Otherworldly Merchant

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as I stared at Li Mazi. “Hello, Li Mazi. We meet again.”

Li Mazi was so angry that his face turned purple. He shot me a look. “I’m sorry, I got the wrong room…”

Then, he turned around to leave.

Anyhow, the fact that he had come was a boost to my courage, so how could I let him go? Thus, I strode forward, calling to Li Mazi, “No, you didn’t get the wrong room. Yin Xinyue called you here, right?” 

Li Mazi rolled his big donkey-like eyes as he scolded, “You two have plotted against me!”

I smiled. “Aren’t you going to give me any face? If you want to leave, you can leave now. That is, if you're not worried that Yin Xinyue will never pay attention to you again for the rest of your life.”

Under my coercion, Li Mazi could only shoot me a hateful glance and stay. 

It turned out that Yin Xinyue had called Li Mazi and asked him to come here ‘for a surprise’. Since Li Mazi was a pervert, he’d naturally thought it was for something perverse. That was why he’d rushed here… 

Li Mazi asked me what the case involved. I didn’t try to conceal anything and told him everything. 

After listening to me, Li Mazi frowned. “If the executioner in the painting is that fierce, aren’t we seeking death by staying here?”

I said, “Don’t worry! Even if we can’t solve it tonight, our lives won’t be threatened!”

Curiously, Li Mazi asked me, “Why is the executioner in the painting killing people?”

I explained, “It’s a type of otherworldly item. In our business, we call it ‘Immortals in the Painting’.”

“When the characters in ancient paintings are in contact with people for a long time, they gradually absorb human energy. This recovers their original characteristics and intelligence, which would make them think that they aren’t dead. Then, they’d continue the actions they’d done while they were still alive. For example, the executioner would still conduct executions, and the judge would still convict people!”

Li Mazi was scared by my explanation. He hurriedly asked me, “Will the executioner behead us both?”

I smiled. “I’ve prepared. We’re going to be safe and sound.” Then, I took out the outfits I’d prepared and threw one to Li Mazi. 

They were two official Rank 4 Upper Grade uniforms from the Tang Dynasty that I’d collected. 

Yin Xinyue had found them in her company. These clothes were used during the filming of some historical dramas about the Tang Dynasty. The degree of restoration of these two outfits was really high. 

My idea was that if Li Mazi and I dressed like Tang Dynasty officials, that blood-thirsty executioner wouldn’t attack a royal court’s official, would he?

Li Mazi was still worried. However, as things had come to this, worries or fear could do nothing. 

Li Mazi and I then used water ink to smear our bodies black. It made us look more like the two characters from the ancient drawing, which would save us from the executioner’s doubt. 

After we put on the Rank 4 Upper Grade uniforms, we sat down on the ground, staring at the painting. 

Li Mazi asked me what would happen next. If I told him early, he would have time to prepare himself well. 

I smiled, telling him, “I think the executioner in the painting will come out with his machete. Our purpose is to figure out why he wants to kill innocent people.”

As he could show his spirit, he apparently wasn’t reconciled with death! 

Li Mazi nodded fearfully. 

Seeing him shiver, I begrudgingly patted his shoulder. “You can’t act like this. Since we’re acting as judges, we must show the aura of judges!”

If we were busted, we would all be doomed… 

Li Mazi looked at me and asked me to punch him. I wondered why he was looking for a fight. Li Mazi said that he’d only be full of spirit when he was angry. 

It was a rare chance, so I didn’t say anything and slapped him. Instantly, Li Mazi was enraged, showing a fierce expression. Indeed, he looked more like a judge now. 

I myself also tried to think about things that could make me angry. That was how I earned myself a solemn and majestic look! 

With that thought, I couldn’t help but think about my grandfather and father’s death. 

As soon as I thought that they were killed by some organization, I couldn’t restrain the wrath of anger in my heart. Instantly, my aura was boosted several times. 

It seemed that Li Mazi’s method worked well! 

Tonight, it was strangely quiet as we couldn’t even hear an insect chirping. There was only me and Li Mazi on this entire third floor. And, the ancient painting. We didn’t turn the light on because it would affect the Immortals in the Painting.

The blood streaks inside the room were cleaned, and the corpse was moved to the mortuary. However, I still smelled the faint tang of blood, which made me remember the beheaded victim crawling on the ground. Subconsciously, I had goosebumps. 

Li Mazi’s seriousness didn’t last for long before it was broken by his urge to use the bathroom. He restrained himself until his face reddened, but he didn’t dare to go to the toilet alone. He asked me to go with him. 

After relieving ourselves, we came back and took our seats in front of the ancient painting! 

As time ticked by, I gradually found changes inside the painting. At first, an evil, strange wind arrived, rattling the painting. Right after that, a pair of blood-red eyes slowly emerged on the paper! 

That pair of eyes opened wider, sparkling with red lights as they gazed at us. 

I wondered how the eyes could glow, but their gaze made me even more flustered. 

In this moment, more red lights were emitted from the painting. Eventually, the light covered all the characters in the painting, including the judges, the executioner, the onlookers, and even the kneeling prisoner. 

Everybody was dyed red as if they’d been soaked in a blood-filled pond. 

I then saw drops of blood dripping from the ancient painting. 

Li Mazi couldn’t sit still anymore. Frightened, he moved closer to me before finally hugging me tightly… 

In this torment, we finally saw the Immortals in the Painting move. The executioner seemed to be alive as he wielded his huge machete, aiming at the prisoner’s neck and hacking fast. 

His speed was tremendous, and things happened in just the blink of an eye. The man’s head was chopped off, falling from the painting to the ground and rolling towards our feet. 

That was when strange things started to happen. At the moment the head rolled towards us, I noticed our surroundings quickly changing. 

Color was leached from the world, turning it black and white, and I found myself sitting at the judge's table. The panting executioner was standing in front of me, looking at the headless body on the ground. The people watching began to sob and cry. 

My heart fell. This was beyond what I expected. I’d never imagined that I’d enter the world inside the painting! 

However, in this world, I was the judge, so I thought I was safe. 

After the executioner had finished his job, the crowd became silent, and some of them were sneakily wiping away their tears. It seemed like the prisoner was killed by a misjudgment. 

The sweating executioner looked at the corpse, and he couldn’t gather himself for a long time. 

I watched him motionlessly as I knew there was a story behind this executioner. I must dig up his old story! 

Suddenly, the executioner ran to me, grumbling as he kneeled, “Your Honor, I don’t want to do this job anymore! I want to go home and work on the field, spending my old age at home!”

I took a deep breath. While I didn’t know what to answer him with, my mouth automatically opened. “Your hands are soaked with blood. If you don’t do this, aren’t you afraid of retribution?” 

"The Crown Prince was a good man!” the executioner abruptly screamed. “I should die. It’s because of me that the Crown Prince didn’t die intact. My hands let down Great Tang, so they must stay here!” 

Then, he rose his machete, chopping off one of his hands. 

The scene immediately turned chaotic. The surrounding people began to scream and yell that the Crown Prince was innocent. 

Blood spurted everywhere, dying my official uniform. I was startled and jolted to my feet. I couldn’t control my mouth as I once again spoke, “You bold slave, you dare disturb the order of the court. Do you want to rebel?!”

“You mad dog official, not only you killed our Great Tang’s Crown Prince, but you also work for that evil Empress. Today, I’ll act on behalf of the Heavens. I’ll kill you to appease our Crown Prince’s soul!” 

Then, he picked up his machete, and using his remaining arm, started slashing at me! 

I was instantly filled with fear and tried to back off to avoid the executioner’s attack. 

But, the executioner was too strong and fast, and his machete hacked at my arm! 

In just the blink of an eye, my arm was cut off and my blood was spurting in all directions. I was petrified as I gawked in shock. This scene was beyond my expectations. I never thought that the executioner would dare to kill even the royal court’s official…

Although I’d prepared well, I still wasn’t safe in this place. 

Instinctively, I wanted to avoid further attacks and shouted for my soldiers to capture the rebel!