Wen Yan returned home and immediately began searching for any abnormal events. Unfortunately, after a long search, all he found were some obviously fake fragments of information. He managed to find one that seemed genuine, but as he reached the end, he discovered a line of text: "To continue reading, please log in to the End Point Chinese website and search..." Wen Yan was somewhat speechless.
He gave up on these unreliable sources and instead began searching for information related to the Virtue City Funeral House, where at least details like staff configuration were readily available. The director's name was He Jian, and he had worked there for the better part of his life. Wen Yan searched for the Old Wang mentioned by the director, but currently, there was no one with the surname Wang. Only when he checked last year's records did he find someone named Wang, but that person had already passed away.
As for the rest, there wasn't much valuable information he could find, aside from things like a fire evacuation map marked with emergency exits. He confirmed that the present Virtue City Funeral House had been expanded twice. The building where he encountered the ghost was the original office building, and the current one was newly constructed. Wen Yan wanted to find some abnormal occurrences, but all he found were some inconsistent rumors. He turned off his computer, shook his head, and decided it would be better to ask the director directly later on.
He could now confirm that he had indeed encountered a Soul Devouring Beast on his way back from his dream, and something had indeed happened. Even the fact that he could not leave without choosing a profession that day was probably related to the appearance of the Soul Devouring Beast. However, there had been no reports of mass fatalities either within or outside the Divine Land. No matter the news or social media, he searched incessantly, only to find reports of a flash flood here, a minor earthquake there, or a chemical plant leakage elsewhere. But none reported injuries or fatalities numbering above single digits.
Yet many delicacies he knew well had lost their "souls," and everyone else seemed to find nothing abnormal about it. As for himself, he had become a soulless person; he had vividly felt his soul being sucked away before, so he was certain he was not born soulless. Therefore, the Soul Devouring Beast definitely existed, and its definition of "soul" was somewhat skewed. The loss of soul in food could at least be remedied. But when a person died, everything would be gone. If that was the case, Wen Yan could still accept it.
The world had become different; perhaps it had changed long ago, but he had simply never known. Thinking back, there were indeed many hints, but he had never considered things from that angle before.
The next day, Wen Yan went to work as usual, loafing around like a slacker. He wandered everywhere, learning to adapt, and spent most of his time finding a place to sunbathe. The director still hadn't given him any tasks. Neither of the two deputy directors paid him any attention; he had only met one of them, the one in charge of administrative work, on his first day. Wen Yan spent the next few days familiarizing himself with the environment and his colleagues. After three days of living out his dream of a slacker's job, however, he started to feel uneasy.
Unable to curb his curiosity, he went to the director's office. He wanted to ask about what he had encountered in the old office building that day and what had happened subsequently. Moreover, he was even more curious about the staff rules in the old office building; they were so strict and slightly bizarre that, in his experience, each rule probably signified that something significant had occurred. Unfortunately, despite blending in at the workplace for three days and becoming acquainted with his colleagues, he hadn't heard a single thing related to these rules. The only rule-related incident he'd heard about involved a colleague from the Cremation Department. This colleague had accepted a red envelope slipped into his pocket by a family member. Consequently, he was summoned to the deputy director's office, received an earful, and was sent home on leave to reflect on his actions.
Wen Yan knocked on the director's office door. The director was still wearing that slightly ill-fitting black suit, which he didn't take off even indoors, and the damaged areas were no longer visible. But in the height of summer, wasn't it hot?
The director, with a genial expression, beckoned to Wen Yan. "Sit wherever you like," he said. "I actually have something to talk to you about."
"You want to know about that guy from that day, don't you?"
"Old Wang is busy with something else, so you go to the Old Ice Warehouse and find locker number 89."
"Inside is the body of the guy we encountered. He was likely after his own body. Take him to the Cremation Department—there's a Luxury Furnace currently vacant."
"Then, in the afternoon, join me for a meal. An old friend is visiting, and we need to entertain him."
Wen Yan listened to the director's words, opened his mouth as if to say something, but the director stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder.
"Relax. That guy crossed the line and is gone. Now, just follow procedure: cremate the body and complete the process."
Wen Yan wanted to say something more, but the director laughed again.
"You young people aren't still scared, are you? Should I accompany you?"
Leaving the director's office, Wen Yan sighed. The director's offer to accompany him had just been a polite gesture, but Wen Yan genuinely wished he would show him the way. Of course, he also knew that if the director crossed the line, he would be done for. He had seen it happen with his own eyes last time.
As Wen Yan reached the ground floor, the director opened his window and called out another reminder, his voice tinged with concern.
"Remember to read the staff rules first!"
Wen Yan made his way to the old office building, walked down the long corridor, and stepped over the line at its end. Only then did he see an elevator and a staircase leading downward. He hesitated for a moment, then took the staircase leading down into the basement. Beside the entrance to the first basement level, the numbers "1-50" were displayed. He continued down to the second basement level, which was marked "51-100".
The door was locked tight. He took out the key the director had given him, inserted it into the lock, and sure enough, it opened. A severe chill hit him in the face as he entered. Inside, aside from a few simple gurneys, were rows of stainless steel lockers. Each door had a number deeply etched into it and then traced over with red paint. It looked very ordinary, not much different from others he had seen before.
Wen Yan was about to utter a polite 'Pardon the intrusion' when the staff rules he had just reviewed multiple times flashed through his mind:
Do not speak in any work area where a body is present.
Wen Yan put on his mask and gloves, made his way to locker 89, and pulled out the gurney. After confirming the identifying information, he opened the body bag to find a desiccated body inside, seemingly preserved in wax. It looked like it had been stored here for at least ten years. The corpse looked exactly like the phantom he had encountered a few days earlier, only it wasn't as ferocious. Alright, identity thoroughly confirmed.
He zipped up the body bag, pushed the gurney out of the Old Ice Warehouse, locked the door, and took the elevator up. The trip was smooth, with no incidents. He didn't even feel much mental pressure, nor any fear. He was quite certain that what lay on the gurney was merely a corpse.
Only when he saw the waxy corpse being pushed into the so-called Luxury Furnace did Wen Yan breathe an inexplicable sigh of relief. At that moment, it vaguely occurred to him that this was likely the first 'customer' he had personally seen off since joining the institution. It should... count as one, right?
He was lost in thought for a while and only snapped back to reality when someone approached him. The newcomer was in his fifties, with a dark complexion, wearing a blue work uniform, and holding out a pack of cigarettes.
"You'll get used to it," he said, offering the pack to Wen Yan.
Wen Yan hesitated for a moment, then took one and followed the man outside. Watching the man expertly blow smoke rings, Wen Yan asked somewhat out of the blue, "Uncle Zhang, is this a common occurrence here?"
"Not common," Zhang Kuang responded naturally, clearly understanding Wen Yan's unspoken question. "If you feel uncomfortable, come to the Cremation Department. From the family members to the leaders, everyone's easy to talk to here."
"What if we encounter one of those... less than quiet customers?"
Zhang Kuang took a drag of his cigarette, chuckling. "Then crank up the flames."