Chapter 82 — IAVD (QT) Chapter 82

The change in the twin sisters was far too obvious—anyone nearby could notice it at a glance.

The girl in the pleated skirt noticed their expressions and blankly followed their line of sight.

After three seconds of silence, she covered her face and let out a shrill scream. Her eyes rolled back and she fainted on the spot.

The twin sisters’ legs trembled. They glanced at her but did not reach out to help.

Although they were allies, their relationship was far from close. The pleated-skirt girl was spoiled and arrogant, always speaking with a condescending, patronizing tone that made people uncomfortable.

Not to mention that they were now standing in front of a vengeful ghost—any careless move could bring fatal danger to the sisters.

They had fought their way to where they were today, stepping over the blood of countless others. They had no intention of risking themselves for an ally they didn’t even get along with.

In the end, with no one helping her, the pleated-skirt girl fell heavily to the ground. Her head struck the floor, and the pain jolted her awake.

When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a pair of shoes—Wang Qiuyue’s.

“Ghost!” she screamed, clutching the back of her head and rolling frantically across the ground, desperate to get as far away from Wang Qiuyue and her son as possible.

Wang Qiuyue casually cast her a glance, her eyes sweeping over the girl’s miserable state. Her heart was calm, completely indifferent. She turned her head and continued talking to Ji Xiu.

This wasn’t the first time she had seen players panic like this. During the many years she spent waiting in Ji Family Village for the contract to appear, she had received hundreds of groups of players. She was long used to scenes like this.

That said, it was the first time she had scared everyone away at once.

“Looks like I shouldn’t have come out,” Wang Qiuyue said helplessly as she looked at the now-empty street. “I didn’t expect this world to have humans and ghosts living together without species discrimination—yet still practice rank discrimination.”

Her level was indeed high, but was it really necessary to be this afraid of her?

She hooked a finger around Ji Xiu’s palm. “How about Springborn and I go back inside first? We’ll come out again when you call us.”

Ji Xiu looked at her and smiled gently.

If she had already said this much and he still made her retreat, wouldn’t that make him a useless man who couldn’t even protect his wife and child?

“It’s fine. You and Springborn just stay with me like this. Things should calm down soon.”

Wang Qiuyue blinked in surprise. “Huh?”

Very quickly, she understood what Ji Xiu meant.

After the pedestrians fled, the street became empty and much quieter. Only Ji Xiu’s phone continued to blare warnings—his phone contained every type of app currently on the market, just like the NPCs’. Unlike the other five players, who only had the Ghost Capture App and therefore received no alerts.

Ji Xiu took out his phone and turned off the alarm. At that moment, the sound of approaching vehicles came from the end of the street.

Bang! Several cars stopped one after another. More than a dozen middle-aged men dressed in Taoist robes jumped out, slammed their doors shut, and ran toward Ji Xiu while holding compasses, peach-wood swords, seven-star swords, and other tools.

“Where’s the vengeful ghost?!”

Before they could ask further, Ji Xiu stepped forward and apologized, “Sorry, this is a misunderstanding. They’re my wife and child—not vengeful ghosts who harm people.”

The Taoists froze, nearly losing their tempers on the spot.

“If they’re your wife and child, why didn’t you make them wear protective bracelets when bringing them out?! Do you have any idea how much trouble your carelessness causes the government—”

Ji Xiu caught a key phrase, his eyes flashing slightly.

He had known it—vengeful ghosts in this world weren’t beings that had to be eliminated at all costs. Since other ghosts could move freely, it made no sense for vengeful ghosts to be strictly restricted. Wang Qiuyue triggering the alarm must be related to her not being a native of this world and lacking some form of identification.

Now it seemed that missing item was the so-called protective bracelet.

“My fault, my fault!” Ji Xiu admitted cheerfully, about to explain that the bracelet had been lost—when Wang Qiuyue touched his hand.

He caught the hint and also noticed that the game’s overseeing consciousness above them seemed to stir. The words stuck in his throat, and he turned to look at her.

Wang Qiuyue raised her hand, indicating the bracelet that had suddenly appeared on her wrist.

Ji Xiu narrowed his eyes. What now?

He had obtained the employee pass because he gained the manager’s approval—but Wang Qiuyue getting a bracelet couldn’t possibly be because she earned the Taoists’ approval, right?

Maybe his earlier line of thinking was wrong?

Connecting this with the constantly shifting game consciousness, Ji Xiu’s gaze sharpened.

Could it be… that these changes weren’t caused by NPCs at all, but by the game consciousness helping behind the scenes?

But why would it suddenly be so kind?

Unable to figure it out, Ji Xiu tucked the question away, planning to test it again later.

At the moment the bracelet appeared, the Taoists showed surprised expressions, looking down at their suddenly calm compasses, utterly confused.

Hadn’t they just detected a vengeful ghost here?

One of them suddenly realized something and looked at Wang Qiuyue’s wrist. “You’re wearing a protective bracelet?!”

“…” The Taoists looked embarrassed. “Seems the bracelet malfunctioned—it’s our fault. If you have time, you should go to City Hall to replace it, so this kind of misunderstanding doesn’t happen again.”

Ji Xiu hadn’t even started making excuses when the other party handed him one. He accepted it smoothly and even helped them save face. “Please don’t say that. We’re at fault too—bracelets should be regularly maintained and replaced.”

Relieved to be given a way out, the Taoists quickly warmed up. “Why not go now? We have cars—we can give you a ride.”

“Sure,” Ji Xiu agreed.

He also wanted to see City Hall. This strange world had many places worth exploring.

“Oh, and these are my friends,” he said, pointing at the other five players.

“No problem—get in. We’ve got plenty of cars.”

Thus, the group moved locations and arrived at City Hall.

It was here that Ji Xiu finally gained a general understanding of this world.

In this world, ghosts were divided into three categories: good ghosts, evil ghosts, and vengeful ghosts.

Ghosts who had never killed an innocent person were classified as good ghosts—lawful good. They enjoyed all the rights of normal citizens: salary, benefits, food, housing, transportation.

Ghosts who had killed innocent people or innocent ghosts were classified as evil ghosts—chaotic evil. These ghosts were like rats in the street, hated by all. They could not appear openly; once they did, alarms were triggered and specialists were dispatched to capture them. Punishments varied—some were destroyed, some imprisoned for centuries, others sent into reincarnation.

The final type, vengeful ghosts, belonged to the chaotic neutral faction.

They had killed humans or ghosts, but only for revenge and without indiscriminate slaughter. Their attitude toward humans and ghosts was neutral. Most of the time they stayed out of conflicts—but if angered, they could turn into indiscriminate killers.

Their danger lay in their immense strength and unpredictability.

They all died with grievances, accumulated intense resentment, and personally took revenge after death, yet failed to transcend their obsessions. From the moment of awakening, they possessed power far exceeding other ghosts.

The government wanted to eliminate them—but a vengeful ghost was powerful enough to destroy a small city, and new ones appeared every few years.

If relations completely broke down and a vengeful ghost decided life wasn’t worth living, the resulting massacre would be catastrophic.

In the end, humans and ghosts cooperated to develop a bracelet.

It didn’t restrain them—it simply monitored their emotional state. Before anger exceeded a critical threshold, it alerted the government so they could prepare.

However, newly awakened vengeful ghosts without bracelets who appeared in public would still trigger warning apps, prompting civilians to evacuate and professionals to intervene.

Just like what happened today.

Normally, this would have resulted in a hefty fine—but since Wang Qiuyue and her son suddenly had bracelets, the NPCs assumed it was a malfunction. Not only did they waive the fine, they replaced the bracelets for free and even offered compensation.

Ji Xiu stared at the unexpected income in silence.

There’s even a perk like this?

Because humans and ghosts lived together in this world, a prestigious profession emerged: Ghost Catchers—the Taoist men from earlier.

They might look friendly, but in this world they held extremely high status.

Ji Xiu’s thoughts turned, and his interest landed squarely on them.

If you wanted to catch evil ghosts, you’d obviously need professionals.

…

After replacing the bracelets, Ji Xiu stayed behind to build rapport with the ghost catchers and gather more information.

When they learned he wanted to capture evil ghosts, they sighed helplessly.

“The city has complete systems and intelligence. Where would evil ghosts hide? They’re caught the moment they appear. If you want to capture them, staying in the city won’t work—you’ll have to try remote mountains.”

They were, however, very curious about the Ghost Capture App and asked to see it.

Ji Xiu opened it. The icon was an eye. The main interface showed a green radar circle divided into four quadrants, with a black dot in the center—representing their location at City Hall.

As the phone moved, it emitted detection sounds.

How exactly capture worked afterward was unclear—there was no live demonstration.

One ghost catcher hesitated, then took out a porcelain bottle. “I have an evil ghost here. Want to test it?”

The others’ eyes lit up. “Senior brother—you have an evil ghost?!”

He stepped back warily. “Don’t get ideas! This is for my promotion task—only one!”

Disappointed, the others backed off.

Seeing Ji Xiu’s puzzled look, someone explained: ghost catchers lived mainly on subsidies. Higher rank meant higher subsidies. Promotion required turning in a certain number of evil ghosts.

Weaker ones like them didn’t dare venture far, so catching evil ghosts was rare—and thus highly valued.

“Understood,” Ji Xiu nodded.

They released the evil ghost and eagerly watched him.

“Mr. Ji, try your app.”

Ji Xiu raised his phone— Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind and tapped Capture, absorbing the evil ghost right in front of everyone.

Everyone froze.

The pleated-skirt girl stepped back nervously but forced herself to stand firm. “What are you staring at? If he can try, why can’t I?”

Ji Xiu stared at her coldly.

Earlier she had been terrified into paralysis. Now she dared steal prey right under his nose.

He silently sentenced her behavior—but gave her one last chance.

“Hand over the evil ghost.”

“No!” she snapped. “I caught it—it’s mine!”

Ji Xiu’s voice turned icy. “Are you refusing?”

Thinking of the mission requirement—three evil ghosts—she stiffened her resolve. “Mine. Not giving it!”

Ji Xiu stared for several seconds, then calmly turned to the ghost catchers.

“Handle it by the rules. We’re not acquainted.”

The ghost catchers’ expressions hardened. They swarmed her, pinned her down, and seized the phone.

She screamed accusations of robbery—but security ignored it.

Stealing someone else’s evil ghost was a serious crime.

She was dragged away, sentenced to at least three years.

Ji Xiu didn’t wait. After apologizing again and demonstrating proper capture, he left with the remaining players, heading for the remote mountains recommended by the ghost catchers.

With that example, the twin sisters behaved much better.

They now understood Ji Xiu’s strength and hoped for his protection.

After preparations, they flew to Jiātóng City and headed for Dianqing Mountain.

Two days later, they finally found their first wild evil ghost. The joy was indescribable.

After drawing lots, the long-haired twin stepped forward— Only for a peach-wood sword to pin the evil ghost to the ground.

Dozens of ghost catchers swarmed in, fighting over it.

Ji Xiu finally understood.

Catching ghosts wasn’t the hardest part.

Keeping them from others was.