"Are you feeling happy now?"
Jiang Lin asked [Ling].
'Happiness' paused, not answering for a moment.
Jiang Lin continued, "In this world, there is no absolute eternal happiness. Unless that moment time stops, or... you die."
All happiness is relative.
Whether human, ghost, or god.
It is precisely because of troubles and suffering that one anticipates carefree days and yearns for happiness.
But in reality,
'Happiness' is merely a synonym that each soul finds for itself while existing in this world.
They use this word to signify the meaning of being alive, the meaning of existence.
To determine their direction of progress, their goals to strive for.
"Therefore, in a thousand souls, there will be a thousand different kinds of 'happiness'.
Whether one is happy or not is merely what is thought and felt within one's own heart."
Sometimes happiness is simple, just a lollipop in a child's eyes.
But sometimes, obtaining happiness is very difficult.
It requires going through fire and water.
But, one thing is certain—
No matter what kind of happiness it is.
Those who truly wish to obtain happiness will pursue it, create it, and strive for it themselves.
Compared to the strength of others, the strength within one's own heart is the most important and the most powerful.
...
'Happiness' listened to all of this blankly.
In a daze, it seemed to see many scenes from the past.
One living being after another asking it:
What is happiness?
How can happiness be obtained?
Can we... truly have a day of happiness?
Can we really, truly be happy?
Those beings cried, begged, and shouted.
To all beings they could pray to, yearning.
"So that's how it is..."
'Happiness' murmured, a hint of realization in its tone.
So that's how it is...
In the distant past, in the eyes of those beings, happiness was living and working in peace.
The world was at peace.
No need to worry about what to eat next, nor to fret about not having a warm house in winter.
For them, the current state of the world was happiness.
Everything they yearned for had now arrived.
But for the beings of today, happiness held different expectations.
"There will never be absolute eternal happiness.
Because time flows, and life flows."
So...
Where is happiness? How can one be happy?
Everything had an answer.
"So, I already possess happiness..."
'Happiness' murmured, under the gaze of Jiang Lin and the staff.
A faint light suddenly flickered on its body.
Like a small firework, it bloomed.
Specks of light scattered onto the ground.
Its murmurs still echoed in the room,
but its existence had vanished.
"???"
The staff member holding the wooden house widened their eyes and quickly scanned the entire room.
None, nothing!
It really disappeared, gone?!
That [Ling] had been corrupted!
—Because they knew it was a [Ling], the staff had made special arrangements for the room when Jiang Lin submitted the task.
—It was impossible for it to escape right before their eyes without a sound!
Jiang Lin also hadn't expected that thing to just disappear.
He was momentarily taken aback.
Uncertainly, he asked, "This... is the task completed, or failed?"
Originally, the [Ling] was supposed to be handed over to the staff for safekeeping.
But now, the mission objective was gone.
Did he still count as having completed the task?
The staff member stared at the empty air and murmured absentmindedly:
"This is the first time I've seen this situation. However..."
Its gaze slowly fell on Jiang Lin. Good professional conduct allowed it to continue answering Jiang Lin's question.
"The task is to resolve the situation that occurred in Happiness Residential Area, including the [Ling].
Although that thing has disappeared, the task is still considered completed."
Afterward, the staff member, still in shock, completed the handover of Jiang Lin's task.
However, before leaving the private room, Jiang Lin's foot brushed against something small.
It was a dark, finger-sized horn.
More accurately, it was the tip of a horn.
The complete horn would have been much larger than it was now.
"Is this left by that [Ling]?"
The staff member also noticed it and took a look.
"This item seems to be a legendary Qilin horn. Qilin horns have many uses.
However, a long time has passed, and most of its power has already dissipated."
"Since it was left for you, you should keep it. Perhaps it will be of some use."
Regarding unexpected gains during such tasks, the task center also had certain judgment standards.
One of them was whether the task participant could control it.
If they could, and the Underworld had no immediate use for it, it could belong to the task participant.
If the Underworld had a use for it, they would exchange it for something else.
If the task participant could not control it, it would be handed over to the Underworld.
It would still be exchanged for something else.
And Jiang Lin...
He could even make a corrupted [Ling] disappear.
Whether he could control it was self-evident.
Moreover, the staff generally treated ghost envoys who could take on such tasks with respect.
Finally,
Jiang Lin, carrying the reward for the [Happiness Residential Area] task and that Qilin horn, walked out of the task center.
Heading towards the Eighteenth Palace.
...
The master of the Eighteenth Palace had not returned for a long time.
Inside and outside the palace, it was somewhat desolate.
The Eighteenth Team, belonging to the Eighteenth Palace, had recently become indolent due to a sudden change in their captain's style.
A pervasive atmosphere of laziness filled the air.
This matter had become a topic of much gossip among many ghosts.
Some ghosts envied it, while others looked at it with curiosity.
As gatekeepers of the Eighteenth Palace, Duo Duo Bao and Niu Xiao Guo often heard related conversations when they walked outside.
Some ghosts even asked them:
"The Palace Lord has given up, do you still have a future working in the Eighteenth Palace?"
"Don't say that, the Eighteenth Palace is still a palace, and the Palace Lord is a first-class ghost envoy. Very capable."
"But, even if the Palace Lord is capable, what does that have to do with you two gatekeepers?"
What future could there be following such a slacking master?
They couldn't imagine.
Even if they transferred to other positions in the future, this work experience would likely be of little use.
Hadn't they seen the performance of the Eighteenth Team plummeting?
It was rumored that even some team members were considering finding connections to transfer to other teams.
"Nonsense, our Palace Lord is just on vacation!"
"If you talk nonsense again, I'll tear your mouths apart!"
At first, Duo Duo Bao and Niu Xiao Guo were angry.
After they got angry, those ghosts indeed stopped speaking in front of them.
But behind their backs, they still chuckled and mocked, "Is it really a vacation? Would a vacation change a person's entire demeanor? This is clearly a case of having everything and starting to slack off."
They had seen ghosts like this before.
Diligent at first, then once they had earned enough, they began to enjoy their ghostly lives.
This was normal.
It was just that for small employees like gatekeepers, following such a Palace Lord meant it couldn't be considered good resume material.
If they wanted to be promoted or transferred in the future, they would likely have to find another way.
"Tsk tsk tsk. Alright, stop talking about them. This drop in status, if it were me, I'd also feel bad."
"It's better to work like us. Although we don't have any particularly capable masters, at least we don't have to go through such ups and downs."
"Hahaha... Be careful they don't hear you."
...