What do you mean by saying that the corpses I sew are all ominous creatures?

I stood up and went straight downstairs.

The landlord's phone number is on the rental listing there. Before taking any further action, I need to confirm that this place is indeed Jiang Ling's residence.

On the door frame of the unit entrance, there are many "For Rent" signs with black lettering on a red background.

I found one of them and dialed the landlord's number left on it.

The phone rang for a long time before being answered. A frail male voice came from the other end: "Hey? Who is it?"

"Hello, are you the landlord of apartment 302, No. 44 Huaihua Lane?" I asked.

"It's me, what's wrong? You want to rent a room again? No, no, it's already been rented out." The landlord seemed very impatient.

"I'm not renting a room; I'm a friend of Jiang Ling, the resident of apartment 302."

She didn't go to work today, and I couldn't reach her by phone, so I came to check on her.

I want to confirm, this house was indeed rented to a girl named Jiang Ling, right?

The voice on the other end softened slightly: "Jiang Ling? Yes, it was rented to her."

That girl is quite pretty and has a sweet tongue; she's only been living here for a few days.

"What happened? Something went wrong?"

"Nothing happened, just checking."

I paused for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Did she come to rent the apartment alone?"

"Alone. Carrying a big suitcase, looks quite capable."

The landlord muttered something.

"Hey, let me tell you, this is a proper house, so don't do any of that nonsense here."

If someone is really missing, call the police immediately. Don't drag me into this.

I hung up the phone, my brow furrowed.

The landlord's words only confirmed two pieces of information: First, this is indeed Jiang Ling's address.

Secondly, she moved in just two days before she started working at the funeral home.

There wasn't any particularly useful information, but it was enough.

As long as we confirm that this is Jiang Ling's residence, that's fine.

I decided to go inside and take a look; maybe I could find some clues.

After returning to the third floor, I looked around and found the hallway quiet.

I took the silver butterfly hair ornament out of my pocket and twirled it in my hand.

Without further hesitation, I flicked my fingertips slightly, and a black bone needle silently slid into my palm.

This bone needle has been with me through countless life-and-death situations, and all I've encountered have been evil spirits and wicked cultivators.

It's a huge waste of my talent to use it to fiddle with the lock cylinder of this old-fashioned security door.

"Click".

After a very faint cracking sound, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, the skills haven't been lost.

I put away the bone needles and gently pushed open the door.

There was no eerie wind or pungent smell of poison in the room as I had imagined.

On the contrary, as soon as I entered, I smelled a faint lemon scent, as well as the dry smell of fabrics dried in the sun.

I narrowed my eyes slightly, closed the door behind me, and didn't rush inside.

It was a very small single room; you could see the whole thing at a glance.

A single bed was placed by the window, with the sheets neatly made up and printed with a floral pattern.

Several books on human anatomy and makeup techniques were on the desk, their corners slightly curled up, indicating they were frequently read.

I walked to the wardrobe and used the tip of my scalpel to pry open the door.

There were several changes of clothes hanging inside, mostly plain-colored long dresses and funeral home uniforms.

There were some inexpensive cosmetics and a box of unfinished cold medicine in the drawer.

It's too clean.

It was as clean as the home of an ordinary working person who had just graduated, was full of hope for life, and was working hard.

I searched the house carefully again.

There were no hidden compartments under the bed, no hidden layers in the walls, and I even knocked on all the bathroom tiles – they were all solid.

I sat down at my desk and opened the book "Plastic Anatomy". A photograph slipped out from between the pages.

In the photo, Jiang Ling is wearing an academic gown, smiling brightly, and her two little tiger teeth look especially cute.

I stared at the photo for a long time, and the silver butterfly hair accessory in my hand became a little hot.

If all of this is a facade, then this woman's scheming has reached a level that sends shivers down my spine.

She not only disguised her behavior, but even the traces of her life.

But what if this isn't a disguise?

If Jiang Ling is really just an ordinary person, then was the hair ornament in the cave altar deliberately placed there to make me suspect her?

Or perhaps she unknowingly became someone else's pawn?

If she were truly an ordinary person, and yet she got caught up in this kind of thing...

So her current disappearance is a sign that she has encountered danger.

After looking around again, I sighed.

The surrounding area was filled with items imbued with Jiang Ling's aura, including many personal belongings.

It seems that a simple tracking technique could find Jiang Ling's whereabouts.

But alas... the tracking techniques passed down by my grandfather are incredibly accurate at finding the God of Happiness, but when it comes to finding living people...

Moreover, Jiang Ling herself has plenty of yang energy, so she wouldn't leave any ashes in the funeral home.

With that thought in mind, I left the room and put the lock cylinder back in its original position.

After that, I took out my phone and dialed Lu Yan's number.

"Lu Yan, it's me."

"Chen Yang? What's up?" The sound of flipping through documents came from Lu Yan's end, sounding very busy.

"Jiang Ling has gone missing."

Without wasting any words, I quickly recounted the whole story.

"I checked her address and found that she was as clean as a blank sheet of paper."

Could you help me search for her whereabouts within the Jiangcheng area? If she is indeed an ordinary person, then she is very likely already in danger.

If not, then she is also inextricably linked to the Zhou family's affair.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone.

"Jiang Ling...the little girl you were talking about the other day?"

Lu Yan's tone became serious.

"I've got it. I'll contact you as soon as I have any news."

Also, be careful. If the other party can really fool the background check by the Bureau of Folklore and your eyes, then they are definitely not an ordinary person.

"I know."

After hanging up the phone, I drove back to the funeral home.

The afternoon's work was the same as always; I mechanically processed several bodies that had died unexpectedly.

But whenever I take a break, I subconsciously look towards the door.

The girl who would always push open the door on time and call out "Teacher Chen" never appeared.

As evening fell, the setting sun painted the streets of Jiangcheng a bleak, blood-red hue.

I was packing my things to go home when my phone suddenly vibrated.

It is ten thousand taels of gold.

As soon as the call connected, his deliberately lowered voice came from the other end of the line, accompanied by heavy breathing and the sound of breaking debris in the background.

"Brother Chen! Help! Help me!" Jin Wanliang's voice trembled violently, but he dared not raise his voice.

I frowned sharply, but kept my voice steady: "Old Jin, speak slowly, what's wrong?"

"It's off... the curse is off!" Jin Wanliang cried out.

"I spent a fortune to bring back an ancestor from Miao territory overnight; he's the rightful heir of the Lan family of Miao!"