Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

"It was only then that I realized Linglong's ghost had really been by my side all along..."

"However, she didn't intend to harm me at all, but rather..."

"She has always been silently protecting me."

As Tang Yuelang spoke, tears streamed down her face.

Meanwhile, Steward Wang, who was listening nearby, had a complicated expression.

So, this is the truth?

If the murderous ghost isn't Linglong, then what is it?

Xia Ximo looked at the master and servant, or more accurately, at the human and the ghost.

A complex emotion seemed to flicker in her usually indifferent and aloof eyes.

The spirit of the lamp, Wuyou, listened with amazement and analyzed from the side, "The 'beads' they mentioned should be the Soul-Nourishing Beads of Yunhe Mountain."

"So before that, the ghost was probably being raised inside this bead..."

"It kills people by tearing out their hearts, and it takes the blood from the very tip of their hearts. The victims will surely be filled with resentment and turn into vengeful ghosts and evil spirits."

"But throughout the entire Eastern Palace, apart from the eerie atmosphere permeating this garden, there was no trace of ghosts, it was as if..."

Having analyzed this, Wuyou couldn't help but shudder and quickly shrank back into the lamplight. She then said to Xia Ximo, "There's definitely something even more sinister in this garden!"

The latter glanced around, then asked Tang Yuelang, "You said that thing wanted to take over your body, what happened next?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Yuelang raised her hand to wipe away the tears on her face and tilted her head slightly.

However, Linglong spoke first, quietly.

"With my abilities, I am not capable of killing that monster; I can only intervene and stop it."

"It failed, but it will continue to exploit the young lady's body."

"I know that the appearance of that ghost must be part of the Crown Prince's conspiracy."

"So, I decided to kill the Crown Prince..."

Because of the interference of Linglong's vengeful spirit, the evil creature was unable to completely possess Tang Yuelang's body, but it could still attach itself to her back, following her like a shadow.

Under the control of the evil entity, she frequently loses her own will and becomes nothing more than a killing machine…

Therefore, whenever news of the Crown Prince's death came, Tang Yuelang would be tormented by a complex mix of emotions, including fear and self-blame.

In addition to Linglong's death, her relationship with the Crown Prince deteriorated day by day, and her personality gradually became sinister and abnormal.

Even more so, deviant and unorthodox...

Although Linglong could protect him in spirit form, they were ultimately separated by life and death, and she could not stop Linglong from harming him.

When news spread that a sixth person had been claimed by Linglong's ghost, Tang Yuelang lost control and wanted to destroy herself.

She jumped into the lake, choked on a bellyful of water, but did not die.

When the guards pulled him out of the water, he was on the verge of death.

The Crown Prince finally came to Chenghua Palace to see her, but his attitude was cold, and he showed her no tenderness or care.

At that moment, it was as if she were seeing a stranger.

Unable to contain herself, she reached out and grabbed his sleeve, her voice hoarse as she demanded, "Who are you? You're not Zhao Li, you're not him at all!"

The Crown Prince smiled, but his eyes held a clear coldness: "What nonsense is the Crown Princess spouting? If I am not Zhao Li, then who am I?"

Tang Yuelang bit her lower lip and shook her head desperately.

"Zhao Li would never do this to me... He said he would love me for the rest of his life and never let me suffer the slightest grievance. He would never let me suffer like this."

"Then you'll have to ask the Crown Princess herself."

The Crown Prince pulled the sleeve from her hand, his tone icy: "As the Crown Princess, your duties are to assist the Crown Prince, manage the inner palace, and ensure the continuation of the royal family. Tell me, which of these have you accomplished?"

Upon hearing these words, Tang Yuelang felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.

Assisting the Crown Prince, managing the inner palace, and expanding the family line...

Every word is shocking.

But she recalled the night of their wedding several months ago, when the handsome young man with the curved eyebrows drank the nuptial wine and whispered in her ear, "As long as Xiao Lang can always be by my side, that's enough."

The contrast between the past and the future is so ironic.

"Keep a close eye on the Crown Princess. If anything like this happens again, you will all come to me with your heads."

Seeing that she remained silent, the Crown Prince coldly gave an order to the surroundings and then turned and left.

Tang Yuelang felt utterly hopeless and didn't care about anything anymore.

What family honor? What lifelong commitment?

She didn't want anything; she just wanted to go back to the Duke's mansion and be the daughter her parents cherished.

The palace servants stopped her, and the news was kept inside the East Palace, unable to get out...

She cried out helplessly, "Linglong, Linglong, I want to go home!"

"I don't want to be the Crown Princess! I don't want to marry Zhao Li!"

Rumors began circulating again in the Eastern Palace that the Crown Princess had gone mad.

She really did seem to have gone mad.

The prince indulged in nightly revelry with his concubines.

Taking advantage of her drunkenness, she summoned the palace guards on night duty into Chenghua Palace.

After removing his clothes, his back was covered with shocking whip marks, all traces of self-degradation.

Linglong was heartbroken, her resentment grew stronger, and her hatred deepened.

So, she used her soul power to possess a dancer's body and sneaked into the Weiyang Palace, intending to kill the crown prince.

That very night, she realized that the "Crown Prince" of today was no longer the Crown Prince he once was.

A demon has infiltrated his body.

This evil spirit not only possessed Zhao Li's body, but also tried to have another evil spirit replace her young mistress.

"I possessed the body of a beautiful dancer and followed her into the Weiyang Palace."

"But as soon as I entered, I noticed that the Crown Prince's gaze was constantly, intentionally or unintentionally, observing me."

"I naively thought that he was just lusting after her, and after getting her a few drinks, he secretly gripped the dagger in his sleeve."

"Just when I thought I could kill him with one blow, the Crown Prince raised his hand and easily subdued me..."

The prince's hand was cold and strong; he could easily seize a dancer possessed by a ghost.

"Want to die again?"

He asked this question out of the mouth.

Only after becoming a ghost could Linglong sense the malevolent energy emanating from the other party, which was almost threatening to devour her.

So, he wasn't human after all?

Once the thought crossed her mind, Linglong didn't hesitate for a moment and immediately fled.

Since that incident, she has noticed that the malevolent energy in Qianqiu Garden has become increasingly intense, and the ghosts of those who had their hearts ripped out and died have begun to linger in the garden.

But they seemed to have no consciousness, as if they were trapped here by something.

Filled with resentment, he could neither reincarnate nor remember anything from his previous life.

Linglong gradually realized that her soul was also beginning to be bound by the evil energy in the garden. Once she left, her soul power would weaken and she would slowly be unable to take form. She could only rely on her resentment to attach herself to the hairpin.

In order to stay by Tang Yuelang's side, she appeared in his dream and told him to always carry the hairpin with him.

However, Tang Yuelang could not control her body at all times. The reason she appeared in the garden at this moment was to look for the hairpin that she had inexplicably lost last night.

Hearing this, Xia Ximo carefully examined Tang Yuelang. There was no trace of ghostly aura on her, which showed that the "thing" had not followed.

Without further ado, she ordered, "Take me to Chenghua Palace."