The male supporting character was actually myself.

Fate and karma are truly wondrous.

"Brother, you're too generous. I really don't know how to repay your kindness."

"As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. What's more, I currently have the marks of suppression that I haven't been able to remove, so I can't go to the human world. There really is something there that I need your help with."

"If there's anything you haven't finished with, just let us know. We at Lingyin Pavilion will do everything we can to help!"

Jiang Chen pondered for a moment and sighed, "My real name is Murong Jiang Chen, and I live in Jinshuiwan Community, Dujiang City..."

Before he could finish speaking, Duan Tang looked at him with a look of horror, "You, you... No wonder I always felt that you looked familiar and that I had seen you somewhere before. Now that you mention it, I suddenly remembered."

"Isn't Murong Jiangchen the one who married Jiang Yulu, the only daughter of the richest man...? I even saw your wedding photos on the news! How could...how could you die so soon? Is it some kind of feud between wealthy families?!"

“That’s not me.” Jiang Chen spread his hands helplessly and said, “I am Murong Jiang Chen, who inherited the family business and won the opportunity to discuss a cooperation project with Jiang Yulu. Before I met Jiang Yulu, I was killed by my twin brother Murong Liangchen. We look almost exactly the same and it is difficult for outsiders to tell us apart.”

He killed me, took my identity, met Jiang Yulu, secured the cooperation, and then pursued her relentlessly, ultimately winning her heart.

"Twins? The real and fake Murong Jiangchen!"

"Holy crap, this is just like a story from a TV drama."

"No, no, no, I still don't understand. Murong Liangchen killed you and pretended to be Murong Jiangchen, then Murong Liangchen just disappeared like that, didn't anyone suspect anything?"

"Even if someone looks exactly the same, it's impossible for another person to completely replace you, right? There will always be some differences in habits, right? Besides, I remember your family has so many large and successful businesses; how could he possibly manage them all?"

"My God, the older brother killed the younger brother and took his place, and you just died so quietly that no one noticed? That's outrageous!"

"Humans are indeed more terrifying than ghosts..."

…………

Chapter Nine That's Not Me

"Host, do you really believe that guy?" the fluffy little dumpling whispered in his ear. "He's full of lies, honey. What if he takes the benefits and then turns on you and tries to kill those exorcists?"

Jiang Chenpiao replied with a smile as he walked down the street, "To have risen to the position of Ghost King in the complex underworld, he couldn't possibly be so petty. Besides, the script team gave the protagonist and the original owner a prestigious surname just to create a sense of sophistication."

Murong... This surname is nothing special in the human realm of the mission world, but if we go back a few hundred years, it was a place where many talented people emerged.

With such a prestigious surname and such lavish spending, even a mere ghost king or a manager in the underworld would have to wonder if it's related to a powerful family.

In the human world, our deceased ancestors are at most something to show off, but in the underworld, those ancestors are the source of our confidence!

Who wouldn't want to preserve their bloodline and descendants?

Moreover, the larger the family's power, the more it needs useful fresh blood to join in order to maintain its prosperity. The stakes involved are not much different from those in the human world.

From any perspective, the Ghost King will accept my plan.

He got a fifth-grade inner core and a generous friend for free; why would he kill the goose that lays the golden eggs when there's something to gain?

The fluffy little thing scratched its ear with its hind paw and asked curiously, "Then, was the original owner really a direct descendant of a great family?"

"There shouldn't be any connection." Jiang Chen thought carefully for a moment and shook his head, saying, "In the original owner's memories, there wasn't even a family genealogy."

The scriptwriting team probably just thought compound surnames sounded prestigious and randomly placed them; they have absolutely no connection to the historical figures in the mission world from the original owner's memories.

"What a pity, it would have been even more fun if we had some connection. Maybe we'd even see that classic fantasy novel trope—'Don't underestimate a young man's potential, even if he's just a minor, insignificant relative.' Since there's nothing crucial, we'll just..."

Before the little white cat could finish speaking, it heard a deep, melodious horn sound from the sky. Startled, it looked around warily but saw nothing.

The Ghost King (who was no good) had just wreaked havoc on the ghosts who had hidden away and then reappeared, and they fled in haste once again.

Jiang Chen followed several ghosts into a nearby restaurant. The owner hurriedly instructed the waiters to close all the doors and windows. The ghosts who had hidden inside stood motionless in the corner, their necks hunched over.

"Excuse me..." He was really curious and wanted to ask the restaurant owner next to him, but the other party quickly made a shushing gesture and replied in a very low whisper, "Are you new here? This is the underworld official passing by, and all the ghosts have to avoid him. Don't talk, it will be fine in a while."

The fluffy dumpling pouted and said unhappily, "You're quite the official. Host, I'm going to go and see what the underworld official is like. I'll come back to the villa to find you later."

It hopped out of the restaurant only to find that the bustling street had been cleared out almost instantly, with all the shops and windows closed and the street completely empty, not a soul in sight.

The bugle call grew closer and closer, and the little ball of fluff aimed in the direction and then hopped over to find it.

The underworld official came and went in a hurry, and soon there was no sound. The restaurant owner skillfully directed his staff to open the doors and windows, and took the opportunity to introduce the ghost food sold in his restaurant to the ghosts who had come in to hide.

Jiang Chen glanced at it and, sure enough, the highest grade of ghost food was Grade One. Ninety percent of the ghost food was ungraded. The price varied slightly depending on the taste, but it was still a relatively expensive consumer product for ordinary ghosts.

No wonder most ghosts can't become ghost cultivators. Based on what I know about the average income and consumption level of ghosts, they can only afford to eat once every few days to maintain their energy. As for eating more to cause their energy to overflow, that would be very difficult.

The marks on the original owner's body, which were suppressed by the Heavenly Master of Tingfeng Valley, could only be removed with the help of the underworld steward. After buying some ghost food, the enthusiastic restaurant owner gave him a lesson on the common knowledge of the underworld.

There are many officials in the underworld, such as the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak, the Emperor of the Underworld, the Five Ghost Emperors, the Five Paths Generals, the Ten Kings of Hell, and the Seventy-Two Departments. However, they are all officials in the headquarters of the underworld. They are busy with official duties and rarely come down to tour. The Dujiang City underworld branch is just an insignificant place in the entire underworld. Therefore, there is only one manager in charge of all the affairs in it. He is the boss of the Dujiang underworld.

The position of steward is neither too big nor too small, after all, the local official is more powerful than the county magistrate.

How to successfully make contact with this underworld official within a few days, get his help to remove the mark, and obtain a special pass to the human world is a major problem that Jiang Chen urgently needs to solve.

"Brother, you're back!" Duan Tang heard the knocking and hurriedly opened the door. When he saw it was him, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Harboring someone hunted by the Ghost King is a grave sin in the underworld, and they were genuinely worried that it would implicate that person.

"I went to the Ghost King's mansion." Jiang Chen said as soon as he entered the house, "We talked and now you are safe. Later, the Ghost King will personally assist you in safely sending you out of the gate between the Yin and Yang realms."

Several Celestial Masters: (⊙o⊙)

Huh? What did you say?

You took care of the Ghost King in such a short time?!

The group exchanged bewildered glances. Duan Tang scratched his head, looking completely confused, and tentatively asked, "The Ghost King isn't angry anymore? He didn't make things difficult for you, did he?"

"Who could refuse a fifth-grade evil spirit inner core? Don't worry, I've already convinced all three parties to cooperate." Jiang Chen briefly recounted the events to dispel their doubts.

"Hiss... A fifth-grade evil spirit inner core!" Duan Tang gasped, thinking to himself that he had thought of him as just an ordinary ghost and had only offered a small favor to make a good connection. He never expected to end up with such a powerful figure!

Fate and karma are truly wondrous.

"Brother, you're too generous. I really don't know how to repay your kindness."

"As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. What's more, I currently have the marks of suppression that I haven't been able to remove, so I can't go to the human world. There really is something there that I need your help with."

"If there's anything you haven't finished with, just let us know. We at Lingyin Pavilion will do everything we can to help!"

Jiang Chen pondered for a moment and sighed, "My real name is Murong Jiang Chen, and I live in Jinshuiwan Community, Dujiang City..."

Before he could finish speaking, Duan Tang looked at him with a look of horror, "You, you... No wonder I always felt that you looked familiar and that I had seen you somewhere before. Now that you mention it, I suddenly remembered."

"Isn't Murong Jiangchen the one who married Jiang Yulu, the only daughter of the richest man...? I even saw your wedding photos on the news! How could...how could you die so soon? Is it some kind of feud between wealthy families?!"

“That’s not me.” Jiang Chen spread his hands helplessly and said, “I am Murong Jiang Chen, who inherited the family business and won the opportunity to discuss a cooperation project with Jiang Yulu. Before I met Jiang Yulu, I was killed by my twin brother Murong Liangchen. We look almost exactly the same and it is difficult for outsiders to tell us apart.”

He killed me, took my identity, met Jiang Yulu, secured the cooperation, and then pursued her relentlessly, ultimately winning her heart.

"Twins? The real and fake Murong Jiangchen!"

"Holy crap, this is just like a story from a TV drama."

"No, no, no, I still don't understand. Murong Liangchen killed you and pretended to be Murong Jiangchen, then Murong Liangchen just disappeared like that, didn't anyone suspect anything?"

"Even if someone looks exactly the same, it's impossible for another person to completely replace you, right? There will always be some differences in habits, right? Besides, I remember your family has so many large and successful businesses; how could he possibly manage them all?"

"My God, the older brother killed the younger brother and took his place, and you just died so quietly that no one noticed? That's outrageous!"

"Humans are indeed more terrifying than ghosts..."

…………

Chapter Ten: The Little Rascal is Troublesome

Faced with numerous questions, Jiang Chen sighed and explained, "When we were born, our parents were in the process of starting a business. The family didn't have much money and they were very busy. They had limited energy and money and simply couldn't take care of two children."

After weighing the pros and cons, they sent the stronger older brother to their maternal grandmother's house in the countryside to be raised.

I stayed with them and was taken care of by the nanny.

It wasn't until my grandmother passed away when I was twenty that I learned I had a forgotten older brother. My parents were busy and we had never met and had little affection for each other, so I felt sorry for him and took the initiative to bring him to live in the city.

But his parents were very dissatisfied with him, as they felt ashamed and refused to openly acknowledge his existence.

Not long after, my parents died in a car accident, and according to their will, I was left to inherit the family fortune alone. I suggested giving him half, but he refused, claiming he didn't know how to manage it and refused to continue being a nobody.

But sometimes he would ask about things in the company. I didn't think much of it and assumed he wanted to learn before taking over, so I taught him everything I knew.

I never imagined he'd been secretly planning to replace me all along, so... he must have been absolutely certain that he could mimic my every word and action so perfectly that it wouldn't arouse suspicion that day."

"Then you've basically... let a wolf into the house." Duan Tang slapped his thigh and said regretfully, "What a waste of such a good person like you!"

"No wonder he was so unwilling to fall into evil. Who wouldn't be angry if they encountered such an ingrate?"

"Brother, tell us, how can we help you?"

Jiang Chen glanced at them, all of whom bore some injuries, and said with slight concern, "I convinced the Ghost King to help you leave the Underworld smoothly, but you have plenty of trouble in the Human Realm yourself. What do you plan to do after you return?"

"It's true that our Listening Pavilion is a small sect, but we are not to be slaughtered at will." Duan Tang and his fellow disciples exchanged glances and said firmly, "As long as we can successfully step out of the gate between the Yin and Yang realms, we will immediately split into two groups and act separately."

Unlike other scattered spirit mediums, Lingyin Pavilion has registered its business in the underworld and has already made its way through the open world.

Furthermore, given that we have encountered such a perverse and evil act of devouring ghosts, we should naturally report it to the City God of Dujiang and ask him to thoroughly investigate the matter. I don't know how things are going with Senior Brother Wang, but I will return to Lingyin Pavilion and lead people to the client's home to search for him.

"Brother, don't worry about us. The upper realm is completely different from the underworld. There are day-roaming gods, night-roaming gods, and city gods who govern matters related to ghosts and manage them strictly. I doubt they would dare to do anything too outrageous."

Since they've said that, sending the little white cat over shouldn't be a problem.

Jiang Chen nodded and said, "In that case, I will give a brief overview of my plan first, and I will ask for your cooperation later."

Several people gathered together and listened attentively as he explained the layout he had prepared.

After a moment, the two checked some details. Duan Tang reminded him that there were Wangxiangtai in both the wilderness and the ghost market. Except for the annual Qingming Festival and Spring Festival when people could go up Wangxiangtai for free to see their relatives, it would cost ten Yin Si coins each time they wanted to go.

He can see the real-time situation in the human world simply by standing on the Viewing Platform.

At that time, the two sides will be able to communicate using only talismans, without needing to travel back and forth to deliver information.

"Then I need to discuss with Wangxiangtai whether there's a monthly subscription service. Anyway, as long as the energy is sufficient, the ghost doesn't need to eat or sleep. Keeping an eye on his every move will help adjust our strategic plans." Jiang Chen checked the time and gave a few more instructions before leading them to the Ghost King's Mansion.

The other party indeed treated them warmly, and Duan Tang and his group sincerely apologized again and promised to investigate the matter thoroughly.

Xiao Su's injuries were not light. Staying in the ghost market with its strong yin energy for a long time could easily damage his foundation. After everyone talked things out, they did not waste any more time. The Ghost King personally escorted them. The group of people and ghosts set off and first went out of the gate of the Dujiang Yin Realm branch. After flying over the wilderness for a long time, they finally saw a towering, majestic, and ancient gate standing between heaven and earth.

"That is the gate between the Yin and Yang realms, which is usually guarded by ghost messengers to prevent ghosts from escaping and harming the human world."

However, since the reforms in the underworld, all ghosts have been categorized and managed. Those poor ghosts in the wilderness, who rarely get a full meal and whose energy is increasingly depleted, naturally cannot easily step out of this gate.

Sitting on a palanquin carried by a dozen little ghosts, the Ghost King pointed to the gate between the Yin and Yang realms and said, "If the Celestial Masters' guesses are correct, that gate may already be temporarily closed and under strict guard. Let's go over and see what's going on."