Chapter 299: The Hardworking Female Ghosts

Translator: yikaii Editor: yikaii

“You say the mayor knows about this. Do you dare to come with us to see the mayor?” Li Haoran didn’t believe their words and hoped to see some hint of fear in their expressions.

Unfortunately, there was none.

The four humans and three ghosts waited in the dilapidated temple all night. Just before dawn, as the moonlight began to soften and give way to the sun, they set off to find the mayor.

Ancient Lotus Town is famous for its locust trees, which are everywhere and quite old. The thickest locust tree was so wide that even three Lu Yangs couldn’t wrap their arms around it. The white-clad female ghost, who called herself Little Seven, said this ancient locust tree was over a thousand years old, older than the town itself.

Locust trees are yin-natured, giving the whole town a gloomy, cool atmosphere, making it a great place to escape the summer heat.

Of all the towns Lu Yang had visited, Ancient Lotus Town was the largest.

Moreover, the town was thriving and showed promise to grow even more in the future.

After presenting their identities at the government office, the mayor quickly came out to greet them. The mayor had a somewhat prosperous appearance and greeted everyone with a cheerful demeanor.

“I didn’t expect Dao Seeking Sect’s esteemed cultivators to come here. I apologize for not welcoming you properly,” the mayor apologized, adopting a very humble attitude.

Lu Yang noticed that the mayor was at the late Foundation Building stage.

The mayor, upon noticing the three female ghosts behind the four cultivators, showed a brief change in expression but quickly composed himself and politely said, “My surname is Fan, given name Fan Guiren. You can call me Little Fan.”

“Please come in.”

“Mayor Fan, you are too kind,” Lu Yang said, taking a sip of the tea Mayor Fan had poured. He nodded slightly, unable to discern what type of tea it was.

“We came here because, as Mayor Fan might already know, we want to understand the origins and circumstances of these three female ghosts.”

“Indeed,” Mayor Fan sighed dejectedly. Honestly, he wasn’t keen on discussing this matter, but since Dao Seeking Sect was asking, he had no choice.

“Mayor Fan, are you aware that these three female ghosts have been absorbing people’s yang energy?” Lu Yang asked directly.

“I am. Initially, a traveler reported to me that female ghosts in the abandoned temple outside town were draining people’s yang energy. When I heard this, I thought it was serious and immediately went to investigate.”

“When we arrived at the temple, I discovered that Little Seven and the other two ghosts weren’t the kind of evil spirits that drain all of a person’s yang energy at once. Instead, they were benign ghosts with no intention of harming anyone.”

“Back then, Ancient Lotus Town wasn’t as bustling as it is today. I wanted to develop tourism to increase the town’s income, but locust trees alone weren’t enough to attract people.”

“I thought of the female ghosts. To avoid any issues, I checked the laws and found that while the law prohibits female ghosts from absorbing yang energy to the extent that it harms people or affects their normal lives, it doesn’t completely forbid them from absorbing yang energy.”

“Female ghosts absorbing yang energy isn’t considered prostitution, meaning travelers don’t even have to pay.”

“Furthermore, the tax regulations don’t require ghosts to pay taxes on the yang energy they absorb.”

“After careful consideration, I decided to use the female ghosts as a gimmick to promote Ancient Lotus Town. And it worked quite well. Many travelers came seeking romantic encounters, and the town’s income visibly increased. The local finances improved, the county rewarded us, and I personally had enough resources to smoothly cultivate to the late Foundation Building stage.”

“There was even talk of promoting me within the county. But being the mayor here, with plenty of food, drink, and spirit stones, is better than being an underling in the county. So, I declined.”

“I plan to wait until I reach the Golden Core stage before considering any promotions.” Mayor Fan had a clear vision for his political career.

The three female ghosts nodded repeatedly, affirming that they were innocent and harmless.

“Wait, if this is all good, who was it that requested our sect’s help saying there were female ghosts here?” Meng Jingzhou wondered aloud.

This mission wasn’t initiated by the sect; someone had reported it to Dao Seeking Sect.

A competitor?

Could this business have a competitor?

Mayor Fan was also surprised. He had assumed that Lu Yang and the others were just passing by, discovered the ghosts, and decided to exorcize them.

“Mayor Fan, do you have any idea who it could be?”

“Not yet… Oh, can I ask how the mission was described?”

“It said that female ghosts in Ancient Lotus Town were draining the yang energy of scholars, leaving them weak and lethargic.”

Mayor Fan’s expression turned peculiar.

“Mayor Fan, do you know what’s going on?”

Mayor Fan nodded. “There’s a scholar named Zhou who has a son everyone calls Little Zhou. Little Zhou is an average student who has failed the imperial exams multiple times.”

“But Little Zhou’s mother believes that his frequent visits to the female ghosts are to blame, thinking they distract him and drain his energy, preventing him from studying properly.”

“She came to me, asking me to punish the female ghosts, but Little Zhou’s poor study habits are well known. He’s naturally playful and doesn’t apply himself; it has nothing to do with the ghosts.”

“I thought she was just making a fuss and ignored her. After she left, a few other parents also blamed the ghosts for their children’s failures in the exams. I dismissed them all.”

“I didn’t expect them to be so persistent and take the matter to Dao Seeking Sect.”

Mayor Fan sighed. “Little Seven and the others have already done their best.”

The white-clad female ghost, Little Seven, said, “We were afraid this matter would get out of hand and the righteous cultivators would discover us, so we called the poor-performing students to the temple and tutored them.”

“We three sisters came from scholarly families when we were alive, so teaching them is easy for us.”

“If they studied well, they would be rewarded. If not, they would get nothing. Under this reward and punishment system, their grades improved rapidly.”

Lu Yang sized up the three female ghosts. The red-clad ghost’s lips were still swollen like sausages, not to mention. The white-clad and green-clad ghosts were attractive, dressed skimpily, each with their own charm. How did those scholars manage to focus on studying in such conditions?

Oh right, no reward if they didn’t study well.

“The scholars were willing to study this way too. For example, yesterday, despite the once-in-a-decade heavy rain that made the day as dark as night, Little Zhou and the others still braved the rain to listen to our lessons. They studied until the rain stopped and then left the temple, exhausted.”

“To think that despite our efforts, we were still reported by their parents.” Little Seven lamented, feeling the hardships of both life and death.

Lu Yang summarized, “So, you run a private school during the day, teaching students, and wander the town at night, going to inns to absorb yang energy?”

“Yes.”

Lu Yang and the others felt a bit ashamed, realizing the female ghosts were more diligent than they were.

Qin Yanyan marveled at the story. Were all ghosts like this?

Little Seven continued, “Moreover, we have to turn in seventy percent of the yang energy we absorb, keeping only thirty percent for ourselves.”

“Hmm? Who do you turn it in to?” Lu Yang was puzzled. The government didn’t need yang energy.

“Our superior, whom we call Master Mi. Master Mi also mentioned that in Ancient Lotus Town, there are treasures left by a former sect leader and asked us to keep an eye out for them.”

(End of the chapter)