d quite a bit from Emperor Jun," they said. “If one side isn't enough, let’s make it four!”"Hold on a moment, both of you. Let me perform a ritual to release their spirits first. These restless souls...This fox demon came to the human world with us. It hasn't fully adapted yet, and the most exaggerated thing is that when it first arrived at my house, it couldn't even control its shapeshifting size.

After all, the spiritual energy of the whole world is different. The spiritual energy in our world is chaotic and the aura is murky. It took a long time to adapt.

For the past eighteen years, I was a carefree idler, but ever since I met Mu Wanchen, I've become responsible for a whole bunch of things, including keeping this fox demon house servant in line. At least I have to make sure it doesn't scare my family and that the neighbors don't notice the constant dust clouds coming from our backyard.

Mu Wanchen regarded me, he didn't rush over first. In order not to disrupt the formation of the house, he also didn't immediately summon Gu spirits.

The smoke outside the gate dissipated, a cold wind howled, and light rain began to fall from the sky.

I stood behind the eaves of the house's main gate, looking out from beside Mu Wanchen.

The fox demon MuMu puffed up her fur, spreading her tail to block the entrance to the house. She crouched low to the ground, looking menacing and ready to pounce forward.

But all that lay before it was a swirling mass of dark mist, the entire environment desolate and forlorn. There weren't any demons or monsters to be seen.

“What did MuMu see” I asked softly.

Mu Wanchen shook his head, unsure. He walked out of the house and summoned the Soul-binding Spider. The Soul-binding Spider landed on his back and quickly crawled forward to investigate.

I couldn't contain my curiosity any longer, so I pushed open the door and peeked out, leaving it slightly ajar. I reached out and tugged on the fox demon's tail, peering through the gap.

In the distance, on the edge of a field shrouded in black mist, I seemed to see a pair of feet.

The lantern's glow was too faint to cast light further onto the ground.

This feeling, it's like seeing a pitch-black stage. A spotlight cuts through the darkness, but there's nothing on stage. Only at the edge, beneath the heavy curtains, do we see a pair of feet—so terrifying.

If this were in the past, I would definitely ask: Who's there!

But in this forsaken village of wandering spirits, you can't expect to bump into a normal person just anywhere. The odds of encountering a sane individual here are lower than the chances of a normal person getting haunted.

"......Seal the soul." Mu Wanchen suddenly spoke, "Don't get closer."

Feng Hun slammed on the brakes, crawling far away on the ground. I knew it wasn't stopping its movements, but spinning a web.

Using spider silk to bind those feet is a more secure way.

"Could it be someone possessed by a vengeful spirit Lately, this village has been left ungoverned and unmonitored. Ms. Xue is staying at my place, the old hag yokai has vanished who knows where, and these strange and wicked occurrences are running rampant" I whispered to Mu Wanchen.

Mú Wǎn Chén shook his head slightly: “It doesn’t seem like… a fox demon guarding the door, a monstrous and evil spirit wouldn’t be so bold… Perhaps it was the bell ringing in the house just now that summoned something…”

The sound of a bell in the house... what would it summon

I squinted, trying my hardest to make out the person's outline in the black mist, but could only see their lower legs and feet.

Dimly, the hems of the trousers seemed to be embroidered with flowers, and the shoes were also embroidered. I don't know what stain it had gotten on, but the patterns were all stained by black patches.

Embroidered shoes...

My mind suddenly recalled a scene from before, that hag-like old woman, my great-grandmother, who seemed to enjoy embroidery as a pastime

"Sigh, sigh, sigh, sigh..."

"What's wrong" Mu Wanchen jumped in fright and hurriedly grasped my hand.

"Could that be my grandmother!" My scalp went numb. This old woman's soul was trapped in the house, but her body was gone. Could she have heard the bell ringing inside and come back

What kind of sorcery is this, my God... My body just ran out there like a zombie. Don't let something possess you!

My scalp was tingling. Mu Wanchen understood what I said and squeezed my hand: "Come on, I'll accompany you to take a look. The soul-binding spiderweb is also ready."

The web was set, ready to trap the body at any moment. Soul-binding webs could be used to retrieve limbs, it would definitely hold that withered and emaciated old woman.

I was getting impatient and quickened my pace toward those legs— perhaps this is an inexplicable facet of human nature.

If a stranger saw such strange and terrifying things, they would be scared away long ago; but if it were their own kin, there would always be a feeling of reckless desperation, both fear and the desire to approach and rescue.

That's why this village exists.

“桀桀桀.” Several eerie sounds came, and Mu Wanchen pulled me into his arms, preventing me from moving forward.

"桀桀桀……as, as,如意……you're back…" The voice came from the shadowy figure whose legs were visible within the black mist.

May I help you

I was taken aback. My old man, that pedantic scholar with his goat's beard, didn't he just love addressing Ms. Xue with these two saccharine words

Xue Ruyi, the courtesy name of my proud and aloof mother.

I looked at Mu Wanchen, what should I do Should we act it out

Mu Wanchen lowered his eyes and looked at me, nodding almost imperceptibly.

I cleared my throat softly, preparing myself for perhaps Ms. Xue's haughty tone, but I was surprised to find that the "person" in the black mist was a chatterbox. Before I could even speak, the other party started talking to themselves.

"桀桀桀... Ruyi... It's been many years since I've seen you...桀桀桀... I slept for too long, and I forgot the time...桀桀桀..."

What kind of monster is this I could sense her aura starting to spread.

That extremely dangerous and violent aura spread out from the darkness, impossible to contain.

"Who are you" I blurted out.

"Have you forgotten me Kekeke... I slept for many years in the darkroom of the mansion... how many years You haven't changed much... Did I only sleep for a few years No no no..."

She continued to mutter to herself: “Impossible... I was severely injured... It’s impossible to recover so easily... For so many years, I've been recuperating... The other day, the old woman suddenly let me out... Kekeke... She lent me her house, so I could come out and take a look... This desolate and barren land is still so repulsive!”

I caught a hint of something. I asked, "You... are you recovering in my house A woman came here with some things a while back, probably trying to steal something important. Is it you..."

"Hehehe! I killed that big snake! Hehehe... Those who raise venomous insects love snakes the most. They are easy to obtain, easy to tame, highly venomous, strong-willed, and cruel... Hehehe... It's a pity that the women of the Xue family thought of it long ago. The old woman from the Xue family raised me since I was young to guard against snake venom."

Oh my, so that's it, it's... "human" itself!

"You, you are the old woman's Gu spirit! Where is the old woman" I asked anxiously.

"Human" she chuckled darkly. "Are you asking... about the living, or the dead"

"Is she dead!" I hurriedly asked.

"桀桀桀……I'm not, here"ightly tap, whispering: "Go, within five hundred li, return swiftly."For a Guiling that could travel with the wind, this distance wasn't too far nor too close. Mu Wanchen said it might take two hours...