. On the way here with Uncle Qing, there was an evil entity moving along the lane."

Chen Ying looked at Wu Jie. "We both need to be ready for the worst."

Wu Jie thought for a moment and nodded.

"Don't worry."

"Right. Let's both take care."

Chen Ying left the Little Building and got back into the car. He gently bit open his fingertip and let a drop of blood fall into the compass.

The blood seeped through the compass's surface. Its needle began spinning rapidly before finally pointing in one direction.

The compass pointed toward the other end of the lane in front of the Little Building.

A direction Chen Ying had never gone before.

"Uncle Qing, drive ahead."

The car continued along the road. At the end of the lane lay thick fog, with green ghost fires faintly visible bobbing within it.

Who would have thought that after all those twists and turns, I'd still end up here.

Holding the compass, Chen Ying pushed open the car door.

On the other side of the fog was the Wrongful Death Ghost Market, which he had visited once before.

The proprietor with the large pot on his back was still pacing around in front of his stove.

"Well now, quite the upgrade! This time you've even got a zombie driving for you."

The proprietor grinned at Chen Ying and laughed.