A chill ran down my spine. The child standing before me had vanished. Just a moment ago, after I finished my question, the Zhang family boy suddenly stood up, turned to me with a strange smile, and walked into Universal Temple. As he crossed the threshold, he said something.
The signpost is in my past. Even now, those words echo in my mind.
Whenever I looked at that child, I felt a deep chill, even though his soul was pure and unstained by any darkness.
"That child knows many things. He’s aware of most major recorded events from long ago. He understands everything about the Buddhist Sect, so now Master Mingde wants to take him in as a disciple on behalf of the sect and personally shave his head for ordination."
I nodded in understanding, realizing what kind of ceremony this was. But the crowd of monks was staggering—I’d never seen so many before. Some were incredibly powerful, shattering my belief that the world of sorcery was now weaker than the Spirit Realm.
"Ethan Zhang, if this were the age of the seven Ghost Lords at their peak, sorcerers would be powerless against them. But now, even a single Buddhist sect could wipe them out—though the price would be steep."
I walked up to the statue of the Golden Howler and gazed at it silently.
"Do you think that child resembles Master Lucian?"
I asked bluntly.
"He does."
The Golden Howler immediately answered the question in my heart. Previously, the Ghost Worm monk wanted my cousin’s body to complete his reincarnation, but the pure power that had gathered shattered because of my desperate attack. I stopped his rebirth, and now my cousin has returned to his old self, laughing and joking all day long.
"If he really is Master Lucian, what should we do? Is there any news about the Renegade Monks?"
I asked, and the Golden Howler let out a sigh.
"They’ve already been wiped out. Except for the Three Poisons, who might have narrowly escaped, the rest of the Renegade Monks have been slaughtered. This happened after your cousin returned from hell. It was a major event in the world of sorcery—how could you not know?"
I responded with another "oh," then quickly asked another question.
"What about the people from the Nether Syndicate? Any word on them?"
"No news at all. I heard that the Nether Syndicate’s founder, together with the Immortality Society and those dark ones, joined forces to kill John Chou. But since then, the Nether Syndicate hasn’t shown up in the Living World."
I could guess what happened to the Renegade Monks—they were probably abandoned by the Immortality Society, and since they were the weakest, eradicating them was easy. But the Nether Syndicate was the key. John Chou left me with the Bloodbane Power, which destroyed the Nether Syndicate’s core. After the Nether Syndicate’s Pit, their people stopped appearing.
More and more issues weighed on my mind, but right now, I had to ask about the Four Sacred Realm. What exactly was the signpost that child mentioned?
Heading to the Four Sacred Realm was something I had to do now. Elder Peach was already busy, working on a way to change the formation so it could be activated without needing ninety-nine people as sacrifices.
"May I take a look, Ethan Zhang? Your invitation."
The Golden Howler spoke, and I nodded. With a thought, a swirl of black energy wrapped around my hand, and the invitation appeared before me. A golden light stretched out, like a hand, enveloping the invitation and flipping through its pages.
"Ninety-nine, huh?"
The Golden Howler muttered. I looked at him in confusion—he seemed to understand what was written inside.
"I've seen invitations to the Dark Banquet before, and I've heard stories too. Of all those I've met who possess such invitations, yours has the most pages."
I let out a surprised "ah." I had noticed this before—both Redmane and John Chou had invitations, but theirs were simple, while mine had ninety-nine pages.
"So, what do you know about the Dark Banquet?"
The Golden Howler moved. He stretched out a paw, then stood up, exposing his belly. I saw a patch without scales—I'd seen it before, but now it looked strange. Back when we fought, I couldn't even leave a scratch on his scales.
"Master Lucian left that mark. It still aches from time to time. When I descended into the Living World, I carried immense power, but he could still resist me—with the invitation in his hand."
I swallowed hard. The Golden Howler sat back down and returned to his usual form, silent. Just then, with a creak, the temple door opened and my cousin snuck out.
"Cousin, what are you doing out so late?"
"Hey, I’m bored anyway. Let’s go drink. Come on."
I let out a sound of surprise as my cousin grabbed my hand and dragged me down the mountain. We arrived at the pitch-black foot of the hill, where he pulled out a bunch of keys and dangled them in front of me.
With a click, the tavern door swung open. Only then did I realize that before the Universal Temple folks had left, my cousin had already paid a hefty sum, rented the place, gotten the keys, and stocked it with food and drinks. He led me straight to the backyard, where a small brazier was already full of charcoal.
"Let’s have some barbecue."
I sighed helplessly. My cousin was always like this—never serious. But Master Mingde had promised him that he didn’t have to follow Buddhist precepts in this life.
I couldn’t eat a thing. My cousin squatted by the brazier, flipping the meat he’d prepared. I drank quietly, just watching him.
"Cousin, if one day I’m gone..."
"I’ll find you, no matter what. Just like when we were kids."
I stared at my cousin. He smiled, holding up an oil brush, just like always. Our relationship had never changed since childhood.
My cousin started eating, constantly praising his own grilling skills. I thought of Lan Yin and Lan Miao—Lan Yin’s longing was now completely shattered. I’d never see my closest kin again.
Footsteps sounded outside. I sensed it was my cousin’s senior brothers. They barged in, looking fierce. The three monks who entered immediately raised their hands and chanted Amitabha.
"You guys are always so uptight—that’s why you’re all blockheads. Hurry up and eat while it’s hot."
"Chongsheng, it’s curfew now. Even though the master said you don’t have to follow the Buddhist rules, you still need to respect the temple’s traditions while you’re here. Tomorrow is the Sacred Child’s ordination ceremony. Come back with me."
"Let me finish eating first."
I smiled at my cousin’s three senior brothers. Though they looked annoyed, the aroma of the barbecue drew them in. My cousin brought a plate of grilled meat over to them.
"If you don’t tell and we don’t tell, who’s going to know, right?"
My cousin returned with the meat, looking bored. His three senior brothers sat cross-legged on the floor, chanting and meditating. After a while, my cousin was stuffed and dragged me up to the rooftop, clutching a bottle of wine, clearly not planning to go back yet.
"I take Susu to visit Uncle every now and then, so don’t worry, Qingyuan."
I gave a quiet "mm" and gazed at Universal Temple in the distance, its golden glow still visible in the dark.
"I just hope nothing happens."
I muttered, and my cousin looked at me with concern.
"Tell me, little brother—do you know something?"
I shook my head and silently watched my cousin. Suddenly, he put down the wine bottle and pressed both hands against my ribs.
"Are you going to tell me or not?"
It felt just like when we were kids. After some playful wrestling, I told my cousin that I suspected the reincarnated Sacred Child was the Ghost Worm monk.
"That’s impossible, little brother. Didn’t you already take care of that old bald Ghost Worm? You’re overthinking it."
I let out an "oh." Just then, my cousin’s three senior brothers came up to urge him again. He had no choice but to go back with them, looking helpless. I decided to wait until after tomorrow’s ordination ceremony before heading up.
Although Master Mingde never said anything, I could feel his coldness toward me. It was as if we stood on opposite banks of an unbridgeable river. Before, when I visited Universal Temple, I was human. Now, I’m a ghost—completely one of the dead.
The three monks who came for my cousin were openly hostile toward me. I hadn’t done anything, but I understood—the growing strength I possessed was beyond their imagination, and now the sorcerers were starting to be wary of me.
"Be careful, Qingyuan. If you’re going up, remember—things aren’t like they used to be."
With a whoosh, the Spirit Serpent emerged from my body, grabbed the wine bottle from my hand, and gulped down a mouthful.
"Tastes awful."
"Alright."
I nodded. With a thought, a cold female voice rang out.
"I’ll set up a spell nearby that connects to the earth’s energy. If you get trapped, remember—as long as the earth’s energy flows, you can coexist with it and escape."
The Curse Ghost spoke coldly, then leapt down from the second floor. As she landed, shimmering red particles scattered everywhere, quickly spreading across the area. The houses and air around the street filled with these red particles, slowly forming strange patterns.
"With all this commotion, won’t those monks notice?"
The Spirit Serpent asked, and the Curse Ghost turned and sneered.
"That beast is on Ethan Zhang’s side. Haven’t you noticed? Idiot, and here I thought you were clever!"
"You..."
The Spirit Serpent pointed at the Curse Ghost.
"Once I master mahjong, you won’t stand a chance against me."
I stared at these guys in surprise. They were still playing mahjong. I sighed helplessly.
"It really is a national pastime—ghosts and humans alike understand it."