Xie Lian took the boy by the arm. “Come, stand up. Everything is fine now.”
To his surprise, the boy screamed, shoved Xie Lian away, leapt to his feet, and bolted.
Since this boy had once been infected with Human Face Disease, he must have a connection to the Kingdom of Xianle. Xie Lian’s mind shivered at the mere sight of him, and he couldn’t help but be a little dazed. Caught off guard by the force of the push, even his bamboo hat fell to the ground.
After the initial shock, he called out, “Wait!”
Just as Xie Lian was about to give chase, the few ghosts that he had pulled away earlier grabbed on to him. The boy headed down the street, which was livelier than ever. At the rate that he was effortlessly weaving through the groups of ghouls and ghosts with his small frame, he would disappear soon. It would be difficult for Ruoye to track down a person in this kind of setting, so in that split-second of urgency, Xie Lian called out behind him.
“My lords, I’ll leave this matter with you. Let’s separate for now. Go hide and we’ll meet here again in three days at the latest!”
Ruoye slid out and sent those ghosts flying in the direction of the other two officials, while Xie Lian bent over slightly, picked up his bamboo hat, and set off running in the direction of the boy.
He squeezed through the crowd with immense difficulty, shouting all the while, “Excuse me! Excuse me!”
Because the boy had spent most of his life hiding and dodging in the Mortal Realm, escaping was practically second nature to him. His head could be seen in one second, then there was a shadow the next, and after that, there was nothing more; he was getting farther and farther away. Xie Lian didn’t know if it was his imagination, but he felt that the crowds on the street were getting thicker by the minute. With humans and ghosts alike pressed against each other, it made it really difficult for him to jostle through. Xie Lian’s mind was in disarray, so he knocked over a number of stalls, and he cried “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” as he continued to run.
Ghosts weren’t to be crossed carelessly, however, and they yelled after him, “Sorry does shit! Catch him!”
Xie Lian suddenly felt a chill on his back as if a hand had seized him, and he immediately knocked it back. “Who is it?!”
The hand was a tentacle that had come out of nowhere, and a mob of ghosts came swarming, their screeching and rough voices surrounding him.
“Hey, hey, hey! Let’s teach this little pretty boy a thing or two! How dare he start shit in Ghost City!”
A large, dense crowd of nefarious creatures poured onto the street. Seeing that he was about to lose the boy in the crowd, Xie Lian did his best to throw off the tentacle that caught him.
“Everyone! I’m really sorry. I don’t mean any harm. Please allow me to find someone, and we can discuss reparations afterward?”
The horde of ghosts was relentless. “You wish!”
In all the pushing and pulling, the boy had disappeared completely. Xie Lian was dazed, not quite sure what he was feeling. Was it disappointment at not being able to catch the boy, or was it relief that a nightmare had passed once more?
Suddenly, there was a commotion in the ghost crowd. They immediately parted, forming a path, as if someone of importance had arrived. Xie Lian came to his senses and saw a tall, black-clad figure walking straight toward him through the path created by the mob.
That person yelled, “Settle down. Let him go!”
The black-clad figure, like most of the ghosts on the street, wore a mask. It was a funny mask, with a face that was contorted as if it was smiling woefully. The mob muttered under their breath, “It’s the Waning Moon Officer!”， and they released their hold on Xie Lian at last. It seemed this black-clad figure was someone significant in Ghost City.
The moment he approached Xie Lian, he bowed. “Greetings, Daozhang. Chengzhu wishes to see you.”
“Huh? Me?” Xie Lian pointed at himself.
The Waning Moon Officer replied, “Yes. Chengzhu has been waiting for you at Paradise Manor.”
All around them, the mob sucked in their breath.
“Chengzhu wants to see him? Did I hear that right?”
“Paradise Manor? That’s Chengzhu’s sanctuary—he’s never had guests there!”
Someone who had come from a different street pointed out, “Wait a sec, isn’t he the one who won against Chengzhu today at the Gambler’s Den? I mean…the one Chengzhu educated?!”
All eyes were now focused on Xie Lian, each pair bigger than the next, forcing Xie Lian to raise the bamboo hat in his hand to hide from the stares.