Stranger Danger

Chapter 372: Theft

“Who are you?”

Greenlake frowned at a blackened mirror for a moment before breaking into a calm smile. “It looks like someone misses me dearly. That’s not a good thing, is it? Hahaha...”

Greenlake put away the Soul Hiding Mirror and opened her red umbrella. Then, she slowly disappeared into the darkness.

......

“Is it over?”

Ye Qing watched as the massive pool of blood slowly receded back into the Annon Sutra’s body. The words previously on its surface were nowhere to be seen as well.

“I wonder if it won or lost against whatever it was?” Ye Qing muttered to himself.

As soon as he said this, the blood on the Annon Sutra converged to form a massive, gold-emblazoned word:

“VICTORY!”

It was an incredibly flamboyant reaction. Ye Qing couldn’t help but remark, “Are you boasting about your success?”

As he killed more Strangers and fed the Annon Sutra more blood, he noticed that the Strange Artifact was growing increasingly sapient. Or more accurately, it was regaining what sapience it had before. He didn’t know if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but for now, he was glad that his buddy was growing better and stronger.

The word “Victory” was still shining on the piece of vellum, and Ye Qing couldn’t help but tease it a little, “Since you’ve defeated your opposition, can you tell me what Greenlake Bai’s true name is and where she is right now?”

Before this, he had to cough up copious amounts of blood essence just to ask it one question. It wasn’t even enthusiastic about it, if the varied responses it gave him was any indication. But now, it was exerting itself without any prompting whatsoever.

“Get lost”

He should’ve expected this, but the word “Victory” had turned into “Get lost”. The only way it could be clearer with its meaning was if it turned into a middle finger.

Ye Qing: “...” It’s quite short-tempered, isn’t it?

But of course, he understood what the Annon Sutra was implying. It was saying that those two questions were best left unanswered.

He thought for a while longer before asking, “How can I survive this crisis?”

Since he couldn’t figure out Greenlake’s identity or scheme, then he should focus on saving himself.

Ye Qing spat a mouthful of blood essence on the Annon Sutra as usual, but it wasn’t absorbed. Instead, the word “get lost” transformed into:

“Get the fuck out”

Ye Qing furrowed his brows deeply when he saw this. If you don’t want to answer, then just don’t answer. Why are you cussing me out, man?

Ye Qing unhappily put away the Annon Sutra and got ready to return to Auspicious Phoenix Market when suddenly, he realized that the Annon Sutra wasn’t necessarily cussing him out, at least not completely. It was telling to get the fuck away from here if he wished to survive.

It made sense. The Ghost Tower was coming after him, and Auspicious Phoenix Market was the first place they would search as soon as they discovered whatever timebomb Greenlake had left him. Naturally, he should be away from here as soon as possible. Death couldn’t kill him if it couldn’t catch up to him, right?

It was too bad he still hadn’t figured out what Greenlake had done, and what crime she had framed him for. If he could figure out the truth, then maybe he would be able to save himself without needing to run away.

“Fuck. I knew I shouldn’t have entered the Yin Market,” Ye Qing cursed under his breath before starting toward Auspicious Phoenix Market once more. Once his companions were out, and he had told them about the situation, he would go as far away from this village as possible.

......

At the Ghost Tower, Fire Skull was floating back and forth while singing an eerie song that was only fit for a ghost. It looked incredibly happy and excited.

Not only had the auction ended with resounding success, their expected profit was well above their expected profit. Of course it was very happy with this outcome.

Suddenly, an imp barged into the room in a panic. “Ma, manager!”

“Don’t you know how to knock?” Fire Skull’s flames shot a couple inches taller as it turned around to look at the imp.

“S... sorry,” the imp apologized in a hurry before rushing ahead, “but you need to hear this!”

“What is it now?” Fire Skull joked. “Did your newly wed concubine cuck you, or did you cuck her?”

Fire Skull generally didn’t like cracking jokes, but it was in a fantastic mood today.

“No! Someone broke into our vault. We got robbed!” The imp hurriedly replied.

“WHAT?”

Fire Skull’s joy was snuffed out in an instant. It abruptly flew closer to the imp and asked urgently, “I will destroy you if this is a joke. What treasure did we lose?”

“We didn’t lose any treasure.” the imp clarified, “It’s the yin gold we just moved in the vault today that we lost.”

“The yin gold?” The flames on Fire Skull’s body exploded. It was this close from losing control and killing the imp by accident. “How much did we lose?”

The imp stuttered, “Two hundred and fifty thousand yin gold, manager.”

“Two hundred and fifty thousand...?” The flames surrounding Fire Skull abruptly froze. It was like someone had stopped its time.

“Manager? Manager?” The imp called out to him cautiously.

Whoosh!

The next moment, the flames returned to normal, and Fire Skull vanished in a flash of light.

“Manager, you’re finally here!”

At the vault, a short, fat Stranger covered in bronze coins was pacing back and forth with a walking stick anxiously. It looked like it was moments away from a full-blown panic attack when Fire Skull finally showed up. Its features immediately lit up like it saw its savior.

“What the hell happened, Yin Toad? How did we lose our yin gold?” Fire Skull demanded.

“I don’t know, manager!” Yin Toad answered in a hurry. “ I closed the vault as soon as I moved today’s money into the vault. But when I came back to perform a routine inspection, I discovered that two hundred and fifty thousand yin gold had suddenly gone missing!”

“Did we lose anything else?” Fire Skull asked.

“N-No. Only the yin gold is missing,” Yin Toad replied despairingly before begging, “You gotta save me, manager! I swear I have nothing to do with this! You have to save me!”

“Silence!” Fire Skull shouted down Yin Toad while nursing a throbbing headache. “Tell me everything from the start until the end. Don’t leave out even a single detail!”

“Yes, yes!” Yin Toad began retelling everything it did after the auction was over. After it was done, it started lamenting its fate, “I carried out the process as I always did, and it has never failed me before. Why is this happening now? Why am I so unlucky?”

“Stop whining! You’re annoying me!” Fire Skull yelled impatiently, “Did you find anything while you were carrying out your inspection? Anything at all?”

Yin Toad shook its head dejectedly. “No. The doors were intact, and none of the restrictions and arrays were triggered. It’s almost as if the yin gold had vanished into thin air.”

“Bullshit! There’s no way that could happen. Someone must have stolen it!” Fire Skull was furious. “I’m going to ask you one more time, but are you absolutely sure that you’ve checked everything? Can you swear on your life that you haven’t missed anything?”

“I swear it, manager,” Yin Toad declared with absolute certainty. “In fact, the first thing I did after discovering that the yin gold was missing was to lock the vault. No other ghost had entered the vault besides me, so everything is exactly the same as it was before. You can check it yourself if you want to.”

Fire Skull did just that and went through the entire vault with a fine tooth comb. However, it failed to find anything just like Yin Toad.

“Did you find anything, manager?” Yin Toad asked carefully as Fire Skull pondered in silence. “Do you think that a powerful senior could’ve carried out the theft?”

Fire Skull shot Yin Toad a glance but said nothing.

Yin Toad continued, “The vault is the most heavily guarded place in the Ghost Tower. For someone to steal the yin gold it holds without disturbing any of its restrictions and breaking its locks... I just can’t imagine a normal warrior or Stranger carrying out such a feat. It has to be a super powerful senior or something.”

“Yes, that has to be it. In fact, they must be on par with master at the very least. After all, master is the one who installed those restrictions himself. I just can’t imagine anyone weaker than him entering and leaving the vault like it’s their own house.”

However, Fire Skull remarked after a moment of thought, “That’s very unlikely.”

“Why do you think that?” Yin Toad blurted. It took it a lot of brain cells to come up with the likeliest possibility, but Fire Skull had rejected it all too quickly.

“Use your brain, fool. If the thief really is as strong as you say, why would they steal the yin gold instead of the more valuable treasures? Pretend that master is the thief for a second. Did he really need that yin gold? This is but a small percentage of his total wealth. Why would he ever lower himself to do such a thing?”

“Of course, I’m not saying that your theory is impossible. It’s just improbable.”

“But if it’s not a powerful senior, then who? Who could possibly steal from our vault without being detected?” Yin Toad frowned deeply.

“There is, in fact, one type of person who could steal from our vault without being detected,” Fire Skull answered.

“Who?” Yin Toad asked.

“An insider,” Fire Skull said slowly. “Someone like you and me.”

“W-What? You think it’s embezzlement?!” Yin Toad frowned. “But you and I are the only ones who can enter the vault... Wait, you’re not suspecting me, are you? I didn’t do it, manager! I’m innocent!”

Yin Toad abruptly shrieked in terror. It looked like it was seconds away from dropping on its knees and begging for mercy.

“I didn’t say it was you! You don’t have the guts to do such a thing!” Fire Skull said coldly.

“Yes, yes, you know me well, manager! I wouldn’t dare do such a thing even if someone lent me the courage of ten men!” Yin Toad smiled obsequiously before continuing, “But if it’s not you or me, then who? There’s no one else who can enter the vault, is there?”

“You’re wrong,” Fire Skull said slowly. “The master and the young masters can enter the vault.”

“Wait, what?” Yin Toad exclaimed in surprise. “That can’t be right!”

“Why not? As you say, who else can infiltrate our vault and steal our stuff without being detected?”

Fire Skull’s tone grew icy. “Or are you admitting that you embezzled the yin gold after all?”

“Absolutely not! I would never!” Yin Toad shook its head in panic. “O-Oh! I remember now! Seventh Young Master came to the Ghost Tower today. He even killed a few ghosts who disobeyed him. Do you think it was him who stole the yin gold? But why though?”

“And how the fuck would I know that? His reasons are his own, and for now, it’s the best theory I can think of,” Fire Skull said coldly. “This would also explain why the thief only stole some yin gold instead of the priceless treasures.”

“Phew... Does that mean we’re safe?” Yin Toad let out a sigh of relief.

“We’re safe? Are you stupid?” Fire Skull sneered. “The young masters may have the right to enter the vault, but Ghost Tower is master’s property. Without his express permission, no one is allowed to remove a rock or even a speck of dust from the vault. No one.”

“Maybe master would forgive Seventh Young Master for taking the yin gold without permission, but you and I would definitely be charged with dereliction of duty! Worst case scenario, we might even be executed for our ‘crimes’!”

“Ahh! What... What do we do then? I don’t want to die!” Yin Toad panicked again. “Should we hide this from master then?”

“Fool!” Fire Skull spat. “There is a small chance we might survive if we hide this from master, but we are dead the second he finds out about it. You can commit suicide if you want to, but I’m not dying or living in fear for the rest of my life!”

Yin Toad realized that Fire Skull had a plan and asked urgently, “Do you have a plan, manager? Tell me, please!”

“What other plan is there? We need to find Seventh Young Master as soon as possible,” Fire Skull declared.

“Right, right! The sooner we locate Seventh Young Master and ask him why he sto—I mean, took the yin gold, the sooner we’ll be saved! If we can take back the yin gold from him, then even better!” Yin Toad exclaimed in excitement. “I’ll send everyone to search for Seventh Young Master immediately!”

But Fire Skull chided him immediately, “Fool! Do you want everyone and their mothers to know about the theft? By the way, how many people know about this?”

“O-Only three people. You, me, and my subordinate,” Yin Toad answered.

“Thank goodness. Find a handful of people we can absolutely trust and have them search for Seventh Young Master. I shouldn’t need to tell you, but the search must be conducted with absolute secrecy. If the master finds out about this, you and I are both going to die, understand?”

“Yes, yes. You’re a wise ghost, manager,” Yin Toad flattered.

“No time for bootlicking. Go get it done now,” Fire Skull ordered. “And remember, we’re against the clock here. There is only so long I can keep this hidden, understand?”

“Yes, yes, I understand!” Yin Toad hurriedly nodded and left the place to carry out its orders.

“I hope it really is Seventh Young Master who stole the item!”

After Yin Toad was gone, Fire Skull looked up and sighed deeply. “Otherwise... sigh...”