“Run!”
Bang, bang, bang—the cold pool erupted. The white-haired woman’s long hair cascaded like a waterfall as a chilling wind howled. A shrill shriek, like that of a night owl, pierced the air. Her face was as pale as paper, and when she turned her gaze back, her eyes had transformed into a pair of terrifying, lifeless whites, with two streams of Black Blood trickling from the corners.
“A ghost!” Dou Man screamed in terror, while Wu Xiaotian trembled uncontrollably, both shaking like sieves.
Even Cheng Jun, who usually didn’t believe in ghosts or gods, felt his heart pound with fear and panic in that moment.
“Follow me!” At that moment, a dark figure appeared.
Cheng Jun felt he had seen this person somewhere before, unsure whether they were friend or foe. But there was no time to dwell on it now. Grabbing Wu and Dou, he followed the black-clad figure in a frantic escape.
“Don’t go with him!” The white-clad woman reached out toward the three and suddenly shouted, as if trying to stop them.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—the eerie wind whistled as the white-clad woman’s afterimage flashed by. Moving like a ghost, she soared above them in an instant.
In that split second, Cheng Jun felt waves of chilling wind assault him. Looking up, he saw the white-haired woman’s face, deathly pale and rigid, extending a pair of white claws toward them. The scene was eerily reminiscent of the “White Bone Demoness” from movies.
“Run!” The black-clad figure ahead urged them, his voice filled with alarm.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—the white-clad woman descended swiftly, her white claws leaving several skeletal afterimages in the air, but she missed her target.
Cheng Jun had been famous for his hurdling skills back in school. Summoning all his strength, he lifted Dou and Wu and leaped several meters into the air, narrowly dodging the white-clad woman’s claws. However, the hefty Wu Xiaotian was too heavy, and Cheng Jun’s grip faltered, causing all three to crash heavily to the ground.
Wu Xiaotian landed last. The white-clad woman, having missed her first strike, struck again instantly, grabbing the chubby boy and lifting him before her.
“Oh god!” Fat people tend to be timid, and with the white-clad woman’s rigid, pale face and lifeless white eyes streaming Black Blood mere inches from his own, Wu Xiaotian was struck speechless and lost control, his face ashen. “You… you…”
“Wu Xiaotian!” Dou Man screamed.
Holding Wu Xiaotian aloft, the white-clad woman floated mid-air, her lifeless eyes rotating as if studying him curiously. She sniffed the air near his face and exclaimed in surprise, “You’re not human?”
“Hahaha…” The white-haired woman threw her head back with a mournful laugh and tossed Wu Xiaotian aside. “Not human, haha, you’re not human!”
“A Yan Corpse appears, and now a descendant of the Nine Witches…” The white-clad woman’s expression shifted dramatically, as if she had gone mad. Her white hair whipped wildly, and a cold gleam shot from her lifeless eyes as she turned toward Cheng Jun. “Where do you think you’re going!”
Both Cheng Jun and Dou Man felt an icy killing intent lock onto them. Not daring to hesitate for even a moment, Cheng Jun tightened his grip on Dou Man and leaped several meters away. But the white-clad woman moved like a ghost, her speed far surpassing Cheng Jun’s.
In the blink of an eye, she was already above them. Cheng Jun felt almost hopeless. Yet, as long as he was alive, there was still a chance. He took several more strides.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—the white-clad woman’s chilling aura rode the wind, unyielding. No matter how desperately Cheng Jun leaped, he couldn’t escape her grasp.
Just as despair set in, he looked up and realized the white-clad woman had soared past them, heading straight for the black-clad figure.
He froze in sudden realization. “Could it be that her target isn’t us, but that black-clad figure?”
The black-clad figure was equally swift, effortlessly evading the white-clad woman’s assault.
“Cheng Jun, head in this direction to get out!” The black-clad figure suddenly stopped, pointing a way out for Cheng Jun. “You go first, I’ll draw the white-haired female ghost away! Wait for me at the firewood alley entrance!”
“Alright! Lin Feng, is that you?” At this moment, Cheng Jun could strongly sense that this person was likely Lin Feng.
“Mhm! Run!” The black-clad figure nodded at Cheng Jun, then swiftly darted off in another direction like a shadow in the wind.
The white-haired woman moved like a wisp of white mist riding the wind, her speed even faster than Lin Feng’s. Her white-clad afterimage flickered like a phantom, closing in on Lin Feng within less than five meters in an instant. Lin Feng, too, tapped his foot and sped away like a fleeting shadow.
“I’ll see where you escape to this time!” the white-haired woman uttered coldly, her long white hair cascading out like a waterfall.
Concerned for Lin Feng’s life, Cheng Jun took a few leaps with Dou Man and Wu Xiaotian but couldn’t help glancing back. He saw the white-haired woman’s hair rapidly lengthening, reaching toward Lin Feng’s back in the blink of an eye. Startled, he cried out, “Lin Feng, watch out!”
“Don’t worry about me, just run!” Lin Feng struck out with a palm, but it was clearly insufficient. The white-haired woman clawed out, leaving several gashes on Lin Feng’s body.
“Lin Feng!”
“If you don’t want me to die, don’t distract me. Go now!” Lin Feng grunted, suddenly dispersing like a wisp of black smoke, narrowly evading the white-haired woman’s fatal strike.
Watching from a distance, Cheng Jun felt his heart pound with fear. The white-haired woman’s speed and offensive power were almost comparable to that of the “White-Bone Demoness.”
“Cheng Jun, why aren’t you leaving? Do you want me to die here?” Seeing Cheng Jun still lingering, Lin Feng shouted sharply.
“Lin Feng!” Cheng Jun’s expression turned grave. He never imagined that after fifteen years apart, their reunion would involve Lin Feng risking his life to protect him. But with his current mortal body, staying would only burden Lin Feng.
He estimated that if they left, Lin Feng might have a better chance of escaping on his own.
“Take care of yourself!” Cheng Jun sprinted away.
But after just a few leaps, he heard Lin Feng scream in agony. The white-haired woman’s hair surged, wrapping around Lin Feng. With a swift motion, she extended her terrifying white claws, their sharp, elongated nails aimed at Lin Feng’s throat.
Just as Lin Feng was about to meet his end under those white claws, several eerie green flames shot out, blocking the white-haired woman’s deadly strike. A dark hemp robe fluttered over like a shroud of death, enveloping the white-haired woman.
The white-haired woman retreated hastily, clearly wary of that black robe.
Though Cheng Jun could only make out a shadowy figure floating in the distance, the reappearance of this dark hemp robe was no coincidence. Could it be the witch doctor Huang Si Po?
As he puzzled over this, he faintly heard the white-haired woman utter, “Black Robe! So it is you!”
“Black Robe again? Who exactly is Black Robe?” Hearing the name “Black Robe” once more, Cheng Jun’s heart skipped a beat.
From afar, he saw another figure emerge beneath the dark hemp robe. “You go first!”
Lin Feng nodded at the figure and turned to leave. “Cheng Jun, wait for me at the firewood alley!”
“Alright!” Though filled with questions, Cheng Jun had no time to dwell on them. He hurried away with Dou and Wu.
By the faint light of a flashlight, they finally left that area behind.
Although Yidu Street was only about two li long from end to end, it had many small side alleys and lanes. After walking up a slope, they reached another small side path leading to Firewood Alley. Emerging from this side path, the three found themselves on the main street of Yidu. Just a short distance ahead was another entrance to Firewood Alley.
“Cheng Jun should be in Firewood Alley by now!” Lin Feng glanced back at the other two.
At that moment, suddenly, a series of terrifying cries—”Aow, aow…”—drifted down from the sky, chilling to the bone.
Dou Man immediately grabbed Cheng Jun, stopping him from going further. “That’s the sound of a living soul!”
“What? The sound of a living soul?” Wu Xiaotian also halted, too afraid to move forward.
“Stop talking nonsense! Lin Feng is waiting for us ahead! Let’s go!” Cheng Jun dismissed the idea.
“I once opened an audio file on a forum—it was exactly this kind of sound! I swear it’s true! My third uncle even saw my sixth grandfather’s living soul with his own eyes…”
“Stop it, it’s too scary. Let’s retreat!” Wu Xiaotian took a step back, ready to run at any moment.
“Retreat my foot! Let’s go! You’re getting all jumpy over a sound. I don’t want to stand him up again!” Cheng Jun pressed forward.
Suddenly, several faint, indistinct figures floated past. They moved too quickly to avoid, sweeping through like a gust of cold wind right in front of them.
Even Cheng Jun felt goosebumps rising all over his body, one layer after another. In that moment, he felt a chill deep in his bones, and cold sweat drenched his clothes.
Wu Xiaotian’s legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground. “Oh my god, what was that just now?”
Dou Man instinctively grabbed Cheng Jun’s hand tightly, her lips trembling violently. “I swear, what just passed by were definitely living souls! Though they were blurry, I recognized one of them—I definitely saw him on the way here. Just now… just now, it was his living soul. Ah~ This person won’t survive… ah, ah, he’s going to die soon…”
Though he was also badly frightened, Cheng Jun knew he had to comfort Dou Man at this moment, or else this little troublemaker might lose her mind.
He tried to stroke her forehead, but the moment his hand touched it, he was startled. “Why is it so cold?” he thought to himself.
“Probably caught a chill,” Cheng Jun reassured himself inwardly, while comforting Dou and Wu aloud: “Don’t panic. It was just a gust of cold wind—an illusion!”
“It passed right through us! How… how can it still be an illusion?” Wu Xiaotian trembled all over.
“Ah~” Dou Man suddenly let out a sharp scream, piercing the silence of the night.