The moment Lin Chen shook the man's hand, the familiar translucent prompt resurfaced before his eyes.
---
[Greedy Ghost Identified]
Name: Qian Zhen
Level: Ghost Level
Friendliness: 40 (Strongly Favorable)
[Background:]
Born in a remote mountain village, impoverished to the point of starvation.
The entire village pooled money to send him to university—grain, coins, even wedding funds.
He repaid every kindness tenfold after finding success.
He rewarded benefactors.
He employed their children.
He even ensured the village dogs were fed daily.
But greed invited betrayal.
A fellow villager coveted his fortune and pushed him down the stairs.
At the moment of death, Qian Zhen was clutching a safe stuffed with banknotes.
He never let go.
[Hint:]
Money has an unparalleled effect on the greedy.
But beware—he despises those who exploit goodwill.
---
Lin Chen kept his smile steady, though his heartbeat hammered painfully in his ears.
This one's manageable, he thought. But only if I control the amount.
Ghost coins were measured in hundreds of millions. He had no real sense of their value. Give too little, and he'd offend the supervisor. Give too much, and he'd paint a target on his back.
His gaze flicked briefly to his inventory.
Incense sticks.
They were listed alongside ghost coins—clearly another form of currency. In the real world, incense was cheap. Here, it was ritualized value.
After a brief hesitation, Lin Chen sent two incense sticks.
The friendliness meter jumped instantly.
[Friendliness +40]
Lin Chen's heart skipped.
Too much.
Pain flared in his chest like he'd ripped out a chunk of himself. But his face didn't change. He forced a respectful smile and lowered his head slightly.
Qian Zhen's grin stretched unnaturally wide, nearly splitting his face in half. His lips twitched, as if restraining laughter.
Then—just as suddenly—his expression collapsed back into rigid indifference.
He turned toward the group.
"Now that everyone is present," Qian Zhen said coldly, "I will state my rules once."
He gestured lazily toward the corpse on the ground—the former class monitor, his skull torn open like a smashed melon. The black dog beside him gnawed happily, crunching wet bone.
"In my territory," Qian Zhen continued, "lateness is forbidden.
Interrupting me is forbidden.
And betrayal—"
His gaze lingered deliberately on the body.
"—is unforgivable."
The students trembled, but understanding dawned through the fear.
These are his kill conditions.
Ghosts in the Paradox Realm—at least those below Evil Level—could not slaughter indiscriminately. They were bound by rules. As long as those rules weren't broken, they were terrifying… but predictable.
Break them once—
And survival became a matter of mood.
Lin Chen exhaled quietly.
I exploited his weakness, he realized. That's why I'm still alive.
Qian Zhen spoke again. "Work assignments. Fewer mouths, less waste."
He pointed to three male students.
"Security."
Then three girls.
"Cleaning."
Finally, his gaze settled on Lin Chen and the remaining two.
"You three. Customer Service."
He turned to leave, then paused.
"Oh. Cleaning team."
He pointed casually at the half-headed corpse.
"Send that to the cafeteria. The brothers are hungry."
The girls recoiled violently, shaking their heads in horror.
Qian Zhen's face darkened.
A thick black mist seeped from his body.
"Disobedience?" he asked softly.
"Is that… betrayal?"
Lin Chen's scalp tingled.
So even refusal counts.
Before the atmosphere could snap, one girl screamed softly and grabbed the others, gagging as they dragged the corpse away, blood streaking across the concrete.
Qian Zhen nodded, satisfied.
"Go. All of you. If you can't even find your departments, you're useless to me."
---
As Lin Chen followed Qian Zhen toward the customer service building, the true horror of Coffin View Community revealed itself.
A ghost missing half its torso dragged itself across the road, tire marks still embedded in its flesh.
A bloated, waterlogged woman stood dripping endlessly beneath a broken faucet, her eyes swollen shut.
A charred figure leaned against a wall, smoke still curling from its blackened ribs.
Lin Chen swallowed.
Those two incense sticks weren't wasted, he realized grimly. Without Qian Zhen escorting us, someone would've died just from panic.
Inside the customer service office, Lin Chen bowed slightly.
"Hello. My name is Lin Chen. I'll be working here for the next few days. Please take care of me."
As he spoke, he discreetly slipped 100 million ghost coins into Qian Zhen's hand.
"Hmm?"
[Friendliness +5]
Got it, Lin Chen noted.
A 'hmm' costs one hundred million.
Qian Zhen accepted the money without comment, then draped an arm around Lin Chen's shoulders with unsettling familiarity.
"This employee understands etiquette," he announced. "Help him. Talk to him."
Then he left.
The office fell silent.
There were only two other "employees."
One was swollen and green, his flesh slipping like wet clay.
The other… had no head.
Blood bubbled rhythmically from the smooth cut at his neck.
"Uh… hello," croaked the rotting man.
"Gulu… gulu…" came from the headless one.
Prompts unfolded.
---
[Rotting Ghost]
Name: Zhou An
Level: Evil Ghost
Friendliness: 10
[Background:]
Severe social anxiety. No friends in life.
Died alone at home.
Body discovered only after extreme decomposition.
[Hint:]
Avoids social contact.
Desperately longs for friendship.
---
[Headless Ghost]
Name: Luo Jie
Level: Evil Ghost
Friendliness: -201
[Background:]
Former street racer.
Decapitated by a steel cable stretched across the road.
[Hint:]
Resents attention you receive.
Terrified of ropes.
Desperately wants his head back.
---
Lin Chen's stomach sank.
Still hates me.
Even among ghosts, resentment lingered.
Before he could act, two classmates rushed over.
"Brother Lin!" Wang Hao whispered urgently. "You've got to look out for me."
Beside him, a girl named Tang Xue deliberately loosened her jacket, leaning forward.
"We'll listen to you. Anything you say."
Lin Chen glanced once—then looked away.
This isn't safety, he thought. This is desperation.
He walked past them.
The stench hit him immediately.
Zhou An's body radiated decay so strong it made Lin Chen's vision blur. Fighting nausea, he sat beside him.
"Hey," Lin Chen said gently. "I'm new. Can I ask you about the job if I get confused?"
Zhou An shrank back instinctively, staring at the phone on his desk.
"…Y-yes."
Lin Chen's face lit up exaggeratedly.
"That's great! I don't know why, but I felt like we'd get along the moment I saw you."
He paused, then asked softly—
"Can we be friends?"
Zhou An froze.
"…Friends?"
"Yes," Lin Chen said firmly. "I mean it."
---
[Friendliness +90]
[Friendliness MAXED]
[Rewards:]
Ghost Qi +30
Special Item: Oni Whisperer's Polaroid
Zhou An's swollen eyes filled with tears.
For the first time since entering Coffin View Community, Lin Chen felt something colder than fear.
Loneliness, he realized, is the most exploitable weakness of all.
---