Ghost Realm
The Ghost Realm is the home of almost all dead humans, and far less organized and bureaucratic than the Heavenly Realm. Ghosts may leave or be trapped away from the Ghost Realm under some circumstances, which causes major problems for ordinary humans and gods alike.
Ghost City
The largest city in the Ghost Realm, founded and ruled by Hua Cheng. It is a dazzling den of vice, sin, and all things wicked, which makes it the number one spot for visitors from all three realms to shop for nefarious goods and cavort under the glow of the blood-red lanterns.
The city’s infamous Gambler’s Den beckons the foolish, the greedy, and the desperate, and bids them to bet it all on a roll of the dice for the chance to win riches beyond belief, glory beyond comprehension, and the granting of wishes most unspeakable. But such prizes require more than just gold to be put on the table… Guests are expected to offer up something of equal value to the prize they seek, and such bets quickly grow deadly. The house always wins in the end, after all.
Hua Cheng is rarely present in the city and does not often make public appearances. On the occasion he is in the mood to do so, he is met with considerable adoration; clearly, Ghost City’s citizens love their Chengzhu and respect him immensely.
Paradise Manor
Hua Cheng’s residence within Ghost City is the secluded Paradise Manor （极乐坊 / Jile Fang）， which has never seen guests—until Xie Lian came to call, of course. “Jile” is the Chinese term for the Buddhist realm of paradise, also known as the “Land of Ultimate Bliss.” It is a contextual innuendo for sex/orgasm. Thus, visitors to Ghost City cannot be blamed for assuming it is a brothel rather than the residence of the city’s owner.
Qi Rong’s Lair
Deep within a dark, dismal network of caves lurks the Green Ghost Qi Rong, and from this lair he plots nefarious deeds with his army of little green ghost minions. Deeds plotted include, but are not limited to: launching attacks on Ghost City and failing miserably, ambushing travelers and getting beaten up when they happen to pick targets who can fight back, and abducting helpless peasants from surrounding villages to satisfy Qi Rong’s ravenous appetite for human flesh.
Unfortunately, Qi Rong’s minions are surprisingly competent at food gathering. The cave network is filled with victims both alive and dead, with “preserves” salted and hung to dry from the cave’s ceiling like meat in a butcher’s pantry. Luckily, Xie Lian and Hua Cheng crashed his most recent dinner party and set free his captured victims while Qi Rong found himself being made into soup stock.
Other/Unknown
Mount Tonglu
铜炉山 “COPPER KILN MOUNTAIN”
Mount Tonglu is a volcano and the location of the City of Gu. Every few hundred years, tens of thousands of ghosts descend upon the city for a massive battle royale. Only two ghosts have ever survived the slaughter and made it out—one of those two was Hua Cheng.
Name Guide
Names, Honorifics, & Titles
Diminutives, Nicknames, and Name Tags
-ER: A word for “son” or “child.” Added to a name, it expresses affection. Similar to calling someone “Little” or “Sonny.”
A-: Friendly diminutive. Always a prefix. Usually for monosyllabic names, or one syllable out of a two-syllable name.
XIAO-: A diminutive meaning “little.” Always a prefix.
Doubling a syllable of a person’s name can be a nickname, and has childish or cutesy connotations.
Family DIDI: Younger brother or a younger male friend. Casual.
GE: Familiar way to refer to an older brother or older male friend, used by someone substantially younger or of lower status. Can be used alone or with the person’s name.
GEGE: Familiar way to refer to an older brother or an older male friend, used by someone substantially younger or of lower status. Has a cutesier feel than “ge.”
JIEJIE: Familiar way to refer to an older sister or an older female friend, used by someone substantially younger or of lower status. Has a cutesier feel than “jie,” and rarely used by older males.
MEIMEI: Younger sister or an unrelated younger female friend. Casual.
XIONG: Older brother. Generally used as an honorific. Formal, but also used informally between male friends of equal status.
YIFU: Maternal uncle, respectful address.
YIMU: Maternal aunt, respectful address.
Cultivation, Martial Arts, and Immortals DAOZHANG: A polite address for Daoist cultivators, equivalent to “Mr. Cultivator.” Can be used alone as a title or attached to someone’s family name—for example, one could refer to Xie Lian as “Daozhang” or “Xie Daozhang.”