Chapter 027: The Dungeon Opens

“It seems I’ve already caught the attention of a professional.”
Staring at the shadowy bat flitting across the night sky, Su Cheng’s gaze turned icy. The abilities of professionals were endlessly varied, impossible to guard against. Even the police might be powerless to deal with them.
This incident was most likely just a warning; if he continued cooperating with the Night God Squad, there would surely be far more tragic consequences to come.
“Picking the softest target, are they? Looks like this professional is underestimating me.”
If Su Cheng had been a powerful professional himself, those lurking fiends in the shadows would never dare to make a move against him. At the root of it, it was because his strength was simply too limited.
Back at his apartment, Su Cheng entered the horror game’s points shop and searched for items specifically designed to counter ghosts and vengeful spirits.
There weren’t many such items in the shop, and most were single-use consumables—expensive, too. Ordinary players without means to deal with ghosts or spirits risked losing everything in the next supernatural instance.
That was why most players dreaded running into supernatural instances; these spirits and ghosts were completely immune to physical attacks. Without spiritual items to restrain them, one could only await total annihilation.
“There it is—Yin-Yang Talismans.”
Generally speaking, single-use talismans were the most practical for supernatural instances. Their price was bearable and they were beloved by players of horror games.
Entering the keyword “talisman” in the search bar, several pages of Mantra Talismans immediately popped up.
[Mantra: Guard]: A basic charm that forms a five-meter radius barrier with spiritual power, repelling attacks by ghosts and spirits and preventing enemies from approaching. Price: 30 points
[Mantra: Bind]: A basic charm that binds ghosts and spirits with spiritual power, lasting one minute. If the bound target is attacked, the barrier is broken. Price: 20 points
[Mantra: Break]: A basic charm that strikes enemies with spiritual power, dealing an extra 10% damage to spiritual targets. Average potency. Price: 10 points
[Mantra: Burn]: A basic charm that summons hellfire with strong spiritual power to burn enemies, dealing an extra 30% damage to spiritual targets. Very powerful. Price: 50 points
These four types of talismans were the main offerings in the shop. According to their descriptions, they were crafted by certified Mantra Sect mages and officially verified for quality—no risk of spiritual power failing during combat.
So, Su Cheng spent all his remaining thousand-plus points on Mantra Talismans.
This instance would be extremely difficult, but the rewards for clearing it were just as rich—even the chance to obtain professional-grade items. If he managed a high rating, he’d make back his points in no time.
The recent attack by a professional left Su Cheng with a sense of crisis—he had to improve his strength quickly to avoid further trouble.
Closing the shop, he logged into the official forum and searched for posts about the Senso-ji instance.
To his disappointment, there were no guides about the Senso-ji instance, and even mentions were scarce. It seemed this special instance was not so easily triggered.
“I’m back.”
At that moment, Yasui Hikaru returned from working late at the company. Glancing at Su Cheng searching about Senso-ji online, he asked curiously, “Are you planning to visit Senso-ji, Makoto?”
“I was thinking of taking a stroll around Senso-ji in a couple of days.”
Taking a bottle of mineral water from the fridge, Yasui spoke offhandedly, “The scenery around Senso-ji is nice, it’s worth visiting. But be careful of foxes while you’re there.”
Beware of foxes?
Su Cheng was bewildered. He’d never heard of wild foxes near Senso-ji, and with all the tourists, any foxes would have long since fled.
Midnight, two days later. Taito Ward, Tokyo—Senso-ji Temple.
Senso-ji is the oldest temple in Tokyo. Its main gate is called “Thunder Gate,” and its formal name is “Gate of Wind and Thunder Gods.” It was built in 942 AD to pray for peace and a bountiful harvest.

Today, Senso-ji is one of Tokyo’s most famous tourist attractions, drawing countless visitors every year.
But at this hour, the temple was long closed to tourists. The gate lay in darkness, occasionally illuminated by drifting ghostly flames, the atmosphere thick with dread.
When Su Cheng arrived, the members of the Night God Squad had yet to appear.
Scanning his surroundings, he noticed a girl in an orange sweater huddled beneath a nearby tree, trembling like a frightened hamster, her back to him.
A member of the Night God Squad?
“Nice to meet you.”
He approached and gently tapped her shoulder.
“A ghost!” The girl, terrified out of her wits, nearly burst into tears, muttering, “Oh please, great ghost god, don’t eat me… Kaori’s meat tastes terrible, not worth eating…”
“Uh, I’m a human, not a ghost.”
Su Cheng was at a loss. Was this girl really a horror game player, being this timid?
“Huh?”
She turned, shining a flashlight in his face. Her cheeks, still round with baby fat, flushed red. She bowed apologetically, “I’m so sorry, Kaori was just too scared alone…”
“Are you with the Night God Squad? I’m Su Cheng.”
“Eh! Big brother, you’re the new recruit the young lady brought in? Sorry, I’m Kaori Inoue, main tank of the Night God Squad.”
He was surprised—a girl this timid was actually their main tank.
“Well, aren’t you a handsome guy! So you’re the young lady’s man, huh? Don’t worry, once we’re in the instance, big sis will have your back.”
A sultry, bewitching voice carried over. Su Cheng saw a man in red high heels and nightclub attire saunter over, swaying his slender waist.
That’s right—a man. To be precise, a man even more alluring than most women.
“I’m Saburo Sakamoto, though some call me the Queen of Shibuya,” the seductive man introduced, his eyes full of mischief.
Queen of Shibuya?
Su Cheng recalled hearing tales about this “Queen of Shibuya” from Chu He a few days before—supposedly, the men he’d “turned” could fill an entire platoon…
A cross-dressing king—best not to provoke.
“Ahem! You damned pervert, stop being disgusting,”
A youth, strongly resembling Kenshiro, came stomping over, glaring furiously at the Queen of Shibuya.
“Heh, Furukawa. All I did was get you drunk and toss you into a brothel—no need to be so angry. By the way, did you have a good time that night?”
The Queen’s every word oozed the aura of a seasoned veteran.
“You bastard!”
Furukawa Kyohei was ready to explode, but was held back by the sudden appearance of Night God Wei.
“Enough, you two. Don’t talk about such filthy topics in front of kids.” Night God Wei looked helpless. Even she found it hard to control her flamboyant team.
It was then that Su Cheng noticed a bald little monk standing beside Night God Wei.

The little monk’s bright eyes scanned everyone with lively curiosity; he looked clever and adorable.
“This is our temporary member, Su Cheng,” Night God Wei introduced him simply, mentioning his name and abilities. The others didn’t object—they had full trust in their leader’s judgment.
Originally, there were six members in the Night God Squad, but one had died in a previous instance. Su Cheng was taking his place for this run.
What surprised Su Cheng most was that the little boy beside Night God Wei was actually a professional Onmyoji!
From what he knew, Onmyodo was part of Japan’s Shinto tradition. An Onmyoji is a sorcerer skilled in celestial observation, divination, disaster prediction, talisman crafting, incantation, and illusions.
Famous Onmyoji in Japanese history included Abe no Seimei, Ashiya Doman, and the monk Kanroku.
Su Cheng didn’t know much about the Onmyoji profession himself—most of his knowledge came from mobile games.
“Now that everyone’s here, let’s start the instance.”
Night God Wei took out a black invitation emanating a strange aura—the token required to open this instance.
Soon, the game interface flickered with a line of eerie text.
Scene loading…
Current Scenario: Senso-ji Fright Night
Difficulty: 3 stars
Participants: 6
Main Quest: The Ghost King’s wedding banquet will be held in two hours. Players must infiltrate the banquet before then. Completing the quest will trigger further objectives.
The game begins!
A swirl of mist swept in; Su Cheng felt the world spin. When he regained his senses, he found himself trapped in a confined space, with none of his teammates in sight.
“Where am I?”
He knocked on the dark wooden boards—he seemed to be locked inside a coffin.
The coffin was being carried somewhere, swaying as it moved.
Suddenly, he felt a weight on his body, as if something was pressing him down.
Feeling around in the darkness, his hand brushed against a soft, delicate form—a faint fragrance tickled his nose.
“A woman’s corpse in the coffin? But the feel is… odd.”
After a moment, he realized there was a woman lying atop him, dressed in a sumptuous robe, her hair adorned with lavish gold hairpins, as if she were about to attend a grand banquet.
Just then, the coffin jolted, and the woman rolled over, ending up face to face with him.
The instant Su Cheng saw her face, a chill swept through his entire body, his blood seemingly frozen.
The woman inside the coffin had the face of a fox.