Cataclysm Chapter 57: Evil Elevator 4; Evil Spirit

Chapter 57: Evil Elevator 4; Evil Spirit

Translated by Kirio of Exiled Rebels Scanlations 

Editor: Karai

 

“We are a high-end apartment complex. Standard two or three bedroom suite, close to two subway lines and surrounded by business districts. The rent is at least 10,000yuan (approx 1,543 USD) a month,” the property owner boasted, “so most of those who rent here are senior white-collar workers, at least at managerial level.”

Chen Yang turned around to look at him, “I remember senior white-collar workers’ salaries are between 10,000 to 20,000 yuan. If the monthly rent is already 10,000 yuan, doesn’t that mean they’re all spent just on rent?”

The owner was caught off guard, “Some people share the rent…there are two or three bedroom suites after all? Monthly rent is only 4,000 to 5,000 yuan per month. This rent is already considered really good in the city.”

Chen Yang chuckled as he pushed the elevator button, “The person who was attacked by the resentful spirit is also a senior white-collar worker?”

“Of course.”

“She lives alone?”

“Occasionally.” Chen Yang looked at the owner suspiciously. The elevator reached their floor at the same time and the doors opened. Chen Yang held the elevator for the owner, to let him get on first. The owner looked at Chen Yang hesitantly before saying, “You get on first.”

The owner suspected that Chen Yang was just an amateur and worried if the doors would close on him if he got on and would be trapped. Hence the owner asked Chen Yang to get on first, and the latter obliged, “Isn’t it the other elevator that has the resentful spirits? Why are you afraid of this one?” The said elevator was temporarily sealed off from the residents

“Just to be safe. What if it comes over this elevator to harm me?”

“A clear conscience makes a soft pillow ¹.”

The owner let out a scornful snort, “This saying may be able to fool others, not me. If a bad person wanted to harm someone, would he be picky in choosing the target? Ghosts were human first, they are the same.”

“You sure are insightful.” Chen Yang said. He did not expect that the seemingly mediocre owner to be so perceptive, “But those who harm others without any reason are mentally ill psychos, and they aren’t that many of those everywhere. Karma exists for ghosts and spirits too, just like for humans. For every effect there is a definite cause. But of course, it is also true that there are people out there who are causing harm for no reason at all.”

The owner’s perception of him changed for the better after he heard him say those things. At first, because of Chen Yang’s youthful appearance, he was being condescending. But now, he seemed to have realized that this young man was indeed talented. He had also heard that the value of a Tianshi was not measured using their age or seniority but their talent.

The owner readjusted his attitude to a friendlier manner and told him everything he knew about the incidents, “The rent here is indeed very high and it is also not something a senior white-collar worker can easily afford. So tenants usually co-rent, or rent in couples. There is also another method, in the name of renting as a couple. The office worker that was attacked, she rents the place using this method.”

“Can you tell me more?” Chen Yang asked as the elevator door opened, he held the doors once again for the owner, letting him get off first before following behind him. They were standing in the corridor of the eleventh floor. Each floor had five units.

“If you don’t have money to buy a unit nor afford to pay the rent, expenses are high too, so you find a lover. That office worker that was attacked, she has a lover. He pays the rent for her and comes over to stay occasionally.”

Lover here was a sugar daddy.

“Oh, I see.”

As they were talking, a young mother walked past them. She took out her keycard from her bag and swiped to open the door. When the door opened, a little girl ran over and pounced on her mother, shouting “Mama!”

The young mother smiled and picked her up. As she was about to close the door, she saw the owner, so she put the little girl down and said ‘hello’ to him and exchanged a few words. The owner bent down and talked to the little girl, who was timidly hiding behind the mother. She grabbed hold of her mother’s skirt hem.

The little girl blinked a few times as if confused. The young mother had her hand on the handle as she bidded goodbye with a smile. As the door was about to close, they heard the little girl ask her mother, “Mama, who is that person following you in?”

Click.

The door gently closed, forming a partition in between the space inside and the corridor. Chen Yang and the owner, who were both about to leave, turned around abruptly. Fear was written all over the owner’s face, “Did you hear what the little girl said?”

Chen Yang leaped past the owner and hurriedly knocked on the door. Silent. No reaction from the other side of the door, so he turned and asked the owner, “Is there a backup card or key?”

The owner shook his head in panic, “They’re all downstairs, I don’t have it on me.” Then he rapped hard on the unit’s door, shouting at the young mother and daughter pair. There was no response.

Chen Yang pulled the owner behind him, took out a wire from his backpack and started picking the locked door. Since Qiu Shengming had taught him how to pick a lock, he always made sure he had wire with him in case of any emergencies. When the owner finally snapped back to his senses, he realized he was facing away from the door. His gaze turned back to look at Chen Yang in surprise, ‘What’s with that strength?’

Click.

The door was unlocked.Chen Yang’s hand was on the handle and as he was about to open the door, the young mother swung the door open before he did and asked them curiously, “What’s the matter?”

Chen Yang did not budge and just looked at the young mother. She was calm but in her eyes there was doubt and displeasure. The owner looked at the woman from top to toe, with eyes wide open, “Are you okay?”

“What could possibly happen to me?”

“Just now, I heard your daughter say…” The owner hesitated and glanced at Chen Yang, then changed his question, “Is your husband back? I would like to discuss with him about the security facilities of the apartment. I need to ask him to consult his opinion.”

“He’s not back home yet, he’s out on a business trip.” Her facial expression softened a little as she said, “If you need to consult anyone’s opinion, you can ask me too. But I’m a little tired today and I have to help my daughter with her homework later. So, can we talk about it tomorrow instead?”

The little girl looked at them timidly from behind her mother, her hands were clasped together and her shoulders hunched. When she met Chen Yang’s gentle and calm eyes, it seemed like she mustered her courage to say something. The young mother suddenly turned to her and said gently, “Wen Wen, hurry back in to finish your homework.”

The little girl’s head dropped and she returned to her room. Chen Yang peeked into the house and asked, “Why aren’t the lights in the room turned on?”

“I haven’t gotten to it.”The young mother replied tactfully, “Is there anything else that I can help you with?”

Chen Yang shook his head, “No.” He took a step back and the young mother smiled at them before closing the door again.

The owner’s face was all tense. He nodded at the door as he said, “The whole apartment knows that she’s a single mother.” He furrowed his brows and continued, “These two are quite pitiful, the young mother is now a kept mistress. They only have each other to depend on. Not long ago, the little girl witnessed a car accident and it shocked her so much that she’s now slightly autistic.”

“I see, that can only mean not enough preparation was done,” Chen Yang shook his head, “too hasty, but there should have been enough time to disguise themselves. Or maybe they’re new to this and not familiar with the rules.”

Confusion sprawled all over the owner’s face, “Huh?”

Chen Yang fished out a five thunder talisman from his backpack, waited quietly after three knocks on the door. After a while, the young mother opened the door. Under the light, he could see that she looked paler and there was worry in her eyes. She asked, “Is there anything else?”

Chen Yang raised his hand and placed it on the young mother’s shoulder. He guided her aside as he walked in. As he entered the house, he said, “You’re not needed here.” The lights in the house were opened, lighting up the entire area.

The young mother got anxious and wanted to kick him out of the house but was stopped by the owner. He got a good look at the mother and after careful observation he asked nervously, “A-are…you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

“It wasn’t you who opened the door just now.” The young mother showed a shocked expression and the owner continued, “I asked that thing that pretended to be you about your husband, it said that your husband was out on a business trip.”

The young mother’s lips pressed into a straight line as she remained silent. When she saw Chen Yang heading towards her daughter who was sitting at the table, she panicked, “Don’t you dare! Don’t hurt my daughter!”

Chen Yang sat across from the little girl and hid the five thunder talisman in his palm. He calmly looked at the little girl and said, “Even if you wanted to look for a substitute, you shouldn’t use a little girl’s body.”

The little girl was humming while drawing, totally ignoring Chen Yang. Chen Yang did not get angry but instead looked at her painting; the lines were messy and colours dark. It was very uncomfortable to look at.

“They didn’t do anything to you. If you want to find some innocent person to be your substitute and are able to avoid getting caught by the hell servitors or Tianshis, then that’s luck on your side. But since it was me who found you and you even dared to use a little child as your substitute, that I cannot ignore. You are an old spirit and you want to use a young child’s body? Aren’t you afraid of being chased down and devoured by other evil spirits?”

A child’s soul and physical body tend to not fully bind yet, so they were more vulnerable to possession. But to take over a child’s physical body, those were usually done by shameless old spirits. It was easy because they were young, but how could a young child’s body house an old spirit? The difference between an adult and a child, one could easily tell just by their appearance.

Before an old spirit could adapt to the body of a young child, it would possibly first be torn into pieces and eaten clean by evil spirits after catching wind of this matter.

At that moment, the little girl suddenly threw the crayon that was in her hand violently. The crayon made a clear sound as it hit the table and spun to a halt. The young mother and the owner were frightened by the bizarre atmosphere, while Chen Yang was very calm from the very beginning.

The little girl spoke, “Did not do anything to me? You’ve got to be kidding me. If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t have died. It was because this girl was playing with a ball. It ended up hitting me on the head when she threw it. It caused me to slip and fall onto the road. How did I die after getting run over by a truck? It ran over my upper body! It was all because of her!!”

The little girl pointed violently at the mother, startling her, “She! As a mother, instead of watching her child, she was chatting away with the person beside her. If she had paid attention to her own child, she would have noticed that her child was being bullied by the boys. Because the boys tried to snatch the ball away from her, she threw it away in a fit of rage. They were all left unscathed but I was the only one who’s unlucky, right? I deserved to be hit by the ball, to be run over by that truck and die so miserably! I will not let them go! I will not let this go! It is all their fault, they are responsible for my death!”

Chen Yang knocked on the table, “Take it easy. Let me ask you, what were you doing when the ball hit you?”

The little girl’s expression turned dark, “You’re on their side, aren’t you? You stinking Taoist priest! You call yourself a tianshi but don’t you know that the dead will come back for revenge on the first seven days?”

“I know. But you have to tell me, what were you doing when the ball hit you? I bet you were looking at your phone.”

The expression on the little girl’s face turned really ugly, but didn’t refute what Chen Yang said. It was obvious he guessed correctly. Chen Yang said, “It is undeniable that your death has something to do with this little child, but it is not her responsibility. This child, her mother, the group of boys who bullied her, the driver who ran over you and you, who was so focused on your phone that you did not pay attention to the road, are all responsible for your death. Or you can call it an accident too. You want to pin your accidental death on them, but they don’t have to pay for your death with their lives.”

“Are you speaking on behalf of them?” The little girl was dead set that Chen Yang was on the mother and daughter’s side, “If it wasn’t because of them, would this accident even happen?”

The evil spirit blamed the mother-daughter duo, the group of boys and the driver for her tragic death. It was by coincidence that the young mother passed by the scene of his death today that she became the spirit’s first revenge target. Or else the spirit would have sought revenge on the group of boys or the driver first. In the end, the person she hated the most was the little girl, as she thought that the ball that hit her in the head and caused her to fall was the most fundamental cause of her death.

“You insist on taking revenge?” Chen Yang asked.

“If it were you, wouldn’t you want revenge for such an unjust death?” The little girl threw away the crayon and picked up a pencil. She turned the tip of the pencil facing her own eyes and imitated a stabbing action. The young mother cried loudly, stopping the poking action. The little girl let out a loud laugh. The young mother apologized and begged that she would leave her daughter alone, saying that she should target her instead if he wanted revenge.

“Of course I’ll go for you too. You’re at fault too, and you deserve to die—”

Chen Yang’s brows furrowed, “Obstinate!” Cutting her off, he lifted his arm and pointed his palm, with a hidden Five Thunder Spirit talisman, facing the little girl. With a swift movement, his palm landed on the top of the little girl’s head. The spirit was smacked out of the girl’s body, Chen Yang quickly caught hold of her and handed her over to the young mother. Then, he immediately forced the talisman into the spirit’s body, took off the red string tied around his wrist to bind it into the dice.

He tossed the dice in his palm a few times, “I wanted to give you a chance, but who knew you are so blinded by anger that you aren’t able to distinguish right from wrong. Though, seeing that you indeed died in vain, two weeks later when the gates of hell open, I’ll send you to the Taoist Puja to atone to your XXXXXXXXXXXX so that you can reincarnate earlier. It’s a large-scale puja held annually to pardon sinners. The Heavenly Medical Department specializes in treating spirits of wrongful or unnatural deaths like yours.”

The so-called Heavenly Medical Department was also known as the Shangqing (1st) Medical Doctor, they also specialize in aiding those that died with grievance. Due to the great fear before their deaths, these spirits’ souls are scattered and that makes it hard for them to reincarnate. Over a period of time, they start getting delusional and stained with killing intent. Therefore, large-scale Taoist Pujas will invite the Shangqing (1st) Medical Doctors from the Heavenly Medical Department to help these spirits. Like the saying goes, ‘Ten Paths, Nine Doctors’, they travel the world, to practice medicine and save lives, of the living and the dead.

Chen Yang turned around and looked at the girl who had just woken up and saw that she was hugging her mother. Her hands were wrapped around the young mother’s neck. She looked towards Chen Yang and watched him with her big round eyes. When she caught Chen Yang looking at her, instead of feeling afraid, she revealed a wide smile and called out loudly, “Ge ge!”

“Good girl.” Chen Yang took out one ghost exorcizing and one calming talisman and gave it to the young mother, “Put these in a small bottle and let her carry it on her for a month or two. This evil spirit is not that bad, it didn’t harm the child at least. Though it was an accident, you two are somewhat connected to its death. So when the Gates of Hell open, you guys can fast on behalf of this spirit and let it reincarnate earlier.”

The young mother took the two talismans and gratefully acknowledged his advice.

The truth behind the entire incident was that the little girl was playing the ball in the sandbox by herself, while her mother was chattering away, not noticing the group of little boys trying to snatch the little girl’s ball. The little girl threw the ball away and it hit the passer-by near the road of the greenbelt area. The strength of the little girl wasn’t enough to actually cause anyone harm, but unfortunately, the passerby was too immersed in the game on their phone and that shock blew up that person’s reaction. Because of that, that person lost their footing and fell down on the asphalt, and a truck was speeding in the direction.

The little girl, who ran after her ball, saw the gruesome scene, turning her already-introverted personality into autistic.

The evil spirit indeed died a wrongful death but there were too many factors to its death. It wasn’t right to blame it on anyone, it was an unfortunate accident.

The mother and daughter duo walked Chen Yang and the owner to the door, while continuously thanking them. The little girl left her mother’s embrace and shyly hugged Chen Yang, her soft voice saying, “Ge ge, thank you.”

Chen Yang smiled and hugged the little girl back, “You’re welcome.” After parting, the young mother guided the little girl back into the house, thanking them again before closing their door.

The owner was slightly surprised, “That’s it?” He circled around Chen Yang, “No exorcism ceremony, no peach wood sword², copper coin sword³ or any spells? And the spirit possessing the little girl was exorcized and caught? What dice are these?”

Chen Yang walked ahead, while saying. “Every Tianshi has their own methods of exorcizing. This dice is a magic weapon,” he paused in his tracks, “Is this the unit of the tenant who got attacked?”

“Yes.” The owner quickly whipped out the card key and tapped on the card slot. He opened the door and let Chen Yang in first, his attitude much more respectful. When he saw what Chen Yang was capable of, he knew instantly he had underestimated this person.

Chen Yang entered the office lady’s unit. Before they arrived, they had already gotten permission from her to enter her place. Chen Yang walked around the room and got out, “Done, let’s go.”

“Huh? O-okay…” The owner was confused, but obediently closed the door. Chen Yang asked, “Has this place been renovated?”

“No, this apartment is only two years old, everything is new and needs no refurbishing. What’s wrong?”

Chen Yang smiled, “Nah, it’s nothing. But I heard that there was once a white-collar worker, also from the 11th floor, who died after falling from the elevator shaft. Is that true?”

“It’s true.” The owner wasn’t afraid to tell Chen Yang the truth since he was a Tianshi and he must have done his research before. But since Chen Yang was not a tenant here, the owner added, “It is indeed a very strange incident. It was dead of the night, no one was sure what even happened then and somebody just died. After checking the surveillance of that night, only did they realize that the deceased came home around 1 and the elevator got to the eleventh floor. She was looking at her feet when she walked out of the elevator and just stopped at about… this distance away.” 

The owner gestured with his hands an approximate distance of 20 to 30 meters, “It wasn’t as if she could not move, her entire body was moving, but it was as if she was stuck in the same spot, it was really strange. Then she raised her arm and slapped it forward, as if she was slapping an invisible metal gate, shouting for help. Soon after, she slowed down and stopped smacking, gradually becoming weaker. At 1.30AM, the elevator doors opened suddenly, the deceased was still alive then but she lost control of her body that was falling backwards into the shaft before landing on the cabin that had stopped at the fourth floor. She broke into pieces, one of her feet even snapped behind her.”

The owner looked around before saying in a hushed voice, “I bet it’s the doing of the evil spirits. You see, why would she suddenly just stop there, unmoving in the middle of the night?. And that elevator, why would the doors open when the cabin was still on the fourth floor? Who opened the doors? And the deceased’s stiff body just fell back like that? After the cops saw the surveillance cameras, they thought this case was too eerie. It could’ve been a simple machinery malfunction but how do you explain the weird behavior of the deceased? It makes no sense. It must have been the dirty things that she attracted from elsewhere. She must have provoked them and they came for her life.”

“I see.” Chen Yang sent a text message to Zhang Qiudao, asking him to head over to the hospital at 1AM, along with the victim’s ward number. He placed his phone back into his pocket and said towards the owner, “Since the incident happened at 1AM, we will revisit the elevator at the same time.”

“Huh? We’re using the elevator? W-which elevator?

 “The one where the incident occurred.” Chen Yang suddenly remembered something, “Have you heard of the trapped elevator case?”

“Yeah…” The owner was still contemplating if going into the elevator at night was a good idea, so he absentmindedly replied, “It’s an older apartment not far from this one. Now the facilities are just so-so, but back then, their facilities were already considered high-end. Their elevators were the private ones. A woman accidentally got to the wrong floor and got stuck. Coincidentally, the owner of the unit installed a security gate, right in front of the elevator, leaving about only a 30 cm gap between the gate and elevator door. It was impossible to even turn around, she couldn’t even reach to press the elevator button and starved to death.

“After such an eerie accident at the apartment, a lot of people started doubting the use of these private elevators. Moreover, someone actually died such a gruesome death in the elevator. A lot of tenants started moving out. Those who lived in that apartment complex were not short of money anyways. Then another incident happened and another woman died after being trapped in the elevator. Another miserable death…Two deaths in one same elevator, everyone moved out then and the news of these cases got spread out. No one wanted to live at that place and it soon got deserted. I heard they plan to demolish and rebuild the place again.”

The owner suddenly came to realize and felt a rush of unexplainable fear creeping up, “Did I mention how creepy the woman acted before she died? She could move her hands and feet but she wasn’t able to move forward or even turn around, doesn’t that resemble the trapped elevator case? The woman must have angered the trapped elevator spirit, that’s why she got possessed.”

“Probably, the evil spirit mimicked the same way it died unto its victims, as if finding a replacement. The poor victims will also turn into evil spirits and will not be able to reincarnate, unless they find another replacement or they get released from purgatory. Are you sure you still wanna follow me to the elevator to catch the ghost? Aren’t you afraid to get used as a replacement?”

“Master, you will protect me right?” The owner started to hesitate.

“Yes.”

“Will you ensure my safety?”

Chen Yang smiled gently, “Sure, but there’s an extra surcharge.”

“An extra surcharge? Isn’t exorcizing evil part of your obligations, Master?”

Chen Yang nodded, “Yeah, it’s my obligation. But someone wanted to be an audience, plus wants his own safety assured. That takes up a lot of my energy, hence I’m charging extra. We are, afterall, just doing our jobs and it’s a small humble business.”

“A two-star job listing already costs millions⁴, you’re still calling yourself a small business?“ The owner would want to do this ‘small business’ too. “Alright, alright, I’ll pay the extra surcharge. It’s such a rare opportunity!”

To be able to observe the capture of evil spirits and exorcism, this alone was a big topic, he could brag about this for at least two years. 

 

 

 

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