My words have become law; I truly have no desire to display my divine power before others.

But some remained silent.

Those ghosts who had lived longer and seen more of the world remained silent, watching the roots sprouting from the cracks in the ground and crawling on the bluestone slabs like countless black snakes.

Their eyes held no excitement, only confusion, followed by a subtle unease.

That's not right.

This doesn't look like Old Man Huai is about to make a move; this looks like he's about to run away.

Inside the inn, an old man from the locust tree sprouted from the ground, his face becoming extremely rough, like tree bark.

He gave a sinister laugh, and then his body began to change.

His fingers transformed into tree branches, long and thin, from which tender buds sprouted and blossomed into small white flowers.

His hair turned into tree roots, hanging down from the top of his head and embedding itself in the cracks of the floor.

His body was expanding, twisting, and turning into a tree.

Moreover, the tree soon burst through the inn, and only then could everyone see the scene outside.

Countless tree roots wriggled on the ground, gradually enveloping all the houses and streets.

When Lü Yang saw this scene, his heart skipped a beat.

He instinctively placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, bent his knees slightly, and prepared to meet the impact.

"Immortal Master, he's going to fight desperately." His voice was low, but there was a sense of tension in it.

He had seen many strange things, but never anything like this—turning himself into a tree and spreading his roots all over the street.

How much power must that be?

Miao Gui took a few steps back while holding the chubby baby.

Shen Zhaoyue's hand rested on the hilt of the knife, her fingers clenched tightly.

Ye Qingfeng stood still, without moving or even turning around.

His gaze fell on the tree roots that had sprouted from the floor, watching them wriggle like snakes, crawling over tables and chairs, over thresholds, and into the street.

The old man from Huai—he is no longer in human form, but a tree, a tree growing from behind the counter, bursting through the roof.

His mouth was still stuck to the tree trunk, opening and closing, and he could still speak.

"You won't get out." His voice came from inside the tree trunk, muffled, as if it came from very deep underground.

"This ghost market is mine. These roots are mine. You stand on my roots, inside my body. I want you to die, and you die. I want you to stay, and you stay."

His voice grew louder and shriller. "You guys like to cause trouble, don't you? Go ahead and cause trouble! Go ahead and cause trouble!"

The tree roots moved even faster.

They crawled across the streets, over the closed doors, over the old locust trees, over the stone bridges, and over the butcher shops.

They connect the entire Huaiyin Village together, like a giant net that covers every corner.

Those eyes hiding behind the door finally couldn't hold back any longer.

They squeezed out from the cracks in the door, crawled out from the windows, and emerged from the shadows in the corners of the walls, in pairs, densely packed, hanging in mid-air, staring in the direction of the inn.

They are waiting, waiting for the old man to make a move, waiting for that human to fall.

But what they got in return was not a major war.

The tree roots suddenly stopped.

It didn't slow down, it suddenly stopped, as if someone had pressed the pause button.

Then they started to shrink back.

It didn't shrink slowly, it shrank rapidly, like the receding tide, retreating from the end of the street, from the stone bridge, from the butcher shop, from the old locust tree, from every corner.

They retreated into the cracks in the ground, under the bluestone slabs, back to where they had come from.

Moreover, the streets and houses in the shrunken area have also disappeared, as if they had never existed.

The old man's voice came from inside the tree trunk. This time it wasn't harsh words, but something indescribable, like crying and laughing at the same time.

"I don't want to die," he said.

Then the entire Huaiyin Village disappeared.

It didn't disappear slowly; it just snapped out with a "pop," like a lamp being blown out.

The streets are gone, the shops are gone, the lanterns are gone, the red carpet is gone, and even the eyes that hung in mid-air are gone.

Lu Yang stood on an open space, his feet not on bluestone slabs, but on mud, fallen leaves, and wild grass.

The sky above wasn't an eave, but a tree canopy, the moon, and stars.

A cool breeze blew by, carrying the scent of mountain plants and trees.

He froze, his mouth agape, his hand still on the hilt of his sword, in the same posture as when he was about to draw it.

He waited a while, and then the wind blew again, making his hair flutter.

There were no ghosts, no old man from Huai Village, no inn, nothing at all.

He turned his head and looked at Miao Gui.

Miao Gui looked at him too, and the two stared at each other for a few moments without saying a word.

The chubby baby was perched on Miao Gui's shoulder, still holding half a fish in his hand. The fish tail swayed back and forth near his mouth. He took a bite, chewed, swallowed, and burped.

Miao Gui glanced down at him, then looked up at Lü Yang, her lips moved slightly, and she managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Ran away?"

Miao Gui's voice was a little dry, as if he had just woken up, or as if he hadn't quite reacted yet.

The surrounding area was a dense forest, and moonlight filtered through the gaps in the canopy, casting patches of white light on the ground.

In the distance, there were chirping insects, calls of birds, and the sound of a stream.

It wasn't like a ghost market; it was like an ordinary night in the Ten Thousand Mountains.

Lu Yang lowered his hand from the hilt of his sword, straightened up, and stretched his stiff shoulders.

He stopped his stance, pushed his sword back into its sheath, and let out a long breath.

I drank for nothing, and all that effort was for nothing.

Miao Gui, carrying the chubby baby, walked over and stood next to Lü Yang. He looked around and asked, "Where are we now?"

Lü Yang didn't know either.

He looked at Ye Qingfeng.

But then he was stunned. Where was the immortal master?

......

Old Man Huai felt as if he were sinking in the water.

At that moment, something indescribable welled up in his heart; it wasn't pride, but rather a sense of relief.

I was glad I ran fast, glad I had this trick up my sleeve, and glad the Taoist priest didn't react in time.

He tightened the roots.

Space began to distort.

The tree roots drew arcs around his body, each arc being a crack through which light shone.

He pried open the cracks, stuffed the entire village inside, and then loosened the roots to close the cracks.

Disappeared.

There was no sound, no light, no vibration.

A moment later, a hundred miles away.

A ghost market silently descended into the mountain valley.

The old man slumped down at the base of the old locust tree.

His body had reverted from tree form to human form, but his clothes were torn, his hair was disheveled, and his face was covered in a mixture of sweat and black sap, which trickled down his chin.

His chest heaved violently as he gasped for breath, like a fish thrown ashore.

His hands were still shaking, his legs were still shaking, and every part of his body was shaking.