In the end, Chi You still couldn’t get hard.
He stood stiffly at the edge of the bed, his face ashen, trying to pull himself together. Jiang Luo kept talking on and on about Chi You, but his voice was trembling from trying not to laugh. In the end, facing the ghost’s ugly expression, he happily drifted off to sleep.
During this sleep, all he dreamt of were scenes of Chi You panicking with a gloomy face as he realized he had gone soft. Jiang Luo even laughed out loud in the middle of the night and was actually woken up in the morning by his own laughter. But the moment he opened his eyes, he was greeted by the ghost’s extremely close face.
Startled, Jiang Luo jolted awake. “F*ck, why are you so close to me?”
The ghost looked at him meaningfully, eyes giving off an eerie chill. Jiang Luo got a bad feeling and instinctively looked down. That thing—was gone.
“Looking for something?” the ghost asked gently. His pale, slender fingers lifted a transparent object. “Are you looking for this?”
Jiang Luo screamed inwardly: I’m screwed—Chi You found out what I did.
To get an embarrassing photo of Chi You, Jiang Luo had written the word “soft” (萎) on the condom using word-spirit magic.
His eyelid twitched as he tried to laugh it off. “No, what would I be looking for that for? Anyway, what time is it? I’ve got work. I need to get up.”
He made a show of trying to get out of bed, but the ghost didn’t move an inch, blocking his path like a stone wall. Jiang Luo gave him a weak push, eyes dodging, “What are you trying to do?”
“Student Jiang,” the ghost said, his pale face eerily calm, eyes deep as a black abyss, and lips curling into a smile, “last night you showed so much concern for my body. I’m very touched. Since you care so much, now that my body is fine, shouldn’t you try it for yourself?”
Jiang Luo firmly declined. “Don’t mess around. I really have to go. If I’m any later, I’ll be late.”
But the ghost remained unmoved—clearly set on proving his masculine pride to Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo coughed twice, feeling like he’d just set himself on fire. “No, seriously, I can’t be late.”
“Then what should we do?” the ghost narrowed his eyes dangerously. “Don’t tell me all that concern you showed last night was fake?”
After gloating, it was time for payback.
Jiang Luo gave an awkward laugh and waved his hand in front of Chi You. “How about this instead? I’ve got three minutes at most.”
“Three minutes?” the ghost sneered, “Agree to one condition, and I might reluctantly let you use your hand.”
D*mn it.
Use it or don’t—this guy’s had enough.
Jiang Luo really wanted to say that, but he couldn’t bear Chi You’s half-smiling expression and the glaring piece of “evidence” between his fingers. Clearing his throat, he asked, “What condition?”
Chi You replied, “Approve my application for the interview.”
Jiang Luo frowned. “Why do you insist on joining the Research Bureau?”
He didn’t want to approve Chi You’s decision. The Research Bureau was a department that dealt with metaphysical incidents, while Chi You was the strongest of the malicious ghosts. Humans and malevolent forces stood on opposite sides—like water and fire, irreconcilable. Once either side infiltrated the other, neither remained pure.
Chi You must have his reasons. But what were they?
Ambition? Or… was it for him?
Jiang Luo’s tone softened. “You’re not just trying to go to work and get off work with me every day, are you?”
As he spoke, his hand slipped back under the covers.
Whatever the case, Jiang Luo had to distract Chi You from this idea. Fortunately, in this regard, the ghost was easy to divert.
…
After everything ended, Jiang Luo went to the bathroom to wash up.
The ghost stuck close behind him like a human-shaped air conditioner, icy chill seeping into his limbs from his spine. Lazily, he wrapped Jiang Luo in his arms, his expression full of unsatisfied frustration.
The water splashed onto Jiang Luo’s forehead, dampening his bangs. The ghost gathered all of Jiang Luo’s wet hair into his hand, lifted a strand, and smiled. “The color faded.”
“Hm?” Jiang Luo looked into the mirror.
The strand Chi You lifted had its black roots partially washed out, faintly revealing its original white.
Jiang Luo rolled his eyes. “And whose fault is that?”
Chi You laughed. “Isn’t it pretty?”
After washing up, everyone else had also finished getting ready. They were sent out of Ghost City the same way they arrived—in the ghostly sedan.
On the road, everyone looked disheveled, faces blank after a night of drinking.
They struggled to recall the previous night, but their memories were patchy and broken from drinking too much.
Still, they had to admit—they were bad*ss.
They actually slept a whole night in Ghost City and survived!
Back at the Research Bureau, Jiang Luo was immediately surrounded by the others, all talking over each other:
“Jiang Luo, we didn’t say anything embarrassing when we were drunk, did we?”
“I think I even went to talk to Chi You? That must’ve been a dream—I was too drunk.”
“Who took us back to our rooms? It wasn’t those lady ghosts, right…?”
Calmly unlocking the door, Jiang Luo replied, “Yes, you talked nonsense. You looked for Chi You. And yes, it was the lady ghosts.”
After a brief silence, the crowd erupted in wails.
Today was another interview day. And whether or not what Jiang Luo told Chi You had worked, during the entire process, Jiang Luo didn’t see anyone impersonating Chi You among the candidates. He let out a big sigh of relief. But just before clocking out, the higher-ups summoned him.
These days, the only established metaphysical faction left was the Heavenly Master Residence. Their name rang loud and clear—famous and respected across the metaphysical world. As long as they refused to cooperate with the government, there would always be dissent.
That’s why Jiang Luo was called in—the leadership had heard he was once Feng Li’s disciple, and wanted him to try persuading Feng Li to cooperate.
At the mention of Feng Li, Jiang Luo’s expression remained calm. He replied objectively, “Feng Li is a stubborn traditionalist. He doesn’t like new things or change. If you want to convince him to accept government management and change how the Heavenly Master Residence operates—honestly, it’ll be very difficult.”
He could technically use character-spirit magic to force him, but that was no different from the Fated One’s hypnotic speech. Except when dealing with villains—or Chi You—Jiang Luo had no intention of using it on others.
Spirit-channeling was too powerful a technique. The fewer who knew, the better.
The leader sighed, “Then what should we do? The Heavenly Master Residence is the final barrier. If they accept us, everything else becomes easier.”
Jiang Luo paused. “Not impossible. Feng Li cares deeply about the Heavenly Master Residence. Now that it’s the only one left out of the six major families, the situation isn’t great. For the future of the Residence, he should at least talk. I think he’s observing the situation—especially how Dazhao Temple and the Zhuo family adapt.”
After the war, Feng Li killed Ji Yaozi and left Dazhao Temple. Jiang Luo hadn’t seen him since. But even with everything the Bureau had done, the Heavenly Master Residence remained detached, indifferent to the world. That seemed unreasonable—more like they were waiting for them to come knocking.
Whoever had more patience would win. If time was on their side, the Bureau could outlast them. But the Residence’s reputation was unmatched, with many disciples and high-profile clients. Compared to the newly-formed Bureau, they held the advantage. If Feng Li wanted to wait, he could easily drag things out for years.
Convincing him now was the best route. The leader hesitated. “Still worth trying?”
Jiang Luo smiled. “Might as well. Whether it works or not, we’ll at least know his stance.”
“You’re right,” the leader agreed. “Then we’ll leave it to you—bring someone along who’s good at talking.”
Jiang Luo didn’t delay. That night, he decisively brought Zhuo Zhongqiu and Wenren Lian to the Heavenly Master Residence. Thankfully, it wasn’t far from the city, unlike the Lian family’s estate. In less than half an hour, they were at the gates.
The Residence was divided into inner and outer courtyards. The outer courtyard was just as bustling as before, filled with well-dressed guests seeking help—many of whom were recognizable from financial papers and entertainment tabloids.
Wenren Lian whispered, “In high society, the Heavenly Master Residence is practically a household name.”
Zhuo Zhongqiu said enviously, “Of course. They get commission requests nonstop.”
“There are fewer people from the entertainment industry now,” Jiang Luo noted. A closer look revealed that at least a third of the usual crowd was gone—mostly celebrities.
That had something to do with the charms Jiang Luo had been selling. Ever since the Fated One died, he had deliberately reduced their supply. But scarcity sold better—fewer charms meant higher demand and prices that were now three to five times what they used to be.
“Really?” Wenren Lian blinked, then chuckled. “That’s good news. But Master Feng isn’t easy to meet. Zhongqiu, if we don’t see him tonight, it’s on you.”
Zhuo Zhongqiu: “No way—my face doesn’t have that much sway. But getting into the inner courtyard should be doable.”
She stepped forward to greet the disciple guarding the gate. “Hello, Senior Brother. I’m Zhuo Zhongqiu, fourth-generation descendant of the Zhuo family. May I request an audience with the Heavenly Master?”
The outer disciple gave her a respectful but calm look. “Miss Zhuo, it’s quite late. If you want to see someone else, I can help, but Master is no longer receiving visitors.”
Zhuo Zhongqiu had expected this. She smiled. “Thank you, Senior Brother. Then we’ll come back tomorrow.”
She turned and shrugged at her companions. “Jiang Luo, Wenren—it’s like I said. He’s not easy to meet.”
But the moment the disciple heard “Jiang Luo,” he whipped his head around. “Senior Brother Jiang?!”
Jiang Luo turned to look at him. Once the disciple confirmed it was indeed him, he immediately pushed the door open and respectfully said, “Senior Brother, do you want to see Master? Please, follow me.”
Can’t wait until next week to see more? Want to show your support? Come to my Patreon where you can get the rest of the chapters of This Damned Thirst for Survival right away ! Or go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)
