“What… what does this mean?” Fatty, who was walking in front of the coffin, was closest to the dead cat’s body and felt the greatest impact. Blood splattered on his mask, dripping down, thick and viscous. “It’s staring at us, what is it going to do?”

“It wants to choose one of us to pay for its life.”

Luo Tianhe’s face couldn’t be described as merely gloomy anymore. He had made ample preparations for this trip, even going so far as to use the method of borrowing yin to attract a group of wandering ghosts to follow the team. But he never expected that just outside the town, they would encounter the great misfortune of a black cat colliding with a coffin. Moreover… this was just the beginning.

Calming himself, Luo Tianhe whispered a reminder, “Don’t panic. Retreat the way we came. Keep your steps steady, don’t shake the coffin, and don’t look into the dead cat’s eyes. Be careful not to be resented by it.”

“We can’t retreat!” Li Bai’s voice suddenly rang out. “Mr. Luo, there’s no turning back when carrying a coffin. Once we retreat…”

“Shut your mouth. Everyone, listen to me, retreat.”

But this time, no matter how hard they tried, the longevity coffin seemed to have taken root, remaining completely still. Immediately afterward, a chilling scratching sound echoed from inside the coffin.

“Squeak—”

“Squeak—”

The sound wasn’t sharp, but at that moment, it plunged everyone into unprecedented despair.

Everyone could easily imagine the scene inside the dark, enclosed coffin, with sharp fingernails scraping against the inner walls.

Old Master Wu was waking up.

No, Old Master Wu’s corpse… was rising up!

Soon, the scratching became more frantic, accompanied by a thumping sound. The heavy longevity coffin began to sway uncontrollably from side to side.

The hemp ropes binding the coffin creaked under the strain, threatening to break. If the coffin fell, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Until a figure flipped onto the coffin, sitting backward on top of it.

This single act seemed to possess the weight of a thousand jun (a unit of weight), and the coffin’s swaying gradually lessened. The piercing scratching and thumping slowed down as well, until finally, everything returned to silence.

The one riding the coffin was naturally Bai Yu. This act of riding the coffin backward had temporarily freed them from their predicament.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, everyone quickly bypassed the black cat’s corpse and the obstructing tree, returning to the small path.

Catching his breath, Luo Tianhe first thanked Bai Yu and Yuan Shanyuan, but then, looking at Bai Yu’s back, he said with some worry that Bai Yu would have to endure the hardship of riding on the coffin for the rest of the journey. Old Master Wu in the coffin had been startled by the black cat, and the corpse would immediately rise up again as soon as Bai Yu got down.

Bai Yu didn’t show any reaction to this, her eyes were vacant, her expression indifferent, and her posture was slightly awkward.

Li Bai filled the vacant position left by Bai Yu. After all, it was the rear of the coffin, playing a role in suppressing the formation, and couldn't be left empty.

And so, the group continued on their way. But this time, in addition to carrying the heavy longevity coffin, they also had to bear the weight of Bai Yu riding on it. However, what Fatty couldn’t understand was that even though there was an extra Bai Yu, the carrying pole on his shoulder seemed to have become lighter.

Taking advantage of the temporary lull, Luo Tianhe told everyone about some of the taboos along the coffin carrying route. “Some unlucky coffins are said to have the ‘three stops’ along the way, which means they stop three times for no reason.”

“The most widespread explanation is that the deceased is afraid of not remembering the way home, so they stop halfway to recognize the road, so they can come back and visit their family when they miss them.”

“But insiders understand that this is complete nonsense. The coffin stops for no reason because the deceased has deep resentment and is unwilling to go peacefully, unwilling to rest in peace.”

“Every time the coffin stops, something evil will happen, bringing misfortune to the pallbearers. So, insiders don’t call it ‘three stops’, but ‘passing three gates’.”

“The ‘gates’ of ghost gate.”

“The black cat colliding with the coffin just now was the first gate. Fortunately, we had Miss Bai Yu. We barely managed to pass this first gate, but this is just the beginning. I’ve never seen such an unlucky coffin. I can’t predict what we’ll encounter at the next two gates. We can only take it one step at a time, dealing with whatever comes our way.”

“What’s the story behind the black cat colliding with the coffin just now?”

Jiang Cheng asked when he didn’t understand. With Li Bai present, Luo Tianhe didn’t dare to make up anything too outrageous to deceive them. He had noticed before that Luo Tianhe’s first reaction when he saw the black cat was to shout the words “stop it.”

Li Bai’s sentence, “Black cat before the dead coffin, a human head fills the void,” had also left a deep impression on Jiang Cheng.

“Since ancient times, a black cat colliding with a coffin has been a sign of great misfortune. Firstly, it will disturb the corpse in the coffin, causing it to rise. Secondly…” Luo Tianhe paused. “It is said that cats have nine lives, and each life is different. The most evil is the cat’s ninth life, the last life, especially a pure black cat with no other colors. In ancient times, this kind of black cat was called a xuanmao, also known as Wuyun Xiao Tie (Black Cloud Whistling Iron). Legend has it that this kind of cat’s ninth life can exchange one life for another.”

Fatty was sweating cold bullets as he listened. The big black cat just now was obviously dead as can be, its head was smashed to pieces. That should have been its ninth life, its last life.

“It’s exchanging lives with us, wanting one of us to pay for its life.” Yuan Shanyuan added. His voice was low and hoarse, causing strong discomfort. “No, at least one person.”

Lin Qianqian, who was already feeling guilty, became even more flustered when she heard this. She only had one wisp of yang fire left on her body, and a weak yang qi made it easier to attract unclean things. Most importantly, there was also that little bastard Jiang Cheng eyeing her. Thinking of this, Lin Qianqian secretly glanced at Jiang Cheng, but she was shocked to find that he was also peeking at her, while flashing a knowing smile.

Lin Qianqian couldn’t help but shiver.

Everyone was on high alert along the way, but fortunately, besides the sound of the wind and the sound of the flowing stream not far away, everyone made no other discoveries during this time. The remaining two gates hung over their heads like swords, making it impossible for them to relax.

Fatty, who was walking in the front, was in a particularly conflicted mood. He hoped that the danger would come sooner rather than later, so he wouldn’t have to be so nervous all the way. But he also secretly hoped that the danger wouldn’t come, and that the so-called “passing three gates” was just a scary story that Luo Tianhe had made up.

But with the appearance of a fork in the road ahead, this beautiful wish was immediately shattered.

After all, this wasn’t the first time they had walked this road. It was a straight road, with no forks in the middle at all, let alone two forks suddenly appearing, one on the left and one on the right.

Including the one extending forward, and the road they had just walked behind them, it formed a perfect crossroads.

“What do we do? Which road do we take?”

The one that looked straight ahead seemed to be the correct path. The original road was like this as well, and this straight road looked the clearest and most comfortable. Unlike the roads on the left and right, which were not only winding, but also gradually disappeared into the darkness as the distance increased, as if leading to another world that did not belong to the living.