Staring at John Chou, sweat kept pouring down my forehead, my scalp prickling as if stabbed by tiny needles. I watched as people and ghosts alike offered their gifts, one after another. But when I looked at myself, my hands were empty.
Shame overwhelmed me. I genuinely wanted to find a hole and crawl into it. But as I thought about it, I cast a resentful glance at the disciples of the major sects and those ghosts. If it weren’t for them making me so anxious, how could I have forgotten something so basic?
But then it hit me—didn't I still have money in my pocket? I looked around but couldn’t find anywhere to hang a gift. In a hurry, I pulled out a wad of cash, counted out two thousand yuan, and watched as Redmane’s followers carried bundles of gifts. Trembling, I walked over.
“Hurry over, Redmane! Ethan Zhang wants to give you something. Aren’t you two good friends? You should come accept it yourself.”
Rufina Howard walked up to me, shouting loudly and waving at Redmane.
"By the way, Ethan, what are you giving Redmane? I gave her a charm I made myself, and she was really happy. Ethan, what will you give her?"
I forced a smile, clutching the money in my hand, counting it again. Looking around, I saw no one else giving money—everyone was offering something special. The disciples of the Mount Mason Order gave a jade sword, and the Brahma Order offered handwritten Buddhist scriptures.
Looking at the crowd of people and ghosts, I really couldn’t bring myself to just hand over my cash. At that moment, Redmane smiled and walked toward me.
"What are you going to give me, Ethan Zhang?"
I forced a stiff smile, seeing Redmane’s expectant face, and felt even more embarrassed. On a day like this, I was giving money—would they even want it? Would it be any use?
Suddenly, I remembered and quickly took off the Blood Jade hanging around my neck, smiling as I handed it over.
"I—I’ll give you this."
Suddenly, Redmane’s smile faded. She glared at me, took the jade, and started fiddling with it in her hand.
"Bro, how could you curse someone on their birthday?"
I let out a cry. John Chou laughed from the side, while I stared at Redmane, not knowing what to do—she really seemed a little angry.
I hurriedly took the Blood Jade back.
"Sorry, sorry. I didn’t prepare anything special today—just brought some money."
As I spoke, I pulled out a wad of cash. Redmane burst out laughing, looked at me seriously, and took the more than two thousand yuan from my hand.
"It doesn’t matter what it is. As long as you’re here, that’s enough. Ethan, come on, let’s go eat."
Redmane clapped her hands, and a stretch limousine immediately pulled up beside us. She dragged me into the car, and John Chou and Yuna Ji got in without hesitation.
"Hey, you two are shameless! Can’t you just fly over by yourselves?" Redmane complained.
"It’s more fun with a crowd! Besides, it’ll take a while to get there anyway." Rufina Howard squeezed in and plopped down next to Redmane.
"Forget it. There’s still one more person—actually, two—who qualify to sit with me."
Redmane got out of the car, waved up at Basil Bertram in the sky, and he flew down. Only then did I notice that all the ghosts who had just come out from Basil Bertram’s ghost domain were now gathered together, chatting and laughing as they strolled toward the city within a city.
It looked like a huge crowd—all Blue Wraiths, no fewer than Redmane’s group.
After Basil Bertram got in, he didn’t stay in the car but mingled with the crowd. Rachel Lan was chatting and laughing with Vivian Ouyang as they looked at the things inside.
"Let’s go, little girl. At least the thing inside your body is an old friend of ours."
"What are you doing?" Vivian Ouyang had just spoken when Redmane pulled her over and stuffed her into the car, glaring at me with a huff.
I muttered to myself, "Glaring at me won’t help. If you want to glare at someone, glare at Redmane."
The car sped off, driven by a man who looked about forty or fifty—he was probably a ghost too.
"By the way, what did you mean when you said that giving Blood Jade to Redmane was cursing her to die? What’s that about?"
"Oh, Ethan, you really are something. That’s a funerary item for the dead—it’s obviously unlucky." Yuna Ji explained.
"To be precise, this jade is usually worn by people who are chronically ill. It’s used for healing. Some people are born with weak fortune, so they wear pure jade to ward off evil. Over time, to make it effective, it has to be nourished with blood. The jade absorbs the wearer’s misfortune and blood, and eventually turns red. That’s why it’s called Blood Jade."
"What color do you all see this jade as?"
Everyone in the car saw it as red. I stared in surprise at the Blood Jade. Thanks to Basil Bertram’s detailed explanation, I now understood it a bit better.
"Of course, Ethan, there’s a reason it’s called Blood Jade, and it requires special conditions."
"What conditions?"
"That is, the person wearing this jade is plagued by misfortune…"
"In other words, those who wear this jade are basically people who died unjustly and have never been able to avenge themselves. That’s why the jade never turns green again."
Rufina Howard said this, glancing at Basil Bertram, who tried to force a smile after being interrupted, though he looked like he wanted to get angry.
"Right, uncle?"
For a moment, Basil Bertram forced a stiff smile and turned away in annoyance.
"Basil Bertram, you may be called a jack-of-all-trades, but this little girl isn’t bad either. Besides, your explanations are a bit too long-winded."
Yuna Ji said this, and John Chou burst out laughing.
"You’d better be careful, Ethan. The malice in this jade isn’t ordinary, heh." Redmane said, smiling mysteriously as she looked at the Blood Jade.
I let out a cry.
"Ethan, how about I hold onto it for you if you’re scared?" Suddenly, Vivian Ouyang said in a coy voice, reaching out her hand, striking a flirtatious pose with a wicked smile.
(Irrelevant passage skipped)
Suddenly, everyone in the car turned to look at Vivian Ouyang.
"Heh, that little cat managed to suppress the dead demon, but maybe this guy can’t handle it."
John Chou said, and I watched Vivian Ouyang warily.
"Who are you, really?"
"Oh, Ethan, I’m Vivian Ouyang, don’t you know?" Vivian stood up, her face full of a wicked smile, leaning in close.
"Sit down."
Redmane said, grabbing Vivian Ouyang and pushing her back into her seat.
Vivian Ouyang snorted coldly, but I couldn’t help feeling distracted. She radiated the aura of a mature woman, irresistibly alluring. I didn’t know why, but her presence seemed to draw all my attention.
The car finally stopped at the gate of the city-within-a-city. The gate was wide open, and rows of maids in gauzy dresses stood respectfully on either side of the street leading inside.
After we got out of the car and walked in, the long sound of a horn made of ox horn rang out. Inside, I saw what looked like a palace, but no other buildings—just rows of tables, many ghosts already seated, the tables covered with food and wine.
As soon as we entered, all the ghosts stood up and looked at us respectfully.
"Everyone, please sit down. There’s no need to be so formal."
Redmane spoke, and the ghosts all bowed and sat down again. I looked around; the number and quality of ghosts here was impressive—none were below the Fierce Ghost level.
Except for the maid-like ghosts in white shirts, who stood respectfully to the side.
"Redmane, are you really going through with this?" John Chou asked.
"Of course. All of you have hosted the Banquet of Ten Thousand Ghosts, except me. Times have changed—modern society is driven by material desires, and people’s malice keeps growing. In the past, only truly evil people would harm others; ordinary folk wouldn’t dare. Now, as long as there’s money to be made, people will do anything."
Redmane said this, and I looked at him in confusion.
"In the past, you six were all stronger than me. But now, I believe I won’t lose to any of you. After all, my rapid recovery is all thanks to the endless malice from humans."
Gradually, we approached a staircase leading up to the main hall. Above it, three large characters were written: Hall of Malice. We walked up, and suddenly I heard the moans of two women and a burst of raucous laughter.
My heart skipped a beat. When I reached the entrance, I could finally see the whole hall—a vast space filled with low tables, each with a ghost seated before wine and meat. At the far end was a round table with several stools.
The moans came from the front right, at a table in the first row. There sat a tall, handsome man in white, flanked by two extremely seductive women—completely at odds with his refined appearance.
The two women wore outfits so revealing that every man’s blood would boil. One woman in black stockings had only a small strip of cloth covering her private parts; the rest was completely exposed.
The other woman wore bunny ears, with furry cuffs on her hands and feet, a white crop top, and just underwear below, with a little tail as decoration. The handsome, refined man had his hands roaming over both female ghosts.
"Screw you, Ghost Rakshasa! If you want to play with women, go home and do it!"
Redmane immediately began cursing loudly.