A ghost!

The spatial rift had only just vanished when ten figures appeared again.

"King Qin Guang, what kind of man do you think this Imperial Lord Haoran is?" King Yama could not help asking.

King Chujiang and the others all looked at King Qin Guang, eager to hear his answer.

King Qin Guang remained silent for a while before speaking. "We knew nothing of him until today. He seems to be a man who keeps his strength hidden and bides his time. Naturally, we must be on our guard."

"Mm..." King Yama and the others nodded at his words.

"However..." King Qin Guang continued, "we have ruled the Netherworld Underworld for hundreds of millions of years. We certainly have no reason to fear him. If he knows what is good for him, we can coexist peacefully. Otherwise... he cannot blame us for being ruthless."

"Quite right, King Qin Guang." King Chujiang and the others voiced their agreement.

"For now, we should do our best to build a good relationship with him. Unless we have absolutely no choice, it is best not to make an enemy of him." Finally, King Qin Guang waved his hand. "All right, that is settled. Return to your halls." With that, he vanished.

The others exchanged glances, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

After returning to his hall, King Yama pondered for a long time before beckoning Black and White Impermanence over. "You both saw the Imperial Lord Haoran today, did you not?"

Black and White Impermanence exchanged a glance, unsure what their boss had in mind.

They could only nod and reply, "Reporting to Your Majesty, we certainly did."

"He has returned to the mortal world now. Presumably, he has descendants there," King Yama said quietly. "Keep an eye out when you travel through the mortal world. You might have a chance to forge a favorable connection."

Black and White Impermanence looked at each other, inwardly delighted. If they could get a Ghost Emperor to owe them a favor, would anyone in the Underworld dare stand in their way afterward?

They immediately bowed to King Yama in thanks. "Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty. We brothers are endlessly grateful."

"Mm." King Yama nodded in satisfaction. "Go on, then. Be clever about it." With that, he dismissed Black and White Impermanence.

Watching the two leave in high spirits, King Yama curled his lips into a faint smile, then casually picked up a document and began reading it.

Candlelight still glowed in the desolate clearing at the White Temple, though the candles had nearly burned down.

The flames flickered in the night breeze. A smile had actually appeared on Li Yichen's face, suggesting he was having a pleasant dream. In these surroundings, however, it looked downright creepy.

Just then, not far from him, space suddenly split open, and a young man in white stepped out.

The Ghost Emperor Haoran waved the fan in his hand, his brows furrowing slightly. "I never expected the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to be so thin a thousand years later, while the foul energy is so dense. It seems the world has undergone tremendous changes and is no longer suited to spiritual cultivation."

Then he smiled. "It does suit ghost cultivation, though. It is time for ghost cultivators to rise."

With that, he turned his gaze toward Li Yichen nearby. Their shared bloodline gave him an extraordinary sense of kinship. Gently waving his folding fan, he slowly walked over.

When he reached Li Yichen, his gaze fell on the finger that had yet to heal. His fondness for the young man immediately rose several notches.

"It seems those three sticks of incense came from this boy." Li Haoran chuckled. "As his forefather, I suppose I ought to give him a little something."

He closed his folding fan and reached out to feel over Li Yichen's body.

Li Yichen had been sleeping in a haze. In his dream, a beautiful woman's fiery red lips were just about to do that with him when he suddenly felt a pair of hands roaming over his body, occasionally squeezing his arms and thighs.

He frowned, swatted at the hands, and mumbled, "Fuck, Number Two, is that old habit of yours acting up again? I'm not some beautiful woman. What are you feeling me up for? If you ruin my date with this beauty, you'll never hear the end of it."

Suddenly, alarm jolted through him. He snapped his eyes open and found himself staring straight into the eyes of a young man in white, who was looking at him with a smile.

Looking farther down, he saw that the man's hand seemed about to reach toward a certain spot. His asshole clenched, and he shot upright, shouting, "Fuck, stay away from me, you damn homo!"

"Damn homo? What is a homo?" The Ghost Emperor Haoran was initially delighted to see him awake, then asked in confusion.

Keeping a wary eye on him, Li Yichen felt around on the ground for a brick and hid it behind his back. Then he slowly stood up, bending his front leg and bracing his rear one, ready to bolt at any moment.

Once he had done all that, his nerves finally settled a little. "Who are you? Why are you here?"

No one could blame him for being nervous. This was the White Temple, a place with more ghosts than people. If someone suddenly appeared in the dead of night and started running their hands all over you, wouldn't you be scared?

Naturally, the Ghost Emperor Haoran paid no mind to his little maneuvers. With such an enormous gap in their strength, everything he did was futile.

He smiled and was just about to explain when Li Yichen's tense face suddenly lit up with joy. Then Li Yichen shouted toward the space behind him, "Big Brother, I'm over here! Come on!"

"Hm?" The Ghost Emperor Haoran froze, then wondered, Someone is here? Why didn't I sense them? Could they be an expert?

He had just turned to see whether someone really was approaching when he heard Li Yichen shout behind him, "Behold my magic treasure... sneak attack!" Then he felt something smash into his head.

Crack! The brick in Li Yichen's hand shattered into several pieces and fell to the ground.

To Li Yichen's utter astonishment, however, the young man turned his head back as though nothing had happened and asked in bewilderment, "Where is this person?"

Fuck, what the hell is this guy? Is he a Terminator, like the one I saw in the movies? Shocked, Li Yichen asked shakily, "Y-you're all right?"

"Of course I am," the Ghost Emperor Haoran said matter-of-factly. "A blow that weak cannot harm a single hair on my body. Put more strength into it next time." As he spoke, he cast a disdainful glance at the broken brick on the ground.

"However..." He then revealed a somewhat sinister smile. "If you were not my tenth-generation descendant, you would be dead by now..."

"Tenth-generation descendant?" Li Yichen froze, unable to wrap his head around it.

Li Haoran was in no hurry. With a swish, he opened his fan and gently fanned himself.

"Hold on, let me sort this out," Li Yichen said. "You mean you're from my grandfather's generation?"

"Mm, you could put it that way." The Ghost Emperor Haoran nodded. "But that is not quite accurate. I would be your grandfather's grandfather... his grandfather, that is, your forefather."

"My grandfather's grandfather... his grandfather... my forefather..." Li Yichen frowned. "Why does that sound so familiar?"

Suddenly, his eyes went wide. Pointing a trembling hand at Li Haoran, he screamed in terror, "Y-you... a ghost! Help!" Then he spun around and ran.

The Ghost Emperor Haoran's face turned livid. He had never expected the boy to show him so little respect. "I am a mighty Ghost Emperor! Do I not deserve some dignity?"

"Boy, you think you can run?" He pointed a finger, and with a crack, space instantly froze.

Li Yichen had barely taken two steps when he suddenly felt the space around him tighten. His body could no longer move, leaving him standing there as stiff and straight as a stick.