A chilling wind blew, and suddenly, green will-o'-the-wisps lit up the campfire.
A thick rope swayed down from the temple beams, and in the eerie green light, it was looped around the girl's neck.
Li Changzhou watched coldly from the sidelines.
"ah!
"The girl didn't see the rope, and the moment the will-o'-the-wisp lit up, she was terrified by the headless corpse in front of her."
Just as the rope was about to be around her neck, the girl finally made a move, as if she had been frightened into madness, and suddenly bit her lip until it bled.
"puff!"
He spat a mouthful of blood onto the ghost's head.
The rope lost its strength and swayed in the green light, occasionally striking the girl's neck, which was covered in cold sweat, like the repeated licks of a ghostly tongue.
The ghost was frozen in place.
The girl was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground, her face pale and her body shivering uncontrollably.
"It's passable." Li Changzhou's tone relaxed, and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
He had no choice but to fight for the path to becoming a "winner," and naturally, he didn't want to be eliminated right away.
Only then did he have time to notice the girl, who was about fifteen years old. Ignoring her face, which looked like she could have impersonated a drowned ghost from being scared by one, she was incredibly beautiful, with a slender figure and an unusually stunning appearance.
If Li Changzhou had known she was this beautiful, he would have chosen the ghost.
This girl is weak and beautiful, so he is just a "magic weapon" and cannot take the initiative to attack. This girl still has many trials to face.
However, true heroes emerge from turbulent times, and Li Changzhou doesn't really enjoy games that aren't challenging.
The girl finally came to her senses, hurriedly threw the ghost head in her hand to the ground, picked up the bundle beside her, and ran out of the temple.
"Run!" Li Changzhou laughed. "Guess how many ghosts are outside!"
Plop!
The girl fell to the ground, not only because her legs were weak, but also because she was frightened by Li Changzhou.
The girl did not get up, but knelt on the ground and kowtowed to the head of the temple.
"Gods, save me! Please have mercy and save me!"
Put your mind at ease, muster your courage, and speak calmly.
After a long while, the girl slowly calmed down, but she still dared not look at the human head on the ground or the headless ghost corpse floating in mid-air.
"Tell me about your background," Li Changzhou said.
The girl paused for a moment, then said, "I was born in Wangjia Village. Before I could even be given a formal name, my parents sold me to the Liu family in the county to be a maid. The young mistress named me Xiao Hong."
[Xiao Hong? Then why aren't you staying at Master Liu's house? What are you doing at my temple in the middle of the night?]
The girl's face showed a desolate and indignant expression: "Master Liu took a fancy to me and wanted me to warm his feet. Last year, Xiao Lü warmed Master Liu's feet and died from massive bleeding. I was so scared that I secretly ran away."
"Because returning to Wangjia Village would only harm my family, and I had nowhere else to go, I remembered that the young mistress had read in a miscellaneous book that mentioned there were immortals nearby, so I wanted to ask the immortals to save me, but I never expected to meet them... I met them..."
No one dared to utter the word 'ghost,' as if saying it would bring the hanged ghost back to life.
She shivered slightly, as if from the cold, and then said, "Fortunately, I met the God!"
"Gods and ghosts abound; where there are ghosts, there are gods." Li Changzhou said with a smile, "From now on, you will be my attendant, and I will guarantee you immortality."
The girl looked completely bewildered.
Who would be interested in immortality at such a young age?
Are you willing?
"Yes, yes, Xiao Hong is willing! I am willing to serve the gods!" the girl said quickly.
"Little Red... this name isn't good. How about this, I'll give you a new name."
The girl didn't say anything, but listened obediently.
From now on, you'll take my surname, 'Shen' (神). Shen... um, you said there are immortals here, but there are only gods and ghosts. So you'll be that immortal—from now on, you'll be called 'Shenxian' (神仙儿).
"Gods, immortals?" For a fleeting moment, the girl forgot about the hanged ghost.
Come here, take the branch from the altar; this is my idol.
"My Lord God, how about... I still call her Little Red?"
[Go back to warm Master Liu's feet, only to die from massive bleeding? Think carefully, do you want to be 'Little Red' or 'the fairy'?]
The girl licked her dry lips, and the wound she had bitten earlier bled again, a metallic taste spreading across her tongue.
She gritted her teeth and said, "I want to be an immortal!"
"She's a fairy." Li Changzhou corrected, "Come here, take this branch."
The girl stood up. She was wearing a ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) and a strapless top embroidered with lotus flowers. She was slender and, though not voluptuous, was still of a certain size.
She avoided the hanged ghost, walked to the altar, and carefully took down the branch.
[Tuck it to your waist, then put on the ghost head, grab the rope, and go out.]
"Ghost...ghost head?" the fairy asked in a trembling voice.
"There are ghosts outside. If you don't lead the ghosts, how can you scare them?" Li Changzhou said.
"...My Lord, is there no other way?"
"Of course." Li Changzhou was also very open-minded, understanding normal people's fear of ghosts, and would never force anyone to do anything against their will. "If you smash your head against the altar and die, becoming a ghost and going out, ghosts naturally won't harm ghosts."
The girl tucked the branch into her belt, then slung her bundle over her shoulder. She then hid her left hand in her sleeve, cradling the ghost's head through it, while her right hand trembled as she grasped the hemp rope.
She walked outside, the hanged ghost's corpse hovering behind her like a kite.
"Ah..." she cried softly, her legs trembling.
[Hahahaha!] Li Changzhou laughed loudly.
The girl cried even harder, but gradually, the crying became less about fear and more about the resentment of being gloated over.
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