We waited outside for more than twenty minutes before Zhan Ling and her team finally emerged.
My second uncle immediately stopped Zhan Ling and told her about Zhang Ying's situation.
Zhan Ling replied, "The Zhang Ying you mentioned, we've also taken note of. With her ghost heart destroyed, the evil energy on her body has dissipated. However, she was chosen by the Three Yin Sect, and her days ahead won't be peaceful."
Chosen by the Three Yin Sect?
When Zhan Ling said this, everything that had happened to Zhang Ying became clear.
Zhang Ying had a small Yin physique, making her susceptible to being possessed by evil spirits. Unfortunately, she came to the ghost building, and the people from the Three Yin Sect saw her potential. They wanted the spirit nurtured by the ghost heart to descend upon her body.
As for her four classmates, I can only say that their bond was so strong that even the Three Yin Sect couldn't bear to separate them.
It was just right, the "god" needed attendants, so they became the "extras" to accompany the chosen one.
Zhan Ling continued, "But don't worry, we Demon Hunters will protect her in the shadows!"
I snorted in disdain.
It wasn't protection, it was just using Zhang Ying as bait.
But for Zhang Ying, this was probably the best outcome.
Once the situation was clarified, my second uncle helped me and Tang Quan down the stairs.
On the 20th floor, we ran into two more Demon Hunters, who were escorting a man with a sinister look in his eyes.
Tang Quan immediately signaled my second uncle to take a detour to avoid being seen by the Three Yin Sect people.
We took over an hour to reach the 40th floor and exited the building just before noon.
Xu Wanrong had been waiting outside, visibly anxious. She rushed over and supported Tang Quan, her face turning pale when she noticed his injuries. She snapped at me, "It's all because of you, you burden! You caused my master to get severely injured! A bad luck star!"
Right now, I really wanted to hit her with a broom, but my whole body ached, and I couldn't even muster the energy to reply.
Huang Jiu seemed to have lost his mind, and the engine had stalled.
Luckily, Tang Quan immediately scolded, "Wanrong, don't disrespect Master Li! My life was saved by him."
Xu Wanrong looked at me, incredulously, wanting to say something, but I couldn't be bothered with her. I let my second uncle help me into the car.
As soon as the car door closed, Huang Jiu suddenly spoke up, "This place is too dangerous. We don't have enough to protect ourselves."
I was puzzled. After all, we had the Buddha bone relic and the blood dagger, which were considered treasures. Otherwise, we wouldn't be sitting here.
But Huang Jiu fell into deep thought after speaking, and I didn't ask further.
My second uncle glanced at Tang Quan. Seeing that Xu Wanrong was attending to him, he started the car and headed towards the Zhang family's villa.
At the villa district, I asked my second uncle to go to the supermarket and buy a calculator.
The bill was too large this time; I needed technology to help with the math.
I also told my second uncle in advance to stay quiet and let me handle the conversation.
Tang Quan's car was parked behind ours at the villa entrance, and a group of wealthy people quickly surrounded us.
Although Tang Quan and I could barely stand, anyone with eyes could tell we were extremely weak. The group of wealthy people, originally ready to ask questions, wisely kept quiet.
"Mr. Zhang!" I called out and asked, "Is Zhang Ying's condition better now?"
Zhang Ying's mother hurriedly said, "Master Li, Ying Ying recovered about an hour ago. Thank you so much, both Master Li and Master Tang!"
I nodded and motioned for them to come inside.
Inside the Zhang family home, I wrote down a list of figures on a piece of white paper, followed by the corresponding amounts. These were the agreed-upon payments.
Zhang Ying's family owed five million, and the other four families owed 1.5 million each.
As for the additional costs they had hastily mentioned earlier, I didn't include them.
On the way, I had thought about asking for more, but I knew they wouldn't dare refuse.
After all, businesspeople are superstitious and wouldn't easily offend people like us.
However, I decided to let it go.
The total reasonable amount came to 11 million.
Tang Quan's 80%, which amounted to 8 million, meant my payment for this job would be 19 million in total.
I stared at the long string of numbers on the calculator. It was a sum I never even dreamed of.
But at this moment, I didn't feel it was too much. In fact, it seemed too little.
My second uncle looked just as thoughtful.
I added an extra 2 million to the total on the calculator and turned to Mr. Zhang, saying, "This 2 million is something I feel you should add. You're a businessman, and I won't go into details. Do you have any objections?"
Zhang Ying's mother's face changed slightly when I added 2 million out of nowhere.
She was wealthy, but money doesn't come easily.
Fortunately, Mr. Zhang didn't say anything and readily agreed.
However, Xu Wanrong, standing to the side, glared at me and asked, "Why should my master's payment go to you, 80% of it? He nearly lost his life!"
I put down the calculator and glared back at her, saying, "Why? Because I took on all the hatred myself. Is that not enough?"
Offending the Three Yin Sect wasn't easy on my conscience.
Xu Wanrong's outburst only added fuel to the fire.
My shout caused everyone to feel uncomfortable. After all, when things go wrong, people will spend all their money to fix things. But once the problem is solved, everyone has their own little concerns.
Even my second uncle couldn't help but add, "The things in that building were destroyed by my nephew. The people of the Three Yin Sect will keep coming after us. If anyone wants to bear the brunt of it, we'll hand everything over without taking a penny."
The wealthy people didn't know much about the Three Yin Sect, but they understood that any group calling itself a "sect" wasn't something simple.
When Xu Wanrong heard the words "Three Yin Sect," her face turned pale. She opened her mouth but couldn't say a word.
I scanned the room and coldly said, "If there are no objections, let's settle the payment!"
My second uncle opened his phone and initiated the online transfer.
More than ten minutes later, 21 million was transferred.
Tang Quan also received his remaining payment.
However, neither my second uncle nor I, nor Huang Jiu and Tang Quan, showed any signs of joy.
After settling the financial matters, I brought up the topic of the spiritual rites. Mr. Zhang immediately agreed, saying he had connections with the abbot of Longquan Temple and would handle it tomorrow.
It was a relief to have someone pay for this.
We rested until the afternoon. By then, I had recovered enough to move around. My second uncle then bid farewell to Mr. Zhang and took me back to the shop.
At the shop, I showed my second uncle the Demon Hunter Token.
I relayed Tang Quan's words, and my second uncle listened carefully before returning the token to me, saying, "Keep it well. Use it only when you encounter something you can't resolve."
That was my plan as well.
But I still wondered what the top-ranked Demon Hunter would be like.
After all, Tang Quan had said that for a Demon Hunter Token, major sects and the Yin-Yang world would fight over it.
I imagined they must be an extraordinary individual.
The three-room apartment felt too empty, and since I was feeling lazy, I didn't go home. I stayed at the shop.
As night fell, Huang Jiu, as usual, tried to sneak out. But this time, it was different. It acted suspiciously, as if it was planning something secretive.
I was too busy recovering to care.