Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Five Viscera

There were a few small restaurants around the neighborhood. Shen Chang'an had arrived in a hurry and hadn't eaten, so Sun Yiyuan simply took him to one of the little eateries for a bite.

Though Shen Chang'an didn't really need food, eating was a pleasure to him—especially when it was free. Naturally, he had no reason to refuse.

Sun Yiyuan ordered a few stir-fried dishes and two bottles of baijiu. The food hadn't yet arrived, but he was already seated, grumbling to Shen Chang'an.

"Tell me, what terrible karma have I brought upon myself? When her mother gave birth to her, she never contacted me, not once. If I hadn't happened to run into a friend later, I'd never have known at all..." Sun Yiyuan held his glass, a bitter look on his face.

Shen Chang'an took a small sip of baijiu, listened to this, and couldn't help but laugh. "What karma? You've tricked women, swindled plenty of people, with cheating and stealing making up half your life—and you wonder what wrong you've done?"

Sun Yiyuan, knowing he was in the wrong, downed a glass, his eyes turning distant with memory. "How can you say that? I was young back then, reckless and ignorant. I dated her properly, but things just didn't work out, so... Ah, now look at me—grown old with not a single child, just this one daughter, and she won't even acknowledge me..."

Shen Chang'an sipped his drink slowly. "If you ask me, you owe your daughter. Go visit her more. Talk to her. Wait—haven't you already met her? All these years and you still can't win her over?"

"Don't even bring it up..." Sun Yiyuan's face twisted with pain. "First, she's as stubborn as can be—refuses to recognize me as her father. Second, the Bureau's work is confidential. I can't tell her much. Sometimes I get called on a case, and I have to leave in an instant. It doesn't exactly make a good impression."

Shen Chang'an shot Sun Yiyuan a suspicious look. With your limited skills, you have assignments?

Sun Yiyuan caught his doubtful expression and quickly said, "Hey, don't look down on me. Sure, when it comes to catching monsters or ghosts, ten Sun Yiyuans tied together couldn't match a single finger of yours. But when it comes to geomancy and finding dragon veins, do you dare compare with me?"

Shen Chang'an raised his eyebrow with a strange look. "The Bureau has you tomb-raiding now?"

"Get out of here, where'd you pick up that nonsense? We don't call it tomb-raiding. It's legitimate archaeology, okay? Besides, if they need me, you think it's just any old grave? There's always something weird about those places."

Shen Chang'an considered this and found it reasonable. For ordinary archaeological work, all those professors and experts were certainly more capable than this old charlatan. Only when something truly bizarre occurred would Sun Yiyuan be called in to break a feng shui formation.

"Anyway, that's beside the point. Now that things have quieted down for me, I just want to find a chance to patch things up with my daughter. But her temper is just like her mother's—once she decides to ignore me, there's nothing I can say to change her mind..."

"And your wife?" Shen Chang'an asked.

"Ah, bad luck—she passed away early..." Sun Yiyuan's eyes narrowed, a faint shimmer of tears gathering.

Shen Chang'an lowered his head, unsure what to say for a moment.

At that moment, the waiter arrived with their food. The dishes were set down, and the aroma drifted to Shen Chang'an's nose, making his mouth water.

"Enough, Old Sun. Eat first. We'll look into things later. Handle this well and maybe your daughter will see you differently." With that, Shen Chang'an grabbed a chopstickful of stir-fried cabbage, piled it atop his rice, and took a big bite.

"Yeah, let's eat first, talk later."

It was a typical fly-infested joint—cheap, generous portions, and tasty. Shen Chang'an ended up eating four bowls of rice, and most of the dishes vanished into his belly, leaving Sun Yiyuan staring in astonishment.

"Hey, Old Shen, are all you ghost-catchers such big eaters?" Sun Yiyuan couldn't help but ask. After two bottles of liquor, Shen Chang'an naturally became "Old Shen."

Shen Chang'an wasn’t embarrassed in the least. He picked his teeth with a toothpick as he replied, "It's not bad. After all, ghosts aren’t fools—they don’t just stand there and let you cast spells. Most of the time, you have to chase them down."

"So you actually train?"

Shen Chang'an shook his head with a sigh. "If only I had. Right now, I rely solely on magical power. If I run into a real expert, I'd be finished in a few moves."

He wasn't being modest. He'd realized it when he encountered Zheng Huyi—if he really faced off against a martial arts master, it wouldn't take long for the other to take him down.

Don't be fooled by his unstoppable strength when he used his divine powers. Zheng Huyi could easily disable him before he even made a move. After all, that wasn't the mundane world; Zheng Huyi might have hidden techniques, or could simply kill him with a weapon—it was all possible.

And in the real world, Shen Chang'an had even less of an advantage. If someone just pulled a gun, he'd have to consider how to escape. If the gunman was even a little skilled, then "beyond seven steps the gun is king; within seven steps the gun is both fast and accurate."

"Well, that's not a problem. There are plenty of experts in the Bureau. I've got a buddy who's really something—when he's free, I'll have him spar with you, teach you a few moves."

Shen Chang'an smiled. "That would be great."

If he could learn a trick or two, he wouldn't have to rely solely on brute force when fighting. Brute force worked on ordinary people, but went he up against monsters like Yuan, strength was useless—he’d be helpless.

The two chatted as they made their way to the Bureau.

Two men reeking of alcohol—it's a wonder they weren't thrown out. Luckily, Sun Yiyuan had enough clout. An officer recognized him and promptly ushered them both inside.

Shortly after they entered, Sun Yiyuan's daughter, Li Xia, happened to come out.

This young woman was headstrong and refused to take her father's surname, using her mother's instead. With Sun Yiyuan owing his daughter so much, he hardly dared say a word.

Li Xia spotted the two and immediately frowned.

Bound by confidentiality rules, Sun Yiyuan had never explained the truth to Li Xia. The only one in the Bureau who knew his real identity was the director, so Li Xia was thoroughly unimpressed with her fortune-teller of a father.

"What are you doing here again?"

"I... I came..." In front of his daughter, the normally smooth-talking Sun Yiyuan suddenly stammered.

Shen Chang'an quickly interjected, "Oh, Old Sun's here to see your boss. Since you're here, why don't you take him up?"

"And you?" Li Xia glanced at Shen Chang'an.

He shrugged. "I'm just his friend. I'll wait here in the lobby until you're done."

Shen Chang'an was used to a laidback life and had no desire to face another superior, especially since Old Sun needed some time alone with his daughter. He'd just be in the way.

Li Xia didn't press the issue, shot a glare at Sun Yiyuan, and led him upstairs.

Shen Chang'an sat in the lobby, planning to kill some time on his phone, when he suddenly noticed a disheveled man across from him.

He paused. There was a faint ripple of magical energy emanating from the man.

But it lasted only an instant and then vanished.

Shen Chang'an frowned. He hadn't yet mastered the art of spiritual perception, so he could only sense magic when someone naturally emitted it.

But with this man, it was only a fleeting moment before the feeling disappeared.

"Some sort of special phenomenon?" Shen Chang'an wondered, scrutinizing the man.

The man wore a white T-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops—utterly casual. He slouched in his chair, his demeanor indifferent, half his body sprawled out, moving with a careless air.

Others in the lobby kept their distance, glancing at him with obvious disgust, as if he were a plague.

"Mr. Shen."

As Shen Chang'an was observing, the officer who'd greeted them earlier brought over a glass of water.

"Oh, thank you." Shen Chang'an accepted it and took a gulp.

"Mr. Shen, are you and Mr. Sun both sent from above?" The young officer lingered, taking the opportunity to ask.

Shen Chang'an was startled, then waved his hand. "No, Old Sun was sent. I'm just a friend, here to help out."

"Oh..." The officer looked puzzled and seemed about to ask more.

Shen Chang'an didn’t want to pursue the topic, so he quickly changed the subject. "Hey, who is that?"

He pointed at the casual man.

The officer glanced over, surprised. "Teacher Lu? Mr. Shen, why are you interested in him?"

"Teacher?" Shen Chang'an was taken aback. With his appearance, he didn't look like a teacher at all.

"Yes. Teacher Lu's had a rough time. If it weren't for what happened with those students, he wouldn't be like this. It's all complicated... better not to talk about it."

Shen Chang'an pursed his lips at the young officer—so young, yet already acting mysterious.

He was about to say more when he saw Li Xia coming out, followed by Sun Yiyuan, who wore a look of eager anticipation.

"Old Sun, that was quick," Shen Chang'an said.

Sun Yiyuan nodded. "The director gave me all the files and information. Let's go through it and see if there are any inconsistencies."

By "inconsistencies," he meant anything that didn't make sense. With supernatural cases, finding the illogical often led to answers.

Shen Chang'an was about to speak when the young officer's phone suddenly rang.

He answered, his expression changing abruptly. "Someone else has died!"

Shen Chang'an's face turned grim. Was the killer truly this bold? It was a society of law—how could he act with such impunity?

"Let's go!" Shen Chang'an immediately set out for the scene. With luck, they might still catch some trace.

"Right, we're on our way. Xiao Liu, I can't drive my car there—take us in yours."

If Sun Yiyuan's BMW showed up at the crime scene, it would be a problem.

Xiao Liu, the young officer, nodded. "Understood."

Li Xia, seeing her father about to leave, hesitated, wanting to join them, but Sun Yiyuan cut her off. "Xia, you stay here."

Her eyes widened. "Why should I stay?"

But this time, Sun Yiyuan stood firm. "I'm in charge of this case. If I say you stay, you stay. If you don't, I'll have Director Wang keep you here!"

"You—" Li Xia was furious, but she knew Sun Yiyuan could make good on his threat. She stomped her foot and stormed off.

Watching her go, Sun Yiyuan's heart ached. Xiao Liu quickly tried to comfort him, "Advisor Sun, Sister Li's just upset—she'll understand later."

Sun Yiyuan shook his head with a sigh. "Forget it. It's all my fault. Old Shen was right—I deserve this."

Shen Chang'an shrugged. "You can regret it later. Right now, let's focus on the case."

Sun Yiyuan nodded, and Xiao Liu brought the police car around. The three climbed in and hurried to the scene.

The police had cordoned off the area and order was maintained. The trio entered without any trouble.

The latest victim lay in the flowerbed at the center of the complex, clearly older than Sun Yiyuan by quite a bit.

Shen Chang'an's first glance took in the scattered chunks of flesh.

He narrowed his eyes and asked Xiao Liu, "Which organ did he vomit up?"

Xiao Liu, flipping through a file handed over by a colleague, turned two pages and answered, "The lungs—he vomited out his lungs! Wait, how did you know?"

Shen Chang'an said nothing, only frowned.

Sun Yiyuan asked, "Old Shen, did you notice something?"

Shen Chang'an nodded quietly. "Five-Viscera Ghost..."

Heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys—these are the five viscera. The 'Five-Viscera Ghost' is a dark art, refining one's organs into spirits to bring fortune or death.

Even the 'Five Ghost Transporting Method' began as a way to replace the absent Plague God by using the Five-Viscera Ghost as the foundation.

These ghosts are capable of many things, but to control them requires powerful magic. If one's power is insufficient... the Five-Viscera Ghost will devour its master!