Chapter 161: Is this what you called a treasure? Where is the treasure?

The female ghost and the others never suspected that Xu Lin would deceive them. They approached innocently to express their gratitude, the kind of gratitude where they knelt on the ground and kowtowed several times.

Sigh, being so innocent yet uneliminated by others, they could be considered quite lucky, blessed by the Heavenly Dao.

With such thoughts in mind, Xu Lin raised a hand and gently lifted them up from the ground.

This single gesture stunned the group of ghosts, and the ignorant villagers of the Five Households also gathered around to watch the excitement.

Soon, the news that Xu Lin was going to grant them passage spread, and a crowd of ghosts knelt before Xu Lin in a flurry.

The scene was terrifying, comical, and somewhat pathetic all at once.

With mixed feelings, Xu Lin lifted them up and told them to shut their mouths. There was no need for words of gratitude; the passage ritual was about to begin.

As the scriptures for crossing over flowed from Xu Lin's lips, the previously noisy environment became so quiet that even a pin drop could be heard.

A look of enjoyment appeared on the faces of those lingering spirits. The meager resentment they originally held was quickly purified, and their souls became crystal clear.

Xu Lin formed several hand seals, and soon a pitch-black gate slowly materialized. As the gate swung open, two underworld guards stepped out from within.

They first looked toward Xu Lin, nearly blinded by the brilliant golden light of merit radiating from her body, and hurriedly bowed in respectful salute.

Only then did they ask, "Was it you who opened the Ghost Gate?"

"Indeed. There is a group of wandering souls here who have yet to enter reincarnation. Please take them to the underworld and send them to reincarnation."

With that, Xu Lin produced two sticks of incense and ignited them. The underworld guards' eyes lit up with joy, and their attitude became even more respectful.

The incense was specially crafted by Xu Lin, providing immense nourishment to both wandering souls and underworld guards.

The two underworld guards bowed in gratitude once more, then crowded around the incense to inhale greedily. In no time at all, both sticks of incense were completely burned down.

The two underworld guards sniffed the air, then reluctantly cupped their hands in farewell.

"Master, rest assured. We will definitely deliver them to the Reincarnation Platform and secure a good spot for them."

"Very well, go ahead." Xu Lin waved her hand, signaling that they could leave.

The two underworld guards happily led the group of spirits in a procession into the pitch-black gate. As the gate closed, they vanished in the blink of an eye.

It was as if the underworld guards and spirits had never appeared there at all, and the chaotic magnetic field gradually faded away.

Xu Lin swept her sharp gaze around, then took a few steps to the entrance of the treasure trove. A sweep of her spiritual sense allowed her to locate the hidden mechanism.

Upon activating the mechanism, a passage appeared before Xu Lin. The tunnel was only about three feet square, making entry and exit rather difficult.

Even though Xu Lin loathed the idea of bowing her head, she had no choice but to crouch and crawl into the passage. After advancing for about five minutes, the space suddenly opened up before her.

Xu Lin shone her flashlight around and discovered that the cave spanned an area of about one thousand square meters, with a height of roughly three meters.

The entire space was piled high with crates.

Xu Lin cast a few cleansing talismans, and the accumulated dust inside the cave vanished instantly, leaving the crates spotless.

Casually opening the crate closest to her, her eyelids twitched.

This box was completely filled with silver dollars, packed tightly and gleaming brilliantly—truly a captivating sight.

Steadying her mind, Xu Lin abandoned the idea of opening boxes here; she feared she might not be able to stop once she started.

They say villains die of excessive talk, and good things never come easy. Xu Lin certainly did not want someone to discover her before she could collect all the treasures.

With a whole cave full of crates, it took Xu Lin over half an hour to gather them all into her space, leaving her drenched in sweat from exhaustion.

Lifting a hand to wipe the sweat from her brow, Xu Lin quickly drank a cup of spiritual spring water to replenish her energy, which finally made her feel somewhat better.

First, she erased any traces of her presence, then applied a cleansing talisman to herself. Only then did she leave the cave and close the mechanism.

Looking back at the cave, which had returned to its original appearance, Xu Lin's peach-blossom eyes crinkled with amusement.

She wondered which lucky person would manage to find this place in the future. Heh, when they saw the completely empty cave, would they cry or laugh?

In high spirits, Xu Lin prepared to head down the mountain. However, before she could even lift her foot to leave, her sharp ears caught a sound.

Xu Lin immediately turned invisible, stepped aside, and narrowed her peach-blossom eyes to survey the direction from which the noise originated.

Before long, Qin Fang's figure appeared in Xu Lin's line of sight, though Qin Fang's expression was unsightly and she was muttering discontentedly under her breath.

Clearly, she had no desire to return to this place and felt she had suffered the utmost misfortune.

This was such an unlucky place; why on earth did she have to come back?

"Little Seven, do you really think there are good things here? What if those filthy things scare me to death? If I die, you won't have a host anymore. Tell me, what's the point of all this?"

The system fell silent. Could it say its goal was for her to die early, because she was too stupid and bound to get herself killed, or that she was simple-minded and easily fooled?

Naturally, the system would say none of these things.

"Host, you must trust your omnipotent system. I would certainly never deceive you. Besides, rest assured, the talismans I advanced to you are extremely effective. A hundred ghosts dare not touch you; just walk forward boldly and with peace of mind. I'm telling you, my perception is never wrong—there are massive treasures in there."

"I hope you aren't lying to me. Hmph, if you dare deceive me, I won't repay my debt to you," Qin Fang threatened fiercely.

The system remained silent. Fine, let the host utter a few threats; after all, no host in this world had ever dared to default on the system's debts.

Allowing her the upper hand in words did no harm.

Because no evil spirits obstructed her path, Qin Fang smoothly located the entrance to the treasure trove.

"Oh? Your talisman really works well after all. This is going much too smoothly. Why didn't you bring this out sooner?"

Qin Fang muttered a complaint and began looking around.

Xu Lin stroked her chin; she was also quite curious as to why the system hadn't brought it out earlier.

Could it have searched through its inventory only after returning to find a countermeasure?

If so, this system was truly incompetent.

With the system's assistance, Qin Fang quickly found the treasure entrance and, full of eager anticipation, trotted all the way into the cave.

And then!

Qin Fang let out a piercing shriek.

"Ah, ah, ah! Little Seven, Little Seven! Is this the treasure you talked about? Where is the treasure?"

Looking at the completely empty cave, Qin Fang nearly went mad. Forget treasures; she didn't even see a single blade of grass.

The cave was far too clean—so clean it looked as though it had been meticulously scrubbed.

Furious, Qin Fang shed two lines of clear tears. She truly was too miserable.

First scared half to death, then forced to walk all the way back here in trembling fear, and this was the result?

Listening to Qin Fang's screams, Xu Lin happily jogged down the mountain.

Oh my goodness, good things really do take time. If she hadn't moved fast enough, she genuinely would have been cornered by Qin Fang inside the cave.

Next time she found a treasure, she must harvest it just like this—never wasting a single second.

Only what entered her own spatial dimension truly belonged to her.

Returning to the Educated Youth Courtyard, Xu Lin discovered that Ning Xiaodong had not yet returned, but she didn't take it to heart. She quickly entered her room and lay down on the bed to rest.

Goodness, tonight was far too thrilling; Xu Lin needed to lie down and decompress.

Well, actually, she wanted to lie in bed and wait to watch Qin Fang make a fool of herself, just to see if Qin Fang walked the whole way back in tears.

Only, Xu Lin waited and waited, until dawn broke...