Love Beyond the Grave

"Little Sister!"

Amid the clamor of voices, He Simu heard Chen Ying's call. She slowly turned her head to look. Chen Ying was still clad in armor, his body covered in bloodstains. From the tremor in He Simu's eyes, he caught a glimpse of despair. He wanted to say something but hesitated, restrained by the presence of others.

He Simu closed her eyes. It seemed only a moment before she opened them again, and that fragile emotion had vanished. All her feelings sank into the depths of her gaze, like the indistinguishable boundary between sky and sea in the dead of night.

She rose slowly, turned, and walked out of the room without saying a word to Chen Ying. Chen Ying hurriedly turned to chase after her. In a quiet, deserted corner, He Simu stopped, and Chen Ying halted as well.

"What happened to Duan Xu?"

He Simu's voice carried a faint tremor, her fists clenched tightly.

Chen Ying twisted his fingers together and briefly recounted their ordeal over the past few days. After listening, He Simu repeated softly, "Trapped for three days?"

Chen Ying nodded blankly. "Yes..."

"Was he mute? Three days and he didn’t call for me once!" He Simu punched the nearby ornamental rock garden, reducing it to dust in an instant.

When she turned back, Chen Ying saw her pitch-black eyes, devoid of whites, swirling with ghostly energy. She lowered her head, rubbing her temples, and murmured, "How is he?"

"The arrow wound was barely an inch from Third Brother’s heart. But the physician we summoned is the most renowned healer in Qi Prefecture. He said he might be able to treat the injury, only... only..." Chen Ying's eyes reddened as he gritted his teeth. "Only, the arrow was poisoned... The physician said if there’s no antidote by tomorrow, Third Brother will... the poison will reach his marrow, beyond cure."

Tomorrow.

Which meant, if she hadn’t come to see Duan Xu on a whim today, the next time she saw him would have been his corpse.

He Simu gazed at the bustling, noisy place, silent for a moment before asking, "Who shot him?"

"Troops from Danzhi’s side. We don’t know exactly who—they got away."

"Understood." He Simu’s reply was curt and decisive. "Take care of him. I’ll bring the antidote back before tomorrow."

With that, she vanished into the darkness, dissolving into a wisp of blue smoke.

When Luda returned to his room to rest, an odd noise suddenly came from the doors and windows. The moment he turned, something seized his throat and lifted him into the air. Struggling with difficulty, he saw the figure of a woman appear in the center of the room. Tall and pale, she wore a red-and-white Triple-layered Robe, an ornate silver hairpin swaying in her hair. Her pitch-black eyes, devoid of whites, lifted coldly to regard him.

"I’ve heard the poison on the arrow that struck Duan Xu was brewed by you." He Simu extended her hand and said simply, "Give me the antidote."

"The Ghost King herself graces me with her presence... truly impartial in public and private matters..." Luda chuckled softly, his face purpling from asphyxiation, yet his voice remained calm. "I’ve also heard... that the Ghost King operates in the mortal world... always by the rule of equivalent exchange."

He Simu took two steps closer. "What do you want?"

Luda raised a finger and pointed to the faintly glowing blue jade pendant at He Simu’s waist.

"The Ghost King Lamp."He Simu's pupils abruptly constricted as Luda was set down on the ground, coughing violently. Thick ghostly energy filled the room, signaling the Ghost King's fury. He Simu sneered coldly, "Perhaps you know an Evil Ghost named Yan Ke?"

Luda lowered the hand that had been clutching his chest. He looked at He Simu without speaking.

He Simu mocked, "Who would have thought the High Priest of Danzhi, a devout follower of the Azure God, would follow in his despised father's footsteps by allying with Evil Ghosts."

Luda's face was pale—whether from nearly being strangled by He Simu or something else, it wasn't clear. He said calmly, "I know what I'm doing is heresy. As long as Danzhi remains safe, I'll bear all punishments alone. Duan Xu has borrowed your unmatched power—he must die, or you must lose your strength."

He Simu tilted her head to look at Luda, as if finding this absurd. "You think Duan Xu has survived this long because of my help?"

If he were truly as adept at seeking assistance as Luda claimed, she wouldn't be standing here now.

Luda simply said, "Ghost King, I'm the one who made the poison. Only I know the antidote. You can do anything—even kidnap the Emperor—but I'll kill myself immediately. Without the Ghost King Lamp, I won't give you the antidote. Though I'm no match for you, you can't pry the knowledge from my mind."

The refined and aloof white-robed priest gazed at the Ghost King. The flickering candlelight in the room cast uneasy shadows across He Simu's pale face and the deep emotions in her eyes. Luda nervously clenched the hem of his robe.

After a moment, He Simu smiled faintly. "Luda, you don't understand battlefields—you never should have involved yourself in this. And you're not suited to be a priest either. Thinking you can unite this crumbling foreign-ruled nation through shared faith is laughably naive."

She stepped closer, pressing an icy finger against his chest, the chill piercing straight to his heart.

"Luda, your entire life has been ill-timed and futile. And as for me..." She gave a soft laugh. "Though I share some affection with Duan Xu, why would I trade the Ghost King Lamp for him? You're far too naive."

Luda's eyes flickered, but he persisted. "You have only one day. Without the antidote tomorrow, he'll die."

"All humans die—today or tomorrow, what's the difference?" He Simu's gaze was disdainful.

The moon reached its zenith as the clamor of Qizhou's city gradually quieted. Chen Ying kept vigil by Duan Xu's bedside, holding his hand while anxiously wiping the fine beads of sweat from his forehead. The physician had just treated and rebandaged Duan Xu's wounds. Now, his face was deathly pale, his eyes darting rapidly beneath closed lids as if trapped in some nightmare. His unease seemed to reach a peak as he began murmuring almost inaudibly.

Chen Ying leaned down and heard Duan Xu's faint voice calling—"Simu... He Simu..."

Chen Ying thought of how his mother had called his name like this before she died.

He struggled to hold back but ultimately couldn't stop his tears. In his heart, he pleaded desperately—begging his loved ones not to leave him again. He'd never slack off in training again; next time danger came, he'd protect Third Brother properly.

Duan Xu's weak cries scattered into the wind, crossing countless mountains and rivers, until they finally reached He Simu's ears."He's calling for me."

He Simu had already left Danzhi by now. In the darkness of Jade Zhou City, only the faint blue glow of the Ghost King Lamp at her waist illuminated her surroundings. She murmured softly, "Finally calling for me at a time like this."

This was the summit of Ephemeral Mountain—perhaps the most scenic spot in all of Jade Zhou City. One side overlooked the city's white houses, blanketed like snow, while the other revealed the warm glow of countless human dwellings—half mortal realm, half Ghost Realm. She had buried her parents together in a single grave here.

Kneeling beside the tombstone, she leaned against it just as she had once leaned against their shoulders in life. Out there, she was the Ghost King, revered by thousands and feared by countless Evil Ghosts. But here, she was simply someone's daughter.

"It's been so long since I last visited. I'm about to avenge you, Father. Look at you—always causing trouble, getting yourself tricked. Now your daughter has to clean up your mess."

Her fingers traced the fading characters on the tombstone—the names she had painstakingly carved three hundred years ago. Three centuries didn’t feel like such a long time. It was as if she had drifted through a hazy slumber and suddenly awakened to find the years had slipped away.

"I truly don’t understand why Yan Ke is so desperate to become the Ghost King. All these years, I’ve watched him, searching for even the slightest reason that might make me care about this throne. But I’ve found nothing."

"What is a Ghost King? Upon the throne, there is only sacrifice."

None of the Evil Ghosts vying for the throne ever understood that.

Gazing up at the night sky, He Simu tapped her fingers idly against her bent knee. "What’s another sacrifice? Losing Duan Xu won’t change anything. He’s just one among many—utterly ordinary."

Perhaps it was only because he had been so vivid, so fervent, that it pained her. She had never associated the word "death" with him before. For a fleeting moment, she had forgotten he was human—forgotten that he would grow old, his temples turning gray before crumbling to dust.

Mortals were mortals. What difference did it make whether they died tomorrow or decades later? It was all just the blink of an eye.

"Life and death cycle endlessly. There will be many more like him in this world. Though I might have to wait centuries for the next Curse-Bound Person. But a few centuries—I can afford that."

Leaning against the tombstone, He Simu gently stroked the Ghost King Lamp at her waist and chuckled. "When you think about it, he really was just an ordinary man."

A long silence followed. A desolate northern wind rose in the darkness, rustling through the trees. Threads of cold air wove through the world, lifting her hair and robes, strands brushing against her eyes and lips.

"Winter is coming," she murmured softly.

—Your hands are so cold. But if I hold them, they’ll warm up.

"He was always so warm."

"He also said he wanted to build a colorful palace in Jade Zhou City. Gaudy, isn’t it? I never expected him to like such things."

"I still haven’t learned to ride a horse. Last time, I fell off. He said he’d teach me again later. I refused, saying I wouldn’t learn—but really, I was just embarrassed. As a mortal, I was so clumsy."He Simu spoke with a faint smile before falling silent again. It felt as though molten lava was seeping through cracks in her heart, scorching everything in its path.

She slowly pressed her forehead against the cold, hard gravestone and whispered, "Father, Mother... I've been feeling strange lately. Was I always this afraid of being alone?"

"Mother... I actually sought out your reincarnation. She was a lovely, beautiful little girl. I watched her walk away and never spoke to her in the end. She'll have a new life, new loved ones, new children. She isn't my mother. She isn't you. I erected these gravestones for you both, but you no longer exist in this world. I'll never find you again, and nothing I say now will ever reach you. This... is what separation truly means."

"Duan Xu is the same. Duan Xu is dead. There will never be another Duan Xu in this world."

Standing before her parents' graves until the first light of dawn appeared, He Simu poured fine wine over the tombstones and murmured, "I drank this when I still had taste buds. It's excellent vintage."

"I can win even without the Ghost King Lamp. But I suppose you'd both be very disappointed in me for doing this." After a pause, she added, "Perhaps I was never suited to be Ghost King."

Then she slowly bent down and embraced the gravestone, holding it tightly as she whispered, "I never wanted to be Ghost King either."

—One day, you'll follow in your father's footsteps to maintain the balance between ghosts and humans, protecting this world.

The memory was so distant she could barely recall her mother's voice or face when she'd spoken those words. He Simu gave a soft laugh. When she straightened up again, she was once more the formidable, mercurial Ghost King of the Ghost Realm.

"Very well. I'll do it properly."