Otherworldly Merchant

“Sigh!” Senior Shu sighed, “I’m not sure, but what happened shouldn’t be too different from my guess…”

Senior Shu had seen Li Mazi’s figure wobble and getting covered by a layer of vague mist after we took some photos of the coffin and descended the cliff. Given his ample experience, Senior Shu soon recognized that something had latched onto Li Mazi.

That entity was possibly some evil creature that was born inside the Perpetual Joy Coffin. Since it had been incubated by such an artifact, it could devour souls with extreme ease. That was why Senior Shu asked me to use nails to block it.

He then asked us to run away while he stayed behind to watch and suppress that thing, so that it wouldn’t chase after us.

The afterglow was the place where Yin and Yang intertwined. If we walked in the afterglow, the Yang energy in our bodies could be easily replaced by Yin energy, which would give wicked creatures more chances to possess us. That was why Senior Shu didn’t want us to bathe in the afterglow.

The white-clothed woman we met on our way down was a road-blocking ghost, which was a variable out of Senior Shu’s estimation. That was why he didn’t warn us about her.

The place where the road-blocking ghost lingered was an area full of pure Yin energy; she eventually became an evil ghost because of it. Calamity would have struck if it weren’t for Chuyi’s talisman.

My heart started to race as I listened to Senior Shu’s explanation; we had a near brush with death. Thinking about it made my scalp tingle… After all, we had just barely touched the coffin of Senior Shu’s friend!

What would have happened if we touched the real Perpetual Joy Coffin? Would we have died directly?

At the same time, I recalled the corpse of Senior Shu’s friend. “Senior Shu, that was a sealed coffin, how could so many snakes, worms, and even mice be in there?”

Senior Shu sighed. “If he hadn’t done that, I’m afraid he would have turned into a Perpetual Joy Corpse, and the Perpetual Joy Coffin would have enslaved him forever!”

“Perpetual Joy Corpse? What’s that?” I had no clue.

“It is a sort of zombie. However, this kind of undead has a soul. The Perpetual Joy Coffin would not allow the soul to leave the body, and the person would ‘come back to life’ after some time. Only God knows what the Perpetual Joy Coffin would order him to do!” Senior Shu explained.

“So, your friend deliberately allowed those insects to eat up his body? But couldn't he have just asked someone to burn him?” I didn’t understand why the deceased needed to torture his remains like that.

“You don’t understand. He did it to atone for his sins; it was the only way he could erase his own sins and karma. The Perpetual Joy Coffin couldn’t do anything to him since he had erased his sins.”

Li Mazi pondered for quite a long time. “Are you saying that the Perpetual Joy Coffin would only bring harm to whoever lay inside instead of helping them rest?”

Senior Shu said, “Isn’t it clear already? The reason the Perpetual Joy Coffin could give ‘perpetual joy’ to the deceased is that it would steal the karmic reward of others for itself. If no one touches the coffin, it won’t be able to steal karmic rewards. Then, it would be no different from a common coffin.”

“No wonder there are so many ghosts still wandering around the hanging coffin cliff. Their karma was stolen by the Perpetual Joy Coffin, that’s why they can’t reincarnate and have to linger around the hanging coffin cliff forever!”

Then, we all fell into silence.

The Perpetual Joy Coffin, frankly speaking, was an item that worked for its own sake, rather than benefiting others. Even if we got the coffin, would Li Mazi’s conscience allow him to keep it? Would Chu Chu even use such an item? Would Senior Shu use it?

That’s why we were struggling, reasoning whether to take it or leave it.

Eventually, Li Mazi shook his head with reluctance and said, “All right, I’m giving up trying to get the coffin.”

Then, we looked at Senior Shu.

Senior Shu kept silent for a while. “Good deeds will be repaid with good karma while evil deeds with bad karma. I also don’t dare to use that coffin. Maybe it can bring joy for a short time; but one day, all the karma the coffin has stolen would flow back like a downpour on the user. At that time, he or she would be sunk in damnation forever.”

“We said everything that needed to be said, no need to twist matters around any more. Shall we go back? I don’t want to stay here any longer.”

Li Mazi and Senior Shu didn’t answer. I knew they were still unwilling, even though they had both said they didn’t want the coffin.

Senior Shu laughed all of a sudden and said, “We can’t always think about ourselves and ignore the welfare of others. The Perpetual Joy Coffin is an otherworldly item that brings harm to people. Since we are otherworldly merchants, we have a responsibility and obligation to take it. We can also consider it as a means for our own atonement.”

“Right, I agree with Senior Shu. Although we can’t use this Perpetual Joy Coffin, it’s a rare and precious otherworldly item in any case. We could sell it for a good price later!”

Well, these two surely know how to back each other up... 

I was speechless. Although the two spoke with a righteous tone, I could see their real nature… They were unable to let the Perpetual Joy Coffin go.

I could only agree to get the coffin.

“Someone able to use the Perpetual Joy Coffin can only be out of the ordinary. Since the coffin was hanging from that cliff, it is very likely that the user was a Miao. People in the Miao Area are good at using poisonous insects, so I think the coffin might be affected by one. We have to find an expert in this field to help us,” Senior Shu told us.

Senior Shu sounded confident, so I gathered he already had a suitable person in mind. Sure enough, Senior Shu eventually invited his friend’s oldest son. I didn’t know what he did to persuade the young man, since the guy showed up patting his chest, saying that he would help us.

His name was Jiang Jincheng, a native from the Miao territory. He had been dabbling with poisonous insects since he was a little boy. Apparently, there was no toxic insects he couldn’t handle in this world.

However, we first needed to tell which coffin was the Perpetual Joy Coffin among the hundreds hanging on the cliff.

Senior Shu told us to rest first, since we would leave at around 5 AM in the morning. It seemed he had a plan already.

Then, he left with Jiang Jincheng, telling us that they needed to prepare the things we would be using early in the next day.

Li Mazi and I were already exhausted and we longed for a place to rest. We were fast asleep as soon as we got on our beds, sleeping through the night until morning came.

I opened my eyes and saw the sky brightening when Senior Shu woke me up. Silver sunbeams came from the East, and the air was fresh. However, I could smell the scent of blood.

Senior Shu called us to head over to where he was. Then, we saw several baskets in the yard, which contained something black and sticky. I wasn’t sure what it was, but it looked disgusting.

Senior Shu had asked each of us to carry a basket. We would be heading toward the hanging coffin cliff together.

I reluctantly picked up a basket. A strange stench combined with the smell of blood immediately bashed my face. I couldn’t even breathe.

“Senior Shu, what is this?” I frowned.

Senior Shu told me happily, “Something filled with vibrant Yang energy. It can help us locate the Perpetual Joy Coffin.”

“Are you sure it’s not just a pile of crap?” asked Li Mazi.

“It’s not some common crap. It’s a combination of male deer poop and donkey poop, dressed with a layer of black dog blood. These baskets are made of peach twigs, and all of them are stuffed with vibrant Yang energy. These things can expel the Yin energy of the Perpetual Joy Coffin. The real one will produce fumes when exposed to this preparation.”

Although it was an old fashioned method, I couldn’t deny that it was indeed practical and convenient.