The *Gui Baojini* glided through the twilight of the dead city like a blade made of blue fire.  

The fog had thinned, the skyline fading into a pattern of broken lights and hollow silhouettes.  

Ahead lay the *Empty Quarter*—five hundred identical houses standing in perfect rows, untouched since the collapse of the living world.  

To the untrained eye, it looked like a residential district.  

To anyone else, it looked like a graveyard pretending to be one.

In the passenger seat sat the **Ghost Butler**, his uniform immaculate, his aura faintly flickering with restrained power.  

He was no ordinary servant; even Joseph could sense it.  

The man’s—no, the entity’s—presence hummed with quiet authority.  

As the *Gui Baojini* slowed to a stop, Joseph reached into the *Ring of All Things*.  

“I should thank you properly,” he said lightly.  

He pulled out a small cascade of gifts:  

a *Ghi Phaerielie* pocket watch forged from spectral steel, a flask of distilled *Nightshade Wine*, a handful of refined *Mingbi*, and two small soul-crystals pulsing with faint silver light.  

The butler’s expression didn’t change, but his aura wavered. “Sir, this is far too—”  

“Consider it a gesture of respect,” Joseph interrupted, smiling. “You’ve guided a living man through your King’s dominion. That deserves acknowledgment.”  

The butler bowed slightly, his voice dropping to something close to reverence.  

“You honor me, Mr. Gates. I will not forget this favor.”  

*Good,* Joseph thought. *I might need him on my side before the night is over.*

They stepped out into the still air.  

The *Empty Quarter* stretched endlessly—gray streets, gray homes, gray silence.  

Only the faint glimmer of warding runes along the doors suggested the area still belonged to the dead.  

Waiting near the gate was a tall figure in a frayed gray suit and a tilted hat—the **Ghost Landlord**. His outline shimmered, like he couldn’t quite remember how to exist.  

When he saw them, his tone turned immediately sycophantic.  

“Ah! Chief Steward! What a rare honor. Surely the royal household doesn’t trouble itself with such a humble district.”  

The butler’s tone was even, polite, but carried the weight of command.  

“This is not my errand. The guest beside me is under His Majesty’s personal protection. He wishes to purchase property. I trust your prices will be… respectable.”  

The landlord froze, then laughed awkwardly.  

“O-of course, of course! Always an honor to serve the court.”

Then his gaze slid toward Joseph—and for a heartbeat, disbelief replaced flattery.  

“A… human?”  

Joseph smiled thinly. “Investor, actually.”

The landlord nodded rapidly, bowing again. “Ah, yes—an investor. My apologies, sir. The *Empty Quarter* welcomes all buyers.”

At that exact moment, faint red letters flickered before Joseph’s eyes:

> **Ghost Mission: The Nameless House.**  

> *Objective: Enter one property.*  

> *Rules: Undefined.*

Joseph frowned. “A mission? Here?”

The butler’s aura spiked cold, his voice cutting like a blade.  

“You dare let a mission bind the King’s guest?”  

The landlord nearly dropped his ledger. “No! No, Steward, please—it’s automatic! The system marks any visitor as a participant. It’s harmless, I swear! Just a formality. The mission clears once he looks inside a house!”  

Joseph’s smirk returned. “Then let’s go sightseeing.”

They entered the first home.  

The door moaned softly, and a gust of stale air drifted out.  

Inside was nothing—no furniture, no color, no echo.  

Even dust refused to settle here.

He walked through room after room, the same emptiness repeating like a broken pattern.  

No souls. No scent. Not even history.

By the fifth house, a faint chime rang in the air.

> **Mission Complete: The Nameless House.**  

> *Reward: None.*  

> *Status: Cleared.*

Joseph sighed. “Figures.”

The landlord laughed nervously. “A smooth inspection, sir. Perfectly safe, as promised!”

“Good,” Joseph said, turning toward him. “Now let’s talk numbers.”

The landlord hesitated. “There are five hundred properties in total. Each one valued at fifty… ah, fifty *thousand Mingbi*.”

Joseph didn’t hesitate. “So that’s—”

The butler answered before the landlord could. “Five hundred homes at fifty thousand each totals twenty-five *million*.”  

Joseph nodded. “Twenty-five million? Reasonable. But I’m not here for one or two units.”  

The landlord blinked. “You… intend to buy—?”

“All of them,” Joseph said calmly. “Every house. The entire district.”

The air froze.  

The landlord’s voice cracked. “A-all five hundred? Sir, you can’t mean—”

Joseph opened his ring, and golden light poured out.  

Stacks of *Mingbi* shimmered into existence, piling up in front of the gate until the entire courtyard glowed like a sunrise made of money.  

“This,” Joseph said, “is *two hundred fifty million Mingbi.* Twenty-five million times ten. Enough for every house—and then some for your paperwork.”

The landlord’s eyes went wide, his entire body trembling.  

Even the butler looked momentarily unsettled, the flicker of ghostfire in his eyes dimming under the weight of so much value.

“Two hundred… fifty… million…” the landlord whispered, voice hollow with disbelief.  

Joseph crossed his arms. “Well? Are we signing or not?”

The landlord snapped out of it and scrambled for his ledger.  

“Yes! Yes, of course, immediate transaction!”  

Ghostly ink flowed across the parchment, the contract sealing itself in burning red sigils.  

When the document floated toward Joseph, he signed without hesitation.  

A sharp crimson flare marked the final stroke.

The butler stepped forward, bowing deeply. “Congratulations, Mr. Gates. By the authority of His Majesty’s seal, you now own the entirety of the *Empty Quarter*.”

Joseph turned toward the silent rows of houses.  

Five hundred identical shapes stood in perfect order, waiting for something—or someone—to bring them back to life.  

“Empty now,” he murmured, “but soon to be valuable.”

He looked to the butler. “Please inform His Majesty that the purchase is complete.”

The butler inclined his head, his voice filled with quiet respect. “He will be most pleased.”

Joseph slipped his hands into his pockets and started toward the car.  

Behind him, the landlord still knelt in awe beside the mountain of *Mingbi*.

When the *Gui Baojini*’s engine roared to life again, the butler’s faint voice followed him:  

“No mortal has ever owned a district before.”

Joseph smiled faintly, eyes on the road.  

“Then I’ll have to set the standard.”