Chapter 54: Ghost Hands and Skeletons

"Boss, is there anything special I need to pay attention to for deliveries to office buildings?" Liu Zheng asked.

"Office buildings, huh? Those are a real pain," Niu Ma replied, frowning upon hearing the question. "They rarely order takeout, but whenever they do, they're extraordinarily high-maintenance. One moment they're making you take out their trash, the next they're asking you to haul water."

"And that's when I go. For a rookie like you, they'll only give you a harder time."

"Is there any way to deal with them?" Liu Zheng asked.

"First of all, don't think about confronting them head-on. The security guards in office buildings are nothing like the ones in residential complexes; even I have to put in some effort to beat them up."

"Secondly, you can try buttering up their managers or someone similar. Once you handle the leaders, dealing with the employees becomes much simpler."

"What if the one who ordered is the manager?"

"Then look for the general manager. There's always someone higher up," Niu Ma said indifferently.

"Boss, let's be real—as a delivery guy going to butter up someone's general manager, isn't that a bit degrading?" Liu Zheng asked tactfully.

"Remember your identity. You are a delivery person for the Bloody Restaurant," Niu Ma said solemnly. "Always remember, the restaurant will never give you an order you cannot deliver. Whether you rely on strength, luck, or your wits, you'll always find a way."

"Of course, if you have nothing at all, you can just go report to the kitchen."

And what would reporting to the kitchen mean? Naturally, becoming an ingredient.

"Fine. Anything else?" Liu Zheng asked.

"Also, bring me back a cup of Bad Luck Coffee." Niu Ma fished out a paper note and two coins, tossing them to him. "Keep the change as a tip," it replied, pretending to be generous.

*Heh, truly generous.* Judging by those two coins, there wouldn't be any change left for a tip.

"Doesn't the restaurant have coffee?" Liu Zheng asked, puzzled.

"The restaurant's coffee is just a scam to fleece fools. It's expensive and tastes awful," Niu Ma waved a hoof dismissively.

"Does 'Bad Luck Coffee' even sound like something that tastes good?"

"What do you know? This coffee is all the rage right now, but they only operate out of office buildings, so it's hard to buy." Niu Ma paused before adding, "If you have the money, buy a few extra. I'll take them and distribute them to the kitchen for you."

"Alright." Liu Zheng nodded. He understood what Niu Ma meant. It was about to go on vacation, and when the time came to deal with the kitchen, Liu Zheng would have to rely entirely on himself. Getting on their good sides was essential.

"Get lost. I'm going back to sleep." With that, Niu Ma retreated into its den and lay down on its back.

Judging by its posture, it probably wouldn't get up until the lunch orders arrived. Liu Zheng smiled, picked up his delivery box, and walked out of the breakroom.

A food container was already placed on the delivery cart, and draped over the side of the container was something else—the drunk Ghost Hand.

Seeing Liu Zheng come out, it wobbled to its feet and then vomited a pile of semi-solids mixed with glass shards.

"Ugh..." Liu Zheng covered his nose. This stench was comparable to the fart he had released earlier. Fortunately, it didn't vomit on the food container.

After vomiting, the Ghost Hand seemed a bit more sober. It waved at Liu Zheng, hopped off the delivery cart, and crawled toward the delivery passage.

Was it telling him to follow it? He was heading out for deliveries anyway, so it was on the way. However, before leaving, Liu Zheng didn't forget to put the food container into the Legendary Delivery Box.

The delivery box remained still, indicating that the meal matched the delivery order. Thus, Liu Zheng followed the Ghost Hand into the delivery passage.

The passage was still pitch black, and even with his vision enhanced by the Legendary Uniform, he couldn't see a thing. Still, having grown accustomed to it, he felt no panic.

After walking forward for about a dozen meters, Liu Zheng felt a shove on his shoulder, forcing his body to turn in a different direction. Then, the Ghost Hand tugged at his trouser leg, signaling him to keep moving forward.

This passage wasn't a straight line? Liu Zheng was somewhat surprised. Previously, he had felt his way along by touch, and both sides had clearly been walls. However, considering how abnormal this world was, such things were par for the course.

After hesitating for two seconds, Liu Zheng decided to follow the Ghost Hand anyway. Now bolstered by the Legendary Uniform's bonuses, he still stood a fighting chance in most situations. And if worst came to worst, he could always unleash the dog.

Liu Zheng cautiously took a few steps forward; his path was completely unobstructed, as if a fork in the road had been there all along. He continued onward until the Ghost Hand blocked his way.

It pulled Liu Zheng down into a squat, then guided his tentacles forward to feel around.

A cold, hard, and smooth texture greeted his touch, and after exploring for a moment, Liu Zheng was certain: this was a skeleton. Judging by its shape, it was likely human. As for whether it was male or female, he lacked the ability to tell.

Why was there a skeleton in the secret path of the delivery tunnel? Whose skeleton was it, and why did the Ghost Hand bring him to find it? A flurry of questions rushed into Liu Zheng's mind.

Just as he was pondering, the Ghost Hand pushed him to turn in another direction and lifted his tentacles upward. Was it asking him to carry the skeleton on his back?

Liu Zheng tentatively hoisted the skeleton onto his back. Its weight exceeded his expectations—at least three or four hundred pounds. Moreover, some kind of force seemed to connect the bones, keeping them from falling apart.

Sure enough, he had guessed correctly. As soon as Liu Zheng shouldered the skeleton, the Ghost Hand pulled him up and pushed him forward.

When they reached the exit of the passage, facing the absolute boundary between light and darkness, the Ghost Hand stopped.

It lingered on Liu Zheng's shoulder for a long time. It sounded somewhat ridiculous, but he almost felt like he could hear it breathing. A hand that could breathe? Recalling how it had previously grown a mouth to devour a wine bottle, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible. Mouth breathing was still breathing, after all. He just wondered if the Ghost Hand snored when it slept.

Finally, the Ghost Hand jumped off his shoulder and returned into the darkness.

Squinting against the light, Liu Zheng carried the skeleton out into the brightness. The moment he stepped out of the passage, he set the skeleton down. Despite its heavy weight, the skeleton was actually quite petite and slender; in life, its owner probably stood around 1.7 meters tall. There were no marks on the bones, but the right hand was missing, and the severed end was exceedingly smooth, as if it were a congenital deformity.

Unexplainably, Liu Zheng thought of the Ghost Hand. Was it a left hand or a right hand?

No item description appeared, so he couldn't use the system to learn the origin of this skeleton. Nor had the Ghost Hand told him what to do with it. However, he had a rough guess. A skeleton—and given this setup, it showed no signs of wanting to resurrect—so naturally, it should be laid to rest in the earth.

The question then was: where was the best place to bury someone?

Liu Zheng hoisted the skeleton back onto his back and sprinted all the way to the street lined with French parasol trees. This time, the tree behaved itself, staying put without making any trouble or even revealing its face, acting just like an ordinary tree.

"Morning, Mr. Tree!" Liu Zheng greeted it with full breath and vibrant energy.

"Ahhhhhhh!" The face of the French parasol tree emerged, bursting into a piercing scream.

"What are you losing your mind about so early in the morning?" Liu Zheng covered his ears.

"Are you out of your damn mind? I've been fishing all day!" the French parasol tree cursed angrily.

"Fish? Where did you get fish from?" Liu Zheng felt that the tree was the one out of its mind, and quite severely so.

"Who told you there are only fish in water? Underground fish are the truly fresh ones! I spent the whole day pretending to be my retarded peers just to lure a school of dirt carp over, and you scared them all away with one shout!" The French parasol tree glared at him with murder in its eyes.

"Ahaha, the weather is really nice today," Liu Zheng said, looking up at the sky.

"You'd better have something good or some good news, otherwise, even though I can't kill you, I can still make you suffer," the French parasol tree threatened fiercely.

"No good news, but I brought you a nice drink." Liu Zheng put down the skeleton and reached into his pocket to pull out the prepared beverage. Suddenly, he noticed the French parasol tree's expression change drastically.

"Li! It's you!"