The impact of the scene before her was too overwhelming, chasing away all sleepiness.

Yuan Qingzhi clamped her hand over her mouth, suppressing the scream that almost escaped.

She would never have imagined, in a million years, that just taking a nap in the Forbidden Hall would lead to waking up to such a scene.

In the center of the Forbidden Hall, the clergy members were ceaselessly swinging their knives.

With every rise and fall, came the muffled thud of something being severed.

During this process, glazed lamp stands were kicked over, the spreading lamp oil igniting the hanging red ribbons, soon illuminating the usually empty, eerie Forbidden Hall, blooming like a thousand flower trees amidst scattered gold foil.

Despite the stunningly beautiful background, under the cover of the light, the faces perpetrating the violence were twisted, resembling crazed demons, utterly terrifying.

Among them was even the highly respected old Priestess.

“Clearly a newly arrived noble lady… yet audacious enough to covet His Lordship.”

“What right do they have! If not for His Lordship being too merciful…”

“If not for that, things wouldn’t have reached this point. But it’s fine now; His Lordship belongs to us forever.”

Soon, the teenager’s head that had smiled at her was grabbed by the hair and yanked back by the clergy, hidden by the hem of blood-stained clothes, disappearing into the chaotic center.

Before it was dragged back, Yuan Qingzhi thought she vaguely saw his lips open and close silently.

—“Don’t you want to join them?”

Unfortunately, Wu Wu suffered from night blindness; she couldn’t see a thing.

Encrypted signal reception: failed.

Immediately following were loud gulping sounds of liquid being swallowed.

Fingers were stained crimson with blood, dark hair melted into the fireworks, a scene of distorted, blood-red horror filled the eyes.

“So fragrant…” the people committing heinous crimes couldn’t help but sigh.

Watching this scene, Yuan Qingzhi’s hands and feet turned ice-cold. She almost clutched her Exquisite Dice and exited the play.

Although she knew better than anyone that this was inside the play and couldn’t be taken as real, for someone like her, living in the 21st century, a successor to socialism raised with good red roots under the red flag, directly witnessing a scene of dismemberment and drinking raw human blood was truly a bit too much.

After trembling uncontrollably for a while, Yuan Qingzhi finally realized she should run away quickly.

Otherwise, as an innocent bystander witnessing the entire crime scene, the final outcome would be getting dragged into it, becoming the next lucky person to be dismembered.

However, just as she tried to stand up, she found both her legs were completely weak, unable to move at all.

Having no choice, she settled for the next best thing, trembling as she extinguished the palace lantern beside her.

Calm down.

Running away now, if I make any noise, it might backfire.

Better to stay put.

After doing this, Yuan Qingzhi managed to push herself up again, shifted further inwards, while vigilantly observing the surrounding sounds.

Fortunately, for the sake of slacking off earlier, she had specifically chosen an obscure corner of the Forbidden Hall. Unless someone came very close, they wouldn’t discover someone was hiding here.

Clearly, her luck was good this time.

Those clergy members were entirely immersed in indescribable madness, completely oblivious to the small movements over here.

But the problem was, the red ribbons throughout the Forbidden Hall were about to burn out! Once they did, with fewer obstructions to vision, it would only be a matter of time before her hiding place was discovered.

Perhaps Yuan Qingzhi’s prayers worked. After a period of shouting, killing, and hacking, the crowd suddenly stopped.

This pause wasn’t gradual but an instantaneous halt, as if a rest note had been struck. Including the knife blades raised high again, the blood being swallowed halfway—everything froze at this moment.

After an abrupt period of stillness, the figures in blood-stained white robes silently bent down.

Undoubtedly, in this situation, silence was psychologically more terrifying than noise.

Yuan Qingzhi didn’t dare breathe loudly. She could only listen to her own frantic heartbeat, peering through the shadowy, burning red ribbons, discerning that they were stiffly picking up the body parts from the ground one by one… and throwing them into the bath pool nearby.

Listening to the heavy splashes, Yuan Qingzhi’s expression gradually went numb.

The highly impactful scene had turned her brain to mush. The girl hugged her knees, shrinking against the wall, unable to understand how things had developed to this point.

No matter how she replayed it in her mind, racking her brains, she couldn’t figure out what was going on this time she entered the play.

The plot going off track was one thing, but now it had veered straight onto the crime channel.

Yet, the previous plot points, however bad, at least had some logic.

The problem was, the original Evil Omen script contained no scene like the one before her eyes!

Before entering the play, Yuan Qingzhi had carefully read it backstage.

She was certain that nowhere in the original script was there any mention of Yu Mengjing being brutally murdered.

Nor was there any situation of the clergy members collectively rebelling and committing murder, creating a bloody scene reminiscent of a cult ritual.

The sounds of heavy objects hitting the water gradually lessened.

Following that, the noisy whispers resumed.

“The Commander is patrolling…”

“The filth inside the Forbidden Hall… will eventually be noticed…”

“Isn’t there still that candidate who comes to clean the Forbidden Hall every night?!”

As they spoke, the old Priestess’s voice suddenly turned cold and sharp, echoing in the hall as if carried by the wind. “If the traces in this hall aren’t cleaned thoroughly, we might as well just pin everything on her…”

“Makes sense.”

“Indeed, forgot about such a perfect scapegoat.”

“Truly an excellent idea.”

The other clergy members chimed in agreement, letting out sinister cackles.

Yuan Qingzhi, feeling like she’d just been randomly kicked while walking down the street: “…”

Crazy people! I’m not dead yet!

Thanks to the restored darkness, Yuan Qingzhi didn’t notice that as this group of clergy members left, their pupils had become completely, impenetrably ink-black.

Listening to the large group of footsteps fading away, waiting until the heavy opening and closing sounds of the Forbidden Hall door echoed again, confirming she was the only living thing left, Yuan Qingzhi took a deep breath, managed to prop herself up against the wall, and surveyed her surroundings with trepidation.

The beams of the Forbidden Hall were coated with fire-retardant material; the red ribbons stopped burning once they reached the top.

Now the hall was bare, covered everywhere with burnt residue.

Shattered lamp stands were scattered all over, along with the ground covered in bright red blood.

Yuan Qingzhi subconsciously calculated the amount of blood loss in her head and felt her legs go a bit weak again.

Clearly, it was a perfectly fine Forbidden Hall, now inexplicably turned into a haunted house, eerie and creepy everywhere.

If she hadn’t heard the clergy members’ words, Yuan Qingzhi would definitely have run off immediately.

But since they wanted her to take the blame, and such a huge blame that would be hard to defend oneself against… she could only spend another few minutes calming herself, then resentfully retrieved the cleaning supplies she brought in last time from the corner and began working resignedly.

Thanks to Wu Wu having night blindness, visibility was minimal after extinguishing the palace lantern, greatly reducing the scope of fear.

After calming down, Yuan Qingzhi finally had room to organize her thoughts.

Firstly, Yu Mengjing definitely wouldn’t die.

Although the scene just now was sufficiently bloody and brutal—an ordinary person would have died eight hundred times over—as the top star of Night Journey Chronicles, this guy wasn’t even in the human category.

Experts and scholars had debated for centuries whether Yu Mengjing was a demon, devil, or ghost.

Since he wasn’t human anyway, he probably couldn’t die… right?

But then, thinking about the White Bone Spirit in Journey to the West being killed by Sun Wukong’s single staff strike, Yuan Qingzhi couldn’t be sure anymore.

“Sigh, Night Journey Chronicles just had to be a fragmented text. Even the first volume has several sections lost to the river of history. From the currently preserved chapters, it’s impossible to deduce what exactly Yu Mengjing’s true form is.”

She sighed. Wiping the floor, she finally understood why she had felt something was off before.

Although her memories of Night Journey Chronicles weren’t that deep due to childhood amnesia, in Yuan Qingzhi’s limited impression, Yu Mengjing had always been a mysterious, terrifying, treacherous, and powerful existence, effective enough to stop babies crying at night.

In Night Journey Chronicles, if he was ranked second, no one dared claim first.

This strength wasn’t just about his indiscriminate ability to bewitch hearts, but also his personality, like a mass of chaotic darkness, tangled threads impossible to unravel, perverse and wanton—and even more so, the person himself.

Putting aside his base power level for a moment, Yu Mengjing had a famous scene that even people who didn’t watch opera knew.

He had brewed a massive conspiracy, starting from who knows when, advancing step by step, and successfully concluding it in the final section of Night Journey Chronicles‘ first volume, “The Opera House,” bringing the entire world within the play under his control.

You had to know, the entire Night Journey Chronicles shared one world-view.

This meant that after his success, the protagonists of the later volumes—like the Green Dream Fox, the White-Haired Ghost, the Chi Meng Nether Lotus… theoretically, all became his underlings.

Anyone seeing that couldn’t help but call it outrageous.

Precisely because of these preconceptions, upon encountering him, Yuan Qingzhi had been so tense, like facing a great enemy, walking on thin ice, terrified this big boss would twist her neck off if she displeased him.

Yuan Qingzhi pondered an important question.

Given that Yu Mengjing was incredibly powerful and cunning—almost to a demonic degree—always calculating three steps ahead, why would he permit the clergy members to place a golden mask on him and remain in this wretched Forbidden Hall? Did he truly disregard their offense?

Probably not.

After being startled, Yuan Qingzhi felt her thinking had never been clearer.

From the original script and Yuan Qingzhi’s several personal encounters, it wasn’t hard to see the extent of Yu Mengjing’s conceit regarding his appearance. Coupled with his troublemaking, universally despised personality, like a hyperactive child, he couldn’t sit still.

For him to go against his flamboyant nature, cover his face with a mask, imprisoned in one place… there was only one possibility.

—He wasn’t strong enough.

Although Yuan Qingzhi still found it difficult to believe, the facts were indeed true.

This teenager version of Yu Mengjing, whose appearance in the plot of Evil Omen shouldn’t have happened, was unexpectedly weak.

He fooled hearts, acted wantonly, never hid his superior looks, yet couldn’t completely control people’s hearts, and could even be harmed. There was a clear gap compared to the archdemon in the script, who easily manipulated the entire scene upon his official debut.

And witnessing the scene of Yu Mengjing being dismembered today undoubtedly proved this point.

“Really didn’t expect it. Him saying he was trapped in the hall before, and all that sob story…”

Based on the preconceived impressions from the script, Yuan Qingzhi, from the moment she recognized Yu Mengjing, had prepared herself not to believe a single ghostly word he said.

But who could have thought that those were actually the truth?

Thinking of this, Yuan Qingzhi couldn’t help but feel complicated emotions.

“But no matter what, in this opera, Evil Omen, Yu Mengjing is considered wrapped up.”

Regardless, his exit was a first-class good thing.

At least for Yuan Qingzhi, the entrant, without Yu Mengjing, the difficulty of this play instantly dropped from hell level back to easy mode.

Now she only needed to figure out how to awaken Yuan Xiangming and finish performing this opera.

Thinking of this, her mood finally improved considerably, and her actions in wiping the floor quickened slightly.

After being burned, the red ribbons hanging in the hall were completely ruined.

Yuan Qingzhi simply pulled them all down from the beams and piled them together with the various trash she had just cleaned up.

Thinking for a moment, she brought over an intact lamp from the side.

Lamp oil mixed and dripped, igniting a rolling blaze.

As Yuan Qingzhi poured the Jiaoren oil, she muttered to herself, “Unintentionally witnessed, bad luck be gone, may the deceased rest in peace. Consider this the paper money burned for you. Remember to be a good person in your next life… Anyway, goodbye forever.”

The crackling sound of burning masked a faint, almost imperceptible laugh from beneath the bath pool.

After working hard for nearly an hour, Yuan Qingzhi finally managed a rough cleanup of the crime scene.

As for the bath pool area, she wouldn’t dare go near it, wouldn’t even dare look too closely.

Fortunately, things happened suddenly, and the clergy members hadn’t taken all the props left in the Forbidden Hall.

After confirming the scene’s condition couldn’t possibly be linked back to her, the scapegoat, Yuan Qingzhi stopped working and began packing her things.

Before leaving, who knows what wire got crossed in her head, but she inexplicably leaned over and sniffed the blood-soaked rag, then retched.

“Strange, this blood doesn’t have any special fragrance, how could they drink it…”

Yuan Qingzhi thought left and right but couldn’t understand, then suddenly realized her current behavior seemed somewhat inappropriate, so she quickly tossed the rag aside and hurried away.

Outside the Forbidden Hall, it was still empty. The clergy members who had crowded outside observing all night yesterday had vanished without a trace.

Without Yu Mengjing’s obstruction, Yuan Qingzhi easily found Yuan Xiangming.

The latter stood ramrod straight on the path leading to the Forbidden Hall, spine erect, ponytail high, like an evergreen pine tree.

“Commander Shi.”

Yuan Xiangming didn’t know what he was thinking; only when she approached and spoke did he react.

His expression was somewhat surprised. “…Ah, Miss Wu.”

Hearing this, Yuan Qingzhi practically had tears welling up in her eyes.

She clearly entered the play to save people, yet only managed to meet him properly in the second act.

It was simply too absurd.

Seeing no one else around, she spoke directly, “Senior Brother Yuan, have you remembered anything?”

“…Is Miss Wu addressing me?”

Yuan Xiangming hesitated for a long moment before speaking uncertainly, “Apologies, you might have mistaken me for someone else. I don’t recall knowing anyone with the surname Yuan.”

Seeing Yuan Xiangming’s blank expression, Yuan Qingzhi thought, it’s over.

He’s even forgotten his own surname; clearly, there’s not a single sign of remembering!

While she agonized over how to explain, Yuan Xiangming, on the other hand, was observing her.

The candidate wore the most ordinary white dress.

Her appearance was completely unfamiliar, yet it always gave him a strange sense of familiarity.

Just like when she had called him “Senior Brother” moments ago, a fleeting image flashed through his mind.

“Have you ever considered that what you’re experiencing right now…”

Yuan Qingzhi carefully chose her words, just about to tell Yuan Xiangming this was all fake, when she suddenly felt a familiar repulsive force.

The moment the surrounding scenery began to blur, she quickly shut her mouth.

No good. They were standing on the opera stage; if she said something too out of line with the script’s background, she might be directly removed from the play.

“I’m afraid I don’t quite understand your meaning.” Yuan Xiangming still couldn’t comprehend.

“But… no offense intended, Miss Wu, have we met somewhere before?”

He couldn’t resist asking the question that had been buried in his heart for a long time. “Are you the person who saved me back then?”

“Huh?” Yuan Qingzhi was confused. “The jade pendant has another owner. How could it possibly be me?”

Although she vaguely had a premonition, hearing her say it directly, Yuan Xiangming’s eyes instantly dimmed.

He was unwilling to give up just like that. “If not, then why would you know our contact signal?”

“My knowing the signal isn’t for that reason.” As Wu Wu, she couldn’t reveal the true owner of the pendant.

Yuan Qingzhi hammered her own head in frustration. “Sigh, this situation right now is really… never mind, can’t explain. But just wait two more days, then you’ll understand why we know each other. As for the pendant, feel it with your heart, you’ll find it eventually.”

In two more days would be the grand date he had set for the full-scale rebellion.

Logically, no one in the divine palace should know about this matter; he hadn’t revealed even a fraction of it to the kind young lady back then.

Yet, even clearly knowing this, Yuan Xiangming surprisingly felt not a shred of vigilance in his heart.

His expression relaxed.

He suddenly realized that this young lady before him brought not only a strange sense of familiarity, but even a sense of trust that seemed innate.

Just looking at her made his heart feel very much at ease.

Yuan Xiangming composed himself. “Miss Wu, the Head Priest is very dangerous.”

He actually wanted to say more, that if possible, she should stay far away from the Head Priest. But considering their respective identities and positions, he could only advise tactfully.

“Huh? I know, but discussing this now is meaningless.”

Yuan Qingzhi didn’t notice Yuan Xiangming’s abnormality. Not wanting to dwell on this issue, she changed the subject. “Come with me first, something major happened inside the hall.”

Yuan Xiangming naturally suspected nothing and quickly followed.

“Overall, that’s how things are.”

Yuan Qingzhi briefly recounted what she had just seen and heard. “I can be an eyewitness. Those clergy members harbor ill intentions, vainly hoping to pin the blame for murdering the Head Priest on me…”

While speaking, she pushed open the hall door.

The interior of the Forbidden Hall was still empty, candles flickered, and everything looked the same as when she left.

But Yuan Qingzhi looked as if she had seen a ghost.

—Because someone was standing in the center of the hall.

That person had ink-black hair scattered down, red robes trailing, appearing unbelievably beautiful even just from the back.

Hearing the sound, the teenager who had died and returned to life turned around.

The golden mask on his face remained ancient and mysterious.

His limbs were intact, showing not the slightest trace of injury. His perfect lips still held the most customary, nonchalant smile.

Only this smile, upon making contact with Yuan Qingzhi, suddenly deepened several degrees, gaining a cloying sweetness, as if mixed with honey.

“Ah, you were late for most of the night. How should I punish you, hmm, Wu Wu?”