Chapter 73: Veil Half Lifted
The destination of the red-and-white processions was unknown, and the four at the front, including Tongguan, paid little attention to carrying the coffin.
Tongguan kept observing the people around them. Though the figures in red and white robes seemed normal, he noticed a shared characteristic: their skin was rough.
It was a simple observation, mainly from the hands of the red-robed men and the faces of the white-robed figures. They looked like laborers.
Yet Tongguan couldn't determine whether they were truly human, nor why they had been made into coffin bearers.
He glanced at the black coffin beside him.
"Who's in the coffin?"
At that moment, he noticed someone directly across from him—Yu Guo.
The reckless man was quietly trying to insert a knife into the coffin.
Tongguan's face darkened as he lowered his voice sharply:
"Yu Guo! Don't act on your own!"
Startled, Yu Guo glanced at the young man riding the horse behind him. Seeing he hadn't noticed, Yu Guo replied:
"I won't act rashly. I just want to create a small opening in the coffin to slip the livestream phone inside."
He adjusted his position and pulled out the hotel phone from his pocket.
"That way, we can see what's inside the coffin without taking risks."
Tongguan hesitated briefly, then decided Yu Guo's plan was reasonable. His initial concern had been that Yu Guo might open the coffin recklessly, causing unnecessary trouble.
Chang Nian watched silently, tightening the rope loop on her shoulder.
Fang Shenyan wasn't focused on that. He had been scanning the surroundings for some time and realized Tao Xiaoyi was missing.
Since lifting the coffin, his body felt weaker. Though they had only walked a few steps, Chang Nian showed no fatigue, yet he felt a growing dizziness.
It was as if his mental energy had suffered another heavy blow, leaving lingering effects.
Throughout the mission, he had kept a close eye on Tao Xiaoyi, hoping he could rely on her in an emergency.
But in the instant of the identity swap, as he lifted the coffin, Tao Xiaoyi had disappeared.
"Don't look back!"
As Fang Shenyan tried to glance behind, the young rider shouted sharply.
His brows furrowed, a mix of annoyance and impatience on his face. He knew a ghost was present, but he didn't believe the youth could kill him.
Yet as he smirked, a sudden, stabbing pain shot through his chest.
The sensation was abrupt and intense, like being set aflame from within.
All attention turned to Fang Shenyan, and the coffin naturally stopped.
The rider cracked his whip and shouted again: "Do not stop! Keep moving!"
Fang Shenyan's eyes turned bloodshot as the agonizing, gnawing pain coursed through him. He fixed his gaze on the youth behind him, silent and unyielding.
Tongguan felt something was wrong. The youth seemed to exert a control over them, the burning, gnawing pain like a poisonous force—anyone who disobeyed would suffer.
It started with Fang Shenyan and spread to Tongguan and the others. Four people writhed as if their hearts were being burned alive.
Ji Li, watching from behind, noticed a string of bells hanging from the young rider.
Every time the bells swayed, Tongguan and the others' expressions grew more agonized.
Ji Li struggled to comprehend the bizarre situation but, after a moment, called out loudly:
"Do not disobey him. Do as he says!"
Ji Li's position gave him a natural advantage.
Ji Li was at the very back of everyone, with the clearest line of sight and the most freedom of movement.
Fang Shenyan and the others could not determine Tao Xiaoyi's location, but Ji Li could—there were no blind spots for him.
The young rider on the horse shivered when he heard Ji Li's voice.
He tossed his hair to the side, half-turned his head as if to look at Ji Li, but midway through the motion, he began trembling and froze in that strange posture, eventually returning his gaze forward.
"He… doesn't dare look at me…"
More precisely, he dared not look toward Ji Li's side.
Ji Li's eyes lowered as he observed the situation. This bizarre red-and-white procession likely wasn't composed of ghosts.
Although most moved mechanically, the way the young rider controlled Tongguan and the others suggested that some unknown method had been applied to manipulate them earlier.
The intent was to force them along a specific path.
It was now almost certain that Tao Xiaoyi was either in the coffin or already dead.
If dead, the matter would be simple.
If she was inside the coffin, things would become complicated.
So far, Ji Li had the strange sense that these people were alive—and not serving a ghost. From their obvious fear of him, it seemed they were also divided into two factions: the coffin and the bridal sedan, temporarily united.
This matched the red-and-white clash scenario.
Ji Li reasoned that their target was consistent: the shop sraff. That explained why Tongguan and the others were being controlled.
But then he realized he had overlooked someone—himself.
Ji Li was effectively outside anyone's control. No one in the red-and-white procession seemed to pay attention to him; he could leave if he wished.
"So entering the sedan wasn't orchestrated by these people…"
Suddenly, it clicked.
Perhaps the sedan itself was special.
If it was a ghost, it could act independently as its own force. Ji Li had been chosen by the sedan, which is why he entered it. The other procession members dared not interfere with him.
Ji Li turned sharply—and at that instant, he saw the painting he had covered with cloth, now exposed once more.
In the ghostly light outside the sedan, he saw the bride in the painting—the red veil over her head had lifted upward by an inch.
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