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I kept shaking my head, the stench here so overpowering that tears welled up in my eyes and spilled over. I truly had no idea what to do—every breath felt like drowning in dread.
"So, Rachel Lan, only after you've tasted it yourself and help us find the entrance to the Shadow Realm, can we go in, fix this mess, and return. Until then, we're trapped in this nightmare."
John Chou spoke, his tone urgent and strategic. I shook my head, anxiety pressing down on me like a physical weight.
"It's not as simple as you make it sound. You're ghosts—I'm human."
I replied softly. John Chou gave a faint, unsettling smile and nodded in acknowledgment.
"That's true, Rachel Lan. But even with all our ghostly strength, there are problems beyond our reach. Some things—only humans can resolve."
I found a spot farther from the oozing pus, where the stench faded just enough to breathe. The relief was brief—I still couldn't bring myself to eat this grotesque, otherworldly food.
"Just accept your fate, Rachel Lan."
John Chou drifted closer, his smile chilling. I swallowed, my heart pounding as I wrestled with the horror inside me.
"Once, Ethan Zhang and I ventured to where the Beast Path meets the Underworld Court. That place was littered with corpses—humans, animals, insects—all half-dissolved. The Ghost Aura there would be stripped from our bodies, leaving us desperate. In the end, we survived only by eating the corpses in the river that hadn't yet melted away."
I stared at John Chou in shock. He patted my shoulder, his touch cold and unsettling.
"Humans, you see—if you focus too much on what's right in front of you, it's not good. Think about it: if we can't solve this, we'll be trapped here for a long time. The Living World is anything but peaceful now."
Helpless, I gazed at the distant pus, unable to swallow. Across the room, Isabelle Frost watched me, her eyes reflecting the same resignation.
"By the way, Rachel Lan, want me to tell you a big secret?"
John Chou grinned wickedly at me. I crossed my arms and turned away, but he leaned in, whispering with a sly smile.
"Actually, Ethan Zhang—once, I saw him spend the night with another woman. You were already dead then, and in his grief..."
My mind went blank. I stared, mouth agape, utterly lost. Rage surged through me, but before I could react, something flooded my mouth—a huge glob of black liquid forced in. I sprang up, coughing and retching, some of it already swallowed. John Chou watched, his wicked smile never fading.
"You're lying to me."
John Chou had already moved away, sitting with his chin in his palm, amusement in his eyes. I kept coughing, grateful that besides disgust, the substance brought no other effects. I rinsed my mouth, but sorrow began to rise from deep within, overwhelming me like a tidal wave. Tears streamed down my face before I could even react; my head grew heavy and dazed.
It felt as if a hand gripped my throat, dragging me forward inch by inch. Panic seized me—I had no idea what to do. As my consciousness began to blur, I saw Isabelle Frost glaring at John Chou with open displeasure.
"You can't just do whatever you want. A girl's heart is delicate."
John Chou just smiled.
"It's fine—Rachel Lan's heart isn't that fragile."
Anger flared in me—I wanted to shout, but collapsed to the ground instead. Sorrow flooded my body, more and more of it pouring in, merging with my instincts as if I'd grabbed onto a lifeline. It surged inside me, wild and unstoppable.
The sensation was strange—I didn't know what was happening. In the darkness below, I saw my younger self, crying endlessly. Late at night, ghosts would come to torment me; I'd sob in terror. If my father was home, he'd fiercely drive them away, but on nights he was gone, the ghosts returned, leaving me frightened and alone, with no one to rely on.
Gradually, the sorrow within me deepened. I saw myself, a bit older, no longer crying, but watching the girls walk home together after school, sadness filling my eyes. I struggled to connect with others—born to the Yellow Springs, able to see ghosts, I kept my distance from ordinary people. Ghosts still haunted my life, and people seemed unreachable. I had no friends, only sadness brewing inside, yearning to burst free. I didn't know what was wrong with me.
Suddenly, my eyes widened as I saw myself sobbing uncontrollably—the moment I learned Ethan Zhang was dead. The grief was overwhelming. A voice echoed in my ears, repeating, "Stop waiting. Ethan Zhang will never come back." Covering my ears, the sadness split my head with pain. I didn't know what was happening; I only wanted to cry, desperate to release the flood of sorrow.
My body slipped out of control. Sorrow poured in, my eyes wide as tears turned black and my eye sockets hollowed. My skin began to darken.
A voice inside urged me to give up on everything—nothing would ever return, nothing would ever be restored. Only sorrow remained, the truest companion. I whimpered, crouching on the ground, clutching my head as if it were about to explode.
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From childhood to now, one painful memory after another surfaced, each manufacturing sorrow. My consciousness was close to collapsing.
"Don't panic, Rachel Lan. All you see now is sorrow from the past. Think more about the future you hope for."
In an instant, my eyes snapped open—Ethan Zhang's face appeared before me. A flame erupted in my heart: anger. I didn't know what was wrong with him.
"Crying all day won't solve anything."
I roared, and the black aura around me dispersed. A streak of purple flame ignited on my skin, banishing the darkness. I found myself standing in the middle of the street, and in the distance, a wild-haired man—Evan Zhao—stared at me, laughing.
"Evan Zhao, don't go too far!"
The Phoenix Wings of purple flame unfurled from my back, my Yin aspect lending me strength. I raised my hand—the Phoenix Blade materialized, its fire swirling around me. Evan Zhao sat atop a distant rooftop, his hollow, helpless eyes shining black, his body flickering with green light. In a flash, he appeared before me, hand raised, as waves of black aura churned toward me.
With a thunderous boom, the purple flames erupted outward from me, instantly dispersing all the black aura around.
Evan Zhao vanished. I looked around, slowly rising into the air. The sounds of sobbing and wolf howls reached me—ghosts, both human and wolf, converged from all directions. I curled up, the purple wings folding around me. As they unfurled, purple flames shot out, turning ghosts into black smoke, burning houses to ash. Evan Zhao stood before me, his face twisted in sorrow, black tears streaming from hollow eyes.
"You can't solve anything by always running from sorrow."
As we spoke, I flew to Evan Zhao, slashing with the Phoenix Blade. He whimpered, dissolving into black smoke within the purple flames. I shouted.
"Show yourself, Evan Zhao!"
The place remained empty, Evan Zhao nowhere to be seen. The purple flames on the ground burned out, and everything slowly returned to normal. Ghosts reappeared. I couldn't keep wasting energy fighting Evan Zhao; I knew in the Shadow Realm of the Azure Ghost, the best way was to find his true body and finish this quickly. I had the power—if I could just find Evan Zhao's real form, I could end it.
I couldn't worry about anything else. John Chou and Isabelle Frost were off somewhere, doing who knows what. I wasn't sure if this was a dream or reality, but I began using my instinctive powers to search for Evan Zhao's presence.
"At Rivers Mansion."
With a whoosh, I flew to Rivers Mansion. The ground rumbled—the entire mansion began to rise from its foundation. I stared in shock as the house twisted, its facade morphing into a grotesque human face: the door a gaping mouth, the inner rooms like nostrils and windows.
A thunderous crash—something massive and black burst from the mansion. I couldn't dodge; it slammed into me. Dizziness and darkness overwhelmed me, my flames unable to break through the shroud of blackness wrapping me. I fought desperately to escape.