The Pacification of Ghosts - Chapter Fifteen: Mobilizing Troops for Rescue at Mount Shuǎ Guāi

Mount Shuǎ Guāi (耍乖山) lived up to its name—the "Mount of Playing Clever." The entire mountain seemed designed to confuse and misdirect, with paths that led nowhere and signs that pointed to nonexistent destinations.

"This isn't natural," Han Yuan observed. "Someone has deliberately turned this mountain into a maze of deception."

Local reports were alarming: an organized ghost army was forming, led by a spirit that had mastered bureaucratic manipulation. It wasn't conquering through force but through forged documents, false orders, and administrative chaos.

The ghost commander was unlike any military leader—it appeared as a thin scholar covered in official seals and carrying endless scrolls. This was the Documentation Ghost (文牍鬼), who had died buried under a mountain of paperwork.

"Why fight when you can file?" it proclaimed to its ghost army. "Why battle when you can bureaucratize? I'll conquer the living world through proper procedures!"

Its strategy was insidious. Ghost soldiers would appear at human settlements with "official" documents demanding tribute, conscription, or evacuation. The papers looked so authentic that many officials complied without question.

The ghost army was organized like a bureaucracy. There were:

• Filing Ghosts who buried enemies in paperwork
• Stamp Ghosts who could forge any official seal
• Regulation Ghosts who paralyzed action with endless rules
• Committee Ghosts who prevented any decision through eternal discussion

"This is brilliant and terrifying," Fu Qu admitted. "They're using civilization's own tools against it."

A village elder who had resisted showed the consequences: "We refused their 'tax documents,' so they buried us in violation notices. Now we legally don't exist—we can't trade, marry, or even prove we're alive!"

Realizing the threat's magnitude, Zhong Kui did something unprecedented—he called for reinforcements from both the living and dead realms. This wasn't just a spiritual threat but an attack on the very concept of organized society.

From the living realm came scholars and magistrates who understood law and procedure. From the dead came ghosts of honest administrators who had died protecting proper governance.

"We need to fight paperwork with paperwork," Zhong Kui explained. "Their false documents must be countered with true authority."

The confrontation was surreal—instead of clashing swords, both sides wielded scrolls and seals. Every forged document was countered with authentic orders. Every false regulation was challenged with true law.

The Documentation Ghost grew frustrated: "This isn't fair! I perfected the system! Every loophole, every ambiguity, every bureaucratic weakness is mine to exploit!"

"You understood the system's failures," Zhong Kui replied, "but not its purpose. Good administration serves people, not papers. You've confused the tool with the goal."

Through investigation, the truth emerged. The Documentation Ghost had been a minor official who spent decades trying to reform the bureaucracy, only to be crushed by the very system he tried to fix.

"I submitted thousands of improvement proposals," the ghost raged. "All properly formatted, perfectly documented. They were filed and forgotten! I died at my desk, and they found my body three days later because no one checked on the living—only the paperwork!"

His bitterness had transformed into a desire to show the world how absurd bureaucracy could become when separated from human purpose.

Zhong Kui employed a clever strategy. He issued a single, simple order that cut through all complexity: "All beings, living or dead, have the inherent right to exist without documentation."

The Documentation Ghost's entire system collapsed. Its power came from the belief that papers determined reality. When that belief was challenged, its ghost army began dissolving.

"No! You need forms! Procedures! Documentation!" the ghost screamed as its carefully constructed bureaucratic empire crumbled.

"We need organization," Zhong Kui agreed, "but organization that serves life, not replaces it."

Rather than destroying the Documentation Ghost, Zhong Kui offered it redemption: become the keeper of truly important records—not bureaucratic trivia but the stories of ordinary people whose lives might otherwise be forgotten.

The ghost hesitated, then slowly accepted. It would maintain records not of regulations and violations but of human experiences and wisdom, ensuring that no one would die forgotten at their desk again.

As Mount Shuǎ Guāi returned to normal, a messenger arrived with the final summons: "Lord Zhong Kui, the King of Hell requires your presence at the Palace of Forest and Law. Your mission is complete, and judgment awaits."

Continue reading: Chapter Sixteen: Returning the Registry at the Palace of Forest and Law