Master Zhou received a call from Guan Yan on his dazed journey back.
"Hello."
"Master... I..." Guan Yan's voice, struggling to come out of his throat, was filled with panic.
"Hello? Is the signal bad?"
"I..." Before Guan Yan could finish a complete sentence, the call disconnected.
Master Zhou stood there thinking for a moment, then decided to walk away on his own.
If he went over now, he wouldn't even be enough to fill the evil god's tooth gap.
After walking a few steps, Master Zhou's phone rang again. He answered, "Hello."
Jing Tinghua's voice came through: "Sorry to bother you, Master Zhou." He paused, then said coolly, "My people say they saw Jing Jiujiu in Hai City. Master Zhou, you should be in Hai City too, right?"
Master Zhou immediately realized that Jing Tinghua suspected he hadn't actually sold the ghost, but had kept it for himself.
Master Zhou replied, "Is that so? Perhaps the buyer is also in the area."
He paused, then added, "As it happens, I have something to tell Mr. Jing as well. I've found the statue."
On the other end, Jing Tinghua sat up straight, his other hand immediately hovering over another phone receiver, ready to give orders at any moment.
"In Hai City? Are you sure?"
Master Zhou: "Yes, it's an evil god statue, correct?"
Jing Tinghua: "...Yes."
Jing Tinghua's breath hitched: "I'll send people right away..."
Master Zhou: "No need. The evil god is killing people right now. Even if you send a hundred people, it wouldn't be enough to fill its tooth gaps."
Jing Tinghua suddenly calmed down: "Master Zhou is right. I'll leave this matter entirely in your hands. I'll have another ten million transferred to you. Please make sure to bring the statue back, regardless of the cost. Any expenses you incur in Hai City will be covered by the Jing family..."
They both hung up the phone, feeling quite pleased and satisfied.
It's just an evil god statue, isn't it?
They're all statues, and they're all pretty evil.
Just give it to you and be done with it, right?
Master Zhou hung up and walked on.
The grass on both sides of the road rustled in the wind. The streetlights flickered due to poor contact, making soft crackling sounds.
Master Zhou initially hunched his shoulders, but soon straightened up again and strode forward confidently...
What did he have to fear?
Ghosts?
The mystical Mr. Bai stood behind him, and the impressive ghost young master Jing stood behind him!
Forget walking straight, he could even walk sprawled out if he wanted to!
...
Guan Yan was discovered by his assistant the next morning.
His eight assistants saw their boss lying on the floor and rushed in frantically, but got stuck in the doorway, with only their shouts echoing through the entire hallway: "Brother Guan!!!"
"Brother Guan, what happened to you, Brother Guan?"
The agent also hurried over, and finally, everyone entered in an orderly manner. There was even a slight disagreement over who should carry Brother Guan out together, as whoever ran fastest would be seen as more loyal and potentially get a bigger year-end bonus!
When Guan Yan was lifted into the ambulance, his face was ashen.
The doctors and nurses performed CPR on him for a while. Guan Yan exhaled sharply, suddenly sat up, and grabbed the doctor's wrist: "Phone, where's my phone..."
While Guan Yan was still thinking about calling Master Zhou,
The agent looked up and saw the statue in the shrine. With just one glance, the agent shuddered. Turning around, he surveyed the room—a wardrobe that required three people to move had been pushed over; the glass table was overturned, shards everywhere; all the hanging paintings were askew; the bathroom faucet was left running, with a thin layer of water spreading across the floor, making one's shoes feel wet and uncomfortable when stepped on; and those strange poultry arranged all over the floor, especially the chicken head drooping limply, sent chills down one's spine just looking at it...
The agent shuddered thoroughly this time.
What kind of thing could have caused such chaos?
The agent dared not look anymore and hurriedly turned to run out.
Behind him, the statue's eyes, painted a bright red, began to glow again.
Last night, it had caught the scent of countless little ghosts.
Those should have been offerings for it to feed on.
But this damned human had trapped it here.
It felt doubly mocked.
This was only the beginning.
Ha, just wait! I'll let you taste the fear brought by an evil god.
Jing Jiujiu was already sitting with Bai Yuhuai on the film set.
The little ghosts from last night were now either crammed into Bai Yuhuai's trailer, perched on top of it, or squatting by Jing Jiujiu's chair.
They were very curious about why Jing Jiujiu could be easily seen by people.
While they had to exert great effort just to materialize and scare someone.
Two or three little ghosts circled around Jing Jiujiu.
Now, the big ghost had completely forbidden them from materializing.
The little ghosts wondered confusedly, is it because we're too ugly? Far less good-looking than the big ghost?
At this moment, the Assistant Director walked over, cursing: "What the hell is Guan Yan doing? He's only been with the crew for a few days? Does he even want to do this job?"
Someone hurried over: "I'm sorry, I'm Brother Guan's assistant. Brother Guan suddenly fainted this morning and is now in the hospital..."
The Assistant Director couldn't say much after that, but the dissatisfaction remained in his heart.
The crew didn't want to burn money on something like this.
Although Guan Yan was absent, everyone else cooperated well, and the day's shooting wrapped up quickly.
Best Actress Tao lifted her skirt while chatting and laughing with several staff members: "The weather is quite cool today. I didn't even sweat much wearing the headpiece, and my makeup didn't smudge."
"Yeah, the Assistant Director even said his head felt a bit cold."
The Assistant Director was bald.
"If only it could be like this every day," Best Actress Tao sighed. "This not-too-hot, not-too-cold weather is perfect for filming. Winter is too cold, summer is too hot, both actors and staff suffer."
Jing Jiujiu glanced at the little ghosts exuding cold air all over their bodies.
...This might be a bit much.
It wasn't until after filming that everyone learned Guan Yan's room had been flooded and many things inside were smashed. The hotel was now seeking compensation from the production.
The Assistant Director was left speechless after hearing this.
There's a lot of pressure in the entertainment industry, and many people like to play with outrageous things, but did he have to take it this far? Didn't he know he had to film the next day?
Meanwhile, Guan Yan's agent walked over awkwardly, apologizing to everyone.
He had originally wanted to call the police, but Guan Yan adamantly refused, so the agent had no choice but to give up.
"We'll cover the costs here, and Brother Guan will be able to continue night shooting this evening," the agent said. After saying this, he was still a bit puzzled.
Guan Yan had insisted that he go check if there was a handprint on the back of that young man next to Best Actor Bai.
The agent cursed Guan Yan in his heart, but his legs automatically walked over to Jing Jiujiu.
Unable to think of an excuse, he just laughed and said, "Oh right, Brother Guan asked me to ask you..."
Suddenly, everyone looked over.
Guan Yan was still in the hospital, and he was already trying to poach from Bai Yuhuai?
"Well, he wanted to know where you bought that nice outfit you're wearing?"
"..."
Everyone's gazes became even more strange.
The agent didn't notice. His mind was focused on the task Guan Yan had given him. As he spoke, he reached out to lift Jing Jiujiu's sleeve, trying to turn the young man around completely.
But although the youth in front of him looked slender and delicate, the agent couldn't budge him at all.
How could he know that there were three little ghosts clinging to Jing Jiujiu's back!
Jing Jiujiu was starting to deeply understand how uncomfortable Bai Yuhuai must have felt when he rode on his back. He almost had the thought that he shouldn't ride Bai Yuhuai anymore, to protect his spine...
The weight of a soul can be very light.
It can also be as heavy as a mountain.
Jing Jiujiu felt that a big ghost like himself was probably as heavy as a mountain.
The agent tried lifting and pushing several times: "..."
At this moment, the door behind the agent opened, and Bai Yuhuai walked out, having just removed his makeup.
Bai Yuhuai: "What are you doing?"
Agent: "Nothing, just wanted to know what brand of clothes he's wearing?"
"It's custom-made, no brand."
"How do you know?" The agent blurted out, then felt something was off. He turned around to see Bai Yuhuai standing there, and his face changed in fright: "B-Brother Bai?"
"How would I know?" Bai Yuhuai coldly repeated his words, "I bought it."
Everyone in the film crew: !
Oh shit!
Big news!
The agent wiped the sweat from his brow, not daring to let such information-laden words reach his ears. He feared that if the news spread tomorrow, Bai Yuhuai would be the first to deal with him.
Guan Yan was really causing trouble!
"Okay, alright, I understand. It's nothing... Thank you, Brother Bai." The agent's smile grew increasingly awkward as he turned and walked away first.
Seeing this, someone couldn't help but snicker quietly.
Guan Yan still wanted to be Bai Yuhuai's rival?
He'd need to at least get an agent who doesn't tremble in front of the award-winning actor first.
"Let's go," Bai Yuhuai said to Jing Jiujiu, then raised his hand and seemingly casually flicked Jing Jiujiu's shoulder.
The three little ghosts rolled off immediately.
Others who saw this assumed Bai Yuhuai found Guan Yan's agent's hands dirty.
Such jealousy...
Everyone exchanged glances and tactfully lowered their heads, pretending not to have seen anything. Otherwise, if rumors spread, Bai Yuhuai would surely come after them!
Bai Yuhuai led Jing Jiujiu away.
Guan Yan's agent, unable to save face, didn't leave immediately. He wanted to avoid being scolded by Guan Yan for holding things up after making a fool of himself here.
The agent watched Jing Jiujiu walk away before slapping himself: "You idiot, couldn't you just wait for them to come out on their own? Why did you have to go and look... Damn." The agent paused here, suddenly realizing something.
He just remembered that the youth was wearing a shirt with two fuzzy balls hanging from the collar. Every detail was exquisitely crafted. On anyone else it would look effeminate, but on the youth it only looked refined.
If Guan Yan had worn those clothes... The agent shuddered.
No wonder their looks were so strange at the time!
Damn!
This can't get back to Guan Yan.
Guan Yan didn't stay in the hospital for long before being discharged.
The hotel booked by the film crew was already full, and the floor he had been staying on had been taken over, so he had to move to a different hotel.
This hotel was a bit old and rundown. Forget the agent, Guan Yan himself had already rolled his eyes dozens of times sitting inside.
"You're back? How was it? Did you see?" Guan Yan asked eagerly.
Master Zhou had said that his ordeal last night was due to making an excessive wish, angering the evil god.
Guan Yan thought it over carefully.
He didn't feel like he had been excessive anywhere.
Thinking about it, hadn't he only targeted Bai Yuhuai and that youth?
The agent shook his head and said, "I looked carefully. Neither the youth nor Bai Yuhuai had any handprints on their backs like you mentioned. What is this about? Why are you asking about this?"
Guan Yan pressed his lips together in silence.
That's not right, it means the evil god didn't act against them.
So which of my requests was excessive?
Was it because I had a fleeting thought about wanting to dominate the entertainment industry?
Guan Yan pressed his lips together even tighter, feeling as if he had been insulted by that statue of the deity.
Is it so difficult for me to want to dominate the entertainment industry? Is it really that hard?!
Though dejected, Guan Yan still managed to instruct his agent to bring the statue along with its shrine over here.
The agent found it puzzling but complied nonetheless.
After walking out, he couldn't help muttering quietly, "Your former boss kept a Guan Gong statue at home for thirty years, didn't he still go bankrupt and run off with his sister-in-law last year?"
Jing Jiujiu and Bai Yuhuai returned to their hotel room and first took a call from Master Zhou.
Master Zhou briefly explained how he had fooled Guan Yan and Jing Tinghua.
Bai Yuhuai responded with a few simple acknowledgments before hanging up.
Bai Yuhuai closed the door: "Take off your clothes."
Jing Jiujiu: ?
It only took Jing Jiujiu three or four seconds of bewilderment before he obediently raised his hands to unbutton and remove his shirt.
By the time Bai Yuhuai turned around, Jing Jiujiu was already bending down to take off his pants.
Bai Yuhuai's eyes swept over, catching a glimpse of a smooth and fair waistline. His eyelid twitched, and his throat felt as if it contained a cardiac pacemaker, thumping loudly. Even his brain experienced a momentary dizziness, as if struck by an extremely strong intimidation debuff from a fierce ghost.
"...Jing, Jing Jiujiu." Bai Yuhuai's voice became unsteady.
The cold voice seemed to be covered by a layer of mist, becoming slightly softer.
"No need to take off your pants," Bai Yuhuai said.
The youth's body was at a particularly beautiful stage.
One glance made it almost impossible to dare look closely a second time.
Yet his gaze seemed firmly attached, unable to be pulled away.
In that brief moment, Bai Yuhuai even recalled lifting the youth from the ground, the youth straddling his lap, and the youth pressing tightly against his back... The blood in Bai Yuhuai's neck quickened its pace.
Jing Jiujiu paused: "Oh."
You should have said so earlier.
He thought it was strange.
Jing Jiujiu looked down and refastened his belt, then straightened up and asked, "Is that alright?" He paused before asking again, "Did you want to look at something?"
Bai Yuhuai silently walked behind him.
Bai Yuhuai raised his hand and pressed it on Jing Jiujiu's shoulder. Though the movement seemed light, the force was extreme, pressing Jing Jiujiu so that even a big ghost couldn't move.
The warm light from the ceiling lamp poured down, spilling onto Jing Jiujiu's back. Because the youth had just taken off his clothes and removed the bracelet, his soul wasn't quite solid, so some of the light seemed to pass through him, making the youth appear as if he himself was emitting a shimmering glow.
Beautiful like a work of art on display.
Bai Yuhuai unconsciously held his breath, then raised his other hand and pressed firmly on the youth's right shoulder blade.
There, stark against the skin, was a handprint so red it was almost black.
As if it had been embedded into the skin.
Bai Yuhuai lowered his gaze, concealing the cold and gloomy look in his eyes, and stroked the mark.
"This evil god isn't too stupid. It forced Guan Yan to change hotels, so naturally the statue was moved out too. The formation trapping it has become ineffective. This thing has become even more brazen."
Where does it want to leave its mark next time?
Imprinted into the bone?
Now Jing Jiujiu understood: "The handprint isn't on the clothes, it's on my back?"
Bai Yuhuai: "Mm."
Jing Jiujiu had a moment of confusion and couldn't help asking: "And then what?"
Bai Yuhuai: "What do you mean?"
Jing Jiujiu licked his lips. Because of their close proximity, Bai Yuhuai could clearly glimpse the moisture that appeared on his lips. Why could a ghost seem so much like a living person? Bai Yuhuai's thoughts briefly wandered for a moment.
Jing Jiujiu: "Besides leaving a handprint, it didn't do anything else?"
Bai Yuhuai: "This is equivalent to a death notice." He paused before asking, "Aren't you afraid?"
Jing Jiujiu: "Is it going to keep leaving handprints?"
Bai Yuhuai: "If left unchecked, yes."
Jing Jiujiu: "Isn't this just like saying tough words every day, telling you to wait for someone to come beat you up tomorrow... Doesn't it feel like it lacks impact? Who threatens to beat someone up so many times?"
This evil god is doing a worse job than when I was a ghost.
Bai Yuhuai: "..."
Well... that's true.
But ordinary people would have been terrified by the successive handprints by now.
"How do evil gods kill people?" Jing Jiujiu asked.
"Generally, they change a person's luck, or scare them to death. Most often they use external means. They don't have real bodies, so of course they can't directly kill people."
"Then how do they kill ghosts?"
"Ghosts that become offerings will unconsciously supply their own yin energy until they are completely consumed."
"Since everyone can absorb it." Jing Jiujiu licked his lips and turned his head to ask seriously, "Can I try absorbing it?"
Bai Yuhuai: "...You can."
Bai Yuhuai let go of his hand, then quickly turned his face away: "But even if it's a disguised entity, it's not easily caught."
Jing Jiujiu murmured: "There's always a way."
Bai Yuhuai bent down to pick up the shirt from the floor and draped it over Jing Jiujiu: "Mm." I'll find a way. Not just evil gods, even true gods. He would find a way all the same.
He didn't want the little ghost before him to become someone else's little ghost.
The one he personally brought out from the ancient castle... would be his for a lifetime.
Bai Yuhuai suppressed the secret thought in his heart.
"Take off your clothes," Jing Jiujiu suddenly said.
Bai Yuhuai was startled, his throat tightening as he could only squeeze out a single word: "Hm?"
Jing Jiujiu circled around him.
The young man's shirt buttons were still undone, revealing a large expanse of snow-white waist and abdomen that dazzled the eyes in the lamplight as he moved.
Jing Jiujiu said: "I want to check if there are handprints on your back too."
Bai Yuhuai quickly replied: "No need to look, there aren't any."
Jing Jiujiu asked skeptically: "How can you be so sure?"
Because of his constitution, he was destined to be invulnerable to any evil spirits.
Not only that.
He could effortlessly kill any evil spirit. Including that foreign evil god.
As long as he removed the matching bracelet on his wrist.
All evil spirits that approached him would turn to dust. Even Jing Jiujiu would be the same. That's why he couldn't choose such a simple and brutal method.
Jing Jiujiu: "Let me see."
Bai Yuhuai: "There's nothing."
Jing Jiujiu glared at him fiercely: "Let me look! Did you get a pair of handprints on your back? Why won't you let me see?" Am I not fierce enough?
Jing Jiujiu's fingertip twitched.
Bai Yuhuai's jacket slipped down a bit.
Bai Yuhuai: "..."
Bai Yuhuai's throat bobbed, and he finally raised his hand to take off his jacket and shirt himself.
Jing Jiujiu: "Oh, abs." "And back muscles." "Is this the Adonis belt?"
He seemed to be genuinely praising.
But Bai Yuhuai had never felt so uncomfortable standing still before, even more so than when he first performed a live drama in front of a national audience. All the blood in his body rushed through him with a roar.
Jing Jiujiu asked sincerely: "I saw your fans online saying that when you filmed 'Devouring the Sky', you wore just a leather jacket with nothing underneath. When you reached into your jacket to pull out a gun, it would reveal a section of your waist. In the dark corners, when the light hit it, it really showed off your 'dog waist'. May I ask what a 'dog waist' is?"
Bai Yuhuai's throat tightened again as he raised his hand to stop the young man circling around him.
Spending too much time surfing the internet every day.
"It's a vulgar term, used as an insult. Good kids shouldn't use it," Bai Yuhuai said softly.
Jing Jiujiu: ?
Is that so?
Jing Jiujiu stopped in his tracks: "...There's no mark on your back at all."
As he spoke, he imitated Bai Yuhuai's earlier action and reached out to touch.
"Tss." Jing Jiujiu withdrew his hand, frowning, "It's so hot."
When Bai Yuhuai touched him earlier, everything was fine. How come when he touched, it didn't work? It was like even Bai Yuhuai's hair would be scalding if plucked.
Bai Yuhuai, a bit flustered, stiffened his neck: "...A human's yang energy must feel hot to you."
Jing Jiujiu: "Is it yang energy?"
He opened his mouth slightly, making a sucking motion.
"In stories about spirits and in 'Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio', don't ghosts always like to suck people's yang energy? Why can't I suck it?"
"Because..." Bai Yuhuai felt as if he had truly been blinded by an evil spirit, his thoughts slightly jumbled. He paused before continuing, "You're too... yin."
Jing Jiujiu: "You're insulting me."
Bai Yuhuai: "No... I'm not." He put his clothes back on and asked Jing Jiujiu: "Are you going to sleep?"
Jing Jiujiu walked away again: "Fierce ghosts don't need to sleep."
Bai Yuhuai: ?
Knowing his personality well, Bai Yuhuai asked: "What do you want to stay up late for tonight?"
Jing Jiujiu: "Meng Hexin said he's bored in the hospital and wants to play games with me. He said he's really good at 'Honor of Kings'. What's 'Honor of Kings'? I've never seen it before. I'm going to play now."
Bai Yuhuai, a gaming novice, found himself speechless.
Jing Jiujiu walked away on the carpet. A group of little ghosts, sensing his movement, finally dared to squeeze out of the bedroom one by one, following behind Jing Jiujiu and filling up the sofa completely.
There wasn't even a place for Bai Yuhuai to sit.
Forget about being a gaming companion, now he couldn't even be a sitting companion.
Damn.
Meanwhile, Guan Yan's agent had placed the idol back into the shrine in the new room.
Guan Yan looked up, and for some reason, the idol's face seemed even more fierce, the bloodiness in its eyes more intense.
Guan Yan's heart trembled a bit, feeling scared, but still unwilling to throw it away.
Is it difficult to dominate the entertainment industry?
Then I'll just ask you to help me get Director Cheng's movie, that's not difficult, right?
The corners of the evil god's mouth seemed to curl into a smile.
Guan Yan felt relieved.
Does this mean it's possible?
The beautiful ghost, after discovering the new handprint, must be trembling in fear right now, right? The evil god let out a silent, cackling laugh.
...
In the neighboring film set of "The Mist", they had just finished the opening ceremony.
"Be careful!"
"The props! Don't bump the props!"
"Didn't you eat? Hurry up and move it over there!"
The staff members nodded repeatedly, hurriedly moving the box away. The prop master glanced down: "We're still missing one box?"
A male star walked over, smiling: "Is this the idol I'm supposed to worship in a bit?"
The prop master looked down and was stunned: "No, it's not. We prepared a Japanese-style idol. How did it change?"
This idol was sitting upright among the messy boxes.
Its features were handsome, truly having a divine air about it.
The male star blinked: "Looking closely at this idol, it seems familiar. Like someone I've seen before. Haha, you guys shouldn't buy idols carelessly. What if it's made by some anti-fan based on a celebrity? If you use it, you might offend someone!"
Jing Jiujiu, who had happily played games all night, zoned out for a while, wandered around with the little ghosts for a couple of laps before coming back and picking up his phone to see—
[You have entered Youth Mode, unlocking requires parent password]
Jing Jiujiu: ??