Twin female zombies come to the door: My lord, please have mercy!

The early autumn morning light pierced through the thin clouds and cut diagonally into the spacious living room of the guesthouse.

The light spots on the floor slowly drifted away over time.

A pungent, irritating, and sour aroma filled the air.

Lin Ye pushed open the frosted glass door to the bathroom.

Steaming hot vapor rolled out through the cracks in the door.

He casually wiped his wet short hair with a towel, revealing clearly defined muscles on his bare upper body.

A few drops of water slid down his muscular abs and into the edge of his black athletic pants.

After a night of deep conditioning that harmonizes Yin and Yang.

The pure yang energy in his body became increasingly abundant and solid, and his every move exuded a calm and composed aura.

He draped a towel over his shoulder and followed the strange scent toward the open-plan restaurant.

At the large dining table, Fatty Wang was holding a white porcelain bowl, his chubby face scrunched up like a bitter gourd.

He held the bamboo chopsticks with both hands, picked up a dark red, curved, whisker-like object from the bowl, and his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"Hey, little sister Ayougu, I've always treated you well, so what did you cook, sour fish soup or braised centipede?"

The fat man swallowed hard, refusing to put the thing in his mouth no matter what.

Ayougu was wearing a black cropped T-shirt, and the silver ring around her neck jingled.

She put her hands on her hips and proudly raised her chin.

"You don't know what you're missing! This is a specialty of our Miao region's 100,000-mountain area called 'Red Blood Dragon Beard Grass.' It looks like a worm, but it's actually a highly nourishing medicinal herb."

"I simmered this soup in the kitchen for three whole hours. I added star anise, cinnamon, and my secret-recipe warming powder. One sip, and you'll be warm for three days and three nights!"

Froststar squatted on the chair next to her, holding a piece of frozen pig's blood that she had just taken out of the refrigerator, and ate it with great relish.

The little girl glanced at the fat man with her heterochromatic blue eyes, a sly smile playing on her lips.

"If Fatty brother doesn't want to eat, Frostnova can reluctantly help you finish it, but after Frostnova finishes eating, she might feel like biting someone."

The fat man was so startled that his hand trembled, and with a "plop," the dragon whisker grass fell back into the bowl.

He would rather take poison than offend this little ghost king who chews up vengeful spirits like snacks.

"I'll eat it! It's a specialty of Miao region, so fresh!"

Lin Ye pulled out the chair in the main seat and sat down, then picked up the large bowl in front of him that was filled with bright red sour soup.

He lowered his head and took a big gulp.

Spicy, sour, and with a strange herbal bitterness, it explodes in your mouth instantly.

The soup was scalding hot as it entered the throat, and immediately turned into a raging fire upon entering the stomach.

Lin Ye keenly sensed that the faint medicinal power contained in the soup base was being rapidly absorbed by the Pure Yang Dao Body, transforming into wisps of warm current that flowed through his limbs and bones.

"Excellent craftsmanship! It dispels cold and strengthens the body, making it suitable for people with weak constitutions."

Lin Ye gave a fair assessment.

Hearing the boss's praise, Ayougu's eyes curved into two crescent moons, and she proudly raised her eyebrows at the fat man.

The master bedroom door clicked softly.

Leng Yue changed into an elegant moon-white long dress, with a few hidden spider lilies embroidered in silver thread at the hem.

She walked lightly to Lin Ye's side, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

She didn't speak, her gaze lingering on the bowl of bright red sour soup for half a second, her delicate brows furrowing slightly.

The zombie body rejects this spicy and hot food from living people; she prefers cold, pure energy.

Lin Ye noticed her discomfort and pushed a plate of crystal-clear fruit slices in front of her.

Their eyes met, but neither made any inappropriate move.

Leng Yue touched the edge of the fruit plate with her slightly cool fingertips, nodded gently, and held a tenderness in her eyes that only Lin Ye could understand.

Just after breakfast, the doorbell rang at the guesthouse.

The fat man ran to open the door.

Standing outside the door was Su Qinghan, the chief designer of Tianzhu Design Institute.

She was wearing a sharp-tailored black business suit, and there were still some dark circles under her eyes from staying up all night drawing.

But his mental state is much better than when he looked like he was on the verge of death a few days ago.

Ever since Lin Ye burned away the Hundred-Legged Soul-Devouring Fiend that had been coiled around the back of her neck, her reverence for this funeral parlor had been etched into her very bones.

"Master Lin."

Su Qinghan entered the living room with an extremely respectful attitude.

She didn't dare to look at Leng Yue for long, and directly placed the heavy metal briefcase in her hand on the coffee table.

"I led my team to revise the final renovation plans for the funeral parlor overnight. All the materials used in the underground meditation room were replaced with the highest grade obsidian, and the location of the energy-gathering array eye was accurate to the millimeter."

She opened the briefcase and took out a stack of construction blueprints that smelled of ink.

Lin Ye took the blueprints and carefully examined them.

The lines are neat and the spatial layout perfectly matches the Feng Shui principle of gathering and retaining Qi.

After experiencing the true Tao, this materialist designer seamlessly blended metaphysics with modern architecture.

"The blueprints are fine. The construction team will start work tomorrow, and Fatty will be in charge of supervising."

Lin Ye rolled up the blueprints and placed them aside.

"Designer Su, you didn't just come here to deliver the drawings, did you?"

Su Qinghan's body trembled slightly. She pushed up her glasses and her expression became unusually solemn.

"Master, you have discerning eyes; the blueprints are only one aspect. I've come here to ask you to save someone."

She took a deep breath, her voice filled with deep fear.

"It's the venture capital firm behind that ancient temple in the east of the city. I used my connections in the industry to find out the details."

"The shell company called 'Senhai Capital' is actually controlled by the Zheng family, who started out in Jiangzhou by smuggling underground antiques. And the head of the Zheng family, Zheng Tianhao, is a ruthless character who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals."

Lin Ye tapped his fingers lightly on the sofa armrest:

"The Zheng family, the Yinshan Sect. This chain of interests is indeed tightly woven. Is the person you want to save connected to the Zheng family?"

Su Qinghan nodded, her eyes slightly reddening.

"It was my mentor during my university years, and Mr. Shen Wanlin, a well-known antique collector in Jiangzhou."

"Two weeks ago, Mr. Shen attended a private, closed-door auction hosted by the Zheng family, where he spent a large sum of money to purchase a Ming Dynasty bronze mirror called 'Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix'."

"Ever since that bronze mirror was brought home, the Shen family has been in complete chaos."

Su Qinghan's voice began to tremble, and her hands were tightly clenched together.

"At first, dark red, foul-smelling bloody water flowed from the tap in the house. Then, several of Mr. Shen's apprentices saw headless shadows crawling on the wall in the corridor in the middle of the night."

"Last night, Mr. Shen's most beloved grandson stood in front of that bronze mirror in the middle of the night, laughing as he cut his own hair with scissors. Mr. Shen went to pull him away and looked at the mirror, and was so frightened that he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on the spot."

She raised her head and looked at Lin Ye with pleading eyes.

"Old Shen said that what he saw in that mirror was himself... headless, with a human-faced spider crawling at the severed end of his neck."

As Su Qinghan spoke, her body trembled violently involuntarily, and her voice became barely audible.

"Old Shen said that the feeling of 'headlessness' was not just visual. When he stood in front of the mirror, he would feel a chilling sensation in his neck, as if a rusty iron saw was pulling him inch by inch down his spine."

"Moreover, his body in the mirror was still moving, even waving at him, but what was spurting from the severed neck was not blood, but thick black smoke that was impossible to dissolve."

"The most terrifying thing is Old Shen's youngest grandson..."

Su Qinghan swallowed hard, her eyes filled with fear.

"While the child was getting a haircut, he kept muttering, 'Grandpa, my head is too heavy. The uncle in the mirror said he'd take it off and wash it for me.'"

"When Mr. Shen went to stop him, he clearly saw his grandson in the mirror holding his head in his hand, smiling at him like he was holding a ball. But in reality, the child only had a pair of scissors in his hand. That sense of dislocation in time and space made Mr. Shen collapse on the spot."

As Su Qinghan described it, the light in the guesthouse's living room seemed to dim a bit, and something seemed to be quietly wriggling in the shadows of the corner, trying to measure the neck circumference of everyone present.

Fatty Wang gasped and instinctively touched his neck.

Ayougu also abandoned his playful mood, his brows furrowed, clearly sensing the danger in the conversation.

"Judging from your words, this is most likely the 'Shadow-Severing Curse,' an extremely malevolent and ominous death curse."

Lin Ye spoke coldly, revealing the true nature of the bronze mirror.

"In ancient times, it was common for high-ranking officials and nobles to be buried alive with their dead. Some evil sorcerers would cut off the heads of living people to appease the resentment of those buried in the tomb, and use their blood to cast bronze ore to make so-called tomb-guarding mirrors."

"This mirror has been buried underground for over a hundred years, absorbing the death energy of the earth's veins, and has long since become a deadly evil object."

Lin Ye stared at Su Qinghan's pale face, his tone resolute:

"Anyone whose headless appearance is reflected in this mirror will surely be decapitated within three days. The Zheng family is auctioning off this extremely ominous unearthed object; they are simply plotting to murder for money."

The moment Lin Ye finished speaking.

A faint glow flickered before my retina, and the system's crisp mechanical voice rang precisely in my mind.

"Ding! System notification: The sinister tentacles of the Zheng family—a money laundering front for the Yinshan Sect—have been detected. To nip this in the bud, the host must determine a solution within three minutes and quell this urban gloom!"

The light screen popped open, and three options appeared in mid-air:

Option A: Close the door to visitors – wave goodbye to indicate "I just made a hundred million, I need to rest," and turn away those seeking help.

[Reward: A pair of salted fish slippers. Consequence: The trail is completely broken; the Yinshan Sect will secretly complete a new plan; the entire Shen family will be wiped out.]

Option B: Stir up trouble – Carry the peach wood sword and head straight for the Zheng family villa to interrogate them about the origin of the mirror.

[Reward: Bull Physique +5. Consequence: The Zheng family has a large army and evil cultivators; a hasty attack will result in a fierce battle, and they will immediately destroy all evidence of their collusion with the Yinshan Sect.]

Option C: Go with the flow and lure the snake out of its hole—accept the Shen family's commission to exorcise the evil spirit. Remove the evil energy from the ancient mirror and refine it into an anti-tracking artifact, thereby uncovering the secret network of communication between the Zheng family and the Yinshan Sect.

[Reward: 300 Official Points, True Understanding of the Taoist Secret Technique "Round Light Technique"]

With these three options laid out before you, there's no suspense whatsoever.

The Yinshan Sect's stronghold is like a rabbit with three burrows; rushing in rashly will only alert them.

Using the ancient mirror of the Shen family as a starting point to follow the clues is the proper strategy.

I choose C.

Lin Ye made his decision in his heart, and his eyes returned to calm.

He stood up and draped the black coat that was hanging on the back of the chair over his shoulders.

"I'll take this job. Lead the way to the Shen family."