Chapter 97 A Chaotic Dance of Demons

"Xu Changze, that old dog, is truly ruthless in his dealings. I fear he has played a 'cicada shedding its skin' trick on us."

Chen Mu's eyes grew colder. He did not echo Qi Huan, but merely pulled the white cloth lower to carefully examine the corpse's hands, neck, collar, cuffs, and other subtle details.

"The outer garment is high-quality Su silk, consistent with what Zhao Qinghe wore that day, but the fabric of the undergarment is inferior, and the stitching is far too rough."

"The hand bones are thick, and the knuckles have calluses. These are definitely not the hands of a pampered wealthy merchant. It must be a scapegoat who has practiced rudimentary martial arts or done heavy labor."

Chen Mu stood up, his gaze returning to that face, lost in thought.

"The face was destroyed so thoroughly for fear that we would spot flaws from the bone structure, but this job was still done a bit crudely."

Qi Huan looked at the corpse, knitting his brows.

"This Zhao Qinghe knows too much—Xu Changze's dealings with the Ghostly Creature, his bribery of the City God's netherworld officials, and all the dirty secrets hidden beneath Yunmeng."

"But for just one person, if it were only to silence him, burning him to ash would be clean enough. Why go to such great lengths to create a scapegoat with a similar build, and even deliberately place it here in the mortuary…"

Chen Mu withdrew his hand, his gaze deep and inscrutable.

"Then there is only one explanation: Xu Changze needs the result that Zhao Qinghe is dead to give everyone an explanation. But a living Zhao Qinghe has higher value to him, or perhaps holds something that forces him to compromise."

The two exchanged a glance, the look of worry in their eyes deepening.

The complexity of the matter had far exceeded expectations. Xu Changze was not just a ruthless bureaucrat, but a calculating chess player who looked three steps ahead for every one he took.

This pawn, Zhao Qinghe, was involved in something that certainly went beyond just this Paper Person Ghostly Creature; it might even extend beyond the corner of Yunmeng.

"Regardless, this corpse is fake; the real Zhao Qinghe is definitely not dead! This is ironclad proof! As long as we find him…"

Qi Huan gritted his teeth, his mind churning as he considered how to pursue the investigation further.

Just then, a sudden, inexplicable gust of Yin Qi swirled up, passing through the mortuary's dilapidated window lattice, making the white cloth rustle.

Qi Huan's expression changed instantly. He grabbed Chen Mu's sleeve and pulled him backward, shouting in a low voice.

"Something's wrong! There is Yin Qi gathering here, retreat quickly!"

He was experienced and his perception of spirits was sharper than Chen Mu's. Although Chen Mu had not immediately sensed any obvious Ghostly Creature, he also quickly retreated several steps, hiding in the shadows by the wall, holding his breath and calming his mind to conceal his aura.

Almost the moment they hid, a hair-raising "crack" sound suddenly came from the body of the scapegoat identified as Zhao Qinghe.

Immediately after, the white cloth moved without wind, slowly rising into a vague human silhouette.

A hazy, illusory figure emitting a faint halo of light actually squeezed out from the corpse's chest.

The figure's features were blurred, though it could vaguely be seen to be a middle-aged man. His expression was dull, his eyes hollow, and his body emitted a faint resentment—it was a newly departed soul.

After leaving the body, the soul did not dissipate, nor did it attack the living. Instead, seemingly guided by some force, it ignored the obstruction of the walls and floated straight out of the mortuary.

It was heading directly toward the Yunmeng City God Temple.

"The soul has left the body and is heading straight for the City God."

"Could it be that there are netherworld officials guiding it, or is the City God actively collecting new souls?"

Qi Huan stepped slowly out of the shadows, his face looking extremely grim.

Chen Mu also stared in the direction where the soul had disappeared, his brows furrowed and his eyes cold.

"It seems this scapegoat was also newly dead before being brought here to act as a substitute."

"But instead of reporting to the netherworld, his soul headed straight for the City God Temple. Chief Qi, is the City God of your Prefecture usually this diligent? Collecting newly dead souls personally?"

"Diligent, my foot."

Qi Huan spat, as if he were extremely familiar with the netherworld's procedures.

"In the normal process, the souls of the newly dead return to the underworld, and there are netherworld runners to guide them."

"The City God is a guardian deity of a region, receiving incense and offerings bestowed by the imperial court, and is in charge of the order of Yin and Yang. Unless it is a major case, he would never directly intervene in such trivial matters as guiding souls."

"Unless…"

Chen Mu glanced at him and took over the conversation.

"Unless this soul has a special use for him."

The two fell silent. After a moment, Qi Huan gritted his teeth.

"Follow it. I want to see what on earth the Yunmeng City God is up to."

The two did not delay any longer. They used their movement techniques and slipped silently out of the righteous cemetery, following far behind the soul as they sped toward the City God Temple.

The Yunmeng City God Temple was located in the southeastern corner of the city. Although its incense was not exactly flourishing, it still possessed a solemn atmosphere.

The two followed from a distance and watched as the soul lingered at the gate of the City God Temple for a moment before passing through the temple gate without any obstruction, disappearing like a clay ox into the sea.

Qi Huan gave Chen Mu a look, a flash of determination in his eyes.

"Let's go in and take a look."

The City God Temple was no ordinary government office. Trespassing into a restricted area of the netherworld was extremely risky, but things had reached this point; if they didn't find out the truth, they would never be able to eat or sleep in peace.

Chen Mu nodded, and the two silently vaulted into the temple. They landed in a courtyard paved with bluestone, with the main hall directly ahead.

The two quickly sensed something unusual.

From the direction of the main hall, faint lights were shining out, mixed with the vague sounds of string and bamboo instruments and loud commotion.

Suspicion arose in their hearts, and they concealed their auras even more carefully as they crept toward the main hall.

The closer they got to the main hall, the clearer the commotion became: the laughter of men, the clinking of wine cups, and the pleasant sound of string and bamboo music.

Resounding within this City God Temple, which should have been solemn and respectful, it seemed exceptionally bizarre.

The two crept beneath the window lattice of the main hall, gently poked a small hole in the window paper, and leaned in to look.

At just one glance, both men were struck as if by lightning. Their pupils dilated suddenly, and their faces were filled with disbelief.

They saw that inside the main hall, it was brightly lit, as clear as day.

The altar had been pushed aside and replaced by a huge eight-immortal table, covered with delicacies, fine wines, and sumptuous dishes.

Beside the table, a person dressed in a bright red official robe, wearing a black gauze cap, with a face like a ripe jujube, sat in the main seat.

It was none other than the Yunmeng City God, who should have been impartial and strict, in charge of the order of Yin and Yang in the region.

At this moment, this City God was holding a wine cup in one hand and a greasy, glistening chicken leg in the other, eating until his mouth was covered in oil, looking extremely happy.

Even more astonishing was that on both sides of the City God, several men—clad in light gauze, with beautiful faces and fluttering eyes—were snuggling up to him?!

These men smiled charmingly, either serving food to the City God, passing wine from their lips to his, or caressing his chest, doing everything possible to flatter him. They were clearly male prostitutes from a Xianggu house!

The entire main hall had no trace of the solemnity of the netherworld; it was clearly a scene of demons dancing in chaos, a feast of debauchery and drunken stupor!