The sunlight was glaring. The few of us sat in the car, and I was driving, forcing myself to ignore how uncomfortable I felt. I lost at rock-paper-scissors, so I had to drive.
We had just gone out for porridge, but I was still feeling awful. Howard Lee had gone back to the hospital on his own—his injured arm, made worse by last night’s chaos, needed attention. He wanted to come with us, but helplessly, he could only return to the hospital.
"My head hurts so much, it feels like it’s going to explode," my cousin complained beside me.
"Damn it, cousin, this is all your fault."
When we arrived at Fortune Teller's Row, it was still crowded, even at 4:30 in the afternoon. It seemed that ghost-related incidents were on the rise lately.
"Ethan, look at this."
Mason Yu said, handing me his phone.
I took it. On the screen was an ad for a sensational, real ghost show airing every night at midnight.
"What’s this?"
"It’s the hottest show right now. The host and cameraman bring celebrities out to haunted places every night to experience the supernatural."
They have no idea how hard we work. Damn, especially that Leah King—what a piece of work. She acts all friendly off set, but on site, she’s arrogant as hell.
Dalton Fang spoke, gritting his teeth.
"Exactly. She’s just popular right now—she has no idea what we go through. Just for that damn show, our Ghost Burial Squad brothers have to be on duty at the scene. Damn it, Old Stone must have rocks in his head."
Miles Mao actually started cursing out loud.
I glanced curiously at the three angry guys behind me.
"Why does the Ghost Burial Squad have to help with the show’s filming?"
"Sigh, Ethan, Old Stone has coordinated with the show’s production team many times, but they won’t listen. There’s nothing else to do but send people to the set."
"They have no idea how terrifying ghosts really are."
My cousin stood nearby, lost in thought.
"It’s Jing Le, right? Heh, that hit TV drama of hers was funded by my dad’s company. If she keeps this up, should I call her and tell her to tone it down?"
"Thanks a lot, Howard," Miles Mao said as my cousin waved his hand.
"It’s nothing, we’re all brothers here."
"Cousin, now that I’m back, I’ll go home with you—let’s visit Uncle and Aunt. If I had a son like you, I swear I’d..."
"Alright, little cousin, I get it. Why does everyone in the Zhang family have to lecture me like this? Sigh."
We found a spot and parked the car, then headed into Fortune Teller's Row.
Inside Mrs. Blake’s shop, Hugh Thompson was already waiting for us. Thinking about what he did last night and seeing his polite demeanor now, I was momentarily speechless.
"Hey, you guys are supposed to be handling serious business, but you’re just messing around," the old man said, shaking his head at us.
"Come on, old man, it’s fine. We’re young—gotta have some fun, haha."
"I get it, but you’re all completely drained. If you want to go down there, it’ll be tough. Rest up today—head down at midnight tomorrow."
I grunted in response, and then we went out to the courtyard, where Mrs. Blake was helping Rufina Howard tie her hair.
"Hmph, stupid men. Heh, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve now."
My head was still spinning, so I ignored Rufina Howard. Feeling miserable, Dalton Fang, Miles Mao, and Yu Mingxuan went over to the well, drew water, and poured it over themselves. The sun was still shining above us.
I joined them, dousing myself with a few buckets of water. Lying on the ground, I felt warm and much better.
"Ethan, you finally made it." Suddenly, Evan Zhao flew out from the wall.
The old man glared at Evan Zhao.
"What’s wrong, old man? Got a problem with me?"
"Enough. That’s enough."
"Sorry, Ethan. I can’t go with you this time."
I was startled, but Evan Zhao didn’t look afraid—just troubled.
"What happened?"
"For some reason, we Blue Wraiths can’t enter the Ghostrealm. When the Shade Trio returned and heard we were going down, they all wanted to join, and even Samantha Simons said she’d go with us. But as soon as we tried to enter, we were bounced back. Very strange. I asked Boss Yin, and he said the Underworld Court is behind it."
"Heh, I’m afraid only the Ten Judges have the power to keep Blue Wraiths out."
Evan Zhao nodded.
"Ordinary ghosts can enter the Ghostrealm, but Blue Wraiths can’t. I bet Lord Wraith has already made a deal with the Underworld Court—they’re just waiting for the Seven Ghost Lords to go down themselves."
With Evan Zhao’s explanation, I understood: Lord Wraith had captured our people, and we wanted to rescue them, but the power gap was too great. We could only rely on the Ghost Sovereigns, but that meant the Underworld Court had set a trap—a banquet of doom.
"Thanks. When you get back, tell everyone for me. Thank you all. It’s fine—we’ll go down ourselves."
Evan Zhao looked apologetic, so I patted him on the shoulder.
"Don’t worry. I, Ethan Zhang, am not that easy to kill."
Then Evan Zhao opened the Ghost Domain and released the female ghost Lord Wraith had given me. She wore a white dress, but her figure was still striking.
"Wow, a beauty," Howard Zhang said, sidling over. I shot him a glare.
"Back off."
Then Hugh Thompson took the map, and the female ghost began describing Lord Wraith’s territory.
On the map, the closest place to Lord Wraith’s northern territory was Circle City—a stronghold of a powerful Blue Wraith. There’s been minor friction with Lord Wraith over the years, and that Blue Wraith is on Lord Wraith’s guest list.
To reach Lord Wraith’s territory from Circle City, you have to bypass Starvation Ridge and cross the Ghost Tomb Desert. Rumor has it the desert is a graveyard for ghosts—once you enter, you never come out.
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Hugh Thompson stared quietly at the map, lost in thought as he looked at the vast ochre expanse beyond Starvation Ridge.
"Has anyone—ghost or human—ever made it out alive?"
The female ghost shook her head.
From what I know, there are rumors that a few people from Midway Town once saw a ghost come out—his name was Lee Four.
Suddenly, my eyes widened as I remembered that day when Brother Owen and I were caught by Lee Four, but he let me go, saying I owed him one.
I quickly told everyone about Lee Four.
"Here." The female ghost pointed to a small, inconspicuous spot on the map. It looked like a tiny hill but had no name marked.
According to the female ghost, there's a place called Stagnant Pool, wedged between Midway Town and Circle City. If we want to reach Midway Town, this is the safest route. Apparently, most ghosts avoid it because the stench from the pool is unbearable.
"Old-timers, can you get us to this exact spot?"
"It's up to fate. At best, we can send you to the general area. The rest depends on your luck."
The old man said this, and I shot him a resentful look.
"Old man, don’t talk nonsense. Ethan, the two of us can figure out a way to get you to that spot. Take a look—what else is nearby?"
I checked the map. Not far from Stagnant Pool, to the south, there was a place called Trickster Ridge—a stretch of mountains separating Midway Town and Circle City.
"Those are the only two places we can manage. That's all we can do."
"What’s special about Trickster Ridge?"
"There are some fierce ghosts inside who love to play tricks. You’ll need to be careful—most ghosts won’t go near it. If you’re not careful, you could get eaten or robbed blind."
Finally, the female ghost talked about Lord Wraith’s territory. Apart from the words 'Lord Wraith' on the map, there weren’t many other markings. As she spoke, fear crept across her face.
Lord Wraith’s territory covers several kilometers, with high platforms every ten meters or so. He himself resides in Wraithhold, which is half the size of Circle City. If we want to break through, we can’t go straight across the Ghost Tomb Desert or Gasping River. If we do, we’ll immediately see the platforms guarded by ghost soldiers—it’s too easy to get exposed.
We could only go around and enter from the west, where there’s a place called the Wailing Maiden’s Den—full of female ghosts discarded by Lord Wraith.
As soon as she finished, the female ghost clutched her head, trembling with terror, mumbling to herself in a low voice.
"I can’t do it, I can’t..."
Suddenly, my cousin placed a hand on her shoulder, comforting her.
"It’s alright. You’re out now."
After that, the female ghost returned to Evan Zhao’s Ghost Domain. Hugh Thompson studied the map, while the rest of us started preparing food. Things felt a lot better now.
But just as we were about to use the old man’s kitchen, he stopped us.
"No eating from now on—unless you don’t want to go down."
I groaned. After all the booze last night, I’d puked up everything I ate. We’d only had a little porridge earlier, and now everyone’s stomach was growling.
"Why can’t we eat?" Dalton Fang asked.
"Kid, everything you eat is from the world of the living. If you eat now, your bodies will be full of yang energy. When you go below, all that yang energy will make you stand out. That’s why you need a special method to make your bodies look like ghosts—so you won’t be discovered so easily."
By nightfall, we finally learned what the 'special method' was: each of us had to soak in a huge wooden tub filled with black, foul-smelling, sticky liquid. The old man made us stay in for an hour, then rest for half an hour to warm up, and repeat the cycle until eleven o’clock the next night.