Chapter 183: Ghost Assistant (XV)

Previous Chapter ◊ Table of Content ◊ Next Chapter

Chapter 183: Ghost Assistant (XV)

Only after waking did Shang Ke learn that he had been unconscious for more than three months. Shao Feidu had spent all three months eating and sleeping at the hospital. If the house steward had not looked after him carefully, he probably would have either starved himself or stunk himself to death. By the day Shang Ke woke, Shao Feidu had not showered for seven or eight days. His hair was tangled, his clothes wrinkled, and stubble covered his jaw; at first glance he looked like a refugee who had wandered in from somewhere.

So the first thing Shang Ke did after regaining enough mobility was cut Shao Feidu’s hair, shave him, and scrub him clean.

Shao Feidu sat obediently on a low stool while Shang Ke worked the scissors through his hair. Snip, snip—locks fell in soft strands around them.

“Dudu, don’t you have Keke Assistant with you?” Shang Ke nagged while trimming his hair. “How did you still manage to turn yourself into this much of a mess? If I’d slept for another few months, would you have devolved all the way into a caveman?”

At the words slept for another few months, Shao Feidu suddenly turned his head and nearly impaled himself on the scissors.

Startled, Shang Ke jerked the scissors away and scolded gently, “Don’t move around!”

Shao Feidu stared at him with those dark eyes and forced out two words: “Don’t sleep.”

It took Shang Ke only a moment to understand what he meant.

“Okay.” Shang Ke kissed his eye.

Shao Feidu copied him and kissed Shang Ke’s eye in return.

Once the affectionate haircut was finished, Shang Ke assigned him a long list of tasks: shower, change clothes, order food, take a walk, cultivate, and so on.

From Shao Feidu, Shang Ke finally learned what he had been doing over the past few months and understood where all that ghost energy had come from. He had never expected Shao Feidu to replenish his energy in such a way.

To prevent the ghost energy from continuing to harm him, Shang Ke strictly ordered Shao Feidu never to attack ghosts unless his own life was in danger.

Naturally, Shao Feidu had no objection. Besides, by then there were hardly any foolish ghosts left who still dared approach him.

During rehabilitation, the police also questioned Shang Ke about the crash. He could only say that the car had suddenly gone out of control and caused the accident. As for the strange injuries on both himself and Shao Feidu, he claimed not to remember. With no useful lead, the police eventually treated the matter as an accident and closed it quietly.

The Yun family questioned him several times as well. After receiving the same answer, they stopped pursuing it. Instead, they arranged around-the-clock bodyguards for the two men, terrified that something else might happen.

Shang Ke was confident he could restore the vital energy Shao Feidu had depleted. What truly troubled him was the System. Had Main Mission 2 actually succeeded or failed? And what exactly was the Additional Mission?

If the Main Mission had succeeded, he would still have a chance to obtain a Return Key even if he failed the Additional Mission. If it had failed, then knowing the Additional Mission would be meaningless anyway.

The safest approach was to lay two more evil ghosts to rest. As for the Additional Mission, he could only leave that to luck.

After his discharge, Yun Kexu’s family brought both men back to the main residence to recuperate. They simply did not dare let the two live alone outside anymore. Who knew whether another horrifying “car accident” might happen?

Shao Feidu never grew comfortable in the unfamiliar environment. Everyone treated him kindly, but he still could not bring himself to get close to them. He followed Shang Ke everywhere like a child terrified of getting lost.

That night, Shang Ke took his hand and said, “If you really can’t get used to it here, we’ll go back to the villa tomorrow.”

Shao Feidu nodded, leaned over, and kissed his eye.

“All right, sleep.” Shang Ke lifted the blanket and pulled him beneath it.

Shao Feidu wrapped him in his arms. Wisps of ghost energy lingered around his body. A body that had once burned with abundant yang fire was now unnaturally cold.

Shang Ke took a deep breath and silently began drawing the ghost energy out of him.

Shao Feidu felt the cold inside him recede little by little, replaced by warmth. He had spent nearly every day of the past few months chilled to the bone and had not slept well once. Wrapped in that warmth, he slowly sank into a deep, comfortable sleep.

The result of such a good night’s sleep was a certain someone waking up with a very energetic morning erection.

“Mm…” Shang Ke let out a low moan at the sensation of being filled.

Hearing him, Shao Feidu tightened his grip on Shang Ke’s waist and thrust harder from behind, driving in and out of him.

The mattress creaked softly beneath their movements. It had been far too long since they had sex, and both men quickly lost themselves in it.

The deeper Shao Feidu thrust, the stronger his yang energy became. When he climaxed, the ghost energy clinging to his body nearly vanished altogether. The effect was only temporary, of course, but it proved that this particular kind of passionate exercise could strengthen yang fire and disperse ghost energy.

Feeling the heat left inside him, Shang Ke complained softly, “Remember a condom next time.”

He had no idea which word in that sentence struck Shao Feidu’s figurative G-spot, but the erection that had barely begun to soften immediately hardened again.

“Wait. That’s enough for today. We’re at my family’s house—someone will come wake us up soon.” Shang Ke pushed at the man over him.

Shao Feidu simply lifted Shang Ke into his arms and carried him toward the bathroom without pulling out.

His meaning was obvious: washing up and continuing to fuck were perfectly compatible activities.

By the time they emerged, breakfast was just being served. One look at their flushed, satisfied expressions told the Yun family exactly what had happened. Several of the younger relatives waggled their eyebrows at Shang Ke, silently praising his skill: he had somehow transformed Shao Feidu from a block of ice into warm jade. That softened, content expression alone revealed exactly how satisfied he was.

After breakfast, Shang Ke asked his family to let them return to the villa. Mrs. Yun objected first, and Mr. Yun was not particularly pleased with the idea either.

After several rounds of bargaining, they compromised on three more days. Three days later, Shang Ke and Shao Feidu left the Yun residence and returned to their villa.

Shang Ke lay on the carpet and quietly listened to the piano while thinking about how to lay the remaining ghosts to rest.

Not long afterward, the piano fell silent, and then a hot body covered his.

Shao Feidu bent down and kissed him, tasting his lips slowly.

The afterglow of sunset poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows and washed over them, gilding the scene with intimate warmth.

In the middle of that tenderness, an idea suddenly flashed through Shang Ke’s mind. I’ve got it!

He had just thought of a way to lay the evil ghosts to rest. He could not use the talismans directly—but he could use formations.

A formation would activate only when triggered. Shang Ke could set one at a known haunting site and simply wait for an evil ghost to walk into the trap. The moment the formation detected ghost energy, it would activate automatically. That way, neither he nor Shao Feidu would have to confront the ghost directly. This shortcut had only about a fifty-percent chance of successfully laying the ghost to rest, and each formation could handle only one ghost, but even so, it should be enough to complete the mission.

Just as he was thinking, his body jolted and a tingling sensation shot up his spine. After that, Shang Ke no longer had any attention to spare for anything else…

Afterward, Shang Ke followed his plan and set up a spirit-release formation at each location where he had found an evil ghost. He also installed cameras so he could monitor the formations’ progress at any time.

Shang Ke’s method soon produced results. Within a month, he had successfully laid three low-rank evil ghosts and several lesser ghosts to rest.

Yet the System gave him no mission notification. Had he really completed the Main Mission earlier? Why had the System malfunctioned? And what exactly was his Additional Mission?

Based on past experience, the Additional Mission would probably involve either his man or the ghosts. For now, he could only work it out on his own.

One month later, after consulting Shang Ke, the Yun and Shao families decided to hold an engagement ceremony for the two men in three days. Their marriage received blessings from every side.

This time, Shang Ke intended to cherish his life properly and remain beside Shao Feidu for as long as possible. Unless there was absolutely no other choice, he would not go looking for death.

The engagement proceeded smoothly. Three months later, they formally registered their marriage and, surrounded by everyone’s blessings, became a publicly recognized ideal couple.

After marriage, Shao Feidu returned to composing. Whenever time allowed, he and Shang Ke accepted invitations to perform at concerts hosted by prominent figures. Every album of their duets sold out almost immediately after release. Fame and popularity followed one after another, and over the next ten years the two gradually rose to the very summit of the music world.

Everything was so beautiful that Shang Ke sank helplessly into happiness.

As the years passed, Shang Ke noticed that ghosts were gradually disappearing from his life. Either they had all somehow been laid to rest—or he had lost the ability to see them.

Neither possibility made sense. People died every day, and ordinary ghosts should linger in the human world for at least seven days. Shang Ke himself was essentially a vengeful ghost condensed from ghost energy. There was no reason he should suddenly be unable to see spirits.

“Dudu, can you still see ghosts?” Shang Ke asked Shao Feidu.

“Ghosts? What ghosts?” Shao Feidu looked genuinely puzzled.

“The ghosts that used to bother you all the time.”

Shao Feidu paused, then patted Shang Ke’s head. “Keke, don’t try to fool me. There are no ghosts in the world.”

Shang Ke’s pupils tightened as an inexplicable chill crept through him.

He turned and entered the room, immediately beginning to search through everything.

Shao Feidu followed him inside, wrapped both arms around his waist from behind, and murmured beside his ear, “What are you looking for, Keke?”

“Where is the Talisman Compendium I drew?” It had always been kept in the drawer, yet at some point it had vanished.

“Talisman Compendium?” Shao Feidu thought for a moment, then shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Confusion churned through Shang Ke. Shao Feidu knew nothing about ghosts and nothing about the Talisman Compendium. Thinking back carefully, Shang Ke realized that for the past several years Shao Feidu had not once used his true qi or cultivated. Somehow, they had simply… stopped noticing. Had their life together become so full that they had ignored it completely?

Shang Ke knew something was wrong, but he could not identify what.

Behind him, Shao Feidu began kissing his neck while one large hand slid beneath his clothes.

“No. I don’t want to right now…”

“Keke…” Shao Feidu turned him around, pinned him against the cabinet, and sealed his mouth with a kiss. His technique had improved by leaps and bounds over the years; before long, Shang Ke could barely form words.

Half-dazed with pleasure, Shang Ke happened to glance at Shao Feidu’s palm—and abruptly realized something was missing. The mole in the center of his palm.

This man wasn’t Shao Feidu?!

Shang Ke snapped out of the haze at once and shoved hard at the man over him. But Shao Feidu was still buried deep inside him and continued moving.

“Let go of me. Who are you?” Shang Ke’s cheeks were flushed, partly from pleasure and partly from anger.

Shao Feidu stopped and looked genuinely confused. “Keke?”

No. That was wrong. Shang Ke stared into his eyes. This person was clearly his lover. That familiar aura could not be mistaken.

But why had the mole on his palm disappeared? Why had the ghosts disappeared? Why had the Talisman Compendium disappeared?

The questions piled up until Shang Ke was completely lost…

Previous Chapter ◊ Table of Content ◊ Next Chapter