TGCF React

Chapter 2

Xie Lian pondered for a moment, then said, "Is it possible that the distress signal had not been from the current pantheon of Heavenly Officials, but from those who had retired themselves and entered seclusion?"

"That's going to be impossible to find!" Ling Wen exclaimed with a tired sigh. "There's been numerous officials who have retired and lost contact with heaven. We don't even know how many are still alive or dead."

"It's alright, Ling Wen." Xie Lian comforted. "We'll be able to find out if we continue watching."

"You're right, your highness." Pei Ming said. "So cheer up, Ling Wen."

"Then that would greatly increase the scope of our search," Jun Wu said. "Many of those retired Officials have ceased correspondence for many years, it is impossible to infer which of them may have fallen into danger."

It seems that the Civil Officials from Ling Wen's Palace Hall have been running themselves ragged and sporting dark circles under their eyes because they have been busying themselves with this matter. It was no wonder they were not able to spare much manpower to search for the young boy with the Human Face Plague from Mount Yu Jun.

"...What do you mean by that, your highness? Human face plague...hasn't it ceased to exist?" Yushi Huang asked in worry.

"Ah, about that, while I was investigating about the missing brides, I found a young boy who covered his face with bandages. When I removed it, it turned out he had the...plague although it has already been burned off so there isn't any chance for it to spread." Xie Lian explained. 

"For a Heavenly Official to be forced to a state where they had no choice but to destroy a portion of their spiritual strength to call for help, they must have met a formidable foe indeed. Are there any ghost nests or demon lairs in that vicinity, or any gatherings of the sort?" Xie Lian asked.

Yes," Jun Wu replied. "It's not far off. Do you know of the Ghost City?"

Xie Lian contemplated it for a moment. "I've heard of it."

The Ghost City is the most prosperous and bustling area within the Ghost Realm, situated right at the boundary which opens to the mortal world.

Ghosts often flocked there to trade, forming a chaotic throng of demons and monsters waltzing in reckless abandon. Occasionally, alchemists would enter to conduct some business transactions for the sake of obtaining materials for their study or make discreet inquiries for information. There were even some Officials from Heaven who, either out of curiosity or some other unmentionable reasons, would disguise themselves and sneak in. And then there would be the occasional mortal who had inadvertently strayed in, and would either end up in someone's belly or terrified out of their wits.

The Ghost City has existed since ancient times—- though not as ancient as Xie Lian.

"That sounds wrong for whatever reason." Feng Xin said with a frown.

"Bwahaha, on the contrary, it's a perfect fit for cousin crown prince!" Qi Rong laughed, stopping only when Hua Cheng kicked him. 

There were many stories and legends circulated in the human realm regarding the Ghost City. One example of a classical ghost story goes as such: A man who was hurrying home one night saw a bustling marketplace ahead, illuminated with large red lanterns and colourful banners. He entered the market happily, but found that everyone within was either wearing a mask or a hood, or were hideously ugly. It was all very strange to him, but he paid it no heed. He bought a bowl of noodles and sat down, preparing to have his meal, but when his chopsticks delivered the noodles to his mouth, the more he chewed the stranger he felt. When he took another look into his bowl, he discovered to his horror that the 'noodles' were actually human hair which was still wriggling!