Chapter 16: The Five Aggregates and the Three Lives Mirror
While the main hall of the Liu estate was bustling with activity, next door, the courtyard was already filled with zombies bound by yellow talismans. Even the vengeful bride ghost, filled with overwhelming resentment, seemed subdued, half-kneeling motionless on the ground.
In the center of the courtyard stood an old Taoist priest, his hair disheveled, clutching a bronze mirror covered with black-and-gold talismans. The veins on his hands bulged as if he were holding not a lifeless mirror, but a writhing, terrifying beast.
“Still trying to run!” he bellowed angrily.
With a swift motion, he produced a black-and-gold talisman from his sleeve, spat on it, and stuck it over the last reflective spot on the mirror. Cut off from the eerie green moonlight, the bronze mirror finally fell silent.
The moment the seal was complete, the strange green glow of the full moon rapidly faded, and the moonlight turned bright white and clear. As the green light dispersed, the countless restless spirits and malevolent ghosts that had lingered throughout the vast Liu estate turned transparent and vanished in an instant.
Exhausted after the effort, the old priest finally let out a deep breath. But as the tension in his chest eased, a bitter taste rose in his throat, and he coughed up a mouthful of dark blood, his waxen face growing even paler. His vitality was severely depleted.
Gazing at the bronze mirror that had nearly cost him his life, his cloudy eyes gleamed with a faint light as he spoke with profound emotion, “The special-grade evil artifact, the Five Aggregates Three Lives Mirror. Legend says it reveals one’s past, present, and future lives, exposing the emptiness of the five aggregates... its reputation is well earned. Unearthed from the tomb of the old Empress Dowager of the previous dynasty, it truly is a remarkable treasure...”
Muttering to himself, his eyes flicked sideways toward the Liu estate, and with a scowl, he cursed, “It’s already a special-grade evil object, so who the hell is the wicked soul who set up this ‘Five Emperors Evil Gathering Formation’ just to nurture this mirror? If the Ji family hadn’t trapped most of the evil energy with the coffin, I’d have lost my life here tonight!”
Having vented his anger, the old man’s fury gradually dissipated. Pursing his lips as if recalling something, he glanced toward the neighboring courtyard and spat, “Yin Tao Hua... that kid sure is lucky.”
No sooner had he spoken than his figure vanished into the moonlight.
...
Time passed, though it was unclear how long.
Ji Yun weakly lifted his eyelids, vaguely seeing a woman dressed in a red wedding gown with a veil covering her face.
That red wedding dress... felt strangely familiar.
Wait—
Am I dead?
Is this the underworld?
No!
I’m still in the same room!
His consciousness flickered, half-dreaming, half-awake, and he murmured with doubt, “Am I not dead yet...?”
No sooner had the words left his lips than a calm voice replied beside him, “You can’t die. With the Ghost Gate Coffin, your soul remains tethered to your body. Injuries like these won’t take your life.”
“???” The serene tone somehow brought an inexplicable sense of comfort.
Ji Yun thought he must be hallucinating.
Then,
Suddenly, he snapped fully awake!
Damn it!
Wasn’t that the voice of the corpse bride?
The horrifying images of the yin marriage flickered through his mind like a slideshow, and a familiar sense of danger surged within him.
Escape!
Instinctively, Ji Yun tried to flee.
But before he could move, the familiar pulling sensation returned.
Turning his head, he saw that his hands and feet were still bound by red threads, unable to move.
Before him, the corpse bride, her face hidden beneath the red veil, was busy with her hands stained in fresh blood, working on something over his chest.
The scene was gruesome and terrifying.
Sensing Ji Yun’s gaze, the corpse bride spoke calmly, “Don’t move. I just stitched your wound. If you pull it open, it won’t be easy to sew again.”
“...”
Ji Yun twitched his eyelid.
What was she doing?
Stitching a wound?
Trying to save him?
Having just endured a brutal betrayal, he trusted no one.
Since he couldn’t move anyway, Ji Yun gave up completely.
He wasn’t afraid anymore.
With a resigned look that seemed to accept life and death alike, he stared intently at the corpse bride.
At this moment, if one ignored her red wedding dress, she genuinely resembled a doctor diligently performing surgery on an operating table.
His thoughts spun wildly.
Though the tearing sensation in his chest didn’t hurt, it snapped him back to reality.
Ji Yun realized something.
Wait—
Hadn’t his heart been pierced? How was he still alive?
Looking down, he saw that the bloodied hole on his exposed left chest had transformed into a series of red scar-like vessels.
Miraculously, these scars were visibly healing and fading before his eyes.
“Magic? Or some supernatural power?”
Ji Yun vaguely guessed what the corpse bride was doing.
After all, having seen ghosts tonight, it was no wonder a minor mortal wound could heal.
Watching a while longer, Ji Yun realized the corpse bride was genuinely trying to save him.
This stirred a strong sense of contradiction within him.
Her tone lacked the murderous aura from before; strangely, listening to her now was... almost soothing.
Yet, he suspected she had ulterior motives.
Anyway, since he was as helpless as a slab of meat on the chopping block, Ji Yun mustered his courage and asked directly, “Who exactly are you? What do you want?”
The room fell silent for a moment after his words.
The corpse bride paused, then chuckled lightly, “You’re doing much better than I expected. I thought you’d faint again from fear.”
“...”
Ji Yun just stared coldly.
After a brief pause, the corpse bride resumed stitching with the red threads.
Then, in her ever-calm voice, she said, “I owe your parents a favor. I’m here to save your life.”
...
Those words nearly crashed Ji Yun’s mind.
They felt so familiar.
Wasn’t that the same excuse Shang Xiaoyu used before?
Another one?
Both claiming to save him?
Why did they end up fighting?
Clearly, only one was genuine.
It turned out the corpse bride was truly helping him.
Shang Xiaoyu had her own agenda.
...
His fragmented memories were clear.
Shang Xiaoyu had pierced his heart, then was sealed within the coffin.
Wait...
Right.
Did I do that?
Did I seal her away?
Then where did that iron coffin come from?
Ji Yun recalled the scene before he lost consciousness.
His thoughts tangled once more.
Countless questions surfaced.
Unable to figure it out, he turned his gaze to the corpse bride still sewing and bravely asked, “May I ask... what exactly happened tonight?”
Despite his confusion, the fact remained: she was saving his life.
His tone grew more polite.
He had asked; whether she answered or not was up to her.
Ji Yun instinctively felt that supernatural beings capable of transforming into yin creatures would be difficult to deal with.
Yet,
Contrary to his expectations,
This corpse bride seemed easy to talk to.
Her voice was calm and gentle.
Hearing her speak, even without seeing her face beneath the veil, one might imagine it to be kind, gentle, and peaceful.
Perhaps because stitching the wound took some time and she had nothing else to do, the bloodied corpse bride didn’t pretend to be mysterious but straightforwardly explained everything, “On behalf of your parents, I’ve come to retrieve the special-grade evil artifact your Ji family has inherited—the Ghost Gate Coffin. You’ve probably guessed it: the Happy Neighborhood is the former site of the Liu estate from nearly a century ago. An evil master laid a malignant formation here to nurture deadly energy. Your elders saw through this ‘Five Emperors Evil Gathering Formation.’ So, they turned the tables, sealing the Ghost Gate Coffin here to break the formation through a ‘bird occupying the magpie’s nest’ trick, preventing a catastrophic supernatural contamination. It’s considered a blessing and a karmic virtue for you... As for me... I’m here to repay that debt.”