Sinisterium Pawnshop: Exclusive to Malevolent Objects

　　"We really caused you trouble."

　　The village chief felt very guilty and immediately had someone prepare some incense, candles, and paper money, and then led the two of them to the grave.

　　"His grave is not far behind the village, just a short walk away."

　　The two followed the elderly man through the middle of the village, heading towards the graves outside.

　　Lu Fei quietly observed and indeed did not see any graves in the village.

　　Why did the copper coin run into the village then?

　　Just as he was wondering, he suddenly felt the copper coin in his pocket moving again, as if it wanted to go somewhere.

　　Lu Fei looked in the direction it was pointing.

　　At the end of the village, there was a small building taller than the other houses, hidden by high earthen walls and trees, exuding an air of mystery in its gloom.

　　"We're here."

　　The village chief stopped at a grove of trees outside the village.

　　The dense forest was filled with numerous graves, all of considerable age, clearly the village's cemetery.

　　The village chief stopped in front of a new grave, with the tombstone inscribed with "Zhao Ligen's Tomb."

　　"Fourth, you're being foolish! You can't just sell things passed down by our ancestors! Aren't you causing trouble for others? Try to behave better in the future!" The village chief chided sternly in front of the grave.

　　Then, Lu Fei went to offer incense.

　　Hu Zi did not move.

　　He was a bit unwilling; even if this old bastard was a ghost, he had still set him up.

　　Why should he offer incense to him?

　　Lu Fei did not force him and, while offering incense, secretly grabbed a handful of soil from the grave.

　　After that, the village chief apologized to the two once more and repeated that they had no antiques to sell, politely asking them to leave.

　　Lu Fei didn't say much and pulled Hu Zi away.

　　But soon after leaving the village, he stopped and took out that handful of soil from the grave.

　　"Brother Lu Fei, you're going to use this soil to dispel my hunger ghost? Does that mean Old Wang Ba, the copper coin seller, is a starving ghost? He's selling his own burial money?" Hu Zi looked utterly confused.

　　"Of course not, I just felt something strange about the grave and wanted to verify it."

　　As Lu Fei spoke, he squatted down, moved a stone, and caught two earthworms from inside. Then, he sprinkled the soil from the grave over the earthworms.

　　The two earthworms wriggled their slender bodies and crawled over the grave soil.

　　Lu Fei narrowed his eyes: "As expected."

　　"What does this mean?"

　　"Earthworms are also called 'ground dragons' because they live underground. They know best which soils they can't burrow through. They didn't react to the grave soil, which means there's no corpse energy in the grave. The grave is empty; it's just for show."

　　Hu Zi stared blankly for a while, then clenched his fists in anger: "So everyone in the village is a liar?! They were afraid we would cause trouble for Old Wang Ba, so they deliberately tricked us into thinking he was dead?"

　　Lu Fei pondered: "It seems that way... but why go to the trouble of building a grave and even taking a memorial photo? Wouldn't it be simpler to just say Old Wang Ba isn't in the village?"

　　"Moreover, I noticed that there were partially burned wreaths next to the grave. And in the house, there were signs of a memorial hall with white cloth decorations."

　　"I think they really held a funeral, not just to put on a show for us."

　　Huzi was horrified: "They held a funeral for an empty grave? Is he out of his mind?"

　　"I reckon there's a secret in this village, but none of that is the most important thing." Lu Fei shook his head to dispel these doubts, "Our goal is to resolve your hungry ghost curse, get the grave soil, and leave."

　　Once Huzi heard him say that, he knew there was a chance, and he cheerfully asked: "Brother Lu Fei, you already know where the hungry ghost's grave is, right?"

　　"That's right, we'll move quietly when the villagers are asleep tonight."

　　The sun slowly set.

　　Night came earlier in the mountains.

　　A few scattered lights appeared in the village, and all around was quiet, with only the sound of the wind whistling through.

　　The two of them sneaked into the village furtively, heading toward the small building at the far end.

　　When they passed by the village chief's house, Lu Fei curiously took a glance inside.

　　Under the dim light, the village chief and his wife were holding a basin, gobbling down something, their mouths full of grease.

　　The sight of them eating couldn't help but remind Lu Fei of the way Hu Zi looked when he was possessed by a hungry ghost.

　　"Do they really like meat that much?"

　　Lu Fei shook his head, withdrew his gaze, and with Hu Zi, they tiptoed through the village, smoothly arriving in front of the small building.

　　The earthen wall was about two meters high, with a large lock hanging on the wooden door.

　　Inside the building, it was pitch black, without a single flicker of light.

　　"Climb over."

　　Although the wall was high, it wasn't difficult for two young men in their twenties.

　　They climbed over the wall and landed on the ground. After waiting for a moment and seeing that no villagers had noticed, they turned on their flashlight and shone it towards the small building.

　　This one beam of light frightened both of them.

　　Indeed, this small building is quite bizarre, with only one door and no windows at all. It stands silently in the night, particularly ominous.

　　"This is a dwelling for the dead; such dwellings cannot be exposed to light, so they have no windows!"

　　Lu Fei quickly reacted and stepped forward to push open the door, immediately a cold air gushed out from inside.

　　The air was filled with a musty smell and a heavy deathly aura.

　　Shining the flashlight inside, in the middle of the small building, an ancient tomb crouched alone and forlorn.

　　"Wow! There really is an ancient tomb! That old bastard, the village chief, was indeed lying!" Hu Zi's eyes widened as he urgently said, "Brother Lu Fei, quickly take out the copper coin and try it!"

　　Lu Fei threw the copper coin tied with a red string.

　　The copper coin landed and stood upright, rolling towards the tomb, making a 'ding' sound as it hit the tombstone.

　　"It's here!"

　　Lu Fei felt greatly reassured.

　　Although this village is filled with oddities, nothing is more important than saving Huzi's life.

　　There was nothing else in the building; it seemed as if this small structure was built specifically to conceal the ancient tomb.

　　The tomb was not large, constructed from bluestone. Due to years without sunlight, the stones were covered in moss, appearing ancient and dilapidated.

　　"This is the grave of a hungry ghost. Is it going to cause trouble if we disturb its tomb?"

　　"So, we need to be quick!"

　　Lu Fei had Huzi place the copper coin they bought in front of the tombstone and then bowed to the grave.

　　Then he had Huzi hold the flashlight while he carefully dug out some soil from the cracks of the grave and placed it into a plastic water bottle.

　　Huzi watched nervously, as if Lu Fei was handling his very life instead of the soil from the grave.

　　Just as the two were concentrating, a strange, wailing sound suddenly came from inside the tomb.

　　"Wu wu wu, wu wu wu..."

　　The two of them were stunned, then looked at each other in horror and hastily retreated.

　　The wailing sounded like a ghost's cry, especially shrill in this eerie little building. The two of them took out three black rooster feathers and held them in front of their bodies.

　　But after waiting for a while, no terrifying thing came out.

　　Lu Fei steadied himself, gathered his courage, and turned around. He discovered that the sound did not come from inside the grave but from behind it.

　　"It doesn't seem to be a starving ghost."

　　The dirt on the grave was not yet sufficient, and leaving now would mean all their efforts were in vain. Lu Fei gritted his teeth and went back.

　　The flashlight flickered as Hu Zhi followed him timidly.

　　In the trembling light, a face that was originally in the memorial photo appeared before their eyes.