In the Jade Capital, more than a month had passed since the Exotic Beast park was split into three. Compared with how long Yan Yu took to merge with the boar, Apparel Atelier’s merger with the python was clearly quicker. Plenty of people from the Immortal Worship Cult still lingered. During this time, an undying husk soon arrived outside the city, summoning Peng Mingyi to pay audience to his new master. Peng Mingyi had been the Exotic Beast Park’s jade husk. However, now that Apparel Atelier had fused with one third of the Exotic Beast Park, Peng Mingyi naturally became Apparel Atelier’s jade husk as well. The Immortal Worship Cult came calling seven times in a row, and Peng Mingyi refused them every time. On the surface, his reasoning was perfectly sound. He was too busy reorganizing the ghost cavalry. The ghost cavalry had scattered during the great battle. Now was exactly when Ying Zhuoyao and Peng Mingyi needed to rebuild them. Everyone knew how important the ghost cavalry were. Without them, every major plan beyond the walls lacked a safety net. The Apparel Atelier was formidable, yes, but it was shackled to one spot. Secure a perimeter around it, and it was powerless to do anything. It could only realize its aims through the use of undying husks and outside forces. So Peng Mingyi’s refusal made sense. Meanwhile, the White Lotus and Red Lotus Cults scoured the land for the missing Emperor. Without him, they couldn’t seize the Jade Capital smoothly. Unfortunately, they found nothing. On another front, the instant trouble erupted at the Exotic Beast Park, the Lotus Cult rushed back to investigate. After all, no one could make sense of it. Victory had been in the bag, the situation settled. So how did a mishap suddenly crash the party? Why was only a third of the Exotic Beast Park absorbed…? The undying husks of the Lotus Cult carried all sorts of tools. The thousand-mile thread was one of them. Ghost items like the thousand-mile thread were rare and expensive. Over the years, however, the Lotus Cult and its undying husks had squeezed a fortune in ghost money from the living. It was enough to return to Happyland Zoo in Silkfloss Province and buy a few more. Unfortunately, when the Lotus Cult’s undying husks reached the southern lands, they discovered Hidden River Province’s ancient ghost street in utter chaos. There was no way to conduct a proper inquiry. That said, the south was still Lotus Cult territory. Crowds of Lotus Cult disciples and elders reconvened south. The undying husks of the Lotus Cult used thousand-mile threads to pass intelligence back and forth. Eventually, the Lotus Cult made contact with some undying husks who had survived the chaos in Hidden River Province’s ancient ghost street. These survivors were all heavy hitters who had been hiding in Clock Mansion. The survivors, along with the Lotus Cult, then launched a joint investigation. Only now, at last, did they confirm one thing, something so bizarre it beggared belief. On a high cliff in the deep mountains, a cluster of figures wrapped in lotus robes stood, staring into the distance. Their lotus robes snapped and flared; in that hushed stretch of wilderness, the sight carried a chill. In their line of sight, a gargantuan, huddled mass of buildings loomed from the depths. Yet this was supposed to be a dreadful ancient village shrouded in mist, with crazed babbling, the hissing of a serpent, and the grunts of a boar. However, the taboo village was gone. In its place sat a market in stark black and white, perched on an icebound mountain. Twisted Yin miasma curled like deep-sea kelp, like smoke burning in a gale, looping and looping. The sheer density of it said this was a forbidden dead zone too. The market itself rested there in eerie quiet. At the corners of the buildings hung iron cages, many of them. Empty inside, and no telling what they were meant to hold. “This is…a new ghost domain.” A newly arrived Lotus Cult elder could scarcely believe his eyes. “The missing part of the Exotic Beast Park? Where did it go?” Beside him, a man in pitch-black lotus robes said coldly, “The Ghost Street Judge swallowed it.” “Ghost Street Judge?” No elder there was unfamiliar with that name. It was just that the Ghost Street Judge had been gone for a very, very long time. According to reports, she’d resurfaced in the far west; too far to reach and impossible to target, so the Lotus Cult left her alone. But nobody could forget the Ghost Street Judge. The speaker in black lotus robes was an undying husk named Yu Wen. “The Ghost Street Judge…she used to run a general store on Hidden River Province’s ancient ghost street, no better than the flower shop at best. Now she’s something on the same level as the Exotic Beast Park. She…is very likely a living person who turned into a ghost.” That conclusion left everyone silent, a thin chill creeping over them. Even horrors like the Apparel Atelier and Exotic Beast Park weren’t this intelligent. At most, these entities fashioned a jade husk and relied on humans to get things done. As for brains, the awakened ghosts in Apparel Atelier and the Exotic Beast Park were dimwits by human standards. They were fiendishly crafty in applying the rules of killing, yes, but hopeless at strategy or running affairs, never mind pulling off a classic loot the burning house, reap the fisherman’s profit. “The Ghost Street Judge should have a jade husk too, shouldn’t she?” an elder asked. “...”Yu Wen said nothing. A white-robed woman with a mad glint in her eyes answered instead, “The Ghost Street Judge has no jade husk.” This white-robed woman had once shared a room with Pang Yuanhua. Her name was Long Gumeng. She was an undying husk too, but a low-key, hidden fifth rank, her lifespan far from spent. She flicked a glance at the elder who’d spoken. “Elder Gu, if you knew what the Ghost Street Judge did on the ancient ghost street, you’d understand. She would never experiment on countless children to create a jade husk.” “...”The elder’s brow creased. Long Gumeng said, “She took her cut on the ancient ghost street too, but not nearly as much as the other ghost shops. She didn’t kill indiscriminately. Good people she spared, and sometimes she even went out of her way to secretly save them from other ghosts. A few undying husks among us later turned out to be people she’d rescued. They told us everything straight.” The speaking elder murmured, “That is even more terrifying. If a ghost truly has human cunning, and can wait in silence for the right moment without our noticing, then strike like a beast the instant the timing is perfect…those are the moves of a kingmaker even among us, let alone among ghosts.” Long Gumeng continued, “That day, a slew of undying husks suddenly appeared on Hidden River Province’s ancient ghost street. They slaughtered almost all of ours. Those they didn’t kill were dragged off in human-skin manacles. Those undying husks belonged to the Ghost Street Judge.” Another elder blurted, “You mean she’s built her own power?” “Yes,” Long Gumeng said. Everyone was completely stunned. They stared at the black-and-white ghost domain in the distance, and a heavy helplessness rose in their chests. There was no way to play this board. A deathless, undying ghost sitting at the top of the pyramid was already nightmare enough. Add true intelligence to that, and what then? No one knew what to do. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝓷𝓮𝓽 Suddenly, a murky light flickered in one Lotus Cult elder’s eyes. He asked, “If the Ghost Street Judge is a human who became a ghost…then who was she when she was human?” At that, everyone looked around at each other and shook their heads. Another elder said, “Then let’s each go ask around, and put up a rich reward. Heavy bounties bring heavy leads.” All of them nodded in agreement. In the south, the undying husks of the Lotus Cult and the Immortal Worship Cult gathered at a new meeting place. Yu Wen was resting when a stir rose outside. “Excuse me, I was told if anyone can provide intel on the Ghost Street Judge, they’ll receive treatment equal to a Lotus Cult elder. Is this true?” Yu Wen stepped out and saw a familiar undying husk, one of the apparently good people the Ghost Street Judge had saved. He came forward and said, “It’s real.” He waved over several Lotus Cult elders, pulled out a guest elder token, and slapped it on a table in front of the man. “I remember your name, Ge Zhengyou. If you can give us anything useful about the Ghost Street Judge, this token is yours.” Ge Zhengyou glanced at the token; greed flashed in his eyes. “What if I can give you the Ghost Street Judge’s true face? Does that count?” “The Ghost Street Judge’s true face?” Delight sparked in the eyes of the elders. Her appearance had always been a mystery; she’d never been seen outside that shroud of gray mist. Ge Zhengyou said, “It was a long time ago. The Ghost Street Judge came up to me and handed me ghost money so I could buy a ghost item and save my own neck, then told me to get out of the ancient ghost street. And that once, by accident, I caught a glimpse of her face. Thinking back on it later, I figured she must’ve only just opened her shop. She didn’t have the details down yet.” That was all one elder needed to hear. “It counts! If you can draw her, you’ll enjoy the same privileges we do.” On the other side, Long Gumeng suddenly said, “The Ghost Street Judge saved you. Why betray her?” Ge Zhengyou gave a snorting laugh. “She saved me because I honored my mother. My mother’s gone now. What I want is greater power. So I need resources.” Long Gumeng frowned. “She’s still the one who saved your life.” Ge Zhengyou chuckled, bowed, and said, “My lady, you’re mistaken. She isn’t my benefactor. She’s a ghost. Ghosts have killed more than you can count. Even if they happen to do a good deed now and then, they’re still ghosts in the end. If I survived, that was my own accumulation of merit paying off—and my luck, touching her rules at just the right moment. How does that make it a life saved by her?” “Well said!” Yu Wen clapped once. “A ghost is a ghost. They only act by their rules, and the Ghost Street Judge is no exception.” He flicked a look at Long Gumeng. Something unnameable stirred in Long Gumeng’s chest. She opened her mouth to speak, but a hand behind her gave a light tug. It was a man in red robes, the original master of the Clock Mansion, Zhong Kui. “...” Long Gumeng stepped back. Ge Zhengyou picked up a brush. He was educated, his hand still steady; a short while later, a woman’s likeness lifted off the paper—gentle and composed, though her face held a trace of pallor. He set the brush down and studied the portrait from left and right, nodding with clear satisfaction. Then he bowed to the four directions. “This is the woman.” In a flash, rank and dignity were forgotten as everyone surged in with a roar to crowd around the painting. “The Ghost Street Judge…looks ?” Those who saw clearly couldn’t help but sigh. What kind of vicious ghost was this? She looked for all the world like a charming little lady. Off to the side, Ge Zhengyou said, “I’d say she was just lucky. Otherwise she’s only an ordinary woman, far beneath the people present. You need only flick your wrists and you could summon a dozen just like her.” An elder took up the guest elder token and handed it to Ge Zhengyou.. The man dropped to his knees, thanking them over and over. Nearby, Long Gumeng snapped her head up, but again the hand behind her gave a gentle tug. A Lotus Cult elder raised his voice. “Attend me, fetch painters! I want this portrait published everywhere. Anyone who can provide this information on this woman’s identity will be named a patron of the Lotus Cult!” When the meeting finally broke up, Long Gumeng shot Zhong Kui a fierce look. “Why did you pull me back?” Zhong Kui held her gaze, then sighed softly. “You…if you’re going to talk like that, you might as well take it straight to the Court of Judges.” They’d known each other long enough to read each other’s tempers. “How could the Ghost Street Judge have saved a snake-hearted wretch like that?” Long Gumeng muttered. “I want to cut out his heart and see whether it’s red or black.” “Don’t be hasty. Let it lie for now,” Zhong Kui said. “I’m sure there are plenty of undying husks down here in the south like you and me. The Ghost Street Judge rewards good and punishes evil. At this rate, every household will be setting up her idol and burning incense to her as a god.” “So what do we do now?” “Do you really know what the Ghost Street Judge is now? What if she’s changed?”