Chapter 258: Hot Potato

Liu Junyan said, the cultivation of a corpse phantom after death depends on continuously absorbing and exhaling the surrounding spiritual qi, but it is itself formed from a resentful corpse, so it still belongs to yin evil lethal things.

That mountain valley itself is a feng shui treasure trove; plus Liu Junyan's Golden Scale, the spiritual qi is abundant……Obviously someone else is controlling it.

Back then in the mountain valley, Liu Junyan caught one, but couldn't keep a live witness, making it impossible to follow the vine to investigate further.

If it really is the Gray Old Lady, our pawn shop will have to face up against the Gray Immortal Hall in Prosperous City, which is said to be quite large.

This is bound to be a very tricky matter.

What surprised everyone was that we weren't ready to go to Prosperous City yet, but the Gray Immortal Hall sent people.

That morning, Hui Moqiong got up and immediately pulled Li Qingying to go shopping at the supermarket.

By midday, the two returned with big and small bags.

Various ingredients, various snacks and fruits, even several sets of new clothes, all styles liked by young girls.

I then curiously asked, "Are relatives coming?"

I never expected that I'd actually guessed right.

Hui Moqiong said with a smiling squint, "Xiao Jiu'er, my sister might arrive in the evening; I've cleaned out the room across from Yingyingzi for her to stay, and I'll cover all her expenses here..."

He said a lot, his joy evident in his words.

We also felt happy, helped tidy up, in the afternoon we prepared a table of good dishes, all eagerly waiting.

When the moon rose above the willow tips, a black Volkswagen stopped at the pawn shop's door.

The rear door opened, and a young girl stepped out, resembling Hui Moqiong about forty-fifty percent, tall and slim, fair-skinned, with light and quick steps.

Hui Moqiong was about to step forward to greet her when he saw the girl already walk to the other side, where an old lady with silver hair was helped out of the car, leaning on a dragon-headed cane.

The moment we saw that old lady, we all froze.

Hui Moqiong only said his sister was coming, didn't mention there were elders too?

The old lady stood still, her gaze sweeping the doorway; she first nodded slightly to Liu Junyan as a greeting, then her eyes fell on me.

She stared at me for a good while.

Hui Yu Mo respectfully helped the old lady turn the car around and walk over here.

After they turned around, we saw the old lady also holding something in her hands, covered with a red cloth.

From Hui Yu Mo's attitude it's not hard to guess that this old lady before us is the hall master of the Gray Immortal Hall she belongs to, the Gray Old Lady.

The Gray Old Lady actually came in person; our excited mood from this afternoon instantly froze.

We automatically made way at the pawn shop's entrance; I stepped forward to greet: "Yu Mo, hello, who is this?"

Hui Yu Mo smiled sweetly at me: "You must be Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, right? My brother keeps praising you; nice to meet you, this is Gray Granny, the head of the Prosperous City Gray Immortal Hall."

I then went to help support the Gray Old Lady; before I could utter pleasantries, she said: "Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, I came today to discuss a business with you; let's talk over there."

She held the cane in one hand, cradled the object in the other, and pointed with her chin toward the South Study Room.

She actually came to pawn something?

The Big Family all headed to the South Study Room; the Gray Old Lady waved her hand and said: "Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, I only want to discuss this with you first; if we settle it, you can then discuss it with them; if not, just treat it as if I, an old lady, never came tonight."

I nodded and agreed.

This is the pawn shop, on our turf, so I don't need to be overly wary.

Hui Yu Mo sent the Gray Old Lady to the South Study Room, then went to the living room.

Hui Moqiong had been waiting; he led her to the room prepared for her.

The small street-facing door of the South Study Room, as well as the small door near the living room, were both closed.

Only I and the Gray Old Lady remained in the South Study Room.

I sat inside the counter, she sat outside it, placing the red-cloth-covered object on the counter.

I first politely asked: "Is this the item you want to pawn at our shop today?"

The Gray Old Lady answered yes, reached out and lifted the red cloth.

Under the red cloth lay a spirit tablet.

This kind of spirit tablet is not the type made for the deceased; it's the same as those enshrined on the West Room Spirit Shelf.

The tablet clearly bears the name of the one being enshrined—Hui Xiao Tiao.

I immediately frowned; this tablet enshrining someone should be a member of the Prosperous City Gray Immortal Hall, yet the Gray Old Lady actually wants to pawn it to our shop!

This is a hot potato.

If I take this order, I'll have to continue enshrining this tablet from now on.

That is, enshrining the Hui Xiao Tiao named on the tablet.

"This tablet was originally enshrined in the Gray Immortal Hall; Xiao Tiao is my most beloved little grandson; if nothing unexpected happens, the Prosperous City Gray Immortal Hall will eventually be passed into his hands."

The Gray Old Lady said this, and I finally understood why she cleared the place and talked to me alone.

Hui Xiao Tiao is the designated successor of the Prosperous City Gray Immortal Hall; now the Gray Old Lady wants to pawn his tablet to our shop, and if this gets out it will surely cause an uproar.

She talked to me alone; if we ultimately can't reach an agreement, as long as I don't tell anyone, this matter can indeed be treated as if it never happened.

I wondered: "Since he's the successor of the Gray Immortal Hall, why would you pawn his tablet to us?"

If I accept this order and enshrine Hui Xiao Tiao's tablet, it would also mean that in the future the Prosperous City Gray Immortal Hall would belong to our pawn shop.

This is simply unbelievable.

The Gray Old Lady gritted her teeth and said: "Because I want to ask Xiao Jiu Zhanggui to save my little grandson."

My heart skipped: "What's happened to Xiao Tiao?"

"I know you went to Prosperous City earlier and disturbed that feng shui treasure spot." the Gray Old Lady said, "Afterwards, Yu Mo's brother went again, and I ordered them not to move that spot; you should know that too."

I replied: "Yes, but why?"

"That spot must not be disturbed." the Gray Old Lady said, "Seventh Lord placed a seal around it; he must have seen what's being raised inside."

I replied: "He told me they're raising a corpse phantom there, whose hair has turned white."

Yes, it's a corpse demon. Gray old lady said, "Corpse demons cultivate by absorbing surrounding Spiritual Qi, but the feng shui treasure land where it resides was artificially created."

I asked: "Was it created using that piece of Golden Scale?"

Gray old lady shook her head: "No, the Golden Scale was placed there later, while the feng shui treasure land was constructed before the corpse demon was buried; the date can be traced back over a hundred years."

I looked at the gray old lady in astonishment, waiting for her to continue.

"That year, Xiao Tiao was about to reach his first hundred years old and needed to face the tribulation." Gray old lady recalled, "He was hiding in that mountain, in closed-door cultivation, when the mountain opener disturbed him, nearly causing him to go berserk and lose his life; it was a few miners who found him, miners have always been kind to the rats in the tunnels, so Xiao Tiao thus managed to save his life..."