Morning came early in the mountains, and quietly.
The sun had yet to peek over the eastern ridge, but the sky had already faded from inky black to gray-blue. Morning mist drifted through the valleys like a thin veil, shrouding distant trees and nearby rocks in a haze. Dew clung to blades of grass, glittering faintly in the dim light. The air carried the damp scent of earth and fresh grass, cool enough to clear the mind with every breath.
Zhiyan stood at the entrance to the mountain village, looking at the buildings veiled in mist. It was a small village, with only a dozen or so households. Doors and windows were shut tight, vines covered the walls, and weeds filled the courtyards. Some roofs had collapsed, exposing the pitch-black second floors.
The mission briefing said a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit was haunting the area. Everyone in the village had disappeared, and the spirit needed to be exorcised. He had arrived the morning before last. Two full days had passed since then, and he had searched the entire village and every possible hiding place nearby, finding nothing.
A Grade 2 Cursed Spirit. Normally, a cursed spirit of that level would be nothing to him. A single day would have been enough to find it, exorcise it, and leave. But the problem was-he could not find it at all. It did not seem to be hiding. It seemed not to exist.
At least, not within his perception.
This was the third day.
Zhiyan stood beneath the large tree at the village entrance, his gaze sweeping over the empty houses. His brows drew together slightly. His instincts told him something was wrong.
The cursed spirit's grade had been assessed two months earlier by a sorcerer dispatched from Jujutsu Headquarters. The report was