The firelight flickered, carrying the scent of roasting meat. A rabbit sizzled atop the black flames, its fat dripping. We ran, fleeing from the boundaries of the tribe as if our lives depended on it.
There was no other choice. As humans, perhaps what we did was immoral, but for Joe Joss and me, none of that mattered anymore. Survival was all that counted.
A large rabbit was finally roasted. Joe Joss and I ate, but tonight, it tasted different than before. Maybe it was because we had coldly abandoned the old, weak, and sick.
"Stop thinking about it, Ethan Zhang. Just keep a clear mind. As long as we stay alert, watch the tracks on the ground, and avoid the big beasts, we’ll be fine."
I grunted in response. After a while, we finished eating and climbed up a thick tree, planning to sleep on the branches. In the forest, this was the safest way.
"By the way, Ethan Zhang, do you know how we ended up here?"
I shook my head, not sure what Joe Joss meant by that question.
"Honestly, I don’t know either. Why am I even wearing these clothes?"
I spoke as I looked down at the animal skin clothing on my body, then glanced at the stone spear by my side. It all felt so unreal—none of these things were familiar to me.
"Yeah, but that’s not what I care about. What I really wonder is why I became the leader of that tribe. I can’t do anything, don’t know anything, and even..."
Jiao Zuo suddenly stopped. I sensed something strange too—a beastly presence. We immediately raised our stone spears, staring silently at the scene below. Several black panthers were prowling, seemingly drawn by our scent. The flames could not drive away their hunger.
To these five black panthers, we were the freshest feast. If they found us, we would be theirs for the taking.
Jiao Zuo and I exchanged glances.
In a daze, I felt a breeze brush past my ear.
"Zhang Qingyuan."
It sounded like a child's voice, but my attention snapped back to the panther pack beneath the tree. They were still searching for us. The leaves concealed us, but our scent lingered—they would not give up until we were found.
We didn't dare make a sound. Suddenly, a chill swept over the back of my head, as if someone had slapped me. Startled, I dropped my stone spear.
With a thud, the panthers erupted in roars, all raising their heads.
Just then, I felt a kick to my back. My eyes widened in shock—Jiao Zuo looked at me with innocent excitement. I fell from the tree, and he spun and leapt down as well.
With a heavy crash, I slammed into the ground. Instantly, massive, furry paws pinned me down. Pain exploded at my neck. I screamed, panicked, as fangs tore into my flesh—the panthers were ripping me apart.
Panicked, I tried to shield myself, but it was useless. I screamed desperately, but all I could think about was that bastard—Jiao Zuo. He pushed me from the tree to save himself.
I hated him. My heart was flooded with hatred. But then I thought, if I were Jiao Zuo, I’d probably do the same—to survive.
My consciousness began to fade. I felt cold. I must be dying.
"Zhang Qingyuan, you idiot, snap out of it!"
A voice echoed in my ear. I opened my eyes wide. The panthers around me were all dead, their bodies lying apart. I stared in panic at my surroundings. The voice was clear, even familiar, but I couldn’t recall who it was.
Something stirred inside me—rage, burning fury, surging to my head.
Suddenly, I floated up, blinking in disbelief. My eight ghostly souls hovered around me. It was unreal. After all I’d just gone through, even my clothes had been restored. I quickly pulled out my watch and checked—it had been ten hours.
"Damn it, that bastard."
"Are you stupid, Zhang Qingyuan?"
The Sha Ghost spoke. My memories rushed back, though jumbled. After that, we wandered and found a tribe near the mountain. I only meant to ask a few questions, but the moment I entered their camp, I became like this—forgetting even who I was.
"Those people from the tribe?"
I looked over there immediately. The Yin Ghost shook his head.
"After you left, the beasts soon returned. They were wiped out. Let’s go chase that guy—the scent and the hair in the sachet belong to the same person."
My eyes widened as I stared at the sachet in the Yin Ghost’s hand. I quickly took it. The ghosts surged into my body, and I felt a power that chilled me to the bone.
It didn’t take long to find Jiao Zuo. He had stopped to rest by a tree, his face showing relief at surviving.
With a crash, I landed coldly beside Jiao Zuo. He stared at me, wide-eyed.
"Zhang Qingyuan, aren’t you...?"
Jiao Zuo quickly noticed my clothes had changed. I pulled out the hair from the sachet and looked at him—the aura was identical. The person the Sha Ghost was searching for was really him.
"Come with me."
Jiao Zuo panicked and screamed, but I wrapped him in my killing aura and floated upward.
"Say another word and I’ll kill you."
Jiao Zuo dared not scream anymore and fell silent. I transformed into a black meteor, flying toward the city. I had to hurry—if I didn’t, this forest would assimilate me.
I checked the time. Over a day had passed. Less than three days remained, and it would take about three days to return before the Dark Banquet began. We had just enough time.
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Jiao Zuo had already passed out behind me. I flew even faster, wrapping him completely in killing aura.
Gradually, I saw rocky hills—soon I’d be free of this forest.
"Are you leaving?"
With a whoosh, I stopped at the forest’s edge and looked back. The voice echoed in my head—it felt as if the forest itself was speaking.
"Who are you?"
I called out, but there was no reply.
"Maybe you don’t remember. Forget it—hurry back, and don’t come in again."
With heavy doubt, I left the forest and continued flying toward the city.
All the way, I wondered who that voice in the forest belonged to. What troubled me most was that it seemed to know me.
It didn’t matter anymore. Jiao Zuo had been found—he was the one the Poison Ghost Star was searching for. The aura matched the hair given to me by Poison Ghost Star.
Two more hours passed. Hope flickered—I saw lights ahead. The city was close.
In less than half an hour, I reached the dazzling band of lights. I swallowed and smiled.
Suddenly, a shadow appeared before me. I stopped. The Smiling Man emerged.
"You’re back so soon, guest. Why bring the exiles from over there? They’re useless. Guest, you..."
"Move aside."
I said nothing else, just uttered those words. The Smiling Man stepped aside, still looking troubled.
Passing through thirteen giant pillars, I saw our hotel. But Poison Ghost Star didn’t want anyone to know about this, so I didn’t go in directly. Instead, I entered the women’s room—no one was inside, but everyone outside should have sensed my return.
With a creak, the door opened and Poison Ghost Star walked in. I nodded to her, and a faint green light enveloped us. I released the killing aura from Jiao Zuo. Poison Ghost Star’s eyes widened as she rushed over to support him.
"Thank you, Zhang Qingyuan."
Jiao Zuo was still unconscious. Poison Ghost Star found an empty room, released a green glow to wrap him, and laid him on the bed. Then she came out, her eyes serious.
"Let’s go. It’s time to fulfill our promise."
"Yo, brother, didn’t expect you back so soon. Looks like the deal is on."
Yin Choujian said coolly. No one cared about the goods being traded.
"It’s over there, in the first pillar."
Poison Ghost Star pointed to the city center, to the standing black pillars.
We all looked over.
"Are you sure?"
Bo Ziran immediately spoke. Poison Ghost Star nodded.
"Though I haven’t seen the boss in years—after our Ghost Mound was destroyed by Yin Choujian and Ji Yuner, I thought the boss was dead. But we’d used a spell long ago so we’d know if the other survived. So I know the boss is alive. Even though he’s never met me here, I know his location."
Red Hair floated up, snarling sideways.
"Woman, if you’re lying to us, we’ll kill you."
"I’ll remember that, Boss Mao."
Except for Lan Ruoxi and Jing Le, all of us left the hotel. We knew the location, but had to figure out how to get in. The demons should be inside the pillar. Poison Ghost Star told us to check the top for a marked number.
Pretending to stroll, we split into groups and walked toward the thirteen black pillars in the center.
"Brother, things might get troublesome from here on out."