Before Shi Bingyuan could reach Zhou Huan, he saw Zhou Huan's gloved hand lash out with tremendous force. The targeted individual was instantly sent flying—just another one of the disruptive, stray spirits that Zhou Huan swiftly dealt with, restoring immediate quiet to the area.

Shi Bingyuan was startled by Zhou Huan’s sudden move and turned back to glance at him, bewildered. "Master, among so many wandering spirits, which one is actually here to help us?"

"None of those causing trouble are here to help us!"

"Causing trouble?" Shi Bingyuan looked utterly confused. He glanced down at the two lingering spirits beneath his feet, who were nearly dispersed and now flickering weakly, emitting wisps of smoke despite having no breath. "You two, go back immediately from where you came, don't stir up trouble here, or be careful your souls get extinguished by us."

The two ghosts nodded, their forms seeming to float on the wind before gradually fading and dissipating.

Zhou Huan then called out to Shi Bingyuan, instructing him to gather everyone together, as this would help boost the Yang energy during the night, thereby reducing the likelihood of supernatural occurrences.

"Master, do these psychiatric patients have enough Yang energy?" Shi Bingyuan asked based on common knowledge. Generally, anyone suffering from a major physical ailment or a mental/psychological weakness tends to lack sufficient Yang. That was the basis for his question.

But Zhou Huan’s reply was, "They are sufficient. If we had only a few dozen, it wouldn't do, but with at least one or two thousand people here, that’s enough to give those ghosts a headache. Combined with the lookouts I just summoned, I believe we must resolve this matter tonight. If we don't, tomorrow we can pack up, auction off the Fushou Hall, and go our separate ways. I suspect we'll finally find the mastermind behind all this."

Truthfully, Zhou Huan wasn't entirely certain of the enemy’s nature; it wasn't even clear if he was dealing with a genuine spirit from the netherworld, or perhaps someone with unique skills, or maybe even an entity caught between life and death.

"Master, I'll go prepare the platform right away. I have a feeling we’ll see some results tonight." Shi Bingyuan left Zhang Hong and the young female clerk by Zhou Huan’s side, then rushed to the cars outside to retrieve supplies. He managed to erect the ritual platform single-handedly with a pile of gear in less than half an hour, then invited Zhou Huan onto the stage.

Once on the platform, Zhou Huan declared, "Tonight, you will be my sole protector. Dongzi can’t possibly watch over this many people alone. The only way forward is for you and Dongzi to look after those people; I will handle things here myself."

"Master, can you manage alone? If anything untoward happens, it will be hard to handle." Shi Bingyuan hesitated for a moment. "If this is the case, Master’s safety truly becomes a concern."

"That’s fine, Tianxiong will be here soon enough. Don't worry, I have things under control. Hurry and make the arrangements. Later, bring everyone over to my side; have them stand as close to each other as possible, pressed tightly together."

"Understood, Master, be careful!" Shi Bingyuan and Dongzi went to rally the people. Before long, everyone clustered before Zhou Huan's ritual platform. Some patients tried to rush onto the platform with Zhou Huan, but Dongzi intercepted them.

In reality, while Shi Bingyuan and Dongzi were gathering people, they had already conferred: if Zhou Huan wasn't the central focus, solving this entire issue would be impossible. Therefore, anyone could potentially face trouble, but Zhou Huan absolutely could not be harmed. They had agreed that once everyone was assembled, they would dedicate themselves to watching over Zhou Huan—ostensibly caring for the patients and doctors, but primarily watching their Master.

Zhou Huan sat silently, weaving complex hand seals (shou yin) with one hand while chanting supreme incantations (zhouwen) with his mouth. Various talismans and ritual artifacts were arranged around him, and Zhou Huan had somehow donned his Funeral Master's robe (shoushi fu).

Time crawled by, second by second. After midnight, there was still no reaction. Stars began to pepper the sky, adding bright specks of light to the otherwise quiet heavens.

"Master, it’s so late. Do you think anyone will come? Why don't you go rest for a bit, and I'll keep watch? You've been sitting here almost all night." As Zhou Huan's apprentice, Shi Bingyuan was the most attentive to his master’s well-being. Despite his age, he was excellent at looking after people.

Zhou Huan smiled. "You’ve been with me for so long, handling so many affairs, yet I don't think I've ever let you take the main ritual role. How about this time, I let you lead the ritual, and I will guard you? Does that sound fair?"

"Fair, absolutely fair! I’ve been hoping for a chance like this. Master, you go rest." Shi Bingyuan spoke enthusiastically.

Zhou Huan stood up, and Shi Bingyuan immediately took his place on the platform. He also donned a Funeral Master’s robe, and even took Dongzi’s frog-skin garment, which he disliked, but there was no choice given the nature of the event they had stumbled into.

Zhou Huan first stepped off the platform to find a place inside the building to relieve himself. When he returned to the stage, looking out over the crowd below, he suddenly realized a very serious problem: among all these people, the driver was nowhere to be seen.

"Dongzi, where is that crazy driver from your unit?"

Dongzi blinked, scanned the crowd once more, and couldn't find the deranged driver either. "Master, could he still be in his room?"

"Ah, you two watch Shi Bingyuan carefully while I go find him. He's the most likely to cause trouble, and he's currently afflicted with madness—if the threat doesn't target him, who will it target?" Zhou Huan spoke as he sprinted off the platform, heading directly toward the driver's private room.

Zhou Huan's speed was phenomenal. In moments, he ran past the plaza where the platform was set up and through two wards, arriving at the door of the mad driver’s single room. Zhou Huan pressed against the window and peered inside; the driver was still sound asleep, perhaps having never woken up since arriving here, seemingly in a perpetual state of slumber.

"Hey, buddy, wake up! It's time to come out for a stroll. If you don't come out now, don't ever bother coming out again!" Zhou Huan shouted loudly, trying every trick to rouse him. Strangely, the man wouldn't stir. No matter how Zhou Huan called out or tempted him with news of exciting events, the driver remained fast asleep.

Suddenly, the sound of running footsteps came from behind Zhou Huan. Two doctors hurried over, panting heavily. "Ah, Master Zhou, we finally found the key to this single room! Please step aside, we'll carry him out."

"Don't you keep the keys in a designated place?" Zhou Huan asked, surprised by the facility's management.

The doctors' explanation nearly made Zhou Huan dizzy.

"Master Zhou, it’s not that we don't have keys. This fellow swallowed our commonly used key yesterday. We were hoping he’d pass it today, but unfortunately, he still hasn't woken up. Changing the lock would be too much trouble, so we went back to find the original master key. We finally located it, and now we're here to carry him out." The two doctors explained.

Zhou Huan shook his head. "This fellow really is something, refusing to live like a normal person and insisting on playing the madman, constantly plotting something." Thinking this, he looked at the two doctors, both skinny, realizing they couldn't possibly lift a healthy, full-grown man. "Alright, open the door. I’ll carry the man inside, but you must keep the door propped open, otherwise, I suspect it’s rusted shut."

"Okay, open it!" The two men unlocked the door. Zhou Huan rushed to the driver's side, hoisted the man onto his shoulder, who was still snoring away, with the two doctors offering assistance from behind.

CRASH! A piece of glass shattered from a window on the ward building above and plummeted straight toward Zhou Huan. Zhou Huan dodged with all his might, and in that instant, he felt an immense wave of dark energy wash over him—an energy that wasn't purely Yin, but carried a faint trace of un-death.

Zhou Huan looked toward the iron fence outside in the distance. Two figures were mounted on a single horse, and one of them he recognized very well: it was Hu Tingting!

Why was she here? Could all of this be connected to her? Were these two figures, neither truly ghost nor man, the ones orchestrating everything? A rapid storm of questions surged through Zhou Huan's mind, yet no conclusion presented itself.