Hit me, come on, hit me...
The ghosts crowded in, but the one before me—taller than I was—couldn’t land a single blow. I used the faint Ghost Aura to hide among the hills.
You—stop hiding if you’ve got guts!
As he spoke, the ghost in front of me suddenly floated up, drifting toward me. To my eyes, his movements were still slow. I began compressing the faint Ghost Aura, boosting its density, gathering it at my forehead.
His fist stopped just short of my forehead. I stared at the ghost—surprise flickering in his eyes. I lifted my fist, let Ghost Aura wrap around it, and struck out hard. With a shriek, the ghost hit the ground, clutching his stomach and howling in pain. I walked toward him, step by step.
Now, can you tell me?
Coexistence had traded this piece of clothing with him for some ghost food.
The trail was completely cold. I had no idea what Coexistence wanted with ghost food. According to the rules of the game, if he was human, he shouldn’t be able to eat it.
The ghosts who’d come just to watch started leaving, but many lingered to chat. My mind was racing—there had to be something. Coexistence must have left a clue. He’d come in, traded clothes with the old ghost, used a cane, and swapped the clothes for a bowl of ghost food.
Then Coexistence vanished. I asked the ghost I’d just defeated about Coexistence’s appearance—he said he looked ordinary, easy to overlook, but definitely radiated Yang energy, so he should be human. But for the ghosts here, humans coming over isn’t anything new; many ghosts are friends with people from the apartment block out front.
I kept asking about Coexistence, but the information I got was scarce: about 1.7 meters tall, very ordinary-looking, short hair, dressed in white, nothing distinctive about him.
Suddenly, I stopped in my tracks and didn’t ask any further.
It’s the motive.
I said, beginning to think about Coexistence’s motive for all these actions. Looking at the sky, I realized more than two hours had passed—I still had plenty of time. The place wasn’t that big, so there was no need to rush. Coexistence’s motive was singular.
In a game of hide-and-seek, the hider uses cover to conceal themselves so the ghosts can’t find them. Here, Coexistence’s goal is surely to hide himself, maybe even make his Yang energy completely vanish.
I started to get anxious. If Coexistence really erased his Yang energy, then even though there are only six streets here, with thousands of ghosts, catching him would be very difficult.
Blind searching won’t work. I need a simpler way. If you want to find a bug in a leaf, the best way is to pluck all the leaves.
I need a way to gather all the ghosts together, and the best place is the plaza. In the center of this district, there’s a large plaza—big enough to hold all the ghosts here.
The ghosts here are generally weak, but for them, one thing is crucial: power. Thinking it over, my Ghost Aura is still fairly abundant.
Coexistence probably gave me just enough Ghost Aura to maintain a ghost form for 24 hours. If I use it up early, I’ll have trouble moving and catching him will be even harder. But I have to try—if I wait too long, I’ll never find him.
Live or die, let’s gamble.
In a deserted alley, I raised my right hand. A wisp of gray Ghost Aura began to seep out. Normally, low-level ghosts’ Ghost Aura is colorless, but if used properly and compressed by the ghost soul, its quality can be improved.
As soon as I condensed a bit of Ghost Aura, I felt fatigued. It recovered slowly. The ghost body Coexistence gave me wasn’t even Yellow Page level—it was just a White-Clad Ghost.
Now, I had to use more than half my Ghost Aura, compressing it into a small orb. If I succeeded, the orb would last for a while. Then, I’d lure all the ghosts to the plaza, toss the orb into the air, and let them fight for it. Since Coexistence is human now, he definitely can’t float.
The gray Ghost Aura compressed and darkened, turning nearly black. My body couldn’t handle it—the ghost soul was too weak and began to wail. To improve Ghost Aura quality, it must circulate through the Thirteen Ghost Gates and then be released. The faster the cycle, the higher the quality.
Gradually, the Ghost Aura in my hand grew denser. It took me a long time to understand why Yi Xuehan could cause such destruction with so little Ghost Aura. Reaching her level would probably take decades.
It began to emit black light. That should be enough—the Ghost Aura should last several hours. I just need to tell the ghosts that eating this will make them stronger, and whoever grabs it gets it.
Sure enough, some ghosts sensed the Ghost Aura in my hand and gathered at the edge of the alley.
Listen up, everyone! What I have here is a treasure for ghosts. If you want it, come to the central plaza. Whoever gets it, keeps it!
As I spoke, I suddenly floated up. More than half my Ghost Aura was gone. I sped toward the plaza, with many ghosts following.
I shouted as I flew, and the ghosts below could hear me clearly. In just over ten minutes, after circling the whole town, a mass of ghosts surged toward the plaza.
I hovered in the air—it was necessary. My Ghost Aura would last at most an hour. More and more ghosts gathered, and some floated up to attack me.
I dodged as best I could in the air. More and more ghosts floated up, mouths open and hands reaching, trying to snatch and swallow the orb.
They all knew this Ghost Aura well—it wasn’t strong, so swallowing it wouldn’t hurt them. But the quality was high, and they could sense that.
I moved quickly through the air, never taking my eyes off the ghosts on the ground. With this ghost soul, I could see at most 30 meters ahead. I rose higher, drawing more ghosts. The sky was full of flying ghosts, all after the Ghost Aura Orb in my hand.
Where is he? I stared at the ground, now 20 meters up. My Ghost Aura was dropping fast. Fewer ghosts remained on the ground, as more floated up, fighting each other for the orb. The scene was chaotic.
I only have one chance. I must find Coexistence. If my Ghost Aura runs out, I’ll lose for sure.
Gradually, only a few ghosts remained on the ground. I saw a person in white below, watching—very ordinary-looking. I was floating higher and higher, with nowhere left to hide.
Here you go.
I roared, and in an instant, hurled the Ghost Aura Orb far away. A horde of ghosts clawed and chased after it. I dove toward the person in white on the ground, grabbing his shoulder with one hand.
Got you.
In that instant, I was stunned—several figures in white appeared around me. But the one I grabbed was a ghost, not a human. My Ghost Aura was nearly depleted, and I could barely stand.
A fit of crazed laughter echoed, and I felt dazed.
I lost.
As I said this, I collapsed to the ground. There were still 18 hours left, but I’d lost. To recover my Ghost Aura would take at least 20 hours.
The moment I fell and admitted defeat, I was back atop the apartment building. Laughter echoed from across me—as my strength returned, I saw Coexistence clutching his stomach, laughing.
This time I lost, but next time, it won’t be so easy for you to trick me.
I said, but Coexistence shook his head and waved his hand.
You’ll never catch me, because you still don’t understand what hide-and-seek truly means.
Coexistence spoke in a mechanical, awkward tone that made me uncomfortable. But what did he mean by ‘hide-and-seek’?
I lost—there are two chances left. For the next two rounds, I must win. At that moment, Coexistence pointed at the sky. I looked up—the black-and-white clock’s hands spun quickly back to twelve.
You have half an hour to think. Now I’m the ghost. Go to the human side—if I don’t find you in 24 hours, I lose.
Ghost Aura instantly recovered in my body. I floated lightly to the apartment entrance. All I had to do was walk out, cross a street, and I’d be in the human area. This time, I’d hide among humans as a ghost, while Coexistence stood on the rooftop, transforming back into human form.
I still couldn’t figure out Coexistence’s motive—what did he really want? What was the purpose of this game of hide-and-seek?
I glanced at the sky—time was flying. I needed a plan. Just like before, my ghost soul was weak. As soon as I stepped out, I’d have to hide. It’s easy for ghosts to find humans, but for humans to find ghosts—it’s almost impossible.