I, the screenwriter, have experienced a resurgence of inspiration.

……

The shop door was ajar, and a dim, yellow candlelight shone through the crack, flickering as if it might go out at any moment.

The air was thick with the smell of wax mixed with a putrid stench, so strong it was pungent.

Chen Xi slowed down, picked up the oil paper bundle from his back, and mouthed, "Be careful, something's not right."

As the two walked through the door, a voice came from inside—terribly hoarse, as if a lump of phlegm had been stuck in its throat for years.

I can't breathe, and I can't vomit.

Come in.

Chen Xi pushed open the door. The shop was very small, only two or three square meters, with shelves on both sides filled with candles of various colors.

White, red, black, thick, thin, long, short—countless candles were piled up densely, like rows of neatly arranged bones.

The counter was shrouded in shadow, and only a hunched silhouette could be seen lying behind it. Its back was so hunched that its head was almost buried in its chest, like a shrunken shrimp.

A hand reached out from the shadows.

Those hands were dry and thin, with wrinkled skin, long and black nails, like an old tree root, and the fingertips were bluish-black.

"This is the goods that Sister Fang asked me to deliver." Chen Xi handed over the oil paper bundle.

The long fingernails rustled as they scraped across the oil paper package, as if touching the contents inside.

He slapped his hand a few times, then withdrew it.

"Yes, the goods are correct." The old man's voice was hoarse and deep. "Put the goods here, you can leave now."

[System Notification: Side Quest "Delivery" Completed]

[Rewards have been issued: 3 Gold Ingots, and a 3-day trial of a Human Skin Suit]

The moment the mission notification popped up, Chen Xi and Zheng Wenxuan both secretly breathed a sigh of relief—this trip hadn't been in vain after all.

The two turned to leave.

"etc."

The old man suddenly called out to them.

Chen Xi paused, his fingertips quietly touching the gun handle.

"Recently dead, wasn't it?" The old man's voice carried a hint of amusement, sinister and chilling: "No matter how thick the human skin is wrapped, the scent of a living person can't be completely dispelled."

Chen Xi felt a tightness in her chest, and Zheng Wenxuan also tensed up.

In the shadows, the old man slowly leaned forward.

A wrinkled face was revealed, like a dried orange peel, with deep furrows.

The eyes were two black holes, without pupils, and bottomless.

He twitched his nose, as if he were smelling something.

"Her skin is delicate and tender, and she has plenty of yang energy."

He chuckled, his voice grating:

"You think you can fool anyone by running around in just a leather coat? When vengeful ghosts come out at night, they can smell your presence from miles away and tear you to shreds."

As he spoke, he stretched out his other hand, with longer nails that looked like claws, reaching straight towards Chen Xi!

The claws stretched longer and longer, spreading like tree roots, rustling through the air and carrying a foul stench, heading straight for Chen Xi's face—

"run!"

Chen Xi fired a shot, grabbed Zheng Wenxuan, turned around, and rushed out the door.

The claws behind it slammed against the door frame with a "thud," sending wood chips flying.

The old man's laughter, sinister and menacing, drifted from the shop as he chased after the two.

"Run! Run faster! The streets at night are tough to walk on!"

The two charged forward desperately, crashing headlong for dozens of meters before silence fell behind them.

Chen Xi looked back.

At the entrance of the candle shop, the long claw retracted, as if it were afraid of something.

"Team, captain."

Zheng Wenxuan leaned against the wall, panting, his forehead covered in sweat: "Why...why didn't he chase after me anymore?"

Chen Xi's heart skipped a beat—being able to see through human skin clothing meant that the person was at least a vengeful ghost.

If it really came down to a fight, the shot she fired didn't even hurt the other party. There's no reason for this old ghost to give up his prey after only chasing for two steps.

Unless... there's something outside the shop that even fierce ghosts fear.

The moment the thought crossed Chen Xi's mind, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

It was a warning from biological instinct: the approach of a giant creature triggered bioelectricity, causing the hairs to stand on end uncontrollably—something extremely dangerous was approaching.

"Thump—"

A muffled thud came from the end of the street.

It was very heavy, like a giant hammer hitting the ground, and the ground trembled slightly.

Zheng Wenxuan's expression changed: "What was that sound?"

"Thump—"

The second sound was closer.

The ground shook even more violently, the candle holders by the roadside rattled, and a bunch of candles fell over.

The wandering spirits that were just chasing the two suddenly began to scatter in all directions, screaming as they dispersed.

Some crawled into manhole covers, some pressed themselves against the wall, flattening their bodies like paper, some crawled behind GG signs, curling up into a ball, and some crawled under the porch, burying their heads in and sticking their butts out, like ostriches.

The street, which was just crowded with people, was almost empty within seconds.

All that remained was a mess, and a few little devils who hadn't had time to hide, huddled trembling in the corner.

Chen Xi's heart pounded wildly.

What could possibly scare all the ghosts in the street like this?

"Hide! Quickly!"

She grabbed Zheng Wenxuan and rushed to the eaves of a closed shop next door, pressed herself against the wall, and held her breath.

Just as I slipped into the shadows, two beams of snow-white light swept across from the end of the street.

Like two enormous searchlights, their bright, blinding light swept rapidly across the street—

Wherever it passed, even the corners of walls were illuminated white.

This light looks so familiar.

Chen Xi didn't dare to look up, only staring at the puddle at her feet.

The sky was reflected in the puddle.

A huge white figure was slowly walking from the end of the street.

It is over ten meters tall, and half a head taller than the arcade building next to it.

It was completely wrapped in a white robe that reached the ground, the cloth trailing on the ground and sweeping over the roadside debris.

The paper offerings turned to ash the moment they touched the white robe.

Its gender was indiscernible; only its face was covered by a white cloth, revealing two dark eye sockets.

And those two beams of white light, like searchlights, emanated from his eye sockets—

The giant ghost held a mourning stick thicker than a telephone pole in its hand, dragging it heavily on the ground, leaving a long trail of sparks.

Sparks flew and landed on the little devil, quickly igniting and turning the area green.

The little demon screamed and struggled, its body glowing with a ghostly green light, yet it seemed like a guiding light.

White Impermanence.

Chen Xi's breath caught in her throat.

The oppressive force emanating from the enormous creature was overwhelming, like a mountain slowly pressing down, making it hard to breathe.

A giant ghost, several meters tall, walked down a modern street, its shoulders brushing against the arcades on both sides, causing bricks and stones to fall down with a "rustling" sound.

"tread!"

"tread!"

"tread!"

The reflection in the puddle swayed, and then an even larger, darker figure appeared beside it.

Black Impermanence.

Completely wrapped in black gauze, with eyes blindfolded, only the mouth and nose were visible, and the breath carried a foul stench—

Each link of the iron chain in his hand was as thick as a bowl, dragging on the ground with a "clattering" sound, and every movement made people's eardrums hurt.

Black and White Impermanence patrol the streets side by side.

In this world where day and night are indistinguishable, and yin and yang are reversed.

Is this really the underworld?

Do underworld officials and eighteen levels of hell really exist in the world?

So, is the emergence of duplicates truly irreversible?

If every dungeon contained monsters like these, so powerful that it made it impossible to even muster the will to resist—

So where does humanity's future lie?

Despair filled Chen Xi and Zheng Wenxuan's eyes.

……

……

……

The reflection in the puddle grew closer and closer, and the ground shook more and more violently. Chen Xi, leaning against the wall, could even feel a tingling sensation in his back.

"Thump, thump, thump."

Each loud bang felt like it was exploding overhead, as if it could be stomped on at any moment.

Zheng Wenxuan pressed himself against the wall, barely daring to breathe.

He had seen the fiercest bandits, but none were this scary.

A ghost, several meters tall, walks on the old streets of the port city. It's absurd, yet so real that it makes your legs go weak.

The White Impermanence's gaze swept over.

A bright beam of light swept across them from not far above.

A chill instantly enveloped everything, as if we were immersed in ice water; the ground quickly froze, and the white mist in the air was almost visible to the naked eye.

The little imp leading the way was burning, and from the green will-o'-the-wisps came strange, gurgling laughter.

Chen Xi stared intently at the puddle, watching the white light slowly move away before quietly letting out a sigh of relief.

Just then, a scream came from not far away.

"ah--!"

It was clearly the voice of a living person.

Chen Xi's heart tightened, and the next second, he saw the white light suddenly change direction and sweep towards the source of the sound.

It was a young man in a suit, probably hiding behind the trash can, who accidentally knocked over the lid.

He seemed terrified, staring blankly at the enormous White Impermanence with his head tilted back, forgetting even to dodge.

The next second, a giant black hand descended from the sky.

The giant hand spread its five fingers, and with a gentle scoop, like scooping up a chick, it grabbed the young man and held him in its grasp.

"Help! Help! I don't want to die!"

The young man screamed and struggled, but his resistance was less than that of a mosquito in the face of the giant hand.

Black Impermanence raised his hand, rolled up his sleeve, and inside was a bottomless pit. A living person was stuffed in, and he would disappear without a sound.

The Ghost Festival is approaching, and the underworld market will open. Living people are not permitted to enter…

A deep, authoritative voice rolled out from Black Impermanence's throat, like thunder, buzzing so loudly it hurt people's ears.

Those who trespass into the underworld... shall be punished according to the law...

The Ghost Festival is approaching, and the underworld market will open. Living people are not permitted to enter…

Those who trespass into the underworld... shall be punished according to the law...

White Impermanence's eyes rolled, and two beams of white light continued to sweep across the area, while Black Impermanence repeated these two sentences over and over again.

There was clearly more than one living person hiding on the street.

Soon, the white light froze two more figures.

It was a man and a woman who were hiding behind a bus stop sign. When they were hit by the white light, they ran away.

"Splash splash splash—"

The chains of the Black Impermanence flew out, like a ferocious, gaping serpent, and in the blink of an eye, they pierced through the chests of the two men.

The barbs of the iron chain snagged on their flesh, and the two screamed as they were dragged into the air.

Several ghosts were also accidentally injured on the iron chain. They all had green faces and fangs, and were crying and wailing. They were strung together like a string of grasshoppers and dragged behind by the Black Impermanence.

Countless ghostly faces struggled and twisted, howling and screaming, their voices shrill and piercing.

Chen Xi gritted her teeth, her nails digging into her palms.

They can't hide anymore—others can hide, but they can't.

If they continue to hide, all the living people hiding will be found.

She lowered her voice and quickly said to Zheng Wenxuan, "I'll distract them. You go and rescue those who are hiding. Tell them to run towards Shengjing Building. Once they're inside, they should be safe."

"Captain, this is too dangerous!" Zheng Wenxuan exclaimed anxiously, "How can you lure him away by yourself?"

"There's no time to argue; the longer we wait, the more people will die."

Chen Xi looked at the reflection in the puddle, and the light from the White Impermanence was sweeping in their direction: "Remember, hide inside buildings, don't look up, and don't look at the white light."

After saying that, without waiting for Zheng Wenxuan to refute, she picked up a piece of broken glass from the ground, bent down and rushed out!

The White Impermanence's gaze immediately swept over.

Chen Xi didn't look up, relying on the reflection of the broken glass to determine direction, and ran along the base of the wall in the opposite direction, with a white light following closely behind him—

Her figure stood out clearly on the empty street.

The white light of the White Impermanence suddenly turned around, and the Black Impermanence also slowly turned its face.

Chen Xi has been targeted.