Next, they found Fire Demon by the stage in the west of the inner courtyard.
The stage had been abandoned for many years, with tattered curtains hanging down, and dust covering both the stage and the area beneath.
He sat blankly on a bench, staring vacantly at the stage, as if a grand opera was being performed on the empty stage.
Zhang Yuanqing's face darkened. In his vision, Yin energy was gathering heavily around Fire Demon, and his soul was on the verge of leaving his body; he was near death.
He hurried over, placed his hand on Fire Demon's shoulder, and dark energy surged from his eyes, continuously drawing the Yin energy into his palm, devouring and digesting it.
Fire Demon shuddered, and a glimmer of light returned to his empty eyes. He subconsciously cried out:
"So cold, so cold..."
The Fire Master trembled as he looked around. Seeing Zhang Yuanqing beside him and Xie Lingxi not far away, he exclaimed:
"Damn it, where did you guys go? You disappeared as soon as we left the main hall..."
"Everyone got separated." Zhang Yuanqing waved his hand, interrupting the other's question, and asked:
"How did you end up here?"
"After I got separated from you, I unknowingly walked here and then heard someone singing..." Fire Demon said, recalling:
"I followed the sound and saw the stage here. There was a woman singing on the stage. I watched for a while, and then, then I don't remember anything."
At this point, he shuddered all over. He looked at the dilapidated stage in the distance. Where did the singing woman come from? Fire Demon looked gratefully at the Night Wanderer beside him, "Did you save me?"
"That's obvious." Zhang Yuanqing smiled.
Huff... Fire Demon breathed a sigh of relief. Recalling his experience, he felt a wave of fear: "My skills and items are useless against Wraith Spirits. Thank you, Wang Tai brother."
Although each class has its own characteristics, the fact that Wraith Spirits could control Fire Demon silently was mostly due to level suppression.
Supernatural "monsters" are unpredictable. Dealing with them can be troublesome if you don't have the right specialty. However, they also have drawbacks; their methods of harming people aren't direct enough.
Not as efficient as stabbing someone with a knife.
In the makeup room beside the stage, filled with cobwebs, the three found a golden hairpin.
Holding the hairpin, Fire Demon, having obtained a betrothal gift, felt his heart finally settle. He then asked:
"Where are Xishi and Qitian Dasheng?"
Xie Lingxi shook her head: "We haven't found them yet. Hopefully, they'll be as lucky as you were."
Fire Demon glanced at her: "Do you want them to die?"
Xie Lingxi looked pitiful and aggrieved: "How can you say such a thing, brother? We're teammates~"
Fire Demon didn't bother with her. They'd had an argument before, and he was fed up with the little girl's pretentious attitude. He didn't like her much.
Of course, it was also because the girl wasn't Fire Demon's type. Otherwise, it would have been a different story.
The three left and went to another courtyard. The mansion was larger than they had imagined. The backyard was divided into small courtyards, some used as gardens, others as stages.
After walking for a while, Zhang Yuanqing, with his night vision ability, spotted a figure staggering in the distance.
This person, dressed in bean shoes and tight pants, with a trendy vibe, was none other than Qitian Dasheng.
"What are you doing here?" He was pleasantly surprised to approach them.
Dark energy surged in Zhang Yuanqing's eyes. He examined him for a moment and confirmed that it was the real person.
The four gathered and told each other their experiences. After getting separated, Qitian Dasheng had mistakenly entered a courtyard. Inside, there was a room with a light on. He pushed the door open and saw that the room was empty, with a neatly folded wedding quilt on the bed.
Qitian Dasheng guessed it was one of the betrothal gifts, but he followed his heart and quietly retreated.
Then he encountered Zhang Yuanqing and the others.
Fire Demon was stunned: "The most cowardly person is the safest?"
"What are you talking about? I'm being cautious, not cowardly." Qitian Dasheng tried to defend himself.
That makes sense. Sometimes, the ones who survive aren't necessarily the smartest or most capable, but the most cowardly... Zhang Yuanqing interrupted their pointless argument, looked at Qitian Dasheng, and asked:
"Where's the wedding quilt?"
Qitian Dasheng looked behind him.
Led by him, the four arrived at the courtyard and saw a room with a light on.
Seeing the fear on his teammates' faces, Zhang Yuanqing sighed helplessly:
"I'll go get it for you."
This was the Night Wanderer's territory.
He entered the room, and as soon as he crossed the threshold, the lattice door closed automatically.
Outside, Xie Lingxi and the others saw 'Wang Tai' disappear the moment the lattice door closed. The candlelight inside was dim, but it didn't cast his shadow.
After a few minutes of anxious waiting, the lattice door slammed open, and 'Wang Tai' rushed out, carrying a wedding quilt.
He looked disheveled, with torn clothes and blood stains.
"Dasheng, catch!"
Zhang Yuanqing threw the wedding quilt to Qitian Dasheng, who happily caught it and hugged it tightly. Just as he was about to ask what had happened inside, Zhang Yuanqing said:
"Let's go find Xishi."
Qitian Dasheng didn't dare ask any more questions and continued to explore the inner courtyard with his teammates.
The night was dark, with no stars or moon. The only light source was the red lanterns hanging under the eaves, painting this silent world with crimson.
Occasionally, a gust of Yin wind would blow, causing the lanterns under the eaves to sway, making it even more terrifying.
"Come here, I'm here..."
Suddenly, a soft, seductive voice came from ahead.
Zhang Yuanqing and the others looked up and saw Xishi standing under a lantern at the corner of the eaves, waving at them.
She stood there, her body as still as clay, waving stiffly, and the smile on her face was also stiff, with a hint of eeriness.
"Xishi!"
Qitian Dasheng was relieved to see that she was unharmed and was about to go over when Fire Demon grabbed his shoulder.
At the same time, Zhang Yuanqing's voice sounded in his ear: "Look at her shoes."
Shoes? Qitian Dasheng stared intently, his pupils slightly contracted.
She was wearing a pair of red embroidered shoes.
She wasn't Xishi!
"Come here, come here..."
Xishi was still waving, her smile stiff and eerie.
"Go past her, ignore her!"
Zhang Yuanqing said in a low voice.
Seeing the solemn expression on the Night Wanderer's face, Qitian Dasheng quickly averted his gaze, feeling nervous and afraid to look again.
The group continued walking for a while. Zhang Yuanqing looked ahead and said:
"Do you remember when Xishi entered the mansion, she said she saw a woman standing under a red lantern?"
Hearing this, Fire Demon couldn't help but look back, vaguely seeing the woman standing still, no longer waving, quietly watching them.
"That's creepy..." the Fire Master spat.
Xie Lingxi asked in confusion: "Why would she turn into Sister Xishi's appearance?"
Zhang Yuanqing looked ahead at a certain spot and sighed: "You'll understand when you go over there yourselves."
What did that mean? The three didn't understand at first. After walking a little further, they vaguely saw a figure hanging under the eaves ahead.
"Sister Xishi?" Xie Lingxi exclaimed.
It was Xishi, hanging from the eaves, her delicate face distorted by suffocation, her eyes wide and bloodshot, her face pale, and her lips slightly protruding.
She had died a tragic death.
Qitian Dasheng and Fire Demon were shocked and frightened, not expecting her to have died here silently.
Zhang Yuanqing, with his night vision ability, had seen it long ago and was already past the shock stage. He led the three, with their complex expressions, closer to the corpse.
Xishi hung there quietly. Zhang Yuanqing touched her hand, which was icy cold. She had died more than half an hour ago.
"It's Sister Xishi's wedding invitation."
Xie Lingxi pointed to the ground near the corpse's feet, where a red invitation had fallen.
Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the invitation and ignored it. Dark energy surged in his eyes as he communicated with the remnant spirit within Xishi's body.
He had to verify whether Xishi had died from the Wraith Spirit or other factors.
His brow suddenly swelled, and memories that weren't his own surged into his mind.
He saw several fragmented memories of Xishi. This sister was a Level 2 Water Ghost, a The Way of the Extraordinary from Nan Hang City, Tong Province. She wasn't an official member but belonged to a certain folk The Way of the Extraordinary organization.
In reality, her profession was a nurse, and she maintained relationships with several men, including the head of her department, a wealthy businessman, and the manager of the The Way of the Extraordinary organization.
She was against marriage and didn't believe in love. In her eyes, men were just resources.
She was a very successful social butterfly.
At the end of the memories, Zhang Yuanqing saw a ghostly figure wearing a wedding dress appear, and the scene ended abruptly.
She was killed by the Ghost Bride?! Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes, looking astonished and feeling a chill down his spine.
He thought that was impossible. How could the Ghost Bride have acted so early? Wasn't she waiting to choose a groom?
If the Ghost Bride could act at any time, how could they play the game?
Also, if the Ghost Bride had personally killed someone, why had she only killed Xishi and not attacked them? Or was she just waiting to attack?
At this moment, he heard Xie Lingxi and Qitian Dasheng talking:
"Why is her gender crossed out?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's crossed out after they die?"
Zhang Yuanqing was stunned and immediately said: "Let me see."
Xie Lingxi handed over the wedding invitation.
Zhang Yuanqing looked at it intently, his expression strange: "Gender: Male?"
Fire Demon and Qitian Dasheng leaned over and saw that the gender column was marked "Male."
Qitian Dasheng was heartbroken: "You look so delicate, little girl. I didn't expect you to be packing?!"
"What are you saying~" Xie Lingxi blushed and explained: "I thought that the Ghost Bride was looking for a husband, so the husband must be a man. If I filled in 'woman,' then it wouldn't fit the rules, and I'd be eliminated directly, wouldn't I?"
Fire Demon and Qitian Dasheng fell into thought.
Xie Lingxi wrote "Male" for her gender, so my guess was right. Old versions of women directly pass, while new versions of women directly gg, because this is an S-level The Way of the Extraordinary. Directly passing is too easy... Zhang Yuanqing's speculation was verified.
Xishi was directly killed by the Ghost Bride because she didn't fit the groom's settings.
He explained his reasoning. After listening, Xie Lingxi said sadly:
"I was just guessing and wasn't sure, so I didn't say anything. I should have reminded Sister Xishi."
Whatever you say! The three men shared this thought silently.
Now there are only four people left on the team. The Ghost Bride can only kill one more here, or at most one more. Fortunately, fortunately... Considering that they knew each other, Zhang Yuanqing took down Xishi's body, gently placed it on the ground, and looked around at the remaining three companions, saying:
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"Time is short. We should find the bridal chamber."
Although he hadn't been counting the time, he could roughly estimate that it had been almost an hour since they entered the mansion.
Xie Lingxi, Fire Demon, and Qitian Dasheng quickly put Xishi out of their minds and secretly cheered themselves up.
Each holding their betrothal gift, the four continued forward, deeper into the mansion, silently traversing the different gardens, accompanied only by the red lanterns.
After wandering for a long time, the four who still hadn't found the bridal chamber suddenly saw a courtyard ahead. The eaves were upturned, the windows and doors were decorated with the character for "happiness," and a warm candlelight shone from within.
A scarlet carpet was laid on the path leading from the courtyard to the main room.
"When the time is right, the bridal chamber will appear." Zhang Yuanqing looked at his teammates' tense expressions and said in a low voice, "Let's go."
He originally wanted to joke: Don't be so nervous. The Ghost Bride might be a busty, curvy mature woman.
But seeing the solemn faces of his three companions, as if they were heading to the execution ground, Zhang Yuanqing tactfully abandoned the idea of lightening the mood.
As of now, they still didn't know the Ghost Bride's method of choosing a groom: one out of four, or all of them?
Similarly, they didn't know if they would survive.
Entering the courtyard and walking across the red carpet, Zhang Yuanqing stopped at the door, took a deep breath, and forcefully pushed open the lattice door.
"Bang!" The two lattice doors swung open inward. Zhang Yuanqing stepped over the threshold, tensing his muscles, and surveyed the room's layout.
The entire room was decorated in a festive red theme. The character for "happiness" was pasted on the walls. In the hall, there was a round table with two candlesticks on it. Half-arm-length red candles flickered, and under the candles were several celadon dishes filled with dried longans and peanuts.
On the east side, there was a large bed. The bed curtains and sheets were also festive red, but there were no quilts or bedding.
The bedside was empty. There was no bride wearing a wedding dress and a red veil, as he had imagined.
The Ghost Bride wasn't here... Zhang Yuanqing slowly relaxed his tense nerves and exhaled forcefully. He turned around to talk to his teammates behind him, but after turning his head, he found that he was the only one left in the bridal chamber.
The three teammates had disappeared again.
"Only I entered the bridal chamber?" Zhang Yuanqing suddenly felt a chill, and then he realized and muttered, "The Ghost Bride is quite playful. She even arranged a bridal chamber for each of us..."
Judging from the current situation, it aligned with his previous second speculation: four betrothal gifts correspond to four grooms, and the rest die.
"Next, I'll just wait for the bride to come and favor me! I wonder who she'll choose..."
Zhang Yuanqing turned around and closed the door, silently summoned Little Silly and had it lie on his head, waiting in full battle mode.
He patted the infant spirit's head, looked at the festive scene in the room, and for no reason, thought of a joke he had seen online, thinking that right after getting married, he would have a husband and son. The Ghost Bride could be considered to have reached the pinnacle of her life!
And the son wasn't black.
The candlelight was bright, and the room was well-lit. Zhang Yuanqing originally wanted to sense the passage of time by observing the burning of the candles, but unexpectedly, the candles were extraordinarily magical and didn't seem to be consumed no matter how much they burned.
After an unknown amount of time, the door was blown open by a gust of Yin wind with a "bang," and the candles instantly went out. The cold wind howled in every corner of the bridal chamber.
The room was plunged into darkness. Zhang Yuanqing's heart trembled, and the infant spirit on his head trembled violently, falling into extreme fear, as if the end of the world had arrived.
He stiffly turned his neck and looked toward the open door. It was pitch black outside, but with his night vision ability, he vaguely saw a figure wearing a wedding dress and a red head covering, walking toward the bridal chamber on the red carpet.
......
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