Chapter 86: Reconciliation
Wang Cha Ling recalled that place and still felt somewhat apprehensive.
But Zhang Qian was watching right beside him, so he could only steel himself and explain, “It’s not that I’m deliberately making excuses, but that place is entwined with an indescribable terror curse. Whether human or ghost, once they enter, there’s no way to escape from there.”
“So sorry, I can’t give you those fierce ghosts.”
To avoid angering Zhang Qian, Wang Cha Ling took a breath and immediately added, “But I still have a few fierce ghosts in hand that I planned to use for research. If Mr. Zhang doesn’t mind, I can give them all to you.”
“Then how many ghosts do you have on hand right now?” Zhang Qian asked.
“Out of those twenty-three supernatural events, some of the fierce ghosts had actually wandered off. In the end, I only imprisoned fourteen fierce ghosts. Subtracting the nine sent to the forbidden land, I only have five fierce ghosts left on hand.” Wang Cha Ling
“Five?” Zhang Qian touched his chin.
It wasn’t that he thought it too few, but that the number felt too many, almost catching up to the fierce ghosts he had imprisoned himself.
Wang Cha Ling thought Zhang Qian was dissatisfied and added, “I only have five on hand, but I can still purchase more from other places. Conservatively estimated, I can get ten fierce ghosts for you, just needing a little preparation time.”
His connections were wide; buying fierce ghosts or ghost controllers from others with money was no difficult matter.
Zhang Qian refused Wang Cha Ling’s kindness.
“No need to go to such trouble. I just said I only need three portions of compensation. One for punishment, one for mental loss, one for buy-life money. Just pick three fierce ghosts from yours.”
“I don’t want the other fierce ghosts; I just need you to answer a few questions for me.”
No matter how many fierce ghosts there were, Zhang Qian couldn’t swallow them all at once. Having a few extra was just for better combinations during alchemy.
Rather than having several weak ghosts gathering dust, better to exchange for some things of greater interest.
“Good, no problem.” Wang Cha Ling agreed without hesitation.
Even if these questions might touch on his core, he had no choice right now.
Leaking a bit of information plus gifting a few fierce ghosts to exchange for Zhang Qian’s forgiveness was, in Wang Cha Ling’s view, a very profitable business.
After pondering for a moment, Zhang Qian asked the first question.
“I want to know where that taboo forbidden land you mentioned is, what relationship you have with that place, and why you’re so familiar with it?”
Actually, he wanted more to know the principle behind Wang Cha Ling’s strength, but that would definitely alert him.
Everything requires a gradual approach, and that place was a good entry point.
Sure enough, Wang Cha Ling only hesitated a moment before confessing, “The so-called forbidden land is actually my Wang Family’s ancestral home, built by my grandfather over a hundred years ago.”
“It’s just that I no longer live in the ancestral home now. Ever since I can remember, that place has been full of strange happenings. Like it was haunted by some unknown curse, with servants occasionally getting lost in that old house.”
“Later, Father took our whole family and moved out, using its characteristics as a prison. Not only did he rarely return to the ancestral home himself, he also strictly forbade me from entering the ancestral home privately.”
Wang Cha Ling’s few short sentences revealed a great deal of information.
Over a hundred years ago? That wasn’t the Republic of China Era.
This special time point immediately drew Zhang Qian’s attention.
That was a supernatural era suspected of having a large number of fierce ghosts, and even now traces of the Republic of China Era could still be seen in various supernatural events.
Whether the Ghost Post Office or the Tattoo Parlor, they both belonged to that era, places Zhang Qian had always wanted to explore but lacked an entry point for.
From what Wang Cha Ling said, his whole family were existences dealing with the supernatural, continuing from the Republic of China Era to the present.
What was this? A supernatural family?
Regardless, Wang Cha Ling definitely had some clues on hand.
He immediately followed up, “Since your family started from the Republic of China Era and has continued to now, do you have any clues about the Republic of China Era? Supernatural events or ghost controllers are fine; I’m very interested in that era.”
“I wasn’t interested in the supernatural before, so I’m not clear on many things. About the Republic of China Era, I only vaguely remember my grandfather’s stories. I’ll tell them to you as detailed as I can.”
Wang Cha Ling closed his eyes, as if sinking into memories.
“The Wang Family started contacting the supernatural from my grandfather’s generation. Though I never met my grandfather, in my father’s words, Grandfather was a lucky yet unlucky man.”
“He was extremely unlucky to be born in an era that could be called hell. The fierce ghosts back then far surpassed the present in both terror level and frequency of appearance. Ordinary people could only struggle to survive in the cracks.”
“But such an environment was also a hotbed for the birth of the stronger ones. My grandfather was extremely lucky to become a ghost controller, clawing his way up to finally gain a foothold.”
“But not long after, the supernatural suddenly vanished, like a fire being extinguished, disappearing without a trace in a short time…”
“That’s the Republic of China Era as I know it. Father passed suddenly, so many things weren’t passed to me, and thus I don’t know much.”
“Oh…” Zhang Qian felt somewhat unsatisfied.
Though Wang Cha Ling hadn’t said much, it was already enough to infer many extraordinary things.
For example, why the supernatural suddenly vanished, and why it was resurging a century later today?
It was just regrettable not to get more information.
As for Wang Cha Ling saying he hadn’t inherited many things, Zhang Qian didn’t believe a word.
Not to mention the various supernatural methods, even ordinary people could preserve information with notebooks, recordings, and such. How could Wang Cha Ling’s parents not have left clues?
But there was no need to press further; his willingness to share information already showed his sincerity.
Thinking of this, Zhang Qian quietly walked to the palm tree’s side and released the restriction on Wang Cha Ling’s vision.
The sudden strong light made Wang Cha Ling squint his eyes, looking thoughtfully at Zhang Qian. “I thought you would wait until after you left to withdraw the attack.”
“You showed sincerity in solving the problem, so naturally I’ll show the corresponding attitude.” Zhang Qian said nonchalantly.
“In this world rampant with the supernatural, better to have more friends than more enemies. I never intended to be your enemy to begin with. If you had let me enter Da Dong, today’s events wouldn’t have happened at all.”
“Earlier, I was indeed too reckless.” Wang Cha Ling reflected on his actions.
Too smooth sailing for too long had made Wang Cha Ling truly believe the Wang Family curse was invincible, breeding thoughts of underestimating the world’s ghost controllers.
Now eating a loss under Zhang Qian’s hand could be considered a lesson learned. In the future, he must act cautiously against unknown ghost controllers and never repeat today’s mistake.
