Chapter 312: Paper Person Ritual

The Ghost City is full of strange sights, and the inns are no exception; they are either decorated with skulls and bones, with human heads hanging as door curtains, or they are a blurred mess of flesh and blood with maggots wriggling about, which is enough to make one feel nauseated.

After searching for a long time.

They finally found a clean inn.

However, clean as it was, it was also more weird than the other inns. This was because it was a Paper Inn, and those coming and going within were all Paper People, with rouge smeared on their faces, looking very strange.

Looking at them for a few more moments triggers the uncanny valley effect.

"This is the inn you found?"

Li Heng raised his eyebrows.

Xing Da, standing beside him, responded awkwardly.

"This is indeed the cleanest one in the city; most other inns are covered in bloodstains and piled with corpses, not at all as clean as this Paper Inn."

Li Heng relaxed his brow.

"Forget it, forget it, let's go in; it's only for one night."

He was too lazy to say anything more.

After all, finding a normal inn within a Ghost City was truly a fantasy, and he did not need to be deliberately difficult.

The two were just about to walk toward the inn.

When they were stopped by a Paper Person standing at the entrance.

"Stop, you two. This is the Paper Inn; only Paper People are allowed to enter or leave." This Paper Person was in the shape of a child, with wrinkles all over its body, as if it had been folded together quite casually.

"You idiot! What are you doing? These are honored guests!"

Suddenly, a Paper Person dressed as an innkeeper walked out, scolded the gatekeeping Paper Person, and looked at Li Heng with a face full of smiles, "My lord, please come in; this idiot doesn't know any better."

Li Heng nodded without saying anything more.

They were all just dying Paper People anyway.

The two walked into the inn under the guidance of the innkeeper.

"I wonder what my lord would like to eat at our establishment? Although this little one does not have food for flesh-and-blood bodies, I do have some Divine Path Smoke Qi; if my lord is interested, this little one will serve it immediately."

The innkeeper asked obsequiously.

"Staying for one night, leaving tomorrow."

Xing Da answered for Li Heng.

The innkeeper was stunned for a moment, looked at Li Heng, and seeing that Li Heng did not reply, he immediately spoke up. "In that case... waiter, come here, take these two honored guests upstairs; remember, Heavenly Number One Room and Heavenly Number Two Room."

He called over a waiter and gave instructions.

The innkeeper watched Li Heng and his companion go upstairs with a fawning smile, and until their figures disappeared from sight, the smile on his face vanished instantly, replaced by worry. What exactly does this honored guest from the Huangquan Road want to do? Are they coming here just to stay at an inn?

He hoped they would not interfere with the ceremony tonight.

Otherwise... a murderous intent rose within him.

Above this Ghost City.

In a high place that could monitor this section of the Huangquan Road, various Ghost Domains, and even see the truly vast Yin World beyond the Huangquan Road, stood a complex of Gong Dian.

This complex of Gong Dian was not resplendent or magnificent; the entire structure was in shades of gray and black, filled with Yin energy. If it were not for the lack of solemnity and dignity, leaving only the Weird, it would truly resemble the Netherworld.

That Judge sat upon a great hall, holding a scroll, carefully reading the list of names written upon it, and nodded with satisfaction; he had finally gathered enough scapegoats and sacrifices.

Heh heh.

Although that Ghost Place had great opportunities, they were not so easy to obtain; there had to be sacrifices and scapegoats, right?

The Judge smiled slightly, feeling confident of success.

Did they really think their Huangquan Road was running a charity?

At this moment, a figure walked in from outside the great hall, looking quite similar to the gatekeeper Li Heng had encountered earlier, dressed in a black robe and followed by a Lian, like the Grim Reaper.

"So, you're back? Did you find any news?"

"How is that Living Dead who snuck in from the Present World?"

The Judge asked nonchalantly upon seeing him.

Everything else and the selected personnel were within his expectations and control, and he had even determined their future fates and endings; only that Living Dead from the Present World was an accident.

If it hadn't been for a whim at that time, thinking of a strange stone tablet he had discovered in that passage and intending to go out for a walk to study that tablet more carefully.

Otherwise, he would never have discovered that someone had snuck in.

"Reporting to my lord, that Living Dead is not wandering around the city; he seems to have taken a fancy to a guard who was a gatekeeper, taken him as a follower, and then stayed in a Paper Inn."

The subordinate replied respectfully.

"Oh, interesting."

"A Weird with a flesh-and-blood body running to a Paper Inn? And I seem to remember that the Paper Inn is not simple, right? Calculating the time, they seem to be holding a ceremony tonight?"

The Judge thought for a moment and said with surprise.

Because of the special nature of the Huangquan Road, which was a giant net covering the Yin World, other forces would also appear in the Ghost Domains it governed.

For example, the Paper Inn in this Ghost City was a stronghold of an Yin World force called Paper City, which was said to have intricate connections with Buying Life Money.

"Forget it, forget it, ignore him."

The Judge waved his hand; anyway, this was none of the Huangquan Road's business, and the Living Dead would be leaving tomorrow to go to the Ghost Place to die, so he did not need to step in and cause trouble for himself.

"Hmm? You may withdraw."

Suddenly, the Judge frowned and ordered the subordinate to withdraw.

But unfortunately, it was too late; a thin shadow walked out from the void, passed through the subordinate, and then the subordinate was absorbed by this shadow, and the shadow solidified, manifesting True Reality.

The Judge was not angry.

He ran directly in front of this shadow and knelt down.

"The Judge welcomes the Honored One; this subordinate failed to meet you from afar, please forgive my sin, Honored One." He asked with a trembling body, very respectfully, feeling some Terror in his heart; why had this god of slaughter come out of seclusion?

"Judge? You look like you're terrified."

The shadow laughed, its voice hoarse.

"This subordinate would not dare."

The Judge replied hurriedly, his expression becoming increasingly ingratiating.

What on earth was going on?

Wasn't there news circulating that these Venerables of the organization all had important matters to attend to, or were all in seclusion? How had one suddenly come to his side, and a god of slaughter with a penchant for killing at that?

He had once seen this Venerable strike.

With a single blow, all Ghost Domains, regardless of demons or Weirds, were swallowed and absorbed by him, turning ten thousand miles of territory into a Forbidden Zone!

"Forget it, I won't tease you anymore."

"I have manifested in the Present World this time because I have a favor to repay."

"Isn't your side organizing a group of people to go to that Ghost Place? Take me along," the shadow smiled slightly.

"How would this subordinate dare to overstep."

"Since the Venerable has manifested, you should be the one in charge."

The Judge fawned, his head covered in sweat.

"Stop with the nonsense! I told you to preside, so you preside."

The shadow let out a muffled hum, the sound causing the Yin Qi within the Judge's body to churn, his expression turning deathly pale, nearly causing him to explode on the spot.

"Now remember, I am just a passing Weird heading to the Ghost Place to seek opportunities, understand?"

The shadow laughed.

He was becoming increasingly expectant now; just how strong was that existence that could make that old demon suffer a setback and force him to request his intervention? This better not disappoint him.

If they aren't fun to kill, that wouldn't be very good...

Inside the Paper Inn.

Although he did not understand how day and night were calculated in the Yin World, this was already considered night in the Yin World. Li Heng sat cross-legged, eyes closed, performing Visualization of the Great Sun, continuously increasing the progress of his Great Sun Visualization.

At this moment.

Bursts of murmurs seeped into his ears.

Li Heng suddenly opened his eyes and frowned. With his Heavenly Eye opened, he pierced through layers of Void interfaces and saw the deepest part of this Paper Inn, a vast and hidden place.

Hundreds of Paper People were gathered here.

As well as humans, and human bones.