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

After I finished speaking, I closed my eyes to rest.

Suddenly, the car lurched forward and plunged into the torrential rain.

The car drove for a long time through the maze-like alleys of the old town before finally stopping in front of a red brick apartment building that looked like it was about to be demolished.

Lu Yan turned off the engine and turned to look at me, who was huddled in the back seat.

I probably look pretty scary right now. Rainwater mixed with cold sweat has my hair stuck to my forehead, and my complexion isn't much better than the regulars at the funeral home.

"Can you still walk?" she asked coldly, though it sounded harsh, despite her concern.

"It'll do, thank you for your trouble, Director Lu," I replied, and shakily stood up, leaning against the car door.

She didn't come over to help me; she just walked ahead on her own.

We climbed to the third floor, and she took out a magnetic card and stuck it on the rusty security door. A few faint clicking sounds of mechanisms came from the crack in the door.

After entering the house, Lu Yan locked the door behind her.

The house was simply decorated, even somewhat deserted.

But the yellow paper talismans pasted in the corner told me that this place was not simple.

"This is the bureau's safe house. It has soundproof and concealment arrays. As long as you don't undergo your tribulation in this room, no one outside will be able to find you."

Lu Yan casually locked the bill in a safe in the living room, then took out a porcelain bottle from the drawer under the TV cabinet and threw it to me.

I caught it in a flurry; the bottle had a label that read "Qingxin Dan" (清心丹).

"The Zhengyi Sect's stockpile is specifically designed to suppress internal fire and external evils. Your cultivation method is too unorthodox, so this medicine may not be the right treatment, but it's better than you stubbornly enduring it."

As Lu Yan spoke, she took off her soaked trench coat, revealing a tight-fitting dark blue uniform shirt underneath.

Her shirt was slightly damp from the rain, clinging to her body and outlining her incredibly athletic curves, but my mind was filled with a sharp, stabbing pain, and I had no interest in looking at any of that.

The aftereffects of the curse are kicking in again; this forbidden technique is indeed as dangerous as Grandpa said.

I originally thought I had temporarily suppressed the backlash in the rented apartment, but it turned out to be much more complicated than I thought.

In some subtle, unnoticed corners of my meridians, malevolent energy began to surge and churn again.

Looking at the pills in my hand, I didn't hesitate and swallowed one.

If Lu Yan wanted to harm me, she wouldn't have needed to bring me here at all.

As soon as the pill entered my throat, it transformed into a cool stream of air that penetrated my internal organs.

The fiery, malevolent energy that had been rampaging through my meridians was like charcoal being doused with cold water when it encountered this flow of energy. Although it was still hissing, it finally stopped trying to penetrate my brain.

I let out a long sigh of relief and plopped down on the sofa, feeling like my whole body was about to fall apart.

"Thank you so much, Director Lu, for saving my life."

Lu Yan came over with two cups of hot tea, handed me one, and sat down on the single sofa opposite her.

She crossed her legs, her eyes still sharp.

"Now, tell me, Consultant Chen."

She emphasized the word "consultant".

"What exactly does Director Lei see in you? The lineage of corpse stitchers was severed long ago during the post-founding folklore census. Where did you come from?"

I held the hot tea in my hands, feeling the warmth from it, and slowly took a sip.

"It's a family heirloom skill, nothing special. Director Lei only gave me that title because he thought my sewage stitching technique was decent enough, just so I could make a living."

I smiled. At times like these, the more you say, the more mistakes you make.

Lu Yan snorted coldly: "Small skills? To be able to kill a wicked cultivator like Master Huai, who has been cultivating Yin Corpses for thirty years, with a single strike, your skills are really quite small."

Chen Yang, I've checked your file. You're an embalmer at Jiangcheng Funeral Home, with a clean background like a blank sheet of paper.

But I just saw Lin Tiantian's name on that list. Wasn't she the corpse you handled?

I tightened my grip on the teacup, but said nothing.

"Lin Tiantian's heart was stolen, then you appeared at Guiyun Temple, and then you touched the locust tree."

Lu Yan put down her teacup, leaning forward slightly, giving me an extremely strong sense of pressure. "The logic here is broken. Tell me, how exactly did you lock onto Master Huai?"

"The heretical practitioners in Guiyun Temple," I uttered.

"There is a yin-yang face in Guiyun Temple who performs a ritual to refine the heart. He is the one who stole Lin Tiantian's heart."

After I finished fighting him, he called out "Master" before he died.

Following the scent he left behind, I used some methods on Li Hongmei before finally finding the locust tree.

As for the bill, that was an unexpected bonus.

Now that I'm here, I don't intend to hide anything from you, so I'll tell you everything.

After all, there's not much to hide.

Lu Yan stared at me for a long time, as if trying to determine whether I was lying.

Finally, she sighed and leaned back in her chair.

"I've seen that roster; it's too complicated."

There are a few names that even I find unappealing. Chen Yang, are you handing this over to me because you genuinely want to gain merit, or are you just using me to stir up a hornet's nest?

I looked up and met her gaze: "Director Lu, I'm just an ordinary person who wants to live a peaceful life. Master Huai has his eye on me. If I don't kill him, he'll have to kill me."

As for those important figures on the list, that's a headache for your government.

I only ask for one thing—that all that messy trouble not interfere with my work.

Lu Yan seemed to have heard a funny joke, and a mocking smile appeared on her lips.

"An ordinary person? This is the first time I've ever met an ordinary person who is decisive in killing."

Alright, you're staying here tonight, don't go anywhere. I'll send people to keep an eye on your rented apartment and the funeral home.

As for that roster... I will personally report it to the bureau chief, or even the provincial bureau.

She stood up and glanced at the time.

There was hot water in the bathroom and clean clothes in the closet, although they were spare uniforms.

You've rested well. Come with me to the station tomorrow morning to give a statement.

Remember, Chen Yang, even though you have identification now, in Jiangcheng, you're still on my turf.

After she finished speaking, she turned and went into the bedroom, closing the door with a crisp sound.

I sat on the sofa, watching Lu Yan's retreating figure, and smiled.

Is this woman really going to choose to spend the night in this safe house to spy on me?

But then I thought about it again, and she really is quite pretty, even though she looks cold.

It could be considered that he was living with a beautiful woman.

After taking another sip of tea, I sighed deeply and stood up.

The effects of this calming pill are indeed quite good. I can feel that the chaotic evil energy in my meridians has been completely suppressed, replaced by a heavy sense of fatigue.

I went into the bathroom, took a shower, took off my dirty clothes, and changed into the spare folklore bureau uniform.

The black fabric is thick and heavy, giving a strange sense of weight when worn.