Chapter 57

Since they were here, it was only natural to correct the improper behavior of this unorthodox temple.

By the time the fat Daoist came to his senses, his Sect Master was already deeply in character, lecturing several people from Xiaoyao Sect.

“Running a temple, how can you be like this? No temple gate, no robe worn, and the Daoist is so young!” He said this with considerable disdain, glancing at Ke Xingzhou.

Ke Xingzhou: “?”

He was already good-looking, and today was the premiere of the second season. He had just finished recording the opening song, hadn’t removed his makeup yet, and the makeup artist had deliberately emphasized his eyebrows and eyes, making them look more striking than usual. Even a man like him couldn’t help but be stunned for two seconds.

The Jiulong Sect Master withdrew his gaze indignantly, thinking, where on earth does this guy look more like a Daoist than me?

How dare he steal so many of his followers!

The Jiulong Sect Master continued pointing fingers at Xiaoyao Sect: “...Raising a bunch of benevolent ghosts as actors is one thing, but at least give them a proper hiding place! Wandering around outside without any organization or discipline, and scaring potential followers—what kind of example is that!”

With the tone of an experienced person speaking, he made perfect sense. Zhu Chu listened and was very receptive, nodding repeatedly and admitting his work had been negligent.

He even eagerly asked the Jiulong Sect Master for advice: “Daoist, how do you think we should improve? To be honest, Xiaoyao Sect was in decline for a while and has only recently started anew. We haven’t done many things properly, and funds are insufficient. It would be a great honor to receive guidance from a senior like you!”

The Jiulong Sect Master, flattered by the praise, straightened his back and nodded faintly with an air of dignified charisma: “Hmm.”

Indeed, very refined!

Fat Daoist: “...”

Seeing the two of them having such a lively conversation, the Chief Director and Fat Daoist stood nearby, stunned.

Especially the Fat Daoist.

Although he had previously fooled quite a few old men and women, honestly, tricking fellow Daoists was a first.

People in their line of work usually stay hidden, hiding and dodging is normal. When he went out shopping for incense and ingots, he had to disguise himself heavily. In familiar places, he could only send runners and didn’t dare leave the door, fearing others would discover his occupation.

Not to mention someone like the tall skinny one, who brought him directly to a fellow sect’s temple, talked openly, and even took the lead.

Watching the entire “unorthodox” room happily interacting, the Fat Daoist felt an unprecedented sense of ease and the work atmosphere he had long dreamed of, letting out a long sob.

No wonder although he and the tall skinny one joined the organization at the same time and were sent to the capital to develop business, the higher-ups specifically appointed the tall skinny one as leader, making him the assistant.

The Fat Daoist had been silently resentful before but now finally understood why—

Turns out he was just too incompetent!On the other side, the Jiulong Sect Master saw Zhu Chu’s humility and his grief calmed considerably.

Just then, Peng Jingshan, who had fainted from fright, slowly woke up, and everyone’s attention turned to him.

Peng Jingshan had just woken up and was still a bit disoriented seeing a circle of people around him until he recognized a familiar face: “...Director Zhou? What happened to me? Why is everyone surrounding me?”

Director Zhou was a bit surprised: “You don’t remember?”

Peng Jingshan shook his head, his expression dark and dull: “Not really.”

Director Zhou’s expression brightened; he was about to say that forgetting was fine since it wasn’t anything important, and just let it slide.

But unexpectedly, Peng Jingshan rubbed his aching head, thought for a moment, glanced at his left palm, then suddenly his expression changed: “I—I remember now! Director Zhou... there are ghosts, your production team has ghosts!”

Director Zhou: “...”

He cleared his throat and glanced nervously at the Daoists on either side.

Of course, he knew there were ghosts at the base, and not just one — all had appeared on the show. It was ridiculously unbelievable.

But when the Special Incident Management Bureau came earlier, they had explicitly told him not to tell others about this, so he couldn’t just directly tell Peng Jingshan the ghosts were in the base. He had to go along with Peng’s words and asked, “Is that so? What exactly do you remember?”

Peng Jingshan was panicked and didn’t notice the odd attitude. He nodded and began describing with a pale face.

He had just been a little tired from filming and wanted to take a casual stroll inside the base during his break to relax.

When he saw those female ghosts, he didn’t think much of it.

After all, the filming base was so large, and with so many people involved, it was normal for some family members who liked to follow the stars to be brought in. As long as it didn’t affect the contestants, it was fine.

Only the elderly woman with white hair surprised him somewhat, so he glanced at her a couple more times.

...At such an advanced age, she still came here to follow stars?

But he himself came from humble beginnings and knew how joyful it was to have fans’ support in the early career stages, so he didn’t say anything to drive them away.

He had intended to just pretend not to see them and leave, but unexpectedly they were so enthusiastic, pulling him over to discuss which contestant had the best muscles.

Honestly, ever since the entertainment industry gradually became all about views, Peng Jingshan hadn’t encountered fans who treated him like an ordinary person for a long time. So even though he suspected they might simply not recognize him, he cooperated and stayed.

In Peng Jingshan’s era, the bar to become a star was very high, and physique management was a required subject.

He was enthusiastically explaining physique management when suddenly the atmosphere turned strange, as if cold winds were blowing, making him shiver.

Being a gentleman, Peng Jingshan thought the ladies were dressed lightly and worried they might catch a cold, so he intended to invite them indoors to warm up.

But when he turned his head, he saw several female ghosts with bleeding seven orifices flying and tumbling in the air.

Peng Jingshan: “...”

He was so frightened that his mind went blank and he felt terrible.

Then, just as seen on the surveillance footage, he panicked and tried to run but slipped, falling hard on his butt.

The female ghosts were startled and tried to help him up, but when they got close, Peng Jingshan’s expression changed drastically, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.The next time he woke up was now.

Peng Jingshan solemnly concluded, “Director Zhou, I really didn’t lie to you. If you don’t believe me, go check the surveillance! There really are ghosts at this base, many of them, and they’re all perverts!!”

Director Zhou was silent for a moment, then looked strangely behind him.

Since Peng Jingshan woke up, the old lady ghost and the others had consciously restrained themselves, hiding in the corner to avoid being seen by Peng Jingshan and causing more trouble.

When Peng Jingshan said this, several ghosts immediately became restless.

What do you mean perverts? What did we do?

We just glanced at the abs through the window and couldn’t help but blow a cold wind on them! We’re already ghosts and don’t get to enjoy any good sights, so what fun is there?

Besides, Peng Jingshan was with them watching at the time — why didn’t he call them perverts then?

This is blatant slander!

The ghosts all got angry, causing the temperature in the room to drop sharply, with cold winds whipping toward Peng Jingshan.

Peng Jingshan couldn’t see them, only feeling the bone-chilling cold piercing through his bones, just like when those female ghosts lunged at him before, and his expression changed drastically.

“Director Zhou! Director Zhou, look! This wind is definitely caused by those female ghosts. They’re trying to cause trouble again!!”

Director Zhou: “...”

Director Zhou wiped his face and forced himself to calm Peng Jingshan: “Calm down first. Could it be that you’re just tired from work lately and saw things wrong?”

He tried to steer Peng Jingshan toward the idea of hallucinations, but Peng Jingshan shook his head firmly and held out his left hand.

Director Zhou wondered what this was about and instinctively shook his hand.

Then he heard Peng Jingshan say, “I’m absolutely sure! Director Zhou, smell your own hand, and you’ll understand why I’m so certain it’s haunted.”

Director Zhou: “?”

Still confused, Director Zhou actually bent down and smelled his palm.

A terrible stench hit his nose and almost made him vomit: “...What the hell? Did you rub some canned herring on your hand??”

Peng Jingshan placed his left hand as far from his body as possible, looking solemn: “This is the smell of bound feet cloth.”

Director Zhou: “...”

Everyone: “...”

Strange gazes slowly focused behind Peng Jingshan, where the old lady ghost’s face turned pale and flushed, and the half-step she had taken forward with fierce momentum instantly retracted, shrinking her three-inch bound feet back under her skirt.

Since she made a mistake and was sent to the Xiaoyao Sect by the Ghost Official, this bound feet cloth had caused quite a lot of trouble.

Previous times could be called accidents, but honestly, this time Peng Jingshan had no evidence proving he fainted from ghost fright. If Director Zhou insisted, it was possible to convince him it was all just an illusion.

If not for the old lady ghost’s bound feet cloth smelling so awful, they might have been acquitted by now.So even though her face was thick-skinned, she couldn’t continue to act so confidently anymore.

Peng Jingshan was completely unaware of this and still spoke slowly and deliberately: “When I fell, I instinctively reached to the side and grabbed one of the female ghosts’ bound feet cloths, and that’s what made me faint from the stench!”

At first, he also doubted if he was just too tired, but if it was really a hallucination, how could he explain the foul smell on his hand?

The more Peng Jingshan thought about it, the more he was sure his memory was correct. Especially since the stench on his hand was getting stronger, he even felt the ghost might still be beside him.

But now, with so many people around him, he wasn’t as scared as before. Instead, he felt the strange events happening to him recently had some clues.

He raised his left hand high: “This smell, even if I die, I could never forget it!!”

Everyone: “…………”

He shouted hoarsely, making Director Zhou too embarrassed to keep brushing it off, so he vaguely admitted that Peng Jingshan was indeed haunted.

Fortunately, this matter was discovered in time and hadn’t spread outside, and Ke Xingzhou and the others were also present.

Since they were all their own ghosts, he was about to suggest asking Ke Xingzhou to help gather these spirits and put on a show to reassure Peng Jingshan, but Peng Jingshan spoke first.

“I heard there’s a very skilled Daoist priest on your show. Is he here now?”

Director Zhou was pleased and about to nod, but then saw Peng Jingshan’s gaze sweep the crowd, pause on Ke Xingzhou’s face for a moment, then quickly shift without hesitation and settle on two people wearing Daoist robes.

“Must be these two, right?”

Ke Xingzhou: “…”

Director Zhou: “…”

Director Zhou wiped his face: “If you want to find them, that’s fine.”

After all, the two sects had already communicated well.

After saying this, he introduced them briefly.

There wasn’t much to say; Peng Jingshan’s resume in the entertainment industry was quite rich, but he was still relatively unknown, since being a long-time supporting actor often meant being overlooked.

As for these two Daoist priests, Director Zhou had just met them himself, at most he could tell Peng Jingshan which sect they belonged to.

But by now, the matter could basically be resolved immediately. Director Zhou finally relaxed and was in the mood to watch the fun, curiously eyeing the fat and skinny Daoist priests.

The Nine Dragons Sect sounded very imposing. Judging by how Zhu Chu treated the two Daoist priests from Nine Dragons before, it seemed even stronger than Xiaoyao Sect.

It must be a very capable sect!

Thinking this, he couldn’t help but add during the introduction: “They’re a very proper and powerful sect!”

Zhu Chu: “…”

Ke Xingzhou: “…”

Both master and disciple were silent for a moment but, looking at the equipment of the fat and skinny Daoists and comparing it with their own, they had to admit the other side indeed looked more professional and legitimate.

No wonder Peng Jingshan immediately overlooked them and thought those two were from Xiaoyao Sect!The fat and skinny Daoist priests from Nine Dragons Sect were originally enjoying the spectacle, but when everyone’s attention suddenly focused on them, they couldn’t help but panic a little.

However, as battle-hardened members of the heterodox path, this feeling only lasted for a moment before they forced it down.

The tall skinny one, carrying the sect leader’s demeanor, barely calm, nodded: “Fine. Since this matter is somewhat related to us, we’ll help you out.”

He then looked up and gestured to the fat Daoist to prepare a list of the usual trick items they use to deceive people.

At first, Peng Jingshan was a bit surprised when he heard these two Daoist priests were not from that Xiaoyao Sect mentioned online. But seeing how professional they were now, his heart immediately relaxed.

The two Daoists were also relieved.

Although they were heterodox, they hadn’t learned much, at most just a few illusions to cover their own backgrounds so they wouldn’t be seen through by proper professionals and could fool ignorant believers.

In the past, when performing rituals, they even had to hire extras to act as ghosts, which was always risky of being exposed.

This time was different—the actors were still actors, but had now been replaced by real ghosts. They didn’t even have to really do anything, just put on a show and collect the ghosts.

They had never performed such an easy ritual before!

--

The list prepared by the fat and skinny Daoists was hard to procure—full of things like 10-year-old black dog blood, 20-year-old black donkey hoof, black rooster blood, and the like. If you really wanted to find them, it would be difficult.

After seeing their list, Zhu Chu leaned over to Ke Xingzhou and whispered, “Master, they’re so professional, they even limit the years on black dog blood…”

Indeed, a proper Daoist sect uses such fine materials.

Unlike their own Xiaoyao Sect…

Zhu Chu felt discouraged thinking that their sect nowadays didn’t even have ritual tools and relied solely on Ke Xingzhou to send out talismans one by one.

Compared to Nine Dragons Sect, their sect was basically still a novice.

There was still a long way to go…

Fortunately, everyone knew this ritual was just a formality. Director Zhou hesitated for a moment, then decisively handed the list to the props team to find some substitutes.

So half an hour later, the ritual was hastily finished.

The old female ghost and a few female ghosts performed a show of their souls dispersing. Though their expressions were exaggerated and movements stiff, at least Peng Jingshan watched them disappear before his eyes.

Thinking that such a large sect probably wouldn’t fake things, Peng Jingshan hesitated briefly, then finally felt reassured.

The tall skinny one was also very satisfied with the ritual he performed.

By now, their mission at the filming base was basically complete.

They confirmed that Xiaoyao Sect was heterodox, established their own righteous identity, learned about new era heterodox publicity methods, and boosted their confidence through a ritual.

It was a fruitful harvest.

The fat Daoist felt a bit down after realizing his shortcomings but cheered up a bit thinking their heterodox sect could now openly appear before people.The two were each thinking their own thoughts and were about to leave when unexpectedly Peng Jingshan called them back.

“Two Daoist priests, I actually have an impertinent request…” Peng Jingshan hesitated for a moment, then began to explain patiently, “Lately, I feel like my life has become a bit off. I want to ask you two to help see what exactly is wrong.”

The fat and skinny Daoists: “...???”

The two priests were a bit dumbfounded, thinking, what kind of luck is this today, rituals one after another?

From Peng Jingshan’s words, he wanted them to do fortune-telling?

They exchanged a glance, feeling awkward.

If they were proper Daoists, fine, free business is always welcome.

But both of them were heterodox, and not very skilled at that. Usually they only fooled middle-aged and elderly people, with rehearsed lines. Suddenly faced with a sane, mature man, they felt a bit uneasy.

Seeing their expressions, Peng Jingshan thought he was being rude and quickly assured them he wouldn’t let them work for nothing—he would definitely pay.

The fat and skinny Daoists: “...”

Is it really about money?!

The tall skinny one glanced at Ke Xingzhou and the others watching eagerly and felt even less confident.

Earlier he had pretended to be from a respectable sect and severely scolded Peng Jingshan. Now if they found out he was just heterodox, he would be laughed at.

And that would be the mildest consequence.

Thinking of how his organization dealt with disobedient juniors, the tall one started sweating and waved his hands to refuse, “No no no, this is Xiaoyao Sect after all, this isn’t appropriate…”

Before he finished speaking, Peng Jingshan pulled out a check and filled in a long string of zeros.

The tall one was immediately dazzled by the numbers, and the words he was about to say turned into, “…But our founder is merciful, you might as well tell us what you’re experiencing.”

Director Zhou: “…”

Zhu Chu: “Wow.”

He widened his eyes, sparkling with surprise.

After all this comparison, he finally found the similarity between their East Gate and Nine Dragons Sect—the speed at which they changed their tune was exactly like his master’s!

Ke Xingzhou: “…”

By then, the price was settled, and Peng Jingshan began to complain about his recent experiences: “Here’s the thing, lately I suddenly discovered that many people can’t see me…”

Peng Jingshan had been feeling strange lately.

He had played supporting roles for years, often praised online as a golden supporting actor, with each role very unique and never breaking the immersion—sounds honorable, but in reality, the praise brought him more distress than joy.

Being a bit-faced supporting actor meant he could never be remembered by the audience by his real name. After so many years in the entertainment industry, he was still a supporting actor. Who knew the bitterness he endured in private?

His acting was solid, professional, and he was friendly with everyone. Everyone knew he was ready, but he just couldn’t wait for his own starring role.

Finally, in the past two years, a director noticed him. After two years of hard work, he starred in a deeply meaningful historical film and won three Golden Awards for Best Actor. Peng Jingshan thought his brilliant life was finally starting. But the online hype was lively, yet his life hadn’t changed at all; in fact, it was even lonelier than before he won the awards.At first, he went to the company to sign an endorsement contract. Passing by the front desk, he greeted as usual, but unexpectedly received no response.

He didn’t think much of it at the time, assuming the receptionist was preoccupied and didn’t notice his greeting.

But later, when he entered the elevator, what happened made his heart sink even more.

He was considered a veteran at the agency. Even when he only played supporting roles, the company’s artists were always polite to him and would voluntarily let him have the elevator first.

Yet that day, everyone treated him with extreme coldness.

Not greeting him was one thing, but a young artist who was usually very respectful even pushed him away in the crowded elevator, impatiently saying, “Can you show some awareness? We’re rushing to sign a contract. Bystanders just wait for the next one!”

After saying this arrogantly, the young artist pressed the close door button right in front of him and even rolled his eyes.

He was shocked beyond words and for a moment forgot to stop him, just watching dumbfoundedly as the elevator door closed, staring at his reflection on the door.

After a long while, he finally calmed down and took the next elevator up to sign the contract.

Fortunately, he usually arrived early and didn’t miss the signing because of the elevator. But this incident left a shadow in his heart. Thinking back on it now, his expression darkens and he feels exhausted.

“So unfair!” Zhu Chu couldn’t help but protest when he heard this. “I get it, before he was just an actor and people only fawned over you because you were more famous... but that’s not right. You just won the triple golden best actor awards. Shouldn’t they treat you even better now? Why did they suddenly turn against you?”

This was exactly what Peng Jingshan couldn’t understand.

Honestly, he had long seen through the industry’s way of elevating some while putting others down. If they showed this side of themselves because he had fallen, he wouldn’t be surprised at all.

But it happened right after he won the triple golden best actor awards.

“In fact, it’s not just him. Since I finished filming that movie, I’ve felt like an invisible person. Everyone deliberately ignores me and doesn’t talk to me,” Peng Jingshan rubbed his face, very dejected.

He had thought this was just an isolated case, but after that day, it spiraled out of control.

Even his wife and children sometimes forgot he existed. Only when he spoke up asking why they ignored him did they seem to suddenly realize he was there and ask when he had arrived.

One or two times would be tolerable, but this happened every time. No matter how much Peng Jingshan didn’t want to doubt his family, he couldn’t help but suspect they were doing it on purpose.

His life, which should have been bright and glorious, suddenly became dull and dark. The huge psychological gap left him utterly confused. At one point, he even suspected his memory was faulty and that he hadn’t actually acted in the film that won him the triple golden best actor awards.

That he had just wasted two years becoming a delusional lunatic.

But when he searched online, the movie was still there.

Critics praised him highly, the film was both critically acclaimed and commercially successful, and his private messages were full of passionate confessions and support from fans.

Raising his hand to wipe tears from the corner of his eye, he suddenly smelled a foul stench. Peng Jingshan paused and switched to his right hand.

He sighed: “Because of this, I even went to see a psychiatrist. But even the nurse ignored me. When they called my name, I was standing right in front of them, but they deliberately ignored me and almost skipped my turn…”

Any normal person would break down after being ignored for no reason like this. Peng Jingshan had waited his whole life for this chance to become best actor, eagerly looking forward to a new life, but received this treatment instead.

Even if he didn’t have a mental illness, he was forced into depression.

Now Peng Jingshan was even afraid of cameras. In front of the camera, he couldn’t help but suspect his delusions were flaring up again and wanted to take some pills to calm down and confirm he was still living in the real world.This time, he also felt scared facing the camera, so he ran out alone.

Unexpectedly, he ran into that group of brazen female ghosts.

The unreliable employee at their own company was mentioned again. Zhu Chu was silent for a moment.

He recalled the little mishap when entering earlier and quietly said to Ke Xingzhou, “Speaking of which, I didn’t recognize him when I came over just now. It’s really strange...”

Ke Xingzhou glanced at him but didn’t reply.

Peng Jingshan had commissioned Jiulong Temple, not their Xiaoyao Sect. Ke Xingzhou was a bit disinterested because he wasn’t making money and didn’t want to spend energy solving someone else’s problem.

Anyway, Jiulong Temple looked pretty impressive; such a simple issue shouldn’t be beyond them.

Director Zhou, seeing Peng Jingshan’s state, also recalled a rumor that had been widely circulated in the circle recently.

They said that this once-gold medal supporting actor got arrogant after playing a lead role—forgetting lines, messing up blocking, and having more takes than in his entire previous career. Several directors had already complained about him.

Although Director Zhou was mainly a variety show director, he had wide connections and was friends with several well-known directors. Recently, when Peng Jingshan was filming on one director’s set, Zhou almost daily saw that director complaining in group chats, cursing Peng as a waste, saying winning the best actor award made him forget his original intention.

Zhou didn’t think it had much to do with “original intention.”

After all, Peng Jingshan was already in his forties, and forgetting things at that age was normal.

But those directors didn’t see it that way. One particularly bad-tempered director even cursed Peng to his face, saying if he didn’t want to act, he should go do variety shows to make money and not dirty the film industry.

That’s when Peng Jingshan’s schedule freed up and they invited him over.

He initially thought Peng Jingshan was just old and worn out. Now he saw it wasn’t like that.

Remembering that he hadn’t recognized Peng Jingshan at first, and only later realized who he was when Peng stuck a name tag on himself, Director Zhou couldn’t help but feel a bit scared.

He was no longer the same person as before. After experiencing the haunted house incident, he felt nothing in this world was surprising.

Director Zhou instinctively thought this matter had something to do with ghosts and anxiously glanced at Ke Xingzhou.

Ke Xingzhou was curled up on the sofa, nearly asleep.

Director Zhou: “...”

He had no choice but to ask the two Daoist priests from Jiulong Temple, “Masters, what exactly is going on? So many people are affected in broad daylight. Could it be some sort of ghost king?”

Both the tall thin and the fat Daoist shuddered, cold sweat breaking out on their foreheads.

They had thought it was some simple fate problem and figured their bluffing skills and some crooked tricks could get them through.

Who knew it was such a serious matter!

It sounded like the strange thing behind this could appear in broad daylight and simultaneously affect the consciousness of dozens or even hundreds of people, causing everyone to ignore Peng Jingshan’s existence.

It couldn’t really be a ghost king!

They exchanged a glance and saw fear in each other’s eyes.

After all, they were just two slightly skilled con artists. If they really encountered a powerful ghost, they’d probably die faster than these ordinary people, let alone the legendary ghost king!Ghosts also have a hierarchy among themselves.

It is said that a leader of more than 10 fierce ghosts is called a Ghost Leader, and only those who command over 100 fierce ghosts can be called a Ghost King.

When a Ghost King appears, corpses lie for thousands of miles. How could someone like them, minor characters, dare to provoke one?

The two immediately backed down.

But under everyone’s watchful eyes, they couldn’t escape. The tall thin one forced himself to look at Ke Xingzhou: “Fellow Daoist, what do you think?”

They were all grasshoppers on the same rope, and since this was happening on the other party’s turf, at a time like this, they should at least help out.

Ke Xingzhou raised his eyelids and looked at them strangely.

However, he did not suspect their intentions. After all, the old men from the Taoist Association liked to test him with puzzles before—it was probably some strange hobby.

Ke Xingzhou had originally wanted to sleep but had to sit up now. He glanced at Peng Jingshan, then at the two from Jiulong Temple.

Only then did Peng Jingshan realize that Ke Xingzhou was the Daoist from Xiaoyao Sect who had been trending hotly on social media.

Xiaoyao Sect had been trending for several days, with all kinds of miraculous stories spreading online—Peng himself knew about it. So, even though Ke Xingzhou was young, Peng didn’t dare to underestimate him and looked at him with hope.

Ke Xingzhou indeed looked serious and slowly said, “Are you paying?”

Peng Jingshan: “...”

He was silent for a moment, then nodded helplessly with a forced smile, “Of course, I am.”

Though he had mostly played supporting roles over the years, he had saved quite a bit of money.

He understood clearly that money is something you neither bring into the world nor take out of it; no matter how much you earn, it’s not as important as your own life.

If he continued to be ignored by everyone like this, even without a mental illness, he would be driven to one.

Following the treatment given by Jiulong Temple, he wrote another check for Ke Xingzhou and nervously looked at him again, hoping for an answer.

Ke Xingzhou glanced at the number on the check, hesitated, but didn’t reach out to take it. Instead, he opened an app on his phone and tapped a black-and-white wooden fish a few times.

Peng Jingshan: “...?”

Zhu Chu also found the wooden fish a bit ridiculous.

No one knew who developed this app, but his master opened it every day to tap it, as if accumulating merit for himself.

Tapping it regularly was one thing, but taking it out in a situation like this made their Taoist temple look unreliable!

Sure enough, hesitation appeared on Peng Jingshan’s face.

Zhu Chu’s heart tightened. Before he could comfort Peng Jingshan, Ke Xingzhou reached out and took the check.

Those people online who reposted the talisman and got help also contributed merit to him. Although it was little, it came daily and accumulated over time.

The number on the “merit ATM” was already enough to cover the check amount. Ke Xingzhou’s mood improved quite a bit, and at this moment, Peng Jingshan, who had repeatedly been ignored, looked much better to him.He didn’t beat around the bush: “You’ve lost face.”

Peng Jingshan: “...”

Zhu Chu: “...”

The lounge fell into silence; everyone was stunned by Ke Xingzhou’s unreliable words.

The fat and thin Daoists from Jiulong Temple were also speechless. They had thought Ke Xingzhou was just being mysterious and would say something impressive, but this?

It was no better than the lies they made up to fool old people!

Peng Jingshan looked completely distrustful. After a moment of silence, he looked at the two Daoists from Jiulong Temple: “Is… is that really the case?”

The tall thin one was about to use his usual spiel to fool him, but then Ke Xingzhou spoke again. His first sentence shocked Peng Jingshan: “This didn’t start after you finished filming, right? The specific time should be earlier, probably when you went to audition for this role?”