When Jiang Luo opened his eyes, he was faced with a crowd of people dressed in black, mourning.
Everyone wore funeral clothes, their backs turned toward him. Jiang Luo paused, glancing around at the eerie atmosphere. But the moment he moved, the mourning crowd suddenly stopped, all turning their heads sharply to look at him. Their black pupils bulged like fish eyes, full of dissatisfaction: “Why aren’t you crying?”
Jiang Luo thought this dream was quite interesting. He gave a slight smile, forced out a tear, and rubbed it between his fingers to show them. “I am crying.”
The people staring at him turned their eyes away, faced forward again, and resumed their wailing — “Wah wah wah, wah wah” — the sobs oddly rhythmic.
It must have been drizzling outside. Wind and rain shrouded the daylight, damp air drifting in from the window, a light white mist in the room.
Someone beside him said, “Jiang Luo, Brother Chi You is dead. You must be happy, huh?”
Jiang Luo turned toward the voice. Before he could see clearly who it was, his eyes were caught by a lock of black hair slipping off his shoulder.
Long, dark, glossy hair flowed down to the shoulder like smooth silk. Jiang Luo reached out to brush it aside, then noticed a crimson mole on the back of his left hand, bright red like fresh blood.
The angry voice beside his ear continued, “Jiang Luo, you have nothing to say?”
Jiang Luo looked up, finally getting a clear view of the speaker’s face.
It was a handsome young man with strong features, full of vitality. Dressed head-to-toe in designer brands and five-figure sneakers, he was glaring at Jiang Luo with fury, as if ready to tear him apart. With a cold snort, he said ominously, “I know you were the one who killed Brother Chi You. Just wait until Chi You’s spirit returns on the seventh night — let’s see how you talk your way out of it then.”
The name “Chi You” sounded familiar.
A few days ago, Jiang Luo had just heard about a novel that had been taken down for being too bloody. The title was Devil. Curious about just how gory it was, Jiang Luo had gone through great effort to find the original manuscript. The protagonist in the story was named Chi You.
Devil told the tale of the shou protagonist, Chi You, who was killed by a cannon fodder character and later cultivated into a vengeful ghost with the help of the gong protagonist, Feng Li.
Coincidentally, the cannon fodder who killed Chi You had the same name as Jiang Luo. After Chi You’s death, he turned into a ghost and used all sorts of brutal methods to torment the cannon fodder until he wished for death. When he did die, he was torn limb from limb — not an inch of flesh left unbroken.
Jiang Luo’s brow twitched twice. Suddenly, he stepped forward and leaned in, now just a fist’s distance away from the hot-blooded young man.
Reflected in the other man’s pupils was a face both familiar and unfamiliar to Jiang Luo.
Long hair down to the shoulders, eyebrows arched with arrogance, sharp and stunning features — beautiful, yet full of heroic spirit. The face looked like a vivid ink painting, rich in color and intensity, with every line hiding a dagger-like sharpness.
It was almost identical to Jiang Luo’s own face — except his real appearance was more gentle and laid-back, not this vividly intense beauty like a blooming rose or peony.
He didn’t have hair this long, didn’t have a seductive red mole on the back of his left hand, and certainly hadn’t killed anyone named Chi You.
Jiang Luo pinched himself hard.
It hurt.
He took a moment to accept the truth: this wasn’t a dream. He had transmigrated.
Into that very novel that had been pulled offline for being too bloody and terrifying.
Jiang Luo’s heart sank.
“What the h*ll are you doing?” The guy he had been using as a mirror blushed slightly, unconsciously stepping back with hostility. “Jiang Luo, don’t try to stall. If you really didn’t kill Chi You, then do you dare go burn incense for him?”
This was a mourning hall—spacious, with heaps of white chrysanthemums and lilies piled on either side of the coffin. These fresh, rain-kissed flowers gave the funeral an oddly romantic beauty, almost like a wedding.
Near the coffin, the deceased’s family were still crying, dabbing their eyes with handkerchiefs. But the sorrow on their faces was fragile and hollow—easily shattered with the slightest poke.
The mourning music floated toward the ceiling, pressing down on the space like a mountain, making it hard to breathe.
The spirited young man sneered provocatively, “Go on then, Jiang Luo.”
Jiang Luo remembered his name now—this hot-blooded guy was his classmate, Lu Youyi. Jiang Luo tested the waters and asked, “Lu Youyi, why do you think I was the one who killed Chi You?”
Lu Youyi let out a cold laugh and said in a low voice, “Others might not know, but I do. Jiang Luo, you had a fight with Brother Chi You not long ago, and when he died, you were the only one there. Brother Chi You was perfectly healthy, but suddenly died for no reason—do you think that’s normal? Don’t think you can play games with me just because you’ve got a pretty face. I’m not buying it.”
Chi You had been gentle and kind in life. Most of the people attending the funeral had come because they held fond feelings for him. Though Lu Youyi’s words were sharp, the fact that he lowered his voice to say them revealed a softness—he was, ultimately, a kind person.
And soft-hearted people were easier to deceive.
Jiang Luo said earnestly, “I really didn’t kill Chi You.”
His eyes were as sincere as could be—but the original Jiang Luo was too unlikeable. Lu Youyi gave him a fake smile and shoved him toward the coffin.
Jiang Luo reluctantly walked up to it.
The coffin wasn’t fully closed. The young man lying inside had a peaceful expression, as though he hadn’t died but merely fallen asleep.
Chi You had thick brows nearly reaching his temples. His eyes were closed beneath them, and long, curled lashes cast shadows like a dark forest. His nose was high and well-shaped, the bridge strong. This was, without doubt, an extraordinarily handsome face. His lips were pale, his complexion lifeless and ashen—yet there was an eerie beauty to his sickly appearance.
But the longer Jiang Luo looked, the more the sense of wrongness grew. A sinister, world-weary air clung to his features. The gentle smile at his lips felt disturbingly fake, and a jarring dissonance twisted his corpse into something that reeked of madness and distortion.
Just like in the novel’s description—deceptive and terrifying. Chi You really was Jiang Luo’s favorite character in the book.
Jiang Luo stared blankly at the body.
He remembered, just a few days ago, when he had been reading the novel. He liked Chi You so much that he had taken the time to write a 3,000-word review and post it on a forum, praising Chi You’s cruelty and hypocrisy.
And promptly got flamed by Chi You’s fans.
[LOL, did the OP even finish the book before calling Chi You fake? Fake your mom.]
[Looks like elementary schoolers have free time again. Wouldn’t it be better to do homework instead of writing 3,000 words of nonsense?]
[Wuwuwu, my poor baby, he really had it tough. He only turned ruthless because he was wronged. It’s all the villains’ fault—how can you blame Chi You for it?]
[Sounds to me like the OP is the real fake and shady one. You see in others what you are yourself. The Chi You in your eyes is just a reflection of you.]
Jiang Luo had been baffled. Chi You’s hypocrisy was so blatant—why couldn’t people see the truth that was obvious at first glance? Sure, it made sense for characters in the story to be fooled by him—but how were readers also falling for it?
How could anyone think Chi You was truly kind?
What a joke. Just thinking about it made Jiang Luo want to burst out laughing.
But he didn’t laugh—because right now, he was face-to-face with Chi You’s dead body, and behind him was a crowd watching his every move.
And worst of all—a looming crisis was closing in.
Chi You would turn into a devil and kill him.
He’d transmigrated at a terrible moment. If he’d arrived just a little earlier, maybe he could have prevented Chi You’s death.
But things were already set in motion. Jiang Luo didn’t have time to dwell on regrets—he had to think fast and figure out how to avoid the cannon-fodder death ending.
He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but the temperature around the coffin seemed to be dropping fast.
Maybe, he thought—
Maybe Chi You has already become a ghost. Maybe he’s right here, in this funeral hall.
Maybe he was scaring himself, but the air suddenly felt eerie and oppressive.
Jiang Luo did truly like Chi You as a character—but only under one condition: he wasn’t the one being targeted by him.
He didn’t want to die.
Before transmigrating, Jiang Luo had been a landscape architect, busy working on a city project. Because he’d been swamped, he hadn’t actually finished Devil. But he understood Chi You’s nature very well.
Chi You was a lunatic. He was ruthless to anyone he didn’t care about and showed no mercy. To survive under Chi You’s gaze, Jiang Luo would need to catch his interest.
No—that wasn’t enough. He couldn’t rely entirely on that lunatic.
Jiang Luo had to clear his name. He didn’t have the power to protect himself, so he’d need someone who did.
He needed to get the living on his side—so that even if Chi You came to kill him, others would choose to protect him and deal with Chi You instead. That was the most reliable path.
Even in the original novel, Chi You had needed help from the protagonist gong to get his revenge. It showed that the dead couldn’t win against the living.
But winning people over took time—and time was exactly what Jiang Luo lacked.
The more dangerous the situation, the calmer his mind became.
Then, out of nowhere, Jiang Luo shivered violently.
A bone-deep cold pierced his skin, his instincts screaming that something was terribly wrong.
It felt as though something was drawing closer—now just inches from him.
His survival instinct reached its limit. Jiang Luo’s body moved before his mind could catch up—he dropped to his knees with a loud thud.
The sudden shock brought tears to his eyes, instantly turning them red. Droplets streamed down his face like a broken string of pearls.
His voice caught slightly, “Chi You… why did you leave me?”
Amid all the wailing, Jiang Luo’s actions didn’t attract much attention.
“Chi You…” Jiang Luo lowered his head, covering his face, his voice gradually becoming muffled. “Please don’t die…”
Lu Youyi, who had been watching from the side, frowned. Why was Jiang Luo crying now?
Jiang Luo’s voice was low and indistinct. Lu Youyi was puzzled. Just then, a beautiful boy holding a stuffed bunny walked over behind him and asked, “Lu Youyi, why is Jiang Luo crying?”
This was Ye Xun, their classmate — a cold and aloof beautiful youth who seemed uninterested in everything, except he had a deep passion for gossip.
Lu Youyi raised a finger and shushed him. “Let’s get a little closer and eavesdrop quietly.”
Jiang Luo noticed their approach.
Timing it perfectly, Jiang Luo choked out, “Didn’t you say you liked me? Then why are you leaving me now? I regret rejecting your confession, Chi You… I finally understand. I love you too.”
His crying was moving, filled with genuine emotion.
The chilly air around them seemed to pause for a moment.
Lu Youyi and Ye Xun were frozen in shock.
“Please don’t leave me,” Jiang Luo wept in a low voice. “I don’t believe you’re really dead. I will find the one who killed you. I’ll find a way to save you… I swear I’ll bring you back to my side.”
He spoke softly, and Lu Youyi and Ye Xun only caught the beginning of his words. When Jiang Luo finished crying, they quickly backed away.
Jiang Luo slowly stood up and looked down at Chi You in the coffin.
In Devil, the cannon-fodder character killed Chi You under mysterious circumstances, and after Chi You became a ghost, he was nothing like a typical malicious spirit. Most malicious spirits had complete souls, intact with hands and feet—but Chi You’s soul had been cut into several pieces.
He was incomplete—like a human missing limbs and a head, without ears, tongue, or nose.
Such a fragmented soul couldn’t be summoned, couldn’t speak his thoughts or express resentment. Because of that, Chi You’s grievance was sky-high, his ghostly aura so strong it attracted the Taoist Feng Li. With Feng Li’s help, Chi You was able to cultivate and take revenge on his killer.
Although Jiang Luo had transmigrated into a bad moment, fortunately, there was still some time before the revenge plot began.
For now, he was banking on the fact that the dead couldn’t speak, couldn’t be summoned to name their killer. This was his chance to clear his name.
If all he wanted was to pique Chi You’s interest, then a secret admirer might not catch his attention—but someone who claimed Chi You liked them? That would definitely amuse a vengeful ghost.
More importantly, if the living believed that Chi You had secretly loved him, then even if Chi You came to kill him, others wouldn’t think it was a murder out of hatred—they’d think it was an act of obsessive love.
That way, the living would protect Jiang Luo as the “innocent victim.” It would buy him precious time to grow stronger and stay alive.
Meanwhile, Lu Youyi and Ye Xun were completely stunned.
They exchanged glances. Lu Youyi murmured in disbelief, “Ye Xun, you think he’s messing with us?”
Ye Xun replied calmly, “What’s the point of that? Besides, he didn’t even see us.”
After thinking for a moment, Ye Xun added, “Jiang Luo’s dumb and mean. If he didn’t start laughing at a funeral, that’s already restraint. Do you really think he’d fake crying that miserably on purpose?”
Lu Youyi wiped his face roughly. “But do you think it’s possible? Brother Chi You confessed to Jiang Luo?” He pointed at Jiang Luo, incredulous. “You really think Brother Chi You would fall for someone like—”
He stopped mid-sentence. Jiang Luo’s tear-streaked face looked even more beautiful after crying. Lu Youyi choked on his words and quietly lowered his hand. “…When did they get together?”
Ye Xun said, “He just said he once rejected Chi You’s confession. Lu Youyi, when did Jiang Luo and Chi You start having issues?”
“A little over a month ago,” Lu Youyi began to believe it himself and started mentally filling in the gaps. “No wonder. Over the past month, Jiang Luo’s been cursing Chi You in private, who knows how many times. Maybe Chi You confessed, Jiang Luo got angry and embarrassed. Now that Chi You’s dead, he regrets it… realizes he actually liked him too… D*mn, this is some real drama.”
Despite his words, Lu Youyi’s eyes glistened. He sniffled and wiped his tears with practiced ease. “Ye Xun, this is too tragic.”
Lu Youyi cried even watching trashy soap operas, so Ye Xun wasn’t surprised. He was more intrigued by the gossip. “Just now, he said he’d find the killer and bring Chi You back.”
Lu Youyi shivered. “He wants to summon his spirit too?”
While they were talking, Jiang Luo had already made his way through the crowd and was now standing in front of Lu Youyi and Ye Xun.
The two of them looked at him with complicated expressions. Neither considered the possibility that Jiang Luo was acting.
Why would he? What would be the point?
Once Brother Chi You’s soul was summoned, everything would be revealed. No one believed Jiang Luo would lie about something like this.
Lu Youyi couldn’t hold back and asked, “Jiang Luo, are you really going to summon his spirit?”
Jiang Luo nodded slowly. “I’m going to summon him.”
Lu Youyi and Ye Xun exchanged a glance.
If he dared to summon the spirit, that meant he wasn’t feeling guilty—and that he was telling the truth.
Lu Youyi hadn’t actually known Chi You very well. In fact, most of the people at the funeral didn’t. Though Chi You had been kind and courteous to everyone, he had never been close to anyone.
Lu Youyi mostly admired and respected Chi You from afar. Now, realizing Jiang Luo might not be the killer—and may have even been someone Chi You liked—his attitude toward Jiang Luo softened.
Still, remembering how he had just treated Jiang Luo roughly, he felt a bit awkward. He mumbled, “So you really weren’t the killer… I’m sorry, I misunderstood you earlier. Don’t worry. When Brother Chi You’s seventh day comes, we’ll know the truth.”
Jiang Luo tearfully expressed his thanks.
He thought to himself, Sorry, but your beloved Brother Chi You’s soul won’t be returning on the seventh day after death.
Jiang Luo turned and took one last look at the coffin, then said, “Weren’t we going to handle the case at the 129 Hotel? Let’s go now.”
All three of them were students in Class 01 of the Department of Natural Sciences and Social Research at Baihua University.
This department existed solely for practitioners of metaphysics—ordinary people didn’t even know it existed. There was only one class in the department, with a total of eight students.
They had been granted leave from school this time to handle a commissioned case and earn academic credits, and they had made a special stop to pay respects to Chi You.
Jiang Luo was eager to witness a supernatural event in this new world. A sense of urgency pressed on him, driving his desire to grow stronger quickly. “I used to be so unambitious,” he said. “I’d get smug over the smallest progress. But now that I want to avenge Chi You, I realize how little I actually know…”
He even conveniently gave himself a reason for his sudden change in attitude. “I want to become stronger, to avenge Chi You. Starting from the 129 Hotel, I’m saying goodbye to my old self.”
Lu Youyi admired people who charged forward fearlessly. His blood surged with excitement as he clapped Jiang Luo on the shoulder. “That’s the spirit, brother! That’s exactly what you should do!”
Ye Xun tugged on his bunny plush’s ears and looked at Jiang Luo as if watching a prodigal son return to the right path. “It’s not too late to change now.”
Jiang Luo forced a smile. “No, it’s already too late.”
The three of them stood quietly for a moment, then slipped out of the crowd without drawing attention.
As they reached the gate, a pot-bellied older man suddenly reached toward Jiang Luo. Lu Youyi, as if he had eyes on his back, quickly pulled Jiang Luo out of the way and suspiciously asked, “What are you doing?”
The pot-bellied man had a narrow philtrum, dull and muddy features—a typical face of someone with depleted kidney essence due to overindulgence. His eyes darted evasively. “I didn’t do anything.”
Jiang Luo stood behind Lu Youyi, eyes narrowing as he looked at the man.
Ye Xun, still hugging his bunny plush, suddenly bent down and whispered toward the toy’s mouth, “What’s that? You say this man’s tendons don’t bind his bones, and his pulse can’t hold his flesh together? He shows signs of ‘ghost agitation’? That he’ll soon face a deadly calamity?”
The man froze in place. “What nonsense are you talking about!”
He wanted to curse, but as he met Ye Xun’s pitch-black eyes, the words caught in his throat. A chill crept down his spine. Somehow, he knew Ye Xun was telling the truth. He really might end up dead soon.
Lu Youyi cursed under his breath as he pushed Jiang Luo along to leave. Ye Xun trailed behind lazily, adding, “Oh, looks like I misread it. There’s just black mist shrouding his mountain root—he’s merely in for a string of bad luck.”
The pot-bellied man let out a long sigh of relief. As he came to his senses, he realized his legs had gone weak.
Once they were outside, Jiang Luo said, “Ye Xun, I didn’t expect you to stand up for me like that.”
Ye Xun replied slowly, “No need to thank me too much. But if you’re willing to tell the story between you and Chi You, I’d be very interested to hear it.”
Lu Youyi’s eyes lit up, and he turned to stare at Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo pondered for a moment, twisting a strand of his black hair. After rapidly stitching together plotlines from various idol dramas and novels, he began to feel excited.
He looked up at the overcast sky, sighed deeply, and let his expression fill with bittersweet longing. “It’s a long story.”
“Chi You… was deeply in love with me.”
