Chapter 33: I Want Xiong Wenwen

What is this? A pattern of some sort? Have I been marked?

Shen Lin keenly sensed that Li Meng's loss of consciousness was directly linked to this ghostly entity. He attempted to use the power of the Inversion Ghost, but it yielded no results.

Whatever this ghost had done to Li Meng, it appeared to be a form of marking. This gave Shen Lin a bad premonition; he felt as though the horror inherent in the Ghost Staircase itself was plotting something.

It had set its sights on him—Shen Lin was absolutely certain of this.

Li Meng remained in a comatose state, his spirit absent, though thankfully his body had returned to normal. Shen Lin instructed Chen Zuo to have someone watch over him and notify him immediately if there were any further changes to Li Meng's condition.

"I have to do something. If I leave that ghost alone, it will eventually backfire on me."

The Ghost Staircase had clearly entered a growth phase. It might have gathered all its puzzle pieces, or perhaps it was merely accumulating strength. What was certain was that once that ghost had gathered its full power, he would be unable to resist it.

He had to act while it was at its weakest and contain it as soon as possible; otherwise, it would become a major threat.

Zhao Jianguo's call came even earlier than Shen Lin had anticipated. The other party seemed desperate to learn about the Ghost Staircase incident.

"Shen Lin, it's me, Zhao Jianguo. Wu Qiu reported what you told him. Do you have any more detailed information on your end?"

"No. I was trapped inside once, and most of what I know is speculation. I suspect that the ghost is beginning to develop rudimentary intelligence and possesses the ability to influence other ghosts." Shen Lin spoke the truth. Just as he once hadn't worried about Xiang Jie in Dongchuan City seeking his own death, he didn't worry about the Headquarters doing the same. The ghosts surrounding the Ghost Staircase were already numerous enough; adding a few more wouldn't change the overall situation.

"We are willing to believe all of this. If possible, we would like to invite you to take action once more. You understand the Ghost Staircase incident best and would be the most capable of handling it. If you are willing, Headquarters will permit all your actions within the scope of our authorization and provide corresponding resources," Zhao Jianguo stated. He phrased everything as perfectly as possible, clearly eager for Shen Lin to intervene.

One of the ghost-controllers dispatched for support three hours ago had already fallen, and the ghost's range of influence was still expanding. If left unchecked, it might eventually cover the entire Dongchuan City. The Ghost Staircase incident was far more terrifying than they had imagined; Shen Lin had been absolutely right.

Shen Lin frowned, weighing the possibilities. Headquarters' ghost-controllers were a mixed bag, mostly dead weight, and one incompetent person could easily lead to his death.

"Complex incidents cannot be assessed for danger levels based on rank alone. The Ghost Staircase incident is currently quite complicated in relation to my own situation. I can intervene, but let's drop the nonsense about 'within the scope of authorization'—I require unconditional cooperation."

That was his condition. Shen Lin needed to maximize his benefits. The unique nature of his Ghost Mask made him a special case among ghost-controllers—he was the type to grow stronger when facing stronger opposition. However, the horror of the Inversion Ghost was still fresh in his mind, and there was another terrifying ghost near the Ghost Staircase—that ghost had wind chimes playing music, and heaven knows what else it possessed.

Zhao Jianguo fell silent. The demand was significant, and he was contemplating it.

"We need to discuss this."

Shen Lin frowned. He was very dissatisfied with Headquarters' attitude. He wanted them to recognize the severity of the Ghost Staircase, but they seemed to be downplaying it repeatedly.

"I will be very frank with you: I can take this job or leave it. You should know something about my uniqueness from Wang Xiaoming; I have many ways to solve the problems I face." Shen Lin's voice was cold as he stated this plainly.

The Ghost Staircase incident was not unsolvable. The staircase itself wasn't terrifying, and with the Ghost Mask having transformed into the Inversion Ghost, he could face the Inversion Ghost without fear. With a bit of luck and the cooperation of others, he could resolve the incident smoothly.

But Shen Lin was by no means limited to this one option. He had made it very clear: he had many choices.

If the Ghost Staircase incident truly evolved into something uncontrollable, he would risk offending Yang Jian and drawing the attention of those relics from the Republic era to try his luck with the Human Skin Paper and the Ghost Cabinet.

That was his bottom line. He didn't want to provoke Yang Jian or get involved in Republic-era affairs if it wasn't necessary, but he was not without options.

"I'll give you five minutes. I also advise those politicians to put away their game theory schemes and stop trying to pay the minimum price for the maximum effort. If it comes to it, we can just walk away. The survival of Dongchuan City has nothing to do with me in Dashan City."

This was a heavy statement. Zhao Jianguo heard the dissatisfaction in Shen Lin's tone. He was equally unhappy with the Headquarters' vague promise of "within the scope of authorization."

What did "within the scope of authorization" even mean? The scope was defined by them anyway. It was essentially saying: I will give it only if I am willing, and if I don't want to bleed, you have no recourse.

"Alright."

Zhao Jianguo didn't dare say anything else, sensing that further words would only aggravate Shen Lin. Another troublesome kid—just like Yang Jian, impervious to reason and unwilling to move unless there was a tangible reward.

***

In the special conference room, most people sat stiffly.

The sudden incident in Dongchuan City had become a headache for Headquarters; they sensed a crisis approaching.

The Dongchuan City overseer, Xiang Jie, had fallen, his fate unknown. Two out of the three ghost-controllers sent to assist had already been lost, and the one who escaped barely survived and refused to intervene again. The entire city had become a stagnant pool, yet no one was willing to revitalize it.

The reason was simple: there was no guarantee they could save Dongchuan, and they could easily end up losing their own lives.

"Minister Cao, Shen Lin has replied. He is willing to intervene again, but he has set conditions: he requires our unconditional cooperation." Zhao Jianguo hurried in; with only five minutes, he couldn't afford to delay.

"Unconditional?" Everyone present sensed the special meaning behind that word. It meant Headquarters would have to satisfy all of Shen Lin's demands, including his exorbitant ones.

"Impossible. Is he Ye Zhen or Fang Shiming? What right does he have to make such a demand?" One of the team leaders was unhappy and immediately began to mock him.

Most of these team leaders were ordinary people, politicians transferred from various government agencies who spent their days focused on internal power struggles; compromise and sophistry were their preferred tactics.

Though ghost-controllers were powerful, they relied on the state's massive machinery and had little to fear.

Zhao Jianguo ignored him. In actual operations, the opinions of these people were the least reliable; aside from padding their resumes, they didn't see ghost-controllers as human.

Vice Minister Cao Yanhua remained silent, carefully contemplating the situation.

Seeing time slipping away, Zhao Jianguo spoke up again, helpless.

"Minister Cao, Shen Lin only gave us five minutes."

Cao Yanhua finally opened his eyes and swept his gaze across the room. His long tenure in high office made this gesture quite intimidating.

"Give me your opinion."

"I trust Shen Lin. He independently resolved the A-class Ghost Mother incident and escaped from the Longhu Villa complex incident. His ability is beyond doubt," Zhao Jianguo said, giving a firm and powerful recommendation. The reason he trusted Shen Lin unconditionally was naturally not that simple.

It was because Professor Wang trusted Shen Lin, and Professor Wang never made a losing investment.

"What experience could a lamb who has only been through two incidents have? His methods in the Ghost Mother incident aren't replicable; it was clearly just luck. As for the Longhu Villa incident, he escaped in a sorry state. If that's called ability, then what about the ghost-controllers who have resolved so many incidents? Are they gods of talent?" someone mocked, their tone quite rude.

Headquarters' resources were closely tied to these team leaders; they were essentially using their reputations and positions to guarantee Shen Lin, and naturally, they were not pleased.

"Fang Shiming's 'Circle of Friends' has publicly expressed goodwill toward Headquarters; they are considered the most friendly private group to us. If that's not enough, there's always Ye Zhen—though he's unreliable in speech, he has the ability," another added.

Paying a price was fine, but it had to be worth it. Compared to the first and second in Asia, an unknown newcomer was far behind.

They wanted to resolve this incident to claim credit, so naturally, they wanted to choose those they deemed reliable.

The once-quiet conference room became noisy, chaotic as a vegetable market.

"Agree to his terms."

In the midst of the noise, Cao Yanhua suddenly spoke. His voice wasn't loud, but it brought the chaotic sounds to an abrupt halt.

A look of joy appeared on Zhao Jianguo's face, but just as he was about to speak, someone cut him off.

"Vice Minister, please reconsider. It's too risky." This was one of the first people to oppose it, someone who had previously advocated for cozying up to the Circle of Friends.

"Then you go and resolve it?" Cao Yanhua didn't waste words; he stared at him and asked calmly.

Sometimes a single sentence could choke a man, and as it was now, the man opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.

"That's not what I meant. I—I'm not a ghost-controller."

"Then what are you wasting your breath for?" Cao Yanhua snorted coldly, then turned to Zhao Jianguo and said, "Go notify Shen Lin. We agree to his terms, and we hope he does his utmost to quell the incident."

"Yes." Zhao Jianguo acknowledged, gave a mocking laugh, and hurried out.

The five minutes were just right. Zhao Jianguo had Wu Qiu connect to Shen Lin's phone, and the moment it connected, he reported the news.

"Shen Lin, Headquarters has agreed, but they want you to do your utmost to quell the incident."

"There's no need for such empty words. I'm not going on a vacation. First, I want five portable, collapsible gold boxes. Second, I want Headquarters to help me find a specific type of ghost-controller—one with the ability to detect ghosts."

Shen Lin laid out his conditions. The boxes were for containment, and the detection was to lock onto the source.

The Ghost Staircase was elusive, and this was crucial.

"Alright." Zhao Jianguo agreed readily. These were minor issues compared to the incident itself. He had expected Shen Lin to make some sky-high demands, and he was surprised that Shen Lin was a man who knew his limits.

"Do you have any other conditions?" Zhao Jianguo asked as a final inquiry, quite satisfied with the conversation; the massive hemorrhaging of resources he had feared from Headquarters never materialized.

The next moment, Shen Lin's voice came through.

"I want Xiong Wenwen!"