Since the night he made his oath, Li Fang had spent three days and nights inside the crumbling shrine.
Outside, the world went on as usual.
During the day, a few passersby might wander by.
At night, only the whimpering wind filled the air—not even stray dogs dared to come close.
Li Fang sat cross-legged, eyes closed in meditation.
On the altar before him, incense smoke curled and twisted, rising toward the cracked ceiling.
Slowly, the smoke gathered into a hazy image—
Within the city of Laizhou, a thin wisp of black mist was quietly spreading.
Li Fang's eyes snapped open, a flash of gold crossing his gaze.
His heart stirred.
He focused his mind—and in an instant, he felt himself pulled by an invisible force, his spirit stretching out far into the distance.
——
At that very moment, in the east of Laizhou, something strange was happening in Dingfu Alley.
Dingfu Alley was once one of the city's busiest streets.
Tea houses, taverns, silk shops, bookstores—it had everything.
By day, it was packed with crowds and carriages; but by night, it turned eerily silent, as if some unseen hand had stolen all its life away.
Tonight was different.
Deeper down the alley, an old, broken house stood with a dim red lantern hanging above its door.
When the wind blew, the lantern creaked back and forth, making a sound like someone weeping quietly.
The house's front door was half-open.
A foul stench, thick and sour, leaked through the cracks—like something rotten hiding inside.
At the alley's entrance, a few street vendors huddled together, whispering nervously:
"Did you hear? That house… someone died there three days ago!"
"Yeah, the butcher's family. The whole lot—dead in the middle of the night!"
"Tsk tsk… and they died horribly, too."
Their voices dropped lower and lower, as if afraid something might overhear.
Even worse, every night since the incident, soft sobbing could be heard from inside the house—
the sound of a woman crying.
But everyone knew—no one lived there anymore.
No one dared to go near.
Even the night patrols only glanced from afar before hurrying away.
Tonight, the cold wind howled through the alley, carrying a chilling mist.
Puddles on the ground reflected warped, twisted shadows, like countless restless souls writhing beneath the surface.
Suddenly, a figure appeared at the alley's mouth.
It was Li Fang.
He wore a freshly cleaned black robe, a small jade pendant hanging at his waist.
His brow was furrowed with a heavy seriousness.
His steps were light—yet every step he took caused tiny ripples on the ground, as if he were walking on water.
Li Fang stopped, gazing steadily at the old house.
The broken door hung open.
The darkness inside yawned like an open mouth.
The red lantern swayed gently, casting twisting shadows that seemed to beckon him forward with unseen hands.
He took a deep breath—
and stepped forward, pushing the door open.
Creaaaaak—
A cold gust hit him full in the face, reeking of rotting flesh.
Inside, the house was dimly lit.
In one corner, a dying oil lamp flickered weakly, casting broken shadows over the ruined furniture.
Dark stains dotted the floor—patches of dried, blackened blood.
Li Fang knelt to inspect them, frowning deeply.
Mixed into the bloodstains were tiny fragments of bone… and human fingernails.
This wasn't an ordinary death.
This was the work of evil spirits.
Suddenly, a soft rustling came from behind.
Li Fang spun around—but there was no one there.
Only the red lantern, swinging violently in the cold wind.
A chill raced down his spine.
He pressed his palms together and murmured a prayer:
"Heaven's Law, protect my true spirit."
A faint glow shimmered between his fingers, driving back a sliver of the biting cold.
But then—
A faint sobbing rose from deeper inside the house.
Woo… woo… woo woo…
The sound was hollow, distant—yet at the same time, it was right next to his ear.
Li Fang steadied himself and followed the sound.
He passed through a dim, crumbling main hall and entered the inner courtyard.
Moonlight poured through the broken windows, illuminating the scene clearly:
In the center of the courtyard, a woman knelt on the ground.
She wore a tattered blue robe.
Her long hair hung loose over her face, her shoulders trembling slightly.
At her feet, a pool of black liquid oozed outward, squirming like something alive.
Li Fang's heart tensed.
He called out cautiously:
"Who are you?
Why do you linger in the mortal world?"
The woman slowly lifted her head.
Moonlight spilled across her face—
It wasn't a human face at all.
Her cheeks were sunken, her nose twisted horribly.
One eyeball hung halfway out of its socket, and her mouth was split open all the way to her ear, black blood writhing at the edges like worms.
Li Fang gasped, instinctively stepping back.
He swiftly formed a hand seal with his left hand and drew out a talisman with his right.
The woman's broken lips twisted into a shrill, screeching laugh:
"Jie jie jie jie…
You're too late…
It's already begun…"
Before she finished speaking, she lunged at Li Fang!
Li Fang reacted instantly.
He slashed forward with the glowing talisman—
A blade of golden light sliced the woman clean in half.
Her body burst into black smoke, the foul mist scattering into the wind outside, vanishing without a trace.
Silence fell once again.
Only the lonely red lantern still swayed in the empty shrine.
Li Fang stood motionless, cold sweat dampening his brow.
He could feel it—
This was just the beginning.
Behind this city, this shrine, and this alley—
Something far more terrifying than a common vengeful spirit was lurking.
The night pressed down like iron.
In the whistling wind, faint whispers echoed.
A raspy voice hissed at the edge of hearing:
"You… cannot stop it…"
Li Fang closed his eyes, listening carefully to the murmurs in the dark.
In his palm, the talisman burned faintly with heat.
He knew—
from tonight on, the trials he faced would be more deadly than anything he had ever known in life.