Chapter 77: Gates Open to Mount Tonglu, the Mass Gathering of Ghosts

Xie Lian and Hua Cheng began their journey the next day.

Hua Cheng held Xie Lian's hand as they walked. "Gege, next time you see Jun Wu, don't talk to him. Turn and run away."

Xie Lian was puzzled. "Why?"

"I just know that whenever he comes looking for you, it's never for anything good," Hua Cheng said.

Xie Lian laughed. "What do you mean? He didn't even assign me this mission originally."

However, Hua Cheng said, "It's all the same in the end, whether you're going to Mount Tonglu or helping him manage the Upper Court.

Neither are good assignments. The Upper Court is in complete shambles;

might as well let it fall apart. What does he mean by dropping that mess in your lap? You're just choosing between suicide by saber or suicide by sword."

Xie Lian couldn't help but laugh, but once he finished, he said soberly, "Still, I never expected you to volunteer to accompany me to Mount Tonglu. I've been thinking for a while, and I feel this should be said:

San Lang, please don't force yourself to do this."

He suspected that Hua Cheng had only volunteered to come because he knew what was going through Xie Lian's head—specifically, that Xie Lian felt it'd be much more gratifying to fight to his heart's content locked inside an oven than to get stuck ineptly managing the Upper Court.

But Hua Cheng replied, "Gege, I've already repeatedly sworn that I'm not forcing myself. Do you not believe me?"

"It's not that, of course…" Xie Lian said.

Hua Cheng nodded. "Then just relax, gege. I know my limits. You shouldn't feel like you owe me anything. Even just from my own perspective, I wouldn't mind stuffing the new ghost king back in before it's born."

Both the ghost kings and the heavens benefited from the way things were. But there was only so much rice, and everyone wanted a bite—there already wasn't enough to go around, which caused friction at times. No one wanted to let someone new barge in and share the pot. And if this new addition had an extreme personality, they'd all be left with nothing to eat if and when they went mad.

Jun Wu had heard out Hua Cheng's suggestion and considered it seriously. Xie Lian taking up the mission alone wouldn't go as well as Jun Wu handling it in person, but if Xie Lian was accompanied by a ghost king who had once journeyed to Mount Tonglu…well, it would certainly tilt the odds in their favor.

Of course, Hua Cheng wouldn't agree to help for free, and Jun Wu agreed to these terms for his assistance: all of heaven must give Ghost City a wide berth until the time of Mount Tonglu's next opening, and additionally, the Heavenly Court must publicize Crimson Rain Sought Flower's heroic deeds and sing songs of praise for an entire year… Xie Lian tried to imagine how those songs would go. They would probably be something along the lines of "Foolish heavenly officials! Do you know who saved you?!" This would practically be torture for the heavenly officials, who were already wary of Hua Cheng and had complicated feelings about him—he was all but stepping directly on their faces.

Hua Cheng smiled. "This journey will be much easier for you with me around."

Pulling himself back to the present, Xie Lian replied, "I still think we should set out after your period of aggravation is over—after you've returned to your normal self."

"You don't need to worry about that either. It'll be over soon," Hua Cheng assured.

Xie Lian was taken aback. "Huh…" "What is it? Gege, what's with that face?" Hua Cheng questioned.

"…Does that mean San Lang's gonna grow up?" Xie Lian said, dejection clear in his tone.

Hua Cheng clasped his hands behind him. "Yes. I've endured this for too long. I can't wait any longer."

Just as he finished talking, Xie Lian slipped his hands under Hua Cheng's arms and lifted him. He raised him high in the air and laughed.

"It'll be such a shame! I won't be able to pick you up like this once you're grown again. I'd better hug you as much as I can right now. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha…" "…" The Teleportation Array couldn't be used for the journey to Mount Tonglu, so they had to walk. Over a dozen days later, they finally left towns and signs of life behind them and entered a mountainous area covered with endless lush green forest.

As they walked deeper and deeper into the woods, they encountered more and more nefarious creatures. Their shapes and forms were bizarre, and the size of each swarm only grew larger. The path became more crowded as its pedestrians furtively hurried along.

Xie Lian walked hand-in-hand with Hua Cheng. "So many have come," he whispered.

"This gathering is certainly bigger than before. It's because the heavens didn't put up a blockade, so many who weren't planning on coming wound up doing so," Hua Cheng said.

It wasn't just solo combatants; many had come in groups. After a while, Xie Lian and Hua Cheng ran into a large group of ragged, disheveled-looking ghosts. They chanted as they marched with savage expressions on their faces.

"The universe is a crucible, and living creatures are the copper!"

"Infinite adversities abide within the abyss of suffering!"

"The universe is a crucible, and living creatures are the copper!"

"Infinite adversities abide within the abyss of suffering!"

They didn't seem afraid—in fact, they sounded eager. Hua Cheng's expression grew frigid as he and Xie Lian listened to their chants.

"They don't even understand what they're saying, but they certainly say it louder than anybody else."

Most of these nefarious creatures had never experienced this trial and didn't understand its cruelty—they thought becoming a supreme would be easy for them. They were filled with heroic aspirations, which brought understandable displeasure to anyone who did know what it was like.

"Can they enter as a team?" Xie Lian asked.

"Those teams are typically made up of individuals who already know each other. They plan to overcome the mountain together and swear beforehand to show each other mercy. But none of those promises will be kept. As you approach the mountain's heart, your strength increases with each opponent killed. Anyone spared leaves you with less chance to survive the Kiln. And the easiest targets are often the ones who trust you and are closest to you."

His brows knitted slightly, and he covered his right eye; it seemed there was another headache coming on. Concerned, Xie Lian quickly grasped him around the shoulders and pulled them both into the woods next to the road, then crouched low to better observe his condition.

"San Lang, we're about to reach the mountains. Are you really sure you're all right?"

Easing his brow, Hua Cheng replied, "Don't worry, gege, everything's fine. It'll be better soon."

But how could Xie Lian stop worrying just because Hua Cheng said to?

"Gege, come closer," Hua Cheng added. "I have something to tell you."

Xie Lian didn't know what he was planning, and he drew closer. Hua Cheng cupped Xie Lian's face in his hands and lightly touched his forehead with his own. Xie Lian blinked, stunned. He waited until Hua Cheng released him before asking for an explanation.

"San Lang, what are you…" Hua Cheng smiled. "Done. There are only ghosts here, and gege is a heavenly official. His scent will be very conspicuous. This will help cover it a little."

So that was it—he was staining Xie Lian with his scent. Xie Lian couldn't help but remember how they had exchanged spiritual power and air. He was afraid Hua Cheng would be reminded too and bring it up, so he quickly acknowledged his statement.

"All right. Let's put on disguises."

Naturally, they had to disguise themselves to blend in with the swarm of ghosts, but a simple cloak would do just fine—there were plenty of ghosts and monsters who liked wearing masks and cloaks, so it wouldn't seem odd. After getting into their costumes, Xie Lian took Hua Cheng's hand in his own once more, and they slowly continued on their way.

After a while, they heard the faint noise of a commotion on the road ahead.

Unsure what was happening, Xie Lian asked, "Is there some sort of landmark that tells you that you've made it to Mount Tonglu territory?"

"There are landmarks," Hua Cheng answered. "But don't trust them."

Xie Lian was about to ask more questions, but the commotion ahead of them was growing louder. When the two left the forest, they found a large, dense crowd stuck before a steep bluff. There were at least three or four hundred nefarious creatures present, but that number was only the tip of the iceberg for this particular assembly.

"Why is the road blocked? Did we go the wrong way?"

"That can't be… Don't they say that any road will lead to Mount Tonglu?"

The crowd of ghosts was still mostly peaceful. Perhaps it was because they weren't yet within the boundaries of the Tonglu Mountains, and the slaughter hadn't officially begun.

Xie Lian found a random ghost to the side and casually asked, "What's going on over there?"

"Are ya blind?!" the ghost yelled. "There's a mountain in the way;

we can't get through!"

"…" Xie Lian took a look at the ghost next to him. Half of its head was sliced off; it was the blind one. But it wasn't his place to comment on that, so he asked instead, "Can't we go around it?"

Several ghosts rushed over from around the bend, shouting with long tongues dangling from their mouths.

"What the hell! There's something weird about this mountain! We ran around for over an hour and still saw no end to it! And then we had to run over an hour to get back!"

The ghosts turned to Xie Lian. "No."

"Can't we climb it, or fly over it?" Xie Lian questioned.

As soon as he spoke, a large bird, over two meters long, fell from the sky and crashed into the ground with a heavy thud. It appeared to have died on the spot.

"Dead!" a ghost cried out. "That bird spirit died from exhaustion! All that effort and it still couldn't fly over!"

The ghosts turned to Xie Lian again. "Nope."

Xie Lian tried once more. "Then can't we…" But before he could finish asking his question, the ghosts all shushed him like they wished desperately to seal his mouth shut. "Stop asking, you jinx!"

"All right," Xie Lian complied.

Hundreds of nefarious creatures were blocked by this unpassable, unscalable, uncrossable mountain bluff. Their voices buzzed in an endless cacophony.

"I get it!" one exclaimed. "It's not a typical mountain—it's a barrier."

"Everyone," another announced, "the outskirts of Mount Tonglu must be right beyond this mountain. This one is probably a trial which we must pass before reaching the other mountain. If we can't even pass a simple test like this, we shouldn't even consider trying our luck at what will come after, and we might as well just go home."

"Wait!"

"Wait, what?"

A puzzled voice spoke up. "Why do I…smell something funny?"

"What smell? You sure it's not that human meat you got with you?

Maybe it went foul."

"No, no. It's not the smell of dead flesh, it's the smell of living humans!" that voice said. "No, no, no, that's not right either! …It's almost like…the smell of a heavenly official!"

The moment those words were spoken, noises of alarm rippled outward. The crowd of ghosts cried out.

"What?! You're shittin' me, why would there be a heavenly official here?!"

"Ahh, wait! Um… I smell it too!"

"How come I don't smell anything?"

"Now that y'all are talking about it, I think I smell it too… Did a heavenly official sneak in?!"

"That's impossible…! What heavenly official has the nerve to come to a place like this?"

Spurred on by the calling voices, uproar flared in every direction. Xie Lian felt some trepidation, but his face didn't give anything away. Hua Cheng had helped him cover his scent earlier, so how was there still a smell? No one should've noticed him mixing in.

Hua Cheng held his hand and whispered, "Gege, be careful.

Something is deliberately muddying the waters to create chaos."

"It's also possible that some other heavenly officials really have snuck in," Xie Lian said.

The ghost who first mentioned the smell of humans jumped onto a boulder to give a speech.

"Everyone! Maybe those godforsaken heavenly officials in the Heavenly Realm saw that they couldn't stop us on the road, so they sent people to Mount Tonglu to ruin our celebration. To help uncover who has a spiritual aura, I suggest that everyone remove any masks, cloaks, or heavy layers for the time being. Everyone, announce your titles one by one. Don't give them the chance to infiltrate the gathering and lurk among us!"

The crowd applauded the idea, and that ghost continued.

"I'll go first! You may call me 'Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade'—referring specifically, of course, to the blade an executioner used for beheading. He only ever used this one blade to chop off heads!"

"…" In Xie Lian's experience, the more blunt and exaggerated the title— especially ones that contained "Unparalleled," "Thousand Hands," "Mighty," "Life-Extinguishing," and so on—the easier the owner was to wipe out. It usually only took a single hit, or even three with one blow.

Hundreds of titles were being noisily thrown out, and Xie Lian shook his head as he listened. Suddenly, a nearby ghost elbowed him.

"Hey, why haven't you stripped off your cloak yet? What are you?"

The ghost didn't mean the latter question disrespectfully; if Xie Lian wasn't human, then he could only correctly be called a "what." As for the ghost's former question, there were plenty of ghosts that hadn't removed their cloaks and masks; there was even one not far from Xie Lian, watching them with his arms crossed. However, Xie Lian was the one who had been called out first. Seeing that all eyes were on him, he accepted his own bad luck and took off his cloak.

"I'm a Puppet Master," he said temperately.

The ghosts surrounded him.

"I see! No wonder you look so human. This is my first time seeing a Puppet Master!"

Xie Lian smiled without responding. Puppet Masters were nefarious beings with very weak evil qi. They would experiment with different kinds of materials in order to create the perfect puppet, so it wasn't strange for them to be stained with different scents. Since they particularly fancied the skins of humans, human scent was usually heaviest. The dream of all Puppet Masters was to steal hair from heavenly officials to use for wigs for their puppets, and some were even audacious enough to try their luck—so it also wouldn't be strange if he had the scent of a heavenly official on him.

"Then where's your puppet?" a ghost asked.

Xie Lian scanned the crowd, then bent and lifted Hua Cheng. The ghosts were in awe.

"Wow, exquisite!"

"What material did you use? Tsk, tsk, tsk, it looks so real."

"Feels like you're gonna be a tough competitor…" "How can you say it looks real? I think it looks pretty fake. Isn't the skin too pale? Why would a kid have such long eyelashes?"

Hua Cheng had his arms crossed and his face was expressionless, but there were still many lady ghosts whose unmoving hearts were struck by his looks.

"I'm dying! What a handsome poppet!"

"Master, do you take commissions? Can I order one that looks exactly the same? We can talk about pricing."

Some even reached out to try to pet him, unable to resist. Xie Lian immediately pulled him back into his arms. The ghosts were visibly miffed.

"So stingy, treasuring him so highly that you won't even let us touch!"

Xie Lian held Hua Cheng even tighter, and his hand smoothed his hair.

"Of course. This is my puppet. Besides, he's got quite the temper. No one but me can touch him—otherwise, he gets very angry."

Hua Cheng quirked an eyebrow, and the ghosts laughed out loud.

"My, he can even raise his brows! He's got attitude!"

Just then, a voice spoke up. "I don't think that's it."

Xie Lian turned to look, and the one who had spoken was Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade.

"The human scent on you is a little too heavy," he accused.

"He's a Puppet Master; it's understandable," the crowd of ghosts chided him. "He's got ghost qi on him too."

"No, no, look closer, everyone," Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade countered. "The ghost qi on this 'Puppet Master' doesn't feel like it's being emitted from within. It feels more like it's only stained on the outside."

His surface coat of ghost qi should've been enough in most circumstances, but even the tiniest details would be brought under scrutiny once he became the focus of a whole crowd of ghosts. Much like Heaven's Eye, Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade didn't look like he was very smart at first, and Xie Lian had taken him for an insignificant minor character—who knew he wasn't so easy to deceive?

"You seem like you're well versed on this topic, so is there anything concrete to what you're saying?" a ghost piped up. "How do we tell? Got any ideas?"

"Yes," Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade replied. "There is a tool that can determine what he is!"

He pulled an item from his sleeve, and the crowd of ghosts instantly backed away the moment they saw it.

"The fuck?! You have a talisman on you?! You sure you're not the heavenly official mixed in here?!"

"No! I killed some cultivators on the way here and took their belongings, that's all," Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade earnestly explained. "These are just typical talismans for dealing with little ghosts and irrelevant minions. Since you all made it here, I'm sure these won't harm you. Watch!"

He slapped a talisman on his own forehead. Crackle, crackle. The talisman burnt up into nothing but a wisp of black smoke, leaving a black burn mark on his forehead.

"Even though this talisman can't harm me, it can still leave a mark on my face," Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade said. "So this proves my identity, right?"

Paper talismans could be used to defeat or ward off nefarious creatures, so they could also be used to determine whether a person was, in fact, a person. Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade pointed at Xie Lian.

"If you're really a Puppet Master, then stick this talisman on your forehead. We'll see whether it leaves a mark."

While Xie Lian didn't show any reaction, his mind was spinning rapidly.

However, Hua Cheng whispered, "Don't worry, gege."

Xie Lian knew this meant that Hua Cheng was confident he could handle things. He put Hua Cheng down and calmly approached, then took the talisman and pressed it to his forehead. Crackle, crackle. The talisman burnt up into a wisp of black smoke. However, Xie Lian's forehead was still unmarred after the smoke had cleared, with not a trace left behind!

This proved that the ghost qi on him was only on the surface!

While that cloaked figure with crossed arms remained where he stood, hundreds of ghosts surrounded Xie Lian and Hua Cheng, yelling and howling and ready to unleash all sorts of bizarre weapons. However, they were repelled by an invisible barrier. The crowd of ghosts was left stunned.

"Well, well! Pretty skilled, aren't you!"

Xie Lian shrugged. "I didn't do anything."

Hua Cheng had been standing behind him, but now he approached with his hands clasped behind his back. "You ignorant rubes. Why do you look so surprised?"

"And you're a man of the world, baby ghost?!"

"It ain't a lie that he didn't have ghost qi on him. Just who are you?

Declare yer identity now!"

"What a gaggle of fools. Of course there's nothing of the sort on his body—because I'm the real Puppet Master!" Hua Cheng answered.

As he spoke, the crowd of ghosts sensed an exceedingly sinister chill blow past them. It was like the entire field had frozen over. Despite their own bodies' ghostly coldness, they still shuddered.

"…What…? What's…going…on…?"

"Giving you a taste of the world, that's all," Hua Cheng said.

He rescinded his aura, and the crowd of ghosts finally stopped shivering.

"If… If you're the Puppet Master, and he's also a Puppet Master, then who's the real one?" Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade asked with trepidation. "No, no, it can't be him, so what kind of creature is he?"

Before Hua Cheng responded, Xie Lian smiled and explained, "Obviously, the kind that belongs to him."

The crowd of ghosts were befuddled for a moment, then it finally dawned on them.

"So… So it's the opposite? He's the master, and you're the puppet?!"

Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade was suspicious. "Then why did you say you were the Puppet Master? Why did you lie?"

Hua Cheng smiled. "Because I thought it'd be fun."

Xie Lian smiled too. "That's right. Master having fun is the most important reason in the world."

After the lady ghosts got over their initial shock, they tucked away their long claws and tongues and started circling around Xie Lian anew— only now it was to examine him. For some reason, the ghost women's commentary took on a completely different flavor from their observations of Hua Cheng; somehow, they were even bolder.

"So this little gege is the real puppet? Aiyah, I like this age better!

Now I want one even more! Are you sure you don't take commissions?"

"Um… Thank you for your compliments," Xie Lian replied evenly.

"But I'm actually very old…" "This material is human skin, right? The treatment is done quite cleanly; there isn't any of that stinking, rancid man-musk that's usually on those burly brutes. Master, how do you maintain him? Do you use perfume?"

"It's human skin," Xie Lian confirmed. "No perfume. Just bathe frequently and drink lots of water."

"Wow! Feels like this puppet can do lots of things. All sorts of things! His face and body both look pretty good, eh? The feel of his skin is nice too. But he's a little skinny; I wonder if there'll be any meat on there after stripping off his clothes, hee hee hee hee…" Xie Lian had maintained a polite and humble smile to this point, but his brows twitched when he saw that some of the lady ghosts were actually coming closer to feel his chest, their eyes glinting. Hua Cheng pressed two of his fingers together and lightly swung them upward—the circle of both youthful and wizened hands that had been closing in was flung back. Xie Lian quickly crouched behind Hua Cheng to hide, much to the annoyance of the ghost women.

"What, are you going to say that your puppet also has a bad temper and doesn't like other people touching him? He looks nice!"

Hua Cheng reached out and lifted Xie Lian's chin. "His temper is certainly nice, but mine is bad. No one but me can touch the things I love."

Xie Lian followed along and obediently raised his head, holding back his laughter so hard that his belly hurt. Still, he was very cooperative and gazed into Hua Cheng's eyes. "No. San…Master's temper is very nice too," he said earnestly.

Hua Cheng laughed as well, looking very pleased. The two went back and forth, singing the same tune and getting quite into their roles, but another ghost interrupted.

"I still think the human scent on him is too strong."

"What more do you want to do, then?" the lady ghosts questioned.

"I heard puppets made of skin aren't stuffed with real flesh, so they won't bleed if they're stabbed," a ghost said. "Let me stab him with a blade and see…" But before he finished his thought, a death glare frightened him into silence.

"Try touching him, I dare you," Hua Cheng warned frigidly. "Do you think I would so easily allow you lot to touch my heart's dearest treasure?"

Earlier, the crowd of ghosts had been pushed back by the power of his aura alone. They were even more scared to make any rash moves now that he was making direct verbal threats. Without realizing it, they had backed away and vacated a large area around them.

Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade had started this, but he was actually the first to try to smooth things over when he saw they were going downhill. "Please don't be angry, Puppet Master. We haven't even entered the boundaries of Mount Tonglu; we can talk more once we're inside. Let's not start squabbling among ourselves now."

Hua Cheng's gaze swung to the side. "Rather than harassing my puppet, why not ask instead why that one still won't remove their cloak?"

The strange cloaked figure had been standing nearby this entire time, and still hadn't removed his cloak even after the ruckus started. He had been watching with his arms crossed like he was enjoying the show, acting like he wasn't associated with the hubbub at all. Now that Hua Cheng had pointed him out, he couldn't spectate the drama anymore—he had become its star. Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade took a step forward.

"Friend, won't you also remove your cloak and let us see?"

The cloaked figure remained still for a long time. Just when Xie Lian was starting to suspect he was preparing to kick up dirt and run away, the cloaked figure extended a hand and pulled off his cloak in one clean motion.

Under the cloak was a man. He was somewhat handsome, but overall ordinary and rather forgettable.

If spotted in a crowd, a person like that wouldn't be an eyesore, but they'd be easily forgotten—their appearance would slip from one's mind the moment they weren't in view. While it seemed to disappoint the ghosts who saw this reveal, Xie Lian grew wary.

"Obviously a fake face," Hua Cheng said so that only Xie Lian could hear.

He nodded in agreement. When heavenly officials or ghosts of renown had business to do in the Mortal Realm, they'd sometimes create a fake face to avoid being inconvenienced by their real form. The most important element of this transformation was looking ordinary—it didn't matter whether it came out attractive. As long as it was plain enough to ensure that onlookers would forget the face the moment they turned away, that it would disappear from their mind no matter how long they stared, the transformation was a success. The cloaked figure's face perfectly matched the key component of such a transformation, which meant it was probably not his real appearance. His identity remained unknown.

Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade handed him a talisman.

The cloaked figure took it and stuck it on his forehead without hesitation.

Crackle, crackle. Smoke, and then a mark.

It seemed he was also a ghost, not a human.

After all this ruckus, the crowd was growing agitated.

"So is there actually a heavenly official among us or not?"

"Who brought this up in the first place? You better not be wrong."

Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade raised his hand in appeasement. "I was the first to notice, but it's true! I definitely smelled a heavenly official… Aah!"

He screamed and toppled over mid-sentence. Startled, Xie Lian rushed forward and found that he had been pierced through the abdomen, leaving a fresh, bloody hole. There was a faint but unmistakable residue on the wound—it was the kind of holy light that could only come from a heavenly official!

The crowd of ghosts was shocked. "Look at his wound!" one yelled.

"There really is a heavenly official among us!"

Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade covered the bloody hole with one hand and cried in terror, "Everyone watch out! They want to obliterate us!"

The crowd of ghosts lost their minds in terror. In an uproar, they all raised their weapons, ready to face enemies from any direction, yelling, "Who is it?! Who wants to wipe us out?! Where are you hiding?!"

It's just as I thought—the ones who give themselves such ridiculous titles are always the first to go down! That was what flashed through Xie Lian's mind when Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade fell. Once the initial shock wore off, Xie Lian shouted, "Everyone saw just now, right?

You were watching my master and me the entire time—we didn't do anything."

As he spoke, he shot a look at the cloaked figure. The cloaked figure also raised a hand, and his voice was low and quiet.

"Same."

Xie Lian bent down to check Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade's injury. "It's a sword wound," he stated. "Whoever's using a sword right now is…" When he turned his head, he was struck speechless. It looked like the sword wasn't just the most popular weapon in the Mortal and Heavenly Realms but in the Ghost Realm as well. Of the four-hundred-some ghosts present, at least three hundred wielded swords. They had innumerable suspects.

Xie Lian cleared his throat. "If only there were more talismans we could use, like the ones earlier. Then we wouldn't have to worry about who's who."

This was just an offhand comment, of course; he was trying to make himself sound helpful. If some of his heavenly colleagues really were infiltrating this crowd, he certainly didn't want to help identify them.

Luckily, there was no way this Demon of the Swift-Blade individual had that many talismans at the ready.

Yet unexpectedly, as soon as Xie Lian made his comment, Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade actually did produce several thick stacks of talismans.

"Oh! I do have more!"

"…" Xie Lian couldn't help but want to take a look behind the creature's back. "Where exactly did you pull those from?"

"That's not important!" Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade said.

"No, it's very important," Xie Lian said. "One normally doesn't carry such heavy burdens on the road. Those stacks are heavy enough to be hurled like bricks to kill people… How many cultivators did you kill?"

Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade glared at him. "Maybe twenty or so."

No wonder. If every cultivator carried a few dozen talismans with them, then all together he'd gathered at least a few hundred!

The crowd of ghosts were anxious to find out who among them were heavenly officials, so without much ado, they devised a hasty plan. They formed into groups of two, then each stuck a talisman on their partner's forehead and observed whether the other had a burn mark. However, some small-time ghosts were still a little afraid of the prospect.

"Do I actually have to do this? Won't this shatter my spirit…?"

"Naw. It's exactly like those talismans they were using earlier. The power's weak, so they'll leave a mark at most."

"I see…" Hua Cheng narrowed his eyes; he seemed to have noticed something.

In the crowd of over four hundred ghosts, rows and rows of them now had talismans taped onto their foreheads—a peculiar and silly sight. However, nothing was happening.

The ghosts exchanged looks of dismay. "What's going on?"

"Hey, Swift-Blade demon, what kind of cultivators did you kill? Why are these talismans so crappy? They're not working."

Xie Lian had thought things were fishy from the start, and he knitted his brows. He was just about to speak when a lady ghost next to him pursed her lips and whined.

"I'm not doing this anymore! I'm ripping this off… Huh? What's going on? Why can't I get it off?"

Several ghost women started shrieking at once.

"Me too! Why won't it come off?!"

Crap!

Hua Cheng warned darkly, "Gege, get down!"

Xie Lian immediately followed his instruction, and Hua Cheng covered his ears for him. Not far from them, the cloaked figure pulled his cloak over his head and half knelt on the ground.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Like fireworks exploding, loud rumbles roared to the skies.

Xie Lian could feel waves of violent tremors rippling from all directions. A peculiar, hard-to-describe stench permeated the air.

All the talismans had exploded!

As for the nefarious creatures who had them stuck to their foreheads… The ones with solid bodies had their brains blown out, splattering blood and flesh everywhere. The hollow-bodied ones were blown out of existence entirely, dispersed like black smoke. The mountain bluffs now overlooked a field of howling, wailing survivors. Hua Cheng uncovered Xie Lian's ears, looking unaffected by the chaos, but Xie Lian felt slightly alarmed as he rose to his feet. He had inspected those talismans one by one earlier; they were entirely normal exorcism charms. How could they have such a shocking effect?

A shredded piece of paper came fluttering down from the smoke-choked sky. Xie Lian seized it with a swift hand to take a look and instantly figured it out.

"How cunning."

It was a shredded corner from one of the talismans. He might not have noticed if it hadn't been torn, but it had two layers!

On top was a sheet of paper with the most ordinary of spells written on it, but beneath that was an extremely thin sheet of charm paper. It had been burnt to the point where the spell was no longer recognizable, but it must have been a most vicious and aggressive one indeed.

Amidst the billowing, obscuring clouds of dust, many of the remaining ghosts were wailing—like someone had used this as a chance to ambush them. Xie Lian dropped low to the ground as he heard the ghosts shouting.

"Wait! The slaughter hasn't started! Why is everyone making their move now?!"

"Yeah! Didn't we agree that since we're all ghosts, we'd find a way to peacefully cross this mountain?"

A voice laughed savagely. "Idiots like you deserve to be annihilated in the first round! There's never been any rule about when the slaughter begins. We're all opponents, so obviously the faster you're dealt with, the better! Think I'm gonna warn you before I make my move?"

"Wait! Wait! I'm quitting! We're not in the Tonglu Mountains yet!

Can't I back out?"

"Where do you think you are? Somewhere you can just enter and leave as you please? Not in the Tonglu Mountains yet, you say? Take a good look around!"

The clouds of smoke and dust began to clear, and once the ghosts could see, they were all mortified.

"Huh?! How did this happen?!"

It wasn't just them—even Xie Lian was a little stunned by the sight before him.

When they first arrived, there had been a tall mountain bluff blocking the road ahead, and it could not be bypassed. But now, somehow, the mountain had disappeared.

No, it didn't disappear. It migrated behind them.

It seemed they had crossed the boundary of Mount Tonglu without realizing it!

Earlier, Xie Lian had asked Hua Cheng if Mount Tonglu had any landmarks. And now, he understood why Hua Cheng had replied that the existing landmarks were not to be trusted—it was because those "landmarks" could move around on their own, like mischievous children playing pranks!

"I gotta see just what this puppet is made of," a voice suddenly said from behind Xie Lian in a sneering tone. "Or perhaps you're really something else?"

It was Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade!

Xie Lian whirled around, yet before Ruoye could even fly out, a chilling light flashed. Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade didn't even have the chance to scream before he was slashed in half at the waist!

Xie Lian rushed over. Sure enough, he had been chopped cleanly in two and couldn't be deader. Xie Lian looked up and saw that the one who had struck was that strange cloaked figure. The cloaked man slowly slid his sword back into his sheath as he walked over with steady, confident steps.

Xie Lian felt that the man and the way he walked were both somewhat familiar, and straightened up.

"And you are, sir?"

The man smirked and gave a low chuckle in response. He seemed about to answer, but he suddenly bent down instead. The unexpected action set off alarm bells in Xie Lian's head. He watched the man intently, preparing for any surprise attacks—however, the man only circled his arms around the slender waists of two lady ghosts.

"Are my ladies all right?"

"…" Xie Lian was struck speechless.

The two lady ghosts were both rather attractive. Because they didn't wield swords, they hadn't taken part in the talisman test and thus had escaped disaster. Nevertheless, the shock wave from the blasts had knocked them out. Feeling themselves embraced in someone's arms and addressed with such passion, they languidly came around with gratitude in their hearts.

"I'm all right, thank—" Yet before those thanks fully left their lips, the two lady ghosts' faces changed abruptly. They shoved the strange cloaked figure away.

"Get outta here!"

The two quickly scrambled off. Even after being slapped twice, the man didn't seem annoyed—he only seemed confused as he stroked his chin and wrinkled his brow.

"That can't be right; this face isn't that ugly…?"

"…" Although he was still in disguise, Xie Lian already knew who he was. "General Pei, why are you here?"

The man turned to him and smiled. He swept a hand across his face and revealed his true appearance—it was indeed Pei Ming!

"Because the Heavenly Emperor asked me to give Your Highness a hand, of course."

"Really?" Xie Lian said. "Thank you, thank you. So very sorry for the trouble, then. It's quite dangerous here, as you can see."

"Gege, there's no need to be so grateful. He obviously negotiated some hefty rewards from Jun Wu," Hua Cheng said.

Pei Ming walked over and stopped in front of Hua Cheng. Then he crouched down and reached out to measure his current height, laughing as he did.

"Do my eyes deceive me? Is this My Lord Crimson Rain Sought Flower? One certainly changes for the better with time, so what did you eat to grow backward? Ha…" Only a single "ha" had left his lips when Xie Lian flung out his silk bandage; it whipped out so hard that Pei Ming was almost sent flying. He only barely dodged with a backward leap.

"Your Highness, just how deeply do you treasure Hua-chengzhu?

Can't even take a joke?"

"Are you really General Pei?" Xie Lian demanded somberly.

Pei Ming patted the sword at his waist, flashing it for him to see.

"Genuine and authentic; exchange if fake."

"No exchanges. If fake, refunds only," Xie Lian said.

"Gege, kill it. It's fake," Hua Cheng said.

"Hey!"

"If you really are General Pei, then why did that talisman leave a burn mark on your forehead?" Xie Lian questioned.

"It's simple," Pei Ming said. "It's all thanks to this."

He tossed a small item to Xie Lian. Since he was on guard, Xie Lian didn't catch with his hands; he instead used the tip of his sword to skewer it and bring it up to his eyes.

"Candy?"

On the tip of the sword, there was a shiny, black piece of candy. Pei Ming tossed another into his mouth.

"Ghost Scent Candy that I bought from Ghost City. Chew on one and you'll get a mouthful of ghost qi flowing from the inside out. Rather useful when pretending to be an inhuman creature."

Xie Lian twiddled the Ghost Scent Candy in his fingers, amazed.

"You can buy such magical things in Ghost City?"

Pei Ming munched on the sweet in his mouth. "Ask your Hua-chengzhu right next to you. He knows better than anyone that you can buy anything in Ghost City if you know how. The flavor's not bad, Your Highness—wanna try one?"

Xie Lian was curious what ghosts tasted like. He turned to Hua Cheng. "Maybe we should've gotten some of those Ghost Scent Candies before we came."

However, Hua Cheng took the candy from his hand. "Gege, if you want anything from Ghost City, you need only ask. But don't eat stuff like this."

"Why?"

Even though Hua Cheng exerted no power on it, the candy shrieked and dissolved into a wisp of black smoke. "Everything in Ghost City is dangerous," he explained. "Take this candy, for example. It comes from a shady production mill, and the ingredients are mostly vulgar, puny ghosts of unknown origin. Eating it will damage your health."

"It's fine," Pei Ming said, sounding unconcerned. "They're only for emergencies—it's not like I eat them regularly."

"And the smell is extremely pungent," Hua Cheng went on.

"Heavenly officials and mortals can't detect it, but such vulgar ghosts produce a rancid stench."

Pei Ming was speechless.

Hua Cheng snickered. "Now do you understand why those two ghost women told you to get lost?"

"…" It was because of the incredibly vulgar, incredibly foul brand of ghost qi oozing from Pei Ming's body!

Xie Lian cleared his throat softly and made a polite suggestion.

"General Pei, let's…not eat these anymore."

Pei Ming pulled out the leftover Ghost Scent Candies with a dismissive gesture and tossed them away. "Fine. But we've only reached the outer edges of Mount Tonglu's territory. As we progress further, we'll find much more powerful nefarious creatures who can tell we're suspicious with a single look. What shall we do then?"

The lady ghosts had swarmed around Hua Cheng like ducks; no doubt they really liked his scent. The ghost qi that Hua Cheng transferred to Xie Lian was assuredly of the highest quality, so there was no need to buy Ghost Scent Candies. However, to avoid anyone finding out that the qi was only a surface coat, they might need to press their lips together like last time and have Hua Cheng pass on something more tangible, like air or bodily fluids… Xie Lian immediately stopped himself from thinking about that any further.

"I don't know either. I'm just a puppet," he said matter-of-factly.

In other words, he would keep up his act.

"Fine. Your Highness, you'd best keep close to your master," Pei Ming said.

Xie Lian pretended not to hear that last bit and scanned their surroundings, humming. "I hadn't imagined casualties would be this devastating from the get-go."

The four-hundred-some ghosts that had gathered here originally were almost all dead or injured. Xie Lian couldn't help but recall the performance Hua Cheng had shown him nights ago; it wasn't an exaggeration. It really was like a gust of wind had blown through and uprooted all the weeds. Only a scattered few dozen had managed to escape this trial alive, and they were in terrible shape—there were severed limbs everywhere, and moaning and groaning all around.

Hua Cheng stood before the survivors. "Do you understand now what kind of place Mount Tonglu is?"

The ghosts that were fortunate enough to survive didn't dare make a sound.

"You're on the outer edges right now. There is still a chance to pull out," Xie Lian said gently. "If you don't want to continue on and meet even more frightening things, then stay here and look for a chance to leave."

The remaining ghosts intended to do just that. Seeing that Xie Lian and company didn't plan on wiping them out, they quickly pulled each other up and fled as fast as they could, leaning on each other for support.

Watching their retreating backs, Xie Lian mused, "Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade was an exaggerated name to be sure, but he was an unexpectedly formidable character. Quite brutal."

"That creature was extremely good at manipulation. He'd stirred the pot from the very start," Pei Ming agreed. "He was also quick on his feet.

Your Highness, that strike of yours gave him the perfect chance to use his injuries for trickery."

Xie Lian blinked. "Wait, my strike? What strike? I didn't unsheathe my sword."

"No?" Pei Ming wondered. "I meant the stab to his abdomen. If he hadn't whipped everyone into a panic thanks to that little gash stained with your holy light, none of the ghosts would've believed him and stuck those talismans on their foreheads."

Xie Lian was puzzled. "To be honest, I thought you had stabbed him, General Pei."

"Your Highness, do you have some sort of misunderstanding about me? I don't do ambushes or sneak attacks," Pei Ming said.

"If it wasn't you and it wasn't me, then was there a third heavenly official present? Or perhaps the holy light on that Swift-Blade demon's wound isn't what it seems…" He turned, ready to inspect and verify again. But Demon of the Swift Life-Extinguishing Blade's corpse was gone.

Startled, he demanded, "Where's that Swift-Blade demon's body?"

"I clearly just slashed him at the waist." Pei Ming replied, blatantly baffled.

"Gege, be careful," Hua Cheng said darkly. "Within Mount Tonglu's domain, a slayer becomes stronger for each opponent killed."

And Demon of the Swift Light-Extinguishing Blade had just slaughtered nearly four hundred nefarious creatures!