Chapter 63

Zhu Ming started thinking right in front of Willow Waist, but she took a few steps back, putting distance between them and the lantern.

The invitation’s tip stated: “Demons Cannot Lie.” This meant that mission-relevant information could indeed be obtained from demons, and it was highly trustworthy.

But these demons weren’t vegetarians. Getting something would certainly require giving something else in return.

Whether it was the sharp-mouthed woman or Willow Waist, what they wanted was essentially the same thing: Essence.

A sip or two wasn’t a big deal, but if too much was drained, a person could die.

Therefore, anything paid for with Essence had better be worth the price.

So Zhu Ming turned around, placed her hands on Tang Qiaoqi’s shoulders, and said sincerely, “How about you bear with it a bit longer?”

Tang Qiaoqi: “…Grrrowl.” Her stomach was doing the talking.

Willow Waist leaned against her doorway, cracking sunflower seeds. She seemed utterly confident they had no other option and would eventually come begging. “It’ll be dawn soon. Let me take just one sip, and I’ll let you stay inside my house. Otherwise, when the sun comes up… you’re going to regret it.”

Tang Qiaoqi lowered her voice to a furtive whisper. “Maybe I should just let her take one sip?”

Zhu Ming refused flatly. “We’ll wait for dawn and see what happens first.”

“Alright.” Tang Qiaoqi couldn’t make up her own mind, so she deferred to Zhu Ming. The two left Willow Waist’s doorstep and found a spot to sit and doze.

No food, no drink, no house, no car. Tang Qiaoqi pressed herself close to the only source of warmth—Zhu Ming—and wistfully thought back to the snack stalls outside the school gates. Slurp… If she’d known all this would happen, she would’ve ordered the loaded grilled cold noodles with chicken fillet, sausage, and tenderloin.

Her stomach was unbearably empty. She couldn’t sleep and checked her phone for the time: 4:30 AM.

“Boss Zhu, are you hungry?”

“Starving.”

Tang Qiaoqi was quiet for a moment, then couldn’t help but ask, “Boss Zhu, if there are demons and ghosts in this world… are there also gods, or like, an underworld and stuff?”

Zhu Ming shifted into a more comfortable position. “Maybe.”

“So no one’s managing these… spaces?” Tang Qiaoqi complained, feeling deeply wronged. “Why does this place even exist? If it didn’t, those demons wouldn’t have been able to trap us, right?”

As if Zhu Ming knew the answer. She just gave a perfunctory hum in reply.

Tang Qiaoqi poked her. “Are you a Daoist? Or a nun? Are those moves from cultivation or something? Is our world Eastern Fantasy or a Magic type?”

Zhu Ming: “…ZZZ.”

Tang Qiaoqi propped her chin in her hands, her mind already wandering into wild territories. “Is there some secret human organization that restricts you guys from revealing the hidden world to ordinary people? But I’ve already come into contact with it now. Are they going to erase my memories later?”

Zhu Ming’s head was throbbing. She was exhausted and didn’t want to explain the basic setting right now.

But then Tang Qiaoqi suddenly said, “One hundred per question.”

Zhu Ming: “Let me explain it to you…”

Tang Qiaoqi: eyes wide

She’d never seen a ghost push a millstone, but money could certainly make Boss Zhu move one.

Chatting idly back and forth like this, dawn slowly arrived.

The moon set, the sun rose. A thin, pale mist lifted in the early morning. The town, so dark and sinister during the night, came to life in the morning light. The deathly-silent ghost town finally had sound: doors opening, footsteps, the rattle of wheels, talking and laughter…

Within the mist, Zhu Ming rose with a yawn, Tang Qiaoqi following close behind.

They ducked into a small alley.

Their clothes were a bit damp from the mist, clinging unpleasantly to their skin. Even though it was daylight, the unease in Tang Qiaoqi’s heart hadn’t lessened at all.

The morning mist was thin, and the morning air was cold—it had a feel like the misty rains of the Jiangnan water towns.

Figures passed to and fro in the distance. As they came closer, their true forms and homespun clothes were revealed. A fleeting illusion struck Tang Qiaoqi—as if she’d somehow time-traveled back to ancient times.

But her own modern clothes and Zhu Ming’s presence grounded her firmly in reality. This wasn’t ancient times, and she hadn’t time-traveled. She was simply trapped in a strange space.

Suddenly, a delicious aroma drifted over lazily. It carried the sweet scent of wheat and the rich, savory fragrance of meat. Tang Qiaoqi couldn’t stop herself from inhaling deeply. Her stomach, deadened by hunger, was jolted awake again, rumbling frantically.

Buns. It has to be big, fluffy, white steamed buns filled with meat!

“Fresh buns for sale! Freshly steamed, big meat buns! Three wen each, two for five wen!” The cry echoed from the street ahead, carrying an irresistible temptation.

Saliva pooled uncontrollably in her mouth. Weak, pitiful, and helpless, Tang Qiaoqi poked Zhu Ming. “Boss Zhu, this place seems to have turned normal. There’s someone selling food.”

Zhu Ming stroked her head. “Silly child. Where do you think these ‘people’ came from?”

They’d come from the very doors that had been shut tight all night. Did the demons at night truly transform into humans during the day?

Dizzy, weak, and starving, Tang Qiaoqi’s shoulders slumped, and she seemed to shrink a size smaller. “So we just wait here forever?”

Zhu Ming raised a finger. “Shh. Follow me. Let’s listen in for a bit.”

Hidden by the mist, the two crept closer to the alley entrance, listening carefully to the conversations around them.

“Hah! Old Bai’s meat buns are getting worse by the day.”

“Tell me about it. I bet he’s skimping on ingredients. No way he’s using good meat!”

“Hee hee hee. Can’t really blame him. The ingredients these days are too polluted, loaded with heavy metals. Of course they taste bad.”

“Ah, how I miss the old days. I want some human-meat buns.”

“Me too…”

Tang Qiaoqi’s face was whiter than paper, cold sweat beading on her forehead. The town, which had seemed to return to normal in the daylight, was only superficially normal. It was still the same eerie, sinister place.

Big buns, fragrant and steaming meat buns. She craved them so badly, but she didn’t dare.

Zhu Ming pulled her along, head low, continuing forward. They dodged demons, weaving through one street and alley after another, listening to them chat about human flesh, about pets, and about how Ergou’s youngest daughter, still not fully transformed into human form, was already chasing after pretty girls.

Listening, Tang Qiaoqi’s fear slowly began to ease just a little.

These demons were not like the brutal monsters she’d seen last night. The everyday lives of demons turned out to be surprisingly down-to-earth.

Suddenly, Zhu Ming yanked her arm, pressing Tang Qiaoqi down behind a stone pedestal. Her finger shot up to her lips in a “be quiet” gesture.

Tang Qiaoqi instantly silenced her breathing and stole a glance ahead.

There were two demons who hadn’t fully manifested their human forms. One had a big, bushy tail swishing back and forth, the other sported a pair of pointy ears erect on its head.

Big Tail said, “The Fox King is taking another bride.”

Sharp Ears said, “Who would be so desperate as to marry him? I heard his brides don’t leave even a bit of bone behind.”

Big Tail’s tail swished faster. “Right? But if the Fox King forces a marriage, who dares to refuse? Do you dare?”

Sharp Ears hastily replied, “I’m a guy. What’s it to me? The Fox King only wants beauties!”

Big Tail sighed. “Ai-yo, what I’m afraid of is him picking someone from our own friends and family. If only someone would willingly marry him…”

Sharp Ears asked, “Who would be willing?”

Big Tail also asked, “Who would be willing?”

Within the mist, the two demons with their backs to the stone pedestal slowly turned around. Tang Qiaoqi’s heart lurched. She was about to bolt when she felt a heavy weight on her shoulder.

Someone had pressed down on her.

She looked at Zhu Ming in confusion: Shouldn’t we run? I think they’ve spotted us.

Zhu Ming tugged at the corner of her mouth: Not ‘I think.’ They definitely have.

Two slender, pale hands rested on Tang Qiaoqi’s and Zhu Ming’s shoulders. Looking back, they were met by a familiar, beautiful face.

Willow Waist grinned. “Aiya, why does the scent of you two smell so… off?”

Zhu Ming pondered for a beat. “Maybe your nose is broken.”

Willow Waist let out two “hee hee” laughs, strange and unsettling, before suddenly raising her voice in a shout: “There are humans in town! Humans!! Live ones!!!”

Just as Tang Qiaoqi was at a complete loss, she was suddenly shoved forward and heard a single word hissed in her ear: “Run!”

She instinctively sprinted forward. Her legs were too weak to run fast, but the three demons didn’t chase her. Glancing back, she saw Zhu Ming locked in a tangle with Willow Waist.

Zhu Ming’s movements were so agile, so swift. Tang Qiaoqi, a fellow human, felt deeply ashamed. How could someone go hungry all night and still move so fluidly while she couldn’t even run away properly?

After tripping Willow Waist behind her, Zhu Ming sprinted and quickly caught up.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. Like a gale-force wind. Having already scouted the maze of roads the night before, Zhu Ming grabbed Tang Qiaoqi’s arm and darted into the twisting, winding alleys without looking back.

In moments, the three demons were left behind.

Tang Qiaoqi’s heart pounded like a drum. “What now? We’re exposed.” Even worse, she was about to collapse from exhaustion.

Zhu Ming hadn’t slowed down, her eyes and ears scanning everywhere at once. “Stay calm. This way.”

She actually led Tang Qiaoqi straight onto the main street!

Tang Qiaoqi’s heart leaped into her throat, terrified of being discovered. She instinctively ducked her head and hunched her shoulders, trying to make herself as small and inconspicuous as a quail. But instead of fleeing the street, Zhu Ming dragged her right up to a demon’s stall.

Tang Qiaoqi was petrified, but her nose reacted faster than her panicked brain, catching a familiar, irresistible scent. Fragrant, steamy, mouth-watering.

It was the smell of meat-filled steamed buns!

“What kind of meat is in the filling?” Zhu Ming asked without any preamble.

The Bun Shop Owner greeted them with a beaming smile. “Pork and beef. Which would the honored guests like… hmm?”

Sniffing, the Bun Shop Owner drew in a deep breath. He was so accustomed to the smell of buns he was immune to their appeal. Therefore, what was stirring his appetite at this moment was, without a doubt… the scent of human!

“How much?”

The Bun Shop Owner looked at the woman in black and the delicate, frail girl beside her. His smile grew wider and wider. “Simple. You just let me have one sip.”

“Really, just one sip?” Tang Qiaoqi was so hungry she couldn’t take it anymore. As long as it didn’t kill her, she felt she’d trade anything.

“Really, just one sip.” Seeing no other demons around to notice, the Bun Shop Owner coaxed them seductively.

“Hold on.” Zhu Ming stopped Tang Qiaoqi. She had one more question to ask. “What if I dine and dash?”

The Bun Shop Owner’s face instantly twisted into a ferocious scowl. “Then don’t blame me for exposing who you really are!”

“That’s it?”

“Hmph! Once everyone seizes you, it won’t be that simple!”

Zhu Ming understood. She smiled at the Bun Shop Owner, then reached out with both hands—grabbing a large bun in each—and bolted.

Tang Qiaoqi froze for a second before hastily giving chase. Behind them, the Bun Shop Owner nearly burst with rage. He shrieked, “Someone’s stealing buns! The humans are robbing us!!”

But just as he finished screaming, another demon burst out of an alleyway, shouting, “There are humans in town! Everyone, catch them!”

The Bun Shop Owner slammed his fist on the table. No wonder those two weren’t afraid of being exposed! They already had been!

Meanwhile, Zhu Ming and Tang Qiaoqi were still running. The two ducked into another alley. Zhu Ming generously handed one bun to Miss Tang. “Eat, quick.”

Having a steaming hot bun after starving for so long was pure bliss. In that moment, Tang Qiaoqi forgot all about dignity and wolfed it down, silently cursing herself for not grabbing two more while she had the chance.

But as she ate, a sudden fear struck her. “The bun seller… he wouldn’t have lied, right?”

Zhu Ming shook her head. “Even though it’s daytime, we can be sure they’re still demons. Demons cannot lie. You can rest assured and eat.”

That was good. Tang Qiaoqi felt relieved and swallowed the last mouthful.

With something in her stomach, she finally felt less faint. But that didn’t mean they could escape this place.

Because within this short time, the news of humans in town had spread to every demon. The entire town’s demon populace was mobilized to catch them!

Outnumbered, Zhu Ming and Tang Qiaoqi were about to be cornered.

Tang Qiaoqi clutched her stomach, feeling as if the bun she’d just eaten was already digested. “Boss Zhu, will being caught mean death?”

“I don’t know.”

“I can’t run anymore. Can I defect to the enemy?”

“Hold off on defecting for now… I have an idea.”

The two screeched to a halt in front of a tightly shut door.

It was an ordinary-looking residence tucked away in the alley. From its brickwork and tiled walls, it seemed no different from any other demon’s dwelling—completely unremarkable. Yet, every door in this place had one unique feature: a carved pattern above it.

Zhu Ming stared at this particular door’s pattern for a moment, then pushed with all her might—it wouldn’t budge.

“What now?” Tang Qiaoqi looked at the pursuers closing in from both ends of the alley. There was no question about it. They were completely surrounded.

“Get ready to defect,” Zhu Ming said, then reconsidered. “I have one more idea. Not sure if it’ll work, but it needs your cooperation.”

“What is it?”

“Wait. Let’s see what happens if we’re caught first.”

At the very front of the pursuing mob was, of course, Willow Waist. At her command, several demons grabbed the two women’s arms and restrained them.

Against so many, even Zhu Ming couldn’t break free. The two were now meat on the chopping block, fish on the cutting board.

“See? I told you you’d regret it in the daytime.” Willow Waist sauntered over and pinched Zhu Ming’s cheek. With a wave of her hand, she ordered, “My children, take them back and drain them dry!”