A chorus of chattering birds jolted me awake. Pressing my hand to my forehead, I opened my eyes. For a moment, panic surged through me—I was in a forest, wisps of blue smoke curling around me. Just moments ago, I, along with Past Ethan Justice and Future Ethan Justice, had stepped through a door to the past opened by Juchen Realm.
I looked around in confusion. So this is the world from over two thousand years ago?
In the distance, I saw smoke rising from somewhere not far away—maybe three kilometers off. It looked like a small village. I glanced around at the flowers, grass, and trees; everything seemed familiar, nothing out of the ordinary.
The purpose of this trip was to find Laozi. I needed to swap the Starshard Radiance in my hand with the one he intended to use to seal the Wraithlord, then let Past Ethan Justice and Future Ethan Justice join forces to seal the Wraithlord. This would create a certain illusion for the Eye of Time. As long as the Eye of Time didn’t notice, everything could proceed smoothly.
I clapped my hands and smiled, planning to head toward the inhabited area and ask where Laozi lived, then go straight to him. But as I glanced at my clothes, my cheeks flushed. The wind kept whipping through the torn fabric, exposing patches of skin—even my undergarments were ruined, and I was filthy all over.
I sneezed, hugging my arms to myself as I looked down at my bare thigh—most of my pants were gone. I checked my surroundings; thankfully, no one saw me. Still, for a woman, this was pretty embarrassing.
"Are you two here?"
I shouted loudly, but got no response. I should've arrived here with Past Ethan Justice and Future Ethan Justice, but now, in this world two thousand years ago, we were separated. With no other choice, I kept walking, hoping to find someone.
But then I felt waves of yin energy drifting through the forest. Night was falling, and this place must be home to plenty of wandering ghosts. The cold, eerie sensation kept brushing my back, sending chills down my spine. I turned and noticed several ghosts lurking in the dense woods, hiding from the sunlight, already watching me.
"You’d better not follow me."
As I spoke, I focused my intent, and Belle appeared in my hand. At times like this, caution was crucial—this was the era before the Wraithlord’s Earth Soul escaped from the underworld. To find Laozi, I’d have to locate someone from the Taoist Order.
But in this era, the Taoist Order hadn’t even been established yet. It only came into being after Laozi founded the core of the Dao. I remember this clearly from history class.
After a while, I reached a slope from which I could see the village ahead. Dilapidated thatched huts sprawled in chaos, rice paddies glistened nearby, and villagers bustled about. Children played in the streets. I smiled, thinking of heading over, but reconsidered—my current appearance would draw too much attention. Better to wait for nightfall, sneak into the village for clothes, and then find a way to ask about this place.
The sun’s dull glow bathed the village. Black smoke curled from the chimneys of the thatched huts. The smell of food drifted through the air, making my stomach rumble. Suddenly, laughter echoed behind me. I turned—more laughter came from the woods. I scanned my surroundings and immediately sensed the presence of several ghosts.
"I told you—don’t come any closer."
I said sternly as a chill wind swept past. I knew they planned to strike once the sun went down. I spotted a narrow path leading into the woods south of the village. Judging by the sun, I was directly to the south. At the forest’s entrance, there seemed to be a gate surrounded by a fence. Yellow cloth strips were tied to the gate, and at intervals along the fence, spear-like poles were wrapped with red cloth.
The chill wind kept teasing my spine. Irritated, I turned and grabbed the bow slung across my back, aiming at the ghosts’ position. With a slight pull, white arrows shot out in an instant.
With a chorus of wails, the ghosts retreated quickly after being struck. As they vanished, the chill that clung to me faded away.
Once I sensed the ghosts had left, I sat down, quietly watching the distant village and waiting for nightfall. Hunger gnawed at me; I clutched my stomach, wondering where those two had gone. Suddenly, I stood up, a wave of helplessness washing over me.
"If those two ended up arriving at a different point in time, does that mean they’ve gone to another era?"
The thought sent a chill through me. The ghosts of this era weren’t nearly as powerful as the ones I’d faced before. I sensed several behind me—a shadow among them—but their strength was nothing compared to the black shades I’d encountered in the present. These ghosts still relied on cold winds to snuff out a person’s life force before attacking, whereas modern black shades could possess someone with ease.
After confirming, I compared the ghosts behind me with those from the present. The ghostly aura they emitted was faint and thin.
I didn’t know what to do, but just then, a chill swept over me. Turning my head, I saw Past Ethan Justice standing at my side. My eyes widened. He wore a rough gray tunic and held a set of women’s clothes, delicately patterned with white circles.
"Make do with this. I got here an hour before you. Here."
With that, Past Ethan Justice turned away. I adjusted the clothes and slipped them on—they felt much more comfortable. I found a hairpin in the outfit and tidied my hair. Once I was ready, Past Ethan Justice stared gravely at the village ahead.
"What’s wrong? Where’s that guy?"
I asked, and Past Ethan Justice shook his head.
"Maybe he ended up in another era. I just went to the county town and asked about Laozi while I was there."
I nodded, but Past Ethan Justice’s expression stayed troubled.
"What happened?"
"Maybe he ended up in an even earlier era. This place is called Kuxian, and Ao Village is where Laozi was born. I went to the county town and asked the scholars—they’ve never heard of anyone named Li Er. We’re in the Eastern Zhou period."
I swallowed, suddenly understanding. This must be Chen State, one of the larger feudal states. Laozi was born in Kuxian, here in Chen.
"Let’s go ask around in the village."
I nodded and followed Past Ethan Justice down the mountain. Along the way, I saw burned incense, offerings, and strips of red and yellow cloth.
Just as I wondered about it, Past Ethan Justice spoke.
"These are early Fangxian Dao rituals—simple ghost-warding arrays. You must’ve noticed the mountain is full of ghosts, mostly wandering souls. The fence around the village marks the boundary, keeping ghosts out. Fangxian Dao was part of the earliest Taoist practices. Looks like we’ve landed in a pretty grim era."
I looked at Past Ethan Justice, sensing his deep knowledge of such things.
"Are you Taoist?"
I knew Past Ethan Justice came from the end of his own timeline, but I wasn’t sure about his powers—they didn’t seem like Daoist arts.
"More or less. I once studied under a virtuous wandering Taoist for a long time, then pursued my own path. I know Taoist things well enough. Originally, that guy from the future could’ve come with you—he alone would’ve been enough to face the Ghost Ancestor. But to connect with your world’s timeline, we had to use a seal, so I had to tag along. We don’t belong to this world, so our presence affects it. If we use our powers, the impact will be far greater."
Past Ethan Justice stopped, glancing around before heading to a pile of grass. As I wondered what he was doing, he suddenly parted the grass, startling me—a human skeleton lay abandoned by the path, weathered by years. He picked up the bones, dug a pit, buried them, then tore a strip of yellow cloth from a nearby branch, broke off a twig, stuck it into the grave, and tied the cloth around it. Wetting his finger, he wrote something on the yellow strip.
"What are you doing?"
"I heard a voice—the owner of these bones was crying for help. So I buried him, sparing him from endless exposure. You should be able to hear it too, but don’t use your instincts lightly, especially not coexistence."
I murmured an agreement and followed Past Ethan Justice into the village. Many villagers eyed us curiously—we were strangers, and they’d seen us come down from the mountain.
After some explanation, Past Ethan Justice told them we were siblings here to gather herbs. He spun a story, and the villagers believed him. He offered money to stay the night, and a villager named Li Xing agreed. Everyone in this village was surnamed Li—it gave us hope. But when we asked about Li Er, no one knew the name.