You, a living person, are telling me I've served in the underworld for ten years?

Chapter 1 Believe in science!
"Chen Yang, did you lose money in the stock market again?"

"What do you mean by 'losing money again'?"

Wucheng, Yumin Street.

Inside a funeral supplies store.

Wearing a short-sleeved shirt, shorts, and sandals, Chen Yang sat on a chair behind the glass counter, holding a "Suibian" cigarette in his left hand and his phone in his right, complaining, "This is my first time buying stocks, okay? Old Gu, are the people in your yamen's detective department all that free? You saw my post on WeChat Moments right away?"

"We're human too, can't we have time to rest?"

The man called "Old Gu" said, "By the way, why didn't you go to the class reunion last night?"

"What are you going for?"

Chen Yang said, "You're all so successful, what am I supposed to do, dealing in the dead? Just listen to your bragging?"

"What's wrong with doing business with dead people? You can go to work whenever you want and go to bed whenever you want. I even saw you doing a PK battle with a female streamer from the same city the other day. I'm so envious of that kind of life!"

"We talked about you at the class reunion yesterday. Everyone said that if you hadn't dropped out of school, you would definitely have gotten into a good university..."

Chen Yang chuckled and said, "That bastard Zhou Qiang didn't go, did he? That bastard is petty. I only beat him up a few times when we were in school. If he went, I'd be lucky if he didn't badmouth me, let alone praise me."

"You understand Zhou Qiang best."

Old Gu laughed and said, "I only found out yesterday that you and Zhou Qiang were classmates in elementary school. He said your father knows magic and can raise ghosts. You dropped out of school to go back and inherit your father's skills."

"........."

Chen Yang was speechless for a moment.

He had lived with his father since he could remember, and since his family was in the business of dealing with the dead, he hardly had anyone to play with at school when he was a child. Instead, people often made fun of him because of this.

Zhou Qiang is one of the key players.

Later, he said that his father knew magic and could raise ghosts. He said that if they bullied him again, he would send the ghosts to talk to them at night. From then on, no one dared to bully him anymore.

Maybe it's fate.

In high school, Zhou Qiang and Chen Yang became classmates again.

Zhou Qiang has a sharp tongue and often jokes in class about Chen Yang's father's "magic," which has earned him several beatings from Chen Yang.

By the time I reached my senior year of high school.

Just one week into the new semester, Old Chen suddenly fell seriously ill after returning from outside and became bedridden. Chen Yang had to suspend his studies and return home to take care of him.

Old Chen ultimately couldn't pull through and passed away after a year in bed, leaving Chen Yang with only this shop.

This shop is the old man's life's work. Chen Yang has lived here with the old man since he can remember. It holds too many memories for Chen Yang. Since he missed the college entrance examination and has no intention of retaking it, he took over the shop.

Fortunately, the profits in this industry are good, so even without any connections in hospitals or funeral homes, Chen Yang can still live a comfortable life.

"On another note... Chen Yang, you really don't know any magic to catch ghosts? I've heard that people in your line of work all have some kind of skill!"

"If I knew magic, would I need to be selling paper wreaths here?"

Chen Yang said speechlessly, "Gu Jinghui, what era are we living in? We should believe in science, okay!"

"That's possible!"

Gu Jinghui said, "Aren't there a lot of ghost stories circulating online lately? And we encountered a particularly bizarre case a few days ago; I even suspect it wasn't done by a human!"

Chen Yang: "Stop talking nonsense. What time do you get off work? Come over and play a few rounds of pool!"

The person on the other end of the phone replied, "Okay, I'll call you back."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Yang turned on his computer and started playing games.

Around 6:30 PM, Gu Jinghui sent a voice message—

"Chen Yang, I have a case that came up suddenly, let's reschedule for another time."

Chen Yang replied with an "OK" emoji.

He was already used to Gu Jinghui standing him up.

After all, they are government officials, so it's normal for them to be busy.

After ordering takeout, Chen Yang continued playing his game. Before he knew it, it was past 9 PM. Just as Chen Yang was about to close up shop and go to sleep, the shop welcomed its first customer of the day…

Do not!
To be precise, he wasn't a customer, but an old acquaintance!
Chen Yang and Gu Jinghui had just complained about him during their video call that afternoon—Zhou Qiang!
Hey!
What brings this grandson here?

Cursing inwardly, Chen Yang smiled and went to greet him, saying, "Oh my... Mr. Zhou, what brings you here today, such a distinguished guest?"

Zhou Qiang is about half a head shorter than Chen Yang, around 170cm.

He was slightly overweight with a noticeable beer belly. In addition, his family was in the construction business, so he often went between construction sites and karaoke bars. His skin was slightly dark, and although he was about the same age as Chen Yang, he looked much older.

Zhou Qiang swaggered into the store, grabbed a plastic stool, sat down, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, handed one to Chen Yang, lit it himself, and asked, "Why didn't you go to the class reunion yesterday, Mr. Chen?"

Chen Yang: "Something came up at the last minute, so I couldn't go."

After all, they are old classmates.

Despite past conflicts, they still greeted each other with smiles and pleasantries when they met.

After chatting for a few minutes, Chen Yang laughed and said, "I've heard all about it. President Zhou is a big boss now and has even secured a major project from the municipal government... I wonder when President Zhou will be able to help me make some money?"

This is a joking compliment.

Zhou Qiang took it seriously, flicked his cigarette ash, crossed his legs and said, "I came to see you today because I want to introduce you to a business opportunity that can make money."

His expression and tone suggested that he was giving you a reward or bestowing a favor upon you.

Chen Yang knows Zhou Qiang very well.

This guy came to me because he was up to no good; he was probably just showing off.

Then he exclaimed in surprise, "Oh? This... Mr. Zhou, a relative of yours has passed away?"

"Damn it, can't you speak properly?"

Zhou Qiang's face darkened, and he said, "I came to you to ask you to help me catch a ghost!"

"........."

Damn it, is this never going to end?!
Why bring this up again?

Chen Yang said, "President Zhou is joking. That was just bragging when I was a kid. How could I possibly have that ability?"

“It’s not like I’m really asking you to catch ghosts. Didn’t you say before that your dad knows how to perform rituals and has a set of ancestral ritual equipment? Take it with you and go to my construction site to perform a ritual to make it look like a formality.”

Zhou Qiang cursed, "I don't know which bastard spread the rumor that my construction site is haunted. Those workers are uneducated and just parrot what others say. They're so scared that they don't dare to work overtime now!"

Chen Yang was both amused and exasperated: "What era are we living in? How can you believe in this, Mr. Zhou? You should believe in science!"

Perform a ritual?
When the old man was alive, he often took on "one-stop" jobs, such as performing religious rites for people. Chen Yang often followed the old man to funerals and ate at the banquets when he was a child, so he knew the procedures from the many times he saw them.

Back then, the internet wasn't as developed as it is now, and many elderly people in rural areas were very superstitious. It's 2025 now, how can I possibly do this?

Isn't this blatant promotion of feudal superstition?

He was about to refuse when he saw Zhou Qiang pull a wad of cash from his bag, throw it on the counter, and arrogantly declare:

"Here's 5000 yuan. You just need to make this trip, go through the motions to put the workers at ease, and I'll give you another 5000 after it's all done!"

"........."

If you don’t make money, you’re a bastard!
Chen Yang was about to nod in agreement when suddenly—

Ding!
A mechanical, crisp voice rang in his mind, and then a light screen that only Chen Yang could see appeared before his eyes!

Friday, May 2025, 5

At 10:28 PM, at the invitation of an old classmate, you went to a construction site to perform a ritual, which angered the evil spirits there. You were possessed and controlled by the evil spirits, and climbed onto the rooftop, where you ultimately fell to your death.

"???"

Chen Yang was taken aback, but then he saw the text flashing on the screen, and another line of text popped up.

[After your death, your soul wandered aimlessly. By chance, you broke through the seal of the "Severed Heavenly Connection" and drifted to the underworld, becoming a lonely ghost. You did not accept your fate and, through your own efforts, successfully passed the underworld's examination, becoming a glorious underworld official!]

PS: My new book is launching! Dear readers, please accept my bow!

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(End of this chapter)