Chapter 21: Burning Spirit Money, the Ghost Appears

"Keep burning it!" Chu Tian said to Li Weiwei.

Although Li Weiwei did not understand Chu Tian's intentions, she burned the spirit money once more. Another note appeared before Chu Tian, this one with a denomination of only ten million.

"Keep going!" Chu Tian urged. "Today, you only need to do one thing: burn this spirit money."

"Does burning this money serve a purpose?" Li Weiwei asked.

"The ghost coming for your life is inextricably linked to this spirit money," Chu Tian explained. "The higher the amount on the notes, the stronger the ghost's power. Every time you burn this money for me, I can siphon a portion of the ghost's power from it and transform it into new spirit money. Each time I siphon a part, the entity's strength weakens. When the time comes tonight for that vengeful ghost to claim your life, would you rather it be strong and difficult to handle, or weak and easy to deal with?"

"Then it must be easier to deal with if it's weaker." Hearing this, Li Weiwei nodded immediately. Without further questioning, she picked up the lighter and the spirit money and began burning it over and over again.

The spirit money appearing before Chu Tian kept updating, though the denominations fluctuated—sometimes in the hundreds of thousands, sometimes in the tens of millions. The massive ten-billion-denomination notes never appeared again. After all, sincerity requires a perfect alignment of one's spirit and focus, but that didn't matter; what they lacked in quality, they could make up for in quantity. It was still early, giving Li Weiwei plenty of time to burn the money slowly.

For Chu Tian, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; such perfect spirit money was not easily found. Ordinary spirit money, even if burned by the bagful, might not yield even one percent of what Li Weiwei's single note provided. After all, money made by mortals could never compare to currency refined by a supernatural entity. More importantly, ordinary people cannot simply burn spirit money at will; if one lacks a genuine connection or sincerity, you could burn ten billion, and the spirits might not receive even a hundred. Furthermore, if a ghost deity maliciously demands offerings, they risk falling into the path of an evil god. Thus, Li Weiwei's situation was truly rare.

As Li Weiwei burned the paper money, Chen Meng looked at Chu Tian and asked, "If Chu Meng'er doesn't intervene, can you handle this ghost?"

Although Chu Tian was currently stronger than Chen Meng, dealing with a wild ghost at the Ghost General level was still a stretch.

"If it were a fifth-level Ghost General, it would indeed be troublesome," Chu Tian said, walking over to pour himself a glass of water. "But as long as it doesn't manifest during the day, by the time night falls, it may no longer be a Ghost General."

Letting Li Weiwei burn money all afternoon meant Chu Tian could siphon at least six or seven billion from that original ten-billion-denomination note. Even if the entity were a peak fifth-level Ghost General, by the time it appeared at night, it would likely be reduced to a second-level fierce ghost, much like Old Man Li. By then, wouldn't dealing with a soul-reaping ghost be a piece of cake? Chu Tian was not worried at all. Even if it were a fifth-level Ghost General, what was there to fear? At worst, he would just shut the doors and unleash Chu Meng'er.

Hearing this, Chen Meng felt reassured.

Business at the Haunted House was typically quiet, with few visitors that afternoon. To weaken the soul-reaping ghost, Li Weiwei never stopped burning money. Finally, as night fell, the ten-billion-denomination note had dwindled to three billion. Chu Tian had successfully siphoned seventy percent of the ghost's power into new spirit money. While seven billion sounds like a lot, this world lacked an Underworld, and inflation among ghosts was quite severe, so the purchasing power of this currency was merely average.

"That's enough, stop burning," Chu Tian said, taking Li Weiwei's hand. "If you keep going, the ghost might be too scared to show up tonight."

"Is it ready now?" Li Weiwei asked, looking at Chu Tian.

Chu Tian nodded and placed a takeout meal in front of her. "You've been burning money all afternoon; eat something. That thing might arrive soon."

"Chu Tian, thank you," Li Weiwei said, taking the meal, her expression haggard.

Chu Tian waved a hand and stood behind the counter, leaning against it while waiting for the soul-reaping ghost to appear. Chen Meng and Chu Meng'er sat on small stools behind the counter, playing a game of Gomoku. As for the other small and old ghosts in the Haunted House, they did not emerge, yet none appeared nervous. Only Li Weiwei, while eating, remained uneasy, trembling like a frightened fawn.

As midnight approached, Chu Tian couldn't help but yawn. He looked at Li Weiwei, who was trying to stay awake, and said, "Weiwei, why don't you... lie down on that recliner and get some sleep?"

"I don't dare," Li Weiwei replied. These past few days, whenever she fell asleep, her body would be controlled by another soul. That soul would record what it did with her body—drinking, partying, street racing, clubbing—things completely contrary to Li Weiwei's nature. While nothing too extreme had happened yet, she was terrified of waking up one morning to find herself in the arms of a man she didn't know. If that happened, she would rather die.

"It's alright, I'm here. That soul-reaping ghost only takes control of your body when you fall asleep; perhaps it will only appear if you are asleep," Chu Tian said. "Only when it appears can I deal with it."

"Then... you must protect me," Li Weiwei said weakly. She glanced at the recliner, pulled it behind the counter, and after lying down, she reached out and grabbed the hem of Chu Tian's clothes.

Chen Meng rolled her eyes at this display. *Forget it, she's pitiful tonight, so it's excusable.* Chen Meng turned her attention back to the chessboard, trying to ignore them.

*Jingle-ling...*

Not long after Li Weiwei lay down, a vast white mist descended outside the Haunted House, creeping in through the gap beneath the glass door. With the sound of a bell, the door pushed open slowly, yet no figure was visible.

"It's here!" Chu Tian was instantly alert. The soul-binding chain on his wrist, disguised as a bracelet, glowed with blue light and began to rotate slowly, ready to strike.

"Where is it?" Even with his Ghost Official's eyes activated, Chu Tian could not trace the entity! Chen Meng and Chu Meng'er were also scanning the area, searching for the ghost.

A Ghost Official, a fox demon, and a Ghost King—the entity was hiding its presence right under the noses of these three. If Chu Tian hadn't already reduced its strength by more than half during the day, he might truly have been unable to cope with a full-strength soul-reaper.

Though the three remained highly vigilant, they still could not find the ghost. Then, behind Chu Tian, a surge of ghost energy erupted. Li Weiwei, who had just fallen asleep on the recliner, suddenly sat up. With a pair of red eyes and an eerie smile, she looked at Chu Tian and said, "Are you... looking for me?"