Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest-Chapter 688 - Strange Residence

Chapter 688 -688 Strange Residence

“Upper Cultivator, this is the last residence we can view today,”

Under the burning sun, Song wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling parched and tongue-tied.

Although he was a cultivator skilled in Qi Cultivation, he had not yet reached the level where neither heat nor cold affected him, and after accompanying his client around half of Immortal City, he felt completely exhausted in both body and soul.

However, as the newest real estate agent in the agency, Song clenched his teeth and persevered, determined to close this deal.

“If Upper Cultivator isn’t satisfied, I can find a few more suitable ones for you tomorrow!”

Not satisfied?

...

In fact, Wang Chen was quite pleased with the residence he had just viewed.

Although not large in size, it had a courtyard and a meditation room, was detached with a good location, and the Spiritual Energy was quite abundant.

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The problem was, the rent for such a residence was very expensive.

So expensive that even Wang Chen, who once possessed millions of Spirit Stones, felt the pinch, and after calculating his daily expenses, he still couldn’t bring himself to make the commitment.

Besides, the landlord was not easy to deal with, unwilling to part with even a single Spirit Stone and displaying an attitude of ‘my house has no lack of tenants’, looking down from on high at Wang Chen as a “poor sod” who “wants a nice place but doesn’t have the Spirit Stones.”

This was quite vexing.

And frustratingly, the nice residences in Yongle Immortal City were indeed in demand; the rents were just that high!

“You’ve worked hard,”

But Wang Chen had no complaints against the real estate agent who had tirelessly accompanied him in viewing and searching for residences.

He even felt a hint of apology.

“If there really aren’t any, then let’s forget it,”

Saying this, Wang Chen handed a few Spirit Stones to Song, “Please accept this as a token of my appreciation for your hard work.”

Holding the Spirit Stones in his hand, Song was initially stunned, then looked around before pulling Wang Chen aside.

He lowered his voice and said, “Upper Cultivator, my uncle owns a residence that is similar to this one, but it has never been rented out, and the rent is quite cheap.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Chen immediately understood, “What’s the problem with it?”

Song gave a wry smile, “It’s a Strange Residence.”

“Strange Residence?”

It was the first time that Wang Chen had heard this term.

Song felt obliged to explain.

A Strange Residence referred to a house where weird occurrences happened often, usually leaving it empty as no one wished to live there.

So it was a haunted house!

Wang Chen was even more puzzled, “If weird things have occurred, why not report it to the Patrol and Arrest Bureau?”

That was exactly what the newly joined Evil-Suppressing Department where he worked was for!

This was indeed a coincidence.

However, Song’s answer left Wang Chen both amused and dismayed.

Turns out that unless it resulted in a death or affected the safety of neighbors, such situations would require reporting to the Patrol and Arrest Bureau, and for them to dispatch someone to handle the issue entailed a substantial fee.

The Patrol and Arrest Bureau was a major government office in Immortal City; could ordinary families summon constables at will?

Song’s uncle was unwilling to pay this expense, and moreover, he worried that even if the Bureau came, it might not resolve the issue.

But if people were dispatched, the Spirit Stones would still have to be paid!

“Could that be?”

Wang Chen found this unbelievable—could a mere Strange Residence really be beyond the Bureau’s capacity to handle?

This wasn’t the science-based world he came from, where blind spots existed regarding mysticism; using spells and talismans to cleanse and conduct rebirth rites should clear away anything unclean, right?

But it might be possible!

In fact, such Strange Residences were not isolated cases; Song knew of at least a dozen.

These residences were generally left vacant or abandoned. There were those who did not believe in curses or who had strong confidence in their own Cultivation Level who moved in, but they would soon move out, speaking very cautiously about their experiences while living there.

Indeed, the Patrol and Arrest Bureau had investigated a number of Strange Residences, but basically all investigations came to nothing.

Strange Residences are not Fiend Houses, they scare people but don’t kill!

After understanding the situation, Wang Chen simply took the real estate agent to a nearby tea house to rest. While drinking a pot of Spiritual Tea, he inquired about more news to decide whether to go see that residence or not.

Song, in order to do business with Wang Chen, was completely forthcoming with information.

It turned out that this house was where his maternal uncle had placed his concubine.

The woman, a reformed courtesan from the Courtesan House who was charming and adept at pleasing others, had greatly won the favor of Song’s uncle, which resulted in the neglect of his legal wife.

However, his wife was no pushover, with considerable influence in her maternal family. She immediately rounded up a group of helpers and raided the concubine’s residence.

They captured the courtesan, sealed her mana, stripped her naked, and threw her onto the street to be whipped and humiliated until the Patrol and Arrest officers intervened and stopped them.

The courtesan did not die on the spot, but after being rescued, she hanged herself at home.

Later on, many strange things began to happen in that house.

Some said it was haunted by an Evil Wraith, but neither exorcism nor prayers for rebirth had any effect.

Embarrassed and troubled by the incident, Song’s uncle was indeed distressed.

He originally intended to sell the house, but the scandal was well known, so who would be willing to pay a high price for a Strange Residence cursed with bad luck?

Not wanting to sell it at a low price, Song’s uncle then entrusted Song to rent it out.

He had a clever plan, reasoning that if someone rented it and lived there for a few years without any incidents, the house would naturally shake off its reputation as a Strange Residence.

Then, selling it at a normal price would be easy.

But things did not go as wished; already two tenants lured in by the low rent had been scared away!

“So you want to rent it to me?”

Wang Chen asked with a smile, “Do I look like an easy mark to you?”

“I wouldn’t dare!”

Song quickly explained, “I simply feel that Upper Cultivators are extraordinary, perhaps capable of exorcism and evil-suppressing, not afraid of Strange Residence matters, so…”

He certainly had his own motives in promoting the Strange Residence to Wang Chen, but he dared not deceive Wang Chen in any way.

“Let’s go then.”

Wang Chen dropped a few Spiritual Stones and stood up saying, “Let’s go take a look.”

The other party’s intuition was not bad; the very thing he was least afraid of was evil spirits and supernatural oddities. If the house was suitable, he might as well consider buying it!

Song’s uncle’s residence was not far away, and compared with the property Wang Chen had previously seen, its location was better.

However, because the house had been uninhabited for a long time, entering it during the hot weather still felt chillingly cold, filled with an uncomfortable smell, and the courtyard was piled with fallen leaves, and the rooms were filled with dust.

Song was embarrassed, “Upper Cultivator…”

Wang Chen raised his hand to cut him off and asked bluntly, “Ask your uncle if he’s selling this house?”

At the normal price, he couldn’t afford this house at all.

But if it’s a Strange Residence, there might actually be a possibility of buying it.

Wang Chen decided to give it a try.

Soon after receiving Song’s Talisman Message, his uncle, who was also the landlord, hurried over.

This high-tier Cultivator from the Purple Mansion had an elegant appearance, seemed urbane, and was quite refined.

Unfortunately, looks can be deceiving, and his character was not very admirable.

But Wang Chen was neither a judge at the court of morals nor concerned with assigning blame for the other party’s faults.

He seriously wanted to buy the house.

The problem was, the initial price set by the other party was extremely high, making Wang Chen wonder if he had gone to the wrong place!

——–

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