Chapter 91: To Whom Is the Funeral For?

Chen Ling felt the latter was more likely, as he didn't believe he had any talent for acting.

The two took the K18 train and finally returned to District Three before dark. Han Meng stood on the desolate platform, checking the time.

“It’s getting late. Go back and rest,” Han Meng said. “Your appointment papers should arrive soon.”

“Appointment papers?”

“An Enforcer,” Han Meng calmly replied. “All enforcers who embark on the Divine Path are appointed Enforcers by Aurora City. Since you are the only one who embarked on the Divine Path this time, they will certainly appoint you.”

“I’ve offended the Starlight Merchant Guild. Will my appointment be an issue?”

“This is an appointment from the highest level of Aurora City; the Starlight Merchant Guild cannot interfere,” Han Meng paused. “If I can become the Chief Enforcer of District Three, you certainly won’t have a problem.”

“Furthermore, the Aurora Realm is currently in a unique situation, and they need more personnel.”

Chen Ling nodded, “Good.”

Chen Ling's original goal was to become an Enforcer. After the Starlight Merchant Guild's involvement, he had thought it would be difficult to secure the position. However, it now seemed that the Enforcer Headquarters was quite resolute in certain matters.

Chen Ling bid farewell to Han Meng, and they parted ways at the platform.

Chen Ling walked under the auroral night sky, deep in thought as he watched the approaching street outlines.

He had been gone for so long on this trip to the Ancient Relic of the Military Path. He wondered how things were on Frost Street...

At the very least, his peaches should have arrived by now, right?

Frost Street.

“Hey! Have you heard?”

“What?”

“Didn’t a group of enforcers go to the Ancient Relic for trials this time? I have a friend from Winter Harbor who came to resupply this afternoon... He told me that all those enforcers died!”

“What?!”

On Frost Street, several residents perked up their ears and immediately gathered, carrying their small stools.

“Is that really true?”

“No way, how could the Ancient Relic be so dangerous? I heard in previous years, at most one or two people died.”

“I heard a Usurper snuck in this time, stole something, and then killed everyone! This afternoon, a large group from Aurora City arrived and surrounded the entire port.”

“I know about the port blockade, I heard about it too… So that’s what it was for?”

“Did Chen Ling go too?”

“He did, I think. Come to think of it, I haven’t seen him for the past couple of days…”

“Then he must have…?!”

As they spoke, everyone’s eyes widened. They exchanged glances, their eyes full of astonishment!

“Chen Ling is dead?!” Old Xu, the tailor shop owner, was the first to stand up, his booming voice of shock audible almost halfway down the street.

More and more people emerged from their homes, chattering with a mix of doubt, shock, and relief on their faces.

Several shop owners gathered, quickly confirming something. The gloom on their faces immediately dissipated, and a great weight was lifted from their hearts.

“He’s dead? The heart-eating demonic enforcer is dead?!”

“...For the past two days, I haven’t been able to sleep soundly. Every time I close my eyes, I see him offering me a human heart. It was truly terrifying.”

“It seems he won’t be coming back… Thankfully, thankfully, we no longer have to live in fear!”

Expressions of relief appeared on everyone’s faces, and they began patting each other on the shoulders, offering comfort.

Only Uncle Zhao, who had rushed over without understanding the situation, turned pale upon hearing the news.

“Dead?” Uncle Zhao murmured to himself. “Such a good boy, how could he die…?”

“Although Chen Ling ate human hearts, he was, after all, a child who grew up on Frost Street. How about… we give him a funeral?”

“That’s true. This way, after he rests in peace, he won’t become a ghost to bother us.”

“Can people really become ghosts after death?”

“Ordinary people don’t know, but he was a heart-eating demon. Who knows if he’ll return after death…”

“But we don’t even have a body. How can we hold a funeral?”

“Just get a coffin and make a paper effigy… Old Xu, aren’t you in that business? That shouldn’t be hard for you, right?”

“Heh, as long as you don’t ask me to get human hearts, it’s no problem at all.”

Old Xu waved his hand and immediately led everyone to his shop. He chose a large red coffin that no one else had picked, took a paper effigy from the shelf, and in a few quick strokes, drew it to bear a faint resemblance to Chen Ling.

“Since there’s no body and no clothes, we’ll just have to make do with this.”

Old Xu then grabbed some paper money, along with paper houses and furniture, put them all into a bag, and called two strong young men. They lifted the coffin and headed towards Chen Ling’s house.

Other curious residents, seeing a group of people carrying a coffin out, followed behind the procession.

Old Xu stopped in front of Chen Ling’s house, holding the paper effigy in one hand and waving the other towards the house, murmuring something… likely words about the soul returning, burial, and resting in peace.

Seeing this, the onlookers even thought Old Xu was performing a ritual. Indeed, given the absence of a body or clothes, they truly didn't know how else to proceed.

Old Xu mumbled mystically for a while, then placed the paper effigy into the coffin and closed the lid.

Just then, as if remembering something, he said a few words to the pork butcher beside him. Soon, the butcher hurried over to the group, carrying several large bags filled with chicken and pig hearts.

“These were originally prepared for Chen Ling as… offerings. They won’t be needed anymore, and keeping them would bring bad luck, so we might as well bury them as part of the funeral.”

Old Xu waved his hand, instructing the two young men to carry the coffin straight toward the back mountain under the night sky. Everyone followed closely behind.

To be honest, Old Xu had been in the funeral business for many years but had never encountered a situation like this: a paper effigy substituting for a body, and calling a soul in front of the house. These were simply funeral procedures he improvised, as cases like Chen Ling’s were truly rare.

But what did it matter?

Ultimately, everyone was simply afraid that Chen Ling would return to trouble them after his death, and they were doing all this merely for their own peace of mind. So, Old Xu just needed to go through the motions; if they were to follow a normal funeral process, it would likely take until tomorrow morning.

Because it was dark, everyone carried kerosene lamps, using the light to slowly make their way towards the back mountain… Behind the large red coffin, the crowd bustled along, resembling countless shifting shadows.

As the crowd gradually moved away, a figure emerged from the street corner, a puzzled expression on his face as he watched the departing group.

“So many people, in the middle of the night. Whose funeral are they attending?”

Chen Ling murmured to himself as he watched the distant coffin.