Ge Wuchen and the others noticed that their master had been glued to his phone the past few days, constantly checking it no matter the hour, not letting it leave his side even for a second. And with each passing day, the look on his face as he stared at the screen grew darker and more sullen, so much so that none of them dared approach him.
Chi You didn’t want to come off as desperate, so he waited patiently for Jiang Luo’s call.
But in just a few days, his mood had gone from calm and in control to completely stormy. When he could finally bear it no longer, he called Jiang Luo with a stony face.
The call connected quickly—but it was a different man’s voice that answered: “Hello?”
Chi You’s grip on his phone tightened in an instant. The phone shattered into pieces in his hand.
A suffocating silence.
The malicious ghost’s eyes darkened. He stood up abruptly and strode outside.
…
Today was the seventh day that Jiang Luo had been locked inside the Heavenly Master Residence. After finishing the breakfast that had been delivered to him, he folded the seventh paper flower with a napkin and tossed it into the vase, admiring it for a moment before leaning back against the headboard to leisurely read a book.
Feng Li had forbidden him from leaving the house or talking to anyone else, but he was allowed to read. Jiang Luo had asked for a large number of books, hoping to find some records about Heavenly Masters or the Fated One hidden somewhere in the estate’s library.
He read all the way into the evening. Suddenly, the sound of fireworks came from outside the window. Jiang Luo looked up and saw three bursts—two large, one small.
He immediately energized.
This was the secret signal he had arranged beforehand with Wenren Lian. If Chi You came looking for Jiang Luo, Wenren Lian would use this exact firework pattern to alert him.
Grinning from ear to ear, Jiang Luo tossed the book aside and leapt out of bed, hurrying to the window in just a few steps. Outside, disciples of the Heavenly Master Residence were rushing toward the front gate in a panic.
Blazing firelight flared at the gate—it looked like something was on fire.
It was.
Thick smoke billowed from the outer courtyard. None of the disciples knew what was going on. For some reason, a large crowd had suddenly shown up at the gates, trying to force their way in with fire guns and stun batons.
Someone even poured gasoline over the gate and lit it with a flick of a lighter. The wooden structure of the estate caught fire instantly. The front yard was in complete chaos.
Shen Ruma and the others were overwhelmed and scrambling to maintain order, but they couldn’t stop the frenzied people from breaking through. His expression darkened. “Did anyone call the police?”
“The calls won’t go through,” Wang Santan replied anxiously, sweat pouring from his forehead. “Isn’t it weird? The estate’s barrier spells are mainly for evil spirits, but they work on humans too. So why are these normal people unaffected by the array?”
Shen Ruma smelled of smoke. Watching the mess unfold, a vein throbbed at his temple. When he saw Zhou Wudu running back, he quickly asked, “Why are you so late? Did you notify master?”
“I did! I did!” Zhou Wudu panted. “Master was called away by the Old Heavenly Master. They’re in the middle of a conversation. He gave strict orders that no one is to disturb them, no matter what happens. I begged for ages before someone agreed to go notify our master. Just hold on a bit longer—he’ll definitely come!”
Wang Santan looked relieved, but Shen Ruma still wore no sign of joy. That made him nervous again. “Senior brother, once Master arrives, things will be fine, right? Why do you look like that?”
“Look at these people,” Shen Ruma pointed to a group climbing rooftops, smashing buildings, and lighting fires at tree roots. “The Heavenly Master Residence isn’t easy to break into. But they actually broke in, and the place is a mess. We’re holding back because they’re human—we don’t dare go too far—but they’ve got no such reservations. Not even our emergency calls are going through. This has clearly been planned. And…”
He looked up at the sky. “Do you see it?”
Wang Santan and Zhou Wudu looked up, stared for a moment—and then both sucked in a cold breath. “Yin energy!”
The dense, writhing yin energy stretched across the sky, nearly blanketing the entire estate. Without Shen Ruma’s reminder, they wouldn’t even have noticed it.
“Exactly. Yin energy—and thick, at that,” Shen Ruma gave a bitter chuckle and lit a cigarette. “They didn’t come with good intentions. Something’s clearly manipulating this mob from behind the scenes. Before Master arrives, go find a place to shelter the disciples. Tell them not to engage directly. So what if a few things get smashed? The Heavenly Master Residence isn’t short on money. As long as no one gets hurt.”
Wang Santan gritted his teeth. “Senior brother, are we really just going to let them wreck the place? That’s humiliating!”
“Don’t be hasty,” Shen Ruma said. “Whoever’s pulling the strings hasn’t shown themselves yet. Let’s wait and see what they’re really after. Anyone who wants to stomp on the Heavenly Master’s dignity will have to kneel and pay for it later. We’ll deal with them when Master arrives.”
Both Zhou Wudu and Wang Santan nodded. Suddenly, Shen Ruma remembered Jiang Luo. “Cr*p, junior brother’s still locked in his room! I’ll go get him—you two take care of the others.”
Jiang Luo took one look at the chaos outside and knew Chi You had come to cause a major scene. Without the slightest hesitation, he used the Yin Tiger talisman to break open the door and bolted downstairs.
In the past seven days, his ankle had mostly healed. He moved swiftly through the hall, grabbed the items he needed, stuffed them into a bag, and dashed out.
The scene outside was utter chaos. Jiang Luo used the distraction to slip away and made his way to the confinement chamber.
This time, he finally met the woman imprisoned underground. Though “woman” wasn’t quite accurate—she was more like an old lady.
Compared to her appearance in Feng Li’s inner world, this woman looked much older and frailer now, perhaps in her fifties or sixties. She was unconscious, showing no reaction even as Jiang Luo approached.
He carefully brushed aside her hair to reveal a disfigured, deeply wrinkled face.
But beneath the ruined features, there was still a faint trace of Feng Li’s likeness.
Her pulse was weak, and she reeked of filth. Jiang Luo began arranging an illusion formation on the ground. He wanted to see what kind of past this old woman was hiding.
Jiang Luo placed a mirror neatly in the center of the formation and snapped his fingers loudly next to the old woman’s ear.
The old woman trembled as she slowly opened her eyes. Her drooping head just happened to face the mirror in the formation, and her cloudy eyes gradually lost focus.
…
Zhang Nan fell in love at first sight with the Fated One after seeing one just once.
But the Fated One’s identity was extraordinary and absolutely untouched by love. Zhang Nan tried many methods but couldn’t get close to the Fated One. Unwilling to give up, she made a firm decision and drugged the Fated One.
For this poisoning, she used many means and even adjusted her own body to peak condition, hoping for a perfect union resulting in a child. The Fated One rarely gets involved in worldly matters; yet, the Fated One was successfully trapped by Zhang Nan’s scheme. But just as Zhang Nan smugly planned to threaten the Fated One into marriage, her elders swiftly locked her away.
Zhang Nan was on the verge of madness. She thought her family would only imprison her briefly but didn’t expect they’d keep her locked away until after she gave birth.
On the day her brother came to take her son, Zhang Nan was a wreck, half alive and half dead, tearing at her hair in despair: “Let me go! This is my son with the Fated One! I am the Fated One’s woman! Who are you to lock me up?”
“The Fated One has never had a woman before. I am his first woman. When I get out, I will make you pay!”
Her brother, about to become the next Heavenly Master, looked at her with a complicated expression: “Do you know how grave your mistake is?”
Zhang Nan did not know.
“Stay here,” her brother said as he turned away, “at least this way, you’ll survive.”
…
The old woman’s voice was hoarse as she struggled violently: “Let me out! Let me out! I am the Fated One’s woman… No, don’t kill me! I was wrong, I was wrong… I shouldn’t have drugged the Fated One…”
Jiang Luo was stunned into stone by her words.
He paused for a long while, unable to believe it: “Feng Li is actually the Fated One’s son?!”
The Fated One actually has a child?!
Jiang Luo only knew Feng Li and the Fated One didn’t get along, but he never imagined they were father and son.
This was too shocking. Jiang Luo took quite some time to recover, then glanced at the old woman again and muttered, “…The metaphysical world is really chaotic.”
He knocked the old woman unconscious with a knife hand, packed up the items on the ground, and left the confinement room satisfied with the earth-shaking secret he had uncovered.
The Heavenly Master residence grew even more chaotic. The wind blowing through carried the smell of burning.
The little golden mouse Jiang Luo had sent out to spy returned, squeaking softly in his palm.
“Chi You’s here,” Jiang Luo’s eyes flickered with a smile.
He put away the mouse, looked around, and chose the highest floor in the residence. It was only three stories, but from the rooftop he climbed to, he looked down to take in the full mess below.
From the start of the commotion until now, less than twenty minutes had passed, yet fires burned and buildings collapsed everywhere, with damage especially severe in the Heavenly Master Residence.
In the dark of night, the flying sparks from the fires even looked somewhat romantic.
Jiang Luo sat on the ground, binding his left foot with gauze and red medicine from his medical kit, making it look like a big steamed bun. He looked at his foot with satisfaction — anyone unaware would think it was broken. After fixing his image, Jiang Luo leisurely waited for Chi You to arrive.
He expected to be found within a minute. After only about twenty seconds, someone appeared on the rooftop.
Chi You stood coldly at the edge of the rooftop, looking down at him from above.
When he saw Jiang Luo’s bandaged foot, his aura suddenly darkened, becoming ominous.
Jiang Luo pretended to be surprised and looked at him, “How did you get here?”
Chi You stepped forward expressionless, “Why, can’t I come?”
Yin Tiger fiercely blocked Chi You’s way. Chi You stopped, staring straight at Jiang Luo.
His gaze was terrifying, like a wild beast about to go mad at any moment.
Jiang Luo forced himself to stand, hopped on one foot to the edge of the rooftop, and sat on the low wall. He watched Chi You warily but suddenly gasped, apparently touching a sore spot on his foot.
Chi You’s rage flared suddenly, wild anger sweeping through him. His voice was low and suppressed, “Come here.”
Jiang Luo flatly refused, “No.”
Chi You stepped forward again with a dark face. Yin Tiger charged at him fiercely but was stopped by Chi You’s palm. Where his hand touched Yin Tiger, corrosive smoke like sulfur rose, burning Chi You’s hand down to the bone.
Yet Chi You’s expression did not change in the slightest. He locked eyes with Jiang Luo, dark waves swirling in his black eyes.
Jiang Luo’s heart skipped a beat, and he dared not hold Chi You’s gaze. He turned his head down, trying to calm himself. “This third floor is pretty high. If I fall headfirst, I’d die for sure.”
He paused, glancing sideways at Chi You. Chi You was still staring hard.
Jiang Luo cleared his throat, gripping the low wall beneath him, swinging his right leg over and sitting sideways on the wall.
“Chi You, do you want me dead?”
Chi You’s expression was terrifying, “You won’t die.”
“Why do you say that?” Jiang Luo challenged seriously, “I’m human, not a ghost like you, nor a walking dead like Teng Bi. I age, get sick, and die — maybe in sixty years if I’m lucky, maybe in a minute if I’m not. If I jump off a building, I’ll die, bleed, maybe even have my brains spilled out. If you say that if I die, I’ll turn into a ghost, then you’re wrong. Chi You, not everyone becomes a vengeful spirit when they die, especially not ghosts like you who retain memories and reason. You may have transcended ghosthood, but I haven’t. Even immortals can’t guarantee who will or won’t die, so why can you be so sure?”
The malicious ghost’s expression grew even darker.
“You asked me before who I am, so you know I’m not the original ‘Jiang Luo,’” Jiang Luo said, “So tell me, after I die, will my soul disappear from this world? With all these unstable factors laid out, whether death turns someone into a ghost is even more uncertain.”
“I told you, you won’t die.” The malicious ghost sneered viciously, pushed aside the Yin Tiger, and strode toward Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo stretched out his hand, signaling him to stop. “If you take one more step forward, I’ll jump. Don’t think you can stop me. The Yin-Yang hoop can stop you. As long as it can hold you back, even for a few seconds, I’ll land safely.”
Chi You knew Jiang Luo was lying.
He knew Jiang Luo as well as he knew his own half-body—Jiang Luo’s will to live bordered on obsession. His desire to survive was so strong that from the start he dared to arrange for Chi You to risk his life to gain his interest. Jiang Luo would never truly jump to kill himself.
He was acting, trying to fool him. But even knowing that, Chi You stopped.
His polished shoes stepped over the wreckage of the Heavenly Master Residence, over countless corpses, blood, and tears of begging—but halted before a small human lie.
The more irritable and brutal he felt, the more his eyes nearly bled crimson. His gaze fixed on Jiang Luo as if he wanted to tear him apart alive.
Seeing him obediently stop, Jiang Luo widened his eyes in disbelief. Though he had guessed this result, when it really happened, he was still stunned.
Jiang Luo withdrew his gaze, sweat dripping down his forehead. He knew it wasn’t from nervousness or the smoke’s heat—it was the weight of Chi You’s stare.
He opened his mouth twice, but words failed him. Cursing himself inside, he finally managed to speak smoothly.
“I know why you came—because I haven’t contacted you,” he smiled, tilting his head to look at Chi You, faintly seductive, teasing, “Actually, I planned to contact you, but the people of the Heavenly Master Residence won’t let me. My master Feng Li took away my phone and twisted my foot, forcing me to stay locked up in my room.”
“Sometimes he sneaks in at midnight, staring at me like a pervert,” Jiang Luo blinked, giving Chi You a coquettish sideways glance, “Just like you, a pervert.”
These words only further inflamed the malicious ghost’s murderous intent. He said, “I’ll kill him.”
Jiang Luo smiled slyly. “Are you really angry now? So angry you want to destroy the entire Heavenly Master Residence?”
Chi You said nothing.
But from his expressionless face, Jiang Luo already knew the answer.
He said, “But you can’t kill. Not only can you not kill, you have to stop this chaos, hold back your anger, and take me away from the Heavenly Master Residence.”
Another nameless fire flared up fiercely inside Chi You.
It almost twisted his face for a moment before he concealed it again. The malicious ghost laughed briefly, elegantly but sharply mocking, “Who do you think you are, ordering me around?”
Jiang Luo quietly stared at him. “If you don’t listen, I’ll jump.”
“Jump,” the malicious ghost said coldly, “Better if you die quickly.”
Jiang Luo laughed instead, like a ghost stabbing at someone’s heart, “Then why did you stop walking?”
The malicious ghost faltered. Jiang Luo said, “Because you’re scared, Chi You.”
He shook his bandaged left foot; the words dripping from his mouth were sweet as love talk, wrapped in lingering affection, like invisible needles sliding down the throat straight to the core.
“Because you’re afraid I’ll get hurt, right?”
