Resurrection of the Corpse Fiend

The night had deepened, and the darkness carried a suffocating weight, pressing down on everything, making it hard to breathe.

Li Wenhao stood at the entrance of Ghost Alley, his expression calm yet alert.

His fingers brushed lightly over the hilt of his peachwood sword, his brow knitting slightly.

He could feel it—

Something unspoken, something far more sinister than mere ghostly presence, lurking beneath the surface, stirring, waiting.

The seal had already broken, but what lay imprisoned within had yet to fully emerge.

"Daoist brother, why the furrowed brows?"

Jiang Wuyue's lighthearted voice came from beside him.

She had folded her oil-paper umbrella, standing with a languid posture, completely at ease.

The dim light of the night reflected in her eyes, making those deep black irises shimmer faintly, like a cat that had just opened its eyes in the dark.

She wasn't afraid of ghosts.

Nor was she afraid of the supernatural.

She only feared boredom.

"The seal broke too quickly," Li Wenhao murmured, his gaze never leaving the alley. "It feels like… something inside was waiting for us."

Jiang Wuyue's lips curled slightly, her smirk carrying a hint of amusement.

"So… are we going in or not?"

Li Wenhao turned to look at her.

She still wore that same playful expression, but her gaze held something deeper—

A subtle, knowing glint.

Almost as if she were testing him.

He was silent for a brief moment before turning back toward the alley, his voice steady.

"We go."

Once you step forward, there's no turning back.

Inside Ghost Alley

The deeper they ventured, the more twisted the atmosphere became.

The stone-paved street was shattered in places, with tendrils of black mist seeping from the cracks.

The old wooden doors along the alley were covered in ancient runes, the markings etched deeply into the weathered surface, like they had once been seals—seals that were now failing.

A faint stench of blood lingered in the air, mixed with the damp scent of decay.

The nauseating combination curled in the back of their throats.

Jiang Wuyue glanced around, taking in the crumbling buildings and broken rooftops.

Her red lips curved, and she let out a low chuckle.

"If someone fixed this place up and turned it into a horror attraction, it'd make a killing."

Li Wenhao cast her a flat look, his tone calm yet sharp.

"You want to make money? Survive past twenty-five first."

Jiang Wuyue paused, then laughed softly, lowering her voice just slightly.

"Daoist brother, that almost sounds like concern."

Li Wenhao ignored her, running his fingers along the markings on one of the doors.

The moment his palm pressed against the wood, he felt it—

A subtle void, an emptiness where power should have been.

His expression darkened.

"The seals have been tampered with."

Jiang Wuyue's head tilted slightly, her interest piqued.

"You're saying… someone deliberately broke the seal?"

Li Wenhao nodded slightly.

Her smirk deepened, her dark eyes glinting with intrigue.

"If that's the case…" she mused, her voice dripping with playful malice, "then doesn't that mean we've walked right into someone's trap?"

Her tone was casual, as if speaking of someone else's misfortune—

But Li Wenhao knew better.

She had already sensed it—

They hadn't stumbled into Ghost Alley.

They had been led here.

Someone… or something had been waiting for them.

At the Depths of the Alley

The air grew colder.

The deeper they walked, the thicker the chilling aura became—like a silent beast exhaling against their backs.

Then—

Jiang Wuyue suddenly stopped walking.

Li Wenhao immediately noticed her shift, turning toward her.

She was staring at the ground, her brows slightly furrowed, an unusual seriousness in her expression.

"What is it?"

She didn't answer.

Instead, she squatted down, reaching out—

Her fingertip touched the puddle of water at their feet.

The surface rippled in slow, concentric waves.

Then, she lifted her hand to her nose, sniffed lightly—

Her smirk faded.

"This isn't right."

Li Wenhao stepped forward, peering into the puddle.

His pupils contracted.

—It wasn't water.

The liquid carried a faint, sickly-sweet scent—

Like aged blood, soaked for so long that it had begun to rot.

His instincts screamed.

"Move!"

He grabbed her wrist, ready to pull her back—

But—

"Boom!"

The puddle exploded!

From beneath, dozens of pale, rotting hands lunged out, skeletal fingers grasping for their ankles!

Lightning crackled from Li Wenhao's fingertips, slicing through the darkness as he struck—

But before he could react further—

Jiang Wuyue didn't move.

Instead, she—

Smiled.

A slow, dangerously amused smile.

Then—

She lifted her hand.

Her palm faced downward, fingers gently curling—

A single drop of blood slid from her fingertip, falling into the black water.

And—

Everything stopped.

The alley fell silent, as if a giant hand had pressed down upon the entire space.

The hands froze, stiff and trembling, unable to move.

The water's surface rippled, but this time—

A crimson glow spread outward.

Jiang Wuyue's voice was soft, almost a whisper.

"Come out."

"Crack."

From the ruined temple ahead—

A figure slowly emerged from the shadows.

A corpse.

It was clad in tattered black robes, its chest hollowed out by some ancient wound.

In its empty eye sockets—

Green flames burned.

Its lips twisted into a grotesque grin, baring blackened teeth.

It stared directly at Jiang Wuyue, throat rattling as it hissed out a guttural snarl.

Li Wenhao's grip tightened around his sword.

"A Corpse Fiend."

Jiang Wuyue straightened, slowly licking the corner of her lips.

The glow in her eyes intensified—

Her voice lowered, carrying an edge of exhilaration.

"Finally… you're here."

The figure cloaked in tattered black robes took a slow step forward, emerging from the temple's shadow.

Its shrinking, paper-thin skin clung tightly to its bones, deathly pale, like parchment left out to dry.

A gaping hole lay in its chest, revealing a stark white ribcage, but the most unsettling feature was its glowing green eyes—twin ghostly flames burning inside its hollow sockets, casting a sickly glow over its twisted, nightmarish grin.

"Crack…"

The Corpse Fiend's head tilted unnaturally, the sound of dry, brittle tendons snapping echoing through the alley, as if something long dead was forcing itself to speak once more.

Jiang Wuyue remained still.

She didn't attack.

Instead, her long, dark lashes trembled slightly, a glimmer of interest flickering in her eyes.

"Now this… this is much better than that pile of useless trash from earlier."

She twisted her wrist slightly, and the lingering trace of red at her fingertips shimmered faintly—

As if tempting the Corpse Fiend into a deeper, more violent frenzy.

"Stop provoking it."

Li Wenhao's voice was low, serious, carrying a distinct warning.

He stood at her side, his grip firm around his peachwood sword, never taking his eyes off the creature.

"This thing… is beyond control."

Jiang Wuyue glanced at him, the corner of her lips curling slightly, her voice teasing.

"What, are you scared?"

Li Wenhao didn't rise to the bait, his tone remaining steady.

"This isn't an ordinary Corpse Fiend."

"Its soul is still intact."

Jiang Wuyue paused, the amusement in her expression dimming slightly.

Its soul is still there?

A normal Corpse Fiend was nothing more than a puppet—a body stripped of its soul, reanimated through necromantic arts, driven purely by the urge to kill.

But this one…

The look in its eyes—

It wasn't just vicious.

There was something deeper.

Something far more terrifying—

Obsession.

The Corpse Fiend finally spoke.

Its jaw stretched wide, so unnaturally that its lips split open at the edges.

Yellowed, decayed teeth bared as it let out a sound—

A low, trembling vibration, like a rusted bell shuddering in the wind.

"…Yin… Yang… Gate…"

The words were hoarse, fragmented, yet carved with madness and agony.

Again.

The Yin-Yang Gate.

Li Wenhao's gaze darkened.

This was the second time since entering Ghost Alley that a ghostly entity had uttered these words.

Was it a warning?

Or was it a summons?

"Tsk. Always throwing riddles at us instead of saying anything useful."

Jiang Wuyue sighed dramatically, then shifted her stance slightly, tilting her head just so.

Her finger lifted, resting lightly against the curve of her lips, as if pondering something amusing.

Then—

A slow, dangerous smile curved her lips.

"Maybe we should pry its mouth open and see if it can say something else?"

She had barely finished speaking—

"BOOM!"

The Corpse Fiend lunged!

It was fast—

Far faster than the ghosts they had faced before.

Its movements were smooth, disturbingly so—

Like a shadow being dragged by an invisible hand, it soared forward, clawed fingers outstretched, aiming directly for Jiang Wuyue's throat!

"Move!"

Li Wenhao reacted instantly, his grip tightening on his sword as he spun sharply, the blade glowing with crackling thunder.

"Break!"

Lightning erupted from the blade, tearing through the air, surging toward the creature's chest.

But—

Something bizarre happened.

Just as the lightning was about to strike, the Corpse Fiend's body twisted unnaturally—

Its entire torso snapped backward at a grotesque angle, almost like a marionette without bones, dodging the attack in a way that shouldn't have been possible.

Jiang Wuyue chuckled softly, amusement glimmering in her gaze.

"Not bad."

She didn't retreat.

Instead—

She stepped forward.

Her palm flipped, fingers slightly apart—

And then—

A crimson sigil bloomed in her palm, pulsating like a living thing.

She whispered:

"Still."

At once—

The Corpse Fiend froze.

It was like an invisible force had slammed down upon it, pinning it in place.

Li Wenhao's eyes widened slightly.

—She can suppress its soul directly?!

Jiang Wuyue's lashes lowered slightly, her gaze locked onto the paralyzed Corpse Fiend, studying it like a curiosity.

Then—

She raised her index finger, and a single drop of blood slid down her fingertip—

And fell.

Directly onto the center of its forehead.

The green flames in its eyes flickered violently.

It shuddered, convulsing, its mouth opening wide in pain, as if something deep inside it was resisting a command.

"Interesting."

Jiang Wuyue grinned, then leaned in—

Close enough that her breath ghosted over its ear.

Her voice was soft, but carried an undeniable weight.

"Tell me… where is the Yin-Yang Gate?"

The Corpse Fiend's eyes trembled, flickering erratically, its body convulsing—

Finally—

It spoke.

Or, at least, it tried to—

But just as its lips parted to reveal the truth—

"DONG—!"

A deep, resounding chime rang out from somewhere within Ghost Alley.

The low, heavy bell toll rippled through the air—

Like a command issued from the underworld itself.

The moment the sound reached them—

Li Wenhao's expression changed instantly.

"Damn it—!"

Jiang Wuyue's pupils contracted.

Because—

The Corpse Fiend had violently spasmed—

And then—

Its head exploded.

Blood splattered across the ground.

The bell chime had killed it.

Jiang Wuyue's hand snapped back, but it was already too late.

The Corpse Fiend's entire body began to deteriorate, crumbling into black ash, vanishing into nothingness—

A corpse erased.

Not by them.

But by someone else.

The wind died down.

The suffocating aura dissipated.

Yet—

The alley felt heavier than before.

Jiang Wuyue stood up straight, licked the corner of her lips, and turned toward the end of the alley.

Her eyes glimmered.

She exhaled lightly, then smirked.

"Interesting."

Li Wenhao didn't respond.

His gaze was also locked on the darkness beyond—

His hand clenching slightly around his sword.

Just now—

They had been one step away from the truth.

But someone—

Had made sure they wouldn't get it.