The curtains had already been drawn by James Grant. Outside, the noise and chaos were still audible. I quietly watched James Grant; his expression was much softer now, so different from Luna Quay, whom I once knew. The James Grant before me seemed kind, nothing like Luna Quay’s utter coldness—only ice.
"Why aren’t you affected by the Emperor Gods’ power? They created this world, which was once nothing but dust and sand."
I voiced my doubts. James Grant stared tensely at Luo Yu, clearly nervous.
"We no longer cooperate with the Emperor Gods."
"You fickle zombies—how can anyone trust what comes out of your mouths?"
Luo Yu stood up and walked to the door.
"If you can’t trust me, surely you trust Rachel Lan."
Luo Yu opened the door and stepped out. Instantly, a barrage of curses erupted from outside. Luo Yu and I had become unwelcome guests here.
James Grant was still scrutinizing me, as if debating whether to reveal the truth.
"Alright, Rachel Lan, I’ll tell you."
I murmured my thanks. James Grant was still hesitating, but after a long sigh, he began to speak.
James Grant lived in an era of constant warfare. He lost everything on the battlefield. After his death, he was controlled by Wraithshade, because his soul was much stronger than most of the dead. Wraithshade used all manner of chilling, sinister means to forge James Grant, trying to amplify his power.
At that time, the war in Grant Domain had reached its harshest point. In the shadows, Wraithshade sabotaged everything, and the last city of Grant Domain fell. With no way out, Yuna Ji chose to perish with her kingdom. When the last soldier fell, Yuna Ji was barely clinging to life, defending the palace in the flames. It was then that Wraithshade appeared, bringing the newly forged James Grant, intending to seize Yuna Ji’s soul after death.
In the final moment, James Grant regained his senses and helped Yuna Ji subdue Wraithshade. He asked Yuna Ji to kill him, which would also resolve the threat of Wraithshade. In the end, Yuna Ji did it. James Grant’s soul was shattered, and though Wraithshade did not die completely, he was gravely wounded and would need at least a century to recover.
When James Grant awoke in this world, he still had his memories. Looking at everything around him and noticing the strange changes in his body, he didn’t care much. For reasons unknown, every day spent in this world brought him happiness.
After waking in this world, James Grant began working as a carpenter—skills taught to him by his mentor, Tan Tian. He thought this was a world of the dead, and wanted to offer some compensation to these souls who had died twice. That was why the world seemed so beautiful.
Gradually, James Grant realized this beauty was only a facade. It seemed as if everyone’s fate was set from the moment they awakened. He noticed an unshakable obsession in his mind—a compulsion to contribute to the world as a carpenter. He also fell in love with a girl from a nearby shop and was in a relationship, soon to be married. It all felt orchestrated.
James Grant still remembered Yuna Ji, the woman he loved most, but he couldn’t fight the obsession in his mind. Whenever he tried to do anything that differed from his compulsion, he was forced back by it. He wanted to throw it out of his head.
No matter what James Grant did, he could never defy that obsession. He kept working as a carpenter. After earning enough to buy a house, he planned to marry the girl.
The wedding date was set. Every day, James Grant fought against the obsession inside him. He didn’t want to marry the girl, didn’t love her—his love had already been given to Yuna Ji when he was alive, leaving nothing behind.
As the wedding day drew closer, James Grant couldn’t find a way to resist. Each day was agony, yet somehow happy—every time he thought of the wedding, he felt bliss, but every night, memories of Yuna Ji brought unbearable pain.
James Grant realized that whenever he slept, he’d wake feeling immense happiness. He still remembered Yuna Ji, but the pain wasn’t as strong as the day before. At night, longing for her brought back the sorrow, but after sleeping, it would be gone.
He started to wonder why this was happening. He was already dead—dead beyond saving—so what did sleep mean to the Yinfolk? Yet every day, at that hour, James Grant felt compelled to sleep.
To fight the obsession, James Grant began staying up late, refusing to sleep. He found the pain and sorrow inside him wouldn’t fade.
One day, two days—by the end of a week, James Grant couldn’t stand it any longer. He tried everything to keep himself awake, but it was useless. Eventually, he slept. When he awoke, he felt happiness again, a rush of joy at the thought of marriage.
It was then that James Grant met a Taoist named Zachary Justice.
I was instantly surprised.
"Zachary Justice?"
James Grant nodded.
"After that, I don’t know where the Taoist went. I searched for him, but it seems he’s no longer in this world."
James Grant continued his story.
He had met Zachary Justice by chance, spotting a carefree figure near his worksite. Zachary Justice’s routines changed daily—what he ate, what he did, the streets he walked, and the people he spoke to. He seemed to have no friends.
Eventually, Zachary Justice approached James Grant and started a conversation. James Grant poured out all his troubles to him.
Zachary Justice told James Grant that freedom was simple to obtain, as long as one was willing to give up everything. The world itself didn’t restrict anyone’s freedom—the strongest managers of this world did.
Zachary Justice then shared a method: to escape a manipulated life and gain freedom, one must keep training. The bodies of the Yinfolk are fundamentally similar to humans and need exercise. Crucially, you must resist sleep and keep training.
James Grant was confused by what Zachary Justice meant by training. Zachary Justice told him to follow, and for several sleepless nights, James Grant went with him to many places. Later, they visited homes Zachary Justice had been to before—at night, the owners were gone.
When James Grant asked why, Zachary Justice explained everything. The rulers of this world sought power by these means. After creating the Yinfolk, their numbers remained constant, but their bodies grew over time. At night, the rulers would revert Yinfolk into pure power, extracting more than was originally used, then restore the Yinfolk again.
The managers strengthened themselves by this method, keeping the Yinfolk’s power fixed at the moment of creation and controlling every aspect of their existence. When people are happy, their power is always stronger.
Zachary Justice’s advice to James Grant was twofold: first, never fall asleep; second, train relentlessly.
For a long time, under Zachary Justice’s guidance, James Grant tried again and again to train without sleep, but he always failed. In the end, he could only resign himself to marrying the woman.
At last, James Grant succeeded in his training. As his body grew stronger, he was finally able to resist the power of the Emperor Gods, and even draw strength from the Yin side of this world to grow. He also helped the woman he married break free from control. Zachary Justice revealed that she was just like James Grant—she didn’t love him, but loved someone else.
James Grant kept searching for those who noticed something wrong with themselves—those unable to act on their will. He taught them how to break free from the Emperor Gods’ control. But James Grant knew they weren’t a match for the Emperor Gods. So he kept gathering Yinfolk, building a vast, intricate underground world. They could use the world’s power for anything, even to protect themselves—they were part of this world.
When the time was right, James Grant founded Scarlet Moon, an assassin organization, to target high-ranking officials. Creating powerful Yinfolk required a lot of energy from the Emperor Gods, so Scarlet Moon’s only goal was to drain their power as much as possible.
Yinfolk killed would become part of the world, not stored power for the Emperor Gods. The only way for the Emperor Gods to revive a slain Yinfolk was to use energy again, but the world’s energy replenished so slowly it couldn’t meet their needs.
"Zachary Justice once told me, freedom exists in every world—whether you know it or not. Because at the dawn of creation, everything was free."