The invincible female ghost is a bit love-struck.

The north wind swept in, carrying snowflakes.

Lu Yuan looked down at his own shadow.

The extra section of shadow was no longer close to his feet, but stretched northward along the post road, like a person lying prone on the snow. The shadow's arm slowly rose, its five fingers curled, pointing towards a gray-white city wall in the distance.

Behind the city wall lies the Beiguan Mortuary.

"Brother Lu," Ah Sheng whispered, "your shadow is moving."

"I saw it."

"Should we cut it off?" Xu Erxiao drew his short sword.

"Do not kill."

Lu Yuan stopped and took a pinch of cinnabar from the inkwell, tucking it between his fingers.

"The shadow is not the evil itself."

"It was a part that was borrowed."

"To cut it off is to cut off one's own form as well."

Wang Chengan squatted on the ground, looking at the dark figure.

"Then why are you bringing it back?"

Lu Yuan did not answer immediately.

He placed three copper coins in the snow, face up, and pressed them down on his toes, heels, and the end of his shadow in turn.

A person has three shadows.

"The shadow beneath one's feet follows the shape of one's body."

"The shadow under the lamp, follows the heart's desire."

"Without light or shadow, it comes from wherever it comes."

"What it borrowed was the absence of light and shadow."

Lin Zhaoxuan frowned: "Isn't the absence of light and shadow only present after a person dies?"

"When a person lives, they also leave behind a shadow."

"The place a person refuses to acknowledge, the name they don't want to face, and the road they dare not look back on will all sink behind them." "Evil things love to borrow such shadows."

Song Qinghe approached with a lantern, its flame illuminating Lu Yuan's feet.

The previously connected shadows immediately split into two layers: one layer pressed tightly against the sole of the boot, and the other lying on the snow with its head slightly raised.

The shadow had no facial features, but it spoke Meng An's voice:

"Master Lu, don't leave me here."

Upon hearing the sound, Mr. Meng rushed forward.

"An'er?"

Lu Yuan reached out to stop him.

"It's borrowing the voice again."

"But it's talking about Meng An."

"Speaking of a name does not mean that it is the person in question."

Lu Yuan squatted down and applied cinnabar to the shadow's forehead.

"Those who borrow sound must first reveal their form."

"Those who borrow a name should first return it to its rightful owner."

"If it is Meng An, then report his/her birth date, the location of his/her injury, and the last lamp he/she saw."

"If it weren't for one"

"Shadows are shadows, and sounds are sounds."

"point!"

As the cinnabar fell, the dark shadow on the ground convulsed violently.

It gave three answers in succession.

Eight years old.

"Left arm."

"Beiguan Mortuary".

Mr. Meng's expression changed.

"Both are correct."

Lu Yuan shook his head.

"Meng An's left arm is uninjured."

"He fell off a woodpile when he was a child and injured his right knee."

"It knows Meng An's name, but it doesn't know Meng An's true pain."

The dark figure suddenly retreated, and the three copper coins flipped over at the same time.

Lu Yuan stood up and formed the "Shadow Gathering Technique" with both hands.

With your right hand, bend all five fingers and press your thumb against your ring finger. With your left hand, draw three horizontal lines on your palm with your index finger.

"The sun illuminates the form, the moon illuminates the soul."

"The shadow beneath your feet belongs to your feet."

"The shadow behind you, returns to behind you."

"A shadow without a master shall not borrow the path of a living person."

"receive!"

Song Qinghe immediately moved the bronze lamp to the front of Lu Yuan.

The light shone from the front, elongating the shadow behind Lu Yuan, making it look like a piece of skin nailed to the snow.

Lin Zhaoxuan threw out the ink line, and the ends of the line landed at the four corners of the shadow.

Xu Erxiao and Wang Chengan simultaneously held down both ends, while Zhou Heng nailed a copper coin into the shadow's chest.

The dark figure let out a sharp cry.

"You think the Beiguan Mortuary only takes in the dead?"

"It is a place of belonging."

"All those without a home will leave their shadow there."

"the same as you."

Lu Yuan raised his hand and pressed the plaque that read "General Altar for Protecting Life" onto the shadowy figure.

"A destination can be a road."

"It could also be a grave."

"But it can't be a well that you chose for someone else."

"Certainly!"

The dark figure suddenly sprang upwards, sending the memorial tablet flying.

The next moment, the shadow beneath Lu Yuan's feet stood up.

It did not leave the ground, but it drew a silhouette as tall as Lu Yuan, and held a broken knife in its hand.

The shadow blade slashed down from below.

Lu Yuan dodged to the side, the blade grazing the hem of his clothes, and black frost immediately formed on the cotton fabric.

Xu Erxiao rushed forward, his short sword striking the shadow blade, but the blade passed right through the shadow.

"Can't hit it!"

"Don't cut its knife!" Lu Yuan shouted. "Tie down its feet!"

Xu Erxiao reacted quickly, rolling over to the shadow's back and using the scabbard to block the shadow's ankle.

Wang Chengan scattered a handful of copper coins, which landed and formed a semicircle, trapping the shadowy figure's feet.

"Cheng'an, report the number!"

"Seven pieces, one missing!"

Which one is missing?

"The Gate of Life!"

Ah Sheng immediately took off the blue copper plate from his chest and handed it to Wang Cheng'an.

Wang Chengan pressed the copper sheet into the snow.

"The birth canal must be filled!"

The half-circle copper coin immediately lit up with a faint glow.

The shadowy figure's feet were pinned down, yet the shadow blade remained raised high.

Lu Yuan looked at it, then suddenly sheathed the broken sword.

"You've borrowed my shadow."

"Then we'll have to follow my rules."

He stepped forward, pressed his left hand to his brow, and with his right hand, fingers together and palm facing down.

"The figures follow each other closely, their forms and spirits are recognizable."

I won't ask where you come from.

"I only ask you whose name you borrow, whose wishes you accept, and whose door you guard."

"Answer one by one."

The shadowy figure did not answer.

Lu Yuan raised two fingers and tapped them on its chest.

"Borrowing a name".

The character "陆" (Lu) appeared on the chest of the dark figure.

"Accept the wish."

A red light emerged from the shadowy figure's abdomen.

"Guard the gate."

The shadowy gate of Beiguan Yizhuang appeared behind the dark figure.

Lu Yuan finally understood that this was not a simple evil shadow.

Beiguan Mortuary had already placed three marks on him:

Make his name the sign, his wish the lamp, and his shadow the door.

As soon as he steps into the mortuary, the entire main altar will open in his presence.

"No wonder it kept calling me in."

Song Qinghe asked, "So what do we do now?"

"You can't come in."

"But Meng An is still inside," Mr. Meng said.

Lu Yuan gazed at the gray-white city walls in the distance.

"Tear down the door first, then rescue the people."

He took out the "Beiguan" domino from his pocket, along with the broken piece of wood left by Gu Chuan and the damp, cold wooden tablet of Meng An, and placed the three items on the snow. "Beiguan is a place name, not a god's name."

"Meng An is a person's name, not a family name."

"Gu Chuan is a name that has been lost, not a name that has been given away."

"All names belong to the Lord, and the three tablets bear witness."

Lu Yuan drew an inverted triangle between the three memorial tablets with cinnabar, and made a "signature seal" with his left hand: his index and middle fingers were joined together, his thumb pressed down on his ring finger, and the rest of his fingers were curled inward.

"Heaven doesn't stand up for people, and earth doesn't stand up for ghosts."

"The name must be left by the person himself/herself, and the name of the deceased must be witnessed by his/her relatives."

"Now, using these three plaques as evidence, inquire with the Beiguan Charitable Estate."

"Who gave you permission to borrow their name?"

On the distant city wall, all the white lights went out at the same time.

A deep, resonant bell rang out from inside the mortuary gate.

Boom!

The sound of bells echoed across the snowfield, and suddenly a crack appeared in the shadow behind Lu Yuan.

The opening revealed a dense array of black wooden plaques, each bearing the name of a person.

The topmost piece reads "Lu Yuan".

There was also a line of small characters engraved next to it:

"In the winter of the ninth year of the Republic of China, the Beiguan area was used to collect souls and establish the first unregistered status."

Lu Yuan reached out and took the sign.

The back of the sign was engraved with a date, which was the 23rd day of the 11th month of the 9th year of the Republic of China.

"This is the first unregistered plaque," Lin Zhaoxuan said.

"Whose?"

Mr. Meng stared at the sign and suddenly said, "My father saw this day before."

"What did he say?"

He said that year, heavy snow blocked the roads, and the mortuary received thirty-seven corpses.

"One of them did not have a body."

"Only shadows."

Lu Yuan asked, "Who?"

Mr. Meng slowly raised his head.

"A car escort from outside the Great Wall."

"He sent thirty-seven unidentified corpses to the mortuary, but he himself did not come out."

"Later, someone saw his shadow inside the manor gate, but no one knew his name."

"Therefore, the mortuary used his namelessness as the first plaque."

"Use his shadow as the first gate."

The dark figure suddenly let out a wild laugh.

"You finally understand."

"The position of being without a registered residence is not for you."

"It's for all those who don't want to leave their names."

"If you take it, all the nameless corpses in Beiguan will have to find a new home."

Lu Yuan looked at the wreckage of the wooden cart behind him.

"Then let them find it themselves."

He broke the "Lu Yuan" sign in half, but instead of throwing it away, he pasted the broken part with a wooden sign from Meng An.

"A position without a registered residence is not a position for worship."

"The nameless are not without owner."

"Whoever has no name, return their name first."

Lu Yuan raised his hand and said to Song Qinghe, "Place the lamp on the north side."

Song Qinghe took seven steps with the bronze lamp in her hand and stood still in the snow.

"The lights face north, illuminating the gate of the mortuary."

Lu Yuan then said to Lin Zhaoxuan, "Draw the ink line into a seven-star pattern, and do not seal the door or the plaque."

Lin Zhaoxuan nodded, took out the ink line, first set the Tian Shu, then the Tian Xuan, and then pulled the line through the six wooden plaques.

Each time the wooden sign was pulled, it made a soft sound.

Just as the last thread was about to fall at the broken end of the "Lu Yuan" brand, the thread suddenly burst into flames.

Lin Zhaoxuan shouted, "It's stealing the line!"

Lu Yuan grabbed the ink line, letting the black flames burn up his arm.

The burning pain traveled from my palms all the way to my shoulder blades, and it felt like countless insects were crawling under my skin.

Song Qinghe was about to step forward when Lu Yuan said, "Don't move!"

"The stars cannot be formed until the thread passes through my body."

He gritted his teeth, formed the "Fire Suppression Technique" with his left hand, and touched his index, middle, ring, and little fingers in turn with his thumb.

"Fire originates from wood and does not enter the human body."

"Evil fire borrows a thread, but not blood."

"My blood is my blood, my body is my body."

"retreat!"

The black flames stopped at his wrist.

Ah Sheng raised his hand and pressed the character "Sheng" on his chest, drawing a ray of blue light to the ink line.

"Brother Lu, I'll help you."

"You hold onto your life."

"But I don't want to see you burned."

Lu Yuan glanced at him.

"Then we must protect life."

"Stay alive and see me come back."

Ah Sheng nodded vigorously.

The blue light did not continue forward, but instead stabilized the ink line.

Lin Zhaoxuan seized the opportunity to drop the last thread.

The seven stars took shape.

Seven wooden plaques on the snow flipped over simultaneously, revealing each person's real name.

Some names are only half-finished, some have been erased with red paint, and some are so blurred that they cannot be recognized.

Lu Yuan placed the "Lu Yuan" card in the very center, then used the tip of a knife to cut his fingertip, letting a drop of blood fall.

"I bear witness to the name of the living with the blood of the living."

"This name is not for incense, not for lamps, not for doors."

"It serves only as my means of support."

"Beiguan Mortuary, remove my name!"

The drop of blood landed on the card, and immediately a wisp of white smoke rose from it.

An angry roar came from deep within the mortuary.

The snow on the city wall slid off all at once, revealing the dense black characters on the wall.

Those black characters weren't in the brickwork, but rows of names.

Some names are followed by "收" (shōu, meaning "to receive"), some by "祭" (jì, meaning "to sacrifice"), and some by "归" (guī, meaning "to return").

At the very bottom, a line of blood-red text had just appeared:

"Meng An, pending verification."

Mr. Meng could no longer contain himself and rushed toward the city wall.

"An'er!"

Lu Yuan grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pulled him back.

"Don't shout."

"He's inside!"

"So you absolutely mustn't let it know you heard it."

The three characters "Meng An" on the city wall suddenly lit up.

Immediately afterwards, a small figure emerged from behind the wall.

The child was wearing an old cotton-padded jacket, with a tear at the right knee of his trousers, and was carrying a paper lantern without a flame.

He stood under the city gate and looked up at Mr. Meng.

"father."

Mr. Meng froze.

Lu Yuan stared at the child's feet.

There are shadows on the snow.

But the direction of the shadow is wrong.

The sunlight came from the east, but the child's shadow was cast to the east, just in time to meet the sun.

"It's not Meng An."

The child looked down at his shadow and suddenly grinned.

His smile gradually stretched to his ears.

"You recognized me again."

"Who exactly are you?"

"I am the one thing he dared not say aloud."

"Which sentence?"

"Father, don't stay up with the lamp."

Mr. Meng's face turned deathly pale.

Lu Yuan raised his knife and pointed it at the child.

Why did Meng An tell him not to guard the lamp?

"Because he is in the lamp."

"Was he sealed inside a light?"

"no."

The child shook his head, and the city gate behind him slowly opened a crack.

"He kept watch over the lamp."

"Whom are you guarding?"

"Guarding those dead who refuse to be reincarnated or return home."

"If they leave the lamp, the mortuary will collapse."

Lu Yuan looked at the dense list of names on the city wall.

"Did Meng An choose to stay?"

He thought it was voluntary.

"And then?"

"Later he discovered that there was no one in the light."

The smile on the child's face disappeared.

"There are only names inside the lamp."

"No one recognizes those names, no one calls them out, and no one takes them away."

"They accumulated and grew into a main altar."

"Meng An was chosen by the main altar to be the lamplighter."

Mr. Meng stepped forward: "I'll take his place!"

Lu Yuan said sternly, "You can't take my place."

"I am his father!"

"It is precisely because you are his father that you cannot use his father's name to sign for him a second time."

He turned to the city gate and raised his left hand to form the "Opening the Netherworld Gate Incantation".

Press your thumb against the base of your middle finger, keep your index finger upright, and tap the back of the knife three times with your right fingers together.

"There is a door within a door, and a name within a name."

"We will not open the gate of death, nor will we cross the gate of annihilation."

"Open only the door to those trapped."

"If Meng Anruo is here, he will accompany me."

"If the illusion remains, it will dissipate with the sound."

"open!"

A bluish-white light shone through the cracks in the city gate.

When the light shone on the child, his skin immediately became transparent.

There were no bones inside, only clumps of wooden plaques stacked together.

Each wooden plaque is engraved with a person's name.

"Master Lu!" Lin Zhaoxuan suddenly shouted, "There are seven power lines on the threshold of the city gate!"

Lu Yuan looked down.

Seven red threads extend from the threshold, each connecting to one of the seven characters: “name, wish, life, death, home, shadow, offering.”

The "shadow" line had already wrapped around his ankle.

He lifted his foot, only to find a wooden plaque pressing down on the sole of his shoe.

The wooden sign reads:

"Unregistered gatekeeper."

The shadowy figure rose again from beneath his feet, the shadow blade in its hand now transformed into a long key.

"Lu Yuan."

"If you want to save Meng An, you must guard the gate for him."

"If you want the nameless to go home, you must become their home."

"If you don't take this key, the city gates will never open."

Lu Yuan looked at the Shadow Key and reached out to take it.

Mr. Meng exclaimed urgently, "Taoist Master!"

"rest assured."

Lu Yuan inserted the key into the lock on the city gate.

"A key is not a contract."

"A door is not a home."

"Being able to open the door doesn't mean you have to guard it."

He turned the key while simultaneously forming the "locking seal" with his right hand.

Cross your index and middle fingers, press your thumb down on the intersection, and face your palm inward.

"Use the door to lock the door, use the lock to lock the lock."

"Those who open, open; those who guard, guard."

"Use my hand to pave the way, but do not use my name to build a shrine."

"Lock it!"

With a click.

The city gates opened.

Inside the gate was not a courtyard, but a stone staircase leading downwards.

Seven rows of white lamps hung on either side of the stone steps. There were no wicks under the lamps, only human teeth.

With each step, a name was heard from the lamp.

"Wang Guixiang".

"Zhao Shouyi".

"Meng Wenbing".

"Gu Chuan".

"Liu Sanxi".

"Zhou Dacheng".

The names kept piling up, like someone turning over a thick register underground.

At the end of the stone steps stood a black archway.

The plaque above the archway has peeled off, leaving only a blank space.

The three characters "Lu Yuanci" slowly emerged from the blank space.

This time, however, Lu Yuan did not swing his sword.

He walked to the archway and placed the "Protecting Life Altar" tablet in the center of the threshold. Then he placed the broken wooden tablet from Gu Chuan, the wooden tablet from Meng An, and the "Bei Guan" domino on either side.

"We establish our testimony today, not our gods."

"The dead have names, and the living have a way."

"The nameless are given their true names to the scholars."

"Those who have the will should return to their true selves."

"The one who guards the lamp does not become the lamp; the one who guards the gate does not become the gate."

Meng An's voice came from behind the archway:

"Master Lu, you can't bring any more people forward."

Why?

"The headquarters only recognizes one living person."

"Whom will it use to open the jar?"

"you."

Lu Yuan turned to look at the crowd.

"You all stay outside."

Xu Erxiao immediately said, "I'll go in with you."

"They'll borrow your voice inside."

"Then I'll plug my ears."

"It will also borrow your memories."

Wang Chengan gripped the abacus tightly: "I'll go too."

"What the main altar wants is a person's name, wishes, life, death, family, image, and offerings."

"If more people go in, there will only be seven more locks."

Song Qinghe walked up to him carrying a lantern.

"At least let me give you the light."

Lu Yuan took the bronze lamp, but then handed it back to Lu Yuan.

"Lamp cannot enter the main altar."

"Then what do you rely on for light?"

"By their names."

He put the broken wood from Gu Chuan and the wooden plaque from Meng An into his sleeve, leaving only the broken knife and three copper coins.

"I'm not going in alone."

Lu Yuan looked at the crowd behind him.

"State your names outside the door."

"I won't have my name changed if I'm inside."

Everyone immediately stopped.

Xu Erxiao spoke first:

"My name is Xu Erxiao. I am a disciple of the Lu family. I live here and will not enter the evil altar."

Wang Chengan continued:

"My name is Wang Cheng'an. I have an abacus in my hand and accounts in my mind. I won't take on other people's debts."

Lin Zhaoxuan said:

"My name is Lin Zhaoxuan. I guard the ink line, establish the gate, and prevent evil spirits from borrowing my thread."

Song Qinghe said:

"My name is Song Qinghe. I hold a green lamp to illuminate the living, not false gods."

Zhou Heng said:

"My name is Zhou Heng. With a knife in hand and feet firmly on the ground, I will not be a shadow of death."

Ah Sheng stepped forward last:

"My name is Ah Sheng, and my life belongs to me."

Mr. Meng held the skeleton in his arms, his voice low and somber:

"My name is Meng Jun. My father's debts end with me, and I will not be held liable for his name."

With each word spoken, a white light inside the door went out.

In the end, only a black lamp remained in the center of the archway.

The word "Lu Yuan" is engraved on the black light.

Lu Yuan looked at the lamp and raised his hand to form the "Entering the Altar Protective Incantation".

"Reputation is external, but true character is internal."

"The sound travels through the door, but the heart does not follow the sound."

"The shadow remains on the ground, the soul never leaves the body."

"The knife is the boundary, money is the proof, and blood is the evidence."

"Today, I enter the altar solely to use the name Meng An."

"Only inquire about the path of the dead."

"Only those gods who borrow names will be slain."

"enter!"

He stepped over the archway.

The voices of the people behind him continued, calling out their names over and over again.

The darkness at the end of the stone steps rose up like water, instantly submerging Lu Yuan's knees.

He didn't turn around.

In the darkness, a huge bronze lampstand slowly rose.

There was no fire on the lampstand, only seven grooves.

Each recess contains a heart-shaped wooden plaque representing a person.

The central groove is empty.

A boy in an old cotton-padded coat sat by the lampstand, his right trouser leg torn, holding an unlit match in his hand.

He looked up at Lu Yuan.

"You've finally arrived."

Lu Yuan looked at his feet.

There is a shadow.

The shadow's direction is consistent with the lampstand; there's no mistake.

"Are you Meng An?"

The boy nodded.

"Is your father still alive?"

"To live."

Do you want to see him?

Meng An remained silent for a long time.

"think."

"Then why not go out?"

"The headquarters won't let me leave."

"What will it use to keep you here?"

Meng An raised his hand, revealing his palm.

A black wick was embedded in the palm of his hand.

"It said that as long as I pull it out, all the names will be destroyed."

Lu Yuan walked to the lampstand and carefully examined the wick.

The black wick did not pierce Meng An's flesh; instead, it passed through his palm and connected to the empty slot in the center of the lampstand.

The empty slot was directly facing the "Lu Yuan" black light.

"It doesn't see you as a lamplighter."

Lu Yuandao.

"It sees you as a source of trouble."

Meng An's face turned pale.

"What do you mean?"

"Once you light this wick, the seven power lines will switch from you to me."

"It's deliberately making you wait here, waiting for me to come in and take you."

A low laugh came from behind the lampstand.

In the darkness, a gigantic, faceless figure slowly rose to its feet.

It was dressed in an old military overcoat, with white cloth hanging on its shoulders, but its chest was covered with wooden plaques.

"clever."

"But intelligent people are more suited to have shrines built for them."

The giant figure stretched out its hand, holding a black seal in its palm.

The seal is engraved with four characters:

"God without a name."

"Lu Yuan, you have no hometown, no ancestral graves, and no relatives."

"You're best suited to build a home for these dead people."

"If you press this seal, all the dead in Beiguan will submit to you as their master."

"They will remember you, follow you, and consider you their home."

"Mu is no longer a rootless person."

Lu Yuan looked at the seal and suddenly asked:

"Once they're pressed down, who will live for them?"

The giant figure did not answer.

"Who will eat for them?"

"Who will plant the crops for them in the spring?"

"Who will carry the child back to the kang (heated brick bed) for them?"

"You're just bringing the dead together and finding a living person to perform the rituals for you."

Lu Yuan raised his head, and the cinnabar on the tip of his sword ignited.

"The dead need names."

"Not a god."

"What living people need is time."

"It is not an altar."

"And Mu Yi"

He stepped onto the lampstand and faced the faceless figure.

"It doesn't even have a real name."

The faceless figure suddenly raised its palm.

The seven slots lit up instantly, and black lights shot into the sky.

The voices of the people outside were suddenly cut off.

Above the archway, the two little boys, Pi Lai and Xu Erxiao, screamed in agony.

Lu Yuan was startled, and an invisible black hand immediately reached out from the upper step beneath his feet and wrapped around his ankle.

The shadowy figure laughed:

"You heard me."

"Miumi's junior brother died outside the door."

"If Mu does not press his seal, his name will enter the wick of the lamp."

Lu Yuan closed his eyes.

He didn't respond to the shadowy figure, but instead stretched out his left hand, his fingernails drawing a bloody line in his palm.

"Xu Erxiao".

"To live."

There was no response from outside.

"Wang Cheng'an".

"To live."

"Lin Zhaoxuan".

"To live."

"Song Qinghe".

"To live."

"Zhou Heng".

"To live."

"Ah Feng."

"To live."

"Meng Jun".

"To live."

His voice pierced the darkness, landing on each wooden plaque.

The black flames in the seven grooves began to flicker and shake.

Lu Yuan opened his eyes and formed the "Name-Breaking Altar Seal" with both hands.

With your left palm facing up, place your right index finger on the second joint of your middle finger and your thumb on your ring finger, then separate your hands in an alternating motion.

"A person's name should not be associated with fire."

"Those who have lost their reputation will not produce oil."

"The living should not enter the lamp."

"The dead cannot enter the realm of the spirits."

"The seven gates have all returned to their respective locations, and the three lines have all been severed."

"I testify to my words with my blood."

"break!"

A drop of blood flew from his palm and landed on seven heart-shaped wooden plaques.

The wooden plaques cracked one by one, and from within came the voice of no one.

Some cried, some laughed, some called out the names of their loved ones, and some simply repeated one sentence:

"I want to go home."

Lu Yuan did not answer for them.

He raised the broken beacon and pointed its tip at each of the seven grooves.

"Those who want to go home, go home."

"Those without a home, return to your own name first."

"As long as your name remains, you are not homeless."

The bewitching blade fell.

The first slot, "name," is cracked.

The second slot, "Wish," shattered.

The third slot, "sarcasm," went out.

The fourth tank "dead" sank to the ground.

The fifth "home" has turned into a wisp of smoke.

The sixth slot, "Shadow," was placed back at the feet of the "Dead."

Finally, only the "supply" slot remained.