Chapter 62

Seven or eight demons lunged at Zhu Ming simultaneously from different directions and angles.

Amidst the swirling chaos, her fire erupted like a giant roc spreading its wings. The display was terrifying, seeming to possess a world-devouring power.

But Zhu Ming knew the truth. This plume of fire was all show and no substance. The more it spread, the weaker it became. At most, it could singe the fur of these demons.

Furthermore, demons had countless tricks up their sleeves. She had no idea what other abilities they might unleash.

Therefore, after using that fiery plume to blind and confuse the beasts, Zhu Ming didn’t retreat. Instead, she charged forward, heading straight for Willow Waist. To catch the bandits, first catch their leader. This woman was clearly the highest-ranked among them!

Willow Waist stood her ground, calm and unflustered. A long, flexible rope drifted lazily through the air toward her. At first glance, it seemed an ordinary rope. But as it drew closer, it became a dizzying, horrifying sight. On closer inspection, one’s soul would shudder—the rope was composed of countless tiny, writhing snakes! It was a living thing!

The Snake Rope showed no fear of the intense heat of the Crimson Flame. Accompanied by a wave of grotesque laughter, it coiled into a noose, snaring toward the two women.

Just as Zhu Ming was preparing to dive and roll away, a voice like a thunderclap boomed from above: “Enough, all of you. Stop.”

Willow Waist pulled her hand back, looking up in confusion. “Why, Shifu?”

The voice, deep and hoarse, chuckled. “You silly girl. Have you forgotten the experiments the Grand Witch and I have been conducting lately? These two are perfect to use as test subjects.”

Willow Waist’s face lit with sudden understanding. “Your disciple understands.”

With that, she gave Zhu Ming a sardonic look. “I can’t say if your luck is good or bad. With my master and the Grand Witch making a move this time, if you lose your lives, don’t blame me.”

The fight had suddenly stopped mid-way. It seemed they intended to use them as lab rats. Zhu Ming looked around warily. “What are you planning? Explain yourself first, or I won’t cooperate.”

The voice that blanketed the entire Demon Market let out an earth-shaking laugh. “Humans truly fear death. It’s nothing, really. Recently, I received the favor of an Ancestral God and gained some control over a pocket space. I simply wish to invite you inside to… play a little game. That’s all. Surely, this sort of thing isn’t unfamiliar to you, Miss Zhu. If you can pass this trial, you are free to leave. I shall not stop you!”

As the voice finished speaking, a watery ripple spread across the Demon Market, rapidly sweeping over their entire view from some distant point.

Tang Qiaoqi clutched Zhu Ming’s arm in panic, feeling as if the very air around her was being sucked away. After a disorienting churn that seemed to flip heaven and earth, when her mind cleared, they found themselves abruptly at the end of a deep, gloomy alley.

Two white paper cards rapidly materialized before them, words forming one by one:

【We Cordially Invite You to Our World: Night Parade Demon Market.

Mission: None

Tip 1: Do not trust…】

But before the text could fully manifest, the half-completed invitation card began to warp, crumple, and shred as if seized by invisible, giant hands.

The bizarre mutation of the invitation card not only terrified Tang Qiaoqi but also chilled Zhu Ming’s heart. In that world-shaking voice, she seemed to have caught a hint of some terrifying secret.

If Willow Waist wasn’t lying, then demons and humans faced the same plight regarding the Dark Realm spaces. The only reason it was barely noticeable was that demons were few in number and could disguise themselves as humans.

And that voice claimed to have received the favor of an Ancestral God, granting him the ability to control a Dark Realm space… Did he mean he could become an Instance Boss? Even influence the rules of this instance?!

That voice belonged to Willow Waist’s Shifu, definitely a demon. He wasn’t a naturally-born Instance Boss, but a chosen one. Did this mean that among humans, there were already many Instance Bosses capable of entering the real world?

It reminded her of the owner of the Four Seasons Train, who called himself a GM. Perhaps his true meaning was the same as Willow Waist’s Shifu’s situation.

Tsk…

What exactly did Willow Waist’s Shifu want to test?

Two invitation cards finished forming and landed separately before Zhu Ming and Tang Qiaoqi. Opening them, they saw a simple, eerie totem of a narrow-eyed fox head. The text had changed to:

【We Cordially Invite You to Our World: Night Parade Demon Market.

Mission: Light the Lamp

Tips: 1. Beware of the Lanterns

2. Demons Cannot Lie

3. You are responsible for the consequences of mission failure.

4. Explore to discover other rules.

Note: Once the mission is complete, tear up your invitation to leave this world.】

The events that had rained down tonight had already shattered Tang Qiaoqi’s entire worldview. So much so that by the time this invitation fell into her hands, she could actually read the whole thing through.

But she still couldn’t truly grasp what this invitation meant.

“Boss Zhu, who gave us this mission? Was it that monster who didn’t show himself?”

Zhu Ming replied thoughtfully, “Maybe, maybe not. Qiqi, what’s critical right now is that you seem to have landed yourself in big, big trouble.”

Tears welled in Tang Qiaoqi’s eyes. “What kind of trouble?”

Waving the invitation, Zhu Ming gave her a pitying look and explained the basics of Dark Realm spaces, including the fact that no one who’d ever received an invitation had managed to escape.

Logically, Tang Qiaoqi was an ordinary person. She shouldn’t have received an invitation. The problem was the irregular sequence of events—she was already inside the instance before the invitation arrived.

With her worldview completely steamrolled again, Tang Qiaoqi stood frozen, her expression blank, like a shell-shocked doll.

The next second, she latched onto Zhu Ming’s arm with desperate hope. “Boss Zhu, I paid you! You have to get me out of here!”

Zhu Ming patiently patted her head. “Don’t worry, don’t worry. If you die, who will I ask for money next time?”

Tang Qiaoqi: “…”

After soothing her financial backer, Zhu Ming began observing their surroundings. The alley was dark and narrow. A faint glow shone from the entrance. As they crept closer to peek outside, they saw a bright moon hanging high. Everywhere they looked were imitations of ancient architecture with high walls and black tiles.

The street was so silent you could hear a pin drop. There was no human sound, no insect chirping. Every door lining the road was tightly shut. The entire ancient town lay in a deathly silence.

Tang Qiaoqi stuck to Zhu Ming like sticky candy, squinting and stealing glances, terrified that a ghost would pop out at any moment.

“What do we do now?” she whispered.

“We’ve already received the invitation. Our only option is to complete the mission and leave this place.” Zhu Ming paused, then added, “We could refuse, but eventually, the dungeon’s restrictions on the NPCs will weaken. There are tough opponents here. I might not be able to protect you.”

Tang Qiaoqi’s grip on the hem of Zhu Ming’s clothes tightened fiercely. She quickly declared her stance: “Whatever you say, I’ll do. I’ll follow your lead!”

“Then let’s scout the terrain first.”

They couldn’t just stay put waiting to die. Zhu Ming pulled Tang Qiaoqi along, weaving through the faux-ancient town.

The town wasn’t large, but it was a maze of small paths. On a first pass, it was somewhat dizzying. And with every single door shut tight, the place was so gloomy and strange that it felt like any one of them might silently creak open a crack behind you at any moment.

As they walked, Zhu Ming heard the sound of water. Moving toward it, they found a small river cutting through the town with a bridge over it. On the other side of the bridge was a plaza, and in the center of the plaza stood a towering Fox Statue.

In its hand, the Fox Statue held a lamp.

The mission on the invitation said “Light the Lamp.” After walking all this way, this was the only lamp they’d seen. This had to be the one.

“Boss Zhu, can we just… light it up directly?” Tang Qiaoqi was already imagining a spectacular burst of sparks.

“No. My power isn’t working.” Zhu Ming shrugged. “That’s actually a good sign. It means this place is relatively safe, at least in the beginning. We probably won’t need to fight ghosts and phantoms directly.”

Tang Qiaoqi nodded furiously. What, there were dungeons where you had to fight? She’d rather wash her own neck and offer it up to a ghost than fight those demons.

They continued exploring, covering the entire town.

The town was small, and the instance boundaries prevented them from leaving it. The two just wandered the streets like this, and surprisingly, no danger befell them.

Grrrowl.

When the sound came, Tang Qiaoqi froze. Then her face flushed red.

“I didn’t eat much for dinner…”

And on top of a night of non-stop exertion, the food in her stomach had long since been digested. Regaining her senses, Tang Qiaoqi felt nothing but cold and hunger, utterly miserable.

Zhu Ming touched the back of her hand—ice cold. It was late autumn now. Temperatures dropped sharply at night, with a huge difference between day and night, a prime time to fall ill.

But Zhu Ming was highly resistant to the cold, still wearing only a single shirt. She couldn’t even offer a coat to this client of hers.

“Looks like we’ll have to take the initiative and find a demon to talk to.” Zhu Ming led her back to the Fox Statue plaza.

Take the initiative? Find a demon? Tang Qiaoqi wasn’t stupid. She immediately understood what Zhu Ming meant.

So far, they’d walked every accessible street in the town without seeing a single figure. It was as still as a ghost town. But that didn’t mean they were truly alone.

Because they hadn’t yet explored inside those tightly closed courtyard gates.

Nervously, Tang Qiaoqi lowered her voice to a whisper. “With so many doors, which one do we pick?”

Zhu Ming rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Let’s try this one first to test the waters.”

She chose a door tucked away in a corner of the plaza, unremarkable and very low-key.

Moonlight streamed down like water. Tang Qiaoqi hid behind Zhu Ming, hugging her own arms and rubbing them constantly. Please don’t let anything go wrong… she prayed silently.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Zhu Ming had none of her hesitations. Afraid whatever was inside might not hear, she was practically slamming her fist against the wood.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

When the final heavy knock met empty air, Zhu Ming instantly stepped back. The door opened a crack, softly and silently, but a deep, blood-red light seeped through from within.

The pitch-black night, with no bright moonlight but only this cold moon and the blood-red glow… Instantly, Tang Qiaoqi was assaulted by memories of countless terrifying, uncanny folkloric tales. Her heart clenched in profound discomfort.

The red light grew brighter, finally revealing the thing behind the door—a Red Lantern, intensely, starkly red.

Beware of the Lanterns!

Tang Qiaoqi instinctively pulled Zhu Ming back. Zhu Ming patted her reassuringly, signaling her to stay calm.

At that moment, the one carrying the red lantern emerged enough to show her face. It was a short woman with a sharp, pointed mouth. Her beady little eyes darted around. The red light made her already cramped and crowded features seem even more ghastly, causing an instinctive, deep-seated unease.

“Ah, guests from afar. What business brings you knocking at such a late hour?” The pointed-mouthed woman’s voice was sharp and thin, like a needle, constantly prickling Tang Qiaoqi’s eardrums.

Zhu Ming cut straight to the chase: “How do we light the lamp?”

The sharp-mouthed woman giggled. “Let me give you a kiss, and I’ll tell you the answer.”

Zhu Ming: “…”

Tang Qiaoqi: “…”

Without a word, the two turned and walked away. The sharp-mouthed woman leaned against her door frame and let out a high, cackling laugh. “Tsk, tsk—what are you afraid of? It’s not like I’ll eat you!”

Tang Qiaoqi looked at Zhu Ming worriedly. “Is it okay for us to just leave like that?”

Zhu Ming gave a light humph. “If something’s going to happen, I’ll at least pick someone good-looking.”

So they knocked on another door. A red light shone from within it too. And this time, the one who came out was none other than Willow Waist!

“How do we light the lamp?” Zhu Ming asked patiently.

Compared to the sharp-mouthed woman, Willow Waist’s demand was no better, only more direct. “You let me take a sip of you, and I’ll tell you.”

Zhu Ming: “…Do you have any food?”

Willow Waist looked at the two with contempt. “Sucking first, eating later. Take it or leave it!”