"You brought this on yourself. I'm done with you."
I shouted, demanding to be let out, insisting I didn't even know the Green Wraith next to me. But no one came. After a while, Logan the Living Buddha burst out laughing beside me.
"I doubt they'll let you out, even if you're one of the Underworld Denizens."
I widened my eyes in surprise and asked.
"Why? I was just passing a message between John Chou and you. Why won't they let me out? I'm human, not a ghost."
Logan sighed beside me, then continued with a smile.
"You're right, you're not a ghost. But it looks like you're no longer human either. There's something evil inside you—I can sense it clearly."
After a while, I couldn't be bothered to argue with Logan anymore and just kept shouting.
After some time, my throat felt parched. I looked around—there wasn't even any water. I stopped, and Logan started laughing again beside me.
"Also, maybe it's because you're too fierce. Just listening to your tone, I can tell—you're definitely a tough woman. Whoever marries you is probably going to..."
"Fierce? You're the real monster here."
I shouted again, but Logan just kept laughing. It seemed he didn't find this life of imprisonment boring at all.
"If I were you, I'd have gone insane after fifty years locked up."
"Fifty years is nothing to a ghost. I can pull my consciousness into the world inside my ghost soul, wander through my own ghost domain, and come back when it's time. There's nothing special about fifty years. Besides, these monks can lock me up for a while, but not forever. I just want to get out and drink with John Chou and the others. I haven't seen Ms. Yi in ages—I really miss her."
Listening to Logan ramble, he seemed quite cheerful—not at all like a ghost talking to me. But then I thought about it more. Sure, the monks locked him up after he was caught eating people, but ghosts always talk in riddles.
"Was it really just because you were caught eating people that you ended up locked in here?"
I asked, and Logan just smiled.
"It wasn't just eating people. I also ordered some of the monks to do plenty of evil things. All in all, I did a lot of bad things, so I ended up here."
I swallowed and laughed.
"You really do have a Buddhist mindset."
Logan burst out laughing.
"I've studied Buddhist scriptures seriously. If you want to fool people, you have to know your stuff, right? Those monks aren't idiots—I had to know plenty to trick them for so long."
Logan had a point. But the real question was why they locked me up. I'd never met their sect before—maybe my attitude was bad when I came in, but I was anxious. Thinking back, it was Rachel (Shadow Self) inside me who couldn't stand the atmosphere here, especially the chanting. Her emotions affected me directly. Gradually, I swallowed and raised my hands.
It wasn't just now—the influence built up over time. Under Rachel (Shadow Self)'s effect, my worst traits started to show. I'd always had a temper, but it was the ghosts who pushed me. They scared me constantly. At first I was afraid, then numb, then I hated their pranks. When I gained power, if I caught a ghost trying to scare me, I'd beat them down without mercy.
I don't know why these memories surfaced, but I gradually learned to restrain myself. As I grew stronger, ordinary ghosts didn't dare mess with me. That's when I met Vivian Ouyang—a true friend. Later, I met Ethan Zhang, and my temper mellowed. Maybe it's a woman's nature—to act mature and gentle in front of someone you like.
"Why so quiet, fierce woman?"
Annoyed, I grabbed the iron bars, sneering and glaring sideways.
"Why did they lock me up? You really don't know? You saw me carried in—did they say anything?"
I shouted. The door creaked softly, the sound coming after a long pause. Soon, I saw a monk carrying a bucket and a bowl of barley porridge. Furious, I asked:
"Get your abbot over here! Why am I locked up? Don't you know I'm..."
Before I could finish, I stared in shock at the monk in front of me. He was clearly dead, yet he moved. Pale skin, lifeless eyes—he slid the food through a small hole barely big enough for half a body, then left.
"Looks like they're planning to keep you locked up for a long time."
Anger flared in me. I kicked the door hard, pain shooting through my foot. I stepped back, still fuming, my temper boiling over—and I didn't even know why.
I don't know how much time passed. I woke from a deep sleep—still in this pitch-black place. I thought John Chou and the others would come to save me, but it seemed impossible for now. My anger still burned.
Just like the past few days, I'd be wandering the town alone, with John Chou and his group hiding and watching from a distance. The more I thought about it, the more I felt John Chou was going too far.
"You'd better save your strength," Logan said. "We're several meters underground—no one can hear you. And they only send the dead to bring things."
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I stood up in surprise and walked to the door.
"So that monk really was dead. Isn't this some kind of black magic?"
"It's not black magic—it's a legitimate tantric ritual. They respect the dead, and even corpses have their uses. Many monks who don't want a sky burial choose to let their bodies serve the sect after death. It's their wish, not forced. Besides, this place is for holding ghosts—not just you and me. We're on the second-lowest level; there's an even deeper one. They only let corpses in here, since the dead can't be tricked by ghosts or anything else. Once, a monk came down himself and got possessed—a ghost escaped in his body and caused havoc."
I glanced sideways at the iron bars, wondering if Logan was behind all this.
"Is the ghost on the lowest level really that powerful?"
I asked, and Logan smiled and sighed.
"I'm not sure. I was gone for a long time, and when I came back, I learned about this place—and that the lowest level holds a ghost nobody knows the origin of. The monks say it's terrifying, entrusted to them by someone for Golden Temple. I can't say I know for sure, but I did ask some basic questions. When I ended up here, I figured that ghost down there has no consciousness—probably created by someone with ulterior motives, uncontrollable, so they keep it here. I didn't ask for details. When I went missing, I left one of my ghost souls behind to keep pretending to be the Living Buddha."
For a moment, Logan and I fell silent. It seemed he really didn't know about the ghost below, but I still didn't understand why I was locked up here.
After just a few hours, I was already restless. Who could stand a life in a cage like this?
Just then, I heard a piercing howl, echoing up from underground. The floor beneath my feet began to tremble slightly.
"What's going on?" I asked.
Logan yawned and replied.
"What else? The ghost below is acting up. Didn't you see it when you came in? The monks chanting in the courtyard—it's their daily ritual to strengthen the seal, to keep the evil ghosts suppressed."
I was more confused than ever, and the howling grew louder. Covering my ears, I had no idea what to do.
"You'll get used to it. That thing down there howls whenever it's awake—sometimes for an entire day."
I cried out, sat up, and angrily kicked the door a few times.
After a while, I started feeling uncomfortable again. The howling stopped, turning into a sorrowful wailing that drifted in—endlessly mournful.
I could only cover my ears and lie on the hard bed. Sleepiness overcame me, and gradually I fell asleep, the sounds fading away.
Soon, I drifted into a deep sleep.
Even asleep, I could still hear the sounds—as if I was lost in a dark abyss, with someone endlessly howling. It was unbearable.
"Wake up, Rachel."
Suddenly, I was jolted awake, groggy and staring at the pitch-black surroundings. But then I saw a streak of violet light flash before my eyes.
"Mona Ouyang."
Sure enough, Mona Ouyang stood before me. I swallowed hard.
"Hurry and tell John Chou to get me out of here."
"Telling them won't help. This formation is so powerful, even those two would have a hard time coming in. Rachel, I'll say this once—listen carefully. I'll tell you how to break the formation."
I nodded immediately, and Mona Ouyang began to explain.