When I told Senior Shu about my doubts, he kicked my butt. “You’re not satisfied with my answer? Even though otherworldly items are formidable, they are just items in the end. How could they be stronger than humans? It’s not that I’m making things look easy. You’re the one who’s overthinking.”

“All right, I’m going to investigate its origin,” I said. 

Senior Shu said, “Before you go, remember to bring the Yin and Yang Umbrella with you. As it has protected you once, it can do it again.” 

“Got it!” 

“There’s no need to worry. Although this clock is strange, it’s not the worst. If it’s still too hard and you need help, I can lend you a hand. Anyway, you know the rule. If I take action, you’ll have to pay me.” Senior Shu cunningly smiled at me. 

I frowned. 

I’ve experienced your pricey help before. I can’t afford you!

After parting from Senior Shu, I first went to my shop to fetch the Sirius Whip, the Yin and Yang Umbrella, and the Peach Soul flower. Then, I rushed to Old Gang’s house. Li Mazi was anxiously waiting for me at the entrance. After seeing me, he smiled. “Little Brother Zhang, you’re back!” 

I muttered, “What’s up? Did something happen to Old Gang?” 

“What could happen to him? If you didn’t come back, I would have died from holding my urine!” 

“What?” I didn’t understand. 

“You asked me to watch Old Gang, right? I was afraid that something bad would happen to him, so I didn’t dare to leave him even for a minute,” explained Li Mazi.

I followed Li Mazi to the house, who immediately dashed to the toilet. Old Gang was still tied up on the sofa, and his mouth was taped. 

Did Li Mazi think that we were kidnapping him? If Old Gang’s neighbors saw him like this, they would call the police!

I peeled the tape off Old Gang’s mouth and found something stuffed in his mouth. I pulled it out. It was Li Mazi’s stinky sock! 

Because of the stinky sock, Old Gang almost had foam at the corner of his mouth. 

Li Mazi took his sweet time in the toilet. When he came out, he let out a sigh. “I feel so good now!” 

“Why did you stuff your disgusting sock into his mouth?” I asked. 

Li Mazi explained, “Right after you left, he began to scream stuff like, ‘Give me back my clock!’ or ‘All men in this world are ungrateful!’ I was afraid that he would alert the police, so I reluctantly came up with this idea. These are the socks I bought, ten renminbi for four pairs, do you think I wanted to discard them like this?”

Even now, he only cares about his stinky socks!

Wait a moment...

“Old Gang said that all men in this world are ungrateful?” I seemed to catch the important clue.

Li Mazi said, “Yeah, his voice changed several times. It was hoarse for a while then gentle. I almost thought he was going to sing.” 

Senior Shu was right. If I wanted to solve this clock, I needed to know its origin.

I couldn’t waste time here. I said, “We must figure out the clock’s origin first. I have to go. You stay here and watch Old Gang.” 

“Are you leaving by yourself?” Li Mazi gawked. 

“Yeah!” I nodded. 

“No, you can’t!” Li Mazi hurried to say, “The otherworldly item this time is a little too strange. You shouldn’t go alone. I’m coming with you.” 

I was also a little worried about going alone, and although Li Mazi was useless, he could boost my confidence by a little bit. However, I glanced at Old Gang on the sofa. “But we need someone to watch Old Gang here.” 

Li Mazi chuckled. “It’s fine. There’s a nice car in his garage. We will drive his car and let him sit in the back seat. I can accompany you and watch him at the same time. It’ll be killing two birds with one stone. We shouldn’t delay any longer.” 

“Li Mazi, I’ve known you for quite a long time, but this is the first time you’ve said something useful.” 

Li Mazi said proudly, “You still don’t get it? I’m the type of guy who starts a book but doesn’t finish it or takes a path but doesn’t see it through to the end. I am a person with endless potential; you just haven’t seen it all.”

Things were urgent now, so I asked Li Mazi to find Old Gang’s key to the garage. We then opened his underground garage. 

The door slowly rolled up, and several shiny cars appeared in front of me. There was a BMW, a Mercedes-Benz, an Audi… 

I finally understood why Li Mazi cared so much about Old Gang’s problem. Old Gang was a real parvenu, and he only lacked the line, ‘I have a lot of money, come swindle me!’ on his forehead.

I chose a big, off-road Jeep. At the same time, Li Mazi came over with a bag of food. “Woah! Old Gang’s doing quite well. He even got a Hummer!” 

Li Mazi and I smiled at each other. We then went back to the living room and brought Old Gang to the Jeep. 

When the car passed the entrance gate of the neighborhood, the security guy stopped us. He motioned us to roll down the window and looked at us skeptically. “Is this your car?” 

“My buddy’s,” I said. 

“Your buddy? What’s his name?” The security walked around the car to check. At first glance, he saw Old Gang tied up. He was frightened and backed off, shooting me a fearful look.

“Brother, it’s just a misunderstanding.” I forced a smile. 

Before I had time to react, the man shouted at his walkie-talkie. “There’s a problem at Gate 1. Please send reinforcements. One of our clients was kidnapped! Call the police!” 

His voice was so loud that I didn’t think he even needed to use the walkie-talkie to alarm half of the residents in this villa neighborhood. Now, everyone knew that someone was kidnapped. 

Li Mazi sat in the co-driver seat. He looked at me and said, “Little Brother Zhang, what should we do now?” 

What do we do now? Of course, we have to run! 

I stepped on the accelerator and bumped into the barrier. The barrier flew away, and the vehicle entered the main street like an arrow. 

After we safely got out of the neighborhood, Li Mazi used three words to describe me: bold, manly, and handsome! 

When the car entered the highway, I gave Li Mazi a gentle smile. “When Old Gang wakes up, you should tell him that the maintenance fee for his car will be deducted from your payment.”  

Li Mazi immediately changed the three words from before to: shameless, mean, and toxic.

Li Mazi asked, “Little Brother Zhang, if that security guard reports it to the police, we’ll be charged for kidnapping. Would we be wanted nation-wide?”

I arched a brow. “We can no longer back off and have to solve this problem caused by the clock. When Old Gang returns to his senses, he will have to explain the situation to clear us, and everything will be okay as it was just a misunderstanding. But if the problem isn’t solved, you and I will play poker in jail for the latter half of our lives.” 

Li Mazi retracted his neck. “No, no. Since you’re here, we can definitely solve it. Moreover… I still have a son to take care of.” 

Although Li Mazi wasn’t reliable, he had always treated his son well.

Silence fell in the car.

A moment later, Li Mazi turned to check the scene outside the window and asked, “Little Brother Zhang, where are we going?” 

I threw him the business card Old Gang had given me. “We’re going to find this Song fellow. Old Gang’s mind is no longer clear. I’m afraid that only the original owner of the clock knows its origin!”