The car moved along the winding dirt road and had been driving for three hours already. I felt a bit helpless—after all, it was a rental, and I had to return it. Suddenly, a car sped up and screeched to a halt right in front of us. I was startled. The driver looked furious and blared his horn.
"Back up. Let me pass first."
In that instant, my temper flared. The people in the car saw two women sitting in our front seats and immediately got out, looking like they wanted to flirt. The driver’s attitude changed at once.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Rachel Lan."
"Wasn’t that a bit much?"
I said, and Isabelle Frost sneered coldly.
"If it were before, I would’ve killed them outright and wouldn’t have wasted a word."
I swallowed and kept driving. After a while, the four people were already shouting in alarm and chasing after us, apparently realizing how serious things had gotten. But I couldn’t be bothered with them and drove on, passing more cars headed for Fallen Hollow. It looked like a lot of people were going there today.
Our next destination wasn’t far from City B, just up on the western plateau. It was only a day’s flight, but I wanted to rest for a day before setting out again.
Evan Zhao and John Chou sat silently in the back seat, saying nothing the whole way, eyes closed as if asleep. Sometimes I could sense faint ghostly energy swirling in the back—they must have been communicating about something.
"I still have a few things to do here. Tonight, I'll send dreams to the Fallen Hollow workers here in the county, asking them to return home. After all, there are only elders and many children left in the village, far too few young people."
I grunted in annoyance and checked out at the front desk, ignoring the surprised looks of the staff, then left.
"Why did you go to the Underworld Court?"
When I went downstairs, I saw John Chou sitting in a car. I was surprised, but soon realized it was a paper car, just floating in front of me. I crossed my arms.
"How am I supposed to sit in this? If people see it on the road, they'll be scared to death."
"Don't worry. No one else can see you."
As she spoke, Isabelle Frost waved her hand. A Red Specter Web snared me, and in an instant, I was sitting in the back seat of the paper car. The car floated up and sped straight down the road, and I sighed—apparently, no one could see me, which put me at ease.
"What kind of guy is Logue, anyway?"
I asked again. John Chou smiled, lying back in his seat, and shook his head.
"He's pretty easy to talk to."
"Wait, this time I'm coming with you. You have to tell me in advance so I can be prepared. Like last time, you dumped everything on me out of nowhere—I had no idea what was going on. I hate that feeling."
John Chou just smiled and shook his head.
"It's not much of a problem this time. It's just that neither of us can go in easily, since that guy is posing as a Living Buddha in a temple."
I gasped, eyes wide in disbelief, blinking in confusion. Isabelle Frost nodded, but my mind was a tangled mess—this was the first time I'd heard of a Green Wraith posing as a Living Buddha in a Buddhist temple. It was incredible, but I couldn't help feeling a little excited inside.
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Excited as I was, I didn’t sleep at all. The paper car only took half an hour to reach the city. I found a hotel, booked a flight, and went straight to bed.
Early the next morning, John Chou, Isabelle Frost, and I headed straight to the airport. Our flight left at 8 a.m. and would arrive by noon.
"Why would Logue be in a Buddhist temple? Wouldn’t the monks notice him?"
John Chou sighed.
"A long time ago, when I went there searching for some Lama Order techniques, I was just as shocked as you. That guy’s a ghost, yet he lives in a Buddhist temple, and everyone calls him Living Buddha with real respect. You can’t sense any ghostly energy from him at all. As for the reason, I have no idea."
The plane landed smoothly in City O on the plateau a little after noon. I knew well that, aside from Zen, Pure Land, Sanlun, Huayan, Yogacara, Shingon, and other Buddhist sects, there were also monks in red robes called lamas in the western plateau. These belonged to the Lama Order.
Back when I was in the Hades Circle, I occasionally saw Lama Order monks come by. My dad told me that many of their techniques are more focused on incantations, and their methods for breaking curses are particularly advanced.
The moment I got off the plane, I felt a bit off—headache from altitude sickness. It would probably last a while. After leaving the airport, John Chou said we should have the master go to Jinla Temple, the largest Lama Order temple in City O.
My confusion only deepened. I pulled out my phone and started searching, and sure enough, I found Logue’s name. It said he’d lived as a Living Buddha for over three hundred years. Of course, online, most people dismissed these wild rumors as just gimmicks to attract tourists.
No one really tried to guess the truth—everyone just thought it was the temple’s joke to draw in visitors.
The taxi driver took us through the city, and soon I saw the dazzling Jinla Temple in the distance. Crowds of tourists climbed the long, white stairs. On the huge plaza, vendors sold prayer beads, shawls, and snacks everywhere.
But the car stopped at the edge of the plaza. I felt a strange force as we approached. The Red Specter Web Isabelle Frost had placed on me began to sizzle and vanished in a puff of smoke. I glanced at John Chou and Isabelle Frost—no wonder they couldn’t go in. It wasn’t impossible, but there’d definitely be serious conflict if they tried.
Though the Lama Order interacts with other Buddhist sects, their relationship isn’t very close. During the war between the Underworld Court and the Old Hell, I never saw any Lama Order monks get involved.
"Eat something and then head in. If you find Logue, pass him a message for me. I'll wait outside."
I nodded, immediately drawn by the aroma from a grilled beef skewer stand. I went over, bought a bunch, and started eating. The taste was excellent—chewy, fresh, and well-seasoned.
A little after 1 p.m., I bought a ticket at the foot of the stairs and joined the throng of tourists climbing up to Jinla Temple.
Many tourists were captivated by the temple's grandeur, stopping to take photos and chat. I didn’t care much—I'd visited here before with Ouyang Wei and stayed for half a month. I remembered most things. Ouyang Wei had dragged me around every corner of the temple before we left. Now, I just needed to find Logue and pass along the message, so I quickened my pace.