That night, Xue Ning was too exhausted to keep Li Yuan company, so one of her personal maids attended to him instead.0

When Li Yuan fell asleep, he rejoined Yan Yu in the ghost domain. After shooing Sheng'er out of the back room, husband and wife savored a moment of intimacy in those dreary quarters before heading out into the main hall.2

They found Sheng'er playing by the shop’s large front room, perched on a window side bench, peering out at the street. Though the room felt warm and bright, her small figure seemed strangely lonesome as she pressed her hands and cheeks to the crystal pane, gazing into the distance.0

The world outside lay pitch-black; only a narrow, winding path…thin as a snake’s body, glimmered faintly in the darkness. Very few passed by, and the ones that did weren’t quite human.0

Something out there caught Sheng'er’s eye....0