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墨書 Inktalez
After stepping out of Master Zhou's house, it was already quite late. Unlike when I arrived, I now had a long-haired Model Head in my hands, which made me feel rather strange as I walked down the street. I didn’t linger and hurried back home.
Once I got home, I eagerly walked into my study. However, as I prepared to Call of Souls, it emerged on its own. It was rare to see such a controllable Spirit God. I quickly covered the talismans on the door and walls, fearing they might harm it. It remained calm, wearing a smile, though its face was pale. Yet, I could see the sadness behind that smile. I smiled back and pulled a chair over, saying, "Elder, please have a seat. No matter what unfulfilled wishes you have, I will certainly help if I can." It chuckled softly and sat down. I leaned against the desk, relaxing my whole body, ready to be a listener for the soul. Since this wasn’t my Call of Souls communication, I didn’t have to worry about exhausting too much energy. This way of conversing felt easy. It took a moment to collect itself and then began to tell me a story.
Two years ago, it and its elderly partner lived in an area slated for demolition. The area had been contracted by a real estate developer, and the compensation was relatively reasonable. However, the elderly couple had no descendants and didn’t want to move at their age. Moreover, the old lady’s health was poor; according to the doctor, she wouldn’t last more than six months. The old lady had deep feelings for the house they had lived in for decades; she believed it was the best place for her to pass away peacefully. But time waits for no one, and businessmen prioritize profit above all else. As the demolition date approached, several neighboring families had already moved away. After multiple negotiations, the old lady realized there was no hope left and would have to leave. Weakly lying in bed, she told her partner: "If it really comes to it, let’s just move." It took her a full minute to say those few short words; clearly, she was nearing the end of her life.
The old man was filled with tears; having lived long enough, he understood much more. He knew his partner wouldn’t last three days. So he resolved that no matter what happened, he would wait until she passed away peacefully before leaving the house. However, on the very next day—the day they were supposed to move—the old man changed his mind. He found the Relocation Manager and requested a few more days.
After exhausting all reasons, the Relocation Manager flatly refused his request, stating that the demolition date had arrived and workers were waiting without hesitation. The old man felt heartbroken for his wife; he thought that even if it meant dragging things out longer, he would do so. But that night, two thugs came looking for trouble. At first, they knocked on the door. The old man thought it was someone from the demolition team and opened it only to find two thugs standing there; he immediately understood what was happening. He pleaded with them using kind words... but they didn’t care about that at all. Without saying a word, they picked up bricks from the ground and smashed them against the windows with great noise. The old man feared that this would disturb his wife as she was about to leave this world; he knelt before those two thugs right then and there. Yet in this world, there are always some who wear human skin but act worse than beasts.
They didn’t care about anything else; they were paid to do a job and would leave afterward. After smashing the windows, they wandered around the living room and forcibly snatched a pair of silver bracelets from the table despite the old man's desperate pleas... Those bracelets were the only remaining testament of their marriage since day one. Although not very valuable monetarily, they held immense sentimental value. The old man wanted to get them back but couldn’t contend with those two thugs.
Once they left, he hurried back to check on his wife.
At that moment, she had already passed away. Her eyes were wide open in shock—clearly due to being overstimulated by both the sound of breaking glass and her husband’s pleas for mercy—though he had been mentally prepared for this moment after decades together with her; he still felt an overwhelming sadness at losing his lifelong companion. After using all his savings for her funeral arrangements, his health deteriorated further until he eventually passed away just a few months ago.
After hearing this story from the White-Haired Elder, I felt furious—angry at those two thugs who had lost their humanity and at that heartless developer... I understood that the reason why this elder hadn’t moved on was due to strong resentment.
I asked him: "Do you want those bracelets back?"
He nodded and said yes. "I originally intended to bury them with my partner; that was her wish."
Suddenly realizing that this White-Haired Old Spirit could appear or vanish at will—and even use Ghostly Veil—while also possessing an exceptionally clear memory made me speculate that he must have sought out those two thugs before. However, why he ended up in Master Zhu's barbershop puzzled me since Master Zhu didn’t resemble those thugs at all; besides, his son was still young. With this thought in mind, I asked him: "Did you go looking for those thugs afterward?"
He didn’t hide anything as he replied: "Yes; I've gone several times. Even though I couldn’t retrieve the bracelets, I wanted them to face retribution."
I continued: "So are those bracelets still with those thugs?"
He confirmed: "Yes, but I can’t get them back."
I understood what he meant by not being able to retrieve them and asked why he appeared at Master Zhu's barbershop.
He paused before saying that he simply wanted a place to rest for a while. I realized he meant no harm; perhaps what Master Zhu saw during that encounter was merely accidental after all—and any disturbances inside the barbershop were likely unintentional as well. This indicated that this White-Haired Old Spirit's consciousness was gradually fading away.
It was becoming increasingly uncontrollable.
I voiced this judgment, and it nodded, saying it felt it couldn't stay in this world much longer either. Wandering like this was meaningless. However, that bracelet truly held it back. Sometimes the noises were intentionally made by it. It wanted to find someone like me to see if I could help. I understood that when it said its time in this world was limited, it meant entering Reincarnation. Instead, it would slowly fade away, becoming a wandering soul. If no one helped, it would remain in a state of unconsciousness forever, lonely and helpless.
It would be better if someone helped it move on; what if it encountered someone who would just shatter it? I shuddered at the thought. Although it had an Obsession, its kind and optimistic nature would soon wear away those feelings. I knew this wish could not be fulfilled. I asked if it had ever scared them. It replied sadly that no, outside the house they rented, there were wards against evil spirits. Moreover, they carried items that had been blessed. I couldn't scare them. I felt a bit puzzled but soon let it go. It was a New Soul and could easily be restrained by certain tools. Plus, once manifested, it wouldn't last long; just a little while before it couldn't hold on anymore. These were some of the rules of Spirit Gods.
As time passed, the Obsession faded, and it would no longer be under its own conscious control, becoming a drifting soul—a tragic ending. Looking at its dim expression filled me with a sense of justice. I asked if it remembered where they lived; I would help retrieve that silver bracelet for it. It provided a rough address—near their old home in an Urban Village—but couldn't specify which floor. However, it described the two thugs' appearances: one with blonde hair, tall and thin, with multiple earrings; the other more normal-looking but with tattoos on his arms. With these characteristics and a general location, I thought finding someone shouldn't be too difficult. I knew its consciousness was slowly fading along with the shadows of those two thugs.
Around twelve-thirty, I could no longer sit still. I bought a notebook and a pen from the stationery store next door and waited by the entrance of the building. My plan was simple: as soon as someone opened the door, I would go in. Even though I didn't know the door number, I was determined to knock on each door until I found them. As for my identity for knocking—being a water meter reader would be ideal.
Once all preparations were complete, I waited outside. Within ten minutes, someone came down; it was lunchtime after all. Without hesitation, I walked in. Thanks to my innocent appearance, the woman who opened the door didn't seem suspicious at all. Inside was a staircase leading directly to the second floor since the first floor housed shops.
Upon reaching the second floor, there were two doors on each side and one directly across from me. With five rental rooms on each floor, there were twenty rooms in total—not too many. Although this was my first time doing something like this,
thinking of the Old Spirit's dim expression gave me courage to knock on the middle door at the stairway entrance. However, my first attempt hit a wall; there was no one inside at all. I knocked on all five doors on the second floor without success—only one had someone inside—a young man who answered shirtless and immediately asked what I wanted. Realizing my mistake quickly, I apologized and turned to leave as he called me crazy before slamming the door shut.
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