Yuchi Mengxing had only decided to clean up Ghost Manor because she had been unbearably bored these past few days.
At first, she had been surprisingly patient.
Since she had nothing better to do anyway, she figured she might as well make the enormous haunted residence look a little more presentable.
So she grabbed a broom and started sweeping.
Unfortunately, the heavens seemed determined to make things difficult for her.
The moment she finished clearing away a large patch of dried leaves, a powerful gust of wind came roaring through the courtyard.
Whoosh—!
The ground she had just cleaned was instantly covered in leaves again.
At first, Yuchi Mengxing didn’t complain.
She lowered her head and kept sweeping.
Again.
And again.
And again.
But there was a limit to anyone’s patience.
She had been sweeping the same place for two whole hours!
How was she supposed to stay calm?!
She wasn’t a monk!
And she certainly wasn’t some legendary old sweeping master who could spend his entire life peacefully holding a broom!
Finally, Yuchi Mengxing snapped.
“Ahhh—damn you, heavens!
If you’re going to do this, why can’t you just blow every last tree down and be done with it?!” BOOM—!
The heavens answered without mercy.
A thunderclap exploded overhead, so loud that Yuchi Mengxing’s hair practically stood on end.
The wandering ghosts hiding in the distance had originally been watching her sweep all day, secretly laughing among themselves.
But the instant the thunder struck, every last one of them curled into a trembling ball.
If they could have erased their own existence on the spot, they probably would have done it.
Unfortunately…
Yuchi Mengxing wasn’t doing much better.
She immediately lost her nerve.
After all— the Heavenly Dao was the boss here!
She might have a sharp tongue, but she wasn’t stupid.
She was only a twelve-year-old girl.
If she really insisted on challenging the heavens, she had a feeling she’d be turned into a pile of ash before she could finish her next insult.
If she couldn’t afford to offend it, couldn’t she at least avoid it?
With that thought, Yuchi Mengxing casually tossed the broom over her shoulder.
She was done!
No more sweeping!
This place was called Ghost Manor anyway.
Overgrown weeds, piles of dried leaves, gloomy courtyards…
Wasn’t that exactly the atmosphere a haunted residence was supposed to have?
No matter how much she cleaned, the weeds would grow back and the leaves would fall again.
Why torture herself?
Yuchi Mengxing pursed her lips and comforted herself, “Hmph.
As long as the area around where I live is clean and comfortable, that’s enough.
Nobody else dares to come here anyway.
Who cares if the rest is messy?” The ghosts hiding nearby exchanged glances.
That…
actually made sense.
“Boss!” A transparent figure suddenly floated toward her.
The ghost wore an excessively flattering smile, though on a translucent face, the expression looked more creepy than friendly.
“Why don’t we go play in the inner region of the mountain?
You’ve already explored practically every corner of the outer region.
It’s about time you challenged the inner region!” “The inner region?” Yuchi Mengxing paused.
Her eyes flickered.
That sounded…
interesting.
“Yes!” another ghost immediately floated over, apparently equally eager to court death.
“I heard divine beasts sometimes appear in the inner region!” It leaned closer excitedly.
“Boss, just imagine!
If you manage to tame a divine beast, wouldn’t you be invincible?!” “Divine beast?!” Yuchi Mengxing’s eyes instantly lit up.
All thoughts of sweeping, thunder, and the Heavenly Dao vanished from her mind.
A divine beast!
She had seen plenty of strange creatures over the years, but she had never actually managed to get her hands on a genuine divine beast.
If she could really tame one…
Wouldn’t she be able to walk sideways through this world from then on?
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became.
“Good idea!” Without another moment of hesitation, she tossed the broom aside, rushed toward the courtyard wall, and flipped over it with practiced ease.
Then she sprinted straight toward the mountain behind Ghost Manor.
Halfway there, she suddenly remembered something.
“Nanny!” Her voice rang loudly across the manor.
“I’m going to the mountain to cultivate!
Don’t wait for me for dinner today!” Inside the house, her wet nurse immediately put down the needlework in her hands.
She hurried to the doorway.
“When will you be back?” Yuchi Mengxing was already far away.
“I don’t know!” Her distant voice floated back on the wind.
“Maybe ten days!
Maybe half a month!” The wet nurse stared at the small figure rapidly disappearing into the distance.
“…” Half a month?
And she said it as casually as though she were going next door.
The woman shook her head helplessly and sighed.
There was no stopping that child once she had made up her mind.
Eventually, she turned around and went back inside.
Sitting down again, she picked up the small piece of clothing she had been mending and continued stitching carefully, one thread at a time.
But after a moment, her gaze slowly lowered.
There, embedded against her wrist, rested an unusual bead.
It was round and smooth, glowing with a deep orange-red color.
The wet nurse stared at it quietly.
Her expression gradually softened.
“Master,” she murmured, her voice carrying both tenderness and worry, “the young mistress is becoming more and more like you.” She lowered her eyes with a helpless smile.
“She can never stay still…” As if responding to her words— the mysterious orange-red bead suddenly flickered.
A soft, warm glow spread from it.
It lasted only a moment.
Yet the effect on the surrounding ghosts was immediate.
Every wandering spirit nearby froze.
Then— they began trembling.
Violently.
They looked even more terrified than they had when the thunder exploded from the heavens earlier.
One by one, the ghosts shrank into themselves, desperately wishing they could vanish from existence.
Unfortunately, wanting to run and actually daring to run were two completely different things.
Not one of them moved.
They simply huddled together, shaking uncontrollably, their terrified eyes fixed on the glowing orange-red bead.
No one spoke.
Yet somehow, every ghost shared exactly the same thought.
From now on— stay as far away from Nanny as possible!
The farther, the better!
Never float too close.
Never get curious.
And definitely never provoke her!
Otherwise…
if that terrifying bead lit up one more time— who knew what would happen to them?
Maybe it would suck them all inside.
Maybe it would destroy them.
Or worse…
perhaps it would capture them and turn them into little ghost lanterns!
The ghosts shuddered simultaneously.
No.
Absolutely not.
From this day forward, Ghost Manor had gained another unspoken rule.
Yuchi Mengxing was terrifying.
But her nanny?
Stay away from her at all costs.