“What does she mean by that?” Lu Na asked.

  “If you make it to the next section, it will be difficult to survive all those ghosts that were trapped when the warlord ordered them all to rush in. He stopped at nothing to reach the center, hoping that brute force would do it. No one in the last thousand years has made it past them.”

  Lu Na didn’t like the sound of that.

  “Is there something that I can make or do to prevent the ghosts from attacking us?” It wasn’t only for the next section, but the current ghosts in this. If someone like Zi Meili can not only command an army of ghosts and possess her friend, then she would need something to make it there.

  Zi Xu shook his head.

  “You’d need a ghost hunter. We had a few of those over the years, but they were never strong enough to make it past the feral spirits. So when they died, they released all the ghosts they captured.”

  “And the cycle continues,” Zi Meili said. “But unlike my useless brother here, I do have an answer.”

  Lu Na wasn’t sure she’d like it.

  “All you have to do is give your little friend over here to me and I will gladly help you push through this section of ghosts and the next. What’s one life in the face of being able to solve this labyrinth?”

  “No.” Lu Na sat down next to Sun Ren to examine her. She had no visible injuries and it looked like she was just sleeping. “I would never sacrifice my friend no matter what. I’d rather die and be a ghost with her for all eternity.”

  “Well, then I can’t help you. Good luck with my neighbor. They’re the ones who took in the first group of your scouts and that monk. He was so delicious, but it wasn’t my turn.” Zi Meili pouted. “Ah, forget it. I’m going to rest until it’s my turn again. You’ll let me know when they reach the next section, won’t you, brother? I want to see this little one scream.”

  Before Zi Xu responded, Zi Meili disappeared.

  “Are you scared?”

  Lu Na nodded.

  “You have little of a choice in either case. I will try to help you as much as I can.”

  Or lead Lu Na into another trap.

  Sun Ren sat up.

  “What happened?”

  “You tried to kill me,” Lu Na said.

  “I would never.”

  Lu Na passed two of Sun Ren’s daggers to her.

  “You almost did, but you were under a ghost’s control.”

  “Ugh, ghosts again.” Sun Ren sheathed the two daggers. She patted herself. “I’m missing at least six or seven other daggers.”

  Lu Na shook her head.

  “Zi Xu, how do we stop ghosts from possessing us?”

  “Well, you could have another ghost possess you first.”

  “No. I’d rather die than experience that again,” Sun Ren said. “I felt everything she did as if it was a dream. I couldn’t move or control myself. Why would anyone choose that?”

  “Not even from a friendly ghost you can trust?” Zi Xu asked.

  “If you think you’re a ghost I’d trust, then I’d rather slit my throat now.” Sun Ren searched for her other daggers.

  “I would trust you,” Lu Na whispered. “If only because I can tell you really want me to solve the puzzle and release everyone.”

  Zi Xu laughed.

  “That’s the first time I’ve ever had someone say that to me. We should move on. Your friends might be in actual danger. My sister is rather tame compared to the other ghosts.”

  “She’s tame?” Lu Na felt the tingling from where Sun Ren squeezed her neck.

  “Zi Meili only wanted to play with you like dolls. The other ghosts are much more depraved.”

  After Sun Ren found all her daggers, they walked a short distance to the next courtyard. Despite the two thousand year difference, the arrangements of these homes weren’t much different from the ones they had today. Lu Na felt as comfortable walking through here as she would have home, knowing where everything was.

  At least that would have been the case if there weren’t ghosts acting out every imaginable scene of debauchery. There was a man and woman in bed. Not too far was a man being tortured with whips.

  Lu Na stared at the ground the whole way as she walked. Even if they were ghosts, it made her feel really uncomfortable. Did they feel pain? Did they choose to do this? Lu Na didn’t know and didn’t feel comfortable asking Zi Xu.

  Sun Ren held her Guanyin necklace in her hand. Despite stomping on it earlier, it was still whole. Only the necklace’s clasp became loose. Her usually stoic face flickered from disgust to anger.

  “How far do we still have to go?”

  “Not much farther. Unlike my sister, this ghost doesn’t like servants. He likes torture, though.”

  “I can see that.”

  Lu Na wished she couldn’t.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  The group entered a separate courtyard from the main one. This one was smaller, like the personal courtyard for someone’s quarters. It was about the same size as Lu Na’s.

  Right in the center of the courtyard, Hen Li sat with his legs crossed, palms pressed together, and reciting the heart sutra aloud. He was surrounded by Wintersweet disciples in different clothing. Some of the female disciples wore revealing clothes, showing off their arms, legs, and low necklines. Some of the male disciples threatened Hen Li with shouting and fists that never connected, while some others begged and pleaded on the floor.

  “What’s going on?” Sun Ren asked.

  “I think they’re trying to tempt Hen Li,” Lu Na said.

  When the disciples heard their voices, they stopped. They all stared at the two women with glossy eyes.

  “Oh, you caught the depraved ghost’s attention,” Zi Xu said.

  “Can’t you talk with him? Get him to let these people go so we can solve the labyrinth puzzle?” Lu Na asked.

  “I’m sorry, but this ghost enjoys his life like this. There’s nothing I can do.” Zi Xu said.

  “They’re possessed aren’t they?” Sun Ren held her Guanyin necklace out. It glowed a bright orange again. “Are they going to possess me?”

  “I don’t think so. You’ve just been possessed by my sister. So there will be a little time before they can do it again. Besides, you have that necklace. I only hope you have more faith this time or else they will possess you.”

  “So what can we do?” Lu Na asked. She checked to make sure her Buddhist talisman was securely wrapped around her right hand.

  “I might not be able to talk with the ghost, but I know there’s one thing he hates more than anything. I’ll go and do that while you try to free your friends. If I come back to you being possessed, I’ll be sure to bury your bodies.”

  “Thanks…” Lu Na said, but Zi Xu had already disappeared.

  “Na Na, they’re coming,” Sun Ren said. She took a few steps back and held her necklace up. The golden light slowed them down, but didn’t stop them.

  Lu Na could only think of one thing to do. She pressed her palms together and chanted the heart sutra. She walked forward toward the group of possessed disciples. The closer they got, the louder she chanted.

  The angry male disciples charged at Lu Na. She closed her eyes and kept chanting. Something felt like a breeze passed by her. When she opened her eyes, the male disciple was on the ground. Did the chanting work? Did it work like a shield?

  “Move Lu Na. I can’t push them all off you.” Sun Ren kicked another angry male disciple aside before he tackled Lu Na.

  “So much for that theory.” Lu Na dodged one of the female disciples. She had to push another one to the ground before a male disciple reached her. “They’re so slow and weak. Why were we worried about them?”

  “They’re still alive and the disciples of those two monsters, they’re a distraction for the other ghosts to possess us.” Sun Ren hopped over a fallen disciple. Her Guanyin necklace made orange sparks.

  “Why isn’t Hen Li affected?” Lu Na ran around two disciples trying to hold her in place.

  “It’s probably got something to do with what Zi Xu said. He’s got more faith in what he’s doing than either of us. So the ghosts can’t attack him.”

  Soon after, both Lu Na and Sun Ren reached Hen Li.

  “Hen Li, let’s go before the depraved ghost sends more ghosts at us,” Lu Na said. This time an orange spark came from Lu Na.

  Hen Li looked up at the two women and stopped his chanting. He jumped up from where he sat and his arms flashed out, strangling both Lu Na and Sun Ren.

  Again, Lu Na felt that tight pressure on her neck.

  “You two ladies are so foolish to think that this fake monk could resist possession? He’s got more demons in his heart than most of the ghosts here. He was the first to fall and when I saw the depravity in his mind, it was so delicious to take over him. A mass murderer and so much more.” Hen Li licked his lips.

  Sun Ren unsheathed a dagger and stabbed Hen Li’s arm. Her dagger’s point bent.

  “Oh, this one is feisty,” Hen Li said. He threw Sun Ren to the ground and held her in place with his foot. “I’ll play with you later. But this one, she’s worthless to me. I’m going to send her to the nexus.”

  With Sun Ren on the ground, Hen Li grabbed Lu Na’s neck with both hands and pressed hard. The world was blacking out again. Lu Na slapped her Buddhist talisman into Hen Li’s face.

  Nothing happened. No orange sparks.

  She tried again and again, but nothing was happening.

  “I’ll pay you if you let her go,” Zi Xu said.

  Hen Li’s grip loosened just enough for Lu Na to breathe.

  “I’m listening.”

  “I’ve been talking with the noble. She’s willing to give you one of the ghost hunter’s disciples if you let them go.”

  Hen Li squinted his eyes and smirked.

  “One lowly ghost hunter disciple for this little girl?”

  “All of them, including the fake monk,” Zi Xu said.

  “Do I look like an idiot? Why would I release these precious prisoners for one ghost?”

  “It’s the one that imprisoned you.”

  Hen Li dropped Lu Na to the ground beside Sun Ren. He took his foot off Sun Ren and stalked over to Zi Xu.

  “Say that again.”

  “The ghost hunter’s disciple that imprisoned you. The noble will give you that ghost if you release everyone here.”

  “These people must be precious for her to go so far. I want more.” Hen Li wrapped his arms around one of the female disciples. “These people are still fresh and I can play with them for a very long time.”

  Zi Xu looked from Lu Na to Hen Li. He shrugged.

  “Then do as you wish. That’s the best I could do. I’m sure another Xia inventor will come around in another few hundred years. Maybe then we’ll finally be able to escape this underworld.”

  Hen Li laughed.

  “You know I don’t care about that. I enjoy living here, playing with those ghosts. I can keep going for another thousand years at least.”

  Lu Na didn’t get up this time. She soothed her neck as much as she could. She was tired from being choked. It was time to do something about it.

  Lu Na put on her null metal bracelet. She clenched her left fist and flicked it left. With her eyes closed, she focused on what she wanted. This was going to burn her wrist, but she didn’t care.

  Earth walls rose from the ground, separating every Wintersweet disciple, Hen Li, and Sun Ren. Then she focused on the image of jail. The earth walls formed bars in front of every living person. For Hen Li, Lu Na made sure his cell was reinforced with the most compact stone she could think of.

  Hen Li slammed against the stone, shaking the entire structure. All the other ghosts struggled against the cell as well, but it was the monk that damaged her cell.

  So Lu Na doubled and then tripled the spirit energy running through Hen Li’s cell. That was when the burning was too painful to finish. She used the technique Elder Xu taught her and began cycling the spirit energy from the null metal bracelet into the ground.

  “Stop Lu Na,” Hen Li called. “Elder Xu told you that doing that again might kill you. You can stop now. The ghost left.”

  Lu Na didn’t care. She pushed out the spirit energy and reinforced every cell of the large structure. When she was done, she unclenched her left fist. But she couldn’t.

  Lu Na couldn’t control the left side of her body anymore. It was as if she was frozen in place. The only thing she could feel was the dense spirit energy cycling through her left body into the ground. So she focused everything she could on that technique to push out as much spirit energy as possible.

  There was only one catch. The null metal bracelet seemed to replenish the spirit energy faster than Lu Na could get rid of it.

  Was this how she was going to die? Not only that, she had trapped all the Wintersweet disciples and her two companions in impenetrable structures.

  Should she release them before she passes out and dies?

  The left side of Lu Na’s body was burning as much as the null metal bracelet now. If she didn’t stop, she would explode.

  Now or never.