Volume One: The Five Ghosts' Life Extension Spell Chapter One: Return to the Realm of Rivers and Lakes

Yaoguang stood atop Phoenix Divine Mountain, gazing at the undulating peaks in the distance. She took a deep breath, feeling as though she could never get enough of this view: far-off ranges capped with layers of snow, lush green trees nearby providing cool shade, elegant pavilions and winding paths leading to hidden corners, and a spirit spring waterfall that had plunged unceasingly for a thousand years, cascading for three thousand feet. All manner of birds soared together, myriad beasts possessed intelligence. How did the mortal world describe this place? An immortal realm, or perhaps a hidden paradise. Indeed, this was Phoenix Spiritual Mountain, a world concealed beyond the dust of mortals—a realm where Yaoguang was sovereign. Everything here was under her command; she loved this place, cherished it, and did not wish to leave.

Yet as long as she remained within the cycle of reincarnation, she could never escape the feeling of being at the mercy of greater forces. The letter in her hand was nearly crushed by her grip. She had not opened it since receiving it, yet she already knew its contents—Xuanchen was pestering her again, finally unable to endure. By her estimation, it had been ten years since her departure. Back then, a certain case had left indelible wounds on her body and spirit, a thorn that had tormented her for years and still choked her breath. Yet, after that, the world did grow much quieter. But even after ten years, what was destined to come would eventually arrive.

Lost in her thoughts, she was startled when the spirit child approached from behind and set another letter on the stone table beside her. With a wave of her hand, the letter flew into her grasp. She opened it lightly—the contents were nearly identical to the last: only a single line—“Come down from the mountain. Without you, I really can’t manage.”

Yaoguang shook her head in exasperation. Why was Xuanchen so sure she would return?

With a light tap of her foot, she soared back to her own palace atop the Immortal Gazing Terrace. Facing the mirror, she looked at herself—ten years had passed. She supposed it hadn’t been easy for that man either. Perhaps it was time to return for a look. Yaoguang walked into her bedroom, opened a cabinet, and began to take out its contents one by one. The spirit maiden beside her was so astonished she thought she was seeing things—but she was not mistaken. Her mistress was taking out, one after another: an Apple phone, a laptop, a watch, a bank card, a car key…

“Honored One, what are you doing?” The spirit maiden wanted to ask, but in the next moment she understood.

“That fellow Xuanchen can’t handle things anymore. I’ll go and take a look.” Yaoguang placed her things into a backpack, sat on the bed, looked at the spirit maiden, and sighed.

“You’re going back?” The spirit maiden’s brows furrowed slightly.

“That’s right,” Yaoguang replied, pouting.

Seeing her mistress’s adorably dazed expression, the spirit maiden felt a pang in her heart. Ten years ago, when her mistress returned, she’d been grief-stricken and said nothing, locking herself away in the Jade Immortal Cave for a full year. Upon emerging, she was already a revered deity, yet her temperament had grown much colder, her gaze sharper and more weathered. She’d once said she would not easily go down the mountain again—why was she leaving now? Could it be…

“My lady, is it…” The spirit maiden, being an immortal herself, could see through certain things.

“You guessed right. Xuanchen has encountered several thorny cases, but has been unable to find any leads. He’s like an ant on a hot pan. I have to go back and see.” Yaoguang sighed again. “I’ll leave things here to you. If anything happens, I’ll contact you from afar.” She rose, and with a wave of her hand, a long sword appeared—her Orchid Blade. It seemed to sense its master’s call, emitting a cool, blue glow. With a flip of her hand, the sword vanished. Yaoguang shouldered her pack and said to the spirit maiden, “I’m off,” then, with a flash, she was out the palace door.

Skimming across the air, Yaoguang sped down the mountain. In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, she found herself in a grove, surrounded by a forest of steel and concrete—her residence in the human world. Pushing aside branches, she walked towards the path leading into the neighborhood, feeling a bit vexed. The world of ordinary mortals was so troublesome—even walking required going one step at a time. Here, she couldn’t casually use her powers as she did atop Phoenix Divine Mountain.

With a sigh, Yaoguang headed toward her villa—one of the most luxurious in the development, complete with its own garden, swimming pool, and parking space. To the outside world, it was simply a grand house, but in truth, it was a concealed realm of immortals.

“Yi Tian, I’m back!” she called out before even entering.

The villa’s iron gates swung open slowly. Yaoguang strolled in. After ten years, everything was much the same—the little trees had grown thicker, and the flowers in the garden bloomed as vibrantly as ever.

“Miss, your favorite Golden Eyebrow tea is ready. Please enjoy.” At the entrance stood a man in his thirties, refined and gentlemanly.

“Long time no see, Yi Tian. Did you miss me?” Yaoguang patted his shoulder, tossed her backpack to him, and walked straight through the door, flopping onto the sofa. She glanced around—the place was as neat and clean as before.

“You’ve received Xuanchen’s letter,” Yi Tian said, handing her a cup of tea.

Taking the cup, Yaoguang nodded. “I didn’t want to come back.”

“I know.” Yi Tian sat opposite her. Yaoguang sipped her tea, but Yi Tian still caught a fleeting shadow of pain in her eyes.

“It’s not that I can’t let go,” Yaoguang murmured. “It’s that there’s simply no way to let go. This is my only obsession.” She sighed. “Enough about that. Has Xuanchen sent over the case files? Let me see.” Setting her cup down, she took the dossier Yi Tian handed her. On the top right corner of the folder, two bold red characters stood out: Confidential.

Yaoguang skimmed through. There were five victims: wrist-slitting, hanging, drowning, gas leak, and falling to death while climbing. None of the victims had any social connections—five completely unrelated people. On the surface, it looked like five accidental deaths, with no links between them. But as Yaoguang studied their profiles, a cold smile curled at her lips. “Five people in five different professions: doctor, migrant worker, secretary, unemployed, and a shopkeeper—all from unrelated fields. The incidents took place in five completely separate locations, with no possible connection. Only the hanging was ruled a suicide; the other four, by both cause and autopsy, were all accidents. Isn’t that fascinating? What are the odds that five people, in the same time period, all die by accident? This coincidence is almost impossible.” She placed the file back on the table, looked up at Yi Tian, and continued, “These are no accidents. They are carefully orchestrated.”

“What have you discovered?” Yi Tian withdrew the file and glanced through it, eyes lingering on the victims’ birthdates.

“Are you testing me, Immortal Yi Tian?” Yaoguang rolled her eyes and went on, “The connection between these deaths isn’t how they died, but the instruments of death: wrist-slitting—blade; hanging—rope; drowning—river; gas—gas; climbing fall—mountain. That is, metal, wood, water, fire, earth. Also, did you notice the victims’ birthdates? They range from 24 to over 50, both men and women. It seems random, but on closer calculation, all were born on the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month. If I’m not mistaken, they were all born at the hour of the rat. With these two links, it’s clear these were murders, not accidents.”

“This was a meticulously arranged killing formation,” Yi Tian added.

“More precisely, it’s a carefully constructed ritual array—for soul harvesting,” Yaoguang said, walking to the window. “This is the Five Ghosts Longevity Curse.”

“The Five Ghosts Longevity Curse!” Yi Tian was unsettled. “That formation is terribly sinister, and has been lost for ages. I never thought someone would use it again.”

“It hasn’t been seen for many years. This array collects the grievances of five spirits born on inauspicious days and hours, then binds each to one of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, earth—at the array’s five points. On the fifteenth of the seventh lunar month, the array is activated, fusing the lifespans and fortunes of these five wronged souls into a single person, extending that person’s life and boosting their luck. But those five souls are forever denied reincarnation, trapped until the person dies. By then, their accumulated resentment makes them vengeful ghosts who wreak havoc upon the world. If they are manipulated by some ill-intentioned person, it would spell disaster. That is the true terror of this formation.” Yaoguang scratched her head. “This tactic feels like the work of the Ghost Sect. Wasn’t the Five Ghosts Longevity Array invented by the second generation of their sect?”

“You mean the Ghost Sect is making a comeback?” Yi Tian glanced at the files, then at Yaoguang. “Truly insidious. They were all but wiped out in that war years ago. Could they be rising again?”

“So long as desire persists, the Ghost Sect will never disappear.” Yaoguang looked out the window. “At this point, it’s just my speculation. I’ll discuss it with Xuanchen tomorrow.” She beckoned Yi Tian to follow her upstairs.

Yi Tian understood and accompanied her to the second floor. At the end of the corridor was a large door. Yaoguang opened it and entered—a room nearly eighty square meters, decorated in classical style: a pearwood daybed, a screen carved with dancing phoenixes, and across from the bed, a row of tall cabinets with altars to Buddha, Dao, and Immortals. By the cabinets stood a shrine to the Earth Deity.

She lit incense, knelt, and bowed, poured fresh water and changed the wine. Afterward, she sat on the daybed and formed a hand seal. Gradually, a myriad of halos appeared in the room, and soon it was filled with people. Yaoguang stood and bowed deeply. “Disciple greets the Immortal Elders. Please, be seated.”

The gathered immortals returned her greeting and made themselves comfortable.

“Little one, you are now a revered deity, and your powers have grown,” said a black-robed elder, imposing yet benevolent toward Yaoguang.

“Thank you for your concern.” Yaoguang grinned.

“You haven’t left the mountain in ten years. Why come down now?” the elder asked.

“I didn’t want to, but Xuanchen has encountered some cases. I took a look—they’re the work of the Ghost Sect’s Five Ghosts Longevity Array.” With a wave, Yaoguang summoned the case files into the air. The immortals reviewed them, each frowning.

“Oh, the Ghost Sect wants to rise from the ashes,” an old woman said, sipping white liquor. “Looks like we’ll be busy—no more peace for these old bones.”

“Matriarch Huang, you see the problem too. I’m troubled by this,” Yaoguang said, pouring her more wine.

“Child, what do you want from us?” the black-robed elder asked.

“Great-grandfather Mang, I wish all the Immortal Elders would follow me into the mortal world to safeguard the peace of this land. And I want to uncover the mastermind behind the massacre years ago. I still believe that black hand survives.” Yaoguang spoke earnestly.

“That matter is not only your knot, child, but ours as well. Rest assured, we await your command at any time.” The elder finished, and all the immortals nodded.

“Thank you, Immortal Elders.” Yaoguang bowed deeply.

The immortals nodded back and faded away, leaving the room quiet. Only a man in wide-sleeved robes remained. He walked to Yaoguang and sat beside her. At the sight of him, Yaoguang’s lips curved in joy, but tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Don’t cry.” The man gently wiped away her tears.

“I’m sorry.” Yaoguang buried her head against his chest.

“It’s not your fault. Now that I’ve attained an immortal body, I can still be with you,” he soothed, stroking her hair.

“I saved the world, but lost you. I protected this land, but not you. I destroyed the Ghost Sect, but could not bring you back. I aided countless souls, yet you suffered all manner of torment—even your body couldn’t be preserved. I’m so useless, aren’t I…” Yaoguang took a deep breath.

“If not for that calamity, I would never have cultivated an immortal body. It’s a blessing in disguise. Don’t blame yourself any longer.”

Yaoguang said nothing, only gazing at him. He looked just as he had ten years ago, but now bore the grace of an immortal rather than mortal spirit. In that catastrophe, he was destroyed completely. She had exhausted her thousand-year cultivation to preserve his essence, but his soul was devoured by a malevolent spirit and taken to Iron Enclosure Mountain. Sacrificing half her own essence, she retrieved his soul, but could not send him to reincarnation. She could only use her own spiritual elixir to support his path of cultivation, thus preserving his essence and consciousness. She herself was grievously injured; to help him through his tribulation, she drew heavenly thunder onto herself, nearly perishing. Only through the immortals’ intervention was she saved, and she returned to Phoenix Spiritual Mountain for seclusion. But unable to quell her inner fury, she inadvertently triggered more heavenly thunder. When she was nearly destroyed, she risked everything, allowing the lightning to reshape her divine veins. Heaven did not abandon her—during the remolding, her spiritual power returned. Gritting her teeth, she summoned a full one hundred and eight bolts of thunder, ascending to Revered Deity. He did not let her down; in ten years, he too became a high immortal. Yet, a Revered Deity and a high immortal were worlds apart. By the rules of the divine realm, she, though a deity, still possessed a mortal body, while he had only spirit, his flesh forever lost. In this life, they could never be together as mortals—her deepest obsession.

“The Ghost Sect destroyed us. Even if not for the sake of all living beings, for ourselves, I will root them out this time,” Yaoguang vowed, biting her lip.

“This time, I won’t die so easily. Don’t be so hard on yourself—get some rest.” The man pinched her cheek, making her unclench her jaw.

Under his touch, Yaoguang’s anger melted away. She left him and drifted to her bedroom, still troubled. After a shower, she lay down, her mind awhirl with tangled thoughts.

Tomorrow she would meet Xuanchen. After ten years, there were likely few left at the police bureau who remembered her—some promoted, some retired, others… With these muddled musings, she soon drifted off to sleep.