Otherworldly Merchant

She was an old woman around eighty years old. She pedaled a cargo tricycle that was stacked with red silk scarves. Her tricycle was equipped with a speaker that shouted, “Traditional handmade woven scarves. We have one hundred years of history…”

I took a deep breath then went toward the old woman. I gave her a smile and asked, “Granny, how much for one red scarf?”

The woman smiled. “Boy, do you want one? You can get it for your girlfriend. Recently, many people have bought my scarves, and they were very satisfied.”

Then, the old woman handed me a scarf.

I smiled and said, “Granny, you just said that many people have bought your red scarves. Can you tell me what kind of people were they?”

The granny answered with pride, “Oh, people of all kinds. Students, office workers, and even some company bosses. One man even bought twenty-four red scarves at once.”

I frowned. This man who had bought twenty-four red silk scarves was definitely suspicious.

I asked, “Do you still remember the person who bought twenty-four scarves? Why did he buy so many scarves?”

The old woman shook her head. “I don’t know, but I guess he was going to gift them to other people.”

I thought for a while, then nodded. I handed the woman one hundred renminbi and said, “Granny, if he comes back and buys more red scarves from you, could you call me? I’ll give you another one hundred renminbi if you do me this favor.”

The old woman was delighted. “Why are you looking for him? Anyway, I don’t use the phone much, and I only know how to pick up calls. I keep it around just in case my children need to call me.”

“Oh, that’s not a problem.” I added my number to her contacts and set it as a quick dial. The granny just needed to press the number 2 to call me.

After showing her how to call me, I left with Ms. Wu.

Ms. Wu looked at me in puzzlement. “Mr. Zhang, that man who bought twenty-four scarves... Is he the culprit? Why did he buy so many scarves? Also, does this mean that there are other victims aside from my daughter?”

I said, “I can’t say for sure, but it’s better to be prepared. Let’s just wait for her call. When we find him, everything will be clear.”

Ms. Wu nodded and looked pensive.

“Ms. Wu, have you offended anybody recently? Or, your daughter has offended anybody?”

Ms. Wu shook her head like a rattle drum. “I think I get along well with my neighbors and friends. They know I’m a single mom, so they often help me. My daughter’s gentle and timid, and she wouldn’t offend anybody.”

“What about her father? Even if you guys divorced, your daughter is sick. How come he isn’t here?”

Ms. Wu sighed and sobbed. “My ex-husband is a heartless bastard. After our divorce, he took all the assets and left me with this empty apartment. He has never come back to check on our daughter. He doesn’t care if she lives or dies!”

My heart was filled with rage. How could someone be so heartless? However, I was an outsider and didn’t know the situation well, so it wasn’t my place to judge her husband.

The night quickly fell. I read the sacred text of Daoism once over to clear my head. “Ms. Wu, are you ready? We’re going to summon your daughter’s corporeal soul.”

Ms. Wu nodded. “I’m ready.”

I found a red rope and soaked it into salty strong liquor. Then, I tied the rooster to the Soul Summoning Banner with the red rope.

A lonely corporeal soul was far from being stable, and it had been a long time since it was out of the body. If I summoned it all the way home, I was afraid that it would scatter. That was why I had to buy a big rooster.

The rooster was very important as it would keep Ms. Wu’s daughter’s soul intact.

The rooster was an animal with affinity to the Yin element. Not only it wouldn’t hurt the soul, but it would also nurture it.

After preparing everything, I asked Ms. Wu to recall the places her daughter used to visit. Later, she would have to hold the Soul Summoning Banner and search through these places. As she walked, she had to call her daughter’s name without stopping.

Ms. Wu agreed without the slightest hesitation.

I followed closely behind her because I was afraid that she could make a mistake.

We descended the staircase and started to walk around the neighborhood. Some security guys on night duty saw her strange appearance and were scared out of their wits; they ran far away. Ms. Wu didn’t care about them and just walked around as I had asked her.

At first, she went to the park in front of her apartment building. Her daughter often did a morning run before she went to school. This place could be considered the place she visited the most.

Ms. Wu raised the Soul Summoning Banner and guided the big rooster as she walked around the park. However, nothing happened.

There was no wind tonight, and the Soul Summoning Banner drooped as the rooster followed behind Ms. Wu.

Then, she checked around the apartment building, but we still didn’t see any strange phenomenon.

I was disappointed and thought to myself, It seems her daughter’s soul was really attached to that red silk scarf, which is now missing...

Ms. Wu began to sob after we had walked around the apartment without any luck. I comforted her. “Don’t cry, please think carefully. What other places did your daughter use to visit?”

Ms. Wu contemplated and remembered a lake in the park behind the building. Her daughter often went there for fresh air.

I asked her to go there and check.

It was very late, so nobody was there. A few stars were visible through the dark clouds, and a chilling wind swayed the trees, making rattling sounds. The cold moonlight crept through the dried tree branches, which created creepy shadows on the ground.

Ms. Wu raised the white Soul Summoning Banner and the rooster tied to it. This scene was somewhat frightening.

She had poured her heart into finding her daughter, so she didn’t really care about the scary surroundings.

We walked on a small path situated between the trees, and not many people would walk around here. I didn’t know why Ms. Wu had come here.

The small path was really long. We walked for quite a long time but it had yet to end. If Ms. Wu didn’t lead the way, I would have thought that we had encountered a ‘ghost wall.’ If that was the case, we would never be able to get out of it.

After around ten minutes, I saw something strange!

Not far from us, I heard a faint noise. It sounded like a woman’s feeble whine. However, it seemed hoarse and somewhat mechanical as it was devoid of human emotions.

It sounded like someone was calling a name, but I couldn’t tell which name. I frowned and focused my mind.

It was very late and in such a deserted area, it was definitely not normal to hear something so strange.

I wanted to stop Ms. Wu, but it seemed that she hadn’t heard the strange sound as she kept walking forward. I called her twice, but she didn’t answer. I guessed she was so absorbed in finding her daughter’s soul that she didn’t pay attention to anything else.

After considering things, I decided not to disturb her. The voice I heard was strange and possibly dangerous. Nevertheless, the more dangerous it was, the higher the chance to find clues about Ms.Wu’s daughter’s lost soul.

Even if it was dangerous, we had to take this risk. If something happened, we could just run.

I had the Peach Soul Flower with me. By this time, the flower had gathered enough energy. It shouldn’t be a problem to use it to save us during a perilous moment like this.

The opposite party approached us. As we got closer to one another, I saw a lone lantern that swung back and forth in the air. That lone lantern emitted a weak halo, and I could see a dark shadow behind the lantern.

I immediately recalled the Lantern-Lighting Ghost.

The Lantern-Lighting Ghost was a ghost that carried a Yang flame and tried to bump into souls on the street. To put it simply, it wanted to find someone to die for it. If people, especially drunk ones, bumped into this ghost, they would die shortly after.

After thinking about this, my head throbbed. How could we encounter such a creature in this place?

I couldn’t just stand around and watch Ms. Wu fall into such a dangerous situation. I rushed forward and patted her shoulder. “Do you see the white light over there? It will come and try to rub onto you. You must avoid it at all costs. Do you understand?”

Ms. Wu was frightened. She looked up and saw the faint white halo that was moving toward her.

She looked scared. “What’s that white halo?”

I took a deep breath and said, “Remember my words. Do not bump into it no matter what happens. Now just move forward and do not offend that shadow.”

Although Ms. Wu was scared, she mustered her courage for her daughter's sake. She nodded resolutely and walked forward.

I hid in the trees and gazed at that thing.

As soon as that thing made a move, I would jump out to protect Ms. Wu.

Soon after, the white halo approached Ms. Wu. When that happened, I caught a glimpse of the shadow, and I felt shivers run down my spine.

Ms. Wu dropped her jaw in shock. She even forgot that she had to walk forward; she stood in place while holding the Soul Summoning Banner. If her daughter’s life wasn’t on the line, she would have run away already!