Chapter 71: Mistakenly Boarding the Bridal Sedan
This was a scene almost no one had ever witnessed in their lifetime.
Dark skies, whipping winds, and banners twisting in the gusts.
The six hotel staff had gradually compressed their positions. On the left and right were two processions that seemed human but were far from it.
Red and white opposing each other has long been considered a grave taboo.
Ji Li had never imagined that, upon the start of the mission, such a shockingly intense scene would appear.
Yu Guo, seemingly oblivious to danger, continued livestreaming, clutching a handful of joss paper.
Fang Shenyan, watching the two approaching processions, quietly stepped back two paces and pressed his back against a doorway under an eave for cover.
In front of him stood Tao Xiaoyi, holding a delicate position, caught between danger and opportunity.
Everyone's reactions differed. Now, Fang Shenyan and the others had withdrawn to the edges of the street, leaving only Ji Li and Tongguan at the center.
"Check the houses on both sides. Can we climb over the walls?"
Ji Li calculated the approaching time of the two processions in his mind while directing Yu Guo and the others to test escape methods.
Tongguan quickly pulled Chang Nian across to the opposite side, knocking on doors experimentally.
Receiving no response, Chang Nian attempted to climb over a stone wall, while Tongguan forcefully rammed the door with his shoulder.
For a moment, the six hotel staff were caught in unprecedented chaos and urgency.
The coffin is empty. But the bridal sedan chair seems to carry some weight, the third persona analyzed rapidly.
Ji Li surveyed the surroundings. The buildings on all sides had fully transformed into old Republican-style architecture. Even the newly laid bluestone pavements bore signs of wear.
Everything was artificially aged; the moment the mission began, the world had completely changed.
It wasn't just this street—everywhere within Ji Li's sight was now Republican-era architecture. The environment was nothing like 2015.
A terrifying, undeniable thought settled in: he had been forcibly pulled into the Republican era.
Ji Li's heart trembled. This ability was beyond frightening—beyond supernatural, approaching pure mental manipulation.
Reversing time, altering space, restructuring the world…
'Less than thirty seconds until the red and white collide directly!'
The third persona had no idea what would happen if the two processions met, but it certainly wouldn't be good.
Ji Li glanced at Fang and Yu attempting to escape, then at Tong and Chang on the other side.
They could not breach the doors, and climbing over walls left them trapped between options.
It became clear: the hotel intended for them to face the red-and-white clash head-on.
Thinking this through, Ji Li suddenly shouted: "Stop running! Gather together!"
This was the last resort.
He hadn't expected this ghost to provoke the hotel into using such an extreme ability. Since the red-and-white clash was deliberately forcing them to confront it, they had no choice but to comply.
Tongguan's eyes flicked as he quickly understood Ji Li's intention. Without hesitation, he grabbed Chang Nian and sprinted toward him.
It was clear: they could not avoid the crisis on this street—they had to face it.
By gathering everyone together and confronting it physically, Ji Li was essentially gambling with the hotel's rules.
Typically, at the start of a mission, fatalities were low. With a 48-hour mission like this, it was uncertain whether the elaborate, bizarre ceremony would actually cause casualties.
Yet gathering together was still the most efficient way to minimize losses.
Almost immediately after Ji Li's command, everyone rushed to join him.
Only Tao Xiaoyi hesitated, perhaps from distrust or false hope, standing still while weighing the risk: if Ji Li and the others became primary targets in the center of the street, could she survive by hiding?
Before the thought could fully form, a cold hand seized her arm.
As she tried to scream, another hand covered her mouth.
Fang Shenyan's glasses caught a glint of cold light, reflecting her face. He said calmly, "Let's go."
Though his tone was ordinary, he gave Tao Xiaoyi no chance to respond, pulling her toward the center of the street.
Looking into his eyes, she shivered, feeling as if he could see straight through her thoughts.
The six hotel staff stood back-to-back, forming a tight unit, ready for whatever came next.
In front of Ji Li was the flower-decked bridal sedan; in front of Tongguan, the coffin.
Back to back, they called out the distances:
"Bridal sedan, five meters… three meters…"
"Coffin, five meters… three meters…"
The two processions drew ever closer. Tao Xiaoyi, ears ringing from the piercing suona music, clutched her head and screamed with her eyes shut:
"Are we just supposed to wait for them to collide?"
"No! They're going to crash into us!"
Deafening sound, dizzying vision.
Yellow paper and red flowers swirled together. The two processions were merging.
Amid the mourners in white, red-clad men interwove, and black dots moved among the swaying coffin and sedan.
It was where the hotel staff were trapped—completely surrounded.
The inevitable clash approached.
Cold gusts cut across Ji Li's cheeks. Red flowers felt as sharp as knives, reopening a wound from three days earlier at university. A thin line of blood trickled down his face.
His gaze, unwavering, was fixed on the bridal sedan, now only a step away.
Eight burly men carried the sedan, and surrounding them were white-robed funeral attendants, creating an almost unreal scene.
Suddenly, Ji Li's vision blurred; he felt the world spin.
The others experienced the same disorientation, especially Tongguan.
Facing opposite directions, Tongguan was aligned with the coffin, the other main protagonist of the merging processions.
At the same moment, Tongguan's vision blurred, the night sky forming a circular void.
He looked around, realizing they were completely encircled.
Mourners with white sails had mixed with the red-clad wedding attendants. The two processions had fully fused, leaving neither independent.
At that moment, Tongguan and Ji Li simultaneously collided with the coffin and bridal sedan.
Ji Li's eyes remained wide open. He wanted to see whether anyone would be injured, and if so, who.
But even with all his control, the physiological reaction to imminent impact could not be avoided.
The bridal sedan pressed against him; he felt a sharp ache in his nose and involuntarily closed his eyes.
Only for an instant—he reopened them immediately.
When he did, he gasped. The ground beneath him shook. The familiar night street had vanished, replaced by a confined space, separated from the outside by a red curtain.
In that instant of closing his eyes, Ji Li had been forcibly pulled into the bridal sedan.
Inside, there should have been someone.
He slowly turned his head, glancing at the person beside him…
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