That night.
The low-hanging wind stirred the treetops, the moonlight hiding behind clouds.
“Two eyeless ghosts… two underworld ghosts… one headless ghost…”
At the secluded foot of a temple mountain, a young man in Daoist robes muttered and counted as he went, holding a red cord strung with countless talisman papers.
On the other end of the cord were five or six little ghosts, their grayish faces and tiny bodies bound tightly by the cord, unable to move.
The young man tugged the cord, and the row of ghosts swayed in the air like floating seaweed.
Counting the last ghost, he exhaled in frustration, “Why do they all look the same again…”
Again and again, just the same little ghosts, no novelty, nothing extraordinary. Even a mediocre Taoist could have captured these ghosts easily.
At this rate, how long would it take him to make a name for himself in the Feng Shui world?
The young Feng Shui master Wei Zhe, dressed in Daoist robes, trudged along the mountain foot dragging the line of little ghosts behind him.
Although young, he had natural Yin-Yang eyes, could read divinations at five, draw talismans at seven, and was hailed by his family as heaven’s chosen.
Yet luck was not on his side. Half a year after graduation, he had yet to solve any remarkable cases or capture a formidable ghost.
Wei Zhe sighed, frustrated. He had almost dug up the entire city searching for misbehaving ghosts, only to find little to show for it.
Daily, he dealt with minor, insignificant spirits, risking ridicule from the Feng Shui community that the Wei family’s master had failed to train a competent successor.
Frustrated, he tugged at the cord, glaring, interrogating the little ghosts to see if they knew of any powerful evil spirits. If they answered correctly, he promised them a chance for a ritual of exorcism and release.
The little ghosts shivered, trembling for a long while, but could not give a coherent answer.
Just as Wei Zhe felt discouraged, a trembling eyeless ghost said, “In Jin City… there seems to be a fearsome evil ghost…”
“They say it’s incredibly powerful, even ordinary malevolent ghosts avoid its house at night. That evil ghost goes there every night…”
“Not only that, it supposedly has nineteen wives, each able to taste its fiery essence…”
Wei Zhe hesitated, half-doubting, “Really?”
Other little ghosts, shivering, stammered, “It’s true… the little ghosts in Jin City say that any ordinary ghost who enters that house never returns…”
“That evil ghost goes there every night, you can see how dangerous it is…”
Wei Zhe’s eyes gleamed with excitement. He tugged the red cord, hurriedly ascending the temple mountain, gathering his bags.
Tickets were sold out; anxious, he bought the earliest standing ticket, afraid misfortune would strike again and the ghost would be captured by other Taoist masters.
Jin City Cemetery.
Mu Bai sneezed loudly.
The water ghost beside him lifted its head, expressionless, “What’s wrong?”
Mu Bai shook his head, muttering, “Nothing… just a sudden chill in my head.”
The water ghost remained expressionless, “They say the Feng Shui in that house is terrible. The air there is unlucky too.”
Mu Bai: “….”
He held up a painting, pretending not to hear, “Look at this. The Commander Zhao Huaisheng of Tongzhou… does it ring a bell?”
From time to time, they would visit the ghost market, hoping to find relics or paintings of people from hundreds of years ago, searching for any scraps of information about themselves.
The water ghost looked at the painting, studied the figure, and shook its head. “No impression.”
Mu Bai sat cross-legged among a pile of paintings, pulling out another. “What about this one? Governor Yin of Jeju… familiar?”
The water ghost shook its head again, expressionless. “No impression.”
It always felt like he had been a butcher in a past life, illiterate but strong. A little ghost like this would make more sense as an official.
Yet, despite searching through countless paintings and ancient texts, there were very few with the surname Mu, and those with the character “Bai” in their name were rare.
Mu Bai put down the painting and muttered, “Could it really be a butcher…”
The water ghost spotted an old painting and pulled it out. Suddenly, he raised it, comparing it with the little ghost in front of Mu Bai.
Mu Bai leaned in, curious, “What do you see?”
The water ghost hesitated, then excitedly said, “This… this seems a bit like you.”
The person in the painting had subtle features resembling the little ghost in front of them, only noticeable on careful inspection.
Mu Bai’s eyes widened. He examined the painting closely and realized that the inscription had been made during the reign of the emperor after the Qian Dynasty, and the person depicted was naturally an emperor.
“….”
The illiterate water ghost nodded repeatedly, unable to contain his excitement, “It really does look a bit alike… the status is high too! Look at the inscription, what does it say? Who is this person?”
The little ghost, silent, muttered, “It’s an emperor.”
The water ghost froze.
He quietly put down the painting and flipped to another scroll.
Not only did the death dates not match, but when the two ghosts first recognized each other, they were both destitute. They could never have been emperors.
The two little ghosts spent most of the night comparing all the paintings they had collected, but they found nothing useful.
The little ghost slumped in the cemetery. After a long while, as if recalling something, he tapped his head, realizing he had forgotten to “press” someone.
The water ghost tidied up the scattered paintings on the floor, expressionless as ever. “No need to rush, one less day doesn’t matter.”
Mu Bai thought about it and felt it made sense. He got up, intending to help the water ghost organize the paintings, but the ghost moved with such practiced efficiency that, in a few quick motions, all the paintings were neatly arranged.
Mu Bai didn’t even get a chance to help. So he lay back down, thinking he could always go tomorrow.
Meanwhile, in another villa, the wind chimes swayed as someone had been playing with them for quite a while.
It was ten o’clock at night.
The wind chimes hanging by the bedroom window rang clearly each time they were touched.
Yan He, dressed in his pajamas, frowned slightly. Yet he saw no trace of the little ghost.
Usually, even the most playful little ghosts didn’t stray far from the villa. He could sense the spiritual aura that always accompanied the little ghost, but tonight, it was gone.
It only proved that the little ghost hadn’t come tonight. Where could he have gone?
Yan He slowly withdrew his hand, walked toward the light gray bed, and sat there, waiting for a while. Still, there was no sign of the little ghost.
The next morning.
Yan He, fully dressed, drove past the entrance of a residential complex, glancing at a young man with a bundle by the roadside.
The young man couldn’t enter the complex, so he squatted at the gate, holding a steamed bun and mumbling something under his breath.
A black Maybach sped past him.
Mu Bai twitched his nose, looked up, and found the street empty. He felt something had passed earlier, emanating a strong spiritual aura.
Yet under the broad daylight sky, there was no sign of any evil ghost.
He swallowed the bun, feeling disheartened as he stared at the opulent, grand entrance of the residential complex.
He had rushed to Jin City at midnight, heading to the house that even evil ghosts supposedly avoided but couldn’t even get through the gate.
He waited outside the complex all night. The evil ghost, said to have nineteen wives, never appeared.
Wei Zhe sighed at his misfortune.
Yet, as his master had said, “There’s no ghost you cannot find, only masters who are not diligent.”
He gnawed another bite of the bun, clutching his bundle, and continued staking out the gate.
It was just past seven in the evening.
Night fell, the horizon swallowed the last traces of light, and street lamps along the road lit up one by one.
Mu Bai floated in midair, always cautious, never straying openly along the streets, preferring the corners and shadows.
The wealthy masters of Taoism used the main gates, disdainful of corners and alleys.
As usual, the little ghost slipped in from a southeastern corner. When he looked up, he saw a young man crouched on the ground, clutching a bundle, preparing to slip through a hole.
For a moment, man and ghost locked eyes.
The young man, ears red from surprise, glared at the little ghost. “What are you staring at? Look again and I’ll catch you!”
Mu Bai, startled, stepped back two paces.
The young man pulled two talisman papers from his bundle, brandishing them fiercely. “Aren’t you going to leave?”
The little ghost turned and dashed.
In less than two seconds, a red cord wrapped tightly around him, forcibly pulling him back.
Wei Zhe had bound the little ghost before him. He crouched on the ground, observing the clean, pretty, and terrified ghost with surprise, noticing no signs of previous violent deaths.
He muttered, “You little ghost… you’re kind of good-looking…”
Wei Zhe intended to ask when nearby evil ghosts would appear at the house, but in an instant, he recalled what the other little ghosts had said about the evil ghost’s appearance:
“That evil ghost looks different from the others, fair and clean. They say all nineteen wives adore it endlessly.”
The next moment, Wei Zhe quickly pulled a binding talisman from his pocket and pressed it forcefully against the little ghost’s head.
The little ghost’s head buzzed from the talisman, “…”
Before he could struggle, Wei Zhe pulled out all the talismans from his pocket and carefully lined the thin red cord with them.
When the wind blew, countless talismans fluttered, binding even a centuries-old evil ghost completely.
Excited, Wei Zhe jumped up: “So it is you! Still pretending to be a little ghost.”
A strategy of “playing harmless to strike fiercely,” huh?
His master had said that the gentlest looking ghosts are the most dangerous.
Other third-rate Taoists might have been fooled, but Wei Zhe would not be careless. This time, he even used his secret treasure.
Grinning, he circled the evil ghost, immediately sensing the life force it consumed.
Thrilled, he crouched, rummaging through his bundle, and pulled out a small doll doll.
As a Feng Shui family of long lineage, the Wei family had stored countless treasures.
This doll could seal an evil ghost inside, letting it sense, hear, move, and crawl but completely powerless.
Wei Zhe set the items from his bundle into a formation, performed hand seals, and focused, successfully sealing the evil ghost into the doll doll.
Mu Bai, frozen midair, felt a spinning dizziness. When he opened his eyes again, his limbs were stiff, bound as if by invisible ropes.
Wei Zhe happily hung the doll on a keychain and looped it around his finger.
He planned to report back to the Feng Shui world that he had captured an evil ghost feared by all ghosts, while also notifying the owner of the house the ghost had haunted nightly.
The house was owned by extremely wealthy and influential people. Learning that Wei Zhe had captured the ghost that fed on their life force every night would surely earn him favors and recognition.
Grinning, Wei Zhe watched the doll sway in his fingers.
The little ghost trapped inside felt utterly helpless, thinking his mother had been right, sneaking out to play instead of studying would eventually lead to big trouble.
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ChaptersChapter 1 · New TargetChapter 2 · Pervert Little Ghost?Chapter 3 · Little one is MischievousChapter 4 · New MountChapter 5 · Fake Master?Chapter 6 · Blanket StolenChapter 7 · A presentChapter 8 · Rhino HornChapter 9 · Clinging like body PillowChapter 9 · Meeting Old FriendChapter 11 · Just like ChildChapter 12 · New AddictionsChapter 13 · Jinxed StarChapter 14 · Creeping out the old IdiotChapter 14 · Creeping out the old IdiotChapter 15 · New Set of ClothesChapter 16 · Big Wife, Little WifeChapter 17 · Chapter SE 17: Raising as A SonChapter 18 · Another Ghost?!Chapter 19 · Scared away the Evil ghostChapter 20 · NingNing’s SoulChapter 20 · Chapter SE 20: NingNing’s SoulChapter 21 · Green TeaChapter 22 · VisitChapter 23 · Turned into DollChapter 24 · Reunited with Yan HeChapter 25 · I’m UglyChapter 26 · I will stomp youChapter 27 · Ghost AgainChapter 28 · Looking for new HostChapter 29 · Just a BiteChapter 30 · Chapter SE 30: BurnChapter 31 · Trapped Again!Chapter 32 · Call me Lord Official….Chapter 33 · I devote myself to you completely…Chapter 34 · Husband or son?Chapter 35 · Ghost sleep during Day time….Chapter 36 · You could buy more than four thousand sticksChapter 37 · Gu TingChapter 38 · Looks familiarChapter 39 · You’re sleeping with my ancestor?!Chapter 40 · Great great great great GrandsonChapter 41 · We can afford itChapter 42 · HotpotChapter 43 · New StoryChapter 44 · Past Memories…Chapter 45 · Kidnapping Ancestor!Chapter 46 · Copy Buddhist scripturesChapter 47 · Ancestor Flew away…Chapter 48 · Xiao He might not be spending his birthday aloneChapter 49 · May everything go as you wishChapter 50 · I lied…Chapter 51 · Young Master turned into half humanChapter 52 · LettersChapter 53 · Lord OxChapter 54 · Male… destined love???Chapter 55 · A kindred spiritChapter 56 · Chapter SE 56: I like YouChapter 57 · Yan ZhangChapter 58 · Is two hours a bit too short?Chapter 59 · Going down the middle is indeed the correct choiceChapter 60 · Excel spreadsheetsChapter 61 · He had forgotten to tell A’Sheng.Chapter 62 · The person he disliked most had become the young mistress?Chapter 63 · Rip him to shredsChapter 64 · I was wrongChapter 65 · Lord Mu is very happyChapter 66 · I’m about to get marriedChapter 67 · I want to go on a date with youChapter 68 · You’d probably overturn the entire underworldChapter 69 · Head tableChapter 70 · It was meChapter 71 · Junior King of HellChapter 72 · His wife is a little ghost who lies on the bedChapter 73 · Chen LanChapter 74 · Sister in LawChapter 75 · Chapter SE 75: Pick up my boyfriend from workChapter 75 · Extra 1Chapter 76 · Can you still talkChapter 77 · Extra 2Chapter 77 · Aren’t you going to ask about yourselfChapter 77 · Extra 3Chapter 78 · How many ordinary little spirits dare fall in love with the Yan King?Chapter 78 · Extra 4Chapter 79 · I never realized that the bird man’s status was so high… Yan KingChapter 79 · Extra 5Chapter 80 · I’ve ridden on the little Yan King’s headChapter 80 · Extra 6Chapter 81 · Is… this very important?Chapter 81 · Extra 7Chapter 82 · Young master… will you marry me?Chapter 82 · Extra 8Chapter 83 · He’s just a stubborn little old manChapter 84 · End of Main StoryChapter 93 · Extra 9Chapter 94 · Extra 10