With a series of door lock sounds, the noise of the lock falling to the ground came from outside. Yusang retracted her magic, gently pulled on the door while supporting it, and the door opened.

“Remember this – I’m not the only one with abilities. This time it was me who saved you.” Yusang raised her chin and spoke to Yan Qige with complete confidence, then put her hands behind her back and strode out of the room with her head held high and chest out.

By this time, the sun was already slanting westward, its light shining directly on this room’s location. Yusang walked out and looked around, left and right, discovering this was an abandoned courtyard. The courtyard was shaped like the character “口” (mouth), with covered walkways on all four sides, but this wasn’t an ordinary courtyard for people to live in. Rather, under each walkway were identical rooms with bluestone doors and no windows, seeming to be a storage warehouse courtyard.

After taking in the surrounding environment, Yusang looked back at the door she had just opened with bamboo branches. It was a weathered wooden door. She now counted as a bamboo demon, bamboo being of the grass and wood family, belonging to the wood element of the five elements. As long as it involved grass and wood-type things, she could cast spells to save herself. That’s why she could fuse her spiritual power and attach it within, letting bamboo branches penetrate through the wooden door to unlock it from the outside. But if it had been bluestone, no matter how many abilities she had, she couldn’t use soft spiritual power to pass through and grow from stone. Only the door imprisoning them was different – could this just be an accidental coincidence? An unusual doubt arose in Yusang’s mind.

“What are you looking at?” Yan Qige, coming out of the room, locked the door again and asked, upon seeing Yusang staring blankly at the door lock.

“Nothing, let’s hurry and go.” Yusang snapped back to awareness, waved her hand, turned, and walked away, not telling Yan Qige about her doubts.

They leaped onto the courtyard wall, looked around to get their bearings, then dropped into an alley beside the courtyard. After walking along the alley for a while, they reached the main street. The street that had been bustling with people just a few hours ago was now empty. All the shops lining both sides had closed their doors, with only faded banners fluttering sporadically in the wind.

Yusang walked into a nearby herbal tea stall, seeing that teapots and large tea bowls were still on the table, but the table itself was severely weathered, split with many cracks. When she ran her finger across the table, it collapsed to the ground with a crash, raising a cloud of dust.

“This place looks like no one has been here for decades,” Yusang said while waving her hand to block the dust.

“Give me the compass,” Yan Qige said while surveying the surroundings and extending his hand toward Yusang.

Yusang took out the purple jade and handed it to Yan Qige, saying: “It seems all the scenes we saw before were created with magic spells. This demon is formidable.”

“You’re good at boosting others’ morale,” Yan Qige said irritably, taking the purple jade compass and holding it in his hand. He curved his fingers and began casting spells to find directions, walking forward along the empty, desolate street.

Yusang followed Yan Qige forward, not hurrying to refute him. Instead, she wore a somewhat gloating smile and said: “I understand. A demon hunter fell into a demon’s illusion without knowing it and was also seduced by the demon’s beauty. Feeling uncomfortable about it now is inevitable – I can understand that. I won’t even laugh at you.”

After hearing this, Yan Qige turned his head and gave Yusang an inexplicable smile, then continued using the compass to guide their way forward. Yusang was greatly surprised, unable to believe she had seen Yan Qige smile just now, and even more puzzled why he would smile instead of getting angry after she hit his sore spot. She couldn’t help but take a quick step to catch up and ask: “What are you smiling about?”

“I’m smiling because your face is thicker than the city walls.”

“I…”

“Think about it – you were the one who wanted to keep her back then. I never said anything. If we’re talking about falling into a trap, that would be you.”

“You… don’t tell me you knew all along…” Yusang recalled everything from before and suddenly came to a realization, then couldn’t help feeling somewhat indignant: “You knew all along but didn’t tell me – how truly malicious.”

“You’re not too stupid either – at least you knew to secretly investigate in the village.”

“You know about that too…”

“But there’s one thing I still don’t know.”

“What thing?”

“Who was the person you met behind my back?”

Yusang was startled. Though she roughly guessed that Yan Qige already knew about her meeting with Bai Zhi, she still wouldn’t admit it, somewhat deliberately trying to deny and cover it up.

“What, who? You… what are you talking about?”

“The person who bought you clothes and treated you to tea.” Yan Qige’s tone was calm, yet carried a hidden intimidating aura, as if he was being wary of something.

“Were you following me?” Yusang was greatly alarmed, then furious.

“I was just asking casually. You’re so agitated – that makes it seem even more like he’s special to you.” Yan Qige stopped walking and turned to look at Yusang.

“So what if someone treated me to tea and bought me things? What business is it of yours? You… who do you think you are to me?” Yusang glared at him fiercely, then turned and strode forward.

They returned to the front of the inn, where the purple jade compass’s needle kept fluctuating constantly, and an unusual demonic evil energy emanated from within the building. Yusang stopped and looked up at the inn. Previously, though this inn looked old, it had at least seemed decent. Now, after just half a day, this place was just a half-collapsed old building, with torn old window paper hanging on the doors and windows. The shop door was dilapidated, leaning against the door frame. With a push of the hand, it fell inside, raising a cloud of dust from the ground.

“This… this is the room where we stayed?” Yusang could hardly believe it. Her gaze inadvertently fell on the table in the middle of the main hall, where some broken bowls, chopsticks, and plates were placed. Walking closer to look, they contained piles of rotting flesh.

Thinking that she had eaten food from this place, Yusang couldn’t help but immediately feel her stomach churning. She covered her nose, turned, and ran to the door to vomit.

“I’ll go to the back,” Yan Qige glanced at Yusang, suppressing his amusement as he passed through the main hall to the back.

After Yusang had essentially turned her stomach inside out and vomited everything clean, she supported her waist with a pale face and went to the back hall. The originally well-arranged back courtyard now had only scattered bricks covering the ground and wild grass growing everywhere. The small room where Yusang had sensed something unusual couldn’t be distinguished at all. Yan Qige was holding the compass and pasting talismans on the broken bricks all around.

Seeing Yusang approach, Yan Qige handed her a small mirror without even turning his head, then pulled her a few steps to stand in a circle he had drawn.

“Hold this up and stand here.”

Yusang hunched over weakly, raising the mirror without energy. Yan Qige, who was about to cast spells to establish a barrier, glared at her irritably: “Hold it higher.”

Yusang rolled her eyes and only then raised her arm higher, while asking: “Hey, you still haven’t told me how you knew I met with Bai Zhi. Don’t tell me you really were following me?”

“So his name is Bai Zhi.”

“Don’t change the subject – I’m asking you.”

“Your mind is too simple – I wasn’t comfortable letting you run around here alone.”

“I… I’m not like that.” Yusang muttered somewhat guiltily, understanding that Yan Qige had originally followed her out of worry for her, and couldn’t help feeling somewhat warm inside.