—

The night was still. Stars flickered.

In the city, you rarely see a sky full of stars this beautiful. Moonlight and a clear breeze — it should have been peaceful and lovely, but no one had the leisure to admire it now.

After the rite ended, Jiang Luo removed his Mask. The thing made him uneasy — it wore a smile, yet carried a lifeless air about it. Rigid, stiff, steeped in something uncanny.

He stuffed the Mask into his pocket and listened quietly to the contestants' low-voiced exchanges.

'Did you find anything today?'

'Nothing. You?'

'Me neither. But I noticed there aren't many old people in this village.'

'Even the Village Head looks like he's only in his early fifties — not that old.'

In the countryside, it's common to see elders in their fifties and sixties still working the fields. Rural old folks are sturdy; plenty live into their seventies and eighties. And with little entertainment, the most common sight is an old person sitting in a doorway, soaking up the sun.

But in Shentu Village, there were hardly any elders to be seen.

Jiang Luo finished eavesdropping and straightened up.

Lu You said suddenly, 'Jiang Luo — isn't that the little girl we ran into earlier?'

He tugged Jiang Luo's sleeve, pointing left.

Jiang Luo turned. A little girl in red had silently slipped away from her parents, retreating through a corner into the shadows.

Without hesitation: 'Let's go. Follow her.'

Jiang Luo and Lu You peeled off from the crowd and trailed after the girl.

They chased her from the village out to its deserted edge, through a dense stretch of woods — and then the trees opened up.

At the end of the woods lay a wild graveyard, graves pressed shoulder to shoulder.

The grave mounds rose like little hills, each one fronted by a stone tablet. At a glance, every mound looked nearly identical — only the weeds on top varied.

Jiang Luo's eyes swept the mounds. He spotted the red figure at once. 'There.'

The little girl was digging a grave.

Her hands were barely half an adult's size. No shovel, no spade — just two small, pale hands clawing at the dirt, soon scraped raw by sharp grass and stone.

Even when they arrived, she only glanced up at Jiang Luo and Lu You once before lowering her head and digging again.

Jiang Luo crouched down without flinching. 'Little sister, what are you doing?'

Lu You crouched beside him, shaking.

No response. Jiang Luo asked again. The girl answered slowly, 'I'm digging a grave.'

'Why?'

'I'm looking for my mom and dad.'

'Are they under the grave?' Jiang Luo asked, unhurried. 'Then the parents we saw today — they're not your real parents?'

The girl said nothing, just shook her head slowly — unclear whether she was denying his question or simply confirming that her parents weren't her real ones.

She dug twice more, then looked up at the sky. 'It's getting dark. I have to go home.'

With that, she abandoned the half-dug grave and the two of them, darting back into the woods.

They were caught off guard — by the time they reacted, she'd vanished. Lu You swallowed. 'So... we go too?'

Jiang Luo looked down at the grave. His lashes, half-lowered, flickered. The corner of his mouth lifted. 'Lu You, have you ever dug up a grave?'

Lu You: '……'

Ten minutes later, the two of them were digging with two long pieces of wood they'd picked up.

The moon hung overhead. Its pale light spilled across the open ground, brighter than any lamp.

Lu You sweated through the work. Once he was focused on digging, the fear faded; he swung the plank of wood like a man possessed, and the mound was half-flattened in no time.

The coffin was buried shallow. Before long, its surface showed through the dirt.

They cleared the soil together. Jiang Luo pried up the coffin lid with the tip of his plank. Lu You's voice trembled. 'Luo, are we really opening this?'

Jiang Luo paused. Looked at the grave. 'Should we just bury it back?'

Remembering the effort it took to dig, Lu You shut up.

Jiang Luo wrenched the lid open. Lu You leaned in — and sucked in a cold breath.

Inside lay two bodies, a man and a woman — and they looked exactly like the little girl's parents from earlier that day.

The bodies had begun to decay, but their clothes were neat. They had died recently.

Lu You: 'Th-this—'

If the bodies in the coffin were the girl's parents, then who were the couple they'd met during the day?

The bodies answered nothing — only tangled the mystery further. Jiang Luo and Lu You closed the lid and restored the mound.

Jiang Luo smoothed the last handful of dirt over the grave, then went to read the inscription on the headstone.

Lu You wiped the sweat from his face. Out of the corner of his eye, a flash of light streaked behind Jiang Luo. His heart lurched. 'Jiang Luo, get down!'

Jiang Luo heard the whistle of something cutting air. He dropped and rolled, tumbling behind another mound.

He steadied himself and looked up. A Great Sword, its blade flashing cold, was buried in the ground where he'd just stood — sunk in nearly to the hilt. If he'd been a step slower, the blade would have split him in two.

Jiang Luo looked toward where the blade had come from.

A strange-looking man stepped out of the woods.

He wore odd clothing — like tattered cloth wound around his body, or perhaps an archaic robe. He moved from shadow into moonlight, his tall frame crushing dry leaves and twigs underfoot, until he reached the Great Sword and pulled it from the ground.

With a scrape of metal, the man gripped the blade and turned toward Jiang Luo and Lu You.

He looked like an ancient general — eyes cold, steeped in bloodlust. Jiang Luo rose from the ground, spine slightly bent, every muscle taut, ready to fight or flee.

The man's pressure was immense. He was neither man nor ghost — the Malevolent Aura rolling off him was almost solid, the kind only forged by killing thousands upon thousands.

'Who are you?' Jiang Luo asked, testing.

The man said nothing. He walked toward Jiang Luo with the blade. Jiang Luo spun his Yin-Yang Ring — but to an outside eye, he stood still, as if frozen in fear.

Lu You lunged and wrapped his arms around the man's leg. Teeth clenched. 'Run!'

'Run, Jiang Luo!' Lu You's face went white. 'Run!'

Jiang Luo froze.

The man frowned, faintly annoyed. He paused his advance on Jiang Luo, turned toward Lu You, and raised the Great Sword.

The blade flashed over Lu You. Eyes squeezed shut, terrified, he still wouldn't let go. Just as the Great Sword was about to fall on his back — a blaze of Golden Light. A golden shape slammed the man aside. A tiger's roar split the air. A massive paw slammed down on the man's skull, and a fanged maw opened in his face with a thunderous snarl.

Lu You opened his eyes, dazed. Jiang Luo crouched in front of him, breathing hard. 'Lu You, are you an idiot?'

Lu You: 'Huh?'

Jiang Luo's lips pressed tight. He swallowed it down. His expression was controlled, taut, laced with a deliberate coldness — as if Lu You's selfless act hadn't moved him at all, as if it only irritated him.

'Why did you jump in?' His tone was almost irritable. 'Did I need you to?'

But Lu You saw nothing wrong. He answered, dumbly: 'You looked like your legs were going to give out. If I'd been any slower, you'd be dead.'

Jiang Luo's inexplicable anger stalled. He took a breath, hauled the idiot to his feet, and turned a cold gaze on the man pinned beneath the tiger.

In the heat of the moment, his head had been nothing but fury and panic. One thought had blazed through him: How dare you touch my person?

And in that state, he'd somehow summoned the Inch Tiger — the one he'd never been able to call before. The beast was enormous, twice the size of a real tiger. The colder Jiang Luo's gaze grew, the harder the Inch Tiger pressed its paw down, the fiercer its roar.

The man still seemed to have strength. His grip on the blade shifted. The Inch Tiger took it as a challenge and brought its paw down on his skull again, merciless.

Blood ran from the man's forehead. At last his eyes closed. Jiang Luo walked slowly toward him with Lu You, his sharp gaze sweeping the man's body. He kicked the Great Sword from the man's hand.

Lu You stared at the magnificent tiger without blinking, a string of awed expletives tumbling out: 'Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit!'

'So badass!'

He reached out to touch the tiger — and saw the man beneath its paw snap his eyes open. The wound on his forehead had already healed.

Lu You fell on his backside in fright. 'J-Jiang Luo, his eyes are open again!'

Jiang Luo turned. The man stared straight at them — but beyond staring, he made no move to struggle.

The tiger growled. The man looked at it, then at Lu You and Jiang Luo, face blank. 'Who are you.'

A pause. 'Who am I.'

Jiang Luo: '……'

Lu You: '……'

A flicker of confusion crossed the man's face, softening the coldness. 'Why is this tiger standing on me?'

'Still playing dumb?' Lu You sneered. 'You dead ghost — you think we'd fall for that?'

'Is dead ghost my name?' the man asked. 'What's yours?'

Jiang Luo: ……When in doubt, cast a hex.

The hex confirmed the man wasn't lying. Jiang Luo cautiously transformed his Golden Script into a Snake of Si, bound the man with it, and let him rise.

Once the man stood, Jiang Luo understood why he'd lost his memory.

When the tiger had knocked him down, he'd landed on a sharp stone. The stone had pierced the back of his skull. Whatever the man's nature, the wound had already closed — healed around the stone, with only a small tip still poking through the skin.

Jiang Luo squinted at the wound. He even smiled a little.

His anger had mostly faded. He exchanged a glance with Lu You. Lu You cleared his throat. 'You really don't remember who you are?'

A blank confusion crossed the man's expressionless face. 'Didn't you say my name is Dead Ghost?'

Lu You choked, then grinned wickedly. 'No, Dead Ghost is just your nickname. You have a real name.'

'What is it?'

'Jiao Jiao,' Lu You said solemnly. 'Because you love acting cute.'

The man considered for a moment. 'Then you'd better just call me Dead Ghost.'

Convinced the man had truly lost his memory, Jiang Luo saw no point in harming someone who knew nothing — newborn, in a sense. 'Lu You. We're leaving.'

Lu You ditched Dead Ghost at once and followed Jiang Luo. The two of them left the graveyard — but the man who'd just tried to kill them picked up his Great Sword and followed silently behind.

Jiang Luo released the Inch Tiger. His lips curled coldly. 'Follow us one more step and I won't be polite.'

'Why?' Dead Ghost looked at them, bewildered. 'Aren't we friends?'

Who makes friends with someone who just tried to kill them?

Jiang Luo didn't bother with more words. He set the Inch Tiger on the man and left the graveyard with Lu You at a quick pace.

The man, left behind, struggled to fend off the tiger and slowly trailed after them.

……

Half an hour later, Jiang Luo and Lu You were back at their lodging. They told the others about the bodies in the little girl's grave — strange enough that no one could make sense of it.

'Looks like we'll have to wait for tomorrow's Ancestral Hall Selection,' Wenren Lian said, frowning. 'We don't know what selection means. Does it sound like picking someone for sacrifice to anyone?'

'But if it were a sacrifice, the Village Head wouldn't have said don't rush or don't fight,' Ge Zhu said, chin propped on his hand. 'Unless, to them, the sacrifice means something good.'

Liao Si was about to speak when his eyes flicked to the window. A flash of surprise, then a smile. 'Looks like there's a living dead outside the door.'

The moment the words left his mouth, a shadow fell across the gap beneath the door.

Lu You whipped his head toward Jiang Luo. 'It's not Dead Ghost, is it?'

Jiang Luo raised a brow, got up, and opened the door. Standing outside was indeed the man who looked like an ancient figure, Great Sword in hand.

The man was covered in wounds — all healed, only the disheveled clothes and bloodstains bore witness to his rough state. When he saw Jiang Luo, his features eased slightly, though his face remained slack. 'Friend, I've come to find you.'

Lu You and the others gathered behind Jiang Luo. Lu You's voice was flat with disbelief. 'How is it still you.'

Liao Si watched the man from behind the group. His eyes flickered. He raised his voice. 'Jiang Luo — do you know this living dead?'

The man glanced toward Liao Si at the sound. Liao Si silently mouthed: Why are you here?

But before the mouth-shape was finished, the man turned away without a flicker, his gaze settling on Jiang Luo and Lu You as if he didn't recognize Liao Si at all.

Liao Si's temple twitched. What happened to Teng Bi?

'He's a living dead?' Jiang Luo turned to Liao Si. 'What is that?'

Liao Si came back to himself. 'A living dead is someone whose body has died but can still act like a living person. Unlike a walking corpse, they retain living memories and emotions — alive, but dead.'

Ye Xun added, 'Living deads are extremely rare. Some people carry so much Malevolent Aura that even Yin Officials don't dare take their souls after death. By chance, they become living deads who walk the world.'

And the man before them was unmistakably one of them.

Jiang Luo wondered with interest — why would such a rare living dead appear in Shentu Village?

And why had he come to kill him and Lu You?

The others watched the man with curiosity. Seeing other contestants take notice, Jiang Luo let him inside.

The man sat by the table and laid his Great Sword down. Soil from the attack on Jiang Luo still clung to the blade. Under the lamplight, Jiang Luo could see the weapon clearly — a sharp blade, plain in design. The hilt was wrapped in a single band of black cloth. Nothing else.

Under Jiang Luo's gaze, black Malevolent Aura began to seep from the blade. Within the churning dark, countless ghostly faces writhed and clawed, trying to escape — only to be trapped within the steel.

'Do you want my sword?' Dead Ghost said suddenly. 'I can't give it to you. It's my only weapon.'

Jiang Luo looked away, head tilted lazily. 'How did you find us?'

'By your scent,' Dead Ghost said, his sword-brows furrowing. 'The trail was tangled — I had to take a long detour. Friend, were you trying to lose me?'

Lu You whispered in Ye Xun's ear: 'He talks so weirdly. So formal.'

Ye Xun nodded. 'From the look of him, he's probably been a living dead for several hundred years.'

Zhuo Zhongqiu asked curiously, 'What's your name?'

'Dead Ghost,' the man said.

Silence. '……What a fine name.'

It was late. They set these matters aside for the night and went to bed.

While the others were busy and no one was paying attention, Liao Si casually stood beside the man, gazing out the window. 'Teng Bi, what are you doing?'

Dead Ghost looked at him strangely. 'Who's Teng Bi?'

Liao Si frowned. 'Did you really forget, or are you faking it?'

Dead Ghost didn't want to deal with this odd person. He closed his eyes and pretended not to see him.

Liao Si's smile stiffened. Seeing the Baihua University people approaching, he dropped it.

The next day.

Early in the morning, Jiang Luo went out, intending to find the little girl from yesterday.

It didn't take long to notice the change in the village.

Many more girls were moving about the village. Their complexions were rosy, their dark-pearl eyes bright and full of longing. Their shining hair was braided down their backs, their figures slender, their clothes neat and close-fitting from head to toe — too refined to be country girls.

Jiang Luo approached a friendly-looking girl nearby. The moment he drew close, he caught a faint, pleasing fragrance from her. 'Miss, do you know why there are so many pretty girls around today?'

Jiang Luo was unreasonably handsome; when he smiled on purpose, it could make anyone's heart race. Add a sweet tongue, and the girl laughed behind her hand, her eyes bright as stars. 'Because the Ancestral Hall is choosing today. We all want to be the god's bride — of course we have to dress up.'

'The Ancestral Hall Selection is choosing a bride for the god?'

A dreamy look crept into the girl's eyes. 'The Ancestral Hall only opens when it's choosing a bride for the god. We've already given ourselves to him. If he chooses me, he'll come take me as his bride on an auspicious day.'

Jiang Luo took his leave thoughtfully. After a circuit of the village without finding the girl in red, he returned to the lodging to rejoin his companions.

The others had noticed the village girls too. Wenren Lian, chin on hand, asked: 'Do you know about Luohua Dongnu — the Fallen Flower Cave Maidens?'

'Luohua Dongnu, corpse-driving, and gu-casting are together called the Three Evils of the Xiangxi Region,' Wenren Lian said quietly. 'Luohua Dongnu are unmarried women who, in their minds, have already married themselves to a god. Their beloved is the god — they won't give their hearts to mortal men. Every day, they keep themselves beautiful and serene, waiting for the day they truly marry the god.'

Zhuo Zhongqiu said, 'You're saying there's a god here?'

Wenren Lian shook his head. 'Whether there's a real god or someone playing god, we can't guess. If we want to get to the bottom of this, the best way is to blend in with those girls and go back to the Ancestral Hall at six this afternoon.'

Jiang Luo, who had been listening idly, felt a sudden premonition. He stepped back, almost imperceptibly.

'To blend in with the girls, we have to dress as girls,' Wenren Lian said with a smile. 'I can do it, but one person isn't enough. Isn't that right, Jiang Luo?'

Everyone turned to look at Jiang Luo in unison.

Jiang Luo: '……I'm not wearing women's clothes.'

Not even over his dead body.