Within the dark courtyard, a red lantern drifted forward, emitting a deep crimson glow—strangely, its light seemed sealed within a cage, unable to illuminate the surrounding area. It drifted to the entrance and halted before Zhang Yuanqing, stopping just beyond a threshold. Between Zhang Yuanqing and the lantern, there was only that threshold. Zhang Yuanqing could clearly sense a ghost within the threshold—a ghost of somber, eerie presence—but no matter how intently he gazed, he could not make out the ghost’s form. He silently summoned the power of the Yin to be ready to consume its spirit. As a night-wanderer, Zhang Yuanqing naturally suppressed spiritual bodies, provided the spirits' levels did not exceed his own. In the darkness, a hand extended itself. With the faint red light, Zhang Yuanqing made out a hand of deep, bluish-black skin, with black, dense fingernails. The ghostly hand held a stack of red-covered name cards, as though offering them to Zhang Yuanqing to accept. Zhang Yuanqing declined, and the ghostly hand continued offering, the two standing in a tense standoff, as if locked in a stand-off. After a long while, Xi Shi’s trembling voice softly reminded, “Wang She saw Wang Tai standing motionless, deeply afraid that this man might, without realizing it, trigger a crisis and pass away silently. Ah, whether one extends one's head or tucks it in—either way, it's a cut. Zhang Yuqing, resigned, took the name card, and as soon as he did, the pale, bluish ghostly hand immediately retracted. The red lantern then drifted gently away, returning to the deeper parts of the manor. Zhang Yuqing stepped down from the steps and rejoined his teammates, raising the name card in his hand. "There are five in total—seems to be addressed to us." He distributed the name cards one by one to his companions. As they unfolded them, the cards bore a red background with black script listing the bride's name and her birth charts, while the groom's section remained blank. The bride's name was "Bai Lan." The team members heard the in-game prompt echoing in their minds: 【Ping! You have received the bride's marriage invitation from the ghost bride. Please enter your name. The ghost bride will select her husband within one hour.】 To enter one's name and then be chosen within just one hour—what would happen if selected Zhang Yuanqing was now somewhat hesitant, torn between writing "Yuanshiben" or "Wang Tai." He couldn't be sure whether writing a false name would result in punishment. As he pondered which name to use, a thought struck him, and he turned to his companions. "Do any of you remember the amusement park's introduction? An indescribable entity arrived there, asking the spirits within the park to find a young man—whose name consists of four characters." Xi Shi and the others certainly remembered, but didn't understand why Zhang was bringing it up. Xie Lingxi, the most thoughtful, glanced at the marriage invitation in her hands. "So you're suggesting a connection between these two?" The young girl followed this line of reasoning and her face slightly changed. "An indescribable figure asked the ghost bride to find a young man, yet now we're being asked to provide his name? Does this mean the young man the ghost bride is seeking is precisely the Spirit Traveler?" "How could that be possible..." Xi Shi looked utterly astonished. As experienced adventurers who had completed numerous quests, they usually considered the realm introduction merely background information—telling them what kind of place it was and what events had occurred. It was meant to help them quickly grasp the essence of the quest, nothing more. Until now, they had assumed that the enigmatic entity seeking young individuals was either a specific character or even a monster within the realm—completely unrelated to the concept of "players." How could a mere realm traveler possibly alter the very nature of the realm? "It must just be a coincidence," Qitian Dasheng said, frowning. "After all, in a marriage ceremony, names are surely written down." Not exactly a coincidence. In the older version of the guidebook, there was no mention of marriage invitations at all—this feature only emerged after the realm underwent changes. Combined with the realm introduction, it simply didn't make sense to claim there was no connection between the two. Zhang Yuanqing remained vigilant. It’s strange—perhaps just a sense of déjà vu—but he always feels that the information provided in the spiritual realm introduction carries a strong sense of familiarity. “Zzzz… That day, she arrived at Jinshui Theme Park…” Suddenly, the Cat King speaker in Zhang Yuanqing’s pocket emits a sound. Everyone turns to look at his pocket, but the speaker falls silent. Why isn’t it speaking? Something’s off with this speaker… Zhang Yuanqing waits a few more seconds, and seeing that the speaker remains quiet, he lets it go and says, “Let’s start by filling in the names.” He unfolds the wedding invitation and attempts to write “Wang Tai” in the name section using his stylus. He reasons that since the spirit in the haunted house requires a name, the spirit “she” cannot see the real ID of the spiritual realm traveler—otherwise, the invitation would be redundant. Therefore, it’s reasonable to infer that the realm allows travelers to present a disguised ID, even if this isn’t explicitly stated and must be inferred on one’s own. Actually, writing about Yuanshishen isn't a problem—just potential trust issues among the teammates might arise... Zhang Yuanqing thought so, then noticed the strokes formed by his fingers solidifying into black characters: Wang Tai. He then arbitrarily invented birth charts and gender details, though he hadn't actually fabricated the gender. The four teammates followed suit, using their fingers as pens. Xie Lingxi raised her feet slightly, shyly glanced at Zhang Yuanqing's marriage invitation, then wrote down her name. When it came to gender, she hesitated slightly before filling in "male." After completing her invitation, Zhang Yuanqing tucked it into his pocket and stepped ahead first, saying, "Go in—best to follow me." Seeing the teammates' tense expressions, he lightened the mood with a joke: "I've always had a strong birth chart; even female ghosts would have to consider maternity leave when seeing me." The group stared blankly—wasn't this a bold joke, or were they truly fearless? There was indeed a female ghost awaiting marriage among them. Wasn't this joke quite humorous? Zhang Yuan glanced at their faces, said nothing, and quietly entered the courtyard. Beyond the threshold lay the outer yard, spacious and well-proportioned, with a stone-paved path running down the center, flanked on both sides by corridors attached to the outer walls. As the group crossed the threshold, red lanterns hung beneath the eaves suddenly lit up, casting a deep crimson glow against the dark night, like a series of glowing, crimson eyes quietly observing the strangers entering the courtyard. At the end of the stone path stood a grand hall with soaring eaves, its lattice gate closed, a warm yellow light seeping out from within. "Hmm..." Zhang Yuan's eyes brightened slightly as he stepped over the threshold. "Look—have any of you noticed that your skills or inventory has been sealed?" The fire demon and others were momentarily startled, some sensing their abilities, others checking their inventory, and were pleasantly surprised to find that their skills and equipment had not been sealed at all. They felt both relieved and a little concerned—relieved that, in the face of danger, they now had confidence. The concern is that opening up the items and skills means the haunted house is far more dangerous than ordinary. Under Zhang Yuanqing's guidance, the group moved slowly, their footsteps the only sound in the quiet night. "Ah!" Suddenly, the group, fully absorbed, heard a sharp cry, and all froze in surprise. The Fire Demon turned angrily, glaring at Xi Shi and shouting, "What are you screaming about?" Xi Shi's face turned pale as she pointed a trembling finger toward a corridor some fifteen meters away, her voice trembling, "There—there, beneath the lantern—there's a woman..." The group swiftly turned to look, but the lantern hung high and silent—where was the ghostly figure? This unexpected incident only deepened the already tense atmosphere among the four. Zhang Yuanqing remained calm—he had once experienced a supernatural dungeon, and as a night-blessed deity, he no longer felt genuine fear. To him, ghosts were no different from the Autobots. The atmosphere here is eerie, thick with阴 energy, which dulls my senses—my perception grows weak, and I can't detect fainter or more distant spirit entities. Yet, I can now use the Vamapala杵. Even with the Ghost Bride arriving, I'm not afraid. Zhang Yuanqing calms the group while leading them forward. "Have you noticed," he says, "that the quest only provides a hint about the Ghost Bride's choice of husband one hour from now?" By sharing information, he diverts his teammates' attention and soothes their emotions. "My belief is that during the next hour, our every action and demeanor will serve as the standard by which the Ghost Bride evaluates potential grooms. I wonder whether becoming the bridegroom means survival—or death. Also, the ambient阴 energy here is intense, concealing many dangers. Perhaps before the hour is up, we'll all be wiped out. I'm not sure whether the ghost bride is still a fan of aesthetics—though if she is, then as the most handsome member of our team, I'm feeling quite pressured. Soon, they arrived at the main hall, where Zhang Yuanqing stepped forward to push open the tightly closed grille door. "Creak—creak—" the sound echoed through the night air, resonating with a sense of weariness. Inside, tall candlelight illuminated the space, a red carpet stretched across the floor, and red fabric hung from the columns. At the far end of the carpet stood two imperial chairs, a table with candles and fruit offerings, and a vibrant red character hung on the wall. On either side of the red carpet, seven or eight paper figures stood, dressed in the attire of ancient servants—each with lifelike expressions and vividly red, slightly upturned lips. Most unsettling of all, their heads were twisted into strange angles, their hollow eyes fixed on the doorway, gazing at the group as they entered. Ticking, ticking—Xie Lingxi stepped back, her face pale with fear, her small hands pressed tightly to her mouth, trying to hold back a scream. At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing felt a growing sense of unease It's not out of fear—it's that all of these paper figures are ghosts... After carefully sensing them, he exhaled, and found they were all minor spirits. The ghost bride might be beyond my reach, but you little spirits dare to act bold in front of me? That's simply outrageous! Zhang Yuanqing summoned the power of the Yin, gathering an eerie darkness in his eyes. He settled his breath deep within his abdomen: "Get out!" The paper figures on the floor toppled over, rustling with gusts of cold wind, and faint ghostly wails echoed, as the spirits scrambled to flee in all directions. The ones behind—Xi Shi, Xie Lingxi, the Fire Demon, and the Great Sage of Heaven—were left stunned.