The moment they stepped off the plane, they were greeted by towering skyscrapers and wide streets.
It was nighttime, and the brightly lit commercial buildings added a touch of warmth to the otherwise cold city.
Shen Zhiyao didn't have a chance to admire the scenery before the car they'd called arrived. They had to head to the countryside immediately.
Susu had been forced into a ghost marriage in the countryside by Wu Ai Wo Fu. According to the map, the place was utterly desolate—a stark contrast to the bustling city.
Dissolute Young Master Jin shivered as the car drove into increasingly remote areas and the surrounding roads grew darker. "Jeez, this place is seriously in the middle of nowhere."
"I have a bad feeling about this village. It's different from a normal one. A normal village is just run-down. Haven't you noticed? The deeper we go, the colder it gets."
A heavy chill hung over the village. Even inside the car, they could feel the coldness washing over them.
The moment they entered the village, Dissolute Young Master Jin and the driver were shivering uncontrollably from the cold.
Shen Zhiyao, on the other hand, sat with her legs crossed, leaning back in her seat with her eyes closed, seemingly unaffected by the village's chill.
The car ventured deeper and deeper into the remote wilderness, eventually driving straight into a mountainous area filled with graves.
The roadside was lined with alternating strips of red and white cloth, and numerous paper effigies of men and women hung from the trees.
The driver and Dissolute Young Master Jin were thoroughly terrified by the scene.
"Stop the car!"
Shen Zhiyao's eyes snapped open, her expression grim.
Hearing this, the driver instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
'This scene is scary enough. If we go any deeper, I'll die of fright.'
The moment Shen Zhiyao and Dissolute Young Master Jin stepped out, the driver slammed on the accelerator, desperate to escape the mountain of graves.
"Host, it... it's moving! AHHHHH, it's moving, it's moving! Host, save me!"
Dissolute Young Master Jin watched as a paper effigy in a tree slowly removed the white cloth strip from around its neck. Its head lolled from side to side as it began walking toward them, one step at a time.
Terrified, Dissolute Young Master Jin leaped up and latched onto Shen Zhiyao like an octopus.
Shen Zhiyao was speechless. "Get off me!"
"AHHHHHH! I'm not getting down! Host, it's too scary, it's really too scary! AHHHHH, Host, save me!"
"Get down now, or we're both going to die here."
The moment Shen Zhiyao finished speaking, Dissolute Young Master Jin scrambled off her.
"The Great Dao is unfathomable, its source is light. Break!"
A spinning Eight Trigrams Array materialized at Shen Zhiyao's fingertip. As she pointed, a massive version of the array appeared on the ground.
The paper effigies that had been walking were all frozen in place.
The eyes of these effigies had all been dotted, and each one held a knife. They stood motionless, their gazes cold enough to freeze the soul.
Looking at the paper effigies, Dissolute Young Master Jin couldn't help but shiver again.
But when he turned around, Shen Zhiyao was already a good distance away.
"Hey, Host, don't leave me behind! I'm scared!"
Dissolute Young Master Jin scrambled to catch up to Shen Zhiyao.
Suddenly, Shen Zhiyao stopped. Dissolute Young Master Jin couldn't brake in time and crashed right into her.
Shen Zhiyao stumbled forward, nearly falling over.
Shen Zhiyao: "..."
'Shen Zhiyao knew Dissolute Young Master Jin was a jinx, but she hadn't expected him to be *this* much of a screw-up...'
"Host, why'd you stop all of a sudden?"
Shen Zhiyao pointed to a cellar up ahead. "We're here. I'm going in to find Susu. You wait here for me."
Dissolute Young Master Jin glanced at the paper effigies behind him. He felt like they were slowly inching closer, and in a panic, he scrambled into the cellar after her. "Host, I think I'll go with you! It's way too scary out here!"
The cellar was pitch-black. The ground was covered in sticky mud, and the faint, nauseating stench of blood hung in the air.
"BLECH!" Dissolute Young Master Jin couldn't hold it in and threw up. "Hey, do we really have to be in here? Isn't our only goal to find Susu?"
"That's right. And Susu is in here!"
Shen Zhiyao unlocked her phone with her fingerprint, turned on the flashlight, and scanned her surroundings.
There was only one straight passage. The farther they went, the narrower it became, until it was barely wide enough for a single person to squeeze through.
"Host, let's just get out of here! This place is too creepy, and we can barely fit through this passage."
Dissolute Young Master Jin tugged on Shen Zhiyao's sleeve, trying to pull her away, but she refused.
"We don't need to leave. There's a large underground space ten meters ahead. Susu's body is there!"
Susu's ghost soul had been following Shen Zhiyao since that afternoon; Susu herself had guided her down this path.
After squeezing through the passage, they found a room containing a coffin and a table.
On the table sat three plates, holding an apple, a notebook, and chicken blood, respectively.
Shen Zhiyao picked up the notebook. The two words "Su Yi" were written on the cover.
The notebook read:
"Today was the first day I met Jian Guo. He's so thoughtful and gentle. When I ran out of my usual bottled water, he went and bought more for me without me asking. Even though he only makes 2,000 a month, he was willing to spend 1,600 on water for me. Is this what it feels like to be cherished? I'm so touched..."
"We made our relationship official today. I'm so happy..."
"It's over. I'm still a sophomore in college, and I just found out I'm pregnant. What do I do? I'm so torn... He said I should marry him. What should I do? Should I really give up my future to marry him?"
"In the end, I couldn't say no to Jian Guo. I chose to marry him during my sophomore year."
"My mom didn't approve of our marriage, but I was determined to marry Jian Guo. I had a huge fight with my mom. The future feels so uncertain, but at least I have Jian Guo by my side."
"Jian Guo and I got married today! Even though there was no dowry, no car, no house, and no gold jewelry, I have our baby in my belly! I'm so happy, and my husband loves me so much!"
The next entry was two years later:
"Today, I found out... my husband... cheated on me... All this time, his love for me was fake. He only got close to me for my money. I just found out that when we got married, my mom gave him 30 million as a dowry... And I, pathetic fool, thought he really loved me. To be deceived for so long... I hate him! I hate him so much!"
The diary ended there. The remaining pages had been violently torn out.
'Who exactly is trying to hide something?'
Just as Shen Zhiyao was lost in thought, Dissolute Young Master Jin suddenly burst out, "Fuck! That bastard! Is he even human? If that Wang Jian Guo were here right now, I'd beat him to death!"
"That's enough. Come help me." Shen Zhiyao walked over to the coffin, picked up the chicken blood, and began dabbing it onto the lid.
"Here, smear this chicken blood on the coffin." Shen Zhiyao handed the bowl of blood to Dissolute Young Master Jin.
Dissolute Young Master Jin looked bewildered. "Wait, why are we smearing it with chicken blood? What's that supposed to do?"
Shen Zhiyao replied flatly, "Generally, only the most vicious evil ghosts require a ghost marriage. The resentment from a person who died a tragic death is used to suppress an evil spirit. Once the coffin is opened, the evil spirit is bound to attack. Chicken blood has a suppressive effect on ghost souls."
Soon, the chicken blood was spread evenly over the coffin.
"The Great Dao is light, its brilliance blinding. Open!"
Dissolute Young Master Jin scoffed. "Tch. Are you crazy? You think the coffin is just going to open because you told it to?"
The words had barely left his mouth when—BAM!—the coffin lid flew open.
Dissolute Young Master Jin: "!!!"
"Holy crap, you've actually got some skills!" Dissolute Young Master Jin exclaimed, rushing excitedly toward the coffin.
Before Shen Zhiyao could stop him, Dissolute Young Master Jin had already leaned right over the edge of the coffin.
'This idiot!'
'There's Corpse Poison Powder in the coffin! You can't just lean on it like that!'
Shen Zhiyao darted forward and kicked Dissolute Young Master Jin away.
Just then, a large cloud of Corpse Poison Powder billowed out of the coffin, staining the entire thing purple.
Terrified, Dissolute Young Master Jin gasped for air, his heart pounding uncontrollably in his chest.
At that moment, Shen Zhiyao became as venerable as his own great-grandmother in his eyes.
Shen Zhiyao was the real deal. This time, he was completely and utterly convinced.
"All right, you can come look now." Shen Zhiyao waved, motioning for Dissolute Young Master Jin to come over.
Unexpectedly, inside the coffin was...