As the Yin wind dispersed, the hall returned to calm. The candles burned quietly, their shadows flickering, and the heavy Yin energy that had enveloped the hall dissipated.

Xie Lingxi and the others didn't possess the sensitivity of a Night Watcher, but they could intuitively sense that the hall had become safe.

Huomo examined Zhang Yuanqing with a gaze of surprise and delight, asking,

"You're a Night Watcher? You're actually a Night Watcher..."

The fact that his mere reprimand had scared away the vengeful spirit made Wang Tai's profession self-evident.

"Is it that strange? Jinshui Amusement Park has supernatural elements. Isn't it normal to be matched with a Night Watcher?" Zhang Yuanqing responded with a smile. "Everyone, I can't vouch for the other attractions, but when it comes to the haunted house, I can guarantee your safety until we meet the Ghost Bride."

The four teammates exchanged glances, each seeing joy in the others' eyes.

They hadn't expected a rare profession like Night Watcher to be on their team.

In a supernatural instance teeming with ghosts and monsters, having a Night Watcher as a bodyguard was more reliable than most props.

After all, Night Watchers were professionals in this field.

Suddenly, the four teammates looked at Zhang Yuanqing with a sense of reliance.

"We only have an hour, so let's not waste time. See if there are any clues here." Zhang Yuanqing's gaze swept across the hall. With his night vision, he quickly locked onto the offering table behind the grand master chair.

He walked up to the table, where a red paper was pressed beneath a celadon plate filled with peanuts and longans.

Zhang Yuanqing picked up the red paper and examined it in the candlelight:

"Betrothal gifts: Weighing Rod, Golden Hairpin, Medicated Wine, Wedding Quilt."

The others crowded around.

Xie Lingxi pinched her chin, her bright eyes darting around, and said:

"These things aren't betrothal gifts, but since the paper says so, it must mean we have to find these four items and treat them as betrothal gifts."

Finding these four items was equivalent to possessing the groom with the betrothal gifts.

Qi Tian Dasheng: "What happens if we don't find them?"

Huomo: "Of course, we die. After finding the betrothal gifts, will the Ghost Bride choose one of us?"

Zhang Yuanqing: "Why choose one? Why not everyone go to the bridal chamber together?"

Seeing his teammates' blank expressions, Zhang Yuanqing shrugged. "Just kidding, trying to lighten the mood. You guys have no sense of humor."

The teammates remained expressionless.

Xishi rolled her eyes, and Xie Lingxi continued:

"The outline of this task is becoming clearer. The Ghost Bride will choose a groom in an hour, and the standard for choosing is the groom who possesses the betrothal gifts. So, we need to find the four betrothal gifts in this mansion.

"But whether the chosen lucky one will have a glimmer of hope or die for sure is unknown."

Huomo looked the little girl up and down. "You really don't remember the walkthrough content?"

Her analysis was spot on.

Xie Lingxi pouted, pretending to be aggrieved. "I really don't know."

Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the number of people in the team, feeling a chill in his heart.

Following the current clues, there would be two possible outcomes. First, finding the four betrothal gifts would be considered a team success, and then they would just wait for the Ghost Bride to favor them.

Second, the four betrothal gifts could only guarantee four people's success, and those who failed would definitely die.

The first was fine, but if it was the second...

Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself:

"If it's the second, then the team will definitely fight each other at this stage of the instance. By then, the number of survivors may not even exceed four. No wonder they didn't seal the props and skills. This is forcing us to kill each other. The S-level instance is a step-by-step death trap..."

If that happened, how many people would be left on the team?

He, as the captain, had a hidden mission that required the team to have at least three people.

In addition, the Groom Selection had a misleading effect, giving people the impression that only those chosen by the bride would have a chance to live. This led to a habitual way of thinking: lucky ones always have preferential treatment...

But Zhang Yuanqing was sure that those chosen by the bride would face certain death.

The reason was simple: first, that's how it was in the old version; second, if only the chosen ones could live, then the hidden mission would be meaningless.

No matter how hard they tried, only one person would be left in the end.

What difference would it make if the team size was reduced or not?

Of course, if the Ghost Bride was a flirtatious player, that would be another matter.

The Ghost Bride part might only kill one person, but the dangers in the haunted house were more than just the Ghost Bride. First, there was the risk of infighting within the team; second, there were the other vengeful spirits in the haunted house... As the captain, this instance was really too difficult. If there wasn't a high reward for clearing it, it would be unreasonable. Fortunately, I have the Demon Subduing Pestle, so I'm not afraid of facing the Ghost Bride directly... Thinking of this, Zhang Yuanqing subconsciously glanced at his teammates, only to find that their eyes were dark and they had already begun to be wary of each other.

No one was stupid.

Zhang Yuanqing coughed lightly:

"Time is short. Let's find the betrothal gifts first. Everyone, stay close to me. Don't get separated. Ordinary vengeful spirits can't get close to me."

In this situation, his words were the most effective. Everyone still relied on his profession.

Immediately, the group went around the screen wall behind the hall and came to the inner courtyard. Gazing into the distance, they saw winding corridors hung with red lanterns. The deep red candlelight illuminated tree shadows, flowerbeds, and rockeries.

In the distance, they could vaguely see arched doors connecting other courtyards. Rows of houses with straight roofs stood orderly in the night.

The Ghost Bride is really the daughter of a wealthy family... Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself.

Just based on the size of this house, it must be at least a three-courtyard mansion.

He surveyed the layout of the houses and turned back to remind everyone, "The Yin energy here is very heavy. Stay close to me..."

His voice stopped abruptly. Behind him was empty, with not a single person.

The teammates were gone.

This is a bit scary... Zhang Yuanqing took a deep breath, not stopping, and continued forward.

He had to find them quickly. None of these people were Night Watchers. Although their skills and props hadn't been sealed, their methods of dealing with spiritual entities were limited. If they encountered difficult vengeful spirits, they could die at any time.

He walked through the garden and saw candlelight shining from a house ahead. The candlelight was dim, and it shone eerily through the latticed window.

The other houses were pitch black.

Zhang Yuanqing cautiously walked into the corridor, approaching the house. He focused his senses. The house was filled with Yin energy, but no vengeful spirits were lurking.

He tiptoed to push open the latticed door, and the scene inside the house came into view.

It seemed to be a woman's boudoir. There was a bed on the east side, with the bed curtains drawn. There was a round table in the middle, and a dressing table by the window. The bronze mirror was facing the door.

A golden weighing rod lay quietly in front of the dressing table.

Zhang Yuanqing stepped over the threshold, turned around to close the door, and came to the dressing table, picking up the golden weighing rod. It was only half an arm's length and about the thickness of a thumb.

This thing was used to lift the bride's red veil, symbolizing "satisfaction."

"Not too difficult. I found it right away..."

Just as Zhang Yuanqing was about to leave the house, he suddenly heard a crackling sound. The Cat King speaker in his pocket made a sound:

"That day, she came to Jinshui Amusement Park..."

This unreliable thing always made sounds at inappropriate times. Hmm, what did it want to say? Speaking of which, it was also part of the amusement park. Perhaps it knew some information... Zhang Yuanqing's attention shifted to the Cat King speaker, hoping it would say something useful.

The Cat King speaker didn't disappoint this time. The voice continued to play:

"The spirits in the haunted house trembled and prostrated on the ground. The great existence didn't make things difficult for the weak vengeful spirits. She told the bride to find a young man for her. That young man's name is: Yuan Shi Tian Zun!"

Zhang Yuanqing's mind "buzzed," as if struck by lightning. He was stunned.

Looking for me? Looking for me!!

Who was looking for me? Why were they looking for me?

Astonishment and confusion surged up. Then, he understood who it was.

The Three Dao Mountain Goddess!

"The official announcement from the Taiyi Sect said that a powerful Boss caused the spiritual realm to change. The description of Jinshui Amusement Park said that the existence, after sleeping for a long time, was surprised to see so many new and strange things in the world. These details are all consistent with the Three Dao Mountain Goddess...

"I woke up the Three Dao Mountain Goddess. She's looking for me because there's half of her Yang Soul in the Demon Subduing Pestle... Damn it, this old hag is haunting me. Can't she just let me go? I'm still a child..."

Zhang Yuanqing actually had an idea in his mind that he would eventually have to face the Three Dao Mountain Goddess as he continued to level up.

But that should have been after he became a high-level Spirit Walker, using the Yang Soul in the Demon Subduing Pestle to make a deal with the Goddess.

He never expected that the old hag was so capable that she could influence low-level spiritual realms.

"Damn it, I knew the task couldn't be that simple. Now it seems that taking out the Demon Subduing Pestle will only expose my identity?"

The Goddess was looking for him, but wasn't it just for the Demon Subduing Pestle?

"In this kind of spiritual realm that's been influenced by the Goddess, I'm afraid that as soon as I take out the Demon Subduing Pestle, the old hag will come over. What will my fate be then? Whether the Bosses in the spiritual realm have any moral values is another question. What if they just casually crush me, this little ant?..."

After repeated consideration, Zhang Yuanqing decided to hide his identity and continue the mission, without using the Demon Subduing Pestle.

The consequence of exposing his identity might be directly facing the terrifying Goddess of Three Dao Mountain. There were too many uncertain factors.

And continuing the mission, if he could clear the haunted house, nothing would happen. If it really came to a desperate situation, it wouldn't be too late to take out the Demon Subduing Pestle.

After thinking through the pros and cons, he wasn't flustered anymore. Just as he was about to turn around and leave, he suddenly saw in the bronze mirror that the door was being pushed open.

He was startled and quickly turned around, only to find that the door was tightly closed and hadn't been opened.

What's going on? Zhang Yuanqing turned back blankly, returning his gaze to the bronze mirror. This glance made his pupils shrink.

In the bronze mirror, a woman in a white dress appeared, her hair disheveled. She crossed the threshold and entered the house in a strange posture.

The room reflected in the bronze mirror seemed to be different from the room he was in.

The woman in the white dress came to the dressing table in a strange posture and sat down.

At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing finally saw why she was walking in a strange posture. Because she was walking backwards.

The next scene would scare an ordinary person to death. The woman in the bronze mirror raised her hand and took off her head, holding it in her arms.

Her hands had bluish-black skin and long, sharp black nails.

The black hair on the head scattered, revealing the woman's appearance: a pair of eerie white eyes, a pale face, and black lips, staring fixedly at the bronze mirror, as if gazing at Zhang Yuanqing in another world.

This female ghost isn't pretty... Zhang Yuanqing quickly retreated, planning to leave the house.

However, the disheveled hair in the mirror seemed to come alive, rising like tentacles, and suddenly pierced into the mirror surface.

The bronze mirror rippled, and clusters of hair penetrated the mirror, wrapping around Zhang Yuanqing's wrists and body, constantly tightening, as if trying to pull him into the mirror.

"Humph!"

The viscous black light surged in Zhang Yuanqing's eyes. He opened his mouth and inhaled forcefully.

Spirit Devour!

This skill that could suppress vengeful spirits only slowed down the speed of the hair wrapping around him. It couldn't devour the female ghost in the mirror.

This female ghost is strong. She's not an ordinary vengeful spirit... Zhang Yuanqing moved his feet forward little by little, getting closer and closer to the bronze mirror.

He quickly thought about countermeasures. He didn't want to use the Demon Subduing Pestle if he could avoid it. The Bloodthirsty Blade was a physical output prop and ineffective against spiritual entities. The Red Dancing Shoes' attack was also on the physical level, and stomping was ineffective against spiritual entities...

After thinking it over, he decided, "It's you, Little Silly!"

Zhang Yuanqing spat out a wisp of Yin energy, summoning Little Silly.

"Aba..." The round, adorable infant spirit landed on the dressing table, lazily stretching its limbs. Then, it saw the female ghost in the mirror.

In an instant, like a cat with its fur standing on end, the infant spirit rolled and crawled off the dressing table with a speed that shouldn't be possible at that age, shrinking behind Zhang Yuanqing and crying loudly in fright.

...Zhang Yuanqing cursed, "Useless thing, go!"

He transmitted an attack command to the infant spirit.

"Aba Aba!"

Obeying orders was the nature of a spirit servant. The infant spirit raised its shallow eyebrows, called out fiercely twice, grabbed Zhang Yuanqing's pant leg and climbed up, all the way to his shoulder, and pounced with all its might.

The round, chubby little body penetrated the bronze mirror, plastering itself on the female ghost's face.

Zhang Yuanqing immediately calmed his emotions and transferred his consciousness to the infant spirit, replacing the female ghost's perception.

The female ghost's sinister face became dull, as if she had suddenly lost her mind.

The steel-like, deadly hair instantly lost its strength and fell limply.

Well done!

Zhang Yuanqing immediately summoned back Little Silly, letting it lie on top of his head, and turned to run.

The infant spirit's ability only lasted for three seconds, but that was enough for him to escape the house.

Bursting open the door and crossing the threshold, Zhang Yuanqing had just returned to the garden when he heard the sound of the door slamming shut behind him. Looking back, the candlelight in that house had gone out, and it was pitch black.

The inner courtyard was filled with gusts of Yin wind. Many vengeful spirits were circling in the distance, craving the aura of the Night Watcher while also fearing his pressure, not daring to approach.

"I have to find them quickly, or they might all die..."

Zhang Yuanqing quickly left the garden, passed through the arched door, and came to the next courtyard. He soon saw Xie Lingxi.

The little girl was standing in the corner of the courtyard in front of a water vat, throwing her upper body into the vat, grabbing the edge of the vat with both hands, and struggling with all her might. It seemed like something in the vat was pulling her.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't "pull" herself out of the water vat.

Gradually, her struggling strength became weaker and weaker...

Zhang Yuanqing approached slowly, smelling a scent of alcohol. Looking down, he saw a dark liquid rippling in the vat, and an infant spirit trailing an umbilical cord was swimming around. It was the umbilical cord that was wrapped around Xie Lingxi's neck, holding her firmly in the water.

Zhang Yuanqing lifted up Little Silly with both hands, ignoring its struggles, and threw it into the water vat.

Seeing a fellow spirit enter, the umbilical cord infant spirit immediately released the umbilical cord and bared its teeth at Little Silly.

Zhang Yuanqing grabbed Xie Lingxi's shoulders and pulled her out of the water vat with force.

"Cough cough..."

Xie Lingxi coughed violently, her face red, her bangs and sideburns sticking wetly to her forehead and cheeks.

After a dozen seconds, she initially calmed the discomfort in her lungs, saw Zhang Yuanqing's face, and burst into tears of joy:

"Brother Wang Tai, you've come to save me! Wuwu, I never want to enter a spiritual realm related to Night Watchers again. It's too, too scary..."

This was her first time entering an instance with supernatural elements.

"How did you end up here?" Zhang Yuanqing stared at the water vat.

The two infant spirits were fighting in the alcohol, biting and tangling with each other, stirring up ripples in the dark liquid.

Xie Lingxi stood on tiptoe, glanced into the vat, and remembered how much she had just drunk, gagging for a while: "Too disgusting, too disgusting..."

After complaining, she replied to Zhang Yuanqing:

"Brother Wang Tai, I followed you out of the hall, and a gust of fog came, and I found that you were all gone. I went to look for you and unknowingly came here. Then I smelled a scent of alcohol, and I followed the scent to find this vat.

"I thought it was one of the betrothal gifts. As soon as I opened the wooden lid, a rope stretched out from the vat and pulled me into the water."

She looked at the umbilical cord infant spirit in the water vat, thinking about the liquid she had just choked on, her little face pale: "Too disgusting, too disgusting..."

Zhang Yuanqing silently calculated the time, sizing up the girl: "You can hold your breath for a long time."

Xie Lingxi shook her head and said coquettishly, "I have a prop that can restore life force. If it weren't for it, I would have suffocated in the water vat long ago."

As she spoke, she raised her fair white wrist, where there was a jade bracelet of green color.

A bracelet that restores life force... Is this girl also a Wood Spirit? Her temperament doesn't seem like it... Zhang Yuanqing 'hmmed' and didn't pay too much attention to the bracelet, saying:

"Follow me to find them. Hopefully, it's not too late."

Xie Lingxi collected some of the liquid, while Zhang Yuanqing recalled Little Silly, who was fighting with its own kind for the first time in its life. They walked along the cobblestone path toward the depths of the mansion.

"By the way, give me that card."

"Ah? What card?"

"Don't play dumb. The card you took out of the parking lot. I saw you put it in your back pocket."

"......."