Alice Carter rolled his eyes. “Isn’t that obvious?”

William Clark said, “Do you know what day March 5th is?”

Alice Carter bristled. “How little do you think of me? Isn’t it just Jingzhe! I could recite all twenty-four solar terms by the time I was eight!”

William Clark smiled. “Oh, that’s impressive.”

Alice Carter was about to die of anger from his compliment, his tone icy: “What, is it your birthday tomorrow or something?”

William Clark shook his head. “No, but tomorrow is still an important day.”

Alice Carter: “What is it?”

William Clark asked with a soft laugh, “I have a question. You evil spirits, besides occupying other people’s palaces and feeding on their yang energy, do you have any other ambitions?”

He made it sound as if Alice Carter was a “disgrace to evil spirits.”

Alice Carter refused to fall for his provocation. “I have plenty of ambitions, just not interested in using them on you.”

William Clark nodded. “Oh, so I’m just not that lucky.”

Alice Carter looked at him suspiciously. “What exactly are you trying to do?”

William Clark’s white robe was whiter than snow, his black hair cascading down. When he smiled, his eyes and brows became especially vivid and striking. “Nothing, I’m just very curious about you.”

Alice Carter mocked, “Your curiosity really is different from most people’s.”

William Clark spoke slowly. “I thought you’d be interested in merfolk, so I wanted to invite you to see them with your own eyes tomorrow.”

Alice Carter was stunned, frowning. “See them with my own eyes?”

William Clark’s eyes were beautiful, curving as he smiled, pure black and pure white. “Yes, see them with your own eyes. You can even touch them yourself.”

Alice Carter rolled his eyes. “I can’t touch living things.”

William Clark: “But I can.”

Alice Carter’s mind froze, sparks and lightning burning away his reason. He stiffly looked up, pupils widening as he stared at him.

Candlelight reflected the plum blossoms painted on the screen. William Clark stood beneath the white plums, his smile gentle and elegant, like an orchid or a jade tree.

“What do you mean?” It took Alice Carter a long time to find his words.

William Clark replied calmly, “I’ve found a kind of formation these past few days. It can let you possess my body.”

Alice Carter was dumbfounded, stammering, “Are you crazy?”

He’d never seen anyone begging to be possessed by a ghost.

He was speechless, full of questions—this man really didn’t play by the rules.

All of Alice Carter’s thoughts were basically written on his face.

William Clark understood. “You don’t need to overthink it. You’re just a lonely soul with no attachments. There’s nothing I could possibly want from you.”

Alice Carter looked at him slowly. “You never know.”

He still felt something was off, like a sense of danger. Alice Carter had always had a sharp intuition, besides being indifferent to most things. Although William Clark had been gentle and open with him these past few days, showing vulnerability and sharing his feelings, Alice Carter had never truly trusted or pitied him.

William Clark stared at him for a few seconds, then smiled and said, “Oh, then never mind.”

March 5th, the day of Jingzhe. Spring thunder rolls, all things grow.

Since coming here, Alice Carter had been stuck by William Clark’s side, never stepping out of the Star-Plucking Tower.

On this day, heavy black clouds shrouded the nine-layered palace.

Across ten miles of Xiaoxiang bamboo forest, the pagoda today exuded a strange aura of blood, red mist swirling, drowning out the auspicious purple air, radiating evil.

William Clark changed into a spotless white robe, but seemed a bit unwell.

Alice Carter sat cross-legged on the edge of the top floor, staring in shock at the blood-red light shooting up from the pagoda.

He asked curiously, “Is a great demon about to break out?”

William Clark leaned against a massive red pillar, his black hair like satin, his robe wide and flowing, the crimson lacquer making his features look even paler, exuding a strange chill. “No, it can’t get out.”

Alice Carter: “Then what’s going on?”

William Clark smiled. “Jingzhe is when all things awaken. Besides insects and beasts, monsters and demons also start to stir.”

Alice Carter was learning something new.

William Clark continued, “I gave orders yesterday. They should be bringing up a group of merfolk tonight.”

Alice Carter was stunned, his gaze snapping back to meet William Clark’s eyes, which held a faint, shallow smile.

“Let you see living merfolk.” William Clark paused, then added, “It’s fine if you don’t touch them.”

Alice Carter was speechless, not knowing what to say for a moment.

William Clark really meant what he said.

That night, Alice Carter saw a room full of merfolk. None were purebloods, but each was one in a million in terms of looks.

The merfolk had a distinctive feature: their ears. Pointed, with thin, translucent skin on the lobes and rims, like a piece of jade. There were both males and females, about fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in intricately made, gorgeous red clothes. Their hands and feet were slender and pale, as if they would break with the slightest bend.

They knelt in neat rows in the center of the hall, nervous and uneasy, even their breathing was light.

It was Alice Carter’s first time seeing merfolk. He couldn’t help but look a few more times, and with sharp eyes, noticed that each merperson wore a small tag around their neck with a name written on it, just like merchandise.

“Your Majesty, are these enough?”

It was the same old eunuch, suppressing his fear, asking respectfully.

William Clark sat on the couch, lips curved faintly, saying nothing, but his gaze passed over the crowd to look at Alice Carter.

Alice Carter felt his scalp tingle under that gaze.

William Clark moved his lips, mouthing silently: Come here.