Chapter 1204: Unexpected
Yang Haoran arrived at the Ghost Cave and successfully met Tang Shi.
Tang Shi's strength had increased significantly since Yang Haoran last met him. The number of Spirits under Tang Shi's command had also greatly expanded. However, most of these Spirits had been dispatched by Tang Shi on missions; those remaining in the Ghost Cave were almost all new recruits, undergoing Tang Shi's training. This training encompassed not only combat experience and enemy engagement tactics but, more importantly, ideological education.
Yang Haoran's arrival brought both surprise and joy to Tang Shi, while the Spirits remaining in the Ghost Cave under Tang Shi's command appeared incredibly excited and fervent due to Yang Haoran's presence.
These Spirits were almost all new recruits, and they hailed neither from Lecheng nor Gu Mo City, so they shouldn't have known Yang Haoran at all.
Logically, that should have been the case. However, under Tang Shi's instruction, they were remarkably familiar with Yang Haoran and held him in deep reverence. It was akin to the president of a nation: few soldiers might ever have the privilege of meeting them, yet every soldier knows who their president is and is intimately familiar with their appearance.
Such was the case with these Spirits. Although they had never laid eyes on Yang Haoran, Tang Shi's deliberate efforts ensured that every single one of them knew Yang Haoran and understood to whom they owed their allegiance.
The increase in the number of Spirits under his command meant that Yang Haoran had to prepare more Pure Yin Qi for them, along with custom-made Skins and the uniform Smiling Face Masks for the organization.
Of these three tasks, only he could handle the Pure Yin Qi. However, for the other two matters, he planned to delegate them to Ye Zhiqiu. He had observed just how idle Ye Zhiqiu had been lately, and since he hadn't assigned Ye Zhiqiu any tasks recently, it was the perfect opportunity to hand these two over.
Tang Shi had intended to give Yang Haoran a detailed work report, but Yang Haoran declined. Due to time constraints, he couldn't afford to waste too much time there, so he instructed Tang Shi to report to him next time.
Of course, this Spirit army wasn't merely a drain on Yang Haoran; the value they created far surpassed their consumption.
As for Tang Shi, he submitted all the Spirits he had collected, along with various other resources, to Yang Haoran.
The number of Spirits was considerable, and none were weak. There were few ordinary Wánglíng, perhaps because Tang Shi simply didn't value them. Thus, most of the Spirits he presented to Yang Haoran were vengeful Evil Spirits or powerful Evil Spirits.
Any Spirit that could be of use to Yang Haoran and become his loyal subordinate, Tang Shi kept. As for those Spirits whose strength was subpar, or who simply refused to yield, Tang Shi bundled them all together and handed them over to Yang Haoran for disposal.
Yang Haoran, of course, showed no politeness towards Tang Shi; he accepted all the submitted Spirits. However, he didn't take all the other resources. He only collected what was currently useful, leaving items not yet needed to be stored by Tang Shi in the local collection room. After all, his independent space was only so large, and cramming everything into it would simply not fit.
Having received the large number of Spirits collected by Tang Shi, Yang Haoran did not immediately leave the Ghost Cave. Instead, he found a quiet stone chamber within, where he needed to meticulously sort through these Spirits, along with those obtained from Old Master Wu. Those suitable for submission to the Underworld would be selectively turned in to exchange for Soul Pills. Those that could not be submitted to the Underworld would absolutely not be; they would be kept for his own refinement into Soul Pills.
It took Yang Haoran more than half a day to complete the arduous task of sifting through the massive number of Spirits in his possession. The entire process wasn't conducted by questioning each one individually, as that would be far too time-consuming, taking an eternity to finish.
He opted to keep his Ghost Eye active throughout, filtering the souls in batches. While this method drastically increased efficiency, it also exacted a significant mental toll on him. However, the drain on his Spirit Power was negligible. After all, with his current strength, no matter how he activated a Ghost Art like the Ghost Eye, it wouldn't cause a substantial drain on the abundant Spirit Power within him; rather, it was the Ghost Eye itself that struggled to withstand his terrifying Spirit Power.
Nevertheless, to resolve the matter as quickly as possible, even if the method would cause considerable mental strain, he decided to proceed.
After finishing the sorting of the Spirits, Yang Haoran wasted no more time. For safety, he first exited the Ghost Cave, then found a secluded, uninhabited spot, opened the Ghost Gate, and headed for the Underworld.
Originally, Yang Haoran very much wanted to make a trip to Ancheng to see how Xu Meijing was doing recently, but time did not permit it. He had no choice but to give up, despite how much he wished to go.
In any case, Underworld Agents like them wouldn't die naturally and had plenty of time. So, he decided that once Gu Mo City was truly stable, he would then go to Ancheng to visit Xu Meijing.
Stepping through the Ghost Gate, traversing the Yellow Springs Road, and crossing the Bridge of Helplessness, Yang Haoran paid no mind to the unusual scenery along the way. He didn't head to submit the souls first, but instead rushed towards Jingran Pharmacy.
In his mind, restocking Jingran Pharmacy was far more important than submitting souls. Thus, his first destination upon arriving in the Underworld was his own Jingran Pharmacy.
Rushing along, Yang Haoran traversed street after street without stopping, until he arrived outside Jingran Pharmacy, where the sight before him brought him to a halt.
The street where Jingran Pharmacy was located was as deserted as ever; he saw hardly anyone along the way. Yet, only the entrance to Jingran Pharmacy was different—a long queue had actually formed.
On his way to Jingran Pharmacy, Yang Haoran had made several guesses about its current state.
He had considered that Jingran Pharmacy's business might be bleak, with very few customers. After all, Jingran Pharmacy was located in a remote area, so a lack of visitors would be normal. It was even possible that the various medicines he had left there last time still hadn't sold out.
He had also thought that perhaps Jingran Pharmacy was doing excellent business, and the medicines he had left had long since sold out. However, due to the lack of timely replenishment, customers might have been repeatedly disappointed, leading them to stop coming, thus leaving the pharmacy, inside and out, deserted with no sign of a single customer.
He had even considered whether competitors, due to business rivalry, might send people to cause trouble at his Jingran Pharmacy. Gu Yi and Ban Kui, being no match, and with him, their boss, absent, would end up bruised and battered. Then, he, their boss, would arrive just in time, swiftly deal with the culprits, vent their employees' frustrations, and simultaneously elevate his own image in their hearts.
He had considered many possibilities, but this current scenario was the one he had completely failed to anticipate.
Under his gaze, a long queue stretched out in front of Jingran Pharmacy. These individuals were well-behaved; though some conversed in low tones, no one was shouting or causing a ruckus. Those in line were honest and orderly, and people entering the pharmacy did so in a well-organized fashion.
This sight genuinely surprised Yang Haoran and also somewhat astonished him. He simply couldn't have imagined that Jingran Pharmacy's situation would be like this.
After his surprise, a strong sense of doubt arose within him: could all these people in line be here to purchase various medicines from Jingran Pharmacy?
If business was that good, how could the medicines he had left possibly have lasted until now? They must have sold out long ago. There shouldn't be anyone still queuing here.
But if they weren't here to buy medicines, then what were they doing here, queuing so obediently? One should know that almost all those dutifully waiting in line outside Jingran Pharmacy were proper Underworld Agents or Ghost Officials from the Underworld, with only a very small number being Spirits wearing Skins.
As an Underworld Agent, Yang Haoran could, of course, tell the identities of those in line at a glance.
Gu Yi and Ban Kui were merely Spirits, existing at the very bottom of the Underworld's pyramid. In contrast, Underworld Agents from the mortal realm and Ghost Officials from the Underworld, though their statuses in the Underworld varied, even the lowest-ranking Ghost Official or Underworld Agent held a position incomparable to Spirits like Gu Yi and Ban Kui.
Therefore, Yang Haoran was currently very puzzled as to why these Underworld Agents and Ghost Officials were so well-behaved and compliant, given that Jingran Pharmacy was managed by Gu Yi and Ban Kui.
"Could it be because of Jiang Dashi? " Yang Haoran wondered. "Has Jiang Dashi been promoted? Is that why these Underworld Agents and Ghost Officials are so polite at my Jingran Pharmacy?"
Such a thought couldn't help but arise in Yang Haoran's mind. When Jingran Pharmacy first opened, he had considered that he would often be absent from the Underworld. If Jingran Pharmacy encountered any trouble and there was no one to handle it, Gu Yi and Ban Kui might suffer. So, he had asked Jiang Dashi to help keep an eye on things, and Jiang Dashi, without refusing his request, had agreed at the time.
It was precisely because of this incident that Yang Haoran now entertained such a speculation.
Of course, this was merely a guess; he couldn't be certain that his speculation was correct. Carrying his doubts, he went to the back of the queue, preparing to observe the situation before acting.
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