I put the Soul-Condensing Stone ring on my left index finger. The black ring had a ghost face vaguely visible on it, and my body solidified.
I touched myself, feeling the unfamiliar sensation of being tangible.
I took out a mask to cover my face. It wasn't wise to show my face to the living, so I always wore a mask after materializing my body.
After preparing myself, I headed back towards the Qian Mansion. When I arrived at the gate, I saw a crowd of people.
Some were sloppily dressed, while others looked mysterious with swords by their sides, arguing with each other.
The Qian Mansion's steward grew impatient and said, "If you have real skills, show them off. If not, get lost and stop wasting my time."
The self-proclaimed experts didn't appreciate the steward's words, and one person drew his sword and held it to the steward's neck, sneering, "How dare you speak to me like that?"
Perhaps intimidated by his imposing aura, the steward's eyes fell to the gleaming sword, and he stammered, "Sir, you're truly an expert. Please don't mind my words."
"Hmph." The expert snorted and sheathed his sword with ease. He deserved credit for his graceful movements.
The steward rubbed his neck and fawned, "Sir, please come in. I'll take you to meet my wife."
The expert was finally satisfied and followed the steward inside. The others grumbled but were ignored.
Soon after, shouting came from inside the courtyard, "You swindler! I asked you to deceive with me, and you won't do it!"
The expert stumbled out, beaten and bruised by four guards. The steward, still angry, spat on the ground next to him and yelled, "Get out of here!"
The expert endured the pain and crawled away.
"Is there anyone else?" The steward rolled up his sleeves and asked.
The crowd looked at each other, but no one dared to step forward.
"I'm willing to give it a try," I said from behind the group.
The manager and others all looked at me. I walked forward and looked at the manager, saying again, "I am willing to give it a try."
The manager had been fooled by these martial arts practitioners these days and had no goodwill toward them.
He looked at me with a bad attitude and said, "Then you have to show me your real skills to convince me."
Without saying much, I opened my palm, and a group of ghostly flames appeared in my hand. The manager's eyes widened in amazement.
I tapped my hand and directed the flames toward the manager's head. The flames suddenly grew, and in the blink of an eye, the manager's head was completely engulfed in them.
The manager was so frightened that he fell backward onto the ground and kept retreating.
I didn't scare him any further and snapped my fingers, and the flames dissipated.
The manager sat on the ground, rubbing his head and checking if anything was missing.
I walked up to him, and he instinctively retreated. I smiled and asked, "Did I pass your test?"
He quickly nodded like a chick pecking at rice and said, "Yes, yes."
"Then can you take me to see the lady?" I reached out my hand to pull him up, but he hesitated to shake my hand and got up from the ground by himself.
We followed him and walked toward the courtyard. Judging from the route, the lady should still be at the insane young master's residence.
When we passed by the garden pavilion, several glamorous women were sitting there. After seeing us, one of the women in red asked the manager, "Xiao He, who is this person you brought here? Why is she still wearing a mask?"
Xiao He respectfully replied, "Madam San, this is a great master."
"Hmph," Madam San sneered.
Another woman next to her spoke, "Oh, another great master. How many have we seen already?"
Xiao He looked a bit embarrassed but could only smile and say, "Madam Si, this one is truly a great master. I am in a hurry to take her to see the lady. I'll be on my way now."
"Go ahead, so as not to be blamed for delaying us," said another woman who had not spoken yet, fanning herself lazily.
"Thank you, Madam Er," Xiao He said, trying to please her.
We continued to walk inside with Xiao He, but the conversation among the ladies behind us was still clearly audible.
"Hmph, I don't believe she can cure him."
"These people are useless. They can't cure him and they can't even kill him."
"Why the rush, sister? Death is inevitable anyway."
"Hehe, sister is right."
This is human nature. I wonder what kind of deep grudges the young master and these ladies have. Is it just because he is the legitimate son, and his existence would block their children's financial path?
I arrived at the mad young master's room again. The door was open, and Xiaohe was standing outside, saying carefully, "Madam, this is a real expert this time."
"Let her in." The lady's weak voice came faintly.
Xiaohe nodded to me, and I walked in.
I glanced into the room, and unexpectedly saw that the young lady was still kneeling on the ground. If she kept kneeling like this, her legs would be crippled sooner or later.
The lady sat by the bed and looked at me. She was a little surprised by my appearance, but quickly returned to normal. I guess she had seen too many strange people in these days and was already used to it.
"May I know how to address you, expert?" The lady asked according to etiquette.
I replied with a bow, "I am Qin Su."
The lady may have been disappointed with us so-called experts already, so my arrival didn't excite her at all.
Pointing to the mad young master on the bed, she said, "Miss Qin, can you tell what's wrong with the child?"
I approached and looked at the crazy young master who had fallen asleep again, with a calm and scholarly face.
"The young master should not have this appearance," I spoke up.
However, the two people in the room were startled. The lady grabbed my arm, no longer calm as before, and asked me with a flushed and excited face, "Miss Qin, have you found something?"
The young lady who was kneeling on the ground looked at me with flickering eyes, unpredictable.
"Madam, could you please tell me the origin of the matter?" I felt a slight pain in my arm. Sometimes having a sharp tongue might not be a good thing.
"Alright, alright, Miss Qin, please sit down. I'll tell you everything from the beginning." The lady pulled me towards the round table.
After sitting down, the lady scolded the young lady who was still kneeling on the ground, "What are you still kneeling for? Come over and pour tea for Miss Qin."
Afterwards, she looked at me with a friendly face and slowly began to speak, her speed of changing her demeanor was indeed quite fast.