Chapter 42

Chapter 42

After discovering another Xu Wangchuan sitting in the ward, everyone instinctively looked at the Xu Wangchuan standing at the door in shock, then carefully shuffled away from him.

Xu Wangchuan seemed completely oblivious to this. He walked into the ward with a delighted smile, fussing over Xu Qingming with great concern. If not for the fact that an identical copy of him was sitting against the left wall, he'd have been the picture of a devoted son.

Xu Qingming and Xu Zhifei, under his gaze, went rigid with terror, not daring to move a muscle.

Xu Wangchuan kept up his earnest performance: "Dad, Mom, I found Muchan too. Once these masters get us out of here, our family can be reunited."

"Mom, you don't have to cry in secret anymore." Xu Wangchuan looked at Xu Zhifei and suddenly sighed. "Muchan moved out of the house. That must have been hard on you, Mom?"

Xu Zhifei's face was pale, her lips trembling soundlessly.

Xu Wangchuan turned to Xu Qingming and pleaded sincerely, "Dad, don't be mad at Muchan anymore. He's young and stubborn, but maybe he's already regretting it inside. There's no such thing as a grudge between father and son that lasts overnight. Once we get out, let him move back in, okay?"

Sweat beaded on Xu Qingming's forehead, and his fingers clenched the bedsheet tightly as he nodded stiffly. "Fine, fine. Whatever you say."

Xu Wangchuan smiled with satisfaction. He stood up and said, "Dad, why are you sweating so much? Let me get you a towel to wipe it off."

With that, he turned around—and came face-to-face with the man sitting by the wall.

He suddenly froze like a jammed cassette tape, standing rigidly in place. His face, which had been smiling, slowly twisted into something hideous and contorted.

And the Xu Wangchuan sitting in the chair also stood up.

Everyone in the room was on edge, their nerves stretched taut. Yan He, in particular, gripped the coin sword at his waist tightly, unable to tell which one was real. He nudged his senior brother and signaled with his eyes: Should we make a move?

Pei Rong gave a barely perceptible shake of his head.

By now, the two Xu Wangchuans were face-to-face—one wearing an eerily calm expression, the other twisted with rage. No one could figure out what was going on, and no one dared to make a move. They could only watch to see what these two were up to.

Under the watch of several pairs of eyes, the two Xu Wangchuans drew closer and closer, then merged into one.

Like two melting popsicles pressed too close together, their bodies drew toward each other, fused, and dissolved into one another, each becoming part of the other.

But their heads, oddly enough, remained as they were. One body now bore two heads, as if neither would yield to the other.

The head that belonged to the original Xu Wangchuan turned slightly, looking bewildered, as if he'd just noticed the extra head on his shoulder. His eyes were wide, his face a mixture of confusion and fear. "What's going on? Why do I look like this?"

He turned his head with difficulty to look at Xu Qingming and Xu Zhifei.

Xu Qingming turned away in disgust and fear. Xu Zhifei, meanwhile, covered her mouth and sobbed quietly, equally afraid to look at him.

Getting no answers from his parents, he turned to look at Yan He and the others at the door, as if he had finally found a savior. He stumbled forward a step and cried out, "Master, please save me... I don't want to end up like this..."

"This is so weird... please save me..."

But no one could save him. Everyone at the door took a wary step back.

Yan He's face showed a flicker of reluctance and pity, but he was helpless. He was about to say something to soothe him when he heard Xu Wangchuan's voice grow more distorted and more piercing.

He kept repeating "save me, save me," but it no longer sounded like a plea. Ignoring the words, that twisted, shrill tone sounded more like the curse of a vengeful ghost. And with two heads on his shoulders, both wearing identical expressions of venomous hatred, it indeed made him look like a vengeful spirit out for blood.

"What the hell is this thing?"

The two Taoists traveling with them weren't from any legitimate sect to begin with. They'd only come this time because of the Xu family's hefty reward, hoping to get lucky. They had never encountered such a bizarre and sinister spirit before, and now, watching Xu Wangchuan advance step by step, they were on the verge of bolting in terror.

Their words seemed to flip a switch in Xu Wangchuan.

The two heads on Xu Wangchuan's neck turned to face each other, exchanged a glance, and a malicious smile curled at the corners of their mouths. Then they turned in unison toward Xu Qingming and Xu Zhifei in the bedroom. "You're the ones who made me like this..."

As he spoke, he turned toward Xu Muchan, his neck twisting at an angle that defied human anatomy. "You... all of you deserve to die!"

Xu Wangchuan's venomous gaze locked onto Xu Muchan, who stood at the very back. Clearly, Xu Muchan was the one he resented the most.

Xu Muchan met his gaze, his eyes narrowing slightly. Then he suddenly shoved Yan He and said, "He's after me. Protect my parents—I'll lead him away!"

With that, he grabbed Wei Xilou and ran toward the first floor.

Sure enough, Xu Wangchuan ignored everyone else and let out a shriek as he gave chase.

"Xu Muchan!" "Muchan!"

Yan He and Xu Zhifei cried out at the same time, but Xu Muchan moved too fast—he'd already reached the first floor in the blink of an eye. Yan He gritted his teeth and held back the frantic Xu Zhifei, saying to his senior brother, "Get them somewhere safe first, then we'll go help Xu Muchan!"

Pei Rong grabbed the two useless Taoists by the scruff. "Move!"

Xu Muchan grabbed Wei Xilou's hand and sprinted down the first-floor corridor. He glanced back over his shoulder and saw Xu Wangchuan chasing after him, his neck stretching out long like a snake—and knew he'd guessed right.

Xu Wangchuan and the God of Joy must have already merged into one.

But he himself didn't seem willing to accept that reality, still struggling desperately.

Whether it was because of his intense obsession or some other reason, the God of Joy seemed to have been partly influenced by him.

Xu Muchan asked Wei Xilou as they ran, "Is there a Black Taisui inside the God of Joy?"

When the two Xu Wangchuans had merged earlier, he'd caught a faint, familiar scent—like Black Taisui.

That was also why he'd chosen to lure Xu Wangchuan away.

With other people around—especially Yan He and his senior brother—it was always less convenient to do what needed to be done.

"Yes."

Wei Xilou confirmed Xu Muchan's guess. He pulled Xu Muchan through a random door to hide, then turned and pressed him against the wall. Leaning down, he asked by his ear, "Should I go get it, or will Achan take it himself?"

Despite having been dragged along by Xu Muchan for so long, his breathing remained perfectly steady.

It was Xu Muchan, trapped in the circle of his arms, whose chest heaved violently from the exertion, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

Xu Muchan found the position a bit strange and tried to push him away, but couldn't budge him. Just then, Xu Wangchuan seemed to have caught up and was about to open the door—

Xu Muchan made his decision almost without thinking. "I want to try it myself. If I can't do it, then you can help me, brother—okay?"

He looked up at Wei Xilou, his face glowing pale in the dim room. Fine beads of sweat slid from his temple and dripped right into his eyes, wetting his thick lashes.

Wei Xilou's fingertip brushed lightly across his damp lashes. "Okay."

Xu Muchan opened the door and stepped out, facing Xu Wangchuan, who stood frozen with his hand outstretched. He tilted his head and smiled at him. "Were you looking for me?"

Xu Wangchuan lowered his hand and smiled back, delighted. "So you really were hiding in here."

Xu Muchan casually shifted his position, moving farther from the door to the middle of the hallway. "What wish did you make to the God of Joy to end up like this?"

Xu Wangchuan stared at him coldly, but his first reaction was denial. "I never made any wish."

"Is that so?" Xu Muchan held his gaze steadily.

Xu Wangchuan seemed to regain consciousness, his eyes wide open, staring daggers at Xu Muchan.

They were less than a step apart. Xu Wangchuan saw Xu Muchan and those hateful eyes of his.

In those pitch-black eyes, he saw his own reflection.

He had two heads.

Xu Wangchuan screamed again out of nowhere: "I never made a wish! I didn't!"

"You're all gonna die, every last one of you! Go to hell!"

Amid the piercing screams, Xu Wangchuan's two heads completely melted together, and then the God of Joy's head regrew. The countless tightly shut eyes on its face all opened at once, and from the thin slits, countless venomous pupils rolled and locked onto Xu Muchan.

The oppressive aura of Xu Wangchuan and the God of Joy was on completely different levels.

Xu Muchan licked his lips and decisively ripped off the Mountain God Amulet, tossing it toward the open gap in the door.

At the same time, the God of Joy's neck stretched like a snake, and the gaping mouth on its face snapped at Xu Muchan. Ghostified, Xu Muchan leaped nimbly, vaulting over its shoulder to land behind it.

After landing, Xu Muchan didn't attack first—he curiously examined the God of Joy before him.

In his ghostified state, the God of Joy looked completely different to him.

He saw the God of Joy's white body was made of countless twisted limbs entwined together. The limbs varied in shape—some were still clearly visible on the surface, while others had fully merged, leaving only faint traces that took a close look to spot.

And at the center of all those tangled limbs was a more distinct human figure.

The figure's head was covered with the red cloth the God of Joy used to wear, hiding its face, but it was dressed in Nanming's school uniform.

It was Xu Wangchuan.

His body sat at the very center of the God of Joy's torso, curled up like a fetus. The blood-red, vein-like threads Xu Muchan had seen before were wrapped around his limbs and torso, looking at first glance like a thick tangle of umbilical cords.

And now those umbilical-like tubes were constantly contracting—whether to draw nutrients or supply them, it was unclear.

Xu Muchan remembered back when he was a kid—after he lifted the God of Joy's red cloth, it seemed to want to cover him with a red veil too.

Thinking about how he'd nearly become this inhuman, ghostly thing, Xu Muchan got goosebumps.

He rubbed his arms and sidestepped the God of Joy's swiping arm, his gaze shifting to the fleshy crown on its head.

That crown stood upright like a bun, raw and reddish, with muscle exposed. In Xu Muchan's eyes, a mass of Black Taisui was quivering at the center of that crown, giving off an enticing scent...

Xu Muchan made his hand into a blade and chopped down at the God of Joy's head—

But that crown, despite looking soft, was way harder than expected. Xu Muchan's strike didn't even cut it, forcing him to back off fast to dodge the God of Joy's chase.

His eyes swept over the God of Joy's body, hunting for a weak spot.

Just then, Wei Xilou's voice echoed in his mind, reminding him: "Xu Wangchuan is feeding it."

Xu Muchan's eyes lit up. This time, he didn't go for the crown—which looked soft but was actually tough—but circled around to the God of Joy's back, and plunged his sharp-nailed hand straight into its back...

Xu Muchan's arm seemed to sink into a mass of soft, rotten flesh, brushing against slippery intestines and organs inside.

Those slippery, intestine-like things were exactly the red threads wrapped around Xu Wangchuan.

Xu Muchan grabbed them tight and yanked them out all at once.

The God of Joy let out a shriek, and the membrane-like wings on its back flared open, covering the gaping hole.

But Xu Muchan had found its weak spot and wasn't about to let it off easy.

Compared to the God of Joy's slender frame, Xu Muchan was much smaller and quicker. Using his edge, he didn't fight it head-on but started circling it, grabbing moments when it wasn't looking to gouge out holes and yank out handfuls of slippery red threads.

Soon, the pure white God of Joy was covered in scarlet, intestine-like tubes.

Those scarlet tubes seemed to bind the God of Joy, slowing it down and making it clumsier—and angrier. Taking advantage of its frenzy, Xu Muchan circled behind it again, grabbed Xu Wangchuan's arms, and dragged him out of the God of Joy's body by force.

Xu Wangchuan's body hit the ground with a thud, and the red tubes wrapped around him—the ones drawing nutrients—snapped clean off.

The God of Joy let out an angry, feeble roar, and the pure white limbs wrapped around it started peeling off like moldy plaster, exposing the grim, stinking rot underneath.

That pure white shell was like a fake god's cloak the God of Joy had draped over itself.

And now, this hideous form of rotting flesh and severed limbs was its true nature.

Badly hurt, the God of Joy clearly didn't want to keep fighting. Dragging its grotesque body, it turned to run, but Xu Muchan wasn't about to let it get away. He gathered his strength, leaped into the air, grabbed the fleshy crown on the God of Joy's head with one hand, and chopped down with the other like a blade—

This time, he sliced the crown off with ease.

After a bizarre roar from the God of Joy, the tangled limbs and rotting flesh instantly fell apart, scattering across the ground.

Foul, rotting fluids seeped from the pile of severed limbs. Xu Muchan was grossed out, and when he looked at the crown in his hand—even though it smelled enticing—he felt a wave of nausea.

"Bleh!"

Xu Muchan held his hand out away from him, instinctively looking for Wei Xilou: "Do I seriously have to eat this thing?"

He didn't even know how he'd managed to choke it down the last two times.

Wei Xilou pushed the door open and walked out, the Mountain God Amulet Xu Muchan had tossed him dangling from his wrist.

He took the soft, squishy crown, peeled off the outer red flesh, pulled out the small lump of Black Taisui inside, and held it to Xu Muchan's lips: "Close your eyes, and you'll be able to swallow it."

Xu Muchan tried closing his eyes and opening his mouth, but the second he thought of the God of Joy's final form, he felt sick again. He backed up two steps, wanting to cover his mouth, but then remembered what his hand had just touched, yanked it away, and dry-heaved again.

Waving his hand helplessly, Xu Muchan was all resistance from head to toe: "No way, I really can't eat this."

Back when he was blind, he'd had no choice.

But now, Xu Muchan figured wearing glasses wasn't so bad after all.

Wei Xilou seemed totally unable to get why Xu Muchan found it gross. After a moment, he said, "If you don't eat it, your eyesight will get worse again."

Xu Muchan: ???

He'd never heard of this before. He looked at Wei Xilou doubtfully, wondering if he was being played.

But Wei Xilou's expression was dead serious. Remembering how helpless he'd been when he was blind, Xu Muchan didn't dare risk it. He grabbed Wei Xilou's wrist tight, opened his mouth, and swallowed the Black Taisui.

The second the Black Taisui hit his mouth, it melted into liquid and slid down his throat, while a cool feeling seemed to run through every limb and bone.

Xu Muchan figured it wasn't so bad after all.

He looked at Wei Xilou, about to tell him about the changes, but froze the moment his eyes landed on him—

The Wei Xilou in front of him was still in human form, but under that human shell, only a thick mass of dark shadow churned and writhed, and inside the shadow, a faint, vertical crimson pupil was visible, giving Xu Muchan a strange sense of familiarity.

That vertical pupil—he'd seen it before, in the Ascension Tower of the Wei residence.

But back then, Wei Xilou had just merged with the Five Wild Gods. Though he was already something inhuman, he looked nothing like he did now.

By human standards of beauty, the statue-like form of the Five Wild Gods, creepy as it was, was a lot easier on the eyes.

More importantly, Xu Muchan could vaguely tell that the Wei Xilou in front of him was way weaker than he'd been back then.

Like a God of Joy that had molted.

Xu Muchan frowned, puzzled. "Brother... are you hurt?"

Wei Xilou hung the Mountain God Amulet around his neck, then tucked the little wooden talisman that was sticking out back into his collar. Eyes lowered, he said flatly, "I did lose something, but I'll get it back sooner or later. Don't worry, Achan."

Xu Muchan studied him probingly, but Wei Xilou's face gave nothing away. Not able to tell how much of that was true, Xu Muchan had to set his doubts aside for now and talk about what was happening to him.

"This time when I went ghost, I could see..." Xu Muchan carefully chose his words: "something deeper beneath the skin."

"And I stayed completely lucid the whole time."

Xu Muchan ventured, "Is it because of that thing you gave me to eat before?"

Only after saying it did he remember that this had happened back in the Republic of China era—his brother in the present probably had no idea about it. Xu Muchan paused and snuck a glance up at his expression.

Wei Xilou's face did indeed sour. He snorted and said, "You could say it's got a little to do with it. But more than that, it's because Achan's starting to grow up."

Xu Muchan thought, so it *is* related.

But what exactly did "growing up" mean?

Xu Muchan wondered if it meant he was about to become an adult.

He asked Wei Xilou again, but Wei Xilou wouldn't say more, instead changing the subject. "Xu Wangchuan ran off."

Xu Muchan didn't want to be sidetracked, but when he turned around, sure enough, Xu Wangchuan, who'd been lying on the ground, was gone.

"He actually made it out alive?"

Xu Muchan shot Wei Xilou a glare. "Why didn't you say that earlier?"

Wei Xilou said flatly, "There's a bathroom in the room. Wash your hands first, then go find him."

Xu Muchan: "..."

In the bathroom, Xu Wangchuan, who'd ripped off the red veil, stared at his face in the mirror over and over.

No extra head. No extra eyes. Everything was where it should be. Aside from his skin being a little pale from being soaked, nothing was out of the ordinary.

He let out a nervous, unhinged laugh. The God of Joy was dead. He'd dodged a bullet.

Xu Wangchuan stared at himself in the mirror for a long moment before carefully pushing the door open and stepping out.

He was about to head out when voices came from the hallway around the corner. He immediately ducked back into the room and cracked the door open to listen.

It was Xu Qingming and Xu Zhifei, along with those Taoist priests.

The group seemed to have hit a disagreement after going around in circles inside the villa. Xu Qingming, already sick and exhausted, suggested they take a break. Yan He wanted them to hide in a nearby room while he and his senior brother went to look for Xu Muchan.

But both Xu Qingming and the other two companions strongly objected, grabbing at Yan He and his senior brother to stop them from leaving.

The two sides were at a standoff.

Xu Wangchuan thought back to what had happened earlier, his cheeks twitching and his face twisting.

He'd originally planned to find his parents first, but seeing the state of Xu Qingming and the others, how could he explain what had happened if he just went back?

If they asked why he'd become like that, how would he explain?

Would they even accept him?

No.

They'd just see him as a monster.

The resentment on Xu Wangchuan's face grew more venomous, and his neck stretched out without him even realizing—

As if realizing something, Xu Wangchuan suddenly froze. He reached up to touch his face, but instead of warm skin, he felt cold, smooth fabric.

The red veil he'd thrown into the trash bin had somehow ended up back on his head.

How could this be?

Xu Wangchuan frantically tugged at the red veil, only to find it seemed to have fused with his face. Every tug felt like his skin was being ripped off, agonizingly painful.

Terrified, he ran back into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror.

The bright red veil sat firmly on his head, but it didn't block his vision.

He saw his neck had gotten unnaturally long, his fingers were slightly deformed, and his skin was deathly pale—white as a painted wall, just like... just like the God of Joy...

Xu Wangchuan screamed and burst out of the bathroom, desperate to find the Taoist priests for help.

But when he came out of the room, he saw the people in the hallway had found their way out. They left this creepy place with joyful relief, and no one heard Xu Wangchuan's cries for help.

Only Xu Qingming suddenly turned back, looked at Xu Wangchuan, and terror flashed across his face.

Xu Wangchuan, as if grabbing at a lifeline, scrambled after him. "Dad, Dad, it's me, Xu Wangchuan. I don't know why I turned into this. Dad, save me, get the Taoists to save me, Dad..."

Xu Qingming flinched as if electrocuted, stumbling back two steps, staring at empty space in terror.

Yan He, confused, followed his gaze, but there was nothing there. "Mr. Xu, are you alright?"

"It's nothing. Just worried Muchan hasn't come out yet."

Xu Qingming shook his head, turned, and warmly grabbed Yan He's hand, saying gratefully, "Thanks to you two masters, we were able to get out of that creepy place safely."

Yan He pulled his hand free. "Xu Muchan and the others are still inside. My senior brother and I are going back in."

Xu Qingming wiped the sweat off his face and nodded repeatedly. "Then we'll leave it to you two masters. We'll wait here for good news."

Xu Wangchuan got to his feet in disbelief, walked up to Xu Qingming, tilted his head, and asked, "Dad, you saw me, right?"

"Why are you pretending you didn't see me?"