Chapter 18 – Conclusion

“Originally, we were invited by Miss Yan to help cleanse her house of evil spirits. However, midway through the ritual, the situation took a turn. The malevolent energy was far more intense than we had anticipated, even connecting with the vengeful spirit of the person who fell from the 13th floor. It erupted on the spot. Fortunately, my senior brother was there, and together, we managed to suppress the evil and eliminate it. Miss Yan was present at the scene. If Manager Cheng doesn’t believe me, you can ask her.”

“That’s right!” Miss Yan’s eyes were swollen from crying, but her emotions were running high. She clutched the armrest of the sofa tightly and shouted, “I saw it with my own eyes! That black energy from the 13th floor was destroyed by Master Zhang himself! Later, Master Wei’s body even emitted a white light. If it weren’t for the two of them, I… I… sob! Masters, thank you for saving my life! And you damned scammers! How could you sell such a problematic house? Were you intentionally trying to cheat us consumers? If something had happened to me, who would have been responsible?”

Miss Yan’s voice was so loud it could have shattered glass. The men in the room were visibly intimidated, except for Wei Yang, who smiled faintly. “It was fate. If Miss Yan hadn’t made the request, we wouldn’t have been able to eradicate the evil in the building. This is a case of cause and effect.”

The two of them played off each other as if they were putting on a show. However, Manager Cheng, who was watching from the side, didn’t dare to interrupt or question them. He was a veteran in the construction industry and had encountered countless supernatural incidents, but none as sinister as what happened in Chaoyang Community. Whether or not ghosts existed, just the commotion on the 13th floor was beyond what ordinary people could handle. The two of them had only brought items like cinnabar, glutinous rice, talisman paper, and a short sword—how could they have possibly broken the security door? Moreover, according to the security guards, there were several copper coins embedded in the wooden door of the bathroom in unit 1303, each one deeply lodged into the wood and neatly arranged around the hole. Without tools, achieving such an effect was simply impossible!

Now, with both witnesses and evidence present, Manager Cheng had no choice but to believe them. In the construction industry, one inevitably gains some understanding of feng shui. The incident of Director Xu’s suicide had caused a terrible impact in the community. If they could truly cleanse the place of those evil spirits, it would be a tremendous boon for them!

However, while he thought this in his heart, he couldn’t show it on his face. Instead, Manager Cheng hesitated and asked, “What kind of malevolent energy was in Miss Yan’s house?”

Miss Yan immediately shut her mouth. If people found out it was caused by a vengeful infant spirit, it would cause trouble and damage her personal reputation. Everyone in the construction industry had wide connections, and if word spread in the investor circle, her “business” would be done for. Wei Yang, as if reading her thoughts, sighed lightly. “Miss Yan was also implicated by the 13th floor. That building originally had a severe concave wind evil, and Miss Yan, being of the Yi-Chen water fate, unfortunately, violated some taboos, which led to her being affected by the vengeful spirit of the person who jumped. Even I didn’t expect the resentment on the 13th floor to be so intense, erupting instantly and causing such a disaster.”

Miss Yan’s heart swelled with joy, and she quickly chimed in, “Exactly! If it weren’t for Master Wei’s help, I don’t know how long I would have been plagued by this mess! Look at my eyes—they’re in such a state! I’m just a young woman who finally bought a house, and now I’ve run into such bad luck… sob…”

Seeing Miss Yan’s unrelenting attitude, Manager Cheng felt a headache coming on. However, he didn’t dare to offend the two masters in front of him. He glanced at the cold-faced senior brother beside Master Wei and finally gritted his teeth. “Actually, if you’re willing to cooperate, this matter can be easily resolved. You see, in our line of work, we really can’t afford to deal with such issues. With all the hype online, if word gets out that there’s malevolent energy here, it’ll be hard to manage. And this time, the incident was so big… Sigh… It’s not that we don’t believe in your contributions, but everyone has their difficulties. How about this: Mr. Wei and Mr. Zhang can design a feng shui plan for us, something gentle with a ‘traditional’ feel. It’s just for show, after all, to shut people up. As for Miss Yan…”

He glanced at the swollen-eyed young woman and twitched his mouth. “We’ll refund part of the housing payment to you. What do you think?”

“Hmph! I don’t even want to live in this house anymore! I’ve decided to give the house to Mr. Wei as thanks for saving my life!” Miss Yan declared with great force. Manager Cheng’s eyes lit up. “Mr. Wei, are you planning to move into our community?”

“Yes. Although the evil spirits have been eradicated, we need to see this through to the end. If any other issues arise, we’ll be here to handle them promptly. We’ll take over Miss Yan’s house, partly for the safety of the thousands of residents in this community,” Wei Yang replied with sincerity, even smiling at Miss Yan. “However, business is business. We’ll still pay for the house. We can’t let Miss Yan suffer such a significant loss.”

“Ah, if Mr. Wei is willing to live here, we can give you the 13th-floor unit for free…” Manager Cheng blurted out excitedly. Wei Yang, however, waved his hand. “The 13th floor should remain uninhabited for now. Although the negative energy has been eliminated, if anything else happens, it could lead to further complications. To prevent any mishaps, it’s better to seal off the unit and wait for three to five years until the negative energy and resentment have completely dissipated and the incident has slowly faded from memory before allowing people to move in again.”

What a joke! The 13th floor was genuinely haunted—he wouldn’t take it even if it were free! Manager Cheng, unaware of Wei Yang’s internal roaring, instead took his words seriously and showed a look of admiration. After some thought, he hesitantly said, “Then how about this: Mr. Wei can take over Miss Yan’s house, and we’ll handle the payment, directly refunding Miss Yan as compensation. However, we’d like to ask you to keep this matter confidential. Let’s treat it as a normal property transfer.”

This arrangement satisfied all parties: Miss Yan would receive compensation as hush money, Master Wei would live in the community for free to protect its safety, and the company would save a significant amount of money on both the hush money and the exorcism fee. It was an incredibly favorable deal.

Naturally, Miss Yan was pleased with this proposal. She would get a full refund, the incident with the infant spirit would be completely covered up, and the masters wouldn’t be shortchanged. It was a win-win situation. She blinked her swollen eyes and asked softly, “Master Wei, I think this arrangement is acceptable. What do you say?”

Before Wei Yang could respond, Zhang Xiuqi, who was beside him, furrowed his brows as if he wanted to say something. Wei Yang quickly placed a hand on his knee and said in a low voice, “Senior brother, I understand. Leave it to me. I’ll handle it right away.”

Having stopped Zhang Xiuqi from speaking, Wei Yang let out a quiet sigh and turned to Manager Cheng with a serious expression. “Manager Cheng, you should know that this isn’t how we usually operate. Regardless of how you and Miss Yan handle the matter, I’ll need to discuss this further with you, especially regarding the so-called ‘feng shui plan.’ I can’t agree to it outright.”

Seeing Master Zhang frown, Manager Cheng knew things were about to take a turn for the worse. After all, no matter how young they were, these two were genuine feng shui masters with real skills. Such a cheap way of handling the matter would naturally upset them. Manager Cheng, being a savvy and experienced man, quickly caught on and added, “It’s my fault for being too vague and causing a misunderstanding… Haha, Miss Yan’s house will definitely be given to you two, but we’ll also make other arrangements to ensure you’re properly compensated. Please don’t take offense…”

Wei Yang smiled, seemingly satisfied, and gracefully stood up from the sofa. “That’s better. My senior brother and I have expended a lot of energy this time and need to rest for a few days. Let’s discuss the specifics another day.”

Manager Cheng became anxious and quickly tried to stop them. “Master Wei, don’t rush off! At least let us treat you to…”

Wei Yang decisively waved his hand. “No need. Here’s my business card. If you have a concrete plan, feel free to contact me.”

As Wei Yang stood up, Zhang Xiuqi also rose to his feet, his expression cold and stern, his gaze icy. Manager Cheng was so intimidated that he didn’t dare to speak further. He quickly nodded and bowed, stepping aside. Wei Yang picked up his wooden box and smiled at Zhang Xiuqi. “Senior brother, let’s go.”

The two of them walked out of the meeting room side by side. After a few steps, Miss Yan caught up and whispered to Wei Yang, “Thank you so much, Master Wei. I don’t know how to repay you, but if I come across any suitable clients in the future, I’ll definitely recommend you. As for my situation…”

Wei Yang smiled faintly. “Miss Yan, although this matter has been resolved safely, there’s no guarantee it will always be this way in the future. So, please be more careful and avoid making the same mistakes again.”

“I won’t! I definitely won’t!” Miss Yan replied swiftly. “Then what about…”

“It’s already settled. Later, I’ll prepare a protective talisman for you. As long as you don’t violate the natural order, there shouldn’t be any major issues.”

Hearing Master Wei’s assurance, Miss Yan’s face lit up—though it wasn’t a pretty sight. She coughed delicately and said, “Then Master Wei, remember to contact me later.”

Wei Yang smiled and didn’t engage with the silly girl further. He took Zhang Xiuqi’s hand and walked out. It wasn’t until they had left the community gates that he finally relaxed a little, no longer putting on the “master” act. Honestly, he had been on the verge of collapsing earlier. He had been scared out of his wits, had to maintain the act to keep the charade going, and had to make sure the Little Celestial Master didn’t slip up. The mental pressure was immense, and his back was soaked with sweat.

Suddenly, a loud growl came from beside him. Wei Yang turned to see Zhang Xiuqi’s brows furrowed. His heart inexplicably lightened, and he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Brother Qi, I’m really sorry for keeping you waiting so long. Let me take you to eat now… Huh? Why is there a bit of blood at the corner of your mouth? Are you injured? Do you need to go to the hospital?”

Only then did Wei Yang notice a faint trace of red on Zhang Xiuqi’s thin lips. His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly asked. Zhang Xiuqi, however, opened his mouth and, as if deliberately acting cute, stuck out his tongue slightly. His expression and gaze remained as cold and aloof as ever, creating a stark contrast that made Wei Yang feel awkward. After a moment, he finally realized what was going on and looked at the other’s tongue. There was a small cut on it, with a faint trace of blood. Blinking, he seemed to remember something. “Is this… the legendary essence blood?”

The blood from the tip of the tongue was said to be an extremely yang substance, especially if it came from a virgin, and was often used in various works of fiction as a tool for exorcising ghosts and demons. He never expected to witness someone using tongue blood to dispel evil in real life. Zhang Xiuqi retracted his tongue and nodded. “True saliva.”

Seeing Zhang Xiuqi like this, Wei Yang felt both amused and exasperated. This man, who acted purely on instinct and seemed like a block of wood, was a far cry from the fierce demon-slaying Celestial Master from earlier. He wondered which one was the real Zhang Xiuqi.

He sighed softly and rummaged through his pocket, pulling out a piece of candy and handing it over. “Nougat, peanut flavor. Brother Qi, have this to tide you over. Let’s go eat now.”

Looking at the offered candy, Zhang Xiuqi was momentarily stunned. After a pause, he took it, unwrapped it, and put it in his mouth.

“Do you like it?” Wei Yang asked casually as he waved for a taxi.

With the candy in his mouth, Zhang Xiuqi didn’t respond. However, the slight relaxation in his brow was almost imperceptible as the sweet taste melted in his mouth, masking the faint scent of blood.