Nu Wang felt an unspeakable force buzzing at her ears.

Her vision wavered, and she felt like she was on the verge of her consciousness... Nu Wang's originally pale face had paled some more. Something inside of her mind clicked. She could feel the seal on her memories being unlocked.

All of a sudden, she felt a force tug at the hilt of the sword.

She raised her head.

Nu Wang met the ugly sight of hundreds of ghosts clamouring over, each pulling a side of the hilt. Their disgusting faces had snarled a putrid breath at her, as if threatening her to let go. The ghosts screamed and howled, each trying to take away the artifact.

Nu Wang just stood there, not doing anything.

The ghosts didn't understand why she looked so calm. They pressed onwards, but then... were slammed backwards by an unknown force.

The Strongest Sword glowed bright, repelling the fighting ghosts away from itself.

It seemed to mock the ghosts, Come if you dare to.

However, this standstill didn't get to last for a long time. Nu Wang had already wavered, then her vision had blackened. She collapsed on the ground, and the Strongest Sword dropped with a soft clink.

The ghosts, "..." Did this woman just faint on them?

Immediately, their eyes turned red from greed. They looked at the sword, which laid flat on the ground. An ocean of silence had washed over the ghosts, as their cold bodies had tensed. Every vessel in their body seemed to thicken from stress, as suspense hung above their heads like a sharp knife.

The Strongest Sword had never looked so tempting to steal.

The crowd of ghosts examined their competitors. Each and every one of them had a hungry look written across their faces. They all had the same thought. Steal the goddamn sword!

Then, they rushed out at once.

"IT'S MINE!"

A ghost elbowed another ghost out of the way. The elbowed ghost had collapsed, but dragged his attacker down onto the floor with them.

Another pair of ghosts stepped over them.

"FUCK OFF!"

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF ME!"

"JUST LET ME GET THE SWORD! PLEASE!?!"

"I HAVE MONEY! I'LL PAY YOU HOWEVER MUCH YOU WANT!"

"I DON'T NEED YOUR FUCKING MONEY!"

"FUCK YOUR MONEY! GIVE IT TO THE FUCKING HOST, IF YOU DARE!"

All of the ghosts began to tackle one another. Dust riled up in the auction house, as fights broke out like uncontainable water, spilling out from a leaking dam.

A punch was delivered to a ghost, and he crashed at the bottom of the stage.

"Fuck! Who in the world did that!?!" The ghost coughed. He could barely breathe.

Instead, a hand choked him by the neck. "I did." Yi Ran smirked. Without mercy, the demonic cultivator lifted the ghost by the neck, then threw him across the stage. The ghost had crashed against the ground twice, suffering from the impact.

Yi Ran managed to thrash all the ghosts away from herself. An empty circle surrounded her.

She easily picked the unconscious Nu Wang by the collar of her shirt.

"Yo! You ready?" She called.

Bo Fan picked up the Strongest Sword. He nodded.

Then, they disappeared. Not even their fleeting shadows could be seen from the auction house. All that was left from their escape was the auction house's wide open door. Its hinges were knocked down, as if a huge force had pulled it apart.

The ghosts paused. They stopped fighting amongst each other.

Their faces were red in fury. "GET THEM!"

The ghosts rushed out from the auction house, leaving only destruction in their path. Back inside the auction house, the three couples were also gone. Who knew when they'd left.

There was only the ghost host.

She sighed, ruffling her hair. All of a sudden, she caught the sight of a mirror, which was thrown on the ground by its bidder because of his greediness for the sword.

The mirror was the Body-Changing Mirror.

Such a wondrous artifact, yet it was abandoned. The ghost host revealed a sinister smile.

Yi Ran panted, "They're still on our tail!"

By her side, Bo Fan was also jumping from roof to roof. They scrambled to escape, but they couldn't shake off the following ghosts.

"How long until we get to the gates of Ghost Nation?" Yi Ran asked.

Bo Fan snarled, "Still a long way."

Yi Ran turned to look at the unconscious Nu Wang, who had her head burrowed in the demonic cultivators' chest. Yi Ran sighed. When will you wake up...?

All of a sudden, she tripped. Something cold smothered over her ankle.

Looking backwards, Yi Ran noticed a ghost. This ghost drooled, with saliva dripping down from the corner of his mouth. He had reached out a hand, grabbing onto Yi Ran's ankle.

The demonic cultivator lady's heart had jumped up to her throat.

"Fuck—" She didn't get to finish her curse, before she was dragged off the roof. Nu Wang had flung out of her arms, and landed safely on the roof.

Bo Fan just stood there, mouth agape. "Are you fucking kidding me?" He finished the curse for Yi Ran, who had collapsed on the ground.

Yi Ran was doubled over. Her string of drums had fallen out from her waistband, crippling across the cobblestone ground. She wasn't given any time to relax. The ghost who dragged her down had immediately pounced on her, punching one hit after another.

Yi Ran gritted her teeth.

"Fuck, not the face!" She was angered. A ball of blue fire had lit on her fingers, then was thrown at the ghost. Immediately, the ghost had turned to ashes.

A smirk fell on Yi Ran's face, but not too long after, it vanished.

"ATTACK!" An army of ghost soldiers had blared. They drew their swords, which all pointed at Yi Ran. The lady just stood there, counting how many swords there were—at least over 50.

Yi Ran shuddered. How am I supposed to run away from 50 swords?

"DUCK!" Bo Fan came down. In one hand was Nu Wang, and the Strongest Sword had burrowed itself in the female ghost's arms. No matter how hard Bo Fan tugged, the artifact wouldn't release itself. Thus, Bo Fan could only dejectedly use his own longsword.

Bo Fan took on a stance. "I never got to show my true skills because of those bullies..." He tried to not think about the three couples, "However, I will now go all out."

He took a deep breath.

Then, he slashed.

Silence washed over them all. Nobody moved. Then, the pressure dropped. It felt as if the heaven descended from the skies, clouding over the earth in its dark shadows. The horizon seemed to flatten and melt into the abyss, with the roots of the lands snapping in half. In an instant, the air contained the familiar scent of blood. Then...

The pressure vanished.

The ghost soldiers looked at him confusedly. What was this demonic man doing? What was that from before? They looked at one another, shrugged, then charged forwards.

Bo Fan's eyes thinned.

In an instant, the over 50 ghost soldiers disappeared into ashes.

Bo Fan tumbled backwards, collapsing on the ground. He coughed up blood, with the lukewarm liquid spilling all over his abdomen.

Again and again, his chest heaved up and down. More blood spilled from his lips. At this point, blood painted all over the cobblestone ground. It was enough to embrace the demon's shadow.

He was suffering from internal injuries. That move he just performed had annihilated that squadron of ghost soldiers. It took up most of his spiritual energy. He needed to meditate and get more spiritual energy before it's too late...

However, his limbs grew heavy by every second.

In the distance, there was the sound of more ghost soldiers. If he doesn't pull himself together... Yi Ran, he, and Nu Wang won't be able to escape! Yi Ran can't carry two people at once! If she does, then she wouldn't be able to escape from the ghost soldiers!

Yi Ran picked up all her drums from the ground. She turned to look at Bo Fan, "Will you sacrifice yourself?"

Bo Fan, "..." That's the fucking question you're asking?

"Hell no!" He picked himself up from the ground. However, he spat out more blood.

In an instant, the sarcasm in Yi Ran's eyes had faded away. Only concern was left. She hurried to Bo Fan, picking him up from the arms, "Geez. It was just a joke."

Draping Bo Fan's body over one shoulder, she picked Nu Wang up in another arm. Both of her comrades were heavy, and every step Yi Ran took felt like she was on the verge of collapse. It felt like in an moment now, she might just tumble under the current and drown. With thrashing limbs and desperate strokes, she will just succumb to the heavy ocean...

Instead, she ran forwards. She jumped on roof to roof.

Behind her were the new army of ghost soldiers.

"Damnit!" She swore. No matter how far she ran, no matter how persistent she ran, no matter how quiet she ran... they would still follow her!

Yi Ran's vision was clouded. Will she die from the hands of Ghost Nation? Yes.

Sweat slid down from her neck.

What about Ping Sha? Who will revive Ah-Sha for her? What will happen to her? Will her memories die along with her? Did she learn demonic cultivation in the past... just for it to be a waste? Every single thing that Boss taught her... for the sake of reviving a single person! And now, she will die! She will die with it going to waste! The fire burning inside of her will extinguish—

All of a sudden, Yi Ran saw the figure of a young boy.

This young boy was a bit blurry, but it was enough for Yi Ran to remember who he was—Su Nan, the boy she killed from Yunmeng Jiang.

"." Su Nan smiled.

姐姐

"Why did Jiejie kill me?" Su Nan smiled. He took on the appearance of a young and well-behaved child. His skin was healthy, his eyes were like crescent slits, and his body was brimming with life.

Yi Ran froze.

"Jiejie said that I shouldn't run away from home. Jiejie promised me that I would get to see my parents again. You said that you would bring me back." Gradually, as Su Nan continued talking, his healthy body began to deteriorate.

His body wilted, forming creases and wrinkles. It paled and rotted, until it resembled the look of a fierce corpse. "Why did Jiejie break her promise?"

Su Nan's eye's snapped open. They were bloodshot, with vessels on the brink of exploding.

"Jiejie was lying all along, weren't you? Jiejie used me. Jiejie killed me, killed my parents, killed my home, and killed my future." Su Nan's expression shifted from kindness to insanity. "FOR WHAT REASON DID JIEJIE DO THIS!?! WHY DID MY PARENTS HAVE TO DIE!?! WHY DID I HAVE TO DIE!?!"

Yi Ran felt herself quavering before this strong animosity. "I..." She collected her hands into fists. "I needed to kill. I needed to revive Ah-Sha. That's it."

Su Nan paused.

He then smiled, "Even if it means killing innocent people?"

Hearing this, Yi Ran was enraged. It was like her ambitions and thoughts were naked for all to see. "You don't understand anything! All of you are sinners! All of you should die! Everyone will die later on! It doesn't matter if you guys die!"

Su Nan was surprised. He then snarled, "MY PARENTS DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO YOU!" He grew claws, "MY PARENTS WERE GOOD PEOPLE!"

A hardworking housewife and a tanghulu shopkeeper.

"Why did they have to die!?! THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO DIE! WE NEVER DID ANYTHING TO YOU!!! WHY DID YOU TAKE EVERYTHING AWAY FROM ME!?!" A creepy smile then crept over Su Nan's face. "You took them from me. So... you should die too!"

Yi Ran found her breath being taken away. Her lungs were emptied of oxygen, and she couldn't breathe. It was like something hard pressed down on her chest.

She was going to die—

All of a sudden, a voice was heard by her ear. "Do you need a hand?"

The image of the enraged Su Nan had fled, as if it was merely all but an optical illusion. Yi Ran's breath had returned. She could breathe again.

This voice was familiar...

Yi Ran's eyes widened. "Wei Wuxian!"

She stopped, rooted on the spot. Turning around, she saw the familiar black and red robed cultivator. Never had Yi Ran thought she'd be so happy to see an enemy.

"Just tell us, and we'll help." Wei Wuxian negotiated. He smiled, "You have something that we need. If we help you, you must give us what we need. Deal?"

Yi Ran faltered. Behind, the ghost soldiers crept.

Then, Yi Ran took a look at the blood-stained Bo Fan, and the unconscious Nu Wang. Something inside of her had strengthened. Yi Ran turned to face Wei Wuxian.

"Deal."

Bo Fan: Today, I showed off my killing move! How's that!?!

Yi Ran: rolling eyes

Yi Ran: You only killed 50 ghost soldiers in one shot. Please, that's nothing

Bo Fan: (༎ຶ⌑༎ຶ) You're telling me that all my hard work was for nothing!?!

Nu Wang: I think that it's pretty good—

Yi Ran: Ahem.

Nu Wang: It sucked

The three couples: When will we get screen time?