Cold moonlight spilled over the broken, desolate Dingfu Alley, seeping a chilling mist from the cracks between the bricks.
Li Fang stood in the courtyard of the ruined house, his black robe rustling in the night wind.
The warmth of the burning talisman still lingered faintly in his palm.
Yet all around him was a silence so heavy it was suffocating.
Too quiet.
Even though the ghostly woman had been destroyed, the air was still thick with an indescribable stench of rot… and blood.
Li Fang crouched down to examine the traces left where the woman had vanished.
Scattered black powder littered the ground—
not quite ash, not quite dust—
and it gave off a faint, sinister aura.
He pinched a little between his fingers.
Instantly, the powder turned into a wisp of black smoke and shot into his skin.
The veins on the back of his hand swelled, dark violet patterns writhing across it.
Li Fang frowned deeply and quickly channeled his spiritual energy, forcing the sinister force back.
But his heart grew heavier.
—Ordinary vengeful spirits did not leave behind such pure, concentrated evil.
Something far deeper, far darker, was manipulating events behind the scenes.
He slowly rose to his feet, about to leave, when he suddenly heard a whisper near his ear:
"Save me… save me…"
The voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz—
yet piercingly clear, right at his side.
Li Fang whipped around.
In a dark corner by the courtyard wall, a shadow stirred.
He approached cautiously.
It was a figure, kneeling on the ground, covered in blood and filth.
The face was too blurred to make out.
Li Fang spoke in a low, steady voice:
"Who are you?"
The shadow slowly lifted its head.
A pair of empty, lifeless eyes stared straight at him.
The lips trembled and formed broken words:
"Master… Zhao… save us…"
Master Zhao?!
A jolt ran through Li Fang's heart.
Zhao Mingkui—
wasn't that the name of Laizhou's former City God?
Why would this spirit be calling for Zhao Mingkui?
Li Fang was about to question further, when—
The shadow let out a heart-wrenching scream.
Its body twisted violently, as if torn by an invisible force.
Bones cracked; blood and flesh sprayed the air—
and in a blink, the figure was ripped into dozens of pieces, melting into a pool of blood that soaked into the ground.
Li Fang's eyes widened.
His breath caught.
Someone had silenced the spirit.
Right before his eyes, without the slightest attempt at concealment, someone had wiped it out!
At that moment, Li Fang felt an overwhelming pressure descend upon him, like a giant invisible hand clutching at his heart.
Grinding his teeth, he turned and swiftly left Dingfu Alley.
——
Beyond the alley's mouth, the streets were still deserted, the night as black as ink.
From the distant bell tower came the slow, heavy toll of a bell.
Dooooong—
Li Fang turned back for a glance.
Deep inside the alley, the red lantern was now extinguished.
Only wisps of black smoke drifted out from the darkness, dissolving into the cold night air, merging with the shadows that cloaked all of Laizhou.
Silence returned.
As if nothing had ever happened.
But Li Fang knew all too well—
The danger had only just begun.
⸻
He hurried through the empty streets and returned to the ruined shrine.
Inside, the hall was dark.
The incense had long since burned out.
Only a few brittle sticks of ash stood crookedly on the altar.
Li Fang sat cross-legged once more, closing his eyes to calm his breath.
He extended his spiritual sense into the void, seeking the source of the black mist.
After a moment, a blurry, terrifying image surfaced in his mind:
An endless, bottomless pool of blood.
Floating in the center of the pool—
a vague human figure, bound tightly by countless black tendrils.
The figure's face was twisted, limbs broken, and yet at the center of its chest, a single character was faintly carved:
(Zhao)
Li Fang's eyes flew open, cold sweat pouring down his back.
Now he understood.
Zhao Mingkui had not been completely destroyed!
His shattered soul had been imprisoned in a hidden blood pool deep underground by some unknown, monstrous force.
Even more terrifying—
That evil entity was using the blood pool as a conduit to silently, steadily corrupt the whole city of Laizhou.
Li Fang stood up, his expression grim and dark.
He knew he had to act—immediately.
Otherwise, not just Dingfu Alley,
not just Laizhou,
but countless innocent lives would be dragged into an abyss of endless suffering!
But how could he find the location of the blood pool?
How could he free Zhao Mingkui's soul?
And what exactly was the being pulling the strings behind all this?
The questions tangled around him like a dense, suffocating mist.
After a moment of deep thought, Li Fang drew a small bronze mirror from his belt.
The mirror's surface was inscribed with strange, ancient runes and emitted a faint, bone-chilling cold.
This was the Soul-Revealing Mirror, a sacred tool granted by the Underworld.
It could unveil hidden ghosts and demonic traces in the mortal realm.
But the price—
Each use would consume a portion of the wielder's soul.
Without hesitation, Li Fang bit his fingertip.
A drop of blood fell onto the mirror.
"In my blood's name—show the hidden truth!"
The mirror's surface rippled like disturbed water.
Distorted, eerie images began to surface.
He saw it—
To the east of Laizhou, there was an abandoned ancient well.
Its rim was cracked, and wild grass grew unchecked around it.
It had been forgotten for years.
Beneath that well, a winding, narrow passage led deep underground—
and from its depths, the stench of the blood pool was seeping out.
Li Fang put away the Soul-Revealing Mirror.
A sharp gleam flashed across his eyes.
"The lair of corruption… shall be your grave."
Sweeping his sleeves behind him, he strode out of the shrine.
The night wind roared.
Dark clouds rolled overhead, thunder rumbling faintly—
as if heaven and earth themselves were holding their breath for the storm to come.
Alone, Li Fang stepped into the darkness.
Not far away, near the abandoned well in the east of the city,
a pair of cold, green eyes slowly opened within the tall grass—
silently watching his retreating figure.