Chapter 10
Chapter 10
I didn’t expect Fu Wan to appear again.
She looked to be in terrible shape; her spirit form was much fainter than before.
But even so, if she were to risk everything in a final struggle, she might find a weakness and kill me in a single blow, despite the protection of Liu Junyan’s Scale.
Fu Wan stared at me, and I stared back, my heart leaping into my throat.
Under my watchful gaze, Fu Wan suddenly glanced toward the Hexagonal Palace Lantern hanging under the western corridor.
That single look seemed to carry a sense of grim determination.
Then, she slowly raised her hand. Her sharp fingernails pierced her brow, and bit by bit, she pulled out the Coffin Nail that had been driven into her forehead!
Fu Wan had been murdered a hundred years ago, and this Coffin Nail was what had pinned her soul in place!
The Coffin Nail held Fu Wan’s Souls together. By pulling it out, especially after her spirit form had already sustained heavy damage today, she would soon dissipate into nothingness!
Barring any miracles, she wouldn’t live to see tomorrow’s sun.
Why was she doing this?!
To my astonishment, Fu Wan held the blood-stained Coffin Nail and walked in step by step, eventually placing it on the counter.
Every step she took was agonizingly difficult. Finally, she leaned her hands on the counter, her blood-red eyes fixed on me as she spoke: “Coffin Nail. Dead Pawn. The letter.”
I was completely stunned.
Fu Wan’s series of actions had exceeded all my expectations.
She was a spirit, which made this a Yin Pawn.
When a Yin Pawn makes a request, it cannot be refused.
By pawning the Coffin Nail in exchange for the letter, she was performing a trade of objects.
But without the Coffin Nail, she would ultimately end up scattering into ashes. Was this… was this a Soul Sacrifice?
I couldn’t be sure, but I understood one thing: Fu Wan was determined to get that letter tonight at any cost!
She was putting everything on the line, wasn’t she?
Her enemy was that Giant Rat, and that Grey Rat was also the murderer who killed my Granny.
I was just an ordinary person. With my abilities, I couldn’t possibly kill that Giant Rat. Perhaps using Fu Wan’s hand could be considered a way for me to avenge Granny.
I just didn’t know if Fu Wan had the strength to kill it.
Regardless, according to the rules, I had to accept this transaction.
I opened the drawer, took out the Pawn Tickets, and flipped to the third-to-last one at the back.
I ground the ink, dipped the brush, and began to fill it out haltingly.
Pawn Tickets were made in duplicate. Once finished, I took the Pawnshop’s Seal from the third drawer and stamped them. I kept one for the records and handed the other to Fu Wan.
Along with the ticket, I handed her the letter.
Fu Wan took the letter and opened it, her blood-red eyes scanning it line by line.
There were too many emotions hidden in that gaze. After finishing, she let out a long sigh, looked up, and whispered a “thank you” to me before vanishing into the curtain of rain.
The night was dark and silent.
It was as if nothing had happened.
I looked at the Coffin Nail on the counter and suddenly remembered something.
Granny had said that the offerings in the Main Hall could not be neglected. On the first and fifteenth of every month, an offering of Pure Yang or Pure Yin must be made.
This Coffin Nail before me qualified as a Pure Yin object, didn’t it?
I didn’t dare touch the old Pawned Items in the Pawnshop, but this Coffin Nail was the result of my first successful business deal, and it was a Dead Pawn.
This Coffin Nail belonged to me now!
I had the final say on how to handle it.
I took a few sheets of Yellow Paper, carefully wrapped the Coffin Nail, and ran toward the Main Hall.
In the Main Hall, the black mist swirling around the Black Coffin was still there, though it had faded considerably.
There were also fewer pieces of Talisman Paper on the Black Coffin.
I placed the Coffin Nail on the offering table, pulled out three sticks of Yellow Incense, lit them, bowed toward the Black Coffin, and inserted the incense into the burner.
As soon as I finished, a wind rose within the Main Hall.
The three sticks of Yellow Incense burned down at a visible speed, turning to ash in the blink of an eye.
Immediately after, the Coffin Nail on the altar began to dissolve right before my eyes, turning into a pool of black liquid as if it had been corroded by strong acid.
I wasn’t sure if it was just my imagination, but the black mist surrounding the Black Coffin seemed to thin out significantly.
Before I could process what was happening, a desperate scream suddenly rang out from outside.
The sound came from the east end of town and was rapidly approaching the west.
I rushed forward and soon recognized the voice.
It was Dou Feng.
“The letter! The letter!”
“She’s here! She’s come for my life!”
“Help! Someone help me!”
…
The small door to the Southern Study had collapsed, leaving nothing to obstruct my view. From a distance, I saw Dou Feng running toward the Pawnshop with everything he had, screaming as he fled.
Something seemed to be pursuing him relentlessly from behind.
Suddenly, Dou Feng was tackled to the ground.
He lay flat on the earth, yet his body was being dragged backward. Blood pooled beneath him, only to be quickly washed away by the rain.
He spotted me and clawed at the ground with one hand while reaching toward me with the other. “Xiao Jiu… Xiao Jiu, save me! I don’t want to die…”
Before he could finish his sentence, his body was dragged into the darkness.
When a person is on the brink of death, their screams possess a piercing intensity. Dou Feng’s agonizing cries echoed through Wufu Town, yet not a single soul came out to save him.
It felt as though everyone in Wufu Town knew exactly what this rainstorm would bring.
The entire ordeal didn’t last long before silence reclaimed the streets.
A short while later, the crow of a rooster signaled the dawn.
The torrential rain that had lasted for two consecutive days finally stopped.
The water on the streets quickly receded back into the river to the west.
A light breeze blew past, and suddenly, a faint, ghostly green light flickered inside the Hexagonal Palace Lantern hanging from the western eaves.
It pulsed like a summer firefly, dimming and brightening in turns.
This Hexagonal Palace Lantern had hung under these eaves for countless years, yet it had never been lit before.
Why now?
Could it be… a Soul Sacrifice!
I suddenly remembered that before Fu Wan had pulled the Coffin Nail from her brow, she had glanced toward this Hexagonal Palace Lantern.
At the time, that subtle movement had seemed meaningless to me.
But now, I understood.
Fu Wan had offered her own Souls as a Sacrifice to the Hexagonal Palace Lantern, completing the Soul Sacrifice.
As the current Manager of the Pawnshop, I was now bound to seek justice for her and complete her Salvation!
No matter what it took.
I stood there in a daze, unable to calm my racing heart for a long time.
I don’t know how much time passed before voices began to fill the street, and the beams of flashlights started darting around.
I turned my head to look, and my eyes met Dou Feng’s wide-eyed, staring gaze under the light.
A Coffin Nail was driven deep into the center of his forehead. Blood streamed down the bridge of his nose, looking both gory and hideous.
I was truly terrified, and my entire body began to tremble.
Fu Wan had killed Dou Feng, not the Giant Rat.
Dou Feng had called out to me for help at the end… Had he died unjustly?
If he had been innocent, then I was the culprit who had allowed Fu Wan to commit murder…
This was the first time I had ever experienced something like this, and for a moment, the weight of it was more than I could bear.
I began to sink into self-doubt.
My legs went weak, and I stumbled backward.
Just then, a pair of strong arms reached around from behind me. My back pressed against a broad, firm chest, and in the next heartbeat, I was completely enveloped. Warm breath brushed against the top of my head.
A man’s cool, clear voice rang out: “Xiao Jiu, don’t be afraid.”