Thus, the pair crouched on top of a burial mound and waited.
They weren’t in that position for very long when Shi Qingxuan reached into a sleeve, rummaged around, and dug out a small jug of liquor. “You want some?”
Xie Lian reached for the jug and took a sip, felt his throat burn, and then gave the jug back. “Thanks.”
Shi Qingxuan took the jug and gulped down a couple of swallows. “You can’t drink?”
“I can,” Xie Lian replied. “But excessive drinking causes insanity, so a simple taste is enough. What time is it?”
Shi Qingxuan hummed and replied, “It’s midnight.”
“Hm. It should be about time, then,” Xie Lian said.
Just as he finished his sentence, the two saw a faint row of lights appear deep in the woods.
That faint row of lights slowly came closer and closer. When it emerged from the forest, the two finally saw that it was a group of expressionless women dressed in white, walking in a line. Some were old, some were young, some beautiful, some ugly. Each of them was wearing funeral garb and had a white lantern in hand, walking at an easy pace.
They had to be female ghosts heading to the Ghost City markets in the deep night.
“Let’s follow them,” Xie Lian whispered.
Shi Qingxuan nodded, took a last swig from the jug, and tossed it aside. They then stood up and casually trailed behind the group of ghosts.
The two had already prepared by erasing their spiritual aura; when they walked, they were like person-shaped logs without the scent of life. The band of female ghosts before them held their white lanterns and followed an unknown path in the dark woods, strolling while chatting in delicate voices.
“I’m so glad Ghost City’s open again! I need a facial!” one said.
“What happened to your face? Didn’t you just get one?” another replied.
The first one responded, “It rotted again! Hahhh, the one who served me last time said it was guaranteed fresh for a year! But it hasn’t even been half that.”
Xie Lian and Shi Qingxuan trailed behind them, listening to their chatter, and didn’t speak a word. When they heard something funny, at most, their lips would twitch and they’d share looks with each other.
After about an hour, the group came to a valley.
A faint red light emitted from deep within it, and there was music wafting in the ethereal night. Xie Lian grew more and more curious to finally see for himself what Ghost City looked like. Yet unexpectedly, just as they were entering the valley, the last ghost in the line suddenly turned her head and discovered them.
Confused, she asked, “Who are you two?”
The question made all the ghastly pale-faced heads turn, and the women surrounded them, curious.
“When did they start following us? These two weren’t part of the group when we left the burial grounds.”
“Which burial ground did you come from? How come we’ve never seen your faces before?”
Xie Lian cleared his throat. “We…came from a burial ground much farther away, so of course you’ve never seen us.”
Shi Qingxuan smiled too. “That’s right! We’ve traveled a long way just to reach Ghost City.”
The white-clad female ghosts were silent and stared at them expressionlessly. If they were anyone else, they’d probably fall to the ground shivering in fright. Xie Lian wasn’t afraid of having their identities exposed, though. These meek female ghosts could hardly threaten them. Still, since Ghost City was right before their eyes, it wouldn’t be wise to start anything so close to their target, lest they alert their enemy.
Just then, one of the women staring at Shi Qingxuan spoke up languidly.
“Meimei, your face is very nicely maintained,” she said.
Xie Lian and Shi Qingxuan were taken aback. Then, the two immediately nodded uniformly.
Xie Lian replied, “It’s all right, not bad.”
Shi Qingxuan copied his tone and said, “Pretty good, right?”
All the female ghosts then approached and started a discussion.
“Yeah, not rotten at all.”
“Meimei, where did you get your face done?”
“What’s your secret?”
“Can you recommend a place?”
Shi Qingxuan didn’t know how to respond, so she only laughed awkwardly to delay answering. Just then, the group turned around, and suddenly, crimson light flooded Xie Lian’s vision.
A strange and mysterious world opened before him.
They were on a long street.
It was so long that there was no end in sight. Along the edges of the great street were all types of bustling stores and stalls. Colorful signs flew high above, and giant red lanterns were hung below. “People” filled the street, most wearing masks of faces crying, laughing, angry—some human, some not human. Those without masks could only be described as “bizarre.” Some had large heads and small bodies, some skinny as a bamboo stick, and some flat like a pancake and pressed to the ground, complaining as pedestrians walked all over them.