Mysterious Revival

Five days later, Yang Jian returned to Dachang City.

The reason it took so long was that he got off the train in a northern city, and since the distance to Dachang City was too great, even traveling through the Ghost Domain, the journey was rather lengthy. Considering some factors about himself, he decided to conserve the number of times he used his abilities and chose to take the journey by train honestly.

During these days, Yang Jian had not been idle; he had been looking at the five sentences decoded from Chong Xiong.

One, "Who are you?"

Two, "I have nothing left to give you."

Three, "Damn cabinet, give me back my things."

Four, "Tell me where the ghost is?"

Five, "I want to leave this place."

Five sentences, very simple. The first was a question, seeming to be the original owner of the Ghost Cabinet asking something. The second statement seemed to imply a transaction had been attempted, and the original owner was in a dire situation, unable to offer anything valuable.

The third sentence was critical: "Damn cabinet, give me back my things."

This indicated that the Ghost Cabinet had taken something from its original owner, who was filled with regret. But from this sentence, it wasn't hard to infer that the original owner had figured out some mysteries of the Ghost Cabinet, otherwise, such words wouldn't have been written.

The fourth sentence was a plea for help.

The original owner seemed to be looking for a specific ghost.

As for the fifth sentence, judging by the timing, it appeared to be the original owner's declaration of hopelessness after experiencing it all, deciding to abandon everything and keep away from disputes.

However, the fifth sentence was strange; if he wanted to leave, why would Zhao Lei write this question asking about something?

It was contradictory.

However, analyzing these sentences, it wasn't hard to conclude that the original owner of the Ghost Cabinet had truly used it only four times. And as for the cabinet's ability, Yang Jian felt it strangely resembled that of the human skin paper, seeming to offer some sort of help, yet at the cost of a price.

"Although its ability may be similar to that of human skin paper, they belong to two different categories. Human skin paper seems to be a special existence that knows all, harboring a dangerous plan, and it wants to use me to achieve its purpose. But the Ghost Cabinet seems more like an unequal trade.

Despite the imbalance, the Ghost Cabinet doesn't seem to harm the individual," thought Yang Jian to himself.

If the Ghost Cabinet had been harmful, it would have caused commotion in the old residence from the Republic of China Period long ago; it wouldn't have remained quiet for a hundred years.

Yet the original owner clearly did not trust the Ghost Cabinet; otherwise, he would not have left behind such a warning phrase and would not have locked it in a secret room, made a brass door, and left no chains.

These arrangements were an intangible warning.

They represented the original owner's precautions and fear regarding the Ghost Cabinet.

"Perhaps the original owner in his lifetime never fully understood the entirety of the Ghost Cabinet and only explored some of its limited aspects, so he chose to leave these problems to the future generation. Those who would enter the secret room and come into contact with the Ghost Cabinet could choose to discover on their own.

Or maybe he chose not to leave any information about the Ghost Cabinet as he debated whether the secret should be passed down."

Yang Jian pondered over the original owner's thoughts as a ghost manipulator.

He could understand why the original owner of the Ghost Cabinet would want to erase all information but still choose to leave the item behind.

It was hesitation and struggle.

He did not want the item to be misused by future generations, yet he did not want to bury it after death because some items indeed could be very helpful to future people. Just like the Ghost Mirror, Yang Jian had managed to control the Headless Ghost Shadow perfectly, solving the problem of the ghoul's resurrection.

Of course, all these arrangements hinged on a premise.

That is, the ghost manipulator from the Republic of China Period had a premonition that the ghoul would resurrect at some point in the future.

"If I hypothesize like this, the problem seems to have circled back to the beginning, still connected to all these unknown origins—the Coffin Nails from Hongfa Temple, the old residences from the Republic of China Period, and the Ghost Car I encountered a few days ago... All of these are like invisible clues. When these clues come together, they may reveal a terrifying truth."

"The answer is not hidden in the past but in the future. With the increase in supernatural incidents, all of this will slowly come to light."

"I can't speculate about the past or predict the future, so I'll just take care of the present..." Yang Jian felt it best to study the Ghost Cabinet more while he still had time; he believed it could be of great use.

As for the human skin paper, he had to gradually break free from his dependence on it.

Unless he was in a dire situation, Yang Jian wouldn't casually use it, preferring to keep it buried ten thousand meters underground—safe and not worried about other matters.

"Yang Jian, ghost manipulator, you have finally returned to Dachang City. I got the message that you arrived at the station and immediately rushed over," said Zang Hua, the captain responsible for liaising with Yang Jian in Dachang City, as he waited with some of his subordinates upon Yang Jian's arrival.

"Zang Hua? What brings the team captain here in such a hurry? Don't tell me that in the past few days, there's been a new paranormal incident in Dachang City that I'm responsible for," Yang Jian's heart sank upon seeing him, fearing more trouble had arisen locally.

Zang Hua hushed him, looking around at the people nearby: "Indeed there's a bit of an issue, but please, Ghost Manipulator Yang Jian, get in the car first. We can discuss it on the way."

"That's fine, but first, take me back to Guanjiang Residential Complex. I need to take a bath and rest for a day. If there's anything to be done, it can wait until tomorrow," Yang Jian said.

As soon as he got into the car.

As the vehicle started moving, Zang Hua pulled out a document and began, "Last week, Yang Jian, the ghost operator, was to investigate Shangtong Technology Co., Ltd. A few days ago, I obtained the search warrant. As long as you agree, we can begin the investigation of Shangtong Tower at any time."

"Good, it seems my reputation as 'Ghost Eye Yang Jian' is still worth something," Yang Jian nodded in approval.

This Shangtong Technology Co., Ltd. is a stronghold of foreign forces with many mercenaries working under them. Yang Jian had encountered attacks several times before, all commissioned by clients of this company.

Now, it was time to take down this cancer plaguing Dachang City.

"Additionally, this is something from the higher-ups I'm supposed to pass on to you," Zang Hua said as he handed over another box.

Opening it, Yang Jian found a golden box containing a red candle that appeared as though it was condensed from fresh blood, emanating an ominous and foreboding aura.

Ghost Candle!

This red Ghost Candle was incredibly valuable and was currently the must-have special item, especially critical in dealing with supernatural events—practically a second life for a ghost operator.

"That was quick," he commented.

After confirming the contents, Yang Jian put the box aside: "But Wang Xiaoming still owes me one. I wonder when it will be settled."

"I'm not privy to the arrangements made by the higher-ups. Also, the 500-kilogram gold quota has been delivered to Guanjiang Residential Complex. Right now, Yang Jian's finance manager, Jiang Yan, has taken receipt of it. But due to the unique nature of this item, I need to personally hand it over to you as soon as possible," Zang Hua said, all business and very earnest.

That was only proper, given his collaboration with Yang Jian—it had to be handled with due diligence.

This was a matter of great importance for the safety of Dachang City, and no negligence could be afforded.

"Alright, I'll inquire about the debt, and I'm already aware of the gold quota. Have there been any incidents in Dachang City lately?" Yang Jian asked.

"All is normal. The rescue work is also wrapping up. You can form a temporary task force to take charge of Dachang City's safety at any time," Zang Hua reported.

"Let's hold off on forming a temporary task force for now. Just make sure intelligence work is done well. Contact me directly if there's an issue; I will take responsibility," Yang Jian said.

"It's not that I don't trust you all, but I'm moving around too frequently, so establishing a team doesn't hold much significance," he added.

He was not keen on becoming fully integrated into the organization's headquarters.

Doing so would hinder some activities, and although it meant losing some power, it didn't bother him; that wasn't what he was after.

"Okay, then, I'll trouble you with anything that comes up," Zang Hua said.

Yang Jian added, "I'll make a personal visit. Just let me know when you're ready."

While they were talking, his satellite locatable phone rang.

"Excuse me, I need to take this call."

"Yang Jian, it's me, Zhao Lei." This time it was not Liu Xiaoyu, nor the new operator Qin Meirou, but Zhao Lei making contact.

"I've reviewed the supernatural event archives you established a few days ago and have reorganized them, making a slight adjustment to the definition of the levels for the supernatural events. I hope you don't mind," Zhao Lei said. "After discussion, we've classified Crying Tomb Ghost as Class B, Dried Corpse Bride as Class C, and the Ghost Car file has been secretly archived and transferred.

You did well this time. Professor Wang is particularly interested in this car."

After listening, Yang Jian replied, "I'm not interested in the definitions of levels, and I don't want to deal with the Ghost Car anymore for now. Just handle it as you see fit. Any information that needed to be shared has already been given to you."

"That's good to hear. Also, the matter you requested has been approved."

It was as if Zhao Lei hadn't heard Yang Jian when he said he would handle it, acting as if he didn't know and continuing, "You're satisfied with the new operator, right?"

"I'll get used to it eventually," Yang Jian responded.

"Are you interested in going on a trip soon?" Zhao Lei asked.

"No," Yang Jian said curtly and then ended the call.

A trip?

Wasn't it just to clean up a mess for some city leader? He had almost lost his life to the Ghost Car, and it had only been a few days.

Even if one were to hang themselves, they'd still want to catch their breath first. Did they really think he was a robot, capable of working ceaselessly day and night?
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From now on, Yang Jian decided to outright reject any business trips, even if it was for a vacation. Judging by his recent run-ins, traveling did not suit him.

Staying in Dachang City, where no supernatural events were currently happening, was the safest option.