Chapter Summaries

Luo Bin warned Gu Yiren to distrust strangers after a suspicious neighbor tried to spy on them, then practiced recalling Luo Feng’s knife techniques. Meanwhile, Li Yuan and Yu Hao brought the wounded You Jiang into Cabinet Mountain Town and warned him about surviving the night.

• A woman offered Luo Bin and Gu Yiren mushrooms, but Luo Bin caught her secretly watching through a gap beneath the shutter and sent her away.
• Luo Bin warned Gu Yiren not to accept kindness or trust anyone in town except Li Yuan, Yu Hao, and Zhang Baijiao.
• Luo Bin reviewed Luo Feng’s knife techniques while Gu Yiren kept watch by the door.
• You Jiang entered Cabinet Mountain Town after discovering it and followed Li Yuan and Yu Hao to a house.
• Li Yuan told You Jiang the rules for surviving the night, and You Jiang asked them to stay with him.

Luo Bin and Gu Yiren settled in for their first night in Cabinet Mountain Town after Zhang Baijiao warned them that he knew Luo Bin came from somewhere else. As Luo Bin feigned sleep, a little girl evil spirit slipped into their lodgings and approached him.

• Li Yuan and Yu Hao discussed the suspicious newcomers and expected the Dian Woman’s visitors not to survive the night.
• Zhang Baijiao warned Luo Bin not to trust strangers, revealed that he knew Luo Bin came from somewhere else, and urged him to survive the night and visit the next day.
• Luo Bin used Rewind to realize Zhang Baijiao had noticed Zhang Yunling’s distinctive stitches, then told Gu Yiren to trust the physician and keep Zhang Yunling’s identity secret.
• Gu Yiren went upstairs alone, struggled with her fear and dependence on Luo Bin, and wished she were dead.
• Luo Bin pretended to sleep as a little girl evil spirit entered, came close to examine him, and asked if he was looking at her.

Luo Bin attacked the little girl as she tried to leave at dawn, but she escaped into the fog, revealing that evil spirits could resist even as they departed. After the fog vanished, Gu Yiren asked whether Luo Bin would take her away, and he realized how deeply she feared being abandoned.

• Luo Bin waited through the night while the little girl stayed upstairs with Gu Yiren, who met the spirit's eyes and wanted to die.
• At 4:49, Luo Bin ambushed the little girl and stabbed her mouth with the Woodcutter's Knife, but she fought free and escaped into the fog.
• Luo Bin recalled that evil spirits had remained in the village chief's trap after daylight and realized they could fight back while leaving.
• Gu Yiren came downstairs with swollen, tear-streaked eyes, and Luo Bin explained that they both needed to learn to stay safe before they could move forward.
• Gu Yiren asked whether Luo Bin would take her out of Cabinet Mountain Town, and Luo Bin realized she feared abandonment because she was starved of love.

Luo Bin reassured Gu Yiren that he would not abandon her, then took her to Zhang Baijiao’s shop to have his wound treated. He told Zhang Baijiao that Zhang Lingyun was still alive, and Zhang Baijiao realized she was the only survivor of his family.

• Luo Bin comforted Gu Yiren and promised not to leave her behind.
• Luo Bin and Gu Yiren ate noodles, then went together to Zhang Baijiao’s traditional Chinese medicine shop.
• Zhang Baijiao treated Luo Bin’s reopened wound and teased him about exerting himself with Gu Yiren.
• Luo Bin told Zhang Baijiao that Zhang Lingyun was still alive.
• Zhang Baijiao wept with joy and grief, then asked whether Zhang Lingyun was the only one who survived.

Luo Bin told Zhang Baijiao that his granddaughter Zhang Yunling might still be alive, then learned more about the dangers and factions in Cabinet Mountain Town. After Luo Bin and Gu Yiren left, Zhang Baijiao treated You Jiang’s infected arm while questioning him.

• Luo Bin shared what he knew about Zhang Yunling and her parents, and Zhang Baijiao grieved before asking Luo Bin to take him to Cabinet Mountain Village.
• Luo Bin admitted he could not find his way back, then asked Zhang Baijiao about the town’s dangers.
• Zhang Baijiao explained that the mayor’s authority was limited, evil spirits assimilated residents, and townspeople’s violence might be curbing the spirits’ growth.
• Zhang Baijiao warned Luo Bin and Gu Yiren to avoid the town’s residents and Li Yuan’s group, and invited them to talk again the next morning.
• After Luo Bin and Gu Yiren left, You Jiang returned to the medicine shop and lied about losing his arm to an upright-walking sheep.
• Zhang Baijiao peeled the scab from You Jiang’s infected stump and questioned whether he had entered town alone.

Luo Bin sought a way to trap the little girl evil spirit without exploiting Zhang Baijiao, while Li Yunyi prepared to make the Outsider from Beyond the Mountain submit. The chapter left Luo Bin heading out to find Mo Qian and turn his knowledge into a possible alliance.

• Zhang Baijiao knocked You Jiang unconscious and began treating his wounds after You Jiang rejected anesthetic.
• Li Yunyi noticed that the Emotion Flower’s dew and the face within it had faded, then summoned Mountain Fen and other strange creatures to frighten the Outsider from Beyond the Mountain.
• Gu Yiren suggested that Luo Bin ask Zhang Baijiao to help set a trap, but Luo Bin refused to take advantage of the doctor while the Lingyun talisman remained uncertain.
• Luo Bin realized he could use his outdated information about Mo Qian to negotiate cooperation, said goodbye to Gu Yiren, and left the house.

Luo Bin explored Cabinet Mountain Town and witnessed the townspeople’s indifference after a brutally staged murder. He returned to Gu Yiren with no progress toward warding off Evil Spirits, but told her they would have to seek Mo Qian’s help.

• Luo Bin followed the town’s main roads and found a crowd gathered around a disemboweled corpse.
• Li Yuan, Yu Hao, and another warden cleaned up the scene, while Li Yuan told Luo Bin that the mayor could act only if someone produced evidence against the killer.
• Townspeople watched Luo Bin from all directions, so he escaped into an alley before continuing his survey of the town.
• Luo Bin returned home and told Gu Yiren about the murder and the town’s danger.
• Luo Bin explained that they needed to work with Mo Qian, who had already visited them, and Gu Yiren worried that seeking his help was like asking a tiger for its skin.

After recovering at Zhang Baijiao’s medicine shop, You Jiang identified a woman cooking human offal and vowed to target Zhang Yunling’s family. Luo Bin stayed home with Gu Yiren, watched the people passing by, and prepared to spend the night upstairs, where Gu Yiren unexpectedly suggested they share the bed.

• You Jiang left Zhang Baijiao’s shop angry and blamed Zhang Yunling for the misfortunes that had brought him near death.
• You Jiang smelled cooked human offal, spotted a woman feeding it to two black cats, and memorized her courtyard.
• Luo Bin struggled to eat Gu Yiren’s cooking because the day’s gruesome discovery kept returning to his mind.
• Luo Bin watched passersby from home, practiced knife movements with his left hand, and waited for Mo Qian to seek him out.
• After dinner, Luo Bin said he would sleep upstairs on the floor, and Gu Yiren shyly offered to share the bed.

Luo Bin and Gu Yiren spent the night together in fear after an evil spirit attack unfolded just outside their bedroom. In the morning, they found a mutilated corpse, and Luo Bin wondered whether the person behind Cabinet Mountain was deliberately tormenting him.

• Luo Bin dismissed the idea that Gu Yiren had feelings for him and went to sleep on bedding beside her bed.
• A scream outside the bedroom woke Luo Bin, and Gu Yiren jumped into his arms and hid beneath his quilt.
• As someone was killed on the stairs, Luo Bin swallowed three pouches of Lamp Oil to resist his growing craving for blood.
• Four or five blood-covered evil spirits stood smiling in the doorway before leaving, while Luo Bin and Gu Yiren stayed awake through the night.
• After dawn, Luo Bin and Gu Yiren found a mutilated corpse in the hallway, and Luo Bin feared that someone was deliberately watching and tormenting him.

Li Yunyi celebrated the Outsider from Beyond the Mountain’s growing fear as trouble unfolded at Luo Bin and Gu Yiren’s lodging. Although the Town Chief confirmed that an Evil Spirit had killed the man inside, he ordered Luo Bin and Gu Yiren detained, leaving them facing armed townspeople.

• Li Yunyi admired the flower that represented the Outsider from Beyond the Mountain and anticipated his next move.
• Li Yuan, Yu Hao, and another man questioned Luo Bin and Gu Yiren after they emerged from their lodging with bloody footprints.
• The Town Chief arrived and questioned Luo Bin, while the dead man’s wife accused Luo Bin and Gu Yiren of killing her husband.
• The Town Chief inspected the body and confirmed that an Evil Spirit had killed the man, not Luo Bin or Gu Yiren.
• The Town Chief ordered Luo Bin and Gu Yiren detained, and armed townspeople pointed knives at them.

Luo Bin and Gu Yiren were accused of changing the evil spirits and confined in a courtyard while Cabinet Mountain Town watched them. Luo Bin concluded that the force behind Mountain Cabinet was human and could not see everything, then tried to explain his reasoning to Gu Yiren through the peach tree.

• The Town Chief blamed Luo Bin and Gu Yiren for the evil spirits’ new behavior and said they would be safe if no more killings occurred near them.
• Li Yuan and the others escorted Luo Bin and Gu Yiren to a courtyard and warned them not to leave.
• After the gate closed, Luo Bin told Gu Yiren that someone was manipulating events to frighten them but still obeyed certain rules.
• Luo Bin reasoned that the hunter and Si had limited knowledge, so the person behind Mountain Cabinet could not see everything they did.
• Luo Bin declared that the person behind Mountain Cabinet was human and could not see, then shook the flowering peach tree and asked Gu Yiren if she understood.

Luo Bin deduced that the Master of Cabinet Mountain used fear and other negative emotions to nourish the Radiant Flower, and that a subordinate was now monitoring him. He decided to act frightened rather than resist, but Zhang Baijiao arrived at the courtyard gate.

• Luo Bin explained to Gu Yiren that their abnormality could threaten the Radiant Flower and attract the Master of Cabinet Mountain's attention.
• Luo Bin drew a mountain diagram and theorized that an administrator and the Hunters had failed to detect them before they reached the Nightmare.
• Luo Bin concluded that a subordinate, not the Master of Cabinet Mountain, was watching them through the Radiant Flower and trying to make him afraid.
• Luo Bin reasoned that Cabinet Mountain Town's apparent peace intensified fear and drove its residents to kill, nourishing the Radiant Flower.
• Luo Bin decided to feign fear and yield on most matters, then shouted in alarm when three knocks sounded and Zhang Baijiao entered the courtyard.

Zhang Baijiao changed Luo Bin’s dressing, gave Gu Yiren medicine, and promised to seek the Town Chief’s help before returning to his shop. There, You Jiang ambushed him and threatened to kill him, but Zhang Baijiao struck back with silver needles.

• Zhang Baijiao changed Luo Bin’s dressing and warned him not to interfere with the evil spirits, while offering medicine to Gu Yiren.
• Zhang Baijiao promised to try to persuade the Town Chief to meet Luo Bin, then warned Luo Bin and Gu Yiren to stay inside the courtyard.
• Luo Bin told Gu Yiren that Zhang Baijiao was a kind doctor and believed the town would protect him because it needed his medical skills.
• Zhang Baijiao returned to his medicine shop, where You Jiang shut the door, held a knife to his throat, and threatened to kill him.
• Zhang Baijiao answered You Jiang’s attack by firing several silver needles toward his face.

You Jiang was knocked unconscious after Zhang Baijiao fought back, then woke bound on a table in the hands of a woman who tortured him as a Demon Monster. His fate was left uncertain as the woman cut open his abdomen and cats howled around him.

• You Jiang took Zhang Baijiao's needles in his face and eye, then knocked Zhang Baijiao unconscious.
• A door struck You Jiang's head and knocked him out before he could take Zhang Baijiao away.
• Zhang Baijiao woke, realized You Jiang had also mentioned Zhang Yunling, and asked Li Yuan and Yu Hao to take him to the Town Chief.
• You Jiang awoke tied to a table as a woman accused him of being a Demon Monster and blocked his body openings with bone plugs.
• The woman stabbed You Jiang in the abdomen as cats cried around the table.

Luo Bin rested in the courtyard while considering who had been sent to Cabinet Mountain Town and how to handle the Town Chief. That night, he tried to provide negative emotions for the Radiant Flower, but three evil spirits entered the courtyard and triggered his fear.

• Luo Bin practiced bladework with his left hand and reflected on his opponent and the possibility that You Jiang and Mo Qian had also been sent to Cabinet Mountain Town.
• Luo Bin and Gu Yiren ate together, then slept in the courtyard after their exhausting night.
• Gu Yiren told Luo Bin that Grandpa Zhang had spoken to the Town Chief and that they might be released once the town confirmed they were not dangerous.
• Luo Bin sent Gu Yiren to sleep in the bedroom and sat alone in the main hall to produce negative emotions for the Radiant Flower.
• A wounded little girl entered the courtyard, followed by two evil spirits who resembled her, and Luo Bin walked past them before terror seized him.

Luo Bin tested whether he could walk among the town’s evil spirits, then found himself drawn into their nighttime procession. They led him to a mutilated corpse identified as You Jiang, leaving him wondering who in town could have killed him.

• Luo Bin walked three laps around the courtyard, and the family of three evil spirits eventually left through the gate.
• Overwhelmed by grief and his growing evil-spirit instincts, Luo Bin resisted eating from the Oil Pouch and followed those instincts out onto the town road.
• Luo Bin met the gazes of the roaming evil spirits and joined their procession, which grew to thirteen as other spirits gathered around them.
• The evil spirits stopped outside a single-story house, where Luo Bin saw a gruesomely mutilated corpse marked with the word “Demon!”
• Luo Bin recognized the corpse as You Jiang and wondered when he had entered town and who had killed him.

Luo Bin explored Cabinet Mountain Town and entered a strange Coffin House, then returned to the courtyard consumed by bloodlust. Gu Yiren stopped him from attacking her by feeding him her blood, and he collapsed unconscious.

• Luo Bin found You Jiang's mutilated corpse and left to map the town's narrow paths.
• Luo Bin discovered a strange, coffin-filled house and entered only far enough to peer into its darkness before leaving.
• Luo Bin returned to the courtyard near dawn, unable to control his thirst for blood, and went into Gu Yiren's room.
• Luo Bin reached toward the sleeping Gu Yiren with his altered Fingernail, but she woke and recognized that something was wrong.
• Gu Yiren cut her finger and put it in Luo Bin's mouth; he sucked her blood and fell unconscious.

After You Jiang was found dead, Lu Fu concluded that the unidentified Demon Hunter was still killing people while searching for a demon in town. Zhang Baijiao treated Luo Bin’s poisoning and offered to shelter him, but Luo Bin chose to stay where he was.

• Li Yuan told Lu Fu that You Jiang’s body bore the same character as the earlier victim, and Lu Fu feared the Demon Hunter had not found the demon.
• Lu Fu released Luo Bin and Gu Yiren from screening and told Zhang Baijiao he would not enter the Cedar Forest yet.
• Gu Yiren alerted Zhang Baijiao that Luo Bin was unconscious, and Zhang Baijiao used acupuncture and induced vomiting to treat his poisoning.
• Zhang Baijiao explained You Jiang’s death and the danger posed by the demon and the Demon Hunter, then offered Luo Bin and Gu Yiren shelter.
• Luo Bin wondered whether the demon could be himself and refused Zhang Baijiao’s offer to leave with him.

Luo Bin refused Zhang Baijiao’s offer of shelter, reasoning that staying apart would protect them while they investigated the evil spirits in Cabinet Mountain Town. After realizing Gu Yiren’s blood might be an antidote that was changing his body, he feared he was losing the protection of his evil spirit traits and waited anxiously for nightfall.

• Luo Bin told Zhang Baijiao that he and Gu Yiren would remain in their current home until suspicion surrounding them passed, and Zhang Baijiao agreed not to press him.
• Luo Bin reassured Zhang Baijiao that You Jiang could not have returned to Cabinet Mountain Village to harm Zhang Yunling, and Gu Yiren said Zhang Yunling had enough people around her to stay safe.
• Luo Bin told Gu Yiren they needed to stay alert, hunt evil spirits, and consider that he himself might be the demon.
• Luo Bin recalled that Gu Yiren’s blood had affected him differently on separate occasions and theorized that her heart’s blood was an antidote to evil spirit poison.
• Luo Bin noticed his gray, pitted fingernail turning pink and realized Gu Yiren’s blood might be removing his evil spirit traits, leaving him afraid he had lost a vital defense.

Luo Bin tested the Lamp Oil and survived another night as the evil spirits entered his room, while Li Yunyi watched his plant thrive on Luo Bin’s growing distress. Mo Qian tried to kill Luo Bin in his sleep, but his blades could not cut Luo Bin’s neck, and Luo Bin smiled as Mo Qian froze in terror.

• Luo Bin lit the Oil Lamp, waited for his symptoms to return, drank Lamp Oil, and went to sleep beside Gu Yiren as three evil spirits entered the room.
• Li Yunyi observed Luo Bin’s plant growing rapidly and planned to reunite with his junior sister by exploiting Luo Bin’s distress.
• Mo Qian walked among the evil spirits unnoticed and decided to kill Luo Bin so he could take Gu Yiren for himself.
• Mo Qian entered Luo Bin’s room and slashed at his neck, but his blades left no wound.
• Luo Bin smiled in his sleep, terrifying Mo Qian.