Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 76: By Your Side

“Zzzzt—”

A tiny electronic screen flickered to life, the image shaking before settling beneath a persimmon tree. It was winter in the footage. Snow blanketed the ground and tree branches.

An elderly man, around his sixties or seventies, carried a folding stool and sat at the center of the frame. He squinted with a cheerful smile as he settled in. A big yellow dog waddled over and leapt into his arms.

The dog wore a tattered red collar, clearly aged, with dry and matted fur.

“Alright, alright. Good dog, good dog.” The old man patted its head, then called out loudly, “Fan’er, Qian’er, come over and let Grandpa record you!”

Two children around ten came running, munching on candied hawthorn skewers. Dressed in thick puffy jackets, they looked like two buns smeared in colorful frosting.

The yellow dog immediately switched targets, frantically licking the sugary hawthorn.

The old man wrapped his arms around his grandkids, beaming at the camera.

“Everyone came home for the New Year. My second son bought me this camcorder, so I’m trying it out today,” he said to the camera a bit awkwardly. “This thing’s great. It helps you remember stuff!”

“Grandpa, why don’t you keep a diary?” the granddaughter asked.

“Grandpa’s uneducated and illiterate.”

“This’ll get full!” the grandson said.

“They said the card’s really big… Grandpa, you gotta use it sparingly!”

“Woof woof!” The yellow dog paced around the old man happily.

The old man laughed with pure joy.

“Dad, don’t stay out too long. It’s cold!” a woman called from off-camera.

“Alright…”

……

The next clip was from autumn. The persimmon tree was heavy with plump fruit. The little girl obediently stood beneath the tree while the old man marked her height.

The boy crouched nearby playing on a phone, game sounds chiming out.

The big yellow dog from the last video was gone. In its place lay a half-year-old mutt with black-and-yellow fur, quietly resting at the old man’s feet, its tail giving occasional flicks.

“Where’s Big Yellow? Wasn’t it always around?” the granddaughter asked.

“Big Yellow got old. It’s gone.” The old man’s smile dimmed. “That’s how dogs are. They have short lives.”

“Big Yellow was older than us, already ten. Mom and Dad said it wouldn’t make it through the winter.” The grandson muttered without looking up, “Better to be a human. Humans live longer.”

The old man was silent for a moment. “Yeah… we live longer as humans.”

The little mutt at his feet watched the three of them with round eyes.

After the girl finished marking her height, she ran over to fondle the puppy’s soft ears. Its tail swept the fallen leaves, ears twitching under her fingers.

“Dad, time to eat!” a man’s voice came from off-screen.

“Alright…”

……

The third clip was spring. There were no children this time… It was just the now-grown puppy.

The old man sat under the tree alone, breaking off pieces of a meat bun and feeding them to his dog.

“I asked Second Son’s wife, and she said this thing can record for years. I figure, I haven’t got that many years left. Just recording them coming back won’t use it up.”

He patted the dog’s head and sat upright for the camera, like preparing to go on TV.

“I’d better record more, right Douzi? What should we film today…”

The dog, “Douzi”, finished the bun and tilted its head to lick crumbs and grease from the old man’s fingers.

The old man looked down for a moment at the worn red collar.

“Well then, let’s talk about you today. Counting properly, you’d be the fifteenth…”

…The old man had raised dogs nearly his entire life.

As a child, he lost his parents in wartime and nearly froze to death in the streets, until he clung to a neighbor’s old dog and barely survived.

Since then, he insisted on raising dogs. In his words, he liked them anyway, and besides, even the heavens seemed to bless him when he did.

For this reason, with his first savings, he didn’t buy meat or clothes. He went to a leatherworker and commissioned a red collar. It was like a belt, adjustable so a dog could wear it from puppyhood to old age.

The rest of his story was quiet and uneventful.

In his youth, he traveled far and wide, always with a dog by his side for protection.

If he had one bite of food, the dog got one too. He worked at a factory while the dog waited in a nearby shack. When the nights were cold, they’d sleep together. Neither minded the other’s smell.

“Number Four had the worst luck. Some idiot stole it to eat.” The old man paused mid-story, cursing bitterly. “I beat that guy till he puked. Unfortunately, I only managed to get the collar back…”

Later, when he settled down, his dogs guarded the home.

He and his wife had two sons and one daughter. The eldest died at birth, and the daughter passed from illness at age three.

He raised his second son with difficulty, only for him to leave early for schooling. At home, it was just his wife, and his dog.

His son boarded away and only came home twice a year. From then on, his life was slowly drowned by “waiting”.

“Number Nine was the best… It chased off a thief trying to steal chickens.”

“It was a bit dumb though. Every time Second Son came home, it had to recognize him all over again. Maybe it was getting old…”

The old man muttered as he cuddled the dog.

When he turned sixty, his wife died of cancer. His son had a career and family far away, with a son and daughter of his own, only visiting during short autumn holidays or New Year’s.

Old friends either passed away or moved in with their children. The big courtyard became empty, with only the little dog dashing endlessly through it.

After he was left alone, “waiting” consumed nearly all of his life.

He waited for family when he was happy and waited for death when he was not.

“I sit here waiting. When I go out, you wait here too. We’re kind of alike.”

The old man kissed the dog’s furry head. “Life’s too long.”

“Woof!” The dog licked the tip of his nose.

Maybe from having nothing else to do, he treated the camcorder like a diary.

He’d go out in the morning to tend the plants and record for a few minutes each evening. Season after season, rain or shine.

He spoke to the dark camera lens, telling his day’s little stories, occasionally reminiscing.

At first, he was stiff, then relaxed, then fully at ease, like the machine was no longer a device, but an old friend who knew how to listen.

But as he aged, his spine hunched further. His son and daughter-in-law’s hair grayed. The grandchildren grew up and started their own families.

In his short “diary clips”, reunions grew fewer and farther between.

Until one year, during New Year’s, the gate stayed quiet. No one came.

Still, the old man always sat with his back to the persimmon tree, facing the little camcorder, or rather, the courtyard gate beyond it.

Thankfully, the recordings weren’t all bleak.

In the blurry footage, many little dogs grew up and passed on. But there was always one dog by the old man’s side, bouncing through the years, waiting faithfully.

Only when looking at them did his wrinkled face stir with the hint of a smile.

More than twenty years, compressed into just a few hours.

The final recording was in winter.

The wind was fierce that day so you could hear its howl in the footage. Snow blanketed the ground and branches. The old man, now nearly ninety, was wrapped in a black padded coat, body like a hollowed walnut.

Still, he carried out his stool and sat beneath the tree.

“This card’s nearly full. And I’m still here.”

He squinted against the wind, breath fogging faintly.

A little black dog happily bounded over, jumping into his lap.

The old man slowly lowered his head, gently petting it. His shriveled hands had been turned reddish-brown by the cold wind.

“Good dog, good dog, you’re so warm,” he murmured.

The black dog licked his hand, tail wagging nonstop.

The old man stared blankly into the lens.

His thoughts thinned like water. Memories faded. Like a sponge completely wrung dry, he couldn’t even make small talk.

“Oh right. Gotta go buy salt. We’re out of salt…”

After sitting for several minutes, he patted the dog again and shakily stood up.

The dog tilted its head, confused. Seeing him about to leave, it habitually rushed up and tried to bite the heel of his right foot.

“Don’t fuss.” The old man smiled. “Wait here. I’ll be back to play with you.”

“Woof woof!” The little black dog circled his feet.

“Sit. Wait!”

The dog obediently sat.

The old man stepped out of frame, into the howling wind.

The dog waited.

It waited until noise rose outside the gate. Until a siren wailed in the distance.

Someone shouted about the wind, about slipping, about there being no one home.

The little black dog didn’t understand.

It lay under the persimmon tree, muzzle resting on its paws, staring at the gate.

Later, someone entered the courtyard and began rummaging through things. The dog ran out of frame, barking furiously.

The camera shook and someone picked it up.

“Hey, careful, leave that. Someone’s relative might come back for it.”

“And the dog? It won’t let anyone touch it. Doesn’t matter how we try.”

“Just give it something to eat.”

The dog barked until it was tired, then stubbornly returned beneath the tree.

Dusk fell and the noise faded. The camcorder’s battery was nearing empty. Snow covered the dog. It occasionally shook it off, only to lie back down in the same spot.

The storm intensified.

The dog trembled, its breath growing faint. But it never moved.

It stared stubbornly at the gate.

Its master hadn’t come home.

He told it to wait.

[So it waited.]

…At last, the footage ended and the screen went black.

……

Fang Xiu put down the camcorder and was speechless for a moment. The little black dog circled his feet and barked proudly twice.

Bai Shuangying translated, “Its master always smiled at this thing. So it thought you’d like it too.”

Fang Xiu crouched down and gently scratched its ears. Around its neck, the red leather collar stood out sharply. Old and worn, it radiated yin qi.

After watching the video, the true form of the “E” was clear.

The object that carried all that karma and belonged to the dog was that old red collar.

This time, it didn’t hold human karma or obsession.

Dozens of dogs had worn it. They had each, in their lives, accompanied and waited for one man.

In the end, it soaked up the obsessive longing of that wait, buried beneath wind and snow, alongside the last little black dog.

…This E’s karma wasn’t vast or heavy. In fact, it was astoundingly ordinary. But in terms of karmic entanglement, it was tighter than even the Mid-Autumn E, and its obsession was terrifyingly pure.

The dog didn’t understand its master had died. It didn’t understand it had died.

It only remembered that on a windy day, the old man left and never returned.

The world beyond the gate was dangerous. The wind was dangerous. It had to protect their home. It had to keep waiting.

So, beyond the three standard taboos, the E created countless more ghostly “penalties”, punishing the bad, stopping violence. The dog wasn’t deliberately confusing the rules. It was simply doing its job: guarding its home.

“How strong is it?” Fang Xiu sat down, stroking the little dog with both hands.

“It could become an immortal at any time.” Bai Shuangying hesitated before sitting across from him. “It’s bound to the E, and it devours ghosts daily. That’s just barely enough.”

Fang Xiu paused mid-pet. “Why won’t the Underworld help it?”

“It lacks intelligence,” Bai Shuangying said plainly. “It doesn’t know it’s dead, so it never considers moving on.”

The dog licked its nose happily, panting pointlessly.

Fang Xiu: “…” So… basically, it’s too dumb.

Fang Xiu: “If I destroy the E…”

“Its obsession is too pure to become an evil spirit. Without the E to sustain it, it will eventually dissipate.” Bai Shuangying told the truth. He was in a good mood. Since Fang Xiu liked the dog, he’d surely stay longer.

Sure enough, Fang Xiu’s face dimmed a little. He picked up the soft, cold dog.

“Looks like I’ll be staying here a while longer,” he said softly, rubbing the dog hard.

Bai Shuangying: “!”

Just as he thought, coaxing was better than coercion. He was beginning to enjoy “thinking”. Watching his human willingly step into the nest gave him a strange sense of accomplishment.

Still, Fang Xiu didn’t seem truly happy.

After some intense mental effort, Bai Shuangying came up with a perfect idea—a way to help Fang Xiu relax and want to stay longer.

He shifted his gaze from the camcorder. “I can recreate your karma.”

“My karma?”

“You said your grandmother’s courtyard looked like this. If you’re staying long-term, I can use illusions to recreate it.” Bai Shuangying said, “Just like the gambler rooms in Huanxi World. I only need a thread of karmic tie.”

He would start with one thread. That way, he could understand Fang Xiu’s past, and better coax his human. It was killing two birds with one stone.

Fang Xiu: “…I said my grandmother died violently. She hated me.”

Bai Shuangying replied without pause, “But when you mentioned her, your expression was full of nostalgia.”

Fang Xiu dropped his gaze and was silent for a long time. “How do I give you my karma?”

“Let me look into your soul.” Bai Shuangying was completely justified.

He hadn’t yet recovered enough to manipulate karma at will.

Fang Xiu froze. His soul was still housed in his body. If Bai Shuangying had to touch it, did that mean…

“It’s the same as drawing essence. A kiss will do.” Bai Shuangying said, “You said you’d only kiss me if you liked me. You never said I couldn’t kiss you.”

Fang Xiu: “???”

Wait, that actually made sense. He wasn’t sure whether to marvel at Bai Shuangying’s cunning or at his devilish logic.

Fang Xiu’s heart skipped twice. If this was to extract karma, and Bai Shuangying was the one initiating… Then this wasn’t using him, right?

He was about to spend a short period of peaceful slice of life with a ghost he liked. There wouldn’t be another chance like this.

Maybe, just a little bit of sweetness… wouldn’t hurt?

…Well, the ending was already written anyway.

Fang Xiu gently set down the little dog. He patted his own face and carefully smoothed every wrinkle in his T-shirt.

After fussing with his clothes, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, adjusting his mental state. He was practically meditating.

Bai Shuangying waited patiently for half a stick of incense.

Finally, Fang Xiu opened his eyes, but his gaze drifted toward the hand pump. “I want to rinse my mouth first—no, boil water and take a bath…”

Bai Shuangying lost all patience.

He grabbed Fang Xiu, who was frantically shaking his head and shouting, “Wait, there’s mint leaves outside. Let me chew on a few pieces first,” and sealed his lips with an entirely new method.

Like a beast caught by the scruff, Fang Xiu instantly froze.

Just as soft and warm as he remembered, Bai Shuangying thought.

Humans were really obsessed with mating rituals… He’d already inhabited Fang Xiu’s body once, and that time, Fang Xiu didn’t react nearly like this.

The sudden kiss sent Fang Xiu’s temperature soaring. His soul stirred violently, spiritual essence leaking out.

Bai Shuangying stayed focused. While Fang Xiu’s soul was unstable, he pulled forth the karmic thread he wanted…

A crimson strand emerged from Fang Xiu’s chest, almost blending into his red T-shirt.

Too easy. He might as well peek a bit more.

Fang Xiu’s soul had only slightly fluctuated, maybe he could dig a bit deeper, see some other karmic ties.

While kissing, Bai Shuangying held Fang Xiu’s shoulders tightly.

He wasn’t sure how humans kissed, but he knew they used tongues. And since he could reshape his body… Well, naturally that would mean he was better than ordinary humans.

He toyed with Fang Xiu’s tongue, then split his own into multiple strands.

His tongue extended and tangled in Fang Xiu’s throat, pressing against the warm esophagus. The tips had slight keratin, tickling the soft mucosa. Fang Xiu whimpered a few times, sweat forming on his skin.

The deep kiss made his soul ripple harder. Bai Shuangying was just about to dig deeper…

“Puh—!”

Fang Xiu shoved him away, gasping for air, skin flushed as red as his shirt.

Bai Shuangying regretfully retracted his tongues. More than a dozen claw-like tips merging into one.

Oh, right. He forgot, humans needed to breathe.

He wasn’t used to invading people in human form and accidentally blocked Fang Xiu’s airway.

“…You—cough—you got the karma.” Fang Xiu stared at the red thread on his chest, trying to sound composed.

“Mm,” Bai Shuangying nodded.

It was hard to say whether Fang Xiu looked more shocked or… pleased. But the soul fluctuation proved he was moved, so Bai Shuangying didn’t mess up.

Fang Xiu rubbed his face for a long time and finally stammered. “So… uh… how’s it taste? My soul?”

Bai Shuangying: “……”

He frowned. “…I forgot to taste it.”

He wasn’t used to multitasking. He’d been too focused on peeking, to the point he forgot to savor his human…!

Fang Xiu: “?”

Seeing his ghost’s sour expression, Fang Xiu’s confusion melted into snickering.

Bai Shuangying gave him a long, reproachful stare. Fang Xiu couldn’t hold it in anymore… He hugged the little black dog and burst into laughter.

“…Well, this way you’ve got a surprise to look forward to.”

Fang Xiu wiped away tears of laughter, cheeks still bright red. “Next time, make sure you remember. I’m not reminding you.”

Bai Shuangying said nothing.

Fine. At least his human was happier now. And…

He tightened his grip on the karmic thread and began to peer inside.

……

At first glance, Bai Shuangying thought he hadn’t moved. Because… Fang Xiu’s grandmother’s courtyard looked exactly like this one.

Same main hall and two side wings. Same tree in the middle. Even the water pump was in the same spot.

Except… her tree wasn’t a persimmon. It was a jujube.

“Grandma! Grandma!”

A little boy in a red jacket ran stumbling into the courtyard, face lit with joy. He was maybe four or five years old.

Bai Shuangying watched for a while before recognizing him. Not because of age, but because he had never seen Fang Xiu look so… carefree.

“Ah, my little darling. Don’t fall!”

A sturdy old woman rushed out, scooping him into her arms. “Did our Xiu Xiu miss Grandpa and Grandma?”

“I did!”

“Not lying to Grandma?” She beamed, her wrinkles stretching smooth.

“I never lie.”

Little Fang Xiu puffed his chest. “Mom and Dad said you have to be honest. Only bad kids lie!”

“That’s right. Our Xiu Xiu is a good boy. What do you want to eat, hmm? Grandma will make anything you want.”

She pinched his chubby cheek.

“Sesame sugar cakes! Grandma makes the best sesame sugar cakes!” Little Fang Xiu ordered without hesitation.

“Alright, alright. We’ll have our fill of sugar cakes.” The old woman grabbed his hand and led him inside with a laugh.

As they walked, Little Fang Xiu kept turning back. “Mom, Dad—hurry up! Grandma’s making cakes!”

Behind him, a smiling couple followed, carrying gifts while talking and laughing.

…There was doubt about it. That was Fang Xiu’s parents. He looked strikingly like his mother. Bai Shuangying recognized her instantly.

He stared at the parents for a long time. They were a beautiful couple, clear eyes, soft expressions, expensive clothes, full of grace and warmth. And judging by their mannerisms, they had nothing to do with the metaphysics.

So, Fang Xiu’s parents were ordinary humans, probably well-educated and kind. If he’d grown up normally, he should’ve been a refined young man.

How had he turned into what he was now?

Bai Shuangying tapped his fingers and fast-forwarded along the karmic thread, skipping over all the happy moments, straight to the death of Fang Xiu’s grandfather.

That year, Fang Xiu was nine.

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The author has something to say:

First kiss for the young couple! Fang Xiu’s explosive first kiss (…

Guess if the dog will follow him next chapter☆

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Kinky Thoughts:

This is pretty explicit for Nian Zhong… Damn. Kinky. Is she gonna be alright on JJ?

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 75: Ending

Blondie flailed his arms in despair and swiftly summoned his ghost to claw at the scarf around his neck. But whatever that scarf was made of, the ghost’s sharp claws couldn’t leave a single mark.

It clung tightly to his windpipe, constricting like a noose. Eyes bloodshot, Blondie looked pleadingly at Mei Lan.

As the scarf loosened slightly, it revealed a red string around Mei Lan’s neck. She casually tugged it and pulled out an oddly shaped green jade pendant.

Under the moonlight, it shimmered with an uncanny glow. Maybe from the lack of oxygen, Blondie hallucinated a pair of eyes on the pendant. Mei Lan was watching him, and so was it.

…Watching him die.

The suffocating pain grew sharper, and Blondie’s thoughts spiraled, memories surging out of control.

He had always known he wasn’t the brightest, so he lived by two life lessons: find a good loophole and follow a strong boss.

He had accidentally killed someone when he was young but wasn’t held accountable due to his age.

Realizing this, he treated it like gold and quickly fell in with local “street folks”, taking on dirty jobs that adults couldn’t do.

When he got older, he pledged loyalty to a big brother in the city. He’d specifically steal from the wealthy. So long as he didn’t go too far, rich people usually wouldn’t make a fuss.

Even in this ritual, he had followed his life rules. So how did it all end up like this…?

Blondie struggled futilely. The jade pendant before his eyes began to blur and double, yet it stirred a strange familiarity.

Wait… he’d seen it before…

Back when he was with his big brother, he had met a young man called “Mr. Cen” who also wore a green jade pendant!

Mr. Cen was a prominent figure in Gui Province. Since his boss followed Mr. Cen, Blondie could loosely claim to be under him too.

Seeing that pendant now… Mei Lan must be with Mr. Cen. Mr. Cen was powerful… maybe…

“Mr. Cen… Mr. Cen…”

Blondie wracked his meager brain, tongue swollen, straining to form the words.

At that name, Mei Lan actually reacted.

She narrowed her eyes and twisted her mouth into a cold smile that didn’t look like her usual self. The scarf tightened suddenly. Blondie’s body twitched twice, then slowly collapsed.

His double pupils were bloodshot, and he died with his eyes wide open.

Mei Lan chanted softly. Blondie and Jiang Xun’s souls floated from their corpses as glimmering fragments and quickly fused into the jade pendant.

She tucked it back under her collar and retied her scarf.

[All right, come eat.] She lifted her head and called out to the nearby evil spirits.

The words she spoke were no longer human language.

The next second, flesh and organs exploded around her. Mei Lan continued smiling gently, deliberately staying still to let the blood and wounds splash all over her body.

A dozen meters away, hidden in the forest’s shadows…

Fang Xiu, tucked under Bai Shuangying’s arm, silently watched the spirits devour Blondie’s corpse.

The black dog sat at Bai Shuangying’s feet, hopping up to try and reach Fang Xiu’s hand.

Bai Shuangying was clearly entertained. “You rushed back… to see this?”

Earlier, when Jiang Xun activated his self-destruct spell, Bai Shuangying had instantly noticed something was wrong. With one sweep of his Peach Bone Evil, he hurled Jiang Xun’s body away with a massive blast of yin energy.

The explosion still reached them, but far less lethally than it could have.

Fang Xiu’s reaction was terrifyingly fast.

The moment Bai Shuangying moved, he shouted for Cheng Songyun to raise the shield, then immediately grabbed Bai Shuangying’s arm. “Quick, back to the courtyard!”

But just as they got close, they witnessed Mei Lan’s execution—the jade pendant, the bold capture of soul fragments.

As the last bit of Blondie was devoured, Fang Xiu finally spoke. “…I originally thought, since Jiang Xun knew soul-swap spells, he might fake his death and switch souls.”

“If Mei Lan wasn’t a black Taoist and ended up facing him alone, she’d definitely be silenced.”

Bai Shuangying assessed fairly. “That was definitely silencing.” It just happened that the one silenced was Jiang Xun.

“Two lives in one body. Shame about the soul fragments.” Fang Xiu lowered his head and muttered, “Looks like the ‘kill Jiang Xun’ competition ends in a draw.”

Bai Shuangying stared at Fang Xiu, waiting to see his next move.

But Fang Xiu didn’t confront Mei Lan. He waited until she finished cleaning up, then gently tugged Bai Shuangying’s wrist and walked away.

In the darkness, Bai Shuangying’s gaze remained fixed on him.

Fang Xiu then located A’Qiao and Lu Wei. Their bodies were nearly destroyed, barely hanging on. He ended their suffering with one blow each.

Afterward, he circled the site of Jiang Xun’s explosion a few times. The dog helped dig out a bloodstained jade pendant. Fang Xiu held it up to the moonlight for a long time, then buried it deep in his pocket.

Finally, he called Cheng Songyun and Guan He out from the Resentful Ghost Shield. The three strolled back to the courtyard at a calm pace.

Everything proceeded smoothly and methodically.

By the time they were done, dawn had broken.

Faced with Mei Lan’s sobs and her story that “Blondie was attacked unexpectedly”, Fang Xiu smoothly launched into performance mode…

He comforted Mei Lan in a gentle, soothing tone, as if worried about her mental trauma. He said he’d failed to assess the surrounding dangers and that this wouldn’t happen again.

To Cheng Songyun and Guan He, he wore a mask of guilt and regret, claiming he had been reckless and should have better prepared to confront Jiang Xun.

Blondie, the only one who knew the truth, was now dead.

The others knew nothing about what had really happened in the main house.

Right in front of Bai Shuangying, Fang Xiu confidently spun a tale. “Jiang Xun tricked a newbie into testing a taboo, the kid fled and begged me for help.”

The taboos and clues Fang Xiu had previously hidden were now repackaged as confessions from A’Qiao and Lu Wei earlier that night, which were perfectly reasonable to disclose now:

…Don’t leave the premises, or your right shoe will disappear.

…Don’t damage the courtyard, or you’ll be expelled.

…Don’t walk into the wind, or you’ll die instantly.

These three taboos were relatively harmless and easy to obey.

Now that only one newbie remained, there was no need to panic. Everything could proceed at a measured pace.

Lies wrapped in lies, fabrications woven into fabrications.

Fang Xiu narrated them with fluent sincerity. His slightly reddened eyes brimmed with earnestness. To his anxious teammates, his words were like a warm glass of wine. It was comforting, like finally seeing the moon after the clouds part.

Bai Shuangying silently listened while consuming the souls of A’Qiao and Lu Wei. Once, he might have marveled at Fang Xiu’s cunning and adaptability. But now a strange thought surfaced…

Bai Shuangying suddenly felt… that Fang Xiu didn’t look happy at all.

Even in the confrontation with Jiang Xun, Fang Xiu seemed more cheerful when he used the magic brush to tease the dog than he did now.

The little dog sat quietly at Fang Xiu’s side, lifting its grape-like eyes to watch him. Its tail occasionally swished. Bai Shuangying scooped it up and tapped its cold nose.

“Forget it. He said he would take it slow and would probably stay here for a while.” 

The dog licked Bai Shuangying’s fingertips and tilted its head.

“Forget what I told you before.” Bai Shuangying stroked its soft fur. “Go ahead and bother him.”

“Woof?”

“You ask why?”

“Because I want to understand him. And for that, I want him to relax a little.”

His human wore mask after mask. From hair to fingertips, his whole body was wound tight.

Only when he wasn’t lying did those masks crack just a bit, letting Bai Shuangying catch a glimpse of the real Fang Xiu.

The dog tilted its head again from side to side, trying to understand. Bai Shuangying watched it thoughtfully in silence for a long time.

“Bai Shuangying.”

When the sun fully rose, Fang Xiu finally finished spinning his web of lies.

He rested his cheek on Bai Shuangying’s arm, trying to cool his head against his ghost’s body.

“Do you have anything urgent to say? If not, I… I’m gonna nap a bit…”

He let out a massive yawn, like he could collapse and sleep right there in the courtyard.

After last night, Bai Shuangying had many things he wanted to ask his human…

For example, that vile magic the Guishan Sect was using, about the green jade pendant, about why Fang Xiu hated its followers. Now would be the perfect time to tempt and pry.

But looking at the exhausted Fang Xiu, swaying on his feet… he didn’t feel like asking anymore.

“Go ahead and sleep,” he said, pressing a hand to Fang Xiu’s forehead. “Take your time.”

The dog barked twice in agreement.

Just take your time.

Bai Shuangying silently echoed the words in his heart.

……

By noon, the smell of hot soup woke Fang Xiu.

He twitched his nose and opened his eyes from within his ghost’s sleeve.

Everything looked too familiar. He instinctively tensed until he remembered Jiang Xun was gone and there was no longer any immediate threat.

The weather outside was lovely. The window was open, letting in cool air that refreshed the whole room.

With Blondie gone, the space felt much larger. His vulgar painting leaned askew in a corner, and his uneaten fruit still sat in a bowl.

Another person gone, like a countdown ticking forward.

Fang Xiu glanced at Mei Lan.

Her eyes were swollen from crying, and she curled up under the blanket like she’d really been traumatized.

If he hadn’t witnessed the truth, he’d think she was just a scared girl.

At this point, it seemed Mei Lan wasn’t just a black Taoist priest. She, like Jiang Xun and Shan Hunzi, was part of the Guishan Sect.

Logically, Fang Xiu should eliminate her without hesitation. But she had killed Jiang Xun, a fellow believer. Sect infighting was taboo in the Guishan Sect. That made her position… interesting.

…And that vague “apocalypse” they mentioned… Fang Xiu had never heard of it before.

He decided not to alert her for now. Best to observe further.

Of course, this made her a security risk to the team. But luckily, it wasn’t his problem at the moment.

Here, he was pressing pause, trying to steal a little time from the countdown. A little time to “live”.

At that thought, Fang Xiu reached out and hugged his ghost tightly. Bai Shuangying let him, then placed his hand gently over Fang Xiu’s eyes.

Fang Xiu: “Hm?”

“You wouldn’t be able to see that dog without my magic,” Bai Shuangying said. “You seem to like it a lot.”

Just then, the dog burst into the room like a cannonball, having slipped past Cheng Songyun at the door. It leapt directly onto Fang Xiu’s stomach and began furiously licking his face.

Bai Shuangying: “…It seems to like you too.”

Fang Xiu pushed the excited dog away and sat up with effort.

But the dog dashed back, bit the hem of his T-shirt, and started pulling him toward the door.

“No, no, we eat first, then walk,” Fang Xiu muttered, patting the dog’s head.

The dog tugged harder, nearly ripping the shirt off him.

“It wants you to follow it.”

Fang Xiu was shocked. “You speak dog?”

Bai Shuangying: “…Its situation is complicated. Just follow… It probably found something to help you relax.”

He had said he wanted Fang Xiu to relax. So did the dog, it seemed.

Fang Xiu had no choice but to follow, dragged into the courtyard.

The little black dog barked joyfully and led him to a corner of the yard to the spot where Fang Xiu had once found an old shoe and plastic toys.

The dog raised a paw and began digging fast. As dirt scattered, something slowly came into view…

An old-model handheld camcorder.

It was buried under dirt yet showed no signs of rust. It didn’t emit much yin qi, clearly not the E of this place.

The dog gently grabbed the strap with its mouth and dragged it to Fang Xiu’s feet, eyes full of anticipation, tail wagging like it might take off.

Bai Shuangying: “What is that?”

Fang Xiu picked it up, quickly found the charging port, and used his skill to charge it.

“How should I put it… this is one of humanity’s mass-produced ‘E’,” Fang Xiu said.

“It can also reveal karma.”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 74: Who Will Win?

Jiang Xun quickly shrugged off the newcomer who had crashed into him. He hadn’t even gotten his footing before he figured out what had just happened.

In short, he’d been played by Fang Xiu’s team.

If it had really been the descent of a Great Evil, the evil spirits wouldn’t have needed to mess with taboos just to kick him out of the courtyard. The fact that he triggered a taboo meant he had cut himself off from solving the E personally. The courtyard now belonged to Fang Xiu.

Silently, Jiang Xun recited “Return Home, Come Away” a few times, but he wasn’t panicking.

If Fang Xiu had this level of skill, resolving the E wouldn’t be hard.

Jiang Xun could accept losing one skill reward. As long as he held on until Fang Xiu resolved the ritual, he could still return safely to the Disaster Relief Tower.

From this moment on, his goal was no longer to “eliminate the courtyard’s Master”, but simply to survive.

He glanced at the forest swarming with ghosts, brandished his brush-shaped magic weapon, and activated the talismans around him. With a few agile leaps, he vanished into the darkness.

Fang Xiu: “So the game’s started?”

“It’s started.” 

Bai Shuangying nodded. Under the moonlight, the Peach Bone Evil shimmered with a soft white glow. A’Qiao and Lu Wei staggered to their feet, their eyes clouded like hungry ghosts.

“That crazy woman ran off… She can’t run… We need some meat to eat…”

“Someone dying saves us water… Where the hell’s the rescue team… Useless trash…”

The two of them stumbled forward like zombies, muttering broken lines. Under the influence of concealment magic, their figures slowly faded into the night, like melting shadows.

They’d consumed flesh of their own kind before, so they were easy to control. But taking his eyes off them meant Fang Xiu’s safety…

“Do whatever you want.” Fang Xiu smiled. “I’ve got a puppy with me. I’ll be fine.”

The little black dog, with a soda can in its mouth, rubbed its head against Fang Xiu’s pant leg.

Bai Shuangying nodded, then his figure also disappeared.

Fang Xiu took a deep breath. Without Bai Shuangying by his side, he felt like he’d suddenly surfaced from warm water into cold air, a hollow kind of clarity.

Good. It helped him control his emotions.

“Good dog, help me find my teammates, will you?” Fang Xiu pulled out a roasted chicken drumstick and waved it in front of the dog.

This dog looked a bit silly, but as the “Master” of this place, it was certainly smarter than its peers.

The little dog happily bit down the drumstick and swallowed it in a few chomps. Then it spun in place twice and let out a low “woof”, signaling Fang Xiu to follow.

Earlier, when Fang Xiu and Bai Shuangying took walks at night, they relied on stealth. Now, walking in the dark, Fang Xiu relied on the dog. Evil spirits scattered away from it like Moses parting the Red Sea.

The black dog was also thoughtful; it would trot a few steps ahead, turn back to wag its tail until Fang Xiu caught up, then move forward again.

In less than five minutes, Fang Xiu found his teammates.

They were heading toward the courtyard. Cheng Songyun and Mei Lan were supporting the badly mutilated Blondie, while Guan He kept watch on the wind.

At the slightest movement, he would signal Cheng Songyun to activate the Resentful Ghost Shield and protect Mei Lan. Meanwhile, Blondie cursed and shifted into his ghost form, guarding the outside with Guan He. This stop-and-go pace made their return very slow.

When Guan He saw Fang Xiu, his eyes lit up. “Fang Ge!”

The black dog’s eyes lit up too. It ran around joyfully at their feet, stirring little breezes. Soon, it realized only Fang Xiu could see it, so it returned to his side with its ears drooping slightly.

Fang Xiu rubbed it with his foot and scanned the group.

Blondie was the most injured, likely from when Lu Wei swapped bodies. Mei Lan and Cheng Songyun looked disheveled but unharmed. Guan He had many new wounds, but his face was bright and full of life.

The good news: Even without him, they had solid judgment and a working combat system. He could use bolder strategies in the next ritual.

The bad news: Their cooperation was too seamless. He couldn’t test Mei Lan’s abilities. Oh well, there’d be another chance.

Fang Xiu hid his regret and greeted them as usual. “So you all made it out.”

“We heard Xiao Du scream just now and were afraid you were in trouble,” Cheng Songyun said honestly.

Guan He pointed at Blondie and reported seriously, “Fang Ge, he says he triggered a taboo and can’t return to the courtyard.”

Fang Xiu feigned ignorance. “A taboo?”

Blondie seized the chance to rant. “Yeah, yeah! Can’t mess with the courtyard! Those bastards swapped my soul, used my body to break the rules… Finally got it back and my legs got chewed up by ghosts!”

Then, full of hope, he turned to Fang Xiu. “You’ve been out here a while, you must’ve figured something out, right? Can we resolve the E and go back already? Everyone standing guard over me at night isn’t a long-term plan…”

Fang Xiu didn’t answer directly. “Let’s not talk about that. I’m going to kill Jiang Xun.”

He said it calmly, like saying “I’m going to brush my teeth before bed.”

Blondie lit up with joy. “Yes, kill him! Show those idiots who’s boss!”

The others: “…?”

Fang Xiu was always practical. He never prioritized fighting other players over resolving the E, let alone just to save face for a teammate. Even back in Huanxi World, he’d willingly take losses to win a ritual.

So what had changed?

“I’ll get you all back to the courtyard first. Guan He, Cheng Songyun, one of you lend Du Zhichao your Five-Emperors Coins. With hidden magic weapons and ghost-guarding buffs, that’ll be enough.”

He skipped explanations and went straight to orders. “If things go wrong, return to your rooms. The spirits won’t act inside.”

Mei Lan murmured in agreement. Cheng Songyun and Guan He exchanged worried glances.

Fang Xiu ignored the storm in his teammates’ hearts. His steps back to the courtyard were steady, even a bit light.

This time, hatred hadn’t fully consumed him. A tiny voice in his heart was whispering, “Hurry, hurry, if you don’t, Bai Shuangying will win.”

With faint anticipation, Fang Xiu dropped off his companions and turned to leave. The dog was delighted their walk wasn’t over, panting happily as it followed.

Bai Shuangying had told him to bring teammates to face Jiang Xun, and the black dog counted. The others were too tired to be forced along. 

Watching him go, Guan He and Cheng Songyun lingered at the courtyard gate.

“Fang Ge’s in such a hurry to attack. That Jiang Xun must be dangerous,” Guan He said. “Just now he didn’t even look for Du Zhichao right away. He must’ve found something more important.”

Cheng Songyun had a different concern. “It’s too risky for him to go alone.”

Mei Lan stared at Fang Xiu’s back, then softly said, “Want me to look after Du Zhichao while you go help him?”

“You sure you can handle it alone?” Cheng Songyun was surprised. It was rare for Mei Lan to be so proactive.

Mei Lan nodded. “I can hide in the nectar water. This ritual has plenty of spirits, enough for a water ghost sacrifice.”

Guan He hesitated, then gave her his Five-Emperors Coins. “Here, take mine. You two both carry one.”

Cheng Songyun had just lent hers to Blondie. This way, both Mei Lan and Blondie had defensive charms. It should be safe enough.

“Thanks. You two be careful,” Mei Lan said quietly, watching as Cheng Songyun and Guan He disappeared into the night.

“Well now, looks like you’re quite gentle, looking after little ol’ me. My leg’s killing me, sis. Can you gimme a rub?” With two people left, Blondie opened his mouth to flirt.

“Scram.” Mei Lan’s tone was cold, like she was talking to a cockroach.

Noticing something subtly different about her demeanor, Blondie paused. “Huh?”

Mei Lan straightened, one hand over her chest, looking down at him. The shadows devoured her face, but her stark black-and-white eyes pierced through the moonlight.

Her gaze held no emotion, like she was observing a corpse.

A chill crept up Blondie’s spine. He instinctively shut his mouth and curled in on himself. “Mei J-Jie, sorry. It’s just a joke. I didn’t expect you to actually help me…”

“You can come over any time, my brother,” Mei Lan said softly. “You and I have our karmic debts paid. All’s well that ends well.”

“Wh-what?”

Mei Lan held her posture, eyes still locked on him, like a wax statue.

“Ah, I wasn’t talking to you,” she said mildly. Her eyes curved slightly.

……

Jiang Xun held a jade pendant in his hand and withdrew his gaze from midair.

Now isn’t the time to give up, he thought.

He had a rough idea of how the evil spirits were distributed.

The courtyard and the rooms—especially the rooms—were domains marked by the Master. Only the weakest of the spirits dared to intrude, trying to lure the sacrifices.

The farther one moved from the courtyard, the stronger the spirits became.

The powerful ones were like beasts, extremely sensitive to each other’s presence. They didn’t dare approach the courtyard, fearing a direct clash with the Master.

So they lingered at the edges of the death-boundary, preying on panicked victims trying to flee and on the lesser spirits constantly drawn there.

A bizarre but stable evil spirit “ecosystem”.

Jiang Xun decided to stay close to the courtyard walls, away from the prowling powerful evil spirits. Once daylight came, he could use sticks and stones to set up a maze formation and create an outdoor base.

Rest by day, defend by night, it should be viable in theory.

Before choosing a base, he needed to scout the spirit distribution farther out to pick the ideal spot.

In the dark, deformed shapes flitted through the shadows, and sticky whispers came from between the branches.

Jiang Xun picked up a stick to use as a cane and walked through the forest with confidence.

Four or five talismans were affixed to the tip of his stick; they would instantly ignite to warn him if spirits approached.

He also moved in accordance with his sect’s footwork techniques, light steps over the leaves, sending out pulses of defensive qi. Moreover, he was shrouded in two layers of spellwork: one to hide his presence, and another to ward off spirits. Low-level threats shouldn’t get near.

As long as he stayed away from the outer boundary, he should be saf—

“Hiss!” Jiang Xun’s brows twisted in pain.

Without warning, his hand burned in agony. A large chunk of flesh disappeared into thin air, and warm blood gushed out instantly.

In the moonlight, the talismans on his stick remained motionless without any signs of burning.

A taboo? No… He’d already dealt with three of them. But this clearly wasn’t a spirit attack… Could there really be more than three taboos?

Jiang Xun stepped back two paces, warily raising his staff. His brush was ready in his right hand. But all he saw ahead was a quiet night scene, with insects chirping softly among the fallen leaves.

Crunch. Crunch.

Something tore his pants and wounded his calf. At the same time, pain seared through his shoulder as his clothes were yanked hard.

This feeling…

He glanced at the wound on his hand. The edges were horribly familiar.

Bite marks. Human bite marks.

Jiang Xun looked again at the talismans. They still hadn’t ignited. There was only one explanation: He wasn’t being bitten by a spirit, but by a living human.

Jiang Xun spat, quickly swung his brush, and activated a dispel illusion spell but the reality it revealed showed the talismans intact.

…Not an illusion.

…But how could that be? What kind of person attacked like this?

“I’m an officially sanctioned Disaster Resolver!”

He shouted, voice stern. “I’ve already triggered a taboo and can no longer resolve this E. Let’s just back off now, or the Underworld will surely record this incident!”

Bai Shuangying looked down at Jiang Xun expressionlessly and said nothing.

He wasn’t the one doing the biting, so the Underworld couldn’t pin it on him.

Hidden nearby, A’Qiao and Lu Wei stared blankly into space with green-glowing eyes.

They chomped frantically on fresh flesh, blood and spit dribbling down their chins. “Why isn’t the rescue team here yet. Why are they still not here…”

“It’s not my fault—”

The purification spells that should have repelled spirits hit their bodies like snowflakes on a lake, vanishing without a trace.

Jiang Xun pressed his back to a tree, heart pounding like a drum.

After a brief calculation, he threw down his staff, stripped off his upper garments, and began drawing talismans directly on his skin. With wild strokes, the characters took form; his horrifying wounds stopped bleeding.

From a distance, he looked like a wax statue, riddled with holes but standing upright.

He’d been through six rituals. He knew how to cut off unnecessary thoughts. No matter who or what his opponent was, if it was a human, he’d fight like it was a human.

Humans weren’t beasts; their bite strength had limits. Without the risk of bleeding out, he wouldn’t die right away.

Jiang Xun picked up his ben and drew two “大*” characters in the air. With a flash of light, the dirt and leaves began to slither, forming two gaunt humanoid figures.

*Big.

They stretched out unnaturally long arms, encircling Jiang Xun protectively. Then, they began to sway and twirl around him like some eerie ritual.

A’Qiao and Lu Wei didn’t care. They lunged forward like animals, only to crash into the summoned guardians.

With a series of sickening cracks, their bodies lost all rigidity, collapsing like water sacks.

Their brains sloshed under their scalps, eyeballs popped from their sockets, and teeth scattered from their mouths.

With no ribs or spine left intact, their torsos crumpled, and they wheezed through crushed throats.

“Hehe, hehe.” The two lumps of meat laughed eerily on the ground, trying to mimic the ritual’s motions.

They were still alive, for now.

Bai Shuangying glanced down and remarked, “You’re leeches.”

“Two leeches that think they’re human.”

“Leeches don’t need bones.”

With his words, the meat piles twisted and stretched.

Flesh and fat squirmed, skin slipped like loose covers. Their heads and necks became equally narrow, faces grotesquely deformed, and their mouths relocated to the tops of their skulls.

They writhed along the ground, drawn by the scent of blood, latching onto Jiang Xun’s legs.

Within half a minute, new bite marks appeared. Though they resembled human teeth, the shape was deeply wrong.

The invisible attackers stopped eating flesh and started sucking his blood with abandon. Jiang Xun’s vision darkened.

When Fang Xiu arrived, he saw this scene.

He looked down at the human leeches. “…Wow.”

His ghost torture techniques were certainly creative and utterly dehumanizing.

Jiang Xun dying miserably was one thing, but these two, though far from saints, didn’t deserve this. Good thing only he could see through the illusion. If Cheng Songyun or Guan He saw this, it’d be hard to explain.

Fang Xiu decided to wrap this up quickly. “Guan He, use the Five-Ghosts Relocation to steal his brush. Don’t touch the weird guardians.”

Guan He nodded and slipped through the shadows. Before Jiang Xun could react, the brush was snatched from his hand.

Seeing Fang Xiu calmly execute his plan, Jiang Xun sneered, “So it really was you!”

Fang Xiu scratched his face awkwardly. “I did have that idea.”

Bai Shuangying: “？”

Jiang Xun: “???” What the hell are you saying?

Still, Jiang Xun didn’t stop casting. He flipped his palm and tried to summon his magic weapon again. Guan He cried out as the brush tried to fly away, only for Fang Xiu to casually bat it toward the black dog.

Tree-branch fetch! The dog perked up.

Just as the brush tried to flee again, the dog leapt up and caught it in its mouth. It dropped the brush at Fang Xiu’s feet with a wag of its tail.

Jiang Xun couldn’t see Bai Shuangying or the dog. To him, the brush had simply flown to Fang Xiu on its own.

Fighting dizziness, he bit into a spiritual herb and tried to summon again. The brush rose like an arrow… Only to stop midair and bounce gently back to Fang Xiu’s feet.

Jiang Xun’s bloodshot eyes widened.

His ankle was bitten again, blood draining rapidly. His beloved magic weapon refused to return. It was clear that Fang Xiu wanted him dead.

Words were useless now. He had to go all in.

Jiang Xun had four anomaly skills.

One was “Common-Grade Duplication”, tied to talismans. It was useless now; another, “Bone-Eating Twins”, couldn’t counter Fang Xiu’s strange powers.

As for the remaining two…

He chose “A Curse Passed Down Through Generations”. To use it, he had to sacrifice one of his internal organs.

As long as he had more blood-debt than Fang Xiu, the evil spirit it summoned would destroy him. It only worked on humans and could be used once per ritual. A hidden ace.

Jiang Xun had a special role in the Guishan Sect. He persuaded people to commit suicide and orchestrated mass suicides.

His direct and indirect blood-debts numbered over 500.

Fang Xiu was so young. How could he possibly compare?

…At worst, Jiang Xun could kill Fang Xiu and command his allies to destroy the ritual Master.

In a flash, Jiang Xun made his decision.

He pressed his hands to his stomach and chanted a twisted incantation. Black light spiraled around him.

Four lidless eyeballs, each the size of a human head, floated up behind him, their red pupils spinning wildly.

Seeing the anomaly aura, Bai Shuangying’s eyes narrowed.

Jiang Xun had summoned a Great Evil and it was checking the conditions for descent. Damn. Whatever pill Jiang Xun had taken, it was keeping him conscious despite the blood loss!

Now what? If Bai Shuangying personally killed him, the Underworld would investigate. If he personally dispersed the Great Evil, they’d still investigate. He…

He zipped in front of Fang Xiu, and the Peach Bon Evil surged. This was a pain. He didn’t care anymore. He’d just do it.

Bai Shuangying was never one for schemes. He just followed his own heart. And right now, it said one thing: Fang Xiu must not die.

…He’d gone to so much trouble building this lovely nest.

Just as Great Immortal Bai prepared to go all out, the four eyeballs scanned the group, and vanished on their own.

Jiang Xun: “……???”

He clutched his stomach, his face contorting in disbelief. “Who the hell are you?! How can your blood-debt be heavier than mine?!”

Fang Xiu leaned on Bai Shuangying’s shoulder in confusion. “What’s he saying?”

Bai Shuangying: “…” He was too lazy to explain.

He gave a simple answer. “He says you’re delicious.”

Cheng Songyun readied her Resentful Ghost Shield and patted Guan He. “He’s talking nonsense, don’t believe him.”

Guan He stood tall. “Of course not! Fang Ge, anything else I should do?”

“The next bit’s not for minors. Cheng Jie, keep an eye on him,” Fang Xiu said, pulling a soda can from his pocket. “Xiao Guan, cover your eyes and ears.”

Guan He: “…”

Jiang Xun stared at Fang Xiu, pale and panting.

What kind of monster was this man? Where did he get so much blood on his hands? Not even a drug lord could rack up that kind of body count these days!

Wait… Could it be…

“You’re from the Guishan Sect too?” Jiang Xun rasped. “Wh-What level are you? If I’ve offended you, I—”

Thud!

The soda can flew out and nailed him in the forehead causing him to stagger.

“I’ve never been more disgusted by a misunderstanding in my life,” Fang Xiu said with a smile, but his eyes were dead cold.

“Trying to run? Might as well go out sprinting for once. No need to crawl.”

Jiang Xun looked toward the dense mass of spirits in the distance, then forced a weak smile.

“Seems you are not blessed by my god.”

He’d lost too much blood. His magic weapon was gone. His stomach was gone.

He still couldn’t read Fang Xiu’s techniques or background. His other magic weapons wouldn’t help much now.

This move was a gamble, but it was all he had left. While Fang Xiu turned away to speak, Jiang Xun curled up and activated his last anomaly skill.

Several hundred meters away, at the courtyard gate…

Hearing the sudden explosion, Mei Lan lifted her head briefly, then dropped her gaze again, distracted.

At her feet, Blondie’s body suddenly slumped sideways. Foam poured from his mouth. His eyes rolled back so violently that each eyeball seemed to split, and from within each one, an extra pupil emerged.

As the pupils rotated, both of his eyes turned into double pupils.

“Cough… cough…” Blondie clawed at his throat, and another voice seemed to speak from inside it:

“You and I have fulfilled our karmic duties. All’s well that ends well… protect me, sister…”

“The explosion was your doing.” Mei Lan’s fearful expression vanished. Her tone was flat.

“You self-destructed your own body to kill them?”

“Sorry for the trouble… Fang Xiu is too difficult… I can’t die yet…”

Blondie’s face twisted in terror, his mouth moving on its own. “I left a soul-swapping curse on him. I’ll just squeeze into this body for now…”

Mei Lan: “I see. So surviving the ritual with your soul intact still counts as making it through.”

“I know the truth behind the E. If you and I work together, we can end this quickly.”

Blondie’s body trembled harder. The second voice from his throat grew smoother, steadier, like it was recovering.

Mei Lan helped him to his feet and casually asked, “And what about that matter?”

“In a little while, we’ll be able to witness the end of days.”

Mei Lan raised her hand and gently pulled her scarf loose. “Is that so?”

The next moment, the scarf slithered like a snake around Blondie’s neck. His misshapen pupils widened in shock, and two voices screamed from his mouth…

“Mei Jie, stop—!”

“What are you doing?! …Cough—if you kill me, the other soul inside dies too—”

“He’s just scum, completely worthless.” Mei Lan’s voice was ice-cold. She made a small gesture, tightening the scarf. “You and I are both scums. You know that as well as I do.”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 73: White Abyss

Lu Yang blinked and the tiled indoor floor beneath his feet turned into outdoor earth.

He sluggishly looked around. Everything had a strangely familiar feel.

Then again, why should this place feel unfamiliar? Lu Yang tried hard to think. Maybe it was like staring at a word too long; you start to think it’s spelled wrong.

…This was clearly his home.

It was like sobering up after a long drink. That eerie sense of distance vanished. The sky above was starry and clear, the evening breeze cool and refreshing.

Wait, he really was sobering up… They’d had too much to drink tonight and had come outside for air.

Lu Yang shook his head hard, clearing it a bit more.

The lights were still on in the main house and the two side rooms. Shadows flickered in the side room where they kept the corpse. In the firelight, he could make out two people moving around, busy with something.

The yard must not be big enough. They had to store the corpse in the side room with no bed. Autumn had arrived, so the ground was getting cold. Tomorrow morning, they could chop some trees and build a few beds.

The chicken coop needed fixing too.

It was crammed with chickens. Some had grown so tall they had to bend over just to squat inside. They curled up their extra limbs to make space for the others.

The persimmon tree was lined with rows of owls. They craned their necks and waved at him, beckoning him closer.

Lu Yang didn’t get it. Why were these human-headed creatures called “owls”?

Maybe zoologists just didn’t care about logic.

“Not a good omen,” A’Qiao muttered. He grabbed a bamboo pole and started whacking the branches.

The owls let out howling laughter and clung stubbornly to the tree.

“Stop it, stop it! Those are Class II protected animals,” Lu Yang hurried to stop him.

“There are too many mosquitoes tonight. Let’s clean up and head to bed. We’ve gotta chop firewood tomorrow.”

A’Qiao put the pole away. “Damn autumn mosquitoes are fierce.”

He slapped one off his arm. It had taken a chunk of meat with it. The smell of blood drew more of them buzzing closer.

He lit a mosquito-repelling talisman, and they scattered again, annoyingly persistent.

Bitten already…they had to go back and apply medicine.

Lu Yang waved to the corpse in the side room and headed toward the main house with A’Qiao. A bloated corpse stood at the doorway smiling at them as they approached.

Something was circling at his feet. Oh right, the little dog. Every household had to keep a watchdog. They had to treat these dogs well, or else they’d turn rabid.

Lu Yang gave the dog a few pats, then turned to Jiang Xun.

“Lao Jiang, check the windows again. I don’t know where the face went tonight. If the windows aren’t sealed right, we might get a draft.”

Jiang Xun stood there squinting at them, looking a bit off.

That made Lu Yang pause too. He felt like he was forgetting something important, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall.

Forgot to feed the chickens? Forgot to tend the corpses? Left the stove burning?

Ah, whatever. They were too drunk tonight. He would deal with it in the morning.

Lu Wei had drunk so much he couldn’t even stand. He was still collapsed at Jiang Xun’s feet.

Lu Yang and A’Qiao left Jiang Xun behind and pushed open the door to go inside.

The main house was brightly lit. Candles lined the corners. A can of soda sat in the center of the table, another one rolling joyfully around on the floor.

Suddenly, Jiang Xun’s voice rang out from the eastern bedroom:

“It’s all an illusion!” he barked. “Wake up! You’re in the courtyard!”

What nonsense. Lu Yang, groggy, thought: Didn’t we just come back inside?

……

Bai Shuangying glanced at Fang Xiu with a hint of annoyance. “You’re interfering.”

When his earlier tactic of “selective treatment” didn’t scare Lu Yang off, he switched to using illusions indiscriminately, sprinkling in some karmic contamination while he was at it.

Jiang Xun sensed something odd and stayed put. Lu Yang and A’Qiao, however, were easily drawn out of the main house and into the courtyard, or rather, into the illusory courtyard, where they thought they were simply going inside to rest.

Next, he only needed to transform the courtyard gate into a bedroom door. Then the two newbies would walk themselves right out of the courtyard.

But Fang Xiu ruined it… He created a Jiang Xun illusion to try and wake them up.

That human had the nerve to look innocent. “How is that interfering? I’m just competing fairly.”

Bai Shuangying: “They treat both of us like enemies. Why bother helping?”

“There’s no third-party interference, and we’re not in a hurry,” Fang Xiu replied indifferently. “It’s a competition. I want to win too.”

There was, in fact, no outside interference, Bai Shuangying thought.

The little black dog was having the time of its life with so many people to play with, dashing in and out of the house. The other spirits in the courtyard were so scared they didn’t even dare breathe.

It suddenly struck Bai Shuangying that Fang Xiu had turned this courtyard into a chessboard. He was happily playing a match against Bai Shuangying using human beings as chess pieces.

Then his next move was…

The Peach Bone Evil trembled slightly and more tangled karma surged. With a bit more interference, the Underworld wouldn’t notice.

Within the illusion, Lu Yang shivered. He looked at the “Jiang Xun” who was shouting like crazy but couldn’t understand a word he was saying.

Whatever. He wasn’t human. There was no need to understand.

Lu Yang stumbled toward the bedroom door. He was a pillow. Pillows belonged on beds, not wandering around the living room.

A’Qiao clearly had the same idea. Pillow to pillow, they headed for the “bedroom door” hand in hand, except it was actually the courtyard gate.

Watching the two of them approach the “bedroom door”, Bai Shuangying lowered his hand. He’d gone this far… Fang Xiu wouldn’t be able to stop it.

He was about to win. Just ten steps more… eight… five…

Creak.

Jiang Xun dragged the half-conscious Lu Wei and pushed the door open, stepping into the courtyard.

His sage-like aura was gone, replaced with disdain and coldness. He tossed away the yellow talismans in his hand, pulled out a calligraphy brush from his robes, then adjusted his collar and drew out a jade pendant.

“Useless trash that can’t be helped… whatever.” He sighed deeply.

Under the moonlight, the jade pendant emitted an eerie green glow.

Jiang Xun flicked his brush. The dark red ink bloomed from the tip. He abandoned the yellow paper and began drawing in the air.

Brush strokes danced like dragons. The red runes lit up one by one, then transformed into ghostly green fire, almost identical in hue to the jade pendant.

They encircled him like a planetary ring.

And within a one-step radius of Jiang Xun, Bai Shuangying’s illusion was suppressed. The real world broke through.

“Return, return…”

“All merit complete, all rejoice…” Jiang Xun chanted under his breath.

The runes spun faster. Three of them shot out and hit the newbies squarely in the back.

Lu Yang and A’Qiao’s dull eyes flickered. They stopped mid-step, clutching their heads, clearly thrown into confusion.

Bai Shuangying’s expression went blank.

Even with most of his power sealed, karmic pollution wasn’t so easily dispelled. Not even half-baked Taoist priest or most evil spirit could suppress it. Only a true ghost immortal from the Underworld could.

For Jiang Xun’s spells to counter his illusions meant only one thing: These spells were designed specifically to counter his kind.

…Such spells brought back a lot of old memories.

…Fine. Whatever Fang Xiu was planning, he wouldn’t let this man leave the ritual alive.

Crack.

A sound drew Bai Shuangying’s attention.

Fang Xiu had clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles cracked. His black eyes were lifeless, like a beast staring down prey.

“You knew all along?”

“Jiang Xun’s earlier moves weren’t even as good as Shan Huanzi’s. I just figured he wasn’t trying yet and wanted to push him a bit.”

Fang Xiu’s mouth curved, but his voice was devoid of humor, only killing intent.

“…Well, I didn’t expect to push out this.”

Bai Shuangying stared at him.

So that was it. Fang Xiu’s true goal was never the haunting competition.

From suggesting the competition to his so-called “interference,” this human had been coaxing Bai Shuangying to intensify the illusion, gradually forcing Jiang Xun to his limits.

Because the pressure came from an evil spirit like Bai Shuangying, Jiang Xun wouldn’t suspect and would be forced to reveal his trump card.

Nearby, Jiang Xun’s despicable spell was still in effect, but Bai Shuangying felt strangely calm.

He suddenly realized that, in this moment, they both viewed the same man as their enemy. They both craved the same kill. It was bizarre, and thrilling.

So even if Fang Xiu didn’t want the so-called “game,” Bai Shuangying was going to continue it.

……

Lu Yang’s head throbbed.

One minute, he believed he was a farmer living in this courtyard. The next, he was convinced he was a plump buckwheat pillow. Then he thought he was a sacrificial offering in a bizarre ritual.

Farming seemed most logical… but wait, his family wasn’t even in agriculture, was it?

He remembered he should be indoors, yet every time he blinked, images of the courtyard flashed before him. He’d be terrified of ghosts and corpses one moment, and the next, he was convinced they were just livestock.

His thoughts twisted and warped. He felt like a clay figure in someone’s palm, his brain kneaded at will. It was like drowning, bobbing between illusion and reality, choking on breath.

He couldn’t take it anymore and dry-heaved endlessly.

His vision doubled. Only the courtyard gate remained painfully clear in his sight. He had to run. Anywhere. Just get away from here…

This place isn’t right. Something’s very wrong.

Staggering toward the gate, Lu Yang tried to move. Then his right shoe vanished into thin air. He stumbled, nearly falling.

At the same time, A’Qiao’s collapsed voice screamed beside him. “I want to go home! What the fuck is this place?! Stop messing with me…!”

In his flickering vision, A’Qiao’s shoe was gone too.

“You can’t leave this place, or you’ll lose your shoes… What a curious taboo. It wasn’t something a human would think of.”

A voice approached through the chaos, calm with a hint of mockery. “Yes, it seems the ‘E’ here is a dog.”

It was Jiang Xun. This is Jiang Xun’s voice, Lu Yang thought in a trance. Taboo. That’s right, Jiang Xun had taught them about taboos.

He said you couldn’t walk into the wind. Couldn’t damage the courtyard. Those were two of the taboos.

He also said he could distinguish between “haunting” and “taboo”. Hauntings were slower, inconsistent. Taboos were instant, consistent.

He had taught seriously, no worse than Cheng Songyun.

And he had said… he would protect the newbies till the end.

“You’re all too much trouble.” In the eerie green light Jiang Xun said lightly, “The three taboos are confirmed. Live or die, it’s up to you.”

He waved his hand and the green runes flew off, and with them, Lu Yang’s lifeline.

Was he a person? A pillow? A sacrifice?

Terror gripped him. He just wanted to escape. The warped world before him kept drawing him toward the gate. Its allure was powerful and clear.

A’Qiao and Lu Wei were already running for it, flailing in panic.

It felt… familiar.

Like that day a year ago, when he first saw human meat roasting on a fire. Despair, panic, and desire flooding in all at once.

Lu Yang dropped to his knees, his throat convulsing. His clothes were drenched in sweat, but he didn’t move.

To minimize interference, he shut his eyes tight and mentally commanded the corpse to drag him back inside. Whether he could even do that, he didn’t know. Whether the corpse would listen, he didn’t know. Whether he was sane, he didn’t know.

But he did know this: If he was human, he shouldn’t be wandering outside at night. If he was a pillow, he shouldn’t be wandering outside at night. If he was a sacrifice, he definitely shouldn’t be wandering outside at night.

No one here could be trusted. This was his own decision!

In the dizziness, a breeze circled him.

“Well done,” came a young voice, vaguely familiar, passing by his ear. Whose voice was it?

Pain pricked the back of his neck…then everything went dark.

……

Jiang Xun ignored the panicked A’Qiao and Lu Wei, letting them run toward the gate.

No matter how fearsome the Great Evil was, it still craved yin energy and living souls. It would surely hunt down the two rookies, saving him the trouble.

Despite the setback, he had identified three taboos tonight. That was something. He could finish the rest tomorrow.

The “Master” was a dog, and the “E” was dog-related. He’d suspected it the moment the Underworld sent him here, this ritual wouldn’t be simple.

The E and the Master shared karmic ties. The E was on the dog.

His next mission was to kill the dog.

Maintaining his anti-illusion spell, Jiang Xun carefully made his way to the main house.

With no newbies around, there was no need to hide his strength.

He could set up a proper formation tonight and sleep well.

As he reached out to push open the door, a humanoid spirit lunged at him from the shadows.

“Courting death.” Jiang Xun sneered and blasted it with a spell.

The spirit opened its mouth and spurted out a series of crisp sounds of splintering wood.

Wait… splintering wood?

Could it be what he just chopped up was… No. Impossible. He clearly used the dispel illusion spell!

Jiang Xun’s pupils shrank. Before he could curse, he saw the courtyard gate before him.

“Do not damage the courtyard or you’ll be expelled.”

Damn it. He’d really triggered a taboo!

……

Fang Xiu looked at Bai Shuangying in mild surprise.

The two newbies were about to run out of the courtyard. Bai Shuangying had this one in the bag.

Things were going as Fang Xiu had expected. Once Jiang Xun felt the newbies weren’t worth the effort, he’d focus on testing taboos and abandon them.

That meant they’d seen Jiang Xun’s full power and Bai Shuangying would win the haunting match. A win-win.

Next, he only needed to protect the little dog and focus on dealing with Jiang Xun.

But before Fang Xiu could act, Bai Shuangying pressed his hand down and forcibly altered the illusion skill.

The Peach Bone Evil lightly touched Fang Xiu’s hand, like a firework bursting above the pedestrian street, a delicate illusion appeared before Jiang Xun…

A fake spirit. One that didn’t exist.

Standing right in Jiang Xun’s path.

Jiang Xun’s spell could suppress Bai Shuangying’s illusions, but it couldn’t suppress the designated illusion skill from the Underworld. He had no idea another illusion was nested within the first. His spell hit and destroyed the main house door.

Amid the little dog’s angry barking, Jiang Xun was thrown out of the courtyard by the taboo, just a few seconds before A’Qiao and Lu Wei.

The three collided outside the gate in a heap.

“Jiang Xun stepped out first. You win,” Bai Shuangying said softly, turning to meet Fang Xiu’s gaze.

Fang Xiu: “……”

Bai Shuangying calmly looked at him.

“I don’t need a victory handed to me.”

Fang Xiu quickly replied, “Sorry. I didn’t mean to undermine you. I just…”

“Then the competition continues.” Bai Shuangying cut him off. “Next round: whoever kills Jiang Xun first. I’ll guide the two newbies. You command your allies.”

He wanted to kill Jiang Xun quietly. Fang Xiu also wanted Jiang Xun dead. It was the perfect excuse to keep the game going. Fun and fair.

Fang Xiu stared at Bai Shuangying. A glint of surprise and joy sparkled in his eyes.

Bai Shuangying assumed he hadn’t reacted yet. He adjusted his sleeve, then solemnly declared, “Yes. I know your allies are outside the courtyard.”

“You deliberately used an illusion to let them see you leave. You knew if you stayed too long, they’d come looking. You used my power to force out Jiang Xun’s strength. You tested your allies with the evil spirits in the woods… I understand your thinking.”

Fang Xiu stood still, scanning his ghost again and again.

His killing intent faded, from a panting predator to a squirrel finding its winter acorns.

The little black dog trotted to Fang Xiu’s feet, tail wagging obliviously.

“You’ve been watching me, and I’ve been watching you.” Fang Xiu wiped his face and momentarily lost focus. “I just can’t seem to get around you, this abyss.”

Bai Shuangying: “?”

“It means… I’m willing to keep playing.” Fang Xiu smiled. “And in order not to fall headfirst into you, I need to be very, very careful.”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 72: Illusion Symphony

After spending a few minutes in the seemingly peaceful guest room, Lu Yang felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. He would rather deal with the vague whispers and apparitions. At least he could see them, and they could see him. He knew what he was facing.

Not like now, where he had no idea what would happen next. Every breath felt like holding his breath three times over.

On the other side, despite taking a heavy blow, Master Jiang hadn’t lost his composure. He scooped up some talisman ash and dabbed it four times on his own forehead, then four times on A’Qiao’s.

A protective spell!

Lu Yang took a deep breath, ready to step forward and ask for one.

But just as he lifted his foot, a shadow suddenly loomed before his eyes. The back of a massive head blocked his view, the short black hair tickling his nose.

Lu Yang jolted and stumbled backward several steps. When he finally saw the full figure, his thoughts froze for a moment.

It was himself.

Same height, same clothes, his body. That familiar yet alien figure stood with its back to him, sweat glistening on its skin.

Out-of-body experience?

Lu Yang pinched his arm hard. The skin was warm, the pain real. His tongue felt dry and bitter, his heart pounded so hard it didn’t even need checking.

…No. This wasn’t a soul leaving the body. His own body was still intact, so what was this thing in front of him?

“Master…!” In panic, Lu Yang cried out hoarsely.

His voice echoed through the small living room, but Jiang Xun gave no response. A’Qiao didn’t react either, eyes fixed in place.

It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped on Lu Yang’s head. He lunged toward his teammates, shaking them and shouting, but not a single response came.

It was as if he’d been erased from the world or turned into a ghost.

As he struggled in despair, the “other Lu Yang” stepped forward, speaking timidly, “Master, the ash…”

This time, Jiang Xun heard. He dipped his finger into the ash and dabbed “Lu Yang’s” forehead four times while chanting.

“Stay close to me. No matter what you see or hear, do not believe it.” After finishing the spell, Jiang Xun gave a serious warning.

“I-I understand. Thank you, Master!”

The “Lu Yang” nodded nervously, voice and demeanor flawlessly identical to the real one.

No matter what you see or hear, don’t believe it.

…But you already did believe it!

Lu Yang clutched his hair and growled in despair.

This time, he finally got a reaction. The monster turned its back to him, and the back of its head slowly melted away, revealing a bald patch of skin.

Facial features began emerging from it one by one, warped and misplaced like a child’s crude face collage. The uneven eyes locked onto Lu Yang, then slowly stretched into a smile.

In the next instant, like a corrupted video frame, the face vanished.

Lu Yang couldn’t even scream. He backed up two steps and crashed into a small stool, its legs screeching loudly against the floor.

No. No matter what that thing was, he had to warn them…

Suddenly, Lu Yang had an idea.

He grabbed the two cans of soda from the table and started throwing them with loud clangs. When no one reacted, he opened one and splashed it straight onto A’Qiao’s face.

A sweet scent spread instantly. The milky-white liquid covered A’Qiao’s eyeballs, dripping like tears down his cheeks.

But A’Qiao just kept nervously staring at Jiang Xun, unfazed, as if the soda had never existed.

Sound didn’t work. Direct contact didn’t work. Indirect contact didn’t work either.

Lu Yang’s hand trembled, and the red can clattered to the floor. It slowly rolled past A’Qiao’s feet toward the wall.

After hitting the wall, the can suddenly stood upright, then slowly tipped over and rolled back toward Lu Yang.

Clunk… clunk…

It stopped at his feet, still sealed, full to the brim, as if never opened.

Lu Yang’s hands and feet turned icy, his mind numb.

Had he really thrown that soda at A’Qiao? Was this all just an illusion? Or was he trapped in a nightmare, paralyzed in a dream?

The can bumped gently against his shoe. Instinctively, Lu Yang kicked it away. A few seconds later, the cursed can bounced and rolled right back, sticking close to him.

A breeze brushed his ankle, chilling and unmistakably real.

Only now did Lu Yang truly understand the terror of this ritual.

What skills? What rules? What experts? In this damned place, anything could happen, and no one could be trusted!

He had to get help…had to make a bigger scene. But damaging the courtyard would violate a taboo… Desperate, Lu Yang’s eyes scanned the room and finally landed on the candles in the living room.

He stepped over the soda can that was stalking him, rushed forward, and blew out the candle in one breath.

The room plunged into darkness.

With the light extinguished, shadowy forms appeared in the corners. They lined up neatly along the walls, faint gazes locking onto Lu Yang.

But in the dark, Jiang Xun and A’Qiao remained perfectly still. They hadn’t noticed the candle going out. It was as if they were living in a different world.

In the pitch black, A’Qiao wiped his forehead. “M-Master, why’s it so quiet? The candle’s brighter than last night.”

“When a Great Evil enters, the minor spirits grow silent.”

Jiang Xun’s tone was calm. “Whatever entered is smarter than the rest. It doesn’t want to offend the Master of this place. It won’t act directly. It’ll try to lure us outside.”

The “Lu Yang” shuddered. “But it clearly locked the door…”

“Locking the door is meant to drive us out. Don’t be deceived,” Jiang Xun whispered. “My talismans can’t stop it, but they’re enough to mask us. As long as we stay still…”

“But it locked the door.”

“Lu Yang” interrupted. “I don’t like being locked in. It feels like being sealed in a coffin. I don’t want to stay here. I don’t want to be a burden. I want to leave. But opening the door means death. Opening the door means death. Opening the door means death…”

“What kind of crap are you spouting?!” A’Qiao shouted.

“A’Qiao, I mean you should open the door for me.”

The “Lu Yang” replied in a disturbingly flat tone. “I don’t know how to open it myself.”

“You said the talismans could hide us. What the hell is wrong with him?!” A’Qiao backed away behind Jiang Xun, forgetting to even call him “Master”.

Jiang Xun didn’t answer. His face darkened as he stared at the expressionless Lu Yang.

In the midst of the muttering, “Lu Yang” collapsed to the ground, limbs planted flat.

Sickening cracking noises echoed. His limbs twisted 180 degrees, elbows and knees bent backwards. His waist arched, and his head lifted high. His neck bent at a sharp right angle, vertebrae seemingly snapped.

He looked like a dog.

“Open the door. Open the door. Open the door,” he repeated loudly. “Help me open the door. I want to go out and play.”

Seeing this twisted version of himself, Lu Yang clutched his mouth but still vomited. Precious food came up in a sour wave that triggered another wave of nausea.

He wanted to faint like the night before, but couldn’t.

Jiang Xun threw a talisman at the “dog-man’s” forehead.

It didn’t react. Instead, he—it tiptoed backward a few meters, twisted its body unnaturally, and casually shook the talisman off.

Jiang Xun frowned. Then something clearly dawned on him. “This thing…”

“Open the door. Open the door. Open the door.”

The dog-man stopped next to the terrified “Lu Wei”, barking like a machine. Its voice drowned out Jiang Xun’s muttering.

“Fuck your mother…”

A’Qiao snapped. He grabbed a bowl from the cupboard and threw it at the dog-man. But from Lu Yang’s perspective, he was clearly aiming at Lu Wei’s body.

The bowl shattered with a crash, and blood immediately poured from Lu Wei’s flesh. Strangely, the dog-man also sprouted the same wounds, like the dish really hit it.

Seconds later, cuts appeared on A’Qiao himself. His loose pants darkened with spreading blood.

…No violence allowed inside the courtyard. The Master’s “taboo punishment” had arrived right on time.

“Liar!” A’Qiao’s eyes bulged, voice cracking. “You said your talismans could protect us! You said we’d be fine!”

Jiang Xun: “It’s an extremely powerful illusion…”

“Fuck your illusion! That’s Lu Yang! I hit him, and I got punished!”

With one teammate mutating before his eyes, another’s soul swapped, and himself about to be left alone, A’Qiao couldn’t take it anymore. His face spasmed, unable to hear another word.

“You lied about Lu Wei too, didn’t you? That soul-swap is fake! Bring him back…right now!”

“Lu Yang” flashed a wide, eager grin and barked on cue. “Open the door!”

“That’s not me!” Lu Yang shouted in vain.

In the chaos, Jiang Xun clicked his tongue softly.

His gaze flicked between the dog-man and A’Qiao, then landed on the “playing dead” “Lu Wei”.

He pulled out the red soul-swap talisman and tore it in half.

Hidden from view.

“Nice,” Fang Xiu said contentedly, drawing the attention of many spirits.

One of tonight’s goals was complete!

Fantastic. This was even more fun than he’d imagined…

Not long ago, after he brought Bai Shuangying and the dog into the house, all the spirits immediately quieted down. They didn’t even try to run. Instead, they neatly lined up along the walls, trying hard to minimize their presence.

It looked exactly like a group of criminals caught in a raid.

With the spirits calmed, the room suddenly became bright and peaceful, almost cozy.

The little dog sat wagging in the center of the living room happily at Fang Xiu.

“Good dog.”

Fang Xiu locked the door and rubbed its head. “Don’t worry, I won’t hurt anyone and upset you.”

“Woof woof!” The dog panted happily.

“Bai Shuangying, it’s been a while since we played a good stealth game.”

Fang Xiu hugged the dog and petted it heartily. “Help me hide Lu Yang. Make it thorough.”

Bai Shuangying complied easily. But just as he began, Fang Xiu activated his own illusion skill, “Phantom Creation”, standing right beside him.

As Lu Yang disappeared, another version of him appeared at the center of the room. The dog sniffed wildly, black-bean eyes full of wonder.

“Alright, next let’s compete at haunting.” Fang Xiu declared seriously. “I’ll control the Lu Yang illusion. You distort the space. Let’s see who can drive them out of the courtyard first… how about it?”

Bai Shuangying perked up immediately.

In all his years, he’d never met a human who wanted to compete at scaring people. It sounded even more fun than counting corpses at the Mid-Autumn Ritual.

“How do we determine the winner?” he asked with dignified restraint.

Fang Xiu thought for a moment. “Jiang Xun won’t be scared by the spatial illusions. If he runs first, that means my Lu Yang illusion scared him, so I win.”

“If the others run first, it means your environmental illusion spooked them into abandoning Jiang Xun, so you win.”

Bai Shuangying agreed happily. Scaring regular folks sounded much easier than outwitting a cultivator.

“I just lent you my vision. Take a look.”

With a swing of his Peach Bone Evil, Bai Shuangying’s illusion wrapped around everyone but Lu Yang. Fang Xiu blinked. The scene before his eyes doubled, overlapping like two mirrored worlds.

Lu Yang was left alone in the real world, while the others were immersed in the illusory one. The “Lu Yang” among them was actually Fang Xiu’s skill-generated illusion, meaning even though they were in the same room, Lu Yang had essentially been exiled to another dimension.

No matter what he did—even if he set the room on fire—the others wouldn’t notice.

This illusion was terrifyingly clever. If Lu Yang had been any more impulsive, he might have run out of the room by now. Fang Xiu watched in awe.

After Lu Yang kicked the can, Fang Xiu pulled out a fresh one and started playing fetch with the dog, driving Lu Yang into a cold sweat.

When it got even more fun, Fang Xiu turned “Lu Yang” into the dog-man. The little dog didn’t understand the terror of transformation. Thinking a fellow pup had arrived, it barked happily and wagged its tail.

Bai Shuangying cheerfully manipulated the illusions to sync with Fang Xiu’s. He tweaked the lighting; Fang Xiu adjusted movements. Bai Shuangying altered A’Qiao’s aim; Fang Xiu faked injuries. There was no communication needed. Their coordination was flawless, like instruments in symphony.

In the dilapidated house, they wove a beautifully twisted nightmare.

The little dog hadn’t played with a human in a long time. It frolicked through the illusions, rolling on its back and flailing its paws in glee.

Watching the ghost frolic and the humans scream, Fang Xiu smiled. Bai Shuangying, seeing this, was in a great mood too.

“Fun, right?” Fang Xiu asked while having the dog-man spout nonsense.

“Mm.”

This kind of game was immensely satisfying, Bai Shuangying thought. He’d thought he’d have to be free to cause such chaos.

But his human had endless ideas. He actually started looking forward to the next ritual… No, wait. He should encourage Fang Xiu to stay here longer!

No more stalling. Time to win.

Now that Lu Wei had been recalled, all three newbies were back. If he scared off just one, he’d win.

…and once he won, he could ask Fang Xiu for something. Surely Fang Xiu wouldn’t say no.

“Jiang Xun’s figured out it’s an illusion. He has some real skill,” Bai Shuangying admitted. “His strength clearly exceeds what he showed earlier, yet he still walked into this trap.”

Fang Xiu patted the little dog: “Honestly, it has nothing to do with strength.”

The real issue was A’Qiao, who trusted Jiang Xun recklessly before, then flipped out the moment Jiang Xun didn’t meet expectations. When chaos breaks out, people like him can’t handle complex truths. To keep order, Jiang Xun had no choice but to end the soul-swap.

Nearby spirits whispered among themselves, and one even tried clapping before being tackled by the others.

The most fidgety one caught the dog’s attention. The dog bit it twice and swallowed it whole, leaving just half a claw.

It placed the claw in front of Fang Xiu, whimpering.

“Good boy. You can eat it yourself.” Fang Xiu smiled.

He snapped his fingers and the dog-man vanished from the living room. From the locked east bedroom came a voice. It was Jiang Xun’s voice.

“That ‘me’ is a fake… Run!” the illusion shouted. “The one I summoned back isn’t Lu Wei!”

Jiang Xun had barely started to explain when Bai Shuangying, unwilling to lose, swung his Peach Bone Evil again, warping the scene.

He transformed the “interior” into the illusion of the courtyard.

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 71: There’s an Evil Dog Inside

This was Lu Yang’s second night in the sacrificial ritual.

After sunset, darkness flooded the room like sewage.

Master Jiang had moved into the living room, pasting yellow talismans over every door and window. The flickering candlelight illuminated the cinnabar strokes, casting a dark, blood-red hue. Rather than feeling protective, it radiated an ominous aura.

Lu Yang sat against the wall with a dead teammate standing nearby. The corpse let out strange, guttural groans as the gases of decomposition rattled its throat. Lu Wei, tied up tightly, was dumped in a corner, mumbling through the gag, his bloodshot eyes wild.

According to Master Jiang, the body currently contained Blondie’s soul. The real Lu Wei, now controlling Blondie’s body, had been left outside the courtyard.

“If he suffers a serious injury, this talisman will react.” Master Jiang held up a blood-ink red talisman between two fingers and shook it. “When the time comes, tear this talisman, and Lu Wei will return.”

A’Qiao’s eyes sparkled with admiration, his voice eager. “Got it, got it! Even if that blond guy gets swapped back, he won’t be able to do anything while gravely injured! That’s one enemy taken out!”

Lu Yang couldn’t wrap his head around it.

Lu Wei was wandering outside, awaiting inevitable injury and torment, and this was something to gloss over with such excitement?

Wasn’t their ultimate goal to dispel disaster and resolve the E? Why did this feel like a team-based deathmatch? Why was killing someone reason for joy?

Was the ritual truly a place where the weak were prey, and he was just too naive and foolish? Or was something fundamentally wrong? Maybe they shouldn’t have fallen this far?

The claim that Fang Xiu had manipulated the pierced-lip man was solely Jiang Xun’s assertion; and earlier, A’Qiao had attacked Fang Xiu, who just laughed it off in response. Based on facts alone, the other team hadn’t hurt anyone. In fact, they had helped first.

But Jiang Xun had helped too and had already identified two taboos…

Lu Yang clutched his head, feeling like his mind was splitting in two.

By contrast, A’Qiao was remarkably calm.

After two days, he’d only suffered minor burns, which had made him bolder. Though the supernatural phenomena in the room continued, he clearly felt more at ease near Jiang Xun.

“Master, what about the talismans on the doors and windows?” A’Qiao even had the presence of mind to ask questions.

Outside, the windows were still crammed with ghostly faces, their distorted white features grinding against the glass with squeals. The talismans on the sills shuddered incessantly.

“Household doors and windows can block evil. With the addition of protective spells, one night of safety is guaranteed,” Jiang Xun replied, lounging on the sofa in a relaxed posture, preparing to rest.

“So nothing weird will happen inside the house anymore?” A’Qiao asked, half-understanding.

“Correct. There may be residual disturbances, but they won’t harm anyone.”

Jiang Xun added calmly, “Tonight is different from last night. I won’t be tied up again.”

Admittedly, that kind of confidence was extremely reassuring.

Speaking of confidence…

Lu Yang couldn’t help but think of another confident leader. He glanced at the drink cans on the table. They were as crimson as Fang Xiu’s clothes. The packaging was intact, impossible to tamper with, yet no one had touched them. Even Lu Yang didn’t have the courage to drink.

Right at that moment, what was Fang Xiu thinking?

…Bang bang bang!

The door, covered in yellow talismans, suddenly shook. Loud knocking echoed through the room. Jiang Xun instantly sat up, eyes narrowing.

The spirits at the door suddenly scattered. The ones at the windows struggled to twist their heads to look toward the entrance. Their grotesque smiles vanished, replaced by blank stares.

But under the hazy moonlight, nothing was there.

A’Qiao shuddered and rushed to stand beside Jiang Xun. Lu Yang noticed that the ghostly eyes within the room had all rotated to face the same direction…

Bang bang bang!

The knocking continued. The thin yellow paper began to tear, faint bluish-white sparks rising from it. Inside, the candle flames suddenly elongated like a zombie’s claw, flickering with a greenish-black glow.

In Blondie’s body, Lu Wei froze and shrank back, trying to make himself as small and unnoticed as possible.

Bang bang bang!

Flames erupted all at once. Talismans at the door, windowsills, and window edges burst into fire simultaneously.

The protective spells crumbled into ash. The ghostly faces crammed at the windows all turned in unison to look back inside. Their mouths stretched grotesquely, half the size of their heads, revealing even more twisted grins than before.

Ghostly eyes bulged from every gap, spinning madly. The room filled with a low, buzzing murmur like tinnitus, making Lu Yang’s teeth ache.

What happened to the promised peaceful night? How was this worse than yesterday!?

Jiang Xun scowled and snapped his wrist, sending a flurry of talismans flying like a yellow fan.

“All the talismans are destroyed. The Great Evil has arrived,” he said. “Everyone, gather! Quickly!”

The next second, the knocking stopped abruptly, and the house fell into dead silence.

Outside the door.

Fang Xiu lowered his knocking hand and exclaimed, “Knocking on a door can actually start a fire?”

Bai Shuangying replied helplessly, “It’s the talismans warding off evil.”

“But I’m not an evil spirit.” Fang Xiu looked at him innocently, sounding aggrieved.

Bai Shuangying was silent for a moment, then decided to demonstrate. He reached out his right hand and gently covered Fang Xiu’s eyes. It felt damp, as if a soft tongue had licked him.

When Fang Xiu opened his eyes again, he gasped sharply.

It was as if a second spiritual eye had opened. Everything in the courtyard appeared vividly clear. From the crawling evil spirits to the circling movement around his ankles…

A little dog.

It looked like a typical rural mutt, pitch black with a worn red collar. Its body hadn’t fully grown barely reaching Fang Xiu’s knee. It was chubby and round, looking more cute than threatening.

It was hard to imagine this little thing was the strongest spirit in the yard. No matter how he looked, Fang Xiu couldn’t detect any malevolence.

Sensing Fang Xiu looking, the dog wagged its tail excitedly, black eyes forming two white crescent moons.

“Good dog.” Fang Xiu couldn’t resist squatting down and petting it accurately.

Aside from lacking body heat, the dog’s behavior was just like a real one. It seemed unaware of its own death, still panting enthusiastically, pink tongue licking its nose.

Animals in the living world always avoided Fang Xiu. Finally catching a dog that he could actually pet, he was overjoyed, and so was the dog.

The pup bounced on the spot, playfully pawing at Fang Xiu’s legs.

Then it suddenly darted off, charging at a few nearby evil spirits, baring its teeth, again and again, until its mouth split open to the midpoint of its body.

Its upper half lifted high, resembling a dog-shaped stapler.

A gaping maw filled with long, uneven fangs chomped straight through a humanoid evil spirit. Several tongue-like tendrils shot out, wrapped around the creature, and swallowed it whole.

The entire process took no more than five seconds, casual and effortless.

After munching a few spirits, the dog returned and bounced around in front of Fang Xiu, tail spinning like a helicopter. The collar around its neck remained perfectly intact.

Fang Xiu: “…Hold up.”

This was not the cute pup he was promised. Now he understood why all the nearby evil spirits disappeared so fast.

In comparison, its “warning bites” were almost polite.

Bai Shuangying watched Fang Xiu’s stunned face with satisfaction. “It’s been following you the whole time. The talismans must’ve detected it.”

When Fang Xiu tried to enter, it simply followed dumbly. Bai Shuangying could mask his own aura, but this silly dog couldn’t. No wonder the protective talismans all activated at once.

Still, Bai Shuangying hadn’t expected it to be this close to Fang Xiu.

A dog spirit was still an evil spirit. Even if it didn’t attack humans out of malice, it shouldn’t be affectionate either.

Did Fang Xiu have some special trait? …Could it be that the mutt had sniffed out Fang Xiu’s soul as delicious?

Bai Shuangying looked down at the dog and nudged its head with his toe, silently saying, “That’s mine.”

The dog tilted its head for a few seconds, then enthusiastically pounced at Bai Shuangying’s feet, slobbering all over his robe.

Bai Shuangying: “…”

Fine. Maybe it was just especially stupid.

Beside him, Fang Xiu cracked his knuckles. “Well, the fire’s lit, the mood is set… Let’s go!”

“Mm.”

“Woof!”

Inside the house.

After the knocking ceased, everything returned to silence. A few minutes passed. Jiang Xun, on high alert, was starting to feel sore from holding his stance.

…The Great Evil outside had suddenly stopped. Had it clashed with the local Master?

The “Master” here was likely the spirit of a watchdog. Considering it wouldn’t knock on the door, the knocking must’ve been from a Great Evil being drawn to the E.

If the dog could handle the intruder, great. If not…

Bang!

Before Jiang Xun could finish thinking, the main door suddenly swung wide open, revealing the thick darkness outside.

The talismans in his hand ignited spontaneously from the surge of yin energy, rendering them useless.

The next second, the door creaked closed on its own.

Before their eyes, the bolt moved by itself, sealing the door tight. Rusty metal scraped against the frame, sounding like an old man grinding his teeth.

Cold sweat drenched Lu Yang’s back. One phrase flashed through his mind. “Close the door and beat the dog*.”

*(关门打狗) Idiom referring to trapping your opponent before attacking, ensuring they have no way to escape.

He instinctively looked toward the door and windows, but the ghostly faces were gone.

The candles returned to normal, burning quietly. There was no wind. The flames were utterly still.

No faces in sofa gaps, no eyes beneath the table, no shifting New Year paintings… Nothing at all.

Since the door locked itself, all the spirits had vanished. The house was unnaturally “clean”.

But they knew, something had entered the room.

It lurked in the shadows, watching them, clearly in no hurry to leave.

…This was going to be a sleepless night, Lu Yang thought, drenched in cold sweat.

As if in response, a scream echoed from the forest outside the courtyard.

Hearing it, Fang Xiu turned toward the window and quietly curled his lips.

……

In the wing room.

Cheng Songyun immediately tensed at the scream. “That sounded like Xiao Du!”

Mei Lan whispered, “With Fang Xiu there, it’ll be fine.”

The room fell silent for a few seconds.

“I think we should still go check.” Guan He couldn’t help saying. “What if something did happen to him? We can’t just sit here waiting for orders all the time.”

Mei Lan hesitated. “It’s dangerous to go out at night…”

“All the more reason to. At least we all have survival abilities,” Cheng Songyun reasoned. “Guan He is right. We can’t always rely on Xiao Fang. What if he’s not here? Do we just stop thinking?”

Guan He pulled down his black veil. “It’s too risky to split up tonight. Let’s go together.”

Mei Lan was silent for a long time, her fingers brushing across her chest unconsciously.

“…Understood,” she finally said softly. “Then let’s all go.”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 70: An Unusual Alliance

“Whoa,” Fang Xiu exclaimed in hiding.

He had picked the spot with the best view and was happily watching the entire scene unfold, even leisurely popping candy into his mouth. Over there, “Blondie” was shouting hysterically; over here, the candy crunched crisply between his teeth.

“Soul-Swapping Technique,” Bai Shuangying said, pulling out two evil spirit ears to munch on with Fang Xiu.

“This is actually allowed?”

Bai Shuangying: “If it were a real human body, soul-swapping would be difficult. But the bodies of sacrificial offerings are merely containers, without the involvement of the three souls and seven spirits. This kind of technique isn’t that advanced.”

Fang Xiu thought aloud, “So, extracting a soul from a real body is like ‘juicing a fruit’. Whereas this soul-swapping is more like pouring juice from a bottle into a cup?”

“…Yes.” Bai Shuangying glanced at “Fang Xiu’s juice”.

Fang Xiu thoughtfully pulled out a canned drink and took a few sips of the syrupy juice. After replenishing his “juice reserves”, he turned his full attention back toward the courtyard gate.

There, Jiang Xun had opened the gate. “Blondie” stood pitifully outside, panic written all over his face.

His physical body was intact, yet he couldn’t enter the courtyard. It was blocked by some invisible wall of air. “Blondie” pounded on the air in vain, performing a pitiful wall-crawling act in front of the empty gate with sweat pouring down his face.

“Please, switch me back,” he croaked, begging Jiang Xun.

Jiang Xun remained calm, lifting his eyelids slightly. “Not yet. If I swap you back now, he’ll regain access to his ghost arts.”

“Blondie” stared blankly at him. “Then what should I do?”

“I’ll rescue you when the time comes,” Jiang Xun replied softly as he drew patterns by the threshold, sticking a line of yellow talismans along it. “Blondie” tried to charge into the courtyard again, only to be blocked once more by the invisible wall.

“…Hmm, as expected, it’s a taboo. You’ve done well.”

Lu Wei, trapped in Blondie’s body, gave a dry laugh, sweat dripping down his back.

It was already afternoon. God only knew what it’d be like outside the courtyard after dark. Earlier victims had died just by stepping outside the house at night. What would happen if he left the courtyard?

Would Jiang Xun really rescue him? Would he make it in time?

In truth, this “soul-swapping to catch someone” tactic had been discussed beforehand. Lu Wei had agreed eagerly, hoping to earn some credit in front of a bigshot.

Now, standing here, Lu Wei felt an acute sense of dread. Safety was just one step away, yet utterly unreachable. His life was now completely in Jiang Xun’s hands. Whether he ever returned to his body depended entirely on Jiang Xun’s whim.

“Is there anything else you need me to do?” He said with a stiff face. “I’m here… Watch out!!!”

Blondie had taken advantage of Jiang Xun turning his back and suddenly charged forward, trying to tackle him with his full body weight. Jiang Xun was standing right beside a brick courtyard wall… If his head hit it directly, the outcome would be grim.

Jiang Xun didn’t dodge.

He seemed to have let his guard down. Upon hearing Lu Wei’s shout, he merely twisted his body slightly, avoiding a direct skull-to-brick impact.

Blondie slammed him to the ground and knelt on Jiang Xun’s back, trying to adjust his position to crush him with his full weight.

Lu Wei panicked. But using Blondie’s voice, he didn’t dare shout for help and could only watch helplessly.

Yet just seconds later, a faint breeze swept by, and a muffled scream came from Blondie’s gagged mouth. Bloody gashes opened on his thighs and arms, blood seeping through the cloth, pattering to the ground.

Lu Wei’s eyes bulged with horror. “That’s my body—!”

But Blondie didn’t give up so easily. Bleeding profusely, he forced himself to push down on the back of Jiang Xun’s neck. The longer he pressed, the more blood oozed from his wounds.

After ten seconds or so, his upper body began to tremble violently, like seaweed in a flood. Saliva and blood flew from his mouth, and finally, he collapsed to the side, unable to move.

Jiang Xun calmly stood up from under the gasping Blondie and brushed the dust from his clothes. “Thanks for the cooperation. I’ve learned a lot more now.”

He glanced at the half-conscious Lu Wei and added, “Don’t worry. As long as you’re still breathing when the taboo ends, your wounds will heal.”

He was still playing the “everything’s under control” card.

“Don’t damage the courtyard or else you’ll be expelled. Don’t walk into the wind or else you’ll die. Two taboos identified, one remains,” Fang Xiu summarized casually. “Losing flesh or falling doesn’t cause instant death. It must be caused by an evil spirit… Not bad. Jiang Xun is thorough.”

This guy was really treating Jiang Xun like a handy prop… and using him quite efficiently. Bai Shuangying suddenly felt like his earlier warnings to the “Master” here had been utterly pointless. Fang Xiu could always dig up clues from the strangest places.

Still, based on the current clues, Fang Xiu probably couldn’t yet confirm the Master’s true nature… Bai Shuangying hoped.

Then he heard Fang Xiu say, “Can you lower the concealment a bit? Just enough for the evil spirit to hear.”

“?”

“You always say I don’t know any magic. Let me show you one.” Fang Xiu grinned mysteriously. “This is my trump card… A diagnostic spell that never fails.”

Unacceptable.

Bai Shuangying set a record 0.0001-second reaction time in the “resist-Fang-Xiu’s-nonsense” competition. He instantly dropped the concealment and stared unblinkingly at Fang Xiu.

Fang Xiu crouched down and extended his hand toward the gate…

“Huff huff huff,” he said.

The breeze in the courtyard paused slightly. Nothing happened.

Fang Xiu smacked his lips and smiled wider. “Huff huff huff.”

A spiral of wind stirred, laced with faint snuffling sounds. It brushed past Fang Xiu’s ankles with a cool touch, like a cold nose sniffing along his skin.

Bai Shuangying: “…”

Seeing Fang Xiu’s barely concealed grin, he knew he’d lost. He should never have hoped for intelligence from the “Master” here.

“Good dog.” Fang Xiu praised the air. “Did you eat up all the bad ghosts?”

The breeze spun cheerfully, as if replying. It seemed to remember Bai Shuangying’s earlier instruction not to disturb Fang Xiu and kept its distance. But the secret was clearly out.

Fang Xiu cleared his throat dramatically. “The results are in: the strongest evil spirit here is a dog.”

Bai Shuangying slowly turned his head away. Fang Xiu reached out with both hands to turn his ghost’s face back toward him. “Don’t worry. I’m not trying to leave. It’s just time to go public. I told you, didn’t I? I’m going to protect the E this time.”

Oh right, he had said that this morning… So, he’d already guessed most of it and was just playing along with Jiang Xun’s investigation timeline?

Bai Shuangying had hidden the truth first. How had Fang Xiu still figured it out faster? He couldn’t understand at all.

Fang Xiu didn’t let go of Bai Shuangying’s face. He cupped both cheeks in his hands.

“It was actually thanks to you that I figured it out this quickly.”

Bai Shuangying slumped silently. “Me?”

“When the ritual started yesterday, you briefly left me alone. You wouldn’t have done that unless you were sure the area was safe.” Fang Xiu smiled.

Bai Shuangying: “…”

“Then I noticed most evil spirits were outside the courtyard and always disappearing. So I figured something was guarding the yard…something actively fighting off the evil spirits.”

Bai Shuangying: “…………”

“In summary, the ‘thing’ guarding the yard isn’t inherently hostile to humans and is consistently protecting the space. Add in the dog toy in the corner and the dog food bowl in the house, and the real identity isn’t hard to guess.”

‘This dog had no guile at all,’ Fang Xiu sighed inwardly.

It saw someone acting threatening in its home and immediately pounced to punish the “bad guy”, never hiding its actions. Missing flesh? That was a bite. Falling over? That was a tackle. With Jiang Xun’s observational skills, he must’ve figured out as much.

So if the E here hadn’t been broken yet, there was only one possibility…

“It must be like Li Shuo’s situation, tied to the E by karmic cause. In fact, it’s probably even closer to ‘ghost immortal’ level than Li Shuo. If someone wants to destroy the E here, they’d have to take this dog down first.”

Bai Shuangying: “………………”

Bullseye.

He’d just finished preparing a nest for Fang Xiu yesterday, and already his human had learned how to dismantle the house.

Bai Shuangying lowered his gaze. He felt like someone trying to catch mudfish in a swamp, utterly powerless. Fang Xiu had just demonstrated the perfect example of “everything he touches, he breaks.”

“What do you mean ‘it’s time to go public’?” Bai Shuangying asked cautiously, trying to glean any delay tactics.

“Because I need to team up with this little guy. Trust me, it’ll be fun.” Fang Xiu’s tone was gentle. “Tonight, let’s all go for a walk, Bai Shuangying.”

…As for Blondie, he’d make the perfect part of the evening’s farce.

Fang Xiu reached out and tried to locate the dog’s head in the breeze.

The wind didn’t resist. It gently licked his hand with a cool touch.

“Wanna cause trouble together?” Fang Xiu patted the dog spirit hidden in the wind.

Something brushed his calf lightly, like the tip of a wagging tail.

……

At sunset, just before nightfall.

Cheng Songyun and Guan He returned to the courtyard, reporting that Blondie had left on his own.

Not seeing Blondie at the base, Cheng Songyun sighed.

“We looked around carefully on the way back and called for him for a long time but there was no response,” she said.

The woods near the courtyard weren’t that large. If Blondie didn’t respond, he was either unconscious or dead or intentionally refusing to answer. There was no third option.

Guan He still wore his black veil. “I sneaked a peek through their window too. He’s not in their house either.”

“He hasn’t come back here all afternoon. I’m sure,” Mei Lan added quietly.

Fang Xiu felt the breeze swirling by his pant leg. “Got it. Everyone rest as usual. If he’s not back by nightfall, I’ll go look for him.”

A standard response. No one objected.

Worried that Blondie might be hungry, Cheng Songyun quietly roasted two extra sweet potatoes for Fang Xiu to carry, just in case.

“Xiao Fang, find anything new today?” she asked while wrapping the potatoes.

“Checked out the main house. Nothing special.” Fang Xiu peeled a chestnut, his tone tinged with perfect wistfulness. “Those newbies are blindly loyal to Jiang Xun and not very sharp either. That long-haired one even tried to hit me with a stove hook.”

He paused, then looked at Mei Lan. “There was a bit of commotion when Jiang Xun returned. I was in the main house then and missed it. Did you see what happened?”

Mei Lan stared at Fang Xiu for a moment.

“No,” she said slowly. “I’ll be more attentive tomorrow.”

Fang Xiu nodded easily, took the roasted sweet potatoes, and left the base room.

The door opened and shut. Under the pale moonlight, Fang Xiu’s figure moved toward the courtyard gate.

Before stepping out, he even turned and waved cheerfully back at the base.

In concealment.

Fang Xiu activated his “Illusion Creation” ability, leaving a phantom version of himself standing guard at the gate.

At the same time, he, Bai Shuangying, and the dog spirit breeze tiptoed toward the main house.

Evil spirits were once again gathering at the windows.

Fang Xiu looked at them and felt a strange warmth…

Good evening, dear audience. I’ve come to join you. This will be a fun night!

---

The author has something to say:

Xiao Fang is about to start misbehaving again.

---

Kinky Thoughts:

I was wondering when the pet was going to show… Was starting to think she made Guan He the pet lmao.

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 69: The Soul-Swapping Technique

Lu Yang was so nervous he could die.

Jiang Xun had gone into the forest with Lu Wei to catch Blondie, leaving Lu Yang and A’Qiao to guard the main house.

A’Qiao’s support ability was “Misty Smoke”, which could emit choking cigarette-like smoke to conceal himself and disorient enemies. To increase their combat readiness, Lu Yang had even released the hanged corpse to act as a bodyguard.

He’d stuck a talisman on the corpse’s face to keep it from being possessed by evil spirits.

Unfortunately, talismans could ward off spirits, but they couldn’t stop the natural process of decay.

The corpse had begun to emit a faint stench and showed signs of livor mortis. It stood silently by the living room furniture, and together with the dilapidated old house, the sight was so creepy Lu Yang didn’t even dare look in its direction.

As for why they were so on edge…

That red-clothed leader across the way, Fang Xiu, refused to leave the courtyard, strolling around casually like he was out on a walk. He inspected the surroundings right under their noses, looking more like a wandering overworld boss than a sacrificial offering.

That wasn’t a sacrifice at all! That was a mini-boss!

Once Jiang Xun left in the afternoon, the “boss” did a few more laps, then started heading toward the main house. A’Qiao grabbed the iron stove hook for protection; Lu Yang retreated beside the corpse, stiff with tension.

Fang Xiu politely knocked on the door. Naturally, no one responded.

Then they saw a strand of long hair snake in through the door gap, smoothly unbolt the latch, then slip back out again.

Through the door’s glass panel, they could see Fang Xiu speaking to empty air, smiling gently.

Lu Yang’s breath caught.

If it hadn’t been for that strand of hair, he would’ve just thought the guy belonged in a mental hospital.

But the real question was: where the hell did the hair come from?! Was there a female ghost following him? One even Jiang Xun hadn’t detected?

A’Qiao slowly lowered his stove hook and gulped loudly.

Having unlocked the door, Fang Xiu strolled right in.

He walked past the two of them like it was no big deal and placed two cans of Wangzai brand drinks on the table. “Sorry for the intrusion. Consider this a token of apology.”

A’Qiao, Lu Yang: “…”

Aren’t we supposed to be enemies? Could you act a little more like one? Also, why the hell is there Wangzai in here?

Fang Xiu was acting so much like he belonged there that they weren’t even sure whether they should attack him or not.

He said sincerely, “I’ve checked most of the outside already, but haven’t investigated the main house. If you’re worried, feel free to supervise me the whole time.”

Lu Yang: “Uh…”

He thought about Jiang Xun being away trying to catch Blondie and guilt crept in.

A’Qiao shot Lu Yang a look and licked his lips. “Go ahead, take your time.”

Jiang Xun had anticipated that Fang Xiu might pay them a visit.

According to him, Fang Xiu was a rational type. He wouldn’t kill meaninglessly. It was only the second day of the ritual. Fang Xiu would either try to win over the newbies or lure them into triggering taboos.

The talismans on them were excellent warning tools.

If Fang Xiu dared cast a spell near them, the talismans would combust on their own, and Jiang Xun would know immediately. If the talismans remained intact, they could just stay on guard and conserve strength.

Lu Yang had imagined many scenarios, but not this. Fang Xiu being this polite.

He even turned his back on them while inspecting the dish cupboard and TV cabinet, completely exposing himself.

A’Qiao’s evil instincts kicked in, and he swung the stove hook at the back of Fang Xiu’s head. But… the hook froze midair, stopped by something invisible.

Before their shocked eyes, the iron hook was crushed like putty and dropped to the floor with a thud.

Fang Xiu, seemingly unaware, was enthusiastically examining a frayed toothbrush.

The toothbrush was jammed upright in a cup by the basin, toothpaste squeezed from the back like a snail’s spiral, in a metal tube.

A’Qiao, undeterred, started signaling Lu Yang again, flicking his gaze between the corpse and Fang Xiu, urging him to launch a sneak attack.

Lu Yang furiously shook his head and waved his hands. He even backed up a few steps and almost tripped over a stool, its legs scraping loudly against the floor.

Fang Xiu still didn’t react. He moved on to inspect a small steel basin on the ground.

It was dusty, dented, and slightly deformed. It lay in the shadow beneath the cupboard that Fang Xiu almost missed it on first glance.

Lu Yang watched in confusion.

Fang Xiu seemed the complete opposite of Jiang Xun. He didn’t chant or perform any esoteric gestures. Instead, he flipped through the wall calendar, checked out the photos on the bedroom wall, just like someone evaluating a rental apartment.

He was skinny and didn’t look threatening. Even A’Qiao, with all his artsy pretensions, had thicker arms.

Yet Fang Xiu carried a strange confidence, like he was certain they couldn’t touch him. He wandered around completely at ease.

There was no persuasion, no explanations; just calm investigation.

Jiang Xun’s prior safety protocols, all their prepped counter-dialogues were completely useless now. Lu Yang stood awkwardly, his gaze following Fang Xiu like waiting for the other shoe to drop. The polite approach was worse than violence; it was torture.

…For once, Bai Shuangying empathized with the humans.

Fang Xiu was so relaxed it was impossible to tell if he was conning them or actually looking for clues.

His human was too clever to comprehend. Fang Xiu seemed to be acting every moment of the day. Even though Bai Shuangying had warned the Master of this place to avoid Fang Xiu, he still couldn’t rest easy.

Worried as he was, Bai Shuangying also hesitated to interfere directly.

By now, he had a vague premonition: if he did intervene, even if Fang Xiu forgave the betrayal, he’d lose the chance to truly understand him forever.

So he could only keep watching.

Lately, he’d been staring at Fang Xiu more than during any previous ritual.

And, strangely enough, 99 times out of 100, Fang Xiu caught him.

And every time, Fang Xiu gave him a sly, satisfied smile. Sometimes it was more sly than satisfied, sometimes vice versa, and sometimes with a hug thrown in.

Even though Fang Xiu also looked at him more often now, Bai Shuangying still felt the imbalance and he didn’t like it.

And when Bai Shuangying got irritated, he wanted to ruffle his human.

Thought became action. He reached out and ran a finger down Fang Xiu’s warm neck. Fang Xiu gave a small shiver and hunched his shoulders.

“That Jiang Xun isn’t here. He might try something with the others,” Bai Shuangying said, disguising his voice as he analyzed.

“I know. They’re probably planning to use Blondie to test a taboo.” Fang Xiu replied casually, “If Blondie has even a shred of team spirit, he won’t get himself killed. And if he does… well, this ritual isn’t particularly dangerous. He won’t drag the rest of us down.”

In other words, let fate decide Blondie’s outcome.

“How do you know?” Bai Shuangying was genuinely curious. Sometimes he wondered if this kid had clairvoyance.

“Bai Shuangying, do you know what makes a lie convincing?” Fang Xiu asked quietly, answering with a question.

“I don’t.”

Fang Xiu: “A little bit of falsehood mixed into a whole lot of truth… That kind of lie is the hardest to detect.”

Bai Shuangying frowned and leaned closer. “So?”

Fang Xiu stroked his hair and explained patiently, “If Jiang Xun were just a dumb villain, he’d outright trick the newbies into testing taboos. But I’ve observed him all morning. He’s not doing that.”

“He’s smarter than that. He manipulates events to make the newbies test the death taboo, reducing their numbers. Then he ‘sincerely’ recruits the survivors. As long as he labels us as ‘enemies’, the newbies will cling to him without question and won’t easily defect.”

Bai Shuangying said nothing.

No wonder Fang Xiu hadn’t tried to win them over. At this point, the newbies were under Jiang Xun’s “sincere” protection. It’d be difficult to offer them something better.

Jiang Xun’s manipulation of people was quite skilled. But in a way, Fang Xiu, who could see through it, was even scarier.

“With his subordinates in place, he can now use them to test taboos on ‘enemies’. I’m staying with Mei Lan, so I’m not an easy target. Cheng Songyun is a defense expert and constantly guards Guan He. Blondie, ironically, is the easiest to snatch.”

Fang Xiu opened a drawer and continued rifling through it as he explained. “As for Blondie, I already warned him.”

Bai Shuangying: “I don’t think he’ll listen.”

To him, Fang Xiu and Blondie weren’t even the same species.

Fang Xiu didn’t look up. “Then he’ll help Jiang Xun test the taboo, and help us test Jiang Xun’s methods.”

His voice held no sorrow or regret. It was as calm as a frozen lake, and not very human.

“For the sake of the others?” Bai Shuangying moved closer.

“No.”

Fang Xiu closed the drawer with a puff of dust. His voice was softer than the floating ash.

“…Because I have to keep moving forward. I can’t die here.”

As he said it, he withdrew his gaze from Bai Shuangying.

……

Compared to the peace inside the courtyard, things outside were much more lively.

Cheng Songyun, ever patient, continued methodically searching the area and managed to gather a large amount of food again. This time she collected some ripe jujubes and dug up a few sweet potatoes. After filling her basket, she sat down beside Guan He to rest and keep watch while he practiced his “no-damage defense”.

After training for several hours that morning, Guan He seemed to have caught onto something. He imitated Fang Xiu’s approach and, after subduing the evil spirit, fed it directly to the little child ghost.

Now he had captured another evil spirit, planning to use it as practice again and feed it to Cheng Songyun’s vengeful ghost afterward.

“I still can’t hold them securely yet, but once I get the hang of it, I’ll bring back a few to give to Fang Ge.”

Guan He rolled up his wrists and stared intently at the evil spirit.

Blondie, on the other hand, was bored out of his mind.

Fang Xiu was obviously protecting Guan He. All the kid had to do was play his role as the group’s lucky charm. Being a minor was such an advantage. Blondie would’ve swapped places with him in a heartbeat.

But Guan He was still unsatisfied, insisting on messing around. Even if he managed to pull off that “no-damage defense” bullshit, what could he actually do? Offense was what really counted.

Just a brat showing off, Blondie thought to himself. And what was Cheng Songyun thinking, encouraging him?

Still, all this worked in his favor. It gave him more time for his stalling tactics.

“I’m going for a walk,” Blondie yawned.

Cheng Songyun: “No. We’re not allowed to act alone.”

“That’s your problem. I’m fast. I won’t be in the way,” Blondie scoffed. “What’s gonna happen in one little lap? You think they’re targeting me specifically?”

“No means no.” Cheng Songyun frowned.

“Oh yeah? Stop me if you can.” Blondie grinned, and his face darkened with spiritual energy as he activated his ghost power.

With a big leap, he vanished on the spot.

Neither Cheng Songyun nor Guan He had strength-boosting abilities, so they could only watch helplessly as he ran off. Guan He looked like he wanted to give chase, but Cheng Songyun stopped him.

“Just wait here. Otherwise, he might not find us when he comes back.”

“What if he’s attacked…?”

“Then we wouldn’t be able to help him anyway,” Cheng Songyun said honestly.

Guan He: “…” True.

Blondie’s father had destroyed his family so Guan He had zero emotional investment in him. He he obediently stayed put and returned to training with focus.

Meanwhile, Blondie bounded over the treetops a few times and quickly spotted his target. Jiang Xun was dragging Lu Wei through the woods, seemingly up to something shady.

Lu Wei’s hands were bound tightly behind his back, and a cloth gag was stuffed in his mouth like a bit on a horse. Around his neck was a collar covered in talismans, the end of which was chained to Jiang Xun’s hand.

Damn, kinky. Blondie barely held back the urge to whistle.

He decided to go for a surprise attack and snap Jiang Xun’s neck. Once the leader was gone, the remaining three newbies wouldn’t be a problem.

Blondie acted on the thought. Choosing a sharp angle, he kicked off a tree trunk and launched himself at Jiang Xun like a cannonball.

But the moment he came within five steps of Jiang Xun, there was a sharp crackle of static, and his limbs went numb. With a thump, he dropped to the ground like a mosquito that had hit an electric bug zapper.

“Two souls in one body, ghost possession. You think I wouldn’t recognize it?” Jiang Xun said calmly, placing a foot on the back of Blondie’s head. “Using ghost arts to attack a Taoist? How foolish. I was just about to come find you, and you’ve delivered yourself.”

Blondie panicked. He tried desperately to move, but his limbs wouldn’t obey. He opened his mouth to shout, but suddenly his head went cold, and his vision spun into a slurry of color.

When he regained awareness, he was hit by a searing pain in his mouth and felt his arms tightly bound behind his back. Around his neck…

Wait, this situation felt way too familiar.

As his vision cleared, he saw “himself” staggering to his feet, wildly shaking his head.

“Amazing! This is the Soul-Swapping Technique?” “Blondie” examined his own hands in wonder, gasping in awe.

Jiang Xun: “Yes.”

“Blondie” patted his body excitedly. “So weird not wearing glasses… This body’s senses feel normal. If I break a taboo in it, I’ll still feel pain, right?”

He said this while sneaking glances at Jiang Xun.

Jiang Xun replied calmly, “Indeed.”

“But the death taboo has already been identified. The risks of the remaining taboos are low. If the body is destroyed, you’ll return to your original one. As for any suffering endured, I’ll compensate you with extra talismans.”

“Oh, thank you, Master!”

At last, the real Blondie understood. He’d been cursed. They had swapped his soul with that of  Four Eyes!

And his ghost hadn’t transferred with him. He couldn’t use its powers at all. He was trussed up like a roast and couldn’t break free.

It’s over. It’s so over. What now?! Blondie shook his mushy brain and tried desperately to think.

Wait… Fang Xiu! They still had Fang Xiu. Fang Xiu would definitely notice something was wrong.

That thought calmed him somewhat. He gave up struggling. It was better to not take unnecessary risks. He was the only offensive member of the team. Fang Xiu would surely save him.

Reassured, Blondie was dragged back to the courtyard by Jiang Xun. Through the blurry lenses of his dirty glasses, he scanned the area frantically. Damn… Fang Xiu wasn’t in the yard right now. He had no idea where he’d gone.

Before he could do anything else, “Blondie” lifted a torch and boldly walked toward the empty side room.

Oh shit. Wait… no way…

Lu Wei raised the torch and threw it into the firewood storage.

As the flame ignited the pile, “Blondie” vanished in a flash, leaving nothing behind.

Blondie, watching his own body disappear before his eyes, let out a muffled scream.

At that exact moment, a panicked voice rang out from outside the courtyard.

“Master, help!” Lu Wei screamed. “I’ve been thrown out… I can’t get back in the yard!”

“I want my body back!!”

---

The author has something to say:

Blondie’s special move: Fast Delivery Service.jpg

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 68: Family Traces

For the entire morning, Bai Shuangying followed Fang Xiu without leaving his side.

What Fang Xiu was doing was less of an investigation and more of a leisurely visit and sightseeing. After he got bored of drawing in the dirt, he began observing the bark of the persimmon tree.

“These marks were used to record children’s heights.”

“There are so many lines at the same level… there must have been quite a few children here. But judging from how sparse the lines are, they probably didn’t come here often.” Fang Xiu ran his fingers over the faint scratches on the tree trunk, quietly explaining to Bai Shuangying.

“We used to go back to our hometown for Chinese New Years too. I guess this family was the same.”

Bai Shuangying nodded.

He did remember this tradition. Even through the vicissitudes of time and changing dynasties, humans always liked to gather during festivals. It was rare for Fang Xiu to mention his past, so Bai Shuangying listened very attentively.

After observing the persimmon tree, Fang Xiu methodically continued inspecting along the base of the wall. He went first to the unused side wing, but didn’t pay any attention to the corpse inside the empty room. Instead, he checked the old exterior wall.

As expected, after only a few steps, they found more traces of the past.

A child had carved a “family portrait” into a brick wall. The lines of the stick figures that were waving wildly were now blurred by time.

Besides the stick figures, there were also a few four-legged creatures lying on the ground. It was unclear if they were meant to be cats or dogs.

Higher up, someone had carved slanted lines of ancient poetry. The more complicated characters were substituted with pinyin, but most of it had already flaked off. Only the beginning phrase “Alone in a foreign land” and the following “Every wind” remained.

As for the remaining marks, they looked like little turtles made with tic-tac-toe patterns, or unintelligible human faces.

Fang Xiu crouched down, his fingertips lightly brushing over the uneven carvings.

“I used to do this kind of thing too.” He smiled and said, “I even made a box, buried my New Year’s money in my grandma’s yard, and drew a treasure map for it.”

“My dad accidentally lost the map, and I cried at him for a long time. Later, my parents buried another money box themselves and gave me a new map to make up for it.”

Bai Shuangying listened silently.

“…But my grandma secretly dug up the whole yard, found my ‘treasure chest’, and quietly gave it back to me. She said I could buy more snacks with it, but it had to be our secret from my parents. When she handed me the box, her hands were still covered in dirt. She hadn’t even had time to wash them.”

“And of course, my cousin happened to see it, so I bought candy to keep his mouth shut.”

A faint smile appeared on Fang Xiu’s face.

“So you have a cousin,” Bai Shuangying said.

He remembered that Fang Xiu had specifically mentioned before that his “parents and grandparents were all gone”, so he thought Fang Xiu was completely alone.

Fang Xiu: “Yeah, he was a smart kid. His whole family was wonderful… but they ran into an earthquake while traveling. The whole family was lost. My grandpa couldn’t take the blow and passed away soon after.”

He sighed, stood up, and dusted the dirt off his clothes.

“After that, we never really celebrated New Years properly again.”

Looking at the beautiful courtyard before him, Fang Xiu could clearly recall his grandma’s yard.

Back then, New Year celebrations always came with a sense of grandeur.

During the day, the courtyard would be filled with firecrackers, and the snow would be littered with red paper scraps. Distant relatives would come and go, while the kids ran wild, teasing cats and dogs.

At night, some adults would go outside with him and his cousin to set off fireworks, while others stayed inside preparing a lavish dinner. Children screamed, adults chatted, the TV played in the background, and laughter filled the air. Everything was bright and lively.

After his cousin’s family and grandfather passed away, the number of people celebrating was cut in half.

No one prepared firecrackers or Spring Festival couplets anymore. At most, people would make an effort with the food. He was the only child left in the courtyard, and that made Fang Xiu sad for a long time.

Looking back now, that was the beginning of his long journey of loss.

Fang Xiu couldn’t help but glance at Bai Shuangying again, only to find him still staring at him intently, wearing an expression of serious contemplation.

“Uh… I didn’t discover some shocking clue. I just thought this place really resembles my old home.”

Bai Shuangying: “I don’t care about clues. I’m just curious about you.”

Fang Xiu’s background sounded unexpectedly normal, Bai Shuangying thought. The more he learned about Fang Xiu, the less he understood him.

Upon hearing this, Fang Xiu’s expression softened. “Curious about me, huh? Then I better keep some mystery alive.”

Bai Shuangying: “…!”

Why? Humans are really hard to understand.

Fang Xiu smiled even more and casually poked around the junk in the corner of the courtyard with a tree branch. This gray, dusty pile was right next to the west guest room where the newbies were staying. It looked quite suspicious.

But after clearing the weeds and dust, he only found half a bar of dry soap, a tattered slipper, and a deformed old plastic toy.

It was a bright green water gun without any supernatural element.

The hordes of evil spirits that had peeked around the courtyard the night before were now nowhere to be seen. Everything in the yard seemed completely ordinary. If there was anything unusual, it was the small breeze that rose again as he rummaged through the junk.

It was cool and gentle and quickly dissipated.

After checking out the whole yard, Fang Xiu, a little disappointed, dropped the branch and went to the hand pump to wash his hands.

Even though the corpses had been removed, there was still blood and brain matter clinging to the water outlet.

Harboring a small hope, Fang Xiu pumped water while cleaning the outlet. If he could somehow draw out yesterday’s ghost rations again, that would be fantastic.

But after scrubbing the outlet until it gleamed, there was still no sign of the hair-ghost reemerging. Whether it had been scared off or simply vanished was unclear.

Exhausted from pumping, Fang Xiu just used the clean water to wash his face.

“What should we eat for lunch?” he muttered.

…They had hazel mushroom braised chicken, roasted rabbit, and steamed wild greens with garlic.

Cheng Songyun had brought back a huge pile of hazel mushrooms, and Blondie had caught two fat rabbits. Guan He… Guan He was drenched in sweat, with a few suspicious wounds on his left arm, though they didn’t look serious.

Cheng Songyun quickly prepared a table full of hot dishes. They used crispy pastries as their staple food and exchanged information as they ate.

Mei Lan spoke first: “No abnormalities in the rooms during the day. I checked every corner.”

Guan He followed up casually. “There are some evil spirits in the woods, but not many. They hide in the dark, and only a few actively attack.”

Cheng Songyun had a different focus. “There’s a lot of edible stuff nearby, and a plot of land with sweet potatoes. Everything seems normal. I didn’t see any signs of destruction. ”

“Xiao Du killed a rabbit and saw blood. I tried some of the leftover seasonings and dried goods. Xiao Guan fought a ghost. No one triggered a taboo. But…”

Fang Xiu: “But?”

“One of the newbies was lighting firewood outside. The flames kept leaning toward him and almost set his hair on fire. I’m not sure if that counts as breaking a taboo, but it looked off.”

Cheng Songyun summarized everything carefully.

Blondie shoveled food into his mouth, mumbling, “I get it now. This place only kills you if you ask for it. There’s water, electricity, and you can grow crops. We could live here for ten years easy.”

He chuckled slyly. “Once the others outside are dead, we can reshuffle the rooms, get our privacy back, and then—heh, it’ll be great.”

Fang Xiu gave him a glance. “Don’t take the initiative and attack the other teams.”

Blondie: “Tsk.”

Guan He poked at a mushroom with his chopsticks. “Fang Ge, did you figure out what’s wrong with this place?”

“Hm? Tell me your thoughts.” Fang Xiu put down his soup bowl, encouraging him.

“It’s like the punishment for breaking taboos and the ghost activity are blended together, so it’s hard to distinguish. So we have to go slow. If we make a wrong judgment, our thinking gets derailed.”

“Exactly. So there’s no rush… We’ve got plenty of time.” Fang Xiu smiled.

“Mm!”

……

Main Room.

Three newbies plus Jiang Xun—four people continued sharing the rabbit meat and persimmons. A’Qiao had brought back some chestnuts from outside, just enough to make a decent meal.

However, A’Qiao had a strange incident while roasting the chestnuts… His arm got badly burned. Terrified, he immediately put out the fire and only managed to roast a small portion.

“Master, did I break a taboo?” A’Qiao asked, lips pale.

“Taboo signs are mixed with evil spirits activity. There’s no need to panic.” Jiang Xun bandaged the burn as he replied casually.

Lu Wei spoke with a serious expression. “Master, what should we do next?”

“Rather than rushing to escape, it’s better to first understand our surroundings.”

Jiang Xun paused briefly, then continued in a mentor-like tone. “From what we’ve seen, the ghosts stay hidden during the day and only appear at night. They want to drive us out of the house to kill and eat us.”

Lu Yang recalled this seemed to be true.

The ghosts inside the house had only tried to scare them. They never truly harmed anyone. Except for the guy with the pierced lip, a special case of being a “man-made murder”, everyone else died outside.

“W-why do they want to drive us out? Is something in the house?” Lu Yang asked nervously. “Could it be that the ‘E’ is in the house, and they want us gone?”

Jiang Xun shook his head. “If the E was in the house, the ghosts here would be the most aggressive. But they seem more like they’re being suppressed and don’t dare act out.”

The three newbies held their breath and listened.

Jiang Xun calmly ate a persimmon and concluded, “That couple ran the farthest and were devoured to the bone. Three people died in the courtyard. Their souls are gone, but their bodies remain.”

“Those of you who hid indoors were only frightened. You weren’t harmed.”

Lu Wei had a realization. “There’s a protective charm in the house!”

“No. There’s a bigger evil spirit in the house.”

Jiang Xun sneered, “Aren’t you curious where the evil spirits go during the day? They’ve invaded the territory of a stronger evil spirit. If they get too close, it will eat them.”

The three fell completely silent, suddenly too afraid to even chew.

Lu Yang couldn’t help thinking of a nature documentary. The evil spirits were like small animals stealing meat from a predator. If they weren’t careful, they’d become its dinner instead.

Yet still, they fearlessly rushed in to fight over food, relying on their numbers, hoping others would die first so they could live.

“Usually, we call such evil spirits the ‘Master’. Big evil spirits all have their own quirks, but when it comes to protecting the E, they go all out,” Jiang Xun said blandly.

Lu Yang asked cautiously, “But it only eats evil spirits and doesn’t attack us. Isn’t that a good thing?”

Lu Wei scolded, “Are you stupid? As long as we stay here, those little evil spirits will keep coming and dying. If I were the Master, I’d be thrilled to leave humans here as bait.”

“And once we’re close to finding the E, it’ll just eat us too so nothing is wasted,” A’Qiao added.

Jiang Xun: “That’s why we need to resolve the E quickly, before the Master gets wary. The process may be dangerous, so prepare yourselves mentally.”

A’Qiao and Lu Wei nodded seriously. Lu Yang shrank back a little before reluctantly nodding.

Jiang Xun gave a faint smile. “Don’t worry. We’re even in number with the other team. I wouldn’t be stupid enough to sacrifice you just to let them reap the rewards.”

“This afternoon, we’ll capture someone from their side to test the taboos.”

“That girl, maybe. We saw her left behind at their base. Women are usually soft-hearted. I’ll go deal with her,” A’Qiao suggested excitedly.

Lu Wei: “Don’t push it. If they left her behind, they’re probably guarding her. I say we grab the kid. It’s easier to control him.”

Lu Yang: “But things haven’t turned hostile yet. Wouldn’t this completely tear things apart?”

Jiang Xun’s “big evil spirit suppressing little evil spirits” theory hadn’t shown any holes. Resolving the E quickly made sense too, but using a living person, especially a woman or a child, as a test subject still made Lu Yang uncomfortable.

And the fact that his two teammates accepted the idea instantly and started enthusiastically discussing it made his back go cold.

Jiang Xun glanced at him twice and said in a voice that was soft but cold, “Are you saying controlling your teammates to test the death taboo doesn’t count as ‘turning hostile’? Or do you not believe me?”

“Don’t mind him, Master. This guy always whines and doesn’t get what’s important,” A’Qiao quickly covered, glaring at Lu Yang. “He won’t do this, he won’t do that. Useless. Are you even a man?”

Lu Yang: “I just think attacking women and children is a bit…”

Jiang Xun interrupted, “Enough. No need for conflict. Since you can’t stomach it, we’ll go after the strongest one.”

“That blonde kid. He likes to act alone. Grab him.”

Lu Wei’s expression twitched. He shot Lu Yang a fierce glare. “Now it’s complicated. Happy now?”

“Someone’s such a saint that they’d trade five teammates just to feel righteous,” A’Qiao rolled his eyes.

Lu Yang shut his mouth in frustration. Jiang Xun’s concession left him no room to protest.

Actually, when Jiang Xun wasn’t around, the three of them had secretly discussed this.

Calling it caution was putting it mildly… Lu Yang simply didn’t trust Jiang Xun enough.

Lu Wei had used his support skill “Danger Appraisal” to assess the charms Jiang Xun gave them. Though it couldn’t offer full analysis, it could detect danger.

The results showed no malice in the charms. They truly repelled ghosts and protected the wearer.

From that moment on, A’Qiao and Lu Wei fully trusted Jiang Xun.

“I told you, their team takes care of their own. Why would they rely on an outsider like you? Why wouldn’t they use you?”

“Even if we joined them, who do you think they’d send to test the taboos? Their own people? Or trick us into doing it?”

“You think they’re so noble? If it was really Master Jiang who tricked that couple into testing a taboo, would they let you hang around him, a supposed ‘murderer’? Why didn’t they save them?”

Their words buzzed in Lu Yang’s ears.

Just like last year… After abandoning a sick teammate and cannibalizing another, the group gave themselves all sorts of “reasonable explanations” for what they had to do.

Lu Yang didn’t know whether he was truly questioning reality, or if he just couldn’t stand the constant buzzing voices.

He looked down at the half-eaten rabbit meat in his hand.

From the depths of memory, the image of roasted human limbs surfaced. Lu Yang felt nauseous and completely lost his appetite.

Jiang Xun finished eating calmly. Seeing the three newbies silent, he smiled faintly.

“Alright then. Let’s talk strategy.”

……

Afternoon.

It was exploration time again. The five discussed and decided to proceed with the original plan.

Fang Xiu: “So, I’ll stay in the courtyard with Mei Lan. You three head out. But let me make two things absolutely clear…”

“First, everyone must be back in the house before sunset.”

“Second, do not split up. Especially you, Du Zhichao. We have enough rabbits. Stop wandering off on your own.”

Blondie rolled his eyes, then chuckled after a pause. “Of course.”

“I’m not joking.” Fang Xiu frowned slightly.

Blondie waved dismissively. “Got it, got it. I won’t act alone.”

…Yeah right, Blondie thought to himself.

Fang Xiu’s reluctance to resolve the E quickly suited him just fine. Unfortunately, Fang Xiu was too soft. He only played it reactively. Blondie had no intention of letting the other teams solve things peacefully. He was determined to stir up trouble.

If he killed a few outsiders outside the courtyard, Fang Xiu couldn’t stop him.

Even if he was caught, he could always say he was helping the team earn the reward for the E.

He whistled a few notes and gazed at the brilliant autumn scenery outside.

He hadn’t gotten to relax properly during the Huanxi E incident. This time, he was definitely taking an extended vacation here!

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 67: The Villain Role

After the couple left, Lu Yang never managed to fall asleep.

Half of it was because he felt uneasy.

He had originally just wanted to sleep in the living room…to at least be closer to Master Jiang. But then everyone else followed his lead and moved into the living room too, making it look like he was spearheading some effort to ostracize the couple.

The other half was because the evil spirits were still active.

They hadn’t appeared due to the pierced-lip man violating a taboo. After the couple left, everyone was still trapped in a sea of terror.

Cold touches and breaths, unexplained bleeding—these were only the most basic abnormalities.

The truly terrifying things lurked at the edge of one’s vision: in the corners, between the sofa cushions, under the coffee table, within cluttered piles of objects. He constantly glimpsed what looked like parts of human faces, especially those rolled-back, lifeless eyes.

On the old wall calendar, the pupils of the New Year dolls shifted with their movements. Amid the sound of panicked breathing came the occasional out-of-place low chuckle, and nonsensical background noises echoed endlessly.

It felt like someone had crammed a dozen psychological horror films into a blender and splattered the results across this old house.

The evil spirits didn’t directly attack them, but they made it so no one dared move, all wishing they could shut their eyes and play dead.

“Damn, it’s too horrible at night. I’ll sleep during the day.” The long-haired artsy guy cursed and lit a candle in the living room.

Lu Yang remembered this guy quite well.

He called himself “A’Qiao”, a textbook artsy youth. A’Qiao liked to talk about obscure films and books in niche languages, and even more about his eight-hour-long romantic history.

But once the sacrificial ritual began, he immediately dropped his husky whisper-voice and started swearing frequently.

“Should we go call those two back?” The guy with glasses adjusted his frames.

This was Lu Wei. Usually quiet and introverted, he seemed like someone lost in his own world. Lu Yang didn’t know him well.

“Call them back for what? Weren’t they annoying enough already?” A’Qiao frowned.

“If that Auntie wasn’t lying, then the more people we have in the team, the better. Someone still needs to test the taboos,” Lu Wei pointed out.

A’Qiao sneered, “There are ghosts everywhere out there. If someone wants to go stop them, let them. I say everyone has their fate, and those two staying in the team were just dragging us down.”

Lu Yang felt that abandoning teammates like this was too rash. “At least they’re still two people… Why don’t we ask Master Jiang? If he won’t help, then we can try that other team in the side rooms?”

That Auntie Cheng had been very kind to him. Instinctively he felt she wasn’t a bad person.

But before he could finish, A’Qiao and Lu Wei both shot him a condescending look.

“You really think they want to help us?” A’Qiao shook his head.

Lu Wei: “Veterans obviously want other teams to test the taboos first. We newbies are at a disadvantage. Neither side is likely acting out of kindness, so we might as well side with the stronger one. If we align with Master Jiang, that’s picking a side.”

Lu Yang more or less understood what they meant.

Master Jiang was alone so he was bound to need external help and might protect them in return. The other team had five people. Abandoning them would be no big deal for them. Looking out for oneself is human nature, so could they really count on the morality of strangers?

Even so, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. Unfortunately, after being awake so long, his brain felt like mush, barely functioning.

He mumbled, “Okay, then… let’s not ask the team in the side rooms. Let’s go talk to Master Jiang…”

“They’re dead, all dead!”

The gloomy woman in the group suddenly clutched her head and let out a hoarse scream. “The ghosts ate them. There’s nothing left…”

The living room fell silent.

Her underworld support ability was “Death Playback”. She could see the exact scene of a person’s death.

They’d known that going out at night was risky, but they hadn’t expected the couple to die so early. The two hadn’t been completely unaware, and they had Underworld support. Surely, they should have had some ability to fight back.

Lu Wei was the first to stand and began banging on the east bedroom door. “Master Jiang! Master Jiang, something’s happened…!”

No response came from the east bedroom.

Lu Yang’s scalp tingled. Abandoning all sense of politeness, he joined Lu Wei in hammering the door. “Master! People have died! Help!”

Still no response.

The gloomy woman trembled all over. “Before they even went out… one of them was already dead… It was a corpse that took the other out. A corpse…”

A’Qiao’s face went pale. “Why didn’t you use your ability earlier?!”

“That skill uses physical energy! I didn’t know they’d die so quickly!” the gloomy woman shrieked.

She looked like she’d just run a marathon, soaked with sweat and about to collapse from exhaustion.

Lu Yang’s fist slid slowly down the wooden door. Remembering how the pierced-lip man had left without looking back, he felt as though a block of ice had lodged in his stomach.

One of their companions had turned into a corpse without them realizing and lured the living out to die… When had the pierced-lip guy died? How did it happen? Not a single one of them had noticed!

He had thought the rooms were safe, but now it seemed nowhere was.

Beside him, Lu Wei had already started slamming into the east bedroom door. But the flimsy wooden door now seemed like a bank vault. No matter how hard they hit it, it didn’t budge.

…Was it a trick of the evil spirits? Or had something happened to Master Jiang as well?

Lu Yang’s brain creaked as he tried to think. Panic gripped him as he looked around the room. The dim candlelight created layers of shadows, and vague forms writhed within them.

Something cold and wet brushed against his ankle. His legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed on the spot.

“Let’s go check the other team!”

Lu Wei couldn’t get Jiang Xun’s door open and abandoned his “pick a side” theory in an instant.

No one responded. Everyone had curled up in their own corners, like ostriches trying to bury their heads in the sand.

“Lei Ge, Da Niu, you two go ask for help from the side-room team.” Lu Wei swallowed. “You two have defensive abilities. We’re all useless.”

The two’s Underworld anomalies were “Dark Vision” and “Absolute Sense of Direction”, making it ideal for night operations. With the darkness outside, anyone else would be helpless.

But the two men protested furiously…

“Even the Master’s not responding. What the hell’s our little powers gonna do?!”

“Who the hell are you to order me around, huh?!”

A’Qiao sided with Lu Wei. “This is our last shot! Otherwise, we all die!”

“I’m so thirsty… so thirsty…” Amid the chaos, the gloomy woman croaked, clutching her throat like she’d swallowed a mouthful of sand.

“Water… get me water…”

She was drenched in sweat and her eyes bulged like a fish dying on land.

Lu Yang accidentally made eye contact with her. Her eyes were vacant, identical to the ghost eyes crammed into every crevice.

The scene before him pushed Lu Yang to the brink. He felt as if he had returned to the time when they were lost in the uninhabited zone.

The world had become a foreign place. Knowledge and logic had broken down. No one knew what to do. They could only watch helplessly as death drew near.

Lu Yang slumped against the wall, burying his head in his hands. His teammates’ shouting made his eardrums ache. Exhausted and terrified, he couldn’t even understand what they were yelling anymore. Tears flowed on their own.

Suddenly, something cold poked furiously at his face.

His frayed nerves finally snapped, and Lu Yang passed out on the spot.

……

The next morning.

Cheng Songyun hadn’t slept the second half of the night. As soon as the sun rose, she used the meat and wild vegetables left behind by Fang Xiu to make a hot soup, then washed some apples and persimmons.

There were enough dishes and utensils in the cabinet. In one corner of the side room stood an old, dusty folding table covered in cobwebs. Next to it were several small stools that clearly hadn’t been used in ages, but they were all still functional.

Outside, the sky was blue and vast, the sunlight bright and cheerful, and birds chirped crisply from the woods. Cheng Songyun wiped down the table and chairs. Once breakfast was laid out, the atmosphere became even more homey.

Fang Xiu woke up to the smell of food, nestled in his ghost’s arms.

After returning last night, as usual, he’d fallen asleep holding Bai Shuangying. When he woke up, Bai Shuangying’s sleeve was still draped over his face. It was cool and smooth, making it perfect for a sleep mask.

It had been a long time since he’d felt this relaxed during a sacrificial ritual.

He opened his eyes and unabashedly admired his ghost for a while, then buried his face back into Bai Shuangying’s sleeve and inhaled the fresh scent of grass and trees.

“Good morning,” he mumbled lazily from inside the sleeve, stretching his limbs in contentment.

“Mm.” Bai Shuangying gently patted Fang Xiu’s head.

Cheng Songyun, wiping the water from her hands, called out enthusiastically, “You’re up! Come, come. Have some hot soup while it’s fresh!”

In the morning light, the steam from the soup curled upward like mist. The water droplets on the fruit sparkled like diamonds, looking tender and delicious.

Blondie let out a huge yawn, then squinted as he wandered over. “I’ll head out later and catch a couple more rabbits so we can switch up the flavors… Oh right, Fang Ge, you went out with those two last night, yeah? See anything?”

The others hadn’t heard about this yet, so they looked curiously at Fang Xiu as they ate breakfast.

Fang Xiu sipped some hot soup and replied casually, “There are too many evil spirits outside the yard. I lost track of them. I wandered around a bit and couldn’t find them.”

“But going out at night doesn’t seem to trigger taboos. The challenge is dealing with those spirits. The ones outside the courtyard are stronger than the ones inside. Everyone should avoid going out at night if they can.”

His tone was as normal as ever. No one could tell there was any fabrication behind it.

As expected, the other four took Fang Xiu’s words at face value and continued eating peacefully.

Seated on a small stool, Fang Xiu ate with more focus than he had even in the Disaster Relief Tower, showing none of the tension that had hung over the previous three sacrificial rounds. Bai Shuangying watched him from head to toe, increasingly confused as to why Fang Xiu had lied.

Blondie was the first to voice a new thought. “You know, there’s water, electricity, and food here. Why don’t we stay a few more days?”

“It’s a good place to rest,” Mei Lan agreed, unusually.

Cheng Songyun didn’t quite agree. “We haven’t even found the death taboo yet. How can we relax so much?”

But Guan He didn’t chime in. He just stirred the chipped bowl in his hands, head lowered in thought.

Fang Xiu finished gnawing a chicken leg and smiled at Cheng Songyun. “I also think there’s no need to rush. Balance matters.”

The last three rituals had been intense. He’d been forced to operate at full throttle. By comparison, this place really was a chance to catch his breath… and to carry out some very particular plans.

Just then, a cold breeze blew past his ankle. Fang Xiu casually rubbed at his pant leg with his shoe with an unchanged expression.

Cheng Songyun couldn’t sit still. “I’ll go walk around the woods today and gather more food. Xiao Fang, do whatever you want. You don’t need to worry about chores.”

“If I spot anything unusual, I’ll write it down and let you know,” she added solemnly.

“I’ll go with you,” Guan He suddenly spoke up.

Blondie: “I’ve got rabbit duty. Someone’s gotta stay home.”

Mei Lan followed up, “Then I’ll stay in today.”

After everyone had voiced their plans, Fang Xiu finally added, “I’m not going out either. I’ll investigate the courtyard. That way, Mei Lan and I can back each other up.”

Mei Lan pursed her lips and glanced at him but said nothing more.

The weather was perfect, and after a warm chicken soup breakfast, Fang Xiu was in excellent spirits. Their side had made it through the night unscathed. He wondered how things had gone in the main house.

He hummed a little tune and opened the side room door… and the tune stopped abruptly.

Seeing Fang Xiu pause, Guan He came over to check. The moment he looked out, he stumbled back two steps and landed hard on the bed. “O-Outside—”

The scene outside was horrific.

A girl had died in front of the hand-pump. She was on her knees, mouth wrapped around the water spout. The spout had pierced through her mouth and out the back of her skull.

Her hands clutched the pump tightly, as if she’d struggled. But her arms and neck were covered in deep ligature marks, as if something had yanked her forcefully, preventing her escape.

A man was dead in the persimmon tree. His limbs were broken, and his body was twisted grotesquely between the branches. His innards spilled from a torn-open abdomen.

Another man had used his own intestines as a noose, hanging himself midair. His feet dangled half a meter above the ground, with nothing underneath… God knows what he stepped on to get up there.

His right shoe was gone, leaving a bare foot swinging gently in the morning breeze. The smell of excrement mixed with blood tainted the autumn air with an acrid stench.

In the midst of the crisp, golden autumn, the three corpses were jarringly grotesque.

Fang Xiu said, “…Wow.”

He was genuinely surprised. The real death taboo was outside the courtyard, and for this group to die in such bizarre ways… It was almost impressive in itself.

Bai Shuangying stared at Fang Xiu, whose mind was already working through a prepared explanation.

It was easy to see that these people had been killed by evil spirits. If Fang Xiu asked about the cause, he could describe it as terrifyingly as needed to keep Fang Xiu on guard…

But just as Bai Shuangying was eagerly preparing to explain, Fang Xiu patted Cheng Songyun. “Cheng Jie, let’s go check the main house later.”

After three sacrificial rituals, Cheng Songyun had become a pragmatic realist. Even in the face of such carnage, she regained her composure quickly. “No problem.”

Bai Shuangying continued to stare hard at Fang Xiu.

“When we come back, everyone else stick to the plan. Don’t touch weird stuff, and don’t get into fights,” Fang Xiu said.

The others slowly came back to themselves. Guan He took several deep breaths, forcing himself to look at the bodies outside.

Bai Shuangying kept staring at Fang Xiu.

Fang Xiu tugged at his red T-shirt, making sure there weren’t too many wrinkles.

Then he finally turned to Bai Shuangying, scratching his head sheepishly. “I don’t know these guys, and I can’t tell how tasty their souls are… Sorry I couldn’t pick something better for you.”

At no point did he ask how the three had died.

Bai Shuangying looked away in disappointment and began thinking of new ways to scare people. Just as his gaze shifted, Fang Xiu wrinkled his nose and gave a tiny, smug smile.

As soon as Fang Xiu and Cheng Songyun reached the main house, they were “warmly welcomed” by what was left of the newbie group… No, more accurately, the three surviving newbies.

The three were huddled inside, looking completely shell-shocked, not even glancing up at them. Jiang Xun stood just inside the main house door, subtly blocking their way.

Jiang Xun frowned slightly. “You’re here?”

The tone was a little off, but Fang Xiu kept smiling. “Just coming by to check things out.”

“They already know what you did,” Jiang Xun said. “One of them could see the moment of death.”

“You tampered with that boy, made them test the taboo for you. Unfortunately, they didn’t realize it in time and even wanted to go out and ask you for help…”

He glanced meaningfully toward the three corpses outside.

Cheng Songyun’s eyebrows shot up. “It wasn’t us—”

Fang Xiu ignored the slander and said with curiosity, “Weren’t they sharing a room with you? Why would they go out of their way to seek us out?”

“I was entangled with evil spirits all night,” Jiang Xun replied calmly. “I couldn’t spare the effort.”

Fang Xiu: “So tragic. We had a peaceful night. How about we switch? Tonight we’ll stay in the main house?”

Jiang Xun: “……”

Cheng Songyun was furious. “Xiao Fang, we need to clarify this. We didn’t…”

“It’s pointless,” Fang Xiu cut her off. “This guy’s already pinned the blame on us. Like he’d ever admit it was his doing.”

“And besides, if I’m not wrong, the one who could see the deaths is probably dead too. That way, someone can keep pulling strings without anyone noticing.”

Jiang Xun let out a cold laugh, his presence oppressive. “Save the sowing discord for someone else.”

Fang Xiu looked at the nervous newbies and said peacefully, “Say whatever you want.”

“Oh, and make sure you clean up the bodies. Everyone needs the pump. If no one takes care of it by the afternoon, we’ll do it for you.”

Unfortunately, judging by Jiang Xun’s attitude, investigating the main house wouldn’t go smoothly.

Fang Xiu sighed and turned to leave.

Lu Yang stared at Fang Xiu’s back for a long time.

He’d collapsed by the wall last night and only regained consciousness in the morning. By then, only A’Qiao and Lu Wei were left in the living room, along with a terrifying silence.

According to A’Qiao, the gloomy woman had gone mad with thirst and rushed outside. Because her “Death Playback” ability was so valuable, Lei Ge and Da Niu followed to catch her.

None of the three ever returned. They became the grotesque corpses in the courtyard.

To be honest, even when surrounded by evil spirits, Lu Yang had still held onto a shred of hope. Fang Xiu’s group still had five people, each with different strengths. It proved that maybe the sacrificial ritual wasn’t that hopeless.

As for Master Jiang, perhaps he just didn’t want to be dragged down by teammates or had bad luck. Who really knew what went on in the world of big shots?

After all, they were all young people and had teamed up before. How bad could things really get?

…And then, overnight, they’d lost five teammates.

This morning, Jiang Xun appeared, exhausted, claiming he’d fought evil spirits all night. After hearing A’Qiao’s recounting, he insisted it was Fang Xiu’s team who had done something.

Then he gave the newbies several talismans for protection and told them to stay close to him and never act alone.

A’Qiao and Lu Wei took the talismans with trembling hands, repeatedly thanking him. But Lu Yang felt uncomfortable. If you were going to talk about control, didn’t Jiang Xun seem equally suspicious?

But with no proof in hand, and the fact that Jiang Xun had actually helped them, he didn’t dare voice doubt.

Lu Yang lowered his head and rubbed the talisman Jiang Xun had given him.

The yellow paper was marked with complex red cinnabar symbols—completely unfamiliar to him. It was in his hand, yet he had no idea if it worked.

He didn’t know who to trust. He didn’t even know who he should fear. But he did know one thing he could do right now…

Lu Yang activated his support ability.

The three corpses in the courtyard began to stir and slowly stood up again. Their knees locked stiffly as they shuffled across the ground with unnatural movements, entering the vacant wing of the side house.

There was an empty storage room there, with just concrete flooring and four bare walls. Lu Yang had them lie down inside and then locked the door tight. He didn’t want to experience a repeat of corpses getting possessed by evil spirits.

After it was all done, he rubbed his red, swollen eyes and looked out at the autumn scene beyond the window.

What had been beautiful yesterday now carried a sinister edge. The persimmon tree was stained with blood. Yesterday it had been full of wild rustic charm; today, it could only be described as “horrifying”.

That young man in red—what was his name again, Fang Xiu—was leaning against the tree, looking thoughtfully at the bloodstains on the ground. His posture was too casual for a murderer, and too detached for someone innocent.

Dressed in red, just standing there, it made all the persimmons seem to tinge with blood.

Lu Yang peeked at him for less than three seconds before Fang Xiu noticed and turned to smile at him. Startled, Lu Yang backed away and retreated into the corner of the living room.

Under the tree.

Fang Xiu picked up a stick and began idly drawing on the ground.

Bai Shuangying watched him scribbling what looked like worms and grew increasingly uneasy.

Right now, Cheng Songyun, Guan He, and Blondie were all out looking for food, while Mei Lan stayed behind in the side room. As team leader, Fang Xiu seemed to have decided to slack off completely.

He had been playing with mud for an entire incense stick’s time!

Bai Shuangying hoped Fang Xiu would linger here longer, but Fang Xiu’s strange behavior made him uneasy. Even without a heartbeat, Bai Shuangying was beginning to understand what it meant to feel his “heart in turmoil”.

“What are you drawing?” Bai Shuangying looked down at the squirming-worm picture.

“You,” Fang Xiu said seriously. “Doesn’t it look like you?”

Bai Shuangying pondered deeply and asked politely, “Is this your drawing of my human form, or my true form?”

Fang Xiu: “……”

He wilted. “Let’s go with your true form.”

Depressed, he smoothed the dirt and began drawing a blob with a single dot as a face.

Bai Shuangying couldn’t take it anymore. He summoned his Peach Bone Evil and began sketching Fang Xiu in return.

His lines were clean and expressive, almost artistic. Wisps of white mist solidified in the air, forming ink-like strokes. In a few deft lines, the figure was clearly Fang Xiu. It was so precisely rendered that it was almost eerie.

In the drawing, Fang Xiu had no bangs covering his eyes. His smiling eyes and mouth carried a mischievous charm.

Fang Xiu stared at it for a while. “So this is how I look in your eyes?”

Bai Shuangying nodded, then froze mid-nod.

Something was missing from the drawing. He didn’t know what. Maybe once he fully understood Fang Xiu, he could draw the “real” picture.

“For now, yes,” Bai Shuangying concluded impartially.

Fang Xiu’s smile grew broader, almost silly. He pressed his lips together, unable to stop grinning, and finally had to smack his own face to calm down.

Bai Shuangying saw an opportunity and said, “You seem pretty laid-back.”

“This place has good vibes. Might as well treat it like a vacation,” Fang Xiu replied, standing right in the middle of the fresh bloodstains.

From his tone, it was like the three corpses in the courtyard were just fallen leaves.

Seeing Fang Xiu taking a liking to this place made Bai Shuangying light up.

He suppressed his victorious joy and added provocatively, “Oh, that Jiang Xun is quite proactive. If he finds the ‘E’ first, you’ll lose the reward for solving the E.”

Come on, say it.

If Fang Xiu showed even a hint of caution toward Jiang Xun, Bai Shuangying would be fully justified in sabotaging the man, discreetly orchestrating his demise. Even if Fang Xiu found out later, he’d have no reason to hold a grudge.

Fang Xiu looked at Bai Shuangying meaningfully. “Don’t worry. I’ll eliminate him myself. Anyone who uses people as taboo test subjects probably has a pretty tasty soul.”

He seemed to emphasize the words “eliminate him myself” on purpose.

Bai Shuangying: “……” Right, Fang Xiu was still hung up on fighting with his own hands.

And the reason he was targeting Jiang Xun wasn’t even about devouring him. This human might be even more bloodthirsty than himself.

“And here’s a secret.” Fang Xiu leaned close to Bai Shuangying’s ear and whispered, “This ritual is just too much fun. I’m planning to play an even more exciting game.”

Bai Shuangying tilted his head, moving his ear closer. “?”

Fang Xiu said mysteriously, “Saying too much would ruin the surprise. That’s all I’ll tell you for now.”

Still stubbornly maintaining his listening pose, Bai Shuangying waited, but Fang Xiu didn’t continue. Instead, he quickly brushed against Bai Shuangying’s ear.

The touch was too quick. His skin was too soft. Bai Shuangying couldn’t tell if it had been a cheek or the lips.

By the time he turned, Fang Xiu was already pretending nothing had happened, though his face looked suspiciously like a ripe persimmon on the tree.

Bai Shuangying stared at him for a few seconds. Then, with a wave of his Peach Bone Evil, a ripe persimmon fell into his hand.

It was perfectly ripe, its thin skin encasing a pool of soft, sweet nectar. Bai Shuangying’s grip was just right. It didn’t rupture at all.

He held the persimmon beside Fang Xiu’s cheek for comparison, then wordlessly fed it to him.

After slurping it down, Fang Xiu’s face color returned to normal. He licked the juice from his lips. “Now that you’ve bribed me so generously, I have no choice but to confess.”

Bai Shuangying: “!”

Fang Xiu leaned close again, this time speaking each word with a smile:

“From now on, I’m going to go against the ritual. This time, I plan to protect the ‘E’.”

……

In the Forest

Outside the courtyard, fallen leaves blanketed the earth, crackling softly underfoot.

Cheng Songyun had repurposed a woven basket from the yard and was now using it to collect chestnuts and mushrooms. She picked through the forest patiently, even making mental notes to dry some of the goods for preservation.

If one could forget the bloody scene in the courtyard earlier, the current view was practically idyllic. But after all that had happened, Cheng Songyun was no longer anxious about life or death. If Fang Xiu wasn’t in a rush, then this place likely wasn’t too dangerous.

Blondie had taken off long ago, hellbent on catching a rabbit for lunch. Guan He, on the other hand, stuck closely to Cheng Songyun, even pulling down the black veil over his eyes.

He was unusually silent today, glancing around nervously as if on high alert.

“It’s daytime so it’s not that dangerous. Fang Xiu must’ve considered safety before letting us out,” Cheng Songyun reassured him.

Guan He was still young. He was probably still shaken by the gruesome sight that morning. It was understandable.

But Guan He only shook his head and kept his focus.

Finally, just as Cheng Songyun’s basket was about full, Guan He found his target…

An evil spirit hiding in the shadow of a tree hollow.

It reached out a skinny, bluish-purple hand, trying to grab Cheng Songyun’s ankle. But instead of catching her, it accidentally grabbed Guan He’s hand.

Guan He braced both feet against the tree trunk, face flushed red from exertion. After several minutes of tug-of-war, with a loud pop, he forcibly yanked the creature out.

Its upper half looked like a desiccated corpse, its lower half curled and twisted like a snail tail drawn from a shell, reeking of blood and rot. Guan He trembled all over, clearly on the verge of vomiting, but he forced it down.

He pulled a hemp string from Cheng Songyun’s basket, the kind used to bundle mushrooms, and tied the spirit tightly to a nearby tree. Then he collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

Cheng Songyun had already pulled out her “Resentful Ghost Shield”. “Xiao Guan, what are you…?”

“I… cough cough I figured, since this ritual seems easier, it’s a good chance to practice.”

Guan He wiped the sweat from his face, speaking with determined sincerity. “Those people this morning were way stronger than I was when I first entered the ritual… I’ve only survived this long thanks to Fang Ge looking after me.”

“The past three sacrificial rounds… I haven’t really done anything. I don’t want to be dead weight.”

Guan He knew well enough: in theory, he could’ve served as a scout, but with Fang Xiu around, who was far better at sneaking around, his own value was nearly zero. And when it came to actual combat, he was practically useless.

He’d always wanted to practice fighting. But in a dangerous ritual, acting alone was tantamount to suicide. The cost of trial and error was way too high.

This current ritual was a rare opportunity. Evil spirits that were strong enough to pose a threat, yet weak enough that Fang Xiu was comfortable letting them out.

Considering Guan He’s age, Cheng Songyun instinctively wanted to oppose the idea. She opened her mouth, but ended up swallowing her objections.

A few seconds later, she asked, “So, what’s your plan?”

“My ability is ‘wall phasing’,” Guan He said, nervously cracking his fingers. “If I can control it precisely, I can treat the enemy’s attacks like moving ‘walls’ and phase through them to defend without injury.”

He spoke while observing the writhing evil spirit.

It was grotesque and kept snarling. Back in the first ritual, it would’ve scared him into unconsciousness. Now, Guan He looked at it and focused only on finding its weak point so he could take it down quickly.

He knew he wasn’t as clever as Fang Xiu or as experienced as Cheng Songyun. But he did have one unique strength: he was young, and his reflexes were the fastest in the team.

If he could make “no-damage defense” a reality, not only could he free up the Resentful Ghost Shield for someone else, but, if the timing was right, he could even launch surprise attacks on his own.

Cheng Songyun was silent for a while, then sighed.

Maybe he was still being too idealistic. Guan He’s shoulders slumped, bracing for a lecture. But instead of scolding him, Cheng Songyun set down her basket and walked to his side.

“That’s a good idea. I’ll stand guard for you,” she said, her voice steady and firm.

“Go ahead and train, kid.”

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The author has something to say:

Some people are falling in love, some are leveling up, and some are just about scared to death (.

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