Chapter 97: Master
The mourning hall was divided into several independent rooms, each separated by heavy, draping white or black curtains.
At the front of the room stood an altar carved from solid black wood. The space above the altar was left empty, waiting for the deceased’s portrait to be hung.
Old Man Ren raised a bony finger, pointing toward the space beneath the black altar. His raspy voice echoed in the quiet room: “There is a small coffin resting beneath the altar. Place the child inside. This particular mourning hall is dedicated solely to children’s funerals.”
The floor of the hall was paved with smooth, icy marble. In the vast, empty room, Lin Huai’s footsteps echoed unnaturally loud, ringing out with a sharp da-da sound.
Cradling the pale, stillborn baby in her arms, she walked slowly forward. Seeing that the small wooden casket was bare, Lin Huai pulled a soft, folded blanket from her inventory to line the bottom before gently laying the child down.
She then pulled out an assortment of traditional burial items—small cloth dolls, the five grains, yellow paper charms, and copper coins. She arranged them carefully around the child’s body, following every strict embalming rule her adoptive father, Old Lin, had taught her.
Finally, she took out a beautiful, woven blanket to drape over the infant’s body. She smoothed the sparse hair on the baby’s head one last time before slowly lowering the wooden lid.
Throughout the entire process, Old Man Ren stood silently by the entrance of the mourning hall, watching Lin Huai perform the rituals with meticulous care. A faint trace of genuine appreciation slowly began to soften his cloudy eyes.
The moment Lin Huai closed the casket lid, Old Man Ren gave a slight wave of his hand. Instantly, all the eternal-flame lamps in the mourning hall flared to life. A black-and-white portrait of a generic infant materialized on the altar, and several large funeral wreaths and floral arrangements appeared around the room.
Lin Huai retrieved the plates of fresh food she had requested earlier from Cute and Sparkling, arranging them neatly across the altar table as an offering.
Next, she pinched three sticks of incense between her fingertips and lit them using the flame of an eternal lamp. Raising the burning sticks to her forehead, she bowed slightly in respect before planting them firmly into the brass censer.
As the fragrant smoke curled into the air, the white soul-summoning banner hanging by the entrance fluttered high, even though there was no wind. A moment later, the chubby little Infant Spirit floated merrily through the doorway.
She flew straight to Lin Huai, perching happily on her shoulder and giggling with a soft, echoing ge-ge-ge sound.
Old Man Ren gave a slight nod of approval. He placed his faded register onto a nearby counter and tapped the paper twice. “Miss Lin, the ceremony is complete. Please sign the register.”
Lin Huai walked over and took the writing brush Old Man Ren offered. With meticulous, steady strokes, she wrote her real name in the columns for the Undertaker and the Pallbearer.
When she finished, Old Man Ren took the brush back. The inked tip paused over the empty column labeled Deceased’s Name. He looked up at Lin Huai and asked, “She is an Infant Spirit who passed away before drawing breath, and she possesses no name. Would you like to grant her one?”
Lin Huai thought it over carefully. This baby was the Birth Ghost’s child—a child her mother had tried to protect with her own dying obsession. Her name should carry a piece of her mother, so the child would always know she was loved.
But Lin Huai didn’t know the Birth Ghost’s name. Looking up, she met Old Man Ren’s calm, expressionless face.
Although the old caretaker appeared stern and terrifying, Lin Huai knew he was actually very reasonable. As long as a player respected the Funeral Home’s strict rules, maintained reverence for death, and treated the deceased with dignity, he would never make things difficult.
She asked tentatively, “Could I trouble Old Man Ren to tell me the Birth Ghost’s real name?”
As the manager of a life-and-death station, Old Man Ren naturally knew that the infant belonged to the Birth Ghost. He wasn’t surprised by Lin Huai’s question. Instead, the corners of his mouth curved up slightly, revealing a gentle, surprisingly warm smile. “The Birth Ghost… her name was Dong Yingran.”
Lin Huai smiled back. She reached up and playfully poked the little Infant Spirit sitting on her shoulder, her voice soft and sweet: “Did you hear that, Dong Xiaobao? Your mother’s name is Dong Yingran. So from now on, your name is Dong Xiaobao. How does that sound?”
The little Infant Spirit naturally had no objections, clapping her tiny hands. Old Man Ren lowered his brush, officially entering the name Dong Xiaobao into the Funeral Home’s register.
Once the mourning rites were concluded, Old Man Ren led Lin Huai out to the columbarium.
The columbarium was an independent, windowless stone tower. Inside, the walls were lined with thousands of small niches, stacked together like a massive honeycomb.
A tiny oil lamp burned in front of every occupied niche. The dim, flickering flames illuminated rows of smooth ceramic urns, casting dancing shadows on the stone walls that looked almost alive.
Old Man Ren pointed toward an empty niche on the third floor of the tower. “How do you wish to handle the child’s remains?”
“The Funeral Home will handle all subsequent processing. If you choose cremation, the ashes will be sealed and placed here. The ceramic urns range in price from two hundred to twenty thousand underworld coins, depending on the quality you select.”
“A niche on the third floor costs two thousand underworld coins.”
“Each floor going up adds another two thousand to the price tag. However, the ninth floor is an exception—a niche on the highest floor costs two hundred thousand underworld coins.”
Lin Huai shook her head. She already knew all these prices from her previous life, but she had no intention of cremating the child. “I want the child to be buried whole in the earth, so she can rest in true peace.”
Old Man Ren didn’t argue. He simply turned, leading Lin Huai back out of the tower and closing the heavy wooden door behind them. He pointed toward the rolling, shadowy hills behind the Funeral Home.
“An earth burial can only be performed in the Cemetery,” he explained. “The Funeral Home has a dedicated burial team that provides this service. The labor fee is fifty thousand underworld coins. The cost of the coffin is calculated separately, depending on the wood you select. Engraving the tombstone is completely free—it is a complimentary service provided by the Cemetery.”
According to the standard station procedures Lin Huai remembered from her past life, she only needed to pay the required underworld coins for the mourning hall rental and the burial team, and she would be free to leave the station.
Upon exiting, she would receive a standard station reward—likely a supply box or a couple of specialized items.
But this time, Lin Huai had no intention of following the standard procedure.
She didn’t choose either of the convenient options Old Man Ren offered. Instead, she looked the old man straight in the eye, her expression firm and resolved. “Old Man Ren, I am an Undertaker, and I hold a valid, official work permit. Therefore, I want to bury this child with my own two hands.”
“When the coffin is carried to the grave, I will hold the soul-summoning banner.”
“When the coffin is lowered into the earth, I will personally preside over the rites.”
Lin Huai’s attitude was absolute. From the embalming to the final burial, she wanted to handle every single step herself.
Old Man Ren looked at her determined, unyielding face. After a long moment of silence, he finally let out a soft sigh.
“Very well. Since you insist on taking the burden, I will enter your name into the Funeral Home’s official ledger as a cooperating Undertaker. This burial service shall be your complete responsibility.”
Lin Huai was thrilled, but she kept her facial muscles taut, not daring to show too much outward joy.
One of the absolute rules of the Funeral Home was that loud laughter or boisterous joy was strictly forbidden.
Still, her voice trembled slightly with excitement. Taking a deliberate step back, she bowed deeply to the old caretaker. “Thank you, Old Man Ren, for your understanding and trust!”
Old Man Ren reached out with a cold, pale hand and gently helped Lin Huai stand up. The affection in his cloudy eyes deepened considerably. “Good child, stand up. I have watched you work. Your techniques are solid, and your adherence to the old rules is very professional. However, there are still a few rough edges in your craft. If you do not mind learning from an old man, I would be willing to teach you.”
Lin Huai’s eyes widened in sheer surprise. The moment she stood up straight, she immediately dropped to her knees. She bowed until her forehead struck the bluestone pavement with a solid, echoing thud.
“Master! Please accept this disciple’s bow!”
