After changing out of the Pen Fairy costume in her dressing room, Ling Xiaoyou switched back into the red dress she had worn today and left the Ghostly Grievance Department.
The sky was hazy, looking as if it might rain at any moment.
But Ling Xiaoyou knew it wouldn’t rain—this was just the unique weather of the Underworld.
After all, you couldn’t expect the Underworld’s weather to be the same as the human world.
She walked several more miles along the path and soon found herself in a nearby Ghost Street.
On Ghost Street, people came and went—or rather, ghosts came and went was a more accurate description.
Here, Ling Xiaoyou saw many different types of ghosts, like Hanged Ghosts with long tongues and ropes tied around their necks, Drowned Ghosts with hair tangled in water plants and water dripping from their clothes, or Starved Ghosts with ragged clothes, so thin they were nothing but skin and bones…
Of course, some ghosts here wore modern clothing, while others dressed in styles from past eras.
After all, for ghosts, what determined their existence wasn’t lifespan, but the Grievance Points that sustained them.
Walking down this Ghost Street, Ling Xiaoyou’s figure drew the attention of many ghosts.
After all, it was rare to see a ghost as intact and human-looking as Ling Xiaoyou.
Not to mention, Ling Xiaoyou was an especially beautiful girl.
It was normal to attract other ghosts’ attention—Ling Xiaoyou was already used to it.
Who told her to be such a cute beautiful girl (ghost) anyway!
Hmph!
Ling Xiaoyou thought narcissistically.
Suddenly, she felt something hugging her stomach.
She wondered if it was some pervert ghost with only half a body left, and quickly looked down.
Her expression softened instantly.
She bent down, patted the Little Girl who was clinging to her stomach, and asked,
“What’s wrong, little sister? Is there something you need big sister’s help with?”
The Little Girl looked up with a pitiful face and pleaded,
“Big sister, I’m hungry.”
Hearing this, Ling Xiaoyou glanced at the girl’s thin face and at her obviously outdated clothes, and sighed.
Then, she gave the Little Girl a warm smile, rubbed her head, and said,
“It’s okay. Big sister has tasty food here.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Ling Xiaoyou paused.
For some reason, she felt like a suspicious sister trying to lure a child.
She shook her head to dismiss the strange thought, then pulled a bag filled with snacks and treats from her Space Ring and handed it to the Little Girl.
As a Ghost Performer under the Ghostly Grievance Department, she was always busy responding to summons, but there were plenty of perks.
Snacks and treats, for example, were always provided in abundance.
Ling Xiaoyou would take plenty of snacks home to eat every day, and no one ever said she couldn’t.
Looking at the fragrant bag in her hands, the Little Girl’s eyes sparkled.
She happily rubbed against Ling Xiaoyou’s belly again and said sincerely,
“Thank you, big sister!”
“You’re welcome.”
Ling Xiaoyou grinned and ruffled the Little Girl’s hair again.
After saying goodbye to the happy Little Girl clutching her snacks, Ling Xiaoyou headed home.
As she walked, she opened her System Panel and glanced at the Happiness Points in the lower right corner: 2.34.
Compared to before, it had increased by 0.01—that came from the Little Girl just now.
The Happiness Points obtained from ghosts were much less than those from ordinary humans.
If an ordinary human’s Happiness Points were 1, then a normal ghost’s would be 0.01.
Perhaps powerful ghosts could provide more Happiness Points, but Ling Xiaoyou had never met such strong ghosts, so she couldn’t confirm.
But even though the Little Girl only gave 0.01 Happiness Points, Ling Xiaoyou didn’t mind.
After all, even the tiniest mosquito leg is still meat—at least it was something.
Her previous ‘fortune’ of 2.33 Happiness Points was accumulated bit by bit from these tiny mosquito legs!
Looking at the extra 0.01 on her points, Ling Xiaoyou grinned foolishly, her steps becoming lighter, bouncing along like a little bunny who’d just stolen a carrot.
After passing through several more blocks, Ling Xiaoyou saw her own neighborhood.
She skillfully injected her Spirit Power into the access panel.
As the iron gate slowly opened, Ling Xiaoyou walked in.
She reached her building, entered the elevator, and pressed the button for the 4th floor.
The elevator doors closed, and a moment of weightlessness followed.
Ling Xiaoyou waited quietly.
With a ‘ding’, the elevator doors opened again.
Stepping out, she saw a beautiful, elegant woman with her black hair in a bun, quietly sweeping the hallway with a broom.
Hearing the elevator, the woman turned, saw Ling Xiaoyou, and exclaimed in surprise,
“Eh, Xiaoyou, you’re home from work early today?”
“Yes, Sister Lin.”
Ling Xiaoyou nodded.
“I finished several days’ worth of tasks ahead of schedule, so I got off early.”
Lin Ruhua nodded in understanding, then walked over to Ling Xiaoyou.
With a bold gesture completely at odds with her refined appearance, she patted Ling Xiaoyou on the shoulder and praised her,
“Nice, Xiaoyou. When you become a famous female ghost, remember to give big sister your autograph.”
Ling Xiaoyou staggered under Lin Ruhua’s forceful pat, almost falling.
Luckily, as a ghost at the Condensed Form stage, she had enough physical strength to keep her balance.
“Still a long way off, Sister Lin. I’m just an ordinary Pen Fairy now.”
Ling Xiaoyou scratched her head.
“Ha! That’s only a matter of time. I believe you can do it!”
As she spoke, Lin Ruhua pulled a bag of fruit from her Space Pocket and shoved it into Ling Xiaoyou’s hands.
“All right, let’s not chat. I haven’t finished cleaning yet. Go home and rest.”
She ruffled Ling Xiaoyou’s hair, then turned and walked away before she could protest.
Ling Xiaoyou looked at the fruit in her hand, then at Lin Ruhua’s departing figure, and smiled helplessly, silently remembering her kindness.
Ling Xiaoyou arrived at her door—room 403.
She injected Spirit Power into the lock.
With a ‘click’, the door opened and she stepped inside.
She set the fruit bag on the floor by the entryway, slipped off her shoes, and, still in her white stockings, walked straight to the living room sofa.
With each step, she skillfully and smoothly removed her clothes.
By the time she reached the sofa, only her pure white underwear and white stockings remained.
She didn’t let this beautiful scene linger in the air for long—she grabbed a T-shirt from the sofa and pulled it on.
The T-shirt was so big that it covered her legs completely when she wore it.
And because it was so loose, any movement made it slip off her shoulders.
Old Shoulders So Cunning.jpg
As for why Ling Xiaoyou wore such a T-shirt—it was just really comfortable!
She pulled it up and jumped onto the sofa in a salted fish pose.
Her slender, pale fingers twitched, beckoning to her discarded clothes and the fruit bag on the floor.
Immediately, the clothes and bag floated up, as if lifted by invisible hands.
The clothes flew to the washing machine and the fruit bag to the kitchen.
After putting everything away with her magic, Ling Xiaoyou stretched contentedly, as if she’d accomplished something great.
Now for some happy phone time!
She thought cheerfully, taking her phone from her Space Ring.
Unlocking it with Spirit Power, she was greeted by a news alert:
It was a classic clickbait headline.
In the past, Ling Xiaoyou would have ignored it, but this time she clicked.
There was only one reason—the ‘New Sea City’ in the news was the city she lived in…
In the human world.
Ling Xiaoyou lived in the Underworld area of New Sea City.
Since it was something that happened nearby, she decided to take a look.
She skimmed the article quickly and nodded in understanding.
Although it was a clickbait title, it wasn’t entirely false.
The news said that recently, many Foreign Demons had been smuggling into New Sea City, so people should be careful not to be abducted.
Ling Xiaoyou didn’t care much and casually scrolled past it.
After all, she rarely went out, and even when she did, it was only for a summoning—then she’d return immediately.
There was little chance she’d encounter a demon.
After watching a few silly short videos, Ling Xiaoyou suddenly heard a notification from her work group chat—someone had @’d her.
Opening the chat, she saw it wasn’t her, but an @all message.
The one who @’d everyone was an old Veteran Performer who’d played famous ghost roles like Painted Skin.
Ling Xiaoyou’s curiosity was piqued.
This Veteran Performer rarely spoke in the group, so what happened today?
Scrolling down, she found the message sent after the @all.
There was a photo.
In it, the moon was beautiful, stars sparkling.
A stunning black-haired girl stood under a streetlight, her cold eyes staring straight at the camera, as if she might grab the photographer in the next second.
Ling Xiaoyou silently saved the photo to her album, then replied under it,
‘Thanks, sister, already saved it. Any more?’
She waited, but no new messages appeared, as if her comment had killed the chat.
Scratching her head, Ling Xiaoyou was about to send another message when the Veteran Performer replied,
‘There’s no need to thank me, Xiaoyou.’
‘This one isn’t a good person.’