Tianjin, starting with unorthodox methods to achieve immortality

"Brother! You still have the mind to watch?" the fat man cried, kicking his legs in frustration. "It's about to pull my pants down!"

Before the words were finished, the first corpse, covered in medicine, suddenly exerted its strength.

With a ripping sound.

The fat man's trouser leg was torn in half, revealing a section of his white calf.

He screamed and clung even tighter to the doorpost: "Brother! Dear brother! You saved me this time, so I'll give you the Ghost Banner! It cost thirty thousand silver dollars, brand new, and this is the first time I'm using it!"

"I didn't force you to do this."

Chen Mo's lips curled slightly, and he pointed his right hand into the depths of the alley.

Two paper figures emerged from behind him, gliding silently along the wall and disappearing into the darkness around the corner in the blink of an eye.

Dealing with these corpse-controlling entities is much easier than simply killing their owners, rather than getting entangled with these drug-infused corpses.

Seeing that he not only didn't come to help but also sent the paper figures away, the fat man almost burst into tears: "Brother! What are you doing! They're scratching me again!"

"You're not going to die, stop howling!"

Chen Mo scratched his ear; the fat man's voice was really grating.

The old dog, who had been hiding in the shadows, then realized something was wrong. The three medicine-laced corpses suddenly stopped attacking the two and turned to chase after them into the alley.

Before they had taken more than a few steps, a muffled groan came from deep within.

Immediately following was the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground.

The three corpses, covered in medicine, stopped moving abruptly and fell straight forward.

The snotty-nosed fat man leaned against the doorpost, staring in disbelief: "This? This is...!"

Chen Mo sheathed his sword and walked inside.

Around the corner, a emaciated corpse lay on the ground; it was the old man called Old Dog.

He was still clutching the bone whistle in his hand, but there was a gash in his throat, and blood was flowing all over the ground.

Two paper figures stood beside the corpse, one pointing a knife at his heart, and the other squatting beside his head, its face painted with rouge facing his unseeing eyes.

Chen Mo waved his hand, and the two paper figures put away their knives and silently retreated into the shadows at the base of the wall.

The fat man finally slid down from the doorpost and shuffled over, holding onto the wall.

Upon seeing the old dog's corpse, he swallowed hard. Then, seeing the two paper figures disappear into the shadows, he couldn't help but shrink back.

"Brother, your paper figure... is even more sinister than that old Hou's shadow puppet."

Chen Mo didn't answer, but squatted down and examined the old dog's corpse.

Besides the bone whistle, there were only a few dozen silver dollars and a palm-sized bronze bell with a clapper made of bone, covered with densely engraved runes.

"The paper figure moved too quickly; otherwise, we should have interrogated it about the formation."

He sighed inwardly at the pity, stuffed the things into his pocket, and then stood up to look at the fat man.

The fat man was standing three zhang away, his hands gripping the Yin Soul Banner tightly, his expression extremely conflicted.

I wanted to turn around and run away, but I was afraid that if I ran too slowly, I would be blocked by the paper figures.

Chen Mo looked at him without saying a word.

The fat man felt uneasy under his gaze and chuckled dryly, "B-Big Brother, your move just now was really impressive, killing that old dog with just two paper figures...hehe..."

"Fanner." Chen Mo stretched out his hand.

The fat man's face twitched, and he subconsciously hid the Ghost Banner in his clothes: "Big brother, you, you listen to me, this thing has a problem—"

"What's wrong?"

"Well..." the fat man's eyes darted around, "it only works if it's paired with a unique manipulation technique! Yes, a manipulation technique! Just having a banner won't do; you need to be able to control the souls inside!"

As he spoke, he pulled a thin booklet from his pocket. The cover had the words "Secret Essentials of the Yin Soul Banner" written on it, and the edges were curled.

"This method is a complete set from them, the original! You see, this banner and the method are a set, neither can be missing—"

Chen Mo looked at him but didn't reply.

The fat man broke out in a sweat from his gaze, and handed the booklet and banner forward together: "B-Big Brother, please take it, it's all for you! I, Fatty Hu, keep my word, I'll give it to you when I say I'll give it!"

"Alright, you can leave now. You dare to come to the Ghost Market with such weak skills."

He took it expressionlessly and casually stuffed it into his breast pocket.

The fat man paused, automatically ignoring the next question, "Go? Where to?"

"Go wherever you want." Chen Mo turned and walked to the other end of the alley. "Don't follow me anymore."

The fat man stood there, watching his back, then tiptoed back two steps. Seeing that Chen Mo didn't turn around, he turned and ran.

After running a dozen steps, he suddenly remembered something, stopped, took out a few silver dollars from his pocket, placed them against the wall, and shouted in Chen Mo's direction, "Brother! Take these silver dollars and have some tea! I, Fatty Hu, am not an ungrateful person!"

After shouting, he turned and disappeared into a side alley without looking back, his round figure vanishing into the darkness in the blink of an eye.

The silver dollars gleamed in the moonlight, lying quietly at the base of the wall.

Chen Mo stopped and looked back, his lips twitching slightly.

That guy was quick on his feet.

He walked over, bent down, picked up the few silver dollars, weighed them in his hand, and then put them in his pocket.

Just as I straightened up, I heard the fat man's voice coming from afar, faintly heard across several alleys.

"Brother! Come to Dongsi Archway another day, and I'll treat you to drinks! I, Fatty Hu, keep my word... I really do!"

Chen Mo couldn't help but laugh.

This fat guy is interesting.

However, he is not going to use this face anymore after tonight.

Thirty thousand silver dollars plus a set of magic techniques, in exchange for a life.

Whether it's worth it or not, only the fat man knows.

The moonlight returned to a pale red, and a gentle breeze swept through the alley, dispelling the lingering stench of blood.

After searching the alleyway and finding nothing unusual, Chen Mo finally approached Old Hou.

"Hand over that Shadow Puppet Technique yourself, or wait until I kill you and steal your soul!"

Old Hou was still lying there, the bleeding from his severed arm had stopped, and his face was as white as a sheet.

Chen Mo squatted down and looked at him calmly. If possible, he still hoped to obtain the secret manual from this person's corpse.

Otherwise, it's uncertain whether the Moon Essence Treasure Mirror would recognize the method obtained through soul-capturing.

"You want Shadow Puppetry?"

Old Hou paused for a moment, then laughed, his eyes filled with resentment and a hint of barely concealed fear. "Boy, do you even know what kind of family the Hou family is?"

Chen Mo didn't speak, he just looked at him.

Old Hou continued, "Have you heard of the seven surnames and thirteen families of Yinmen in Jinshi? Our Hou family is sixth. Do you think you can live a peaceful life just by learning my skills?"

He gasped for breath, the pain from his severed arm causing cold sweat to pour down his forehead, but he wouldn't stop talking: "Let me tell you, this Shadow Puppet Technique is a closely guarded secret of the Hou family, and every skill has a mark. Once someone recognizes it, the Hou family will come knocking on our door within three months."

"Not only will you die, but your whole family, your relatives, and everyone you know will be buried with you."

Chen Mo remained silent, simply looking at him.

Old Hou felt uneasy under his gaze, but he still forced himself to finish his sentence: "If you let me go today, we'll pretend this never happened."

"I, Old Hou, swear to God I will never utter a single word about this. If you don't believe me, I'll write a blood oath right now..."

"Are you done talking?"

Chen Mo stood up, the moonlight shining on his face, making it impossible to discern his expression.