Chapter 226 Ghost Street
"Are you really going?"

Seeing that Cao Yang stood up and was really about to leave, Boss Liu stopped drinking his tea and stood up as well, his tone somewhat helpless.

"You should still remember that time when you brought me to the ancient town, we met a peddler who looked like he was from the Republic of China period. If you can help me solve that problem, I can leave right away. I will never get involved in the Ghost Lake incident."

Cao Yang shrugged indifferently. When Boss Liu heard the peddler's name, his eyes went dark and he quickly sat back down.

"But then again, Ghost Lake is not something that cannot be solved."

Then, Boss Liu filled the cup with water and threw a handful of melon seeds into it. The water in the cup immediately overflowed along the edge and flowed onto the counter.

"The relationship between Ghost Lake and ghosts is like melon seeds and a water cup. If it is full, it will naturally overflow. I can't think of a way to cure the root cause, but I can provide a way to cure the symptoms."

Cao Yang turned his head and saw Boss Liu gently move the melon seeds out of the cup with a few fingers. Then he took another sip of water. The water level dropped and no more water flowed out.

"We need to move the ghosts out of the lake, and at the same time, we need to find a way to reduce the horror of the ghost lake. The overflowing water cannot be recovered."

As he spoke, Boss Liu took out a rag and wiped the water off the counter, but water stains were still left on the surface of the counter. It was impossible for it to become dry instantly because the influence caused by the supernatural was already there.

"It's a temporary solution, not a permanent one, but it's enough and it's a method worth a try."

Boss Liu hadn't even finished swallowing the tea he was drinking when he spat it out upon hearing what Cao Yang said.

"Boy, are you serious?"

"What else can we do? We can't just watch Ghost Lake flood the surrounding cities and cause more and more supernatural incidents. I'm the captain, and I have a heavy burden on my shoulders. The Ghost Lake incident is basically my fault now."

Cao Yang looked through the door of the hotel toward the ancient town of Taiping in the old city not far away. The place was always shrouded in a layer of darkness and gloom. Although it was broad daylight, there was always an lingering sense of eeriness.

"There should be quite a few ghost riders from the previous generation in the ancient town. Why don't you stay with them?"

"Once you go in, you have to abide by the rules of the town and be supervised. Those old guys have very strange tempers. I am used to being free and I don't like to have to look at other people's faces."

Boss Liu took out a broken palm-leaf fan from somewhere, leaned back in his chair and fanned himself.

"Then I won't bother you, Senior."

"Then I won't send you off. Just be careful."

A gust of cold wind suddenly blew past the entrance of the hotel, mixed with a faint stench, causing several travelers who had planned to stay in the hotel to leave, covering their noses.

Cao Yang planned to go to the Ghost Street. He had sixty yuan of ghost money in his hand. It was no exaggeration to say that he could walk sideways in the Ghost Street. Only the rich were the boss.

Walking along the Taiping Ancient Town, Caoyang passed a stone bridge. The river water under the bridge was very clear and cold. Just standing on the bridge, one could feel an inexplicable coolness.

Cao Yang was carrying a large golden body bag in his hand, which attracted the attention of many passengers on the road. However, Cao Yang himself did not care about it. He could feel that there were indeed many strange things in the ancient town, but they were not enough to cause supernatural incidents.

"It should be here."

Instantly, the surrounding ground was stained with a layer of scarlet, and strange blood spread everywhere, and a surging river of blood appeared.
Then, the old buildings around Cao Yang's sight gradually disappeared. An old street with a very old feel became clearer as the surrounding buildings blurred, as if it gradually emerged from some mysterious place that did not exist in reality.

"Ghost Street."

Cao Yang even saw quite a few pedestrians on the street, both men and women, wearing all kinds of clothes, some from modern times, some from the 1970s and 1980s, and some from the Republic of China period. These people of all kinds mixed together, as if witnessing the history of this street.

"These are all projections left by people who have been to Ghost Street. However, we cannot rule out the possibility that some terrifying ghost riders and evil spirits may invade through these projections."

Although he had an innate intelligence advantage, Cao Yang did not let down his guard. "That is..."

Cao Yang's attention was attracted by a person with a sickly sallow face.

"Liu San has actually been to Ghost Street. No wonder he wasn't interested in exploring it in the original novel."

He took a step forward and truly walked into the ghost street. The supernatural influences disappeared, and all he saw was a deserted street with only a few vendors.

"Mask stall, medicine shop, tailor shop..."

Walking along this bluestone street, Cao Yang passed by many shops, but many of them had closed down and were abandoned, and some shops even had their storefronts collapsed.

"Paper shop."

After walking for another two or three minutes, Cao Yang saw the paper-making shop. There were two paper figures, one black and one white, one male and one female, placed at the door of the shop. The door of the shop was open, but there was no one inside. Only some people and objects made of yellow paper could be seen.

"Buy a paper boat as a backup."

Cao Yang muttered to himself and walked in immediately.

There were no windows or lights in the store, only dim light coming in from the door, so it seemed a bit depressing.

Not only that, when Cao Yang entered the store, he also felt an inexplicable irritation and restraint, as if an invisible person was putting a sack over his head and someone was strangling him with a rope.

"Sir, please buy one. It's very cheap. It used to cost nine dollars, but now it only costs three dollars—"

Suddenly, a faint voice was heard in the shop. It was impossible to tell whether it was a man or a woman, but it sounded very close to me, as if a ghost was whispering in my ear.

"Let's have a paper boat."

Cao Yang did not intend to delve into the supernatural phenomena in the store, since he was there just to shop.

Soon, the sound dissipated, and then a gust of cold wind blew in the store. However, it was not Cao Yang's ghost wind, but a supernatural phenomenon happening in the store.

A paper-made black-sailed boat was blown over by the cold wind and landed lightly in Cao Yang's hands.

"A black-sailed boat without a bottom, can it float on Ghost Lake? Will it sink?"

Cao Yang frowned. Even if the store owner took out a normal boat, he would not say anything. This bottomless boat was a bit misleading.

"Sir, you are joking. This black-sailed boat is a replica of the ferryman's boat. The ferryman has been sailing across Ghost Lake for decades. There is no way this boat will sink."

The faint voice became clear at this moment, and the words were full of pride.

"The ferryman?"

Cao Yang keenly noticed the word "ferryman", but he did not ask any further questions. To enter Ghost Lake, one needs to start from the ferry, so it is reasonable to have a ferryman at the ferry.

However, Cao Yang did not plan to stay here for too long. After leaving a three-yuan ghost coin, he left.

"There's still some time. Let's go deeper and take a look."

(End of this chapter)