The two cars shared a stretch of road before parting ways.
The atmosphere in the car was a little tense. To lighten the gloomy mood of the past few days, once they were on the road, Wenren Lian deliberately teased Jiang Luo, “What’d you jump out of the car for?”
Qi Ye and Ye Xun turned to look at Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo coughed twice. “What do you mean what for?”
Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Lu Youyi, worried that joking around might upset him.
Lu Youyi had been gloomy before, but now he seemed to have regained a bit of energy and was looking at Jiang Luo with a hint of curiosity.
Wenren Lian said meaningfully, “Didn’t you go see Chi You? What did you say to him?”
Jiang Luo smiled faintly. “You sure have sharp eyes.”
Jiang Luo wasn’t a bashful person—under normal circumstances, he would’ve admitted it outright. But with Teng Bi’s recent death weighing heavily, he wasn’t in the mood to joke, nor did he want to discuss the matter with Wenren Lian.
Because he still remembered what he had once said in front of Wenren Lian, he was afraid Wenren Lian would ask him when he planned to break up with Chi You.
But speak of the devil—
Wenren Lian asked directly, “So when are you planning to break up with him?”
Jiang Luo: “……”
Wenren Lian casually picked up a bottle of water and said offhandedly, “Didn’t you say before that once the whole ‘the Fated One’ business was dealt with, you’d break up? Seems like it’s about time. Have you figured out your excuse yet?”
Ye Xun caught the key word. “Break up?”
Wenren Lian turned and grinned, “Yeah. I was on the phone with Jiang Luo before. He was dead set on breaking up with Chi You, no matter how I tried to talk him out of it. Right now he’s only staying with Chi You as a temporary measure, keeping him steady. Personally, I think they make a great match—old flames and all—but Jiang Luo doesn’t see it that way. His resolve to break up is tougher than diamond.”
Every word was like a knife stabbing Jiang Luo in the heart. His smile stiffened, and the explanation that came to his lips was silently swallowed back down.
Ye Xun nodded in agreement, then thought about it and shook his head. “They do seem well-matched. But if Jiang Luo doesn’t want to be with Chi You, then that’s that. Still—Jiang Luo, do you think Chi You will actually let you go? Maybe we should get some precautionary measures ready.”
He said this while casting a regretful glance at Qi Ye.
They’d once thought about pairing Qi Ye with Jiang Luo, but alas, the feeling wasn’t mutual—no fate between them.
Qi Ye listened quietly, holding a pen and paper, scribbling non-stop like he was too busy to join the conversation. But one glance at the page revealed nothing but messy, meaningless doodles.
“So how do you plan to break up?” Wenren Lian turned back to Jiang Luo, circling back to the point. “Breaking up with Chi You is like defusing a bomb—you need to start thinking of your excuse now.”
“……” Jiang Luo glanced around the car. Qi Ye was still here. Forget it. This wasn’t the place for explanations. He replied vaguely, “We’ll talk about it later.”
The driver’s eyes flickered strangely, like someone had cut off a remote signal, but in the next second, everything returned to normal. Oblivious, the driver happily put on some music.
In the other car—
The vehicle had just started moving when the malicious ghost hummed a strange, offbeat tune, clearly in a good mood. Everyone else relaxed a little in response to his light-heartedness. But a moment later, for reasons unknown, the smile at the corners of the ghost’s lips froze. His eyes turned cold, and the grin slowly vanished from his face.
The shift was like magma suddenly turning to frost.
Daoist Elder Wei He had always been wary of Chi You. Seeing Chi You’s expressionless face now sent a chill straight up his spine. He began thinking of excuses to retreat.
Ge Wuchen didn’t know why Chi You’s mood had suddenly turned dark. Cautiously, he asked, “Master?”
Chi You kept his eyes closed, leaning back against the seat.
He had heard the entire conversation between Jiang Luo and the others.
At first, Chi You had thought Jiang Luo had truly accepted their relationship as lovers. But it turned out Jiang Luo was still planning to break up with him. Then again, Jiang Luo had never expressed any affection, never made any confession or promise. Still, Jiang Luo’s recent behavior had misled Chi You’s judgment.
Even Jiang Luo’s attentive care could very well be a matter of convenience or repaying a life debt.
Throughout the entire conversation, Jiang Luo had said nothing but a final, cold “we’ll talk about it later.” Nothing more. The silence was chilling in its indifference. Chi You’s fingers tapped lightly against his thigh, again and again.
To Ge Wuchen, who knew him well, each tap felt like a boulder hitting the ground—one after another, sending out waves of suppressed force. He lowered his head immediately, not daring to look further.
Chi You was thinking about how to deal with Jiang Luo.
Before, he might have gotten angry at Jiang Luo’s talk of leaving. But now, he was much calmer. After experiencing Jiang Luo’s resurrection, Chi You knew—no matter where Jiang Luo went, he would never let him go again.
In truth, Chi You didn’t believe Jiang Luo was completely indifferent to him.
He understood Jiang Luo. If it were just a matter of convenience, Jiang Luo would never have kissed him of his own accord before getting in the car. As long as Jiang Luo had some feelings for him, Chi You only needed to make him realize those feelings clearly.
Soon, the car stopped in front of an unfinished building.
This was the ghost-infested location Ge Wuchen had found.
Chi You got out, waved the others off, and instructed, “Ge Wuchen, take them back first.”
Ge Wuchen nodded obediently and left with Daoist Elder Wei He.
The car sped away, leaving Chi You alone as he entered the building. About ten minutes later, he came back out, looking slightly better than before.
Chi You had not used his ghost markings—he had devoured the ghosts directly.
The Dragon Eye had left him heavily injured. How could a single ghost make up for such damage? He needed more, and the only way to do that was to consume them.
Not just for the ghost markings to recover—Chi You himself needed more ghosts. The wild ghosts he once disdained were now a feast.
But it still wasn’t enough.
He glanced at the residual ghost energy in the air and walked toward another direction.
***
As soon as they got off the plane, Jiang Luo saw Cyril and Zhuo Zhongqiu waiting to pick them up. They hurried over, and Cyril gave them a small smile. He whispered, “I’ve brought everything we need for summoning the gods.”
Jiang Luo felt a weight lift off his chest. The group rushed to Lu Youyi’s house. Since there was no need to rush the ceremony, Jiang Luo ordered a feast of takeout to make sure Cyril had enough energy. With several big appetites at the table, they all ate heartily.
Cyril let out a contented burp and began setting things up.
As he started singing the off-key invocation chant, Lu Youyi nervously pulled the curtains shut, darkening the room and instantly creating an air of mystery.
Lu Youyi pulled a face and whispered, “Jiang Luo, is Cyril really going to succeed?”
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Cyril, but no matter how he looked at it, Cyril just didn’t seem reliable.
Jiang Luo said mysteriously, “It’ll work. Just wait and see.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Cyril’s high note cracked. His face flushed bright red, but he pretended nothing happened and resolutely kept singing. Jiang Luo was silent for a moment, then silently started praying in his heart: Please let it be Hei Wuchang, please let it be Hei Wuchang…
As it turned out, no other deity besides Hei Wuchang was willing to descend onto Cyril. Cyril suddenly shuddered, then when he opened his eyes again, the innocent look on his face had transformed into one of composure. His deep blue eyes took on a decisive, dark hue, and his entire demeanor changed. “Cyril” swept his gaze over them one by one, with a trace of confusion in his eyes.
Seeing that expression, Jiang Luo felt assured. “Brother Hei?”
“Cyril” looked at him and gave a faint smile, nodding slightly. He asked calmly, “You have something to ask of me?”
Jiang Luo gestured toward the sofa, inviting him, “Why don’t you take a seat first, Brother Hei? Let’s talk slowly.”
