But the moment his fist landed, Jiang Luo’s expression froze.
It felt like punching solid rock—the rock didn’t hurt, but he nearly broke his hand.
Jiang Luo’s brow twitched. He forced down the pain, withdrew his hand without a change in expression, and gave Chi You a vicious kick to the stomach.
Chi You’s back slammed into the coffin lid with a heavy thud. The music outside stopped abruptly, and the coffin stilled.
The evil ghost laughed—quietly at first, then louder and louder.
Jiang Luo flipped out of the coffin with flair using his Yin Tiger, leaving Chi You pinned below.
Outside, the ghostly bride in red and the water ghost were gone. Jiang Luo turned to slam the coffin shut.
“Teacher Chi,” he said with a forced smile, “why don’t you stay inside and look for your heart by yourself?”
As the lid was about to close completely, the ghost inside had already shifted into another position. He now laid elegantly on his back, hands resting on his abdomen.
The coffin lid slowly covered his strange smile… and then the depth of his dark eyes.
Clack!—the lid shut snugly.
Jiang Luo pasted dozens of talismans all over the lid.
Looking around, he saw no more signs of the red and white twin evils, but the fog was thick—visibility beyond five meters was nil. The bridal sedan stood nearby, and aside from a stream, he couldn’t tell where they were.
Jiang Luo patted Yin Tiger’s head and glanced back at the coffin. Suddenly, he sneered coldly: “Smash it.”
Yin Tiger yawned, opened its mouth wide, then backed up a few paces. With power coiled in its limbs, it launched forward and rammed the coffin hard.
The coffin flipped and rolled into the stream.
The water carried it away.
Jiang Luo stood still, laughing freely. “Bon voyage, Teacher.”
***
The drifting coffin was stopped by a monk.
The bald monk, his features as delicate as a painting, slowly peeled off the talismans. In the next moment, Chi You pushed open the lid and sat up unhurriedly.
Ge Wuchen sighed. “Master, you summoned me just for this little thing? Just to draw Ge Zhu away?”
Chi You stepped out of the coffin and led him into the thick white fog. “Don’t you want to see your younger brother?”
Ge Wuchen lowered his eyes and gently turned the prayer bead. “Master, you must be joking.”
***
After “seeing off” Chi You, Jiang Luo lifted the curtain of the bridal sedan.
Lu Youyi had fainted inside, his brows tightly furrowed as if trapped in a nightmare. Jiang Luo patted his face. “Lu Youyi?”
He called him three times in a row before Lu Youyi suddenly jerked awake with a shudder. “What the h*ll!”
He flailed his arms and legs in a panic, and Jiang Luo swiftly stepped back. After a while, Lu Youyi gradually calmed down. Seeing Jiang Luo, he let out a long breath of relief. “Scared me to death. Jiang Luo, do you know what I just went through?”
“In the blink of an eye, you disappeared, and I ended up inside the bridal sedan. Inside it was a terrifying ghost bride.”
His face had gone ashen—he was clearly terrified. “I almost got killed by her.”
So I wasn’t the only unlucky one, Jiang Luo thought, and was instantly cheered up. “It’s fine now. Come on out.”
The two of them stepped out of the bridal sedan. Lu Youyi frowned at the thick fog around them. “Something’s not right.”
They didn’t have a compass. Jiang Luo shook the Yin-Yang hoop a couple of times, but it lit up in all directions, unable to point north. It was the first time the Yin-Yang hoop had failed. Jiang Luo also frowned. “The Yin-Yang hoop isn’t working…”
In ordinary places—whether sky or earth, forest or skyscraper—the Yin-Yang hoop could always pinpoint direction, as long as it was at the intersection of yin and yang.
There was only one place where east, south, west, and north didn’t exist.
The underworld.
Jiang Luo tore off the red silk flowers on the bridal sedan. “Lu Youyi, use the earth-seeking method.”
Lu Youyi nodded. He pulled out a small knife and chopped off the inverted triangle ornament on the top of the sedan. He ran to the creek, filled it with water, then carefully brought it back. He buried the pointed end of the triangle in the dirt so the exposed top resembled a bowl.
Jiang Luo twisted a rope from a few threads pulled from the red silk while still chatting. “So now, Lu Youyi, who do you think had worse luck?”
Lu Youyi grimaced. “Me.”
He couldn’t help defending himself. “But I really thought it over. When I stepped there, that withered branch wasn’t under my foot.”
Jiang Luo gave him a sidelong glance. “I don’t believe you.”
Lu Youyi sighed, heart heavy.
Jiang Luo brought the rope over to the bowl setup. Lu Youyi stuck a straight, sharpened branch vertically in the center of the bowl. Before the branch could fall, Jiang Luo quickly wrapped the rope around it several times and pressed down on both ends of the rope with his index fingers, pulling diagonally back and to the left.
The rope went taut, locking the stick in place. Lu Youyi dipped a finger in the water and touched the tip of the stick.
The stick began to move.
It slowly tilted downward until the tip touched the ground. Guided by the tension of the rope, the tip traced a straight line into the dirt.
Once the line was drawn, the branch suddenly lost tension and fell to the edge of the bowl and the ground.
Jiang Luo released the rope, looked in the direction of the line, and said, “Let’s go.”
They walked through the dense fog. The mist grew thicker and thicker. After some time, two red lights emerged faintly in the white haze ahead.
Jiang Luo and Lu Youyi exchanged a glance and quietly approached. As they drew closer, they saw that the red lights were two lanterns hanging from an ancient city gate.
On the gate were four sinister characters like skeletal bones: Fengdu Ghost City.
People were constantly coming in and out under the gate. Among them were people dressed in strange, ancient-looking clothes like Teng Bi, as well as men and women in modern attire. There were yin-walkers wearing black robes, rushing in and out. Guarding both sides of the gate were Ox-Head and Horse-Face.
Everyone walked lightly, heels not touching the ground—clearly not among the living.
Jiang Luo looked grim as he and Lu Youyi hid nearby, watching the ghost city.
“The earth-seeking method led us here. I think we’ll have to go through the ghost city to get out,” Lu Youyi whispered. “The red and white twin evils must’ve been carrying us through the two realms via the city.”
Jiang Luo said, “We have to enter the ghost city, but not like this.”
His eyes scanned the flow of people.
Not everyone entering or leaving the ghost city was a ghost—some were still alive.
But those living were all yin-walkers, only permitted to stay in the underworld for a short time. Yin-walkers had distinct uniforms. Normally, ordinary ghosts wouldn’t trouble yin-walkers, but if they ran into a brutal, unreasonable vengeful ghost, it would be a death sentence.
Thus, yin-walking was always a last resort.
Lu Youyi fretted. “Then how do we get in? Pretend to be yin-walkers?”
Jiang Luo replied casually, “You think it’s that easy to fake? Unless two people happen to die, where would we get their clothes?”
They could always rob someone, but if they did, the yin-walkers they robbed would be as good as dead.
Lu Youyi sighed repeatedly—until suddenly, a few little ghosts emerged from the ghost city.
They were dragging the corpses of yin-walkers, cursing as they went. “Three more dead.”
“The Rakshasa Ghost is in a bad mood. I really hate cleaning up after his kills. It’s not just killing—he eats the flesh and soul too. Left a mess all over the place. So unlucky.”
“How many yin-walkers died today?”
“Eight already!”
Another ghost chimed in, “Of course he’s in a foul mood—he couldn’t open the Ghost Arena. Rakshasa Ghost thinks too highly of himself. Only the strongest ghosts can open the Ghost Arena and be crowned King of the Arena. He’s not there yet. How many years has it been since we last opened the Ghost Arena? Ghosts like him just enjoy watching others get torn apart by ghost beasts.”
“These yin-walkers really picked the wrong day to show up.”
“Not just the yin-walkers—we have to keep our skins tight too. That Rakshasa Ghost doesn’t discriminate. Even little ghosts have been eaten by him.”
“Sigh.”
The group of little ghosts tossed the yin-walkers’ corpses in a secluded corner and returned to the ghost city.
Lu Youyi silently turned to look at Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo: “…”
Jiang Luo: “Not my fault.”
Lu Youyi said faintly, “Jiang Luo, never underestimate your jinxing powers. In this area, you’re number one.”
The two of them hid in the thick white mist and slowly approached the spot where the little ghosts had dumped the bodies. Sure enough, they found eight corpses of yin-walkers still cloaked in black robes.
Jiang Luo and Lu Youyi picked two robes that weren’t too bloodstained and put them on, also taking everything those yin-walkers had on them. As a token of thanks, they recited a passage from the Rebirth Sutra for the dead.
Once they were ready, they headed toward the ghost city.
Jiang Luo shook the black cloth pouch he had taken from a yin-walker. “What’s inside this? Smells like blood.”
He opened it, raised a brow, and said with interest, “Pig heart.”
He could understand yin-walkers carrying other items, but why a pig heart?
Lu Youyi also opened a black pouch and looked up. “Mine’s a pig heart too.”
Jiang Luo thoughtfully touched the Yin-Yang hoop.
Amid the thick white mist, a golden rat darted out from under Jiang Luo’s black robe, holding the heart of the divine statue. It silently transferred the heart and the Yuan Tian Bead from its mouth into Jiang Luo’s hand.
Jiang Luo had been secretly using the golden rune of the Yin-Yang hoop to protect the divine statue’s heart all along.
First, the rune could shield its evil aura and prevent others from sensing its presence. Second, if anyone tried to snatch it from the rat, Jiang Luo would sense it instantly and call the rat back to his bracelet immediately.
He knew his own terrible luck all too well—keeping the divine statue’s heart and the Yuan Tian Bead on his person was absolutely unsafe.
They arrived at the gate of the ghost city.
Ox-Head and Horse-Face, who had had their eyes closed, opened them and looked at the two. One of them reached out. “Entrance fee.”
Jiang Luo asked, “What counts as an entrance fee?”
“A heart,” Ox-Head replied, voice booming like a bell. “No heart, no entry.”
Jiang Luo smiled. “We’ve got hearts.”
He lowered his head, letting the brim of his hood cover his face. His smile disappeared, replaced by an expressionless calm.
How convenient—it just happens that entering the ghost city requires a heart.
No matter how he thought about it, it all seemed like something Chi You had deliberately arranged to target him.
And perhaps not just this—even the whole Red and White Twin Evils setup might be one of Chi You’s tricks. All of it, just to get the divine statue’s heart from him.
Jiang Luo handed over the black cloth bag with the pig heart to Ox-Head and Horse-Face.
They checked it, then said, “Go in.”
Jiang Luo and Lu Youyi finally entered the ghost city.
Inside was as bustling and lively as a mortal marketplace—but steeped in eerie, twisted air. Each stall on either side had a red lantern hanging in the center, and beneath each lantern stood a vendor.
The stall vendors were pale as paper, their lips blood-red as if freshly painted, smiling as they watched the passersby.
The white mist disappeared within the city.
Jiang Luo glanced around—grotesque ghosts were everywhere. Severed hands crawled on the ground, skinless spirits clung to the walls with their limbs, long-haired female ghosts floated by. Anyone faint of heart would be driven mad just by taking a glance.
His gaze fell on the stalls.
Their wares were even stranger—human hands, heads, skins, even shriveled infants.
Jiang Luo didn’t look long. He picked up the pace toward the city’s exit.
But halfway down the road, their path was blocked by a crowd of ghosts.
At the center stood an unmistakable Rakshasa Ghost—towering three meters tall, with red hair, green eyes, charcoal-black skin, a blue face, and fanged jaws, horrifying to behold.
His voice boomed like thunder, enough to rupture human eardrums. “Hand over your son, let me have a taste. I’ve roamed through so many ghost cities, and it’s my first time seeing a ghost with five heads.”
An elderly voice sobbed, “Please, great one, spare our family…”
There wasn’t much difference between the ghost realm and the human world. The strong still bullied the weak, and the wicked still did as they pleased.
Jiang Luo watched coldly, mentally mapping out an escape route. But he knew Lu Youyi was someone with a strong sense of justice. He had once turned against Jiang Luo for Chi You’s sake, had risked his life to save Jiang Luo, and now, he’d surely want to act out against this injustice too.
Jiang Luo murmured, “Lu Youyi, remember—this is the ghost city.”
He paused, then added, “To be able to move freely in and out of here without being dragged off by ghost guards—neither that old woman nor her son and grandson are likely to be good ghosts.”
Lu Youyi replied, “I know.”
He muttered, “I already feel bad enough for dragging you into the Red and White Twin Evils mess. Don’t worry, I won’t burden you anymore.”
Jiang Luo thought to himself: Sorry, but I’m pretty sure I’m the one who dragged you into this.
But he didn’t say it aloud. Instead, he nodded with righteous pride. “You’ve matured.”
Lu Youyi: “…”
Up ahead, the Rakshasa Ghost seemed to be running out of patience. He grabbed the five-headed ghost he’d taken a liking to and shoved it straight into his mouth, head by head, chewing noisily and swallowing them whole.
The five heads screamed in unison, but their cries quickly faded—reduced to nothing but remnants between the Rakshasa Ghost’s bloody teeth.
The old woman who had just been crying so miserably abruptly stopped her sobbing, neatly tucked it away, and slipped into the crowd to hide.
The rakshasa ghost, having feasted to his fill, laughed heartily, slapping his belly, then turned to leave.
The crowd parted to make way. Just as the rakshasa ghost was about to pass through, his steps halted suddenly. He lifted his head and sniffed the air. “The scent of a human.”
A yin-walker hiding in the crowd trembled slightly and lowered his head further, trying to hide more cautiously.
Jiang Luo and Lu Youyi exchanged a glance and slowly began retreating backward.
The rakshasa ghost’s green eyes swept through the crowd but saw nothing. Still, he refused to give up and sniffed the air again. In a loud voice, he declared, “No mistake! It’s human scent! And not just any human scent—delicious human scent!”
His nose twitched as he followed the scent through the crowd. The ghosts shivered and scrambled to clear a path for him.
The direction he was heading was clearly toward Jiang Luo and Lu Youyi.
Without hesitation, Jiang Luo said, “Run.”
Before Lu Youyi could even react, Jiang Luo had already turned and sprinted toward the exit of Ghost City.
Lu Youyi shouted, “What the h*ll!” and hurriedly chased after him.
The two of them took off like the wind, their hats blown off and left behind. Jiang Luo’s long black hair streamed behind him as he glanced back. The rakshasa ghost behind them exclaimed excitedly, “It’s them! The human scent is coming from them!”
Lu Youyi instinctively sniffed his own armpit. “D*mn it, I don’t smell like anything!”
While he was talking, Jiang Luo had already pulled another meter ahead of him.
At moments like this, Lu Youyi really gave off a reliable presence.
The rakshasa ghost charged after them.
He was over a story tall, and each of his strides was two to three times that of Jiang Luo’s. He quickly closed the distance between them, laughing wildly. “Compared to ghosts, human meat is the tastiest of all!”
Jiang Luo narrowed his eyes, estimating the distance—they still had a long way to go before reaching the city gates. At this pace, in less than thirty seconds, the rakshasa would catch up to them.
Since they couldn’t outrun him… then there was no point in running.
Jiang Luo suddenly stopped.
Lu Youyi almost crashed into him. Panting, he asked, “Why did you stop running?”
Jiang Luo turned to face the rakshasa ghost, calm expression on his face. He said, “Lu Youyi, I’m going to teach you something today.”
Lu Youyi, confused, asked, “What?”
Jiang Luo touched his Yin-Yang hoop. In the next moment, a massive Yin tiger appeared at his side, letting out a deafening roar.
“Running is to avoid trouble and unnecessary complications,” Jiang Luo smiled, eyes fixed on the approaching rakshasa ghost, his voice lowering, “But when running is no longer useful—then don’t run.”
“At that point, you face it head-on.”
As the words left his mouth, the Yin Tiger shot forward like an arrow, charging straight at the rakshasa ghost.
With roaring wind and crackling power, the tiger’s golden runes blazed like fire, streaking through the air and violently slamming into the rakshasa ghost.
The ghost’s eyes widened as he was knocked backward, tumbling across the ground.
The tiger leapt, landing hard on the rakshasa’s chest and roared ferociously into his face.
Jiang Luo’s blood began to boil. Excitement and heat surged within him. Watching the rakshasa ghost completely overpowered by the tiger, a dark and savage thought crept into his mind—
Kill him.
Rip him apart.
Just like how the rakshasa had eaten the five-headed ghost—tear off his flesh, pull off his head, dismember him piece by piece, and devour him, soul and all.
Jiang Luo’s heart pounded harder with the thought.
Thump, thump.
The heart of the divine statue suddenly began to beat in sync with his.
Each beat seemed to shake his very soul. In the distance, a rumbling noise erupted, boulders crashed, and dust flew everywhere.
All the ghosts in the city froze in place, stunned, staring toward the disturbance.
“The Ghost Arena has appeared.”
All eyes turned to Jiang Luo.
The black-haired young man stood in a black robe, his breathing slightly heavy. His eyes still glinted with an undiminished sharpness, and the pure malice clinging to him had yet to dissipate.
The little ghosts began whispering.
“How can the king of the Ghost Arena be a human?”
“What do you care? As long as the Ghost Arena opens, we get a good show. In the Arena, the king’s word is law. If he says a ghost has to go in, then that ghost must go in. The ghost beasts in the arena haven’t eaten any dead souls in years—who knows how hungry they are? It’s going to be a bloodbath.”
Countless ghosts surrounded Jiang Luo, cheering and pushing him toward the Ghost Arena.
Before Jiang Luo even knew what was happening, he and Lu Youyi were already standing at the edge of the pit.
The Ghost Arena was a massive sinkhole.
More than ten meters deep, vast and looming. Beside the pit sat a single, elevated throne.
And only one throne.
At this moment, Ox-Head stepped out from among the cackling, twisted ghosts and respectfully approached Jiang Luo. “Milord, please take your seat.”
Jiang Luo looked into the pit and murmured, “So this is the Ghost Arena they were talking about?”
On the walls at the bottom of the pit were dozens of iron cages. Inside each cage, ghostly green lights glowed—those were the eyes of the ghost beasts.
Ox-Head said, “Yes, this is the Ghost Arena. My lord has awakened it. It will sink back underground at the next zi hour. Until then, you are the king of the Ghost Arena.”
Sweat rolled down his forehead, but he dared not wipe it. “Within the Arena, your word is absolute. Whichever ghost you want to fight the ghost beasts must enter. Here, there are no restrictions. Only one rule: any ghost that survives the Ghost Arena must come see you face-to-face.”
Jiang Luo was silent for a moment, then suddenly curled his lips into a smile and said to Lu Youyi, “Lu Youyi, go ahead and leave through the exit of Ghost City.”
Lu Youyi said worriedly, “I’m not leaving.”
Jiang Luo smiled, “I’ll only feel at ease once you’re gone.”
After a few more words of persuasion, Lu Youyi finally left, looking back every few steps.
Once he saw Lu Youyi had safely exited Ghost City, Jiang Luo turned back to face the dense crowd of frenzied ghosts behind him.
His spirit was in a state of extreme relaxation—and also extreme excitement. With a faint smile on his lips, and accompanied by Ox-Head and Horse-Face, he walked step by step toward the elevated throne.
When Jiang Luo truly sat upon the “King’s Seat,” he looked down at the malicious ghosts below. His long legs crossed elegantly, the smile at the corner of his mouth deepening.
Revelry.
The evil ghosts cheered and screamed wildly. Their forms were twisted and grotesque, a frenzy of demons and shrieking specters. The entire scene was steeped in eerie terror.
Utterly hideous.
Yet in Jiang Luo’s heart, he thought: This is utterly marvelous.
It was as if his soul had turned into one of those grotesque, evil ghosts, joyfully anticipating the birth of bloodshed.
Malice. Desire. Looking down on all beings.
The statue heart at his chest had synced with the rhythm of his own heartbeat.
Jiang Luo lightly tapped the armrest of his seat, his gaze sweeping over the ghosts below—until it landed on the Rakshasa Ghost.
A crimson smile rose at the corner of his lips. He said with a chuckle, “The first one… let it be him.”
