On the thirteenth day of the fifth month in the twenty-fifth year of Taiyuan, an anomaly appeared in the heavens—Mars was in conjunction with the Heart constellation.

The Emperor collapsed in shock and remained unconscious for a full day. Grand Imperial Advisor Feng Yi submitted a memorial stating that the celestial phenomenon indicated someone of extreme evil stood close to the throne, with disaster lurking in the rear palace. He requested permission to search the palace, which the Emperor granted. After five days of searching, several female corpses were discovered in an abandoned well. Three human-shaped wooden figurines were found in both Noble Consort Yu’s palace and the Fifth Prince’s quarters, inscribed with mysterious incantations suspected to be witchcraft and sorcery.

The Emperor was furious. He banished Noble Consort Yu to the Cold Palace and imprisoned the Fifth Prince in Guanghe Palace.

On the night of the twentieth day of the fifth month, lanterns glowed dimly in Guanghe Palace. The candles in Fifth Prince Han Mingxuan’s bedchamber had been extinguished, yet he had not retired. Instead, he wore his clothes and walked out, sitting in the courtyard as if waiting for someone. Before long, a figure in a black cloak entered through the side door and approached Han Mingxuan, removing their hood to reveal Noble Consort Yu herself.

Noble Consort Yu was nearly forty years old, yet her skin remained as delicate as a maiden in her early twenties—no wonder the Emperor favored her with unceasing affection. She gritted her teeth and said, “Didn’t you say it was foolproof?”

Han Mingxuan frowned and replied, “I placed concealment spells on both the corpses and the figurines. Under normal circumstances, they should have been impossible to discover. Who exactly is this Imperial Advisor Feng Yi?”

“Who is he? Just a sickly parasite who eats and drinks at the court’s expense. He holds the position of Imperial Advisor through Clear Suspension Master’s recommendation but performs no actual duties. I’ve long suspected your concealment spells weren’t reliable enough, and I’ve reminded you countless times to hide things properly. What should we do now that things have come to this? Where are those supernatural powers of yours?”

“I’m currently bound to a human body and cannot use them.”

“Then leave this body! Do you truly want to be trapped to death in this Guanghe Palace? Everything depends on His Majesty’s will. Whether you cast a spell or possess another body, as long as His Majesty grants clemency, there’s still hope.”

Han Mingxuan clenched his fists and said, “Something doesn’t feel right.”

“You know nothing about palace affairs. We agreed to cooperate, and you were to follow my lead on matters within the palace,” Noble Consort Yu said, her voice growing cold.

Han Mingxuan faced off with her for a moment before pulling out a bone pendant from his collar and saying, “Fine.”

“What precious item is this? Let me have a look.”

A bright, cheerful voice rang out as a massive silver-white formation suddenly appeared on the ground throughout Guanghe Palace. The bone pendant in Han Mingxuan’s hand was enveloped by light shooting from the formation. Han Mingxuan instinctively withdrew his hand as if wounded. The owner of the voice crooked his finger, and the bone pendant flew like the wind into his palm.

He Jia Feng Yi wore a white Daoist robe embroidered with golden patterns of the Twenty-Eight Constellations. His right hand leaned on a wooden staff as he stood within the formation. The bells on his staff jingled rapidly like souls being summoned. His pale, slender left fingers played with the bone pendant as he smiled. “This truly is a precious item—half human bone, half eagle bone, containing the lifetime magical power of at least three powerful shamans. No wonder the Danzhi revere it as a sacred object. No wonder you’ve been wreaking havoc in the imperial palace for so long without my detecting your ghostly aura. You concealed it perfectly, Lord of Gui Ghost Palace.”

He tossed the bone pendant upward and pointed at it with his wooden staff. As spells activated amid intersecting beams of light, wind gushed out from the pendant in arc-like waves, causing all the lanterns in Guanghe Palace to sway violently. Han Mingxuan reached out with fierce eyes to snatch the pendant, but having sealed his ghostly energy within it, he was now no more than an ordinary mortal. Just as his fingers were about to touch the pendant, a brilliant light flashed. When he reopened his eyes, the pendant had returned to He Jia Feng Yi’s hand, with the wooden staff pointing at his chest.

The connection between the bone pendant and the Lord of Gui Ghost Palace had been severed. The ghostly energy within Han Mingxuan could no longer be suppressed, spreading out in a gloomy, thick miasma.

He Jia Feng Yi’s hand gripping the wooden staff began to redden with blood from the fingertips. The red marks rapidly spread up his arm, extending along his neck to his cheeks.

He smiled and said, “Don’t come near me. It’s too filthy.”

His body had always been excessively sensitive to ghostly energy. Apart from his blood-related ancestors, all other ghostly auras would trigger a severe reaction.

With his ghostly energy unleashed, Han Mingxuan finally broke free from his mortal shell. Amid spreading blue smoke, he revealed his true form—a ghost child of about ten years. Countless sharp white bones grew from his body, shooting directly toward He Jia Feng Yi, his powerful ghostly aura looming like dark clouds.

The red marks had already spread to He Jia Feng Yi’s forehead. His birch staff traced a complete circle in his hand before touching the ground tiles, causing the formation to emit increasingly brilliant light.

“Heaven’s path completed, three and five fulfilled, sun and moon together.

Emerging from the profound, entering the darkness, energy spreading through the Way, energy connecting with spirits.

Energy flows, evil and ghostly thieves all perish.

Those who see me go blind, those who hear me go deaf.

Any who plot against me shall suffer their curse.”

From the moment He Jia Feng Yi uttered the first word, countless beams of light surged from the formation, wrapping around the Lord of Gui Ghost Palace like hands, rendering him immobile. By the time he finished the final word and smiled at the ghost before him, his opponent had been cocooned. His wooden staff spun rapidly three times before pointing at the Lord of Gui Ghost Palace, causing the evil ghost to prostrate on the ground, unable to move.

He Jia Feng Yi stretched lazily and looked at Noble Consort Yu, who had long since collapsed to the ground in fear. “What’s the matter, Noble Consort Yu? Are you satisfied with this parasitic, fraudulent Imperial Advisor now?”

Noble Consort Yu’s face was deathly pale, her lips trembling. He Jia Feng Yi walked past the prostrate Lord of Gui Ghost Palace to stand before her, bending down with a smile. “Noble Consort Yu, to be frank, Master Qing Xuan pitied how Great Liang had been reduced to half its territory and wished to ensure the imperial family’s safety. He visited me three times before I reluctantly agreed to leave Star Palace and come here.”

“Times have changed, and people have forgotten the title of Mars God.” He Jia Feng Yi pointed at himself and said, “My surname is He Jia.”

Mars, the disaster star, was passed down through generations of the He Jia clan. Their curses were always answered, their kills always succeeded, with none able to stop them. Each generation produced the most powerful sorcerer of their time.

His pale, frail body supported the loose Daoist robe, fluttering in the wind like a banner. With half his face marked red, he seemed caught between human and ghost. Noble Consort Yu gathered her last breath and said, “You and I… have no grudge… I…”

He Jia Feng Yi wagged his finger. Leaning on his staff, he said, “Your son, the Fifth Prince Han Mingxuan, suffered a grave illness two years ago. He was at death’s door yet miraculously recovered. But Han Mingxuan died two years ago. To preserve your glory, you cooperated with the Lord of Gui Ghost Palace, allowing him to resurrect and possess Han Mingxuan’s body. He concealed his ghostly aura with the Danzhi spirit bone, making him indistinguishable from ordinary humans. But evil ghosts ultimately feed on humans to survive. You found palace maids for him to consume, and at his suggestion, you imprisoned the souls of these young palace maids in wooden figurines to maintain your youthful appearance. Am I correct, Noble Consort Yu?”

“I… I am the daughter of the Minister of War. My son could one day… become Crown Prince! Emperor! If you would spare us…”

“Hahaha!” He Jia Feng Yi couldn’t help but laugh. “Noble Consort Yu, you were just accusing me of being a parasite, and now you want me to bend the law for you? Let me share my thoughts—how about this story: Noble Consort Yu and the Fifth Prince plotted to escape the palace and attempt assassination, but were discovered and subsequently committed suicide within the palace. Isn’t that a good tale?”

Noble Consort Yu’s eyes widened. Trembling, she pointed at the Lord of Gui Ghost Palace, crying tearfully, “He bewitched me! Great Imperial Advisor! I… I was just momentarily confused…”

He Jia Feng Yi tapped the ground with his wooden staff, pressing the struggling Lord of Gui Ghost Palace back down. “As for him, he has his lord to judge him. Ancestress, please come forward.”

With his words, a figure in red appeared from within the formation. The tall, pale female ghost wore a veiled hat with crimson glass bead curtains hanging down to her waist, swaying with her steps and creating delicate sounds as they collided. Through the gaps between the beads, one could glimpse her jet-black hair, stunning features, and cold phoenix eyes.

He Simu crouched down, using her hand to lift the bead curtain as she gazed at the prostrate Lord of Gui Ghost Palace, calling him by his true name: “Song Xingyu.”

Without the protection of the spirit bone, the name-calling command took immediate effect. The Lord of Gui Ghost Palace lowered his head and resentfully said, “Your servant… is here.”

“You are truly remarkable. I ordered evil ghosts not to interfere with human politics, yet you possessed a prince’s body and even aspired to compete for the position of Crown Prince, to rule the world someday?”

Song Xingyu clenched his fists. He raised his eyes to glare at He Simu and said, “Who wouldn’t want to rule the world? What meaning is there in just the ghost realm? As a human ruler, not just soul fires but everything from the living would be in my grasp.”

He Simu stared into his eyes and chuckled softly. “What a grand idea. Who suggested you do this?”

Song Xingyu’s gaze flickered. In that moment of hesitation, He Simu lowered the bead curtain of her veiled hat and stood up, laughing softly. “You made a pact with him, and the pact prevents you from revealing his name.”

The Ghost King’s lantern at her waist blazed with blue flames. At this moment, Song Xingyu finally panicked. He shouted, “I… I know how the former Ghost King died… Don’t kill me, I’ll tell you!”

The blue flames spread relentlessly onto Song Xingyu’s body. In that instant, he recalled the distant past when, as a human, he had been flayed alive—that agony made him howl in heart-rending anguish. In the firelight, the young woman standing before him laughed softly, saying, “Did you think I truly didn’t know who encouraged you? Did you think I truly didn’t know how my father died?”

“You wanted me to believe he died for love, so I pretended to believe. My father deeply loved my mother, but he also loved me. He promised to live with me, and he would never have abandoned me by leaving a chaotic, unfamiliar ghost realm in my hands and irresponsibly dying.”

Song Xingyu could no longer make any sound. His limbs and body turned to ashes in the fierce flames. Though his body couldn’t feel pain, it seemed as if a hundred ants were gnawing at his heart. He seemed to see his father from thousands of years ago, holding a knife. In that still-unfamiliar world, his most trusted father had cut him to pieces.

Just now, He Simu had said her father loved her.

How could this be? What did the word “father” mean? What had his father done to him?

Song Xingyu’s last remnant of consciousness was completely incinerated, reduced to ashes on the ground.

Thousands of years ago, in a certain village struck by calamity, the villagers selected a child to sacrifice to the heavens to appease the disaster. So a father personally flayed his ten-year-old son and made him into an offering.

A hundred years later, that village suffered an even greater calamity when the vengeful child razed it to the ground. Thousands of years later, that child, who had tried to fill the void of hatred and resentment with everything in the world, finally returned to dust.

He Jia Feng Yi walked to He Simu’s side and, looking at the ashes on the ground, asked, “What’s wrong, Ancestress? Do you pity him?”

He Simu shook her head.

Having known the suffering of being human, of being crushed by the powerful when weak, one should not crush the weaker after gaining power.

Although Song Xingyu hadn’t had the chance to understand this before his death.

He Jia Feng Yi remained silent for a moment, then said, “He just mentioned, Ancestress, your father…”

He Simu gave him a look, and He Jia Feng Yi understood this was not something he should inquire about. He pretended he hadn’t heard anything and continued to clean up the aftermath.