“These ghosts aren’t invincible,” the Core Formation cultivator observed. “When you first encounter them, your soul trembles as if Death itself is calling. However, if you shield your mind with Nascent Fire, you can quickly counterattack.”
True to their reputation, Core Formation cultivators possessed extraordinary insight, honed through countless battles. As the group advanced towards the center of the ghost city, they encountered a lone female ghost. Several Core Formation cultivators attacked simultaneously, swiftly discovering the ghosts’ weakness.
After dispatching the apparition, one cultivator remarked, “Fortunately, I brought some evil-repelling talismans as a precaution. While we can quickly deal with the ghosts near these huts and wooden houses, who knows what horrors await us in the city center?”
A wave of unease swept through the group, but it was soon overshadowed by their next discovery. After breaking into a stone house, the Core Formation cultivators found a sheepskin scroll. An expert in identification examined it and exclaimed with joy, “This is a fragment of an ancient cultivation technique called ‘Moon Demon Dance.’ It appears to be suitable for female practitioners.”
“What? Moon Demon Dance? Give it to me!” Li Mian snatched the scroll, earning disapproving looks from the Wuxiang Sect’s Core Formation cultivators.
Someone coldly remarked, “Miss Mian may be the daughter of the Yuxie Marquis, but she lacks his grace.”
“It was my senior Han Leizi from the Tianxie Dao who contributed the most to vanquishing the ghost in this stone house,” Li Mian retorted, tucking the scroll into her spatial pouch. “Naturally, we get the first pick of the treasures. Why are you esteemed elders squabbling with a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator like me? If you contribute more, the spoils will be yours.”
As the cherished daughter of the Yuxie Marquis, Li Mian’s boldness left the Wuxiang Sect’s Core Formation cultivators fuming but unable to act.
Uninterested in the demonic cultivators’ squabbles, Nan Yan took the opportunity to explore and refine her map of the ghost city. As she wandered, she noticed something peculiar about the place.
The city contained only ghosts, no corpses, and the houses didn’t seem designed for human habitation. Every building, regardless of size, consisted of a single room without a stove, bedroom, or toilet. It was as if no living person had ever dwelled there.
This realization led Nan Yan to understand the true nature of their location. Unlike the mortal world, where cultivators’ souls dispersed upon death and their bodies were typically cremated, this place resembled an imperial tomb. Such tombs often contained miniature houses and clay figurines, allowing the deceased to maintain their dominion in the afterlife.
Considering that each house held some treasure, Nan Yan became certain they were inside a massive mausoleum. The malevolent ghosts were likely guardians against tomb raiders.
A nearby cultivator noticed Nan Yan’s distracted state as she leaned against a wooden house. “Have you discovered something?” they inquired.
“No,” Nan Yan replied cautiously. “I just feel this place is inauspicious. We should leave some treasures behind and not be too greedy.”
The other cultivators scoffed. “We’ve come to this godforsaken place for a reason. If you don’t want the treasures, step aside and don’t interfere with us.”
Pushed aside by the Core Formation cultivators, Nan Yan surveyed her surroundings. All the nearby houses had been opened, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching them from within the partially open doors.
“Strange. This stone house has a well inside,” someone remarked.
The stone house Nan Yan had just left was the largest and most elaborate in the area. It was empty save for a dusty jade well in the center.
As the cultivators’ spiritual sense couldn’t penetrate the well, Li Mian pushed through the crowd to peer inside. “Senior Han Leizi, come quick! I see jewels and pearls glittering down there.”
Her words instantly ignited the group’s greed.
“Miss Mian, we all worked together to open this stone door. Surely you’ll share some of these plentiful treasures with us,” one cultivator said.
Li Mian’s gaze darkened. “No one has ever stolen from under my nose…”
“Miss Mian,” her senior Han Leizi privately transmitted, “Although I don’t fear these insects, there are six Core Formation cultivators among them. If there’s something you want, we can raid their sects later with our disciples.”
Li Mian reluctantly stepped aside with a cold snort. Han Leizi negotiated a 70-30 split with the others before producing a crystalline net.
“This is my Binding Edge Net, a spiritual treasure. Since Miss Mian likes to be first, please allow her to choose before anyone else, regardless of what we retrieve.”
The Wuxiang Sect members grudgingly agreed, allowing Han Leizi to lower the net. Meanwhile, Nan Yan, who had been surveying the area outside, suddenly turned towards the stone house as the net descended.
She heard an unusual rustling from the well and quickly retreated, surrounding herself with defensive talismans and treasures from her storage ring. “There’s something in the well! Get back!” she shouted urgently.
No one heeded her warning. Han Leizi pulled up the net, revealing a handful of small bones. He frowned, “Young one, why the commotion? It’s just a pile of bones…”
Li Mian urged from the side, “That Buddhist cultivator is trying to deceive us. Uncle, try again. I saw jewels glittering down there.”
As they were demonic cultivators, Nan Yan felt she had done her duty and decided not to press further. She turned and sprinted towards the blue flames in the sky. Barely two hundred zhang away, she heard panicked screams behind her.
“Rats! It’s rats!”
Li Mian’s piercing wail was followed by a thunderous explosion as the Core Formation cultivators unleashed their power. Nan Yan felt a sandstorm-like force sweeping toward her.
Looking back, she saw countless glowing green points, like stars, covering the distant streets. As they drew closer, she realized they were skeletal rats, their bones gleaming an eerie green.
These bone rats devoured any living thing they encountered, moving as swiftly as early-stage Core Formation cultivators.
Soon, a scream pierced the air as a Core Formation cultivator used a blood escape technique, severing his arm to flee the gnawing swarm. His detached limb, engulfed by the bone rats, was reduced to dust in an instant.
Horrified, Nan Yan realized speed wasn’t her forte. The tide of bone rats quickly closed in, barely ten zhang behind her.
Panic set in as she ran for her life, not daring to risk flight. Within moments, bone rats were clawing at her protective barriers. Despite being only skeletons, their steel-like teeth shredded through seventy percent of her defensive talismans in the blink of an eye.
As Nan Yan contemplated using a blood escape technique, she spotted a white tree in the distance. The tree appeared suddenly, resembling a banyan but with pine needle-like leaves. Its silver-white form stood out starkly against the gloomy ghost city, radiating an almost holy beauty.
Without hesitation, Nan Yan used teleportation to reach the tree. She hugged its trunk and climbed up about a zhang before looking down. The bone rats now carpeted every visible surface below, squeaking and swarming around the tree’s base, unable to climb up.
Nan Yan cautiously touched the tree bark, feeling a texture like ice jade. The mere contact cleared her mind, allowing her to relax and climb higher. Settling on a branch, she watched the persistent swarm of rats below with concern.
With over two hours until dawn, she had neither found her brothers nor discovered a way out. The sea of rats showed no signs of retreating, blanketing every visible street. Only confused ghosts wandered through the mist.
After a while, as the rats seemed less agitated, Nan Yan tested their behavior by tossing down her right shoe. The result remained unchanged—the rats immediately shredded it with their steel-like teeth.
Left with no alternative, Nan Yan climbed higher. As she parted the dense, silver-white canopy at the top, her vision cleared, revealing the true form of the distant blue flames.
It was an eighteen-story black tower. Atop it sat a six-armed monster with a crocodile head, ox tail, and bat wings—part human, part leopard. The eerie blue light emanated from its mouth, seemingly enveloping a circular object.
Simultaneously, the stone box in Nan Yan’s storage ring began to vibrate more violently than ever before. A piercing hum resonated throughout the area, causing Nan Yan to feel as if a needle had stabbed her consciousness. She quickly composed herself.
The rats below, apparently affected by the resonance, began squeaking incessantly. Soon, they went berserk, piling atop one another like termites building a nest, forming three or four pillars in an attempt to reach Nan Yan.
Knowing these rats could instantly destroy even a Core Formation cultivator’s Fashen, Nan Yan decided her life was more valuable. Just as she was about to throw away the stone box, a distant zither note echoed like an ancient whisper, silencing the jarring hum.
The glowing green light faded from the skeletal rats’ eyes, and their bone towers collapsed into dust. The green flames rose like fireflies across the ghost city, creating a hauntingly beautiful scene that mesmerized Nan Yan.
She wasn’t the only one captivated. Ghostly figures dragging chains emerged from all corners of the city. Though incorporeal, their steps created a soft crunching sound in the bone dust, reminiscent of early winter snowfall in mortal towns.
Among these spectral sounds, one set of footsteps stood out—purposeful yet unhurried. The ghosts seemed to ignore or even avoid this presence.
As the figure approached the tree’s base, a shower of Buddhist artifacts—wooden fish, vajras, prayer beads, and incense burners—suddenly rained down.
“…Ah Yan,” Qi Yang caught a wooden fish, looking up with a wry smile. “I wanted to keep you out of this dangerous place, but since you’re here, come down.”
Perched on the branch, Nan Yan glared down at him icily. “Not so fast. First, tell this humble nun: have you committed murder, arson, or plotted to overthrow the cultivation world?”
Qi Yang replied, “Occasional murder and arson, yes. Plotting to overthrow the cultivation world? Not. The night air is chilly, Bodhisattva. Why don’t you come down and save this mortal?”
Nan Yan glanced around, noticing nearby ghosts dragging chains. She lowered her voice, “Why don’t these ghosts harm you?”
“It’s a long story. Let’s leave this area where hundreds of ghosts patrol and talk elsewhere.”
Cautiously observing her surroundings, Nan Yan realized the ghosts ignored her as long as she touched the tree. She slowly slid down the trunk, but as her bare foot touched the bone dust, a nearby female ghost suddenly turned. Startled, Nan Yan quickly scrambled back up.
Seeing her clinging to the tree like a bear, Qi Yang asked, “Isn’t that tiring?”
Nan Yan replied, “…Just tell me now. I lost my shoe and can’t walk well.”
Hearing a soft chuckle behind her, she turned to see Qi Yang crouching with his back to her.
“Climb on. I’ll carry you,” he offered.
After a moment’s hesitation, Nan Yan descended and wrapped her arms around his neck. As he carried her, she noticed the ghosts ignored them completely, even when passing close by.
As they traversed the long streets, Nan Yan felt an odd sensation, as if they were mortals out to see the snow before dawn. Yet, this was no snowy morning—the air was filled with ethereal, glowing fireflies.
Breaking the silence, Nan Yan finally spoke, “This place is too ghostly. I kept hoping my brothers would rescue me. I’ve nearly used up all my message talismans, but no one responded.”
“When you’re in trouble, why don’t you think of me?” Qi Yang suddenly asked.
“If I thought of you, could you hear me?” Nan Yan retorted.
“How do you know I couldn’t?” Qi Yang paused. “Perhaps… if you had thought of me earlier, I would have come sooner.”
After a while, Nan Yan suddenly made a soft exclamation.
“What is it?” Qi Yang asked.
With her keen hearing, Nan Yan detected distant, heart-wrenching wails. The cries were so miserable that she broke out in a cold sweat. Uncertainly, she asked, “Did you hear those mournful cries?”
Qi Yang nodded, “Yes, and they sound somewhat familiar.”
Listening again, Nan Yan heard nothing more. She sighed, “I don’t know where my brothers are. It seems only that the white tree and the empty houses are safe in this ghost city. Those cultivators who were teleported directly onto the streets are likely in grave danger.”
Qi Yang simply smiled without responding.
Suddenly, Nan Yan felt an icy hand touch her foot. Turning her head, she saw the charred child she had encountered earlier outside the hut.
The child, with large eyes and a blackened hand gripping Nan Yan’s ankle, spoke in a hoarse voice, “Big brother, I’m so hungry. Can I have a bite of the sister on your back?”