Snow began to fall at night. I sat quietly in a hotpot restaurant by the river, watching the flakes drift down onto the water. The lights along both banks flickered on, and many tourists stopped by the riverside, taking photos with their phones.
"Eat quickly, or it'll get overcooked."
My dad reminded me. I nodded. Felix Fan had already left, and I was still pondering the series of dreams within dreams I’d had before. The events in each dream were different, but there was always something strange about them.
"Dad, when will Felix Fan come back?"
I asked. My dad smiled and shook his head.
"I’m not really sure either, sweetheart. Don’t worry. Once he brings back the Snake and Monkey Figurines and finds the Blood Jade, you should rest well for a while after you return."
I nodded, picking up the Dragon and Rooster Figurines from the table. I remembered when I entered that valley before—these two figurines seemed to radiate fear.
"Dad, what exactly are these things?"
I stared at my dad in confusion. He shook his head.
"I don’t really know either. These are probably things passed down by the Zodiac Heirs through the generations. Only Felix Fan would know the specifics. All right, stop thinking about it. Worrying won’t help, sweetheart. You’ll only know how to handle things once they happen."
After we finished eating, we didn’t go back. Instead, we lingered by the river to watch.
By now, all the lights along the riverbank were on. Everything on the water looked hazy, but it was beautiful—a mesmerizing sight. My dad crouched by the railing, smiling as he gazed at the distant river.
"I faced many tribulations when I was young, but after all these years, I’m still alive."
"Dad, are you thinking about something?"
I looked at my dad. He usually never spoke about these things. Seeing him lost in thought, I didn’t press further. Some things he would never explain to me, choosing instead to keep them secret. I understood his intentions—he didn’t want me to worry too much.
I crouched beside him, studying his now somewhat aged face. For a moment, memories of the past flooded my mind. Everything my dad gave me was joyful. Even when it came to ghosts, he never mentioned anything about them eating people. What I’d learned about ghosts consuming humans came from the ghosts themselves. My dad only ever told me that ghosts liked to play tricks—like mischievous children from the neighbor’s house. I always believed that when I was younger.
Thinking of this, I couldn’t help but smile.
"Dad, can you tell me now what you really..."
Before I could finish, my dad nodded and said:
"I have indeed finished collecting 9,999 souls. Originally, I didn’t need to do anything more for Hades, but there’s no other way. I just hope things settle down soon, so I can retire with your mother. Roxie, when you have time, you need to make a trip to the Hades Circle. As a Ten Guide, you must train there for the long term."
I knew what my dad wanted to say. I shook my head, not intending to continue the topic.
"By the way, Dad, Mom once told me that as people of the Hades Circle, when we collect souls, we can actually store the remaining life force of the soul in the Spectral Grove. Is that true?"
My dad nodded and began to explain.
When people of the Hades Circle collect souls, to avoid mistakenly taking those whose time isn’t truly up, they also gather the person’s remaining life force and store it in the Spectral Grove. Only when that person truly enters Hell do the starving wraiths in the Grove discover their spectral remnant, attack and consume it, and turn it into part of the forest.
So my dad used his last soul-collecting privilege to fix Ethan’s spectral remnant in that forest after he died. That became Ethan’s only hope of returning.
This wasn’t allowed at first—my dad did it secretly. But now the Underworld Court has tacitly approved it, because they also hope Ethan can return. The current situation is far more severe than I ever imagined.
"Let’s go, sweetheart. It’s cold outside, let’s head back."
I nodded. We got up and walked through the crowd. I glanced at everything on the street, and once again saw the young couple from my very first dream. Logically, I shouldn’t be seeing people I’ve never met before in a dream like this.
I was baffled. Even the owner of the shop we were staying at—I’d seen him several times, always the same. I’d seen many people on this street before too.
I was still trying to figure out what was going on when suddenly someone tapped me on the back. Startled, I turned around.
"Miss, you dropped your wallet."
It was that quirky-looking girl. She grinned and held out a little rabbit-shaped wallet. I hurriedly took it back, but then paused—how could I have dropped my wallet?
Just as I was puzzling over it, my dad tugged me along.
"Come on, sweetheart, keep me company for a drink."
I nodded, and we returned to the hotel. The owner and his wife were still arguing over trivial matters.
In my dad’s room, he took out a bottle of liquor he’d brought and a packet of peanuts. We sat by the hot spring pool, watching the snow outside as we drank. I could only sip slowly—my tolerance was poor. My dad smiled contentedly.
Outside, a lot of noise drifted in—voices of men and women. I frowned, feeling irritated.
"It’ll quiet down soon. It’s freezing out."
My dad kept drinking contentedly, but everything I’d been thinking about still tangled in my mind. I glanced again at my pink rabbit wallet, still confused. Why did that girl find my wallet? I loved this wallet, though there wasn’t much money inside. I used to carry it all the time, but now that mobile payments are so common, I pay with my phone. There were just a few hundred yuan in it. As far as I remembered, I hadn’t taken it out.
After two drinks with my dad, my head was spinning. I wanted to go straight to sleep. Back in my room, I lay down and didn’t bother thinking about anything else. But I was still haunted by those dreams within dreams. At first, my dad and Felix Fan said these weren’t really prophetic dreams, but I saw people and things I’d never seen before.
I used to think there were no lights along the riverbanks, but tonight they were all lit—just like in my first dream.
Drowsy, I fell asleep, even though it was still noisy outside.
A sudden chill snapped me awake.
"Who’s there?"
I flicked on the bedside lamp and looked around. The blanket had been pulled off me—I was furious and scanned the room. I didn’t sense any yin energy or ghostly presence, but the blanket was on the floor. In my dream, someone had definitely pulled it away; I could feel it.
"Who is it? Show yourself."
I growled, shivering as I threw on my clothes. But the room was empty. Then I heard the toilet flush in the bathroom. Annoyed, I yanked open the door—still nothing.
"If you’re a ghost, I’d have pinned you down and taught you a lesson by now."
Then I heard the cabinet moving. I rushed out and saw it open—there was definitely something in the room. I immediately unleashed my instinctual coexistence power to sense what was there, but after a long while, I realized I couldn’t feel anything at all.
I was powerless. This coexistence instinct wasn’t even mine—it was just temporarily residing in my body, so it was incomplete. I could sense some things, but not everything. If Ethan were here, he’d probably have sensed something by now.
There was a splash—the sound came from the hot spring pool. I rushed over and saw the water rippling, splashing everywhere, as if someone had just jumped in.
I gripped my Beauty tightly, staring at everything around me. I was ready to act if I heard anything strange again.
But after a while, there were no more strange sounds. I went next door and knocked on my dad’s door.
"Sweetheart, it’s past three. Can’t sleep?"
My dad looked groggy. I went in and smelled the strong scent of alcohol—he’d clearly had a lot to drink and wasn’t fully awake.
"Dad, something weird happened."
I explained, and my dad looked at me in confusion, seeming to sober up a bit. I told him about the strange things that had just happened in my room.
Afterward, my dad searched my room but found nothing unusual.
"Go to sleep, sweetheart. Ordinary ghosts can’t hurt you."
I nodded. I wasn’t scared—just annoyed.
With no other choice, I lay down again. Half-asleep, I felt another chill. When I opened my eyes, I saw the blanket floating in midair, as if controlled by some unknown force. Instinctively, I raised my Beauty and stabbed at it—piercing the blanket, but hitting nothing else.
The blanket dropped to the floor. Furious, I looked around, irritation coursing through me. Woken up twice in one night—my anger was at its peak.
"If you’ve got guts, come out! What’s the point of hiding?"
I muttered. Then I heard screams outside. I rushed to the door and ran out.
"Ghost! There’s a ghost!"
Amid the screams, I saw a terrified man shouting in the hotel lobby, looking utterly lost.
Soon the owner came out, rubbing his tired eyes, completely clueless as he looked at the man.
"Sir, what happened?"
The man kept shivering, insisting he’d seen a ghost, looking absolutely terrified as he repeated his story over and over.