Chapter Summaries

Yang Jian kept the real ghost-containment box instead of giving it to Yan Li, then met Zhao Kaiming, Dachang City's new Ghost Tamer, who tried to recruit him as an assistant. Their confrontation ended in a gun standoff after Zhao threatened Jiang Yan, and Zhao left after challenging Yang Jian to survive Huanggang Village.

• Yang Jian told Jiang Yan that he had spent more than twenty million on preparations, gave her three hundred thousand as a commission, and said he had given away her makeup case.
• Yang Jian reflected that the box he had given Yan Li was a counterfeit and decided to keep the real box while planning to compensate Yan Li's family later.
• Zhao Kaiming arrived, identified himself as Dachang City's new Ghost Tamer and Yang Jian's superior, and demanded that Yang Jian become his assistant.
• Yang Jian refused Zhao's demand and rejected his offer of information about the Huanggang Village operation, which was scheduled for three days later.
• When Jiang Yan came out of the bathroom, Zhao Kaiming pointed a pistol at her, and Yang Jian aimed his own gun at Zhao in response.
• After a ten-second standoff, Zhao put away his gun, challenged Yang Jian to return alive, and left; Jiang Yan collapsed as Yang Jian lowered his empty gun.

Yang Jian went to Huanggang Village to complete a deal that he hoped would help him control a second ghost and delay his ghost’s revival. He entered the seemingly ordinary village after Ye Jun and other Xiaoqiang Club Ghost Tamers arrived, leaving the group to investigate the suspected supernatural incident.

• Yang Jian told Jiang Yan that Zhao Kaiming had threatened him and admitted he intended to kill Zhao Kaiming and take his position, though he still needed a way to delay his ghost’s revival.
• Yang Jian prepared for Huanggang Village, deciding to rely on the Headless Ghost and the Human-Skin Parchment for his deal with Sun Lihong despite distrusting the parchment.
• Yang Jian drove to Huanggang Village with Jiang Yan, told her to leave and stay away, then collected his supplies at the village entrance.
• Ye Jun and the Xiaoqiang Club Ghost Tamers arrived in five luxury cars, argued with Yang Jian, and entered the village ahead of him.
• Yang Jian walked into the quiet, ordinary-looking village while the Xiaoqiang Club members discussed the danger and resolved to investigate.

Yang Jian entered Huanggang Village to investigate a reported supernatural incident and contacted Liu Xiaoyu about files and joining Headquarters. After a funeral caught his attention, he began surveying the village and heard a weak cough from an apparently empty abandoned house, leaving its source uncertain.

• Yang Jian asked Liu Xiaoyu for information about Huanggang Village and said he wanted to join Headquarters and replace Zhao Kaiming as Dachang City's Manager.
• Liu Xiaoyu reported Yang Jian's plans to Zhao Jianguo, who agreed to retrieve the relevant files and prioritize helping with the incident.
• Yang Jian entered the village and found Zhang Han, Ye Jun, and other Xiaoqiang Club members discussing a funeral and planning to investigate in pairs.
• Yang Jian photographed the dead man's portrait and set out to explore the village, while Zhang Han approached him to propose working together.
• A weak cough sounded behind Yang Jian and Zhang Han near an abandoned wooden house, but Yang Jian found no one inside and told Zhang Han to leave him alone until a ghost appeared.

Yang Jian found no clear evidence of a paranormal incident in Huanggang Village, so he rented a room from Liu Genrong and decided to stay for three days. That night, while Yang Jian was paralyzed in his sleep, a coughing presence climbed the stairs and lingered outside his door before a door creaked open.

• Yang Jian questioned an elderly villager about the funeral and possible hauntings, paying him for answers, but learned little about the dead person or any recent disturbances.
• Yang Jian paid Liu Genrong to rent a room and decided to leave after three days if nothing happened.
• While Yang Jian slept, a weak coughing sound outside Liu Genrong's front door woke him.
• Heavy footsteps climbed to the second floor and paced outside Yang Jian's room without entering.
• The footsteps stopped, and Yang Jian heard a door opening in the darkness.

Paralyzed by the Ghost Eye, Yang Jian watched an unknown ghost enter his room and strike the golden box containing the Headless Ghost. The human skin paper fell onto the battered box and stopped the blows, but Yang Jian feared the box might already have been opened.

• An unknown ghost entered Yang Jian's room and stood beside his bed while he lay paralyzed.
• The ghost searched Yang Jian's wardrobe, found the golden box containing the Headless Ghost, and began striking it.
• Yang Jian struggled to move, knowing the Headless Ghost could escape and seize his body if the box opened.
• The human skin paper drifted from the wardrobe onto the battered golden box, and the striking stopped.
• Yang Jian heard the silence and feared that the Headless Ghost had already escaped.

Yang Jian chased the footsteps of a ghost after surviving its visit, but found Zhang Han instead and discovered that other club members were also tracking strange footsteps. After Yang Jian accidentally shot Ouyang Tian and Ouyang Tian shot back, Zhang Han stopped them from escalating their feud while the ghost remained at large.

• Yang Jian regained control of his body after the ghost left, found the golden box dented but still closed, and saw human skin paper covering it.
• Yang Jian pursued the ghost through Huanggang Village, but around a corner he met Zhang Han, who said he had also been following footsteps.
• Yang Jian and Zhang Han heard footsteps in an alley, and Yang Jian shot Ouyang Tian when he mistook him for a threat.
• At the club members' villa, Yang Jian apologized to Ouyang Tian, but Ouyang Tian fired at him and Yang Jian dodged the bullet.
• Yang Jian aimed his gun at Ouyang Tian, and Zhang Han intervened before they could continue fighting.

Yang Jian and the Xiaoqiang Club Ghost Tamers avoided fighting and realized the ghost may be targeting the ghosts inside them. They discovered He Sheng had been killed, and Zhang Yiming urged the others to abandon the mission and leave Huanggang Village.

• Yang Jian explained that he had fired at Ouyang Tian because he mistook the footsteps for the ghost, and Ye Jun suggested the ghost might be turning them against each other.
• Yang Jian speculated that the Huanggang Village ghost wanted to kill Ghost Tamers and release the ghosts inside their bodies.
• Yang Jian pointed out that He Sheng and Zhang Yiming were missing, prompting the group to hurry to their residence.
• Zhang Yiming revealed that He Sheng was dead and showed the others photos of his bloodied corpse wrapped in gold foil.
• Zhang Yiming said the ghost had lured him away before killing He Sheng and recommended that the group abandon the mission and leave Huanggang Village.

After He Sheng was killed by an unknown ghost, the Ghost Tamers realized the entity was targeting them and chose to stay in Huanggang Village to seek a way to delay their ghostly resurgence. Yang Jian used his map to identify the funeral house as the likely location of the Plague Ghost, and the group prepared to confront it.

• Zhang Yiming concluded that the ghost had targeted He Sheng rather than the ordinary woman in his house, confirming Yang Jian’s earlier theory that it hunted the ghosts inside Ghost Tamers.
• Zhang Yiming, Ye Jun, Zhang Han, Yang Jian, and Ouyang Tian debated whether to leave the village or stay, and the majority chose to continue the mission.
• Zhang Yiming ordered the group to remain together because the ghost could silently kill Ghost Tamers, and Yang Jian warned that He Sheng’s ghost might also be loose.
• Yang Jian showed the group his hand-drawn map and pointed out that the footsteps had vanished near the house being used as a mourning hall.
• Zhang Yiming recognized the mourning hall at the village entrance as the likely destination, and the group prepared to confront the coffin inside.

Yang Jian and the other Ghost Tamers searched a funeral house for the Plague Ghost, but strange footsteps and coughing separated them. Ouyang Tian disappeared, and the portrait by the coffin began to resemble him.

• Zhang Yiming led the group into the house and ordered them to search its rooms while avoiding the coffin.
• The portrait changed and the candles dimmed as the group searched, but none of them noticed.
• Yang Jian and Zhang Han heard coughing from an empty room, then followed footsteps down the stairwell and encountered Zhang Yiming and the others.
• Yang Jian noticed Ouyang Tian was missing, and the group rushed back toward the funeral hall.
• The candles had gone out, and the darkened portrait bore a vague resemblance to Ouyang Tian.

After Ouyang Tian was killed by a powerful ghost, Yang Jian suspected two ghosts were active in Huanggang Village. The other Ghost Tamers abandoned the mission, but Yang Jian stayed behind to investigate the vermilion coffin.

• The group returned to the main hall and found Ouyang Tian dead beside the intact coffin, with the ghost inside him gone.
• Yang Jian reasoned that one ghost might be gathering the Ghost Tamers while another killed those left alone.
• Zhang Yiming gave Yang Jian Ouyang Tian's car keys and decided to leave with Ye Jun, while Zhang Han also departed.
• Yang Jian chose to remain in the village, believing the mission offered a chance to learn how to control another ghost.
• After the others left, Yang Jian approached the vermilion coffin and put his hand on its lid, preparing to open it.

After abandoning Huanggang Village, Zhang Yiming, Ye Jun, and Zhang Han found themselves trapped on the road back to the village as the ghost pursued them. Meanwhile, Yang Jian discovered a ghost inside the coffin and stayed beside it to test whether keeping it shut would protect him and help him imprison the ghost.

• Zhang Han suggested Yang Jian might have a plan, but Ye Jun and Zhang Yiming insisted they had already left Huanggang Village.
• Ye Jun stopped the cars when the road led them back to Huanggang Village, and Zhang Yiming concluded they could leave only if the ghost gave up or they imprisoned it.
• The three men found muddy footprints mixed with paper ash and realized the ghost from the mourning hall had followed them.
• Yang Jian pried open the coffin enough to see dead hands gripping its lid, then decided to stay beside it and test whether the closed coffin kept him safe.
• Zhang Yiming, Ye Jun, and Zhang Han waited by their cars through the night, keeping watch until dawn while the ghost's location remained unknown.

Yang Jian confirmed the coffin was connected to the ghosts in Huanggang Village, but villagers interrupted his attempt to investigate it. After learning the portrait had changed and reading Liu Xiaoyu’s file on the village, he was horrified as Zhang Yiming, Zhang Han, and Ye Jun returned.

• Yang Jian concluded that the ghosts were connected to the coffin and prepared to contain whatever was inside.
• Villagers arrived at the mourning hall, and Yang Jian pretended to be the deceased’s brother to avoid being driven out.
• Yang Jian noticed the villagers’ vigil and behavior seemed strange, then received Liu Xiaoyu’s call about the portrait.
• Liu Xiaoyu said the portrait matched no one in the national database and might be a composite; Yang Jian compared it with yesterday’s photo and saw that it had changed.
• Yang Jian opened Liu Xiaoyu’s file on Huanggang Village and reacted with terror as Zhang Yiming, Zhang Han, and Ye Jun drove back into the village.

Yang Jian read Feng Quan’s report on Huanggang Village and concluded that two ghosts were present: the Plague Ghost in the coffin and a vicious ghost wandering outside. After Zhang Han returned and described the previous night’s attack, Yang Jian offered to resolve the incident if the others cooperated.

• Yang Jian read the archive about Huanggang Village’s disappearance and Feng Quan’s likely death after warning others not to touch the coffin.
• Yang Jian questioned whether the villagers were ghosts, then reasoned that the Plague Ghost and the ghost that killed He Sheng and Ouyang Tian were different entities.
• Yang Jian suspected that the Plague Ghost was restraining the more vicious ghost and decided that the vicious ghost should be contained first.
• Zhang Han returned with the others and told Yang Jian that the village had been sealed off and they had been attacked the previous night.
• Yang Jian concluded that two ghosts were in the village and told Zhang Han that he could resolve the incident if they cooperated.

Yang Jian tried to persuade the Xiaoqiang Club survivors to cooperate, explaining that the village held at least two ghosts and that acting alone or provoking the villagers could be fatal. The group avoided a fight with the villagers, but an old woman’s sudden cough left them alarmed.

• Yang Jian told Zhang Yiming, Ye Jun, and Zhang Han that he could resolve the incident if they shared what had happened to them and followed his lead.
• Zhang Yiming explained that the three had stayed together through the night and had not been attacked, while Yang Jian concluded that the ghost killed people who were alone.
• Yang Jian revealed that Huanggang Village had become a ghost village months earlier and warned that the villagers might not be human.
• Ye Jun aimed his gun at a nearby old man, but Yang Jian stopped him, and Zhang Yiming and Zhang Han sided with Yang Jian.
• Ye Jun apologized and dropped his gun, and Yang Jian released him after Zhang Yiming urged him to focus on resolving the incident.
• An old woman cautioned them against fighting, then began coughing, startling Yang Jian and the others.

Yang Jian and the others suspected the old woman was the ghost behind the village incident and followed her home to contain her. They sealed her in a body bag, but Yang Jian's unease remained as the group celebrated what seemed like an easy victory.

• After hearing the old woman's cough, Yang Jian warned the others that the village might hold more than one ghost and urged them to act quickly.
• The group followed the old woman to her house, where Ye Jun climbed onto the roof while Zhang Yiming, Zhang Han, and Yang Jian waited to attack.
• Corpse water dripped through the roof and rapidly rotted the old woman, but she stood up afterward and turned off the television.
• Zhang Yiming shouted for the group to move, and Zhang Han grabbed the old woman with the ghostly arms emerging from his back.
• Yang Jian pulled a body bag over the old woman and sealed her inside, while the corpse water stopped dripping and the others believed the incident was resolved.

Yang Jian realized that the village’s balance had collapsed and a more terrifying ghost was taking over Huanggang Village. With the mourning hall gone and no clear escape, he opened the gold box to release the Headless Ghost Shadow as a desperate attempt to restore the balance.

• Yang Jian identified the old woman as a Ghost Slave and led Zhang Han and Zhang Yiming back toward the mourning hall, while Ye Jun disappeared and was presumed dead.
• Darkness rapidly engulfed Huanggang Village, and Yang Jian concluded that their actions had broken the balance between the village’s ghosts.
• Yang Jian used his Ghost Domain to return to the village entrance, where he found the mourning hall’s entire house and the villagers gone.
• Yang Jian told Zhang Han and Zhang Yiming that the real vicious ghost was about to appear, then fired at the gold box containing the Headless Ghost Shadow.
• The box opened and Yan Li’s ghost blood drained away as the Headless Ghost Shadow began to crawl out.

Yang Jian released the Headless Ghost Shadow and gave it the old woman’s corpse, then hid inside his body bag as darkness swallowed Huanggang Village. He hoped the ghost’s actions would restore the village’s balance, while Zhang Yiming and Zhang Han fled toward their own escape plans.

• Yang Jian released the Headless Ghost Shadow from the golden box and let it choose the old woman’s corpse as its body.
• The Headless Ghost Shadow possessed the corpse, and Yang Jian told Zhang Yiming and Zhang Han to focus on surviving while he hid in the body bag.
• Zhang Yiming ran toward his car, while Zhang Han fled in another direction.
• Yang Jian saw the possessed old woman follow Zhang Yiming and then climbed into the body bag as the darkness intensified.
• Huanggang Village was engulfed by darkness, leaving Yang Jian to hope his guess about restoring the balance was correct.

Yang Jian remained hidden in a body bag in Huanggang Village and called Liu Xiaoyu and Zhao Jianguo to confront Headquarters about a tampered incident file. The call ended without resolving the dispute, and as evening arrived, footsteps approached his hiding place.

• Yang Jian survived for hours inside the body bag and called Liu Xiaoyu to report that Feng Quan’s account of the Huanggang Village incident had been altered.
• Yang Jian accused Headquarters of using the method to control a second malicious ghost as bait, and Zhao Jianguo denied that his division had deliberately endangered him.
• Yang Jian demanded that Xiaoqiang Club’s person in charge meet him outside Huanggang Village and threatened Headquarters before ending the call.
• Zhao Jianguo ordered Liu Xiaoyu to keep Yang Jian calm and promised to investigate the company and arrange a meeting within three days.
• At 18:00, Yang Jian heard footsteps approaching his body bag and prepared for a possible ghost.

Yang Jian hid in a body bag while a vicious ghost searched nearby, then discovered that Huanggang Village remained full of dangerous ghosts. With no way out, he agreed to trade a ghost with the human skin paper in exchange for help taming a second ghost.

• Yang Jian stayed silent as footsteps stopped beside his body bag, then waited until they moved away before concluding the ghost had failed to find him.
• After spending a day hiding, Yang Jian used the Ghost Eye and saw motionless villagers turn toward him with hollow eyes.
• Yang Jian took out the human skin paper and offered to trade it a ghost if it helped him survive.
• The human skin paper indicated that Yang Jian could directly tame a second ghost, and he agreed to begin the transaction.

Yang Jian returned to Huanggang Village and found that the headless ghost shadow was restoring the village’s balance. He tried to control it with the human skin paper, but the paper began devouring the old woman carrying Ye Jun’s ghost, leaving Yang Jian horrified by what might happen next.

• Zhang Han hid in a gold suitcase in his car while ghosts passed nearby, then noticed red light seeping through the gap.
• Yang Jian returned to the village in his Ghost Domain and saw fewer villagers, fading darkness, and the vanished house restored.
• Yang Jian abandoned his plan to take Zhang Han’s ghost and decided to control the headless ghost shadow instead, while the human skin paper recorded the new transaction.
• Yang Jian approached the moving old woman and saw corpse water pour from her body, forming a figure that he recognized as Ye Jun’s ability.
• The old woman forced her way into Yang Jian’s Ghost Domain, stepped on the human skin paper, and was pulled into it as the paper devoured her.