Twilight Boundary

"Which day was it..."

Hu Ma hadn't expected Miss Red Wine's attention to be drawn to this question. After a brief pause, he recalled that it had been two days since leaving Dongchang Prefecture when he first encountered this thing. He then whispered, "Counting it this way, it's the sixth day."

"The first time I sensed its presence was six days ago at midnight. I lit an incense array and avoided it."

"Since then, it appeared a few more times, but I managed to evade it each time."

"..."

Miss Red Wine suddenly fell silent.

She must have guessed something, Hu Ma thought, a flicker of worry stirring within him. After a moment of waiting, he finally heard Miss Red Wine say, "Do you trust us?"

"What?"

Hu Ma hadn't expected her to ask such a question.

Miss White Wine had mentioned that the Reincarnators in Anzhou could be trusted, but her relationship with this Miss Red Wine seemed somewhat... complicated.

"You're in quite a bit of trouble."

Miss Red Wine's voice sounded gentle but carried an added sense of gravity as she quietly said, "It seems that we'll need to collect this letter ourselves."

"But we'll have to inconvenience you to make another trip. Tomorrow at 11:15 AM, you can go to the south of Anzhou Prefectural City, to the entrance of Embroidered Shoe Alley, and to Liu'er Temple between the two giant locust trees. I'll have Burning Blade meet you there."

"Bring the letter with you. If there's anything relevant, I'll decide whether or not to inform you after I've seen the letter."

"..."

Hu Ma was a bit surprised by this. "Face to face?"

Among Reincarnators, there were many ways to deliver letters, but face-to-face was the riskiest.

This was his first contact with them. Setting aside whether he could trust them, how could they be so certain they could trust him?

Or was it due to Miss White Wine's considerable influence that they disregarded this danger?

But on further reflection, he understood: her arrangement might be connected to the servant ghost she had mentioned. After quickly considering everything, he answered, "Alright, I'll go over tomorrow."

He left the Lifebound Spirit Temple and quietly pondered for a moment before falling asleep on the chair.

「The next day, he rose and began his preparations.」

Housekeeper Zhou was quite nice. Though he harbored ill intentions throughout their journey, when Hu Ma had asked him about some tricks, he had honestly shared a few things.

Among them were the basics of disguise and ventriloquism for the Trickster Sect. Ventriloquism wasn't easy to practice, and the skill of disguise wasn't easy to learn or master either, but it was simple enough to apply for quick situations.

First thing in the morning, he went to buy several pieces of pigskin and a few brushes, then visited a pawnshop for some old clothes.

Back in the inn, after some effort, dabbing and painting his face, he managed to look like an old man with a white beard. Of course, it only looked convincing from a distance; up close, the flaws were quite obvious. He had no choice but to wear a wide-brimmed hat.

Firstly, he hadn't thoroughly researched these skills, and secondly, there wasn't enough time.

To make the kind of human-skin mask Housekeeper Zhou had described would require molding, tracing patterns, and even using silver needles to alter skin texture—it was all very troublesome.

But according to Housekeeper Zhou, the Trickster Sect had masters who understood how to paint skin.

That could truly transform someone into a completely different person.

With these preparations done, he instructed Xiang, then left the inn and headed towards the entrance of Embroidered Shoe Alley in the southern part of Anzhou Prefectural City. Xiang saw how busy he was. He must be doing something important, she thought, so she didn't dare disturb him and waited earnestly.

He made his way to the southern part of Anzhou Prefectural City. Posing as an old jianghu wanderer, he scouted the area for a while before finding Embroidered Shoe Alley. But at this point, he couldn't help but feel somewhat surprised.

He reached the south of the city, got to the alley entrance, and even saw the two giant locust trees Miss Red Wine had mentioned, as well as the ancient well. However, there was no sign of the Liu'er Temple she had spoken of.

The area was empty, save for a small shrine. How could there be an ancestral hall large enough to accommodate people?

He circled around, staring intently at the shrine for a long while. He gradually began to understand something, a seed of suspicion sprouting in his mind. But 11:15 AM was fast approaching.

No matter how cautious I am, I still need to make a decision.

Since I'm here asking for help, it wouldn't do to show hesitation or suspicion...

With these thoughts, he decided to act like a passerby taking a rest. He gently sat down in front of the shrine, his wide-brimmed hat shielding him from the sun, his peripheral vision scanning the pedestrians coming and going.

But after waiting a long time, he saw very few people pass by, let alone anyone suspicious.

Time slowly ticked by. It seemed a quarter of an hour had already passed. The sun warmed him, while a cool breeze drifted from the nearby well, carrying the faint, exotic scent of flowers. Hu Ma began to feel a little drowsy and, vaguely, seemed to hear the charming and coy laughter of women.

Turning his head, he was startled. The small shrine beside him now seemed to contain many finger-sized little people, playing zithers and flutes.

"Brother Old White," a playful voice called out from the small shrine, "you've been far too cautious. Come in and have a chat!"

Hu Ma felt his body become light and, before he knew it, found himself inside a spacious and exquisitely decorated hall, filled with an exotic, fragrant aroma.

Around him, graceful women in light veils moved alluringly, their forms brushing close.

The voice that had called him came from ahead. He saw a person in a flowing black robe, lazily reclining on the steps, smiling and beckoning to him.

Hu Ma, in a state of half-awakeness and half-confusion, felt astonished and said, "This is..."

"Miss Red Wine's Yellow Millet Technique..."

The man in the black robe seemed to have handsome features, yet for some reason, the more Hu Ma tried to focus on his face, the harder it became to recall his appearance. He laughed and said, "Though it's an Illusion Technique, she rarely uses it casually."

"Meeting in person to exchange the letter requires a degree of caution, so we borrowed this skill."

As he spoke, he extended his hand to Hu Ma. "The letter, hand it over. I'll deliver it to Miss Red Wine."

Even though he was in an illusion, Hu Ma fumbled at his chest and, indeed, found the letter. But just before handing it over, he suddenly became wary and glanced at the man in the black robe.

The man in the black robe paused, looking bewildered, and said, "I have no idea where Miss Red Wine's birthmark is, so I can't respond to that secret code."

"...Nor would I dare!"

Hu Ma said, "I meant to ask you, what's the name of the dog that lady keeps?"

"..."

The man in the black robe paused, a hint of surprise in his expression, and said, "She keeps a cat, doesn't she? Named Bai La... How could she like dogs? She detests dogs."

"..."

Hearing this, Hu Ma finally felt reassured.

It wasn't that he was being overly cautious; rather, one had to be extra vigilant in such matters. He smiled and handed over the letter. The man in black took it and casually passed it to a woman nearby, who then floated away gracefully.

The man in the black robe sighed, smiled at Hu Ma, and said, "As expected of someone associated with Miss White Wine. That prudence is just like hers."

"But please, sit for a moment. I have something important to discuss with you."

"..."

"What?"

Hu Ma had a vague premonition and looked up, meeting the man's serious gaze.

"Do you know why we were so eager to meet you during the day?"

The man in the black robe lowered his voice. "Tonight will be the seventh night. That servant ghost will surely find you, and that will be troublesome, brother. I'm not trying to scare you, but if you don't prepare for tonight, I'm afraid you won't make it through."

Hu Ma exhaled softly. The matter was indeed not simple; he'd had an inkling of this when they questioned him yesterday.

"The servant ghost is not of the human world."

Burning Blade said quietly, "That thing is not something an ordinary person can command. But once it's summoned, it will definitely find its target."

"From the first day it began searching for you, you've had no way to escape."

"Within these seven days, forget about using an incense array; even an ordinary person, if they were wary beforehand and hid in a filthy place, behind a Divine Statue, or even under a bed, might have been able to evade it. However, that only works for the first six days."

"By the seventh day, no matter how you hide, it will find you."

"..."

Hu Ma thought of that strange creature. Understanding finally dawned on him.

No wonder that even though he could use the incense array to avoid it these past few days, he had never truly felt at ease.

He immediately asked, "Then... what method is there now?"

"This *is* us helping you right now!"

Burning Blade sighed. "If you want to deal with this thing, Miss Red Wine must personally intervene. And that can only happen after you meet her in reality, and she helps you handle it."

"In other words, after only one connection, she will have to appear before you, even revealing her identity."

"..."

"This..."

Hu Ma suddenly understood why they were acting as if facing a formidable enemy.

For a Reincarnator, this was indeed an extremely risky and difficult situation. He fell silent for a moment, then said to him, "Then Miss Red Wine, she..."

"She definitely wouldn't refuse; she's such an open and forthright person..."

Burning Blade sighed. "Who knows how many Reincarnators heard of her and came seeking her help before? She never refused any of them. But we have to advise her to maintain necessary caution."

"This is also why we needed to see the letter first."

"Only after reviewing its contents can we decide if it's truly worth such great effort and risk to help you in the physical world."

"..."

The candid explanation reassured Hu Ma.

He calculated the time; the letter had been gone for a while now. He then asked softly, "So, what's the result?"

Burning Blade squinted slightly, gazing into the distance. Suddenly, a light fragrance drifted by. All the graceful women who had surrounded them vanished instantly, and the area became extremely quiet.

"Miss Red Wine has seen the letter now," Burning Blade said. He then sighed and added with a wry smile, "It seems Miss White Wine vouched for you in it, stating you're the type of person worth our utmost effort to help."

"Now, your problem is our problem."