Gui Lingyue froze abruptly in midair, his waist held at an impossible angle. With his left hand poised in Opera Fingers, the ghost hung suspended in a pose as supremely elegant as it was supremely eerie.
Lin Muyao's eyes widened.
Then came a series of clicks. Gui Lingyue's neck slowly turned, joint by joint, until his white Opera Mask faced Yun Si.
He seemed to tilt his head and listen for a moment, then suddenly spoke:
"The children-"
His rich, low voice rang out again.
"Have all escaped."
Silence fell over the pavilion. Yun Ruyi, a child herself, instantly understood who "the children" referred to.
Yun Si propped her chin on one hand, her phoenix eyes resting languidly on the Opera Stage. Her lips curved into an ambiguous smile at the figure onstage.
"Oh?"
"Didn't you let them out on purpose?"
"..."
Gui Lingyue's head turned back in stiff, jerking increments.
He did not answer, merely continued his opera as though nothing had happened.
Yun Si watched him, one brow lifting slightly as a smile spread across her face. "What bad habits have I spoiled you into?"
The Nightmare Dream Illusion Play was Gui Lingyue's domain. Whether someone awoke, when they awoke, or even whether they could awaken at all depended on a single thought of his.
This time, the ghost on the Opera Stage finally reacted instead of continuing to play deaf and dumb.
He flicked his long sleeve. Snap-
The Red Gauze unfurled like a wave as gongs and drums erupted. Gui Lingyue turned sideways, the corners of his eyes lifting slightly, wearing the same ambiguous smile.
"-Then what would my sovereign do?"
He had returned to that lilting, sumptuous operatic voice. The final note twisted and turned, falling into the Nether River in lingering coils, the words