Xu Muchan, who had lost consciousness, was held in the arms of the strange deity.
His appearance had completely transformed into that of a ghost. His jade-like skin had taken on a faint gray hue from his injuries and blood loss, making him look like a flower that could wither at any moment.
His wildly grown black hair spread across the floor. It moved restlessly, as though it were a mass of snakes unable to find a way out.
“Come here.”
The deity holding Xu Muchan extended a hand, allowing the restless hair to coil around his arm.
Strand after strand of black hair wound itself around him. With his permission, it pierced through his hard skin, then pulsed like blood vessels, continuously drawing vitality from his body and nourishing itself.
The ashen color of Xu Muchan’s face visibly faded, becoming pale and lustrous again, with a faint trace of blood returning to it.
Seeing this, the deity immediately smiled.
The arms behind him passed through the black hair spread across the floor, wrapping all of it around his own body and using himself to nourish Xu Muchan.
The group that had cautiously made their way inside through the main gate saw this horrifying scene—
A fallen deity held a strange corpse in his arms. The corpse had almost completely lost any recognizable human appearance. Its head was covered in long hair wrapped around the tall deity’s body. The hair contracted and pulsed like living creatures, as though it were feeding on him.
And for some unknown reason, the deity being wrapped up did not resist at all, seemingly about to be completely consumed—
“This is bad. The Ghost King is about to be born.”
A sharp-eyed Daoist recognized the newly dead corpse.
It was clearly the Ghost King.
“The one being wrapped up by the Ghost King… why does he look like the Five Changshen to me?”
“He’s not the Five Changshen.”
Someone familiar with the Wei family spoke up. “Look at him… doesn’t his appearance look somewhat like the Wei family’s Eldest Young Master, Wei Xilou?”
“It really is Wei Xilou… That can’t be possible. How could an ordinary person replace the Five Changshen and become a deity?”
“I heard long ago that the Wei family refused to accept their fate and secretly built some Ascension Tower, trying to achieve physical immortality… Could they really have succeeded?”
Whispers spread through the crowd.
Everyone looked eagerly at the new deity who was supposedly the Wei family’s Eldest Young Master.
The reason these people had gathered here in the first place was because the Wei family’s Old Master had sent them invitations, saying that something had happened at the family residence and offering them a large sum of money to come and help.
After they arrived, however, they were lodged in the city and never saw any movement from the Wei family.
Then, more than half a month ago, Old Master Wei suddenly sent someone to deliver a letter.
The general meaning was that the Wei family was about to undertake something major, and everything would depend on this one attempt.
If the Wei family remained safe and sound after several days, that would mean they had succeeded. At that time, the Wei family would hold a grand banquet for all their guests, and Old Master Wei would share an enormous piece of good news with everyone. He had also vaguely hinted that this joyous occasion was related to a manuscript left behind by the Wei family’s ancestors.
But if the Wei family’s gates remained tightly shut afterward, then something had probably gone wrong, and everyone present would be asked to lend a hand. They would be generously rewarded afterward.
Everyone whom Old Master Wei had been willing to pay so much money to invite naturally had some genuine ability.
During the days they spent in the city, they had also heard various rumors. But before today, none of them had taken those rumors particularly seriously.
Although the Wei family was enormously wealthy, their ancestors had indeed possessed some extraordinary abilities in their early years. Otherwise, they would not have been able to preserve the family’s wealth and prosperity for so many years.
But the Wei family had later suffered a decline in its succession, and no one of that caliber had appeared again. Naturally, all those extraordinary techniques had been lost over time.
Only a mysterious manuscript, spoken of as though it possessed incredible powers, had been passed down.
But no one had ever actually seen it with their own eyes.
The Wei family of today was simply living a life of wealth and privilege under the protection of their ancestors’ legacy.
So when everyone heard the rumors, they merely laughed them off, thinking that the Wei family had truly reached the end of the road and gone mad.
It was only afterward that the Wei family’s gates suddenly closed tightly, with no one entering or leaving. Then they saw Yin energy soaring into the sky above the Wei residence.
At that point, everyone knew that something had indeed gone wrong with the Wei family.
Whether it was for the reward promised by Old Master Wei or because some of them privately wanted to investigate what exactly the Wei family had been plotting, they eventually chose a day and came together to the Wei residence.
But no one had expected to witness a scene like this in the Wei family.
Whether it was the Wei family’s Eldest Young Master becoming the new Five Changshen, or the Ghost King wrapped around him and continuously devouring him, both sights made everyone’s hair stand on end.
Any one of these things released into the outside world would probably be enough to bring disaster upon an entire city.
Everyone’s expressions immediately turned solemn.
“Everyone, I’m afraid this mess at the Wei residence is something we have no choice but to clean up this time. If we let these things out, I’m afraid countless lives will be lost.”
They were all practitioners, so naturally they understood how terrifying a Ghost King and a fallen deity could be.
Whatever ulterior motives they had harbored when they came here, at this moment they had no choice but to stand united against a common enemy and face it together.
“While the Ghost King hasn’t awakened, kill it first!”
“I’ll kill the Ghost King. Everyone, help me!”
Thus, everyone immediately took out their magical artifacts and talismans. They split into three groups. One group headed straight for the Ghost King, while the other two flanked the fallen deity from the left and right, restraining it.
The deity, whose body was bound by black hair, was concentrating on feeding the person in its arms. It had not expected those noisy ants to suddenly charge toward the person in its embrace.
It straightened up, its scarlet vertical pupils sweeping over everyone.
Its cold voice directly echoed inside everyone’s minds.
“Get lost.”
However, those whom Old Master Wei had invited were by no means incapable.
They endured the deity’s pressure and fearlessly charged forward with their magical artifacts, attempting to restrain the fallen deity together and create an opportunity for their companions on the other side.
When Wei Xilou returned to the Wei residence, what he saw was a chaotic battle between two groups—
In order to protect the person in its arms, one of the deity’s arms had been severed by everyone’s combined attack.
The deity had already been weakened from using itself to nourish the Ghost King. Now that one of its arms had been severed as well, it immediately went berserk.
Amid a howl so shrill that it nearly pierced their eardrums, countless arms emerged from beneath the ground, stabbing toward the people who had launched the sneak attack without warning.
Some managed to dodge in time and escape with their lives. Others were unfortunate enough to have their chests pierced. They knelt on the ground, still clutching their magical artifacts, and died within moments.
Inside the Wei family’s old residence, corpses lay everywhere, and blood and flesh splattered across the ground.
Wei Xilou cursed, “Idiots.”
He instantly transformed into a dense shadow and lunged toward the battling deity, forcibly swallowing it into his own body.
But this was, after all, his own territory.
Wei Xilou had forcibly suppressed his other consciousness. Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, yet his arm remained steady as he caught Xu Muchan, who was about to fall to the ground.
His eyes turned scarlet. Numerous arms emerged from his shoulder blades and beneath his ribs.
But these arms did not completely obey his commands.
Some of the arms controlled by the other consciousness even tried to strangle him, fighting him for control of his body.
Wei Xilou forcibly tore off one of the arms and casually threw it onto the ground.
His scarlet, bloodshot eyes swept over everyone who remained.
“If you don’t want to die, get out. This is my Wei family’s family business.”
The remaining people stared at the inexplicably appearing Wei Xilou and looked at one another in confusion.
They had thought that the fallen deity protecting the Ghost King was the Wei family’s Eldest Young Master. Yet they had not expected another Wei family Eldest Young Master to suddenly appear in the middle of the fight.
For a moment, no one could make sense of what was happening. They could only watch helplessly as he carried the Ghost King toward the Ascension Tower.
“Do we follow him or not?”
The remaining people exchanged glances, unable to make up their minds.
There had originally been more than twenty of them when they entered, but by now some were dead, some were injured, and only five or six people were still capable of moving.
“Let’s see what happens first.”
The difference in strength between the two sides was simply too great. The remaining people did not dare to confront him head-on again, so they could only cautiously follow him into the Ascension Tower.
The Ascension Tower was also in complete disarray.
The Wei family’s people lay scattered throughout the courtyard. Their deformed animal-like faces were filled with terror, and they had long since stopped breathing.
Wei Xilou ignored the little tail following behind him. Carrying Xu Muchan, he stepped over the corpses of the Wei family members and entered the wooden tower.
He activated the mechanism.
The lotus platform inside the wooden tower shifted aside, revealing a staircase leading downward.
The staircase extended deep underground. From below, the faint sound of surging waves could be heard.
Wei Xilou carried Xu Muchan all the way to the bottom.
There, he saw a broad underground river. No one knew where it came from, yet it was trapped beneath the Ascension Tower, struggling and roaring like a dragon imprisoned in captivity.
“We’ll be home soon.”
Wei Xilou lowered his head and kissed the lips of the youth whose features could no longer be recognized as human.
Then, dense shadows surged out from his body, wrapping layer after layer around the unconscious Xu Muchan.
Carrying him with it, the shadow leaped into the black river.
In the blink of an eye, the two were swallowed by the river and disappeared without a trace.
Wei Xilou’s physical body remained standing on the riverbank.
He stared at the Black River for a long time before finally beginning to move stiffly.
He released the branch of the Black River beneath the Ascension Tower. Watching the river disappear in an instant, he slowly followed the now-dry riverbed toward the outside.
Not long after he left, voices sounded outside the Ascension Tower again.
“Are all of these Wei family members?”
“They’re all dead.”
“That thing just now… what exactly was it?”
“It was Wei Xilou,” someone said. “I’ve heard long ago that the reason the Wei family has remained prosperous for so many years is because their ancestor once sealed a dragon vein beneath the Wei family’s ancestral residence. Supposedly, he also left behind a manuscript for his descendants. It not only recorded how to seal a dragon vein, but also contained the method for ascending to become a deity. It’s just that Old Master Wei is cunning. Whenever he brought it up, he always spoke vaguely and avoided giving any details.”
“But judging from Wei Xilou’s appearance, he clearly succeeded in ascending to become a deity. It’s just that something must have gone wrong along the way, and a Ghost King appeared halfway through.”
Seeing the fervor in the other person’s eyes, another person shook his head in disagreement.
“I don’t think it was necessarily a success. If he had succeeded, how could the entire Wei family have died?”
That person sneered.
“The Wei family was counting on Wei Xilou becoming a deity so that he could continue protecting their wealth and prosperity. But they didn’t understand that immortals and mortals are different. How could a deity possibly allow itself to be controlled by a group of ordinary people…?”
“There hasn’t been any movement inside that wooden tower. I want to go down and take a look. Are you coming?”
“Let’s go together…”
While the group gathered their courage and entered the Ascension Tower, Wei Xilou had already emerged from the river channel and left the city.
A chaotic consciousness controlled his body.
Only two thoughts remained in his mind—
Muttering something under his breath, Wei Xilou caught up with the carriage racing through the night.
Under Wei Ting’s terrified gaze, he climbed back into the coffin and lay down again.
Wei Ting stared at the coffin in horror. Only after a long time did he gather enough courage to look inside.
He saw Wei Xilou lying inside the coffin with his hands folded over his chest. His entire face was filled with the lifeless aura of death, and at first glance he looked no different from a corpse.
Yet Wei Ting thought he saw the other’s lips moving slightly, as though he were saying something.
He swallowed hard and cautiously leaned closer, pressing his ear toward him.
What he heard was:
“Go to Guiyi Mountain and wait for A-Chan…”
Xu Muchan suddenly opened his eyes and discovered that he was actually lying against the edge of a hollow in a giant tree.
His upper body had already stretched outside the hollow, while everything below his waist was still inside.
In his ears, the roaring sound of waves mixed together with countless murmuring voices.
He clung tightly to the tree trunk and crawled out of the hollow. Looking around, he called out, “Brother.”
But Wei Xilou did not answer.
Xu Muchan thought about everything that had happened at the Wei family’s old residence. He was not sure whether his plan had ultimately succeeded.
Before he could continue searching, however, pitch-black water suddenly began bubbling out of the hollow in the tree.
In only a moment, the black river water had already surrounded the entire tree trunk.
Xu Muchan immediately realized that something was wrong. He hurriedly jumped down from the tree and sprinted toward the house where Peng Ye was hiding.
Following Xu Muchan’s instructions, Peng Ye had been very obediently staying inside the house, staring awkwardly at the mother and son tied up with red ribbons.
But the longer he waited, the more uneasy he became.
Perhaps it was because he was too nervous, but he always felt that Wei Xilou, who had been sitting on the balcony ever since Xu Muchan left, had remained in exactly the same position.
So much time had passed, yet he had not moved even once.
Peng Ye sat restlessly in the living room, occasionally glancing toward the balcony. The more he looked, the more panicked he became.
He always felt that Xu Muchan’s older brother looked somewhat wrong.
He cautiously called out to him twice.
There was no response.
This made him even more anxious.
After hesitating for a while, he slowly stood up, rose onto his toes, and quietly made his way toward the balcony, wanting to see what exactly was wrong with him.
Just as he reached the balcony door, the sliding window on the balcony was suddenly pushed open.
Xu Muchan climbed up from outside like an agile cat, hoisted the person sitting on the balcony onto his back, and immediately ran outside.
“The flood tide is coming! Hurry, we have to go!”
Peng Ye’s scalp went numb when he heard this.
He hurriedly chased after Xu Muchan and shouted toward him, “What’s going on? How did the flood season suddenly arrive? How are we supposed to notify everyone else?”
Xu Muchan had no time to answer his questions.
Black river water continued pouring endlessly out of the tree hollow.
He did not know why it was happening, but he had an intense premonition—
The flood tide had come.
They had to find a way out before the Black River swallowed the entire ghost realm.
And if his guess was correct, this ghost realm was very likely overlapping with the real world.
If the ghost realm were submerged by the flood tide, then the old city district in the real world—and perhaps even the entire Shuinan City—would probably not be able to escape the disaster.
“Brother, I can’t find the way out.”
Xu Muchan carried Wei Xilou on his back and ran as fast as he could. Panting heavily, Peng Ye had already been left far behind.
But inside the ghost realm, running quickly was useless.
He had to find a way to break through and escape.
Xu Muchan stopped and forced himself to calm down first. Then he took the dog-face mask out of his backpack.
Previously, it had been through the dog-face mask that he had found the giant tree. Perhaps this time it could also help him find a way out.
Xu Muchan put on the dog-face mask.
The world before his eyes seemed to become covered by a layer of red shadow.
Above his head was an enormous canopy, blocking out the sky so completely that he could not see it at all.
The buildings in the distance were covered in an ominous blood-red hue.
The road directly ahead was packed with souls in horrifying states of death. They stood densely across the middle of the road, their twisted, agonized faces filled with malice, waiting eagerly for the next person to die a gruesome death and join them.
Xu Muchan remembered the time he had killed Ding Hai.
At that time, he had faintly felt that, somehow, he had received the recognition of this ghost realm.
The rule here was that it recognized and permitted mutual killing.
The more people one killed, the deeper one’s connection with this world would likely become, and the more information one would be able to learn.
Of course, looking at it from the opposite angle, it also meant it would be easier to find the weak points of the ghost realm.
Peng Ye came running up from behind, panting heavily. When he saw Xu Muchan stop, he became even more puzzled.
“Why aren’t we running anymore?”
Xu Muchan took the person off his back and handed him to Peng Ye.
“Take good care of my brother.”
After saying that, Xu Muchan’s long hair suddenly grew wildly. His fingers became long and sharply pointed, and his entire aura changed in an instant.
Peng Ye carefully supported Wei Xilou, whose body was as cold as a corpse, and watched as Xu Muchan walked into the middle of the road—
Peng Ye was just an ordinary person. At first, he could not see anything at all.
But gradually, it seemed as though he could see flesh and blood splattering across the road.
Even more, shrill screams kept ringing out.
Xu Muchan’s entire body was almost dyed red with blood. His long black hair writhed around his feet, making him look even more terrifying than a vengeful ghost.
When he finally finished and walked toward Peng Ye, Peng Ye even shuddered.
He trembled as he looked at Xu Muchan and cautiously asked, “B-B-Brother Xu, I’m very obedient. You won’t kill me, right…? To be honest, I’m a little scared right now.”
Xu Muchan lowered his head and stared fixedly at him.
After a while, he removed the dog-face mask from his face, and his appearance returned to normal.
He bent down and carried Wei Xilou onto his back again.
To the trembling Peng Ye, Xu Muchan said, “Let’s go. I found the exit.”
After killing those supernatural entities, Xu Muchan’s connection with this world had indeed grown deeper.
Ordinary supernatural entities could only remain trapped in this ghost realm forever, relying on constant hunting to exchange for brief moments of peace and tranquility, much like finding a substitute.
But Xu Muchan was ultimately a Ghost King.
As his understanding of this ghost realm deepened, he even had the strange feeling that he could replace it and become its master.
Not only that, he even sensed a very familiar presence.
It was Brother’s presence.
Xu Muchan adjusted the person on his back, lifting him slightly higher. This time, he was no longer in such a hurry. He led Peng Ye toward the hotel.
“Let’s get out.”
Peng Ye followed behind him in confusion.
The two returned to the hotel. Before Peng Ye could figure out what was happening, he heard Xu Muchan say,
“We’re out.”
The moment his voice fell, a cacophony of noise erupted around them.
Then came the startled cries of the others.
“Xu Muchan? Peng Ye?”
Peng Ye stared blankly at the others, then looked down at himself.
Only then did he belatedly realize that he had actually come out of the ghost realm alive.
“I didn’t die?”
He moved his sore arms and legs, and his face immediately twisted in pain as he collapsed onto the floor. But his face was filled with undisguised delight.
“I really made it out alive?”
Jiang Fang forcefully patted him on the shoulder and helped him onto the sofa.
The others, however, were looking at Xu Muchan and the person he was carrying on his back.
Xu Muchan clearly had no intention of explaining anything. Instead, he immediately dropped a bombshell.
“The flood tide is coming. The ghost realm is in the old city district. It’s best to notify everyone in the old city district to evacuate immediately.”
Everyone present immediately changed expression.
Jin Qingqing asked incredulously, “Are you sure?”
Xu Muchan nodded and was already heading toward the elevator with Wei Xilou on his back.
“I’m sure. Once the ghost realm collapses, the flood tide will spread into the real world. You need to move as quickly as possible.”
Jin Qingqing and the others immediately became serious and hurriedly notified the people at the research institute.
Evacuating everyone from the old city district while also preventing large-scale panic was not something the research institute could solve on its own. It required coordination from all sides.
While the others coordinated with various parties to prepare for the flood evacuation, Xu Muchan took Wei Xilou back to the hotel room.
He placed Wei Xilou on the bed.
His eyes were tightly closed and his expression was peaceful. He looked no different from someone who was asleep.
But no matter how Xu Muchan called him, he did not respond.
Xu Muchan remembered what had happened at the Wei family’s old residence.
Actually, after he lost consciousness, he had still retained a vague trace of awareness. It was just that his entire body had felt as though it were submerged in thick, viscous water. He could not make a sound or move.
He vaguely knew that it was Brother who had sent him back.
But if he had returned, then what about Brother?
Had he remained at the Wei family’s old residence?
Or was he still inside the tree hollow?
Xu Muchan frowned, unable to find an answer for the moment.
At that moment, the phone in his backpack began ringing violently.
His thoughts were interrupted. He took out the phone and saw that He Yunyi was calling.
He Yunyi had clearly already heard the news from the others. Her tone was solemn as she confirmed with Xu Muchan once again.
“Is the flood tide really coming?”
Xu Muchan was exhausted and only answered with a quiet “Mm.”
There was a long silence on He Yunyi’s end before she said, “I’ll arrange for the people in the old city district to evacuate.”
After that, she hung up.
Xu Muchan settled Wei Xilou and then left the hotel room.
He saw that Jin Qingqing and the others were all extremely busy. Clearly, arranging the evacuation of all the residents in the old city district was no simple task.
It was not until nightfall that the endless phone calls finally began to die down.
Jiang Fang told Xu Muchan, “Everything’s arranged. We’re telling the public that there’s been a toxic gas leak nearby and notifying all the residents to evacuate overnight.”
“But it’ll probably take at least six hours to confirm that everyone has been evacuated. Is there enough time?”
Xu Muchan thought for a moment.
“Probably. The ghost realm should be able to hold out for a while longer. And I plan to go back in and take another look.”
Yan He looked surprised.
“You’re going back into the ghost realm?”
Xu Muchan did not answer directly. He simply said, “Let’s go take a look at the old city district first. There should already be some changes by now.”
It was already night.
After receiving the evacuation notice, the old city district was urgently evacuating its residents. Police cars and armed paramilitary police were everywhere.
Many residents who had received the notice without warning hurried downstairs in their pajamas, following the staff outside with confused and panicked expressions.
The vehicle carrying Xu Muchan and the others drove in the opposite direction amid the evacuation, standing out conspicuously.
After showing their identification, they were permitted to enter the cordoned-off area.
Some workers who did not understand what was happening watched their figures and frowned as they asked the others, “What are these young people doing? Everyone is evacuating right now. Why are they going inside?”
The others shook their heads and simply looked at the group strangely.
By this point, Yan He and the others no longer had the time to care about the ordinary people’s gazes.
They looked up at the enormous tree that blotted out the sky, their faces filled with shock—even fear.
The flood tide was approaching, and the ghost realm was clearly on the verge of collapse.
The enormous Wish-Fulfilling Tree had finally revealed itself in the real world as well.
Black river water poured out from the tree hollow above.
Its enormous branches stretched in every direction, blotting out the sky. Corpses with hideous faces hung from the branches, all of them emitting shrill wails together, like a mournful dirge heralding the end of the world.