Chapter 52: Only You

Yao Zuizui was pulled along by Suhei, walking out at the fastest speed possible.

She didn’t pass through the grand hall she had walked by blindfolded the night before but took another path straight to the village entrance.

Along the way, the ghosts who saw her all avoided her as if looking at her would make their souls scatter—likely because they had received some warning from Suhei.

As soon as Yao Zuizui reached the village entrance, she saw—

Fang Yi.

He was wearing a somewhat tattered military jacket, standing calmly at the entrance, gazing into the distance, completely free of the awkwardness he showed in front of her.

But the moment he saw her, Fang Yi’s expression immediately turned bashful.

“M-Miss Xu, what are you doing here?” Aside from embarrassment, his face was filled with shock.

“I don’t know either… When I woke up, I was in the village, and there wasn’t a single person around… I was so scared…” Yao Zuizui fluttered her long lashes, her bright, watery eyes glistening, making her look even more enchanting.

Fang Yi’s face flushed red. Under the gaze of her shimmering eyes, his thoughts were completely scrambled.

“Where is this place…? How did we end up here?” Yao Zuizui grabbed Fang Yi’s arm and shook it lightly.

Fang Yi trembled slightly but steadied his voice. “T-This place is dangerous. Let’s leave quickly.”

With that, he turned and strode forward with Yao Zuizui, not daring to look back at the ** village again.

Yao Zuizui followed behind him, a secretive smile playing on her lips.

Before reaching the village entrance, Suhei had told her everything.

Fang Yi—a Maoshan Taoist priest, the 28th-generation sole heir of the Fang family, the most renowned branch of the Southern Maoshan sect.

Three years ago, Fang Yi had fought Suhei using a family heirloom treasure.

At the cost of destroying the treasure, he had severely wounded Suhei.

Over the past three years, Suhei’s power had been steadily declining as he tried to recover.

Later, he had transferred a hundred years of his cultivation to help Suhei grow to the equivalent of a five-year-old, leaving him with only fifty years of power left.

Now, Fang Yi had returned.

He must have found some new method or mastered a new spell, confident he could finally defeat Suhei.

However, the ** outside the hall was protected by a barrier of a hundred ghosts’ power, making it difficult for him to enter.

By the time Suhei found Yao Zuizui, Fang Yi was already on the verge of breaking the barrier.

To stop him, Yao Zuizui had no choice but to try the seduction tactic.

Fortunately, Fang Yi seemed to have spent his entire life focused solely on cultivation—likely never having had a girlfriend. A few words from her were enough to make him dizzy and obediently follow her lead.

Yao Zuizui walked side by side with Fang Yi, one hand holding Suhei’s.

The three of them strolled along the country road. The graves that had lined the path yesterday had miraculously vanished, replaced by endless fields swaying with golden wheat, the breeze carrying a sense of utter tranquility.

From behind, they looked like a happy, warm family of three.

Suhei suddenly appeared at the village entrance, his slightly translucent form solidifying faintly as he glared at their retreating figures with a face full of murderous rage.

His pitch-black eyes burned with uncontrollable, overwhelming killing intent.

Fang Yi, walking ahead, seemed to sense something and turned his head.

Panicking, Yao Zuizui pretended to twist her ankle and fell to the ground.

Fang Yi’s attention was immediately drawn to her. His brows furrowed tightly, and he fumbled nervously like a flustered young boy. “A-Are you okay?”

“No… my foot hurts…” Yao Zuizui bit her red lips lightly, her expression unintentionally alluring.

“Mommy, I’ll help you walk.” Suhei disliked Fang Yi intensely and refused to speak to him, even slapping away Fang Yi’s hand when he tried to help Yao Zuizui up.

“Mommy?” Fang Yi was stunned, looking at them in disbelief. “Aren’t you siblings?”

“She’s my mommy!” Suhei glared at Fang Yi with his big, grape-like eyes, enunciating each word clearly.

Yao Zuizui was furious—this would surely scare Fang Yi away.

No matter how beautiful she was, knowing she had a child would kill any romantic notions he might have had.

But Fang Yi reacted completely differently than she expected.

After only a few seconds of shock, he quickly regained his composure. “Then help your mommy walk carefully, okay? Uncle will watch over you.”

Suhei, not overthinking it, gave a childish huff and helped Yao Zuizui continue forward.

Since Yao Zuizui wasn’t actually injured—it was all an act—Suhei didn’t have to exert much effort, just putting on a show for Fang Yi.

But Fang Yi, foolishly taking it seriously, walked behind Yao Zuizui the entire way, arms slightly outstretched, ready to catch her if she fell again.

Meanwhile, Suhei’s expression darkened, his form flickering in and out of visibility, sometimes so transparent he seemed on the verge of vanishing.

Yet he followed them the entire way, watching from afar, his lips pressed into a thin line, his gaze cold enough to freeze everything.

===

Fang Yi escorted Yao Zuizui and Suhei to N City, a new place where Yao Zuizui decided to start fresh.

Find a job, raise her child.

Fang Yi was kind. Seeing that the mother and child had nowhere to stay, he spent the day running between rental agencies, securing them a fully furnished apartment.

Yao Zuizui began to suspect he had ulterior motives—why else would he go to such lengths for strangers he’d only known for two days?

Even if she was stunning, Fang Yi didn’t seem like the type to lose his head over a pretty face. Otherwise, he would’ve long fallen victim to the seductive ghosts he’d encountered in his line of work.

===

“I’ll take my leave now. The apartment is fully furnished—just unpack and settle in. Suhei must be tired, so I won’t disturb you further.” Fang Yi smiled warmly, closing the security door under Suhei’s watchful glare.

The moment the door shut, Fang Yi’s smile vanished.

In its place was a calm exterior masking a surge of madness in his eyes.

Expressionless, he stepped into the elevator, pressed every floor button, then adjusted his glasses. Under the elevator’s flickering light, his lenses reflected a sinister glint.

“Following me all this way—aren’t you tired?” Fang Yi spoke as if to the air, muttering to himself.

“Heh. How does it feel after being hit with my Soul-Dissolving Curse? There are so many women born under the Yang hour—if you’d just taken eighteen, your wounds would’ve healed long ago. Why only Xu Weiwei? And after three years, your condition hasn’t improved? Hahaha… seems she—” His words were cut off by a sudden gust of cold wind.

Clearly, his taunts had struck a nerve.

Suhei’s form flickered into view, and Fang Yi’s figure blurred in response.

The two clashed inside the elevator.

The lights flickered wildly before plunging the space into darkness, the elevator grinding to a halt.

Fang Yi pulled out a talisman from his pocket, his hands moving swiftly in the dark.

The sound of clashing and banging echoed inside the confined space.

…

Ten minutes later, the elevator resumed operation, the lights flickering back on.

Fang Yi stepped out calmly on the ground floor.

A guard at the entrance apologized awkwardly, “Sir, are you alright? Our elevator rarely malfunctions, but today—”

“I’m fine. In fact, I’m delighted.” Fang Yi smiled gently at the guard.

He couldn’t contain his excitement.

Since childhood, his family had drilled into him that capturing that ghost was the Fang family’s ancestral mission.

Day after day, his father, mother, grandfather, grandmother—everyone repeated it until his dreams were filled with visions of capturing that ghost.

But past generations of the Fang family had been reluctant to use their heirloom treasure—a one-time consumable item—always hoping to defeat the ghost through their own cultivation.

He was different. The moment he came of age, he resolved to use the treasure at any cost to capture Suhei.

He was so close to success—just one step away.

Tonight, the ghost’s injuries had worsened again!

Even though he’d escaped, soon… very soon… that ghost wouldn’t escape his grasp!

With this thought, Fang Yi left with light steps.

Before departing, he glanced up at the lit window on the twelfth floor—Xu Weiwei’s apartment.

A triumphant smile curled his lips.

The merit would be his.

And so would the beauty.

As for the ghost’s son… he’d send him straight to the eighteenth level of hell—or scatter his soul to the wind!

===

“Mommy! Daddy’s dying!” Suhei rushed into the kitchen in a panic, clutching the hem of Yao Zuizui’s apron, his grape-like eyes brimming with tears.

Yao Zuizui’s heart clenched.

“What’s wrong with him?” She, too, was flustered.

In every world, Suhei had always held absolute dominance—she’d never seen him in such dire straits.

But in this world, his injuries were severe, teetering on the edge of annihilation.

“Daddy’s over there! Mommy, I don’t want to eat—please check on Daddy first!” Suhei wiped his tear-streaked face, sniffling.

Yao Zuizui wiped her hands, turned off the stove, and hurried out.

The moment she left the kitchen, she saw Suhei lying on the sofa, one leg dangling off, his entire being frighteningly weak.

His form wasn’t solid—flickering in and out like a translucent illusion.

“Mommy, put this on so you can see Daddy.” Suhei tugged Yao Zuizui down before she could see what he was holding. A cool sensation spread over her eyelids as something was smeared on them.

Now, she could see Suhei clearly.

And—

Her small living room was packed with ghosts of all shapes and forms.

Their expressions were uniformly filled with worry and sorrow, on the verge of tears as they stared at Suhei, who lay on the sofa like a wisp of smoke, barely clinging to existence.

“Waaah! It’s all my fault!” Suhei slapped his own cheeks with his tiny hands. “If Daddy hadn’t used his power to help me grow, he could’ve won the fight!”

Yao Zuizui quickly grabbed his hands, afraid he’d bruise himself.

“No, no! It’s our fault!” A scholarly ghost with a white noose around his neck lamented, tongue lolling. “If we’d found more Yang-hour-born women for the Master, he’d have recovered long ago!”

“What do you know? We found at least fifty—if not a hundred! The Master wouldn’t even glance at them… sigh!”

“Why not?”

Then, a hundred pairs of ghostly eyes turned in unison toward Yao Zuizui.

Staring.

Silent.

Yao Zuizui squirmed under their collective gaze…

“Don’t look at me! He’s been injured for three years, right? I’ve only been here for how long?”

Suhei lay on the sofa, his gaze distant.

Yes.

Before she appeared, he hadn’t thought of seeking others.

After she appeared, he hadn’t thought of seeking anyone else.