Chapter 313: It’s Snowing

In the lavishly decorated private room, the dim and lazy lighting made one feel drowsy. Beads of condensation formed on the surface of the wine bottle in the ice bucket on the table.

Lu Yibei looked at Bai Kai, puzzled, and asked, “Intercept? What do you mean?”

Bai Kai smirked, took the bottle from the ice bucket, poured himself half a glass, took a sip, and then slowly explained.

“Yibei, do you know why the Dusk Maiden and those Black Cloak Men assisting her in Hua City are risking exposure by attacking haunting strongholds before the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts?”

“Well…” Lu Yibei thought for a moment and ventured, “Is it because they need to establish some authority? Like you mentioned earlier, she needs to make sure all the hauntings in Hua City know her name, right?”

“Exactly.” Bai Kai nodded. “That’s indeed one reason. But as a haunting that’s been in Hua City for a long time, the Dusk Maiden’s name is already well-known among the hauntings here. Even though she was once defeated and her remains sealed, it hasn’t affected her reputation much.”

“I suppose that’s also why the Plague Taisui chose her as its agent to organize the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.”

“If it’s not for that reason, then why?” Lu Yibei was even more puzzled. “Could it be because she just woke up and needs a lot of core entities from hauntings to restore her power?”

“That could be one reason,” Bai Kai shrugged, “but those aren’t the most important reasons. The most crucial reason is that she wants to reduce her own pressure through these actions.”

With Bai Kai’s hint, Lu Yibei suddenly understood.

A Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts is akin to a declaration of ownership, inevitably attracting challenges from all sides. These challenges become more intense as the parade nears its end.

Typically, when a haunting wants to organize such a parade, unless its power far exceeds that of the hauntings along the way, an unprepared Night Parade would only invite disaster.

The Dusk Maiden and her Black Cloak Men are attacking threatening hauntings or psychics in advance to reduce challengers.

It’s much simpler to take them down one by one beforehand than to face a united assault during the parade.

In fact, except for a few hauntings overly confident in their strength, most would make similar preparations before a Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.

“I get it. Shui-Ge, you’re suggesting I act as the final boss and challenge the Dusk Maiden when her Night Parade is about to end, right?” Lu Yibei said with a serious look.

Though the thought of facing a Class A Haunting head-on made Lu Yibei feel uneasy, breaking out in a cold sweat, it was still less daunting than the prospect of battling all the hauntings in Hua City.

If he really had to grit his teeth and go through with it, Lu Yibei even suspected he might not be able to hold his ground and would become one of those rare hauntings that abandon their followers and flee halfway through a Night Parade.

“Exactly!” Bai Kai put down his glass and affirmed, “A Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts is like ancient feudal lords vying for power. Conquering the world on your own is never as convenient as usurping the throne.”

Hearing Bai Kai’s dangerous words again, Lu Yibei felt an inexplicable anxiety, secretly thinking that no wonder The Midnight Watchers Society was doing everything it could to prevent the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.

They said that after the founding of the country, spirits weren’t allowed to become sentient. Now, with the nights growing longer and hauntings multiplying, it’s hard to control whether they become sentient or not. Thinking about “founding a country” is just too much!

Besides, letting unpredictable, capricious hauntings, who might fall into corruption at any moment, rule the night of a city is far too risky.

“But, Shui-Ge, your talk of usurping power doesn’t seem quite right, does it?” Lu Yibei, though seeing the feasibility in Bai Kai’s plan, still had doubts. “If a haunting falls in the challenge of the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts, all its efforts are wasted, but the challenger can’t directly reap the rewards of its victory, right?”

“If that’s the case, there’s still no way to stop Plague Taisui from wreaking havoc in Hua City, is there?”

Bai Kai looked at Lu Yibei, tilting his head, “That’s true, but where did you hear that?”

From the knowledge of the Great Serpent God… Lu Yibei thought to himself, but he maintained a blank expression as he replied to Bai Kai, “I read it in The Midnight Tome.”

“Yibei…” Bai Kai hesitated.

How could The Midnight Tome possibly record anything about the challenges of the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts?

Yibei, you’re becoming more and more of an enigma. Bai Kai thought to himself.

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” Lu Yibei looked at Bai Kai, blinking innocently, his whole face exuding calmness, his eyes radiating harmlessness.

“Never mind, it’s nothing.” Bai Kai waved his hand dismissively. “As for how to steal the fruits of victory from the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts, I have my ways. You just need to show up at the last moment.”

“According to my estimation, the Dusk Maiden is very likely to initiate the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts on the next moonless night, which is the night after tomorrow.”

“Got it!” Lu Yibei nodded solemnly, “Also…”

He paused, hesitated for a moment, and then added, “Shui-Ge, in the next two days, have someone keep an eye on the water sources around Hua City, especially the Hua City reservoir. I’m worried the Dusk Maiden might…”

Hearing Lu Yibei’s concerns, Bai Kai, recalling Plague Taisui’s abilities, frowned, “You’re worried she might introduce Plague Taisui’s essence into the water sources? Hmm, that’s definitely worth paying attention to!”

But…

Why specifically the Hua City reservoir? Bai Kai thought to himself.

“Shui-Ge, let’s leave it at that for now. I’ll go back and prepare.” Lu Yibei said.

Committing crimes isn’t as simple as eating or drinking; it’s a technical job. How can one proceed without preparation?

Even in these times, there’s a risk of things going wrong, even when dealing with other criminals. It’s always wise to have a few backup plans.

But…

Preparing for the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts for the first time, how does one pretend to be a notorious, ruthless haunting?

Waiting online for advice, it’s urgent. Lu Yibei thought.

Moments later, Bai Kai lifted the spell formation sealing the private room and watched as Lu Yibei hurriedly left, his figure disappearing down the corridor.

As the door to the private room slowly closed, Bai Kai suddenly slumped like a withered eggplant, collapsing onto the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling for a long time.

After a while, he suddenly sat up, grabbed the bottle on the table, and drank deeply.

“Ah-!” Putting down the bottle, Bai Kai let out a long sigh, muttering, “Damn it, Lu Ming, does your family have a restless gene or something!?”

“Your father was like this, and now the son too. If I ever get caught by headquarters, it’ll definitely be because of you guys!”

After that, there was another long silence. Bai Kai looked in the direction Lu Yibei had left, his eyes slightly hazy, “I hope he’s a qualified King of Hauntings.”

In Hua City, beneath the deep cloak of night, a sharp noise shattered the silence as the door to a long-closed supermarket was forcefully opened.

A woman clad in red stumbled from the torn metal door, her body soaked in blood, leaving behind a long, crimson trail on the ground.

Normally, such physical trauma wouldn’t be severe for a Class A Haunting, as it would only require a modest amount of psychic energy to heal.

However, the ferocious axe wielded by Ms. Rabbit, in tearing through her body, had also infused a large amount of Moon Shadow Fire into her from the blade.

This highly corrosive and destructive flame, like maggots gnawing at bones, continued to burn inside her. Each time she attempted to heal, the flames would violently erupt from her wounds in a pale burst, savagely re-opening them.

Thus, the bleeding did not cease.

“Tap-tap tap-!”

Footsteps echoed intermittently in the darkness.

When the footsteps halted, the Dusk Maiden collapsed beside the seafood tank. With a thought, she heard a muffled sound coming from the drain nearby.

“Bang, bang, bang!”

It was as if some creature was rampaging through the pipes, climbing swiftly upwards.

Following that, a mass resembling dark green flesh, a piece of the Plague Taisui, leapt from the drain and landed beside the Dusk Maiden.

She stared at the writhing mass, which continuously tried to differentiate into various twisted organs, hesitating for a few seconds before a resolute look flashed in her eyes.

Originally, the Dusk Maiden was quite wary of these tissues differentiated from Plague Taisui, knowing that merging with them could enhance her strength, yet she had never entertained the thought.

Merely becoming a familiar of Plague Taisui, assisting it in the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts, was nothing more than a transaction. After the transaction, she would still have considerable freedom in Hua City.

However, merging with the fragments of Plague Taisui’s tissue would mean becoming part of its body to an extent, where even with an independent consciousness, she would only be a part.

While this would make Plague Taisui stronger, benefiting her greatly and potentially reaching heights previously unattainable, it was like fingers, toes, or a gecko’s tail, which could be sacrificed when necessary.

But now, the Dusk Maiden no longer had the luxury of weighing the consequences. To heal the wounds inflicted by Ms. Rabbit with her own power would take months.

Months had passed, enough time for many things to occur. If she continued to drag her injured and weakened body around, whether found by Ms. Rabbit or The Midnight Watchers Society, her demise was certain.

“Help me… heal!”

In the darkness, the Dusk Maiden squeezed out the words through clenched teeth. The next moment, the dark green flesh beside her began to stir violently, swelling and expanding, multiplying into countless writhing masses that clawed towards the gruesome wound on her shoulder.

“Ah-!”

Innumerable limbs tangled messily, burrowing into her body, and a painful scream erupted from the Dusk Maiden’s mouth.

Instantly, a crimson ripple carrying the pale Moon Shadow Fire spread, and the surrounding shelves, pools, and stone pillars seemed as if they had been laden with hundreds of pounds of explosives and detonated, pulverized by the intense psychic energy fluctuations.

The Dusk Maiden coughed violently, as if afflicted with a severe lung disease, spewing foul-smelling black blood and pale sparks expelled from her body.

She could feel something spreading throughout her body, proliferating rapidly like a tidal wave, inch by inch devouring her shell, consuming the physical form that existed in the world, and forcibly taking over the core entity of the haunting.

Like a fission reaction, a surge of overwhelming power burst forth from within her, immersing her in this unprecedented sense of fullness and strength. The painful screams gradually subsided, transforming into a series of soothing, pleasurable snorts.

After a while, the turmoil subsided. In the darkness, the Dusk Maiden slowly opened her eyes, a sinister smile emerging on her lips. Visions of Ms. Rabbit, Jiang Li, and the divisive green-clothed haunting flickered before her.

“The pain I’ve endured today shall be repaid a hundredfold tomorrow!” she murmured, clenching her fists tightly.

The night was about to end, yet dawn had not arrived. Hua City lay beneath a sky filled with leaden clouds, chaotic and hazy, as the cold wind howled and snow threatened to fall.

At this moment, on the deserted terrace in front of the now-ruined supermarket, a dozen or so Black Cloak Men knelt on one knee.

Before them stood a woman with an alluring figure, dressed in a magnificent dark red gown that seemed to meld with her body, exuding an aggressive allure.

The Black Cloak Men remained silent, their hearts uneasy, occasionally glancing at her gown that writhed like flesh, proliferating granulation tissue. Their eyes darted away in panic after meeting the eyes that emerged from the granulation tissue, beads of cold sweat forming on their foreheads.

“Have you completed the tasks I assigned to you?” Dusk Maiden asked coldly.

“Reporting to Lady Witch,” the leading Black Cloak Man hesitated briefly before speaking, “It seems The Midnight Watchers Society has detected our actions. Almost every location is guarded by at least two special task forces, and key water sources are watched by main operators…”

“So, there was no opportunity to strike, was there?” Dusk Maiden said softly, a smile playing at her lips. “You really are useless, aren’t you?”

Her gentle yet unkind words made the Black Cloak Men tremble, panic flashing in their eyes.

In the dead silence, Dusk Maiden turned away, gazing thoughtfully at the sky.

Just then, a cold wind swept through, and tiny snowflakes, like grains of salt, began to fall from the sky.

Dusk Maiden extended her slender, pale hands, gently catching a few snowflakes and bringing them to her face. But before she could examine them closely, they melted in her palm.

Watching the small pool of water accumulate in her hand, her eyes flickered slightly, as if recalling something important, and a cruel smile gradually appeared on her lips.

With a thought, the water in her palm took on a faint dark green hue.

“I suddenly remembered a few places. Go check them out immediately; surely there won’t be any guards from The Midnight Watchers Society there.”

“……”

Staring at Dusk Maiden’s back, the leading Black Cloak Man gathered the courage to ask, “May I ask, Lady Witch, where should we go?”

“Sanitation stations, large car washes, seafood wholesale markets…” Dusk Maiden listed, “Anywhere you can think of where water can be spread throughout the city’s corners.”

Finally, she added a cryptic remark that left the Black Cloak Men puzzled, “It’s snowing, isn’t it? How wonderful…”