Little Pink Starfish

Everyone had their roles—some pitched tents, some cooked. In this ghastly place, the touch of daily life oddly dulled the fear. Especially after Zhang Yushui subdued the vengeful spirits, the bodyguards relaxed, even joking about who nearly pissed their pants. But when someone mentioned the first to be skinned—Xiao Lin—the atmosphere dropped cold again.

Qi Zhirong then spoke, “I’ll make arrangements for his family.” His voice was still indifferent.

Cold as it was, the man was already dead. Doing something for his family was better than nothing.

The bodyguards got back to work, though things weren’t as lively anymore. Perhaps the earlier chatter was just to ease nerves. In the quiet, Zhang Qiu felt a cold breeze constantly brushing his neck. He shuffled closer to Li Shu.

Li Shu glanced at him, saying nothing, but there was a faint trace of amusement in his eyes.

“Damn it, why won’t this light?” one of the bodyguards working the stove cursed.

“Maybe it’s broken? Try switching it.”

Just as they put down the small gas canister, it suddenly exploded with a boom, startling everyone. Luckily, the two guards nearby dodged in time.

Zhang Yushui looked over and said, “Too much yin energy. It’ll affect your luck. Be careful.” He waved at Little Jiang. “Come help Uncle.”

Little Jiang cheerfully bounced over, the bell on his wrist jingling. He seemed to really like this work.

As the wind carried the bell’s sound, everyone felt more alert. Zhang Yushui smiled and patted Little Jiang’s head. “A promising one.”

Zhang Qiu didn’t know what to say. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized—if Little Jiang picked this path up well, at least he could protect himself in the future.

Zhang Yushui and Little Jiang set up a formation around the camp. It looked like they’d be spending the night here. Most vengeful ghosts were gone, but the yin that had settled for centuries couldn’t be cleared in a day.

By mid-afternoon, the place was already gloomy. Camp lanterns lit up their area, but beyond the formation was darkness and fog. The surrounding hills looked swallowed in mist.

Dinner was a quick affair—heated canned food. The first bite made Zhang Qiu gag from the fishy taste, but then he suddenly grinned, about to take another spoonful. The smell made him retch again, and he only laughed harder.

Qi Xi rubbed his goosebumps. “Xiao Qiuqiu, are you broken? If you can’t eat it, stop torturing yourself.”

“You don’t get it.” Zhang Qiu grinned and put the can down. He hadn’t felt nausea during this pregnancy at all, and often forgot about the second baby. But just now, the nausea was the same as when he carried Little Jiang. For a moment, he felt the baby’s presence.

The second one was fine.

Relieved, Zhang Qiu didn’t argue with Qi Xi. Li Shu took the meat can from him, walked to Qi Zhirong, and returned with a bowl of plain congee and a side dish.

“You eat this,” he said.

Zhang Qiu knew this was Qi Zhirong’s special stash. It wasn’t fancy, but the fact that Li Shu—memoryless as he was—asked for it on Zhang Qiu’s behalf made Zhang Qiu so touched he looked like a lovesick idiot while eating.

Qi Xi clutched his teeth from the sweetness of it all, rolled his eyes, and vanished. A while later, a little black, fuzzy cub clung to Qi Zhirong’s pant leg, rubbing up to him.

Thanks to the divine soul, Zhang Qiu’s senses were razor sharp. He saw it all from a distance and nearly choked on his congee.

No shame!

Qi Zhirong sat slightly off, hidden in the night. Zhang Qiu couldn’t see his expression, but the little cub—Qi Xi—was clearly trying to wriggle into his lap.

Zhang Qiu frowned. Something about it felt… off.

“What’s wrong?” Li Shu asked.

Zhang Qiu snapped out of it. “The congee’s sweet! Hehe.”

Xiapi Prince glanced over, amused. Zhang Qiu ignored the teasing look in his eyes.

Then it hit him—Xiapi Prince wasn’t that close, but Zhang Qiu could clearly see his expression. He could also see Qi Xi’s shameless cuddling, but Qi Zhirong’s face remained unreadable, like shrouded in gauze.

“Does Qi Zhirong seem weird to you?” Zhang Qiu whispered into Li Shu’s ear.

Just then, a chill passed over him. He looked up—Qi Zhirong was staring back coldly, expression unreadable as ever.

Zhang Qiu froze. That gaze felt like it could pin him in place. Then a warm touch—he looked down. Li Shu was holding his hand.

“Your hand’s warm?!”

“I was cold before?”

Zhang Qiu’s brain glitched. He’d always thought Li Shu’s body was icy. Even hugging him yesterday, he hadn’t noticed. Was he imagining things?

“Xiao Qiu, what’re you dazing out for?” Zhang Yushui walked over with Xiapi Prince, seeing Zhang Qiu staring blankly at Li Shu.

Zhang Qiu turned slowly. “Second Brother, you’re really my Second Brother, right?”

“Did you eat the wrong porridge?”

Xiapi Prince smiled gently. “Maybe it was too sweet.”

Zhang Qiu: ……

Second Brother might be fake, but Second Sister-in-law was definitely real—that teasing tone was unmistakable. He sighed with relief. “Li Shu has body heat now. Is something wrong?”

Zhang Yushui rolled his eyes. “I thought it was serious. Look at you.”

Then reassured him, “Li Shu’s got ancient divine blood. Before, he was a thousand-year-old Jiangshi. Now, even if memory’s gone, the divine power remains. He’s not a Jiangshi anymore. Relax, Xiao Qiu. Your golden thigh is thick and sturdy. Go be your silly sweet self.”

“Second Brother, you’re gonna lose me like this.”

Zhang Yushui kissed Xiapi Prince and laughed. “You think I care?”

Damn. Zhang Qiu had no words… but had to admit, Second Brother had a point.

“Qi Zhirong is off,” Li Shu suddenly said.

“Right! I almost forgot.” Zhang Qiu smacked his head, then explained all the strange things he’d noticed. “How’d you sense it?”

Li Shu shook his head. “Instinct.”

Zhang Qiu had prepared a full breakdown, but that answer killed the mood. Second Brother added, “I feel it too.”

So we’re just going by vibes now?!

“Should we call Qi Xi back?” Zhang Qiu fretted. For all his sass, Qi Xi was a sweetheart.

Why was it suddenly cold again?

Was Qi Zhirong glaring?

Zhang Qiu looked up. Qi Zhirong was petting Qi Xi in cub form, expression unreadable.

That chill—it wasn’t from him, was it?

Zhang Qiu turned to see Li Shu smirking at him.

“Li Shu, that smile’s kinda scary. Hey, where’s Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law?”

Li Shu raised a brow, smile unchanged. “You seem very concerned about Qi Xi.”

“Well of course. He’s annoying and dumb but… still decent…”

In a tent nearby, Xiapi Prince smiled at Zhang Yushui. “Isn’t this a bit cruel to Xiao Qiu?”

“Don’t worry. Li Shu won’t actually act on it,” Zhang Yushui said, rubbing his chin. “If he did, Xiao Qiu would probably be thrilled.”

Xiapi Prince instantly got it. He nudged Zhang Yushui. “What’s wrong with your brain?”

“What do you think I’m thinking?” Zhang Yushui leaned in and whispered. Soon the tent filled with kissing sounds and soft gasps.

Zhang Qiu, still under Li Shu’s intense gaze, was saved by Little Jiang pouncing into his lap.

Li Shu looked away. Zhang Qiu sighed in relief. That gaze had made him nervous.

He squished his son’s soft face. “You like Uncle’s magic?”

Little Jiang nodded hard. “Fun.” And it made money and filled his belly.

“Good, then learn properly from him.”

Zhang Qiu looked at Li Shu, smiling, “When this is over, where are you going?”

“Wherever you are.”

Zhang Qiu was over the moon, though he kept a serious face. “I live in Yuncheng, but go to school in Xi’an.” Oh crap, I’ve missed way too much school…

Li Shu nodded, saying nothing. Zhang Qiu got nervous. Was he not being obvious enough?

“If you’ve nowhere to go, you can come with me. The food in Xi’an is great…”

Boom!

“It’s through!”

“Wait—something might’ve blown up.”

“Ugh! What’s that smell?”

“Idiot! You took your gas mask off?!”

“I was hot!”

Everyone looked over. The tomb entrance was through.

Zhang Qiu stood up and rushed over.

The tunnel was a bit over a meter wide. Two guards stood at the edge. Agui peered in, calling, “You guys coming up or what?”

No reply. Just rustling.

Agui frowned. “Hey! What are you doing?! Hurry up!”

Then—two blood-curdling screams echoed from the dark.

Li Shu pushed Agui aside, pulled a dagger from his waist. “I’m going.”

“Be careful,” Zhang Qiu said.

Li Shu nodded. Zhang Yushui appeared, “I’m going too.”

They went down. Zhang Qiu waited, chewing his nails. The sounds of their footsteps faded.

He wanted to go after them, but Xiapi Prince held him back.

“Wait a bit.”

Zhang Qiu looked over—Second Sister-in-law’s face was tight. Everyone was worried, just in different ways.

Five minutes later, two short whistles echoed—Zhang Qiu sighed. Second Brother’s signal.

Soon rustling—Second Brother appeared first, carrying a man covered in blood. Zhang Qiu helped pull him out. Then Li Shu came up, also carrying a man.

Agui checked. “They’re fine. Just fainted.”

“What happened?”

Li Shu shook his head. Zhang Yushui said, “They were passed out when we got there. Nothing else.”

The two were soon bandaged and revived. Once awake, they trembled, saying: “It was Xiao Lin—he smiled at us.”

They’d worked together. Seeing his skinned face smiling in a tomb? No wonder they fainted.

“How’d he get down there? He was buried!”

“Can we go down now?”

It was Qi Zhirong’s voice—cool as ever.

In such a creepy situation, his first concern was going down. Zhang Qiu was even more sure something was wrong.

Li Shu nodded. “Prep to descend.”

The two guards refused to go again, but didn’t want to be left alone either.

Several others chimed in. “Boss, I’ve got a mom to care for.” “My son’s only one…” “I’ll stay and watch the camp.”

Qi Zhirong didn’t force them.

“Good. You won’t be alone.” Zhang Yushui warned, “Stay inside the formation. Don’t leave. Keep your talismans close.”

Everyone nodded, clutching their talismans.

Li Shu led the way. As he climbed down, he looked back at Zhang Qiu. “Stay behind me.”

He felt like he’d said that countless times before.

“Don’t worry. I’ll stick close.” Zhang Qiu thumped his chest. He was used to it.

Qi Zhirong was in the middle, Qi Xi behind him, Pei Qing last.

The tunnel wasn’t deep. After about twenty minutes, they arrived.

They wore masks—none of the earlier stench.

The tunnel led into a chamber. It was bare. No coffin, nothing—just smooth stone walls.

A small round stone door, no carvings.

Not a main chamber. Zhang Qiu couldn’t even guess its use.

“Out.”

Li Shu pushed open the door.

“Be careful! It might be poisoned—urgh!”

Zhang Qiu gagged immediately. Others followed. The scene was revolting.

A wide passage. Both walls lined with women’s skins, freshly flayed. They wore heavy makeup, nailed to the wall, all smiling eerily—like they enjoyed it.

“They’re dead. Souls gone. But recently,” Zhang Yushui said calmly. “Once fresh air comes in, and the yang energy builds up, these will dry and shrivel. Won’t look so scary.”

Zhang Qiu, still dry-heaving, waved him off.

“Second Brother… please stop talking.”