Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Subway Terror

Mingjia Village is a large funeral city in Jinling City, named after the ancient "Yi Zhuang" (benevolent village), located at the northern corner of the ancient capital, collecting the aura of the underworld.

The legal entity of the village has connections everywhere and was able to force the Ministry of Transportation to make the terminal station of Subway Line 2 located here. It was an incredibly lucky move. The surrounding land of the funeral home was also developed, with no fear of being cursed.

This station, aside from a massive increase in visitors during the Qingming Festival, is mostly empty during the day.

At this moment, it is close to 11:30 PM. The last subway of Line 2 in Jinling City departs promptly from Mingjia Village station. Ming Yue, the only passenger, obediently waits to return to the other end of the line, the Jinling University Luoxia campus.

The train is neat and empty. The white lights shine coldly from the ceiling, and the cold wind howls outside the train.

Ming Yue listens to music with headphones, while the subway TV opposite her plays the day’s news. She occasionally glances at the TV, but spends most of her time staring out the window, watching the elevated bridge as the subway cuts through the cold winter fog and enters the golden sea of city lights.

The sound from the TV flows smoothly into Ming Yue’s ears, talking about the previous collapse incident on the construction of Jinling’s Line 9 subway, which caused a great stir and resulted in many deaths:

“…At 9:18 AM on November 30th, the massive subway collapse accident occurred at Guangcheng Station on Line 9 of Jinling… All 15 workers on-site were killed…”

“Today, the task force received an important tip from the public…”

“…According to insiders, embezzlement of public funds at the Guangcheng Station project is one of the main causes of the accident.”

“Police have begun the arrest of suspect Li Guofu…”

“The rest of the investigation is ongoing, and our station will continue to provide follow-up reports…”

Embezzlement of public funds.

Injustice.

Ming Yue took out her notebook from her large backpack and quickly jotted down the summary of this incident, thinking that she should inform the teachers at the academy when she returns. This Line 9 might be haunted by restless souls, and it would be best to communicate with the relevant departments to temporarily suspend operations, to avoid even worse disasters.

The news continued to play.

Once again.

And again.

And again.Ming Yue: "…Huh?"

There were only two people in the carriage. The person sitting across from her, listening to the news, shuddered suddenly, as if to shake off the cold. With a sudden movement, they knocked something out of their pocket. It fell with a clink, landing on this person's shadow—a passport.

Ming Yue stopped writing.

The person across from her curled into a ball, motionless, showing no intention of picking it up.

How strange. It’s always just me here at Mingjia Village in the middle of the night, the only passenger. Who is this person? Trying to steal my privilege? Line 2 is so long, isn’t she getting off? Ming Yue wondered in surprise. It was the first time she’d seen someone riding Line 2 in the middle of the night for a breeze.

The news started its nth cycle again, still the same one. Usually, the nice 30-minute afternoon segment gets chopped into a 3-minute short video. On the screen, the female news anchor moved her lips hollowly, every word about the Line 9 Guangcheng Station collapse spilling from her mouth, while the cold air in the carriage grew heavier and heavier, pressing down on her shoulders. The lights above flickered on and off.

Clearly, this news was being broadcast for someone.

There were only two living people in the carriage. Who was it for?

Ming Yue: "…"

It’s not me! I didn’t do anything!

Ming Yue: "I should light some incense after I leave Mingjia Village today."

She glanced at the stranger under the dim light, observing through her lenses. The person was wearing a black Canada Goose jacket with a prominent logo, their posture strange as they half-lay across the subway bench, not as if they were sitting comfortably but rather like they were forced down. They wore a fur-lined hat, exposing a pale chin, sweating profusely.

As she looked down at the person’s feet, Ming Yue’s gaze froze—

Their shadow was moving.

The edge of the black shadow rippled like a sheer curtain blowing in the wind, turning into a wave-like shape. Against the red cover of the passport on the floor, the black waves stood out even more. At the same time, the unmistakable smell of ghostly aura filled the air, seeping from the walls of the carriage.

Ming Yue quickly glanced up at the ceiling camera. Sure enough, the monitor was completely dark, without a blinking red dot.

Ming Yue: "…"

So, I’ve encountered a ghost crossing the boundary again?Ming Yue felt numb and quickly marked the time. There were still twenty minutes until midnight, when the Yin and Yang would shift. She awkwardly adjusted her glasses. These were just plain glasses, with a blue cloth attached to the left lens—

It wasn’t for vision correction, but to block her Yin-Yang eyes.

Having "living Yin eyes" wasn’t something you could openly talk about, let alone the fact that hers were problematic. Her right eye was a Yang eye, strong like a source of sunlight with a vision of 2.5, while the left one was a Yin eye, weak with a vision of only 0.3. Without correction lenses, she would walk three steps and hit a telephone pole.

That alone would have been bad enough. It was manageable with glasses, and occasionally, she could pretend not to see unclean things—

But the more troubling part was that Ming Yue's body was purely Yang. Her "eight characters" (destiny) were as stable as that of a 300-pound man, and she was more sensitive to Yin energy than a dog’s nose. Since childhood, she had run into ghosts quite often, but none had ever successfully possessed her. She lived like a walking miracle.

Yin-Yang eyes, Yang eyes see Yang, Yin eyes see Yin. Ming Yue's defective Yin-Yang eyes couldn’t guarantee the accuracy of her vision in a high-concentration Yang environment. In broad daylight, she couldn’t trust her Yin eye to see the Yin. So, she wore cloth over it to block the vision and prevent the occasional sudden bursts of Yin power.

But now, the Yin energy in the carriage grew heavier, intensifying. The lights began to flicker, and Ming Yue clearly felt her left eye, like a sea eye, begin to absorb the surrounding Yin energy.

"..." She hesitated for a moment, but still took off her glasses. Using the dim light, she focused her vision. Just then, the carriage went completely dark. A flash of lightning seemed to come from the darkness, illuminating the whole carriage—

The walls of the carriage were crawling with ghostly shadows. Some hung upside down from the ceiling, while others slithered on the floor like snakes. Several had surrounded the person in the Canada Goose jacket. A small baby ghost clung to their neck, its little green fingers creeping up the person’s throat—

Upon closer inspection, all these ghosts were horribly mutilated, with exposed veins and bones crawling with maggots. Their faces were grotesque, their bodies drenched in blood, dripping and pooling on the floor, blending with the shadows, giving off a strong, bloody stench.

Ming Yue: "..."

Wait, how many did the news report say were dead?

Oh, 15.

...

Fifteen!

Ming Yue’s heart sank. Just then, the white light on the ceiling flickered back on, blinding her, and her left eye, gray and different from other people’s, began to feel more out of place.

Zhou Pingping, with a twisted posture, was curled up on the subway bench, gasping for air. Yin energy rushed into her lungs through her nostrils, freezing her entire body, making her unable to move.

It had been four hours since she boarded Line 2 at 6:10 PM, and she hadn’t been able to get off since. Her ankle was tightly bound by a ghostly hand, and every painful pull felt like her flesh was being torn apart. The blood soaked into her black cotton jacket, and she desperately looked around at the other passengers. But they were in another world—laughing, sitting, leaving. The carriage was empty and full, and only she remained, forever trapped on this train of death.

The news about the collapse at Guangcheng Station on Line 9 continued to loop on the TV, stabbing Zhou Pingping’s heart like a sharp knife, making her want to weep bitterly. The guilt felt like a bone-scraping knife cutting along her spine, following the white vertebrae, breaking through the skin, revealing the monstrous creatures inside.The culprit behind the collapse at Guangcheng Station, Li Guofu, was her lover.

She had repeatedly urged her lover to embezzle public funds. Together, they bought several large houses near the street station. In previous years, such dealings had never caused major issues, but this year, after embezzling public funds from Guangcheng Station, the collapse occurred just a few days later. Over a dozen people died.

The truth couldn’t be hidden forever. Once the news reached Li Guofu, he tried to flee. He had just made plans with Zhou Pingping to catch an 8 AM flight out this morning, and by noon, news spread in the internal reports that Li Guofu was being investigated. Zhou Pingping, in a panic, packed some cash and her passport, intending to run as well. But this subway ride on Line 2 turned her ‘romantic getaway’ into a one-way trip to the land of the dead.

The voices of vengeful ghosts swirled around her: "Murder for murder... Murder for murder..."

"Your lover and you... You two living people killed our brothers and sisters—fifteen of them. Two lives. None of you can escape..."

"He’s already waiting for you in hell. We pushed him into the Line 9 subway tunnel he helped build. With a whoosh, the train passed by, and he didn’t even make a sound..."

Tears streamed down Zhou Pingping’s face, soaking her hat and making the mink fur stick together in a dirty clump. She trembled uncontrollably, muttering to herself: "Don’t come for me, don’t come for me..."

"I didn’t kill you all..."

"...It wasn’t me who embezzled the funds, it was him, it was him! …It wasn’t me who didn’t give you safety helmets..."

No matter how much she repented, it was futile. The cold air around her reeked of death. When the anger of vengeful spirits crosses the boundary between Yin and Yang, only blood can quell it.

A clink echoed as someone dropped a small notebook onto the ground. Zhou Pingping vaguely looked over, and it was an open student ID. On it, it clearly read: [Jinling University Spirit Control Department, 2018 Class]. The characters for "Spirit Control" were in a different font. When the light hit, it was like ice meeting fire—suppressing the Yin energy and clearing the air, making it easier to breathe.

A surge of hope flared up in Zhou Pingping’s heart. She looked at the student sitting across from her, who was playing with the student ID as if it had fallen to the ground. She muttered to herself, "I wonder if the dorm manager will let me in at this hour."

Help me! Please, help me!

Zhou Pingping silently screamed, her crying making it hard to breathe.

Unfortunately, the female student kicked the student ID back and forth with her foot, never once looking up at Zhou Pingping.

Zhou Pingping: "..."

Zhou Pingping's heart sank like a stone in an ice cave, and she closed her eyes.

Suddenly, someone slapped her on the shoulder. A rush of warm energy spread from her shoulder, and the surrounding Yin energy seemed to flake off like dandruff. She suddenly broke free from her immobile state and turned to see who had slapped her.

The female student smiled and said, "Sister, you dropped your passport."As she spoke, the gold and gray contact lenses in her eyes reflected the light, looking quite strange.

Zhou Pingping, her face covered in tears, stared at Ming Yue, her eyes full of desperation, as if a starving beggar had just seen a bun.

She suddenly burst into tears, "Help! Help me! There are ghosts—ghosts!"

Ming Yue patted her dismissively, sizing up Zhou Pingping. This woman was surrounded by a bloody karmic chain, though unclear, it all represented ties to death.

What a piece of scum, someone who should be serving a life sentence alive and be thrown into a pot of hot oil after death.

It’s a shame that such trash drags in the vengeful ghosts and victims, forcing them to bear the weight of the yin punishment.

"Sister, where are the ghosts?"

"Are you heading to the airport? You're going the wrong way." Ming Yue said, her tone considerate, noticing her own yang energy dissipating, the faint yellow glow causing the ghosts in the cabin to howl.

The lead male ghost, with some semblance of rationality, threatened Ming Yue, "Little girl, stay out of our way!"

"Zhou Pingping, this bitch and her lover caused the death of our brothers—fifteen of them! Murder must be repaid with death!"

"Get lost now, or I’ll chop you into pieces and feed you to the dogs!"

Ming Yue held her breath for a moment as the strong Yin energy from the ghost's mouth pressed against her. One hand rested on Zhou Pingping's shoulder, and the other pulled out her phone, searching for information on Jinling City's Line 9. As expected, the details were all there, with the names of the fifteen dead, marked with white candles. There was also an unexpected incident:

"Tonight, at about 9 PM, another fatal accident occurred on Line 9. The surveillance at the 13th-floor station showed a man, with no one around, performing a 'ground wrestling' move, falling into the Line 9 track, and being crushed to death by an oncoming train."

The Ministry of Transport issued an emergency order to suspend Line 9 operations.

Ming Yue: "…"

Ming Yue forced a sincere smile, the kind of smile someone would give when caught cheating on an exam, and said to the leading male ghost, "Big Brother, I understand the situation now. You guys really have it tough. But Yin and Yang are separated, and the rules of the Yin world are strict, just as the laws of the Yang world exist. If you cross over the judge to kill a living person, you will end up in the hot oil pot, falling into the path of beasts."

Moreover, this woman’s karmic chain was indirect death, not direct cause and effect.

The vengeful ghosts cackled, their laughter stirring up the air, the smell of blood waxing and waning.

"What’s the point of fearing the hot oil pot?! What use are the laws of the Yang world! Didn’t they still manage to escape? Look at the whore’s pocket—her passport and money!"Ming Yue held her breath, avoiding the confrontation: "Big brother, big sister, don’t say such demoralizing things. The severity of the Yin laws cannot be absolved by a single passionate crime."

Why had these people died so many days ago, but there were still no ox-headed and horse-faced creatures coming to take their souls?

Zhou Pingping looked at Ming Yue, her mouth moving without sound, speaking into the air. Her body was covered in a cold sweat as her hairs stood on end. She screamed, pushing Ming Yue away violently, shrinking to the side. Her body was torn open by the Yin energy, blood gushing from the wounds, and the spot she moved from was stained with blood.

The fresh blood of the sinner stirred the deep hatred and pleasure of the victims, and the Yin energy grew heavier, the air starting to darken faintly.

Ming Yue was suddenly pushed, stumbling and nearly falling face-first onto the ground. Turning back, she saw that as soon as Zhou Pingping left the range of her Yang energy, her face turned ashen, and she screamed continuously, her fingers uncontrollably pressing into her own neck. Ming Yue had no choice but to grab Zhou Pingping by the hair with one hand and press her neck down: "Shut up!"

The vengeful ghosts howled in unison: "We’re all dead! What’s the use of saying such hopeless things!"

"You little girl don’t know what's good for you. We’ll eat you up too! Eat you up!"

Ming Yue: "…"

Heaven help, the evil ghosts have taken my wit, and now I can't even speak clearly.

As if responding to the words of the evil spirits, the train lights began flashing erratically again, the cabin alternating between black and white.

Black. Ming Yue looked up, and saw that blood was oozing out of the gaps in the white cabin walls, slowly dripping down. The vengeful ghosts, stepping in the blood, howled and lunged toward the two of them.

Light. Ming Yue glanced at the subway clock; only a few seconds left.

Black. The cries of women and children pierced her eardrums like sharp needles, the floor covered in blood.

Light. The subway station arrival prompt sounded, the door opened. Ming Yue took a deep breath, her body radiating Yang energy, and the underworld world appeared as a bright sun, the evil spirits screeching in pain. Ming Yue dragged Zhou Pingping’s lifeless body and rushed toward the subway doors, five meters away.

The evil spirits behind her grabbed Ming Yue’s shoulder. She shoved Zhou Pingping out, ready to roll out herself, but unexpectedly, she was pushed back by the tearful Canadian Goose!

Ming Yue: "…"

The subway doors closed immediately. One of Zhou Pingping’s fingers was crushed off, a chunk of flesh dripping with blood onto the cabin floor. Money spilled everywhere from her pockets, some caught in the safety doors. She clutched her bleeding hand, screaming in agony, her tear-streaked face knocking on the glass door, repeatedly bowing to Ming Yue: "Sorry, sorry!"

"Two lives… two lives… two lives are enough to make up for it…""Sorry, sorry... please take my place... sorry!"

After saying that, without a care for her severed finger, she turned and ran.

Ming Yue: "…"

Ming Yue's eyes widened, her expression full of surprise, like a fool. It was reflected on the subway glass door. Behind her, black hands crawled up her shoulders, covering her mouth.

The decaying white light on the ceiling finally groaned, shattered, and the cabin was instantly plunged into complete darkness.