"Ethan, are you alright?"
Rachel Lan rushed over. I looked at the black-masked man collapsed in front of me and shook my head. At this moment, the bodies of the two black-masked men who'd been killed released two black Deathbane Aura Snakes, which began to rise. Justin Huang lay on the ground, covered in wounds, while Rachel Lan and I both tried to touch the Deathbane Aura Snakes, but we couldn’t.
The two Deathbane Aura Snakes floated outward. I clenched my fists, watching them drift away. But just as the snakes reached the forest, suddenly, streams of black water surged up from the ground, wrapping around both Deathbane Aura Snakes. They whimpered, dragged down instantly, and sank beneath the earth.
I stared in shock.
"Heh, looks like we don’t have to expose ourselves for now. Sigh."
Justin Huang spoke, his muscles shrinking back to normal. I saw he was covered in injuries and wanted to use my Yang energy to heal him, but I was powerless—my Yang fire would only hurt him.
"Ethan, at least, look."
Rachel Lan squatted next to the corpses of the two black-masked men and found two canteens and some rations on them.
"How did you run into them?" I helped Justin Huang up. He sighed.
"I was wandering around the forest and saw lights on a mountain over there. I went to check it out and ran into those two guys. I could only run the other way. They chased me all the way here, and I just couldn’t run anymore."
I smiled, supporting Justin Huang. Rachel Lan moved the corpses of the two black-masked men into the nearby ruins. With water and rations in hand, we headed toward the palace at the edge of the city.
When we reached the front of the palace, Rachel Lan weighed the canteens and rations. Lan Yin, ravenous like a starving wolf, immediately got up and lunged forward.
"Wait."
Rachel Lan quickly raised the canteens and rations.
"What are you doing, girl? Give me something to eat, hurry up, I'm starving."
"We two are Hades Circle Born—even if we don’t eat, we won’t starve. They’re different."
Lan Yin swallowed hard. In the end, Rachel Lan and I only drank some water, but I still let them eat some rations.
"Eat, Rachel. If you go hungry and something unexpected happens, you won’t have the strength to deal with it."
I looked at Rachel Lan, who seemed unwilling to eat. I hurriedly urged her, and finally she smiled, nodded, and ate.
Though my stomach was still a bit empty, these were compressed rations—two large pieces. After eating a small piece and drinking some water, the growling in my stomach faded away.
Right now, we had to figure out how to help Lan Yin recover—only then would we have the strength to fight. Leaving this area would be difficult, and most of the Ghost Burial Squad had already been captured. We had to find a way to save them.
Afterward, we decided to check out the palace. Justin Huang and Hugh Thompson stayed outside, while Lan Yin, Rachel Lan, and I went in. The palace looked ready to collapse, so we moved carefully.
Inside the palace, faded paintings of fierce spirits were everywhere. We made our way to the far end, where the mountain wall blocked further passage. There, we saw small openings in the rock, each holding a jar—most of them already broken.
Looking at the mountain wall covered with black jars, it seemed this was where ghosts were kept. There was also a sacrificial altar. Lan Yin glanced around and sighed.
"What a bunch of junk—nothing left, how disappointing."
We were about to turn back when Lan Yin sniffed the air.
"Smells great—roast chicken, and wine."
I smelled it too. It was delicious—not just roast chicken, but other foods as well. The three of us rushed out of the palace. I was stunned; under the moonlight stood a woman dressed scantily, wearing only a black gauze robe over red lingerie, her snowy skin exposed.
Rachel Lan pinched me. Embarrassed, I quickly looked away. It was Poison Dreadstar. Justin Huang and Hugh Thompson were already sitting on a white cloth surrounded by all kinds of food, eating and drinking. Lan Yin didn't hesitate—he grabbed a chicken leg and started eating.
"Are you here to help us?"
I asked, and Poison Dreadstar gave a seductive smile. Her voice was so soft it seemed to melt into my bones. Rachel Lan pinched me again, and I hurried to sit beside Lan Yin.
"If I'm not here to help you, would I be here to harm you?"
"Sorry."
After a whirlwind meal, we were full and a little drunk. Poison Dreadstar sat by the altar, waiting until we'd rested enough before getting up.
A breeze stirred Poison Dreadstar's black gauze robe, revealing her curvaceous figure. I quickly looked away.
"So, tell me—what's the situation now?"
"That kid named Mason Yu still hasn’t been caught. Next up is you all. I really miss this place. Sigh, that used to be my bedroom. Now it’s ruined—can’t even recognize it."
Poison Dreadstar gazed mournfully at the collapsed palace, then continued. Years ago, John Chou and Yuna Ji came here as guests. Everyone at the Ghost Mound wanted to cooperate with them; working with those two Ghost Sovereigns would bring enormous benefits.
But John Chou demanded all the Blue Wraiths in the Ghost Mound. The Three Dread Stars and the Ghost Mound’s leader refused. They thought John Chou was joking, but he smashed a jar and released a Blue Wraith.
John Chou immediately ordered them to leave. The Ghost Mound people thought everything was fine, but as soon as they left the city, John Chou and Yuna Ji returned and declared they would take the city by force.
After that, Yuna Ji summoned her undead army. The battle lasted nine days. In the end, Ghost Mound City fell, and most of its people died, becoming part of Yuna Ji’s army.
Hearing this, I understood why there were no bodies here—only weapons, and an unnatural number of them.
At that time, many ghosts controlled by Ghost Mound died or fled. Some joined John Chou, others were killed. After that war, Ghost Mound was nearly wiped out overnight.
"Our boss is still missing. Ghost Mound is in chaos. Hundreds of years have passed, and the Three Dread Stars have mostly gone their own ways, building their own power. We only reunite for major events. I haven’t returned to Ghost Mound Forest in over a century. That mountain is Ghost Fiend Star’s base."
Hugh Thompson stood up and looked over.
"How strong is that faction?"
Poison Dreadstar giggled.
"Lao Chongyuan has already taken most of the blue-masked men back—they’re badly wounded and need to recover at home. There are still some red-masked and blue-masked men here. Two blue-masked, five red-masked. Things are chaotic outside—every Ghost Sovereign is on the move. The Immortality Society’s forces in the living world are fleeing. You brought them here, and John Chou is furious!"
As Poison Dreadstar spoke, I let out an 'ah' and remembered—when John Chou wounded Lao Chongyuan, he was truly enraged.