Chapter 199: Filial Piety
Ning Xue’s accusatory voice echoed across the mountainside.
Everyone knew her relationship with her family was strained. Every phone call with her parents was laced with hostility. The crew had even gossiped about how her father had funded this film to help her chase her acting dreams, yet she showed no gratitude—acting as if her parents owed her, an unfilial daughter through and through.
But now, staring at the rows of jar tombs dotting the mountainside, the truth of karma struck them all.
Whatever was said on the other end of the line only fueled Ning Xue’s fury. "I don’t care if it’s true or not—you need to come back and move Grandpa and Grandma’s graves! If you’ve got nothing to hide, why are you so scared? I’m not leaving! Get here now! Unless you want to collect your daughter’s corpse!"
Lu Ao mouthed an exaggerated Wow, whispering, "Collect her corpse? That’s a bit much, isn’t it?"
Li Zhi tossed a small stone in her hand. "Ning Xue must have sensed something these past few days. The script’s plot and reality are blurring together. She’s terrified of what might happen."
After hanging up, Ning Xue stormed down the mountain. The group waited until she was gone before continuing their descent. Back in the village, Li Zhi led the players straight to the entrance.
Most of the scenes at the village entrance had already been filmed—only the final escape sequence remained. The entryway had been bricked into the shape of a jar tomb’s mouth, leaving just the top section open for the protagonists to crawl through.
Piles of discarded bricks lay nearby. Li Zhi rolled up her sleeves. "Let’s move these back to the factory first."
With the crew still on the mountain, now was the perfect time. Someone fetched carts from the factory, and within an hour, they’d transported enough bricks, stacking them inside their room.
On their last trip, they ran into Tianwen’s Zhong Yun outside the factory. She seemed oddly cheerful, smiling as she asked, "What’s with the bricks?"
Peacock’s members eyed her warily.
Unfazed, Zhong Yun’s gaze lingered on Li Zhi—then she flashed her a cryptic smile.
Li Feng and Li Jianxi both frowned. Catching their sharp glares, Zhong Yun raised her hands in mock surrender and walked off.
Xing Qingyue, now aware of Tianwen’s involvement in Lu Caiwei’s death, looked worriedly at Li Zhi. "Are they plotting something again?"
Li Zhi didn’t answer.
That smile had been strange. But stranger still was the lack of malice—if anything, Zhong Yun’s eyes held a silent message.
Was she signaling goodwill?
With Tianwen down to three members, were they trying to appease Li Zhi’s group out of fear?
But that didn’t fit Tianwen’s usual tactics.
As Zhong Yun disappeared around the corner, Li Zhi pushed the thought aside. They had bigger priorities.
By evening, the work was done. Returning from filming, the director frowned at the players lazing in the factory. He bit back a reprimand when he saw Li Jianxi beside Li Zhi.
"Just a few night scenes left! Push through tonight, and we’ll wrap tomorrow!"
Exhausted from days of nonstop filming, the crew ate in silence. Ning Xue picked at her food, visibly distracted. The director raised a toast to morale, but the response was tepid.
Ning Xue set down her chopsticks. "Director, I’m going to rest. Let the stand-in film the night scenes—I’ll come back for close-ups later."
Tonight’s shots were all frantic escape sequences, with few face shots. Seeing her pallor, the director agreed. He scanned the table. "Jiaoyun, you’ll—where’s Jiaoyun?"
Tianwen’s Cheng Jiaoyun was Ning Xue’s stunt double—but her seat was empty.
No one had seen her. The director slammed the table. Li Zhi glanced at Yan Yingrui, who shook his head subtly: Not us.
At the table, Zhong Yun—Jiaoyun’s teammate—showed no concern. "Director, I think I saw her leave with her luggage this afternoon."
The director massaged his temples. "Great, another one gone. Ning Xue, you’ll have to tough it out tonight."
Ning Xue nodded stiffly.
Filming that night took place in the old house. Learning it was her ancestral home didn’t ease Ning Xue’s nerves—if anything, her fear deepened. The script felt tailored to her, blurring the line between performance and reality.
Watching the playback, the director nodded approvingly. "Ning Xue’s improved so much! Her expressions here are perfect."
Li Zhi studied Ning Xue’s ashen face. This leading lady’s really going through it.
The moment filming ended, Ning Xue bolted, dragging Jiang Can with her. It wasn’t until everyone returned to the factory that Jiang Can slipped Li Zhi an update.
"Ning Xue’s been calling her dad nonstop, demanding he come. He refuses. They keep fighting."
Li Zhi mused, "Get her talking tonight. There’s a reason she’s so desperate. Right now, she’s terrified—she’ll cling to anyone nearby."
Jiang Can nodded. "Got it." She eyed the room’s setup. "Be careful tonight."
Li Zhi smiled. "We will."
As night deepened, the factory quieted. Once everyone retreated, Li Feng rolled up his sleeve and—without flinching—drew Li Zhi’s curved blade across his arm.
Warm blood dripped into a prepared bowl, soon filling it halfway. Even knowing the wound was minor, Li Zhi fretted until he’d collected enough, then sprayed it with coagulant.
The bleeding stopped instantly. The metallic tang hung thick in the air as Li Zhi carried the bowl outside and splashed its contents at their doorstep.
Li Feng rubbed his itching wound. "Done. Now we wait."
Lights off, they lay in silence, listening to the night’s chorus of insects and wind.
Li Zhi dozed lightly until the familiar click-clack jolted her awake.
Tonight, the visitors came early—drawn by the blood.
Two hunched shadows soon darkened the thin curtains. They shuffled past the window, pausing at the door. Then came an odd, wet sound.
In the dark, Li Feng murmured, "They’re licking the blood."
Fresh, tantalizing—it carried the scent of the warm body inside. Outside, the figures crouched like beasts, lapping up every drop before rising, ravenous eyes fixed on the door.
No knock came. Just the violent thud of something slamming against the wood.
Just as Li Zhi predicted: empowered ghosts would break in tonight.
The flimsy door gave way quickly—but behind it wasn’t a room.
A bricked tomb entrance gaped before the ghosts—a jar tomb’s maw, pitch-black, waiting to swallow them whole. The same structure that had buried them alive.
The ravenous pair recoiled in horror.
And there, above the tomb’s mouth, a mirror reflected their terrified faces.
Then—a black-clad woman with wild hair materialized behind them.
The night breeze swept through the doorway. Li Zhi tugged the blanket higher. Outside, all was silent—the three ghosts had vanished, presumably to battle elsewhere.
After a cautious wait, Li Zhi and Li Feng slipped into Li Jianxi’s room next door.
Two makeshift beds already lay on the floor. Li Jianxi shut the door. "Well?"
Li Zhi sat on the bed. "This should buy us a night. We have to clear the instance tomorrow."
Using the female ghost to stall the hungry spirits was a one-time trick. Ning Xue’s grandparents’ resentment ran too deep—even that vengeful spirit couldn’t hold them off forever. If they didn’t escape by tomorrow night, they’d be in real danger.
Li Jianxi’s room, arranged by the director, was cozier than the others. He and Li Feng took the floor beds; Li Zhi got the actual bed. Viewers, more excited than the participants, flooded the comments:
[They’re finally sharing a room! Big Bro Li is such a third wheel!]
[Even calm people’s love lives are calm—I’m more worked up than they are!]
[I wanna shake the screen and yell JUST KISS ALREADY! Where’s the Butterflies Village passion?!]
[Their ‘honeymoon phase’ feels like an old married couple and I’m here for it.]
[Just seeing them together is sweet. Our boy Jianxi might not be bold, but he sticks to her like glue—so cute!]
[whispers Could the lovebirds… maybe… sneak into the same bed after Big Bro sleeps?]
[Big Bro won’t sleep a wink tonight.]
……
Lights off, Li Feng’s "Sleep well" was the last word spoken.
Li Zhi lay still for a moment, then inched toward the edge, letting her hand dangle over the side. Warm fingers immediately laced through hers. Luckily, the factory bed was low—letting them hold hands like this.
She smiled, shifting to a more comfortable angle.
Li Jianxi gave her hand a gentle squeeze—a silent reply.
With her two most trusted people nearby, Li Zhi slept more soundly than she had all instance. Though the secret handholding came with a cost:
Her left arm ached like she’d slept on it wrong.
At the washbasin, catching Li Jianxi rubbing his own sore arm, they shared a quiet laugh.
Morning bathed the village in serene beauty. The possessed Uncle Zhang and Aunt Liu devoured breakfast as usual, unharmed but for the dark circles under their hollow eyes.
When the village chief arrived with food and learned the crew would leave tonight, his group grew wistful.
The elderly woman who’d been knitting shoes stole glances at Ning Xue. As Ning Xue stepped aside to make another call, the woman hesitated—then followed.