Chapter 42: The Ghost Opera Begins

Taking advantage of the fact that the Ghost Opera had not yet begun, Yang Xiao walked back and forth several times to familiarize himself with the route; the old man had reminded him that the food that had been "eaten" could not be discarded at will and had to be piled up beside the Incense Burner.

Only after getting closer did Yang Xiao notice that a long piece of Yellow Paper was pressed under the Incense Burner, much like a talisman, and besides the incomprehensible ghost-drawn symbols, there was also a string of Birth Date and Time on it.

After checking four Incense Burners in succession, each had a talisman pressed under it, and the Birth Date and Time on them matched perfectly; it seemed this must be the Birth Date and Time of Xi Yao.

After checking the perimeter and finding no issues, Yang Xiao walked back to his seat and lifted the red cloth covering the bamboo baskets under the chairs. There were four bamboo baskets; from left to right, they contained raw meat, rice and flour, fresh melons and fruits, and finally, a basket of candies and preserved fruits that children loved. The order matched the offering plates perfectly.

At the handle of the first bamboo basket, a piece of dirty, tattered cloth was tied. After taking a few quick looks, Yang Xiao recognized it as the same Shroud as the one on the old man's shoulder, and upon getting closer, he could still smell waves of stench.

This thing was of great use now; after the Ghost Opera began, he would need to use the Shroud to wrap these offerings to mask their scent, otherwise, it would be easy to be targeted by those ghost things on the way to deliver the offerings.

Following the old man's account and combining it with Yang Xiao's own analysis, the workflow for tonight's mission was roughly clear: Su Tingting was the lead of the Ghost Opera, and if everything went smoothly, she would be temporarily possessed by the Resentful Soul of Xi Yao to reenact the Ghost Opera of that year. He and Kuang Hongyi would be inside and outside, responsible for keeping the resentful spirits and fierce ghosts attracted to watch the Ghost Opera steady, ensuring the Ghost Opera proceeded smoothly.

As for Shi Dali and Shi Guanming, Yang Xiao thought these two were currently by the lake, waiting for a signal. Once it was confirmed that Xi Yao had possessed Su Tingting, Kuang Hongyi would raise a red Lantern. Only upon seeing the red Lantern would Shi Dali and Shi Guanming go into the water to search for Xi Yao's corpse.

Theoretically speaking, as long as Xi Yao's Resentful Soul was attracted, those walking corpses under the water would also gather to watch the Ghost Opera, and the lake would be temporarily safe. As long as the corpse was found while the Ghost Opera was ongoing and Xi Yao's eyes were closed, the task for tonight would be accomplished.

It didn't sound difficult, and most of the pressure was still on the three of them. As for those resentful spirits and fierce ghosts sitting obediently below to listen to the opera, even Yang Xiao didn't believe it.

"Clang—!"

Before Yang Xiao could continue thinking, the sound of a gong made him look up abruptly. A moment later, he saw a figure walking out from behind the curtain with stiff steps; it was none other than Su Tingting!

But Yang Xiao didn't dare to recognize Su Tingting's appearance now. She was wearing a bright red wedding dress with the hem dragging on the ground, and on her head was a Phoenix Coronet inlaid with gold and silver, studded with pearls and gemstones; even in the dim light, it was still dazzling.

The makeup was even more exquisite and delicate, lightly applied, neither too heavy nor too light, just right. Her brows and eyes were like a painting, her cherry lips moving, leaving Yang Xiao hundreds of streets behind. Yang Xiao finally understood: it wasn't that the old woman didn't know how to apply makeup, it was that she hadn't intended to apply it properly for him at all!

Behind Su Tingting were inserted four flags, the kind only worn by martial male roles. After looking for a long time, Yang Xiao suddenly realized that these were no flags at all, but clearly trimmed Soul-Calling Banners!

"A song of lovesickness, where to find my lover~"

"My lover knows my heart, yet we are separated by yin and yang~"

"The water of the Yellow Springs is cold, Mother Meng sheds two lines of tears~"

"Even with ten thousand sorrows, I dare not forget my lover~"

"Yi—, ya—"

As soon as Su Tingting appeared, she sang the opening lines. Hearing this trembling voice, Yang Xiao knew it was definitely Su Tingting.

Now, the Su Tingting on stage was like a marionette, her movements stiff, her steps sluggish. Although her face was forcing a smile, it looked worse than crying, and the lyrics were completely off-key, one line here and another there; clearly, she hadn't been trained properly.

In an instant, a gust of cold wind struck, dimming the surrounding candlelight. The paper money and talismans under the Incense Burner shook violently, and Yang Xiao was almost blinded by the dust blown up.

When he opened his eyes slightly, the scene before him made his hair stand on end. He saw Su Tingting's two eyeballs tremble violently before rolling upward, leaving only the whites of her eyes in their sockets. The four Soul-Calling Banners behind her were like flags standing in a storm, flapping loudly in the wind.

A moment later, Su Tingting returned to normal, but the aura about her had completely changed. A strange smile hung on her face, one arm stretched out flat, her wide sleeves hanging down, one shoulder higher than the other, her body twisted, leaning to one side in a posture completely incomprehensible to ordinary people, "Yi—, ya—"

When this sound came out, Yang Xiao went numb, his veins feeling as if they were filled with ice shards. He could be certain that from this moment on, Su Tingting had been replaced by Xi Yao, and the Ghost Opera... had officially begun!

It had to be said, Xi Yao was worthy of being the star of the Bai Family Gatehouse. With just a few lines of singing and a few movements, she displayed the demeanor of a master; the singing was sorrowful and mournful, enough to make one shed tears upon hearing it.

"Sob sob sob..."

Yang Xiao's body stiffened involuntarily. He heard faint sobbing. As the singing grew higher and higher, the sobbing became more and more obvious, more and more sorrowful, and... it was right behind him!

Turning his head slightly, he could see some of the scene behind him from the corner of his eye; it was still those strangely shaped Paper Persons, with nothing unusual.

Taking a deep breath, Yang Xiao remembered the old man's warning. He first closed his left eye, then, enduring the discomfort, slowly opened his right eye, "Hiss—"

With just this one look, Yang Xiao felt cold from head to toe. Through the Yellow Paper, he saw dozens of bloated figures squeezed into the seats, their heads several times larger than a normal person's, staring fixedly at the stage, their bodies still swaying constantly, not knowing if they were crying or doing some strange movements.

"The left eye sees people, the right eye sees ghosts!"

Yang Xiao held his breath and withdrew his gaze, but the scene on stage dealt him another heavy blow. The originally thin Su Tingting now looked as bloated as a sack full of water, swaying from side to side, with no beauty to speak of. Her rotten, swollen face was even larger than the Phoenix Coronet she wore; this was simply a water-logged corpse!

What was even more terrifying was that when Yang Xiao's gaze lingered briefly on the rotting corpse's face, the singing suddenly cut off, and the movements stopped as well. Although Yang Xiao couldn't see clearly through the Yellow Paper, he felt a truly resentful gaze; the Xi Yao on stage had discovered him!

Yang Xiao immediately lowered his head, shifted his gaze, closed his right eye, and opened his left eye. The next second, everything disappeared. The Su Tingting on stage was moving gracefully and charmingly, her brows and eyes like a painting, her singing voice was melodious, and the Paper Persons beside her were sitting obediently, as if everything just now had been a hallucination.

Swallowing hard, Yang Xiao was covered in cold sweat. He had almost lost his life just now. It seemed he couldn't use his right eye easily; the old man hadn't explained it clearly—the right eye could not only see ghosts, but to some extent, it also allowed ghosts to see him.

"This is trouble..."