Chapter Sixteen: The Ticket Office

As the group pressed forward, the temperature continued to drop, and the two girls unconsciously drew closer to Mu Rongxun. Finally, after walking an unknown distance, the scenery around them suddenly changed. They had left the eerie scene behind and found themselves on another street. The air shifted from a biting chill to a stifling heat.

Feeling the waves of heat around them, Xu Ying and Zhang Jiao glanced about nervously. “Did we make it out?” Xu Ying exclaimed, delighted to see a familiar area near the school.

“Is this really Scholar Street?” Zhang Jiao’s face lit up with relief as she recognized the buildings and instinctively hugged Xu Ying beside her.

“We’re out?” Mu Rongxun frowned, far from sharing their joy. Was it truly so easy to cross the realm of ghosts? They hadn’t done anything—how could they have simply walked out?

He immediately pulled up his mission list, where the second main quest still loomed, not marked as completed. He cast a sharp glance around, his eyes narrowing.

“You’re celebrating far too soon,” he interrupted, his voice cold and cutting through the girls’ giddy chatter.

“W-what?” Xu Ying was startled, instinctively wrapping her arms around herself. She’d relied on him when they had no choice, but now that they were out, was he thinking of taking advantage of their vulnerability?

Mu Rongxun’s expression remained indifferent. He merely pointed toward the ground. “Does your school’s street usually have train tracks running through it?”

The girls looked down as he spoke. In the center of the road, a track was laid out. They’d walked Scholar Street near the school countless times and knew it intimately. Who would lay such a track in the middle of a bustling avenue?

Mu Rongxun scrutinized their surroundings. The layout was much like the street before, only that one had been shrouded in a lifeless gloom, as if it were a backdrop in a film. Here, the buildings were just as in reality, only all closed for business. Were it not for the track down the center, even the girls—familiar as they were with the area—might not have noticed anything amiss.

Clearly, this was not the real Scholar Street near Tianhai University.

Though uncertain where they now stood, Mu Rongxun was not one to remain passive. “Look, there’s a ticket booth over there!” Zhang Jiao suddenly exclaimed from the far end of the street.

Mu Rongxun followed her gaze and indeed saw a newly appeared ticket booth that hadn’t been there when he first surveyed the area. Without hesitation, a short sword appeared in his hand as he strode toward it.

“What are you doing?” Xu Ying and Zhang Jiao each grabbed one of his arms.

“Just going to see what’s there,” he replied, shaking off their hands and continuing forward.

“But... it’s so creepy!” Both girls were visibly uneasy. They were only ordinary university students, unaccustomed to such bizarre events. Tonight had shattered the boundaries of their understanding.

“Then why don’t you go check it out yourselves?” Mu Rongxun stopped and turned to face them.

“Uh...” Xu Ying shrank back, intimidated by Mu Rongxun.

“What’s wrong with you?” Zhang Jiao huffed, hands on her hips.

He ignored them and walked on. Zhang Jiao stamped her foot in frustration. She wasn’t unpopular at school and had never been treated like this before. But Xu Ying quickly pulled her aside, whispering a few words to calm her. In the end, they both clenched their teeth and decided to follow. Right now, Mu Rongxun was their only reliable support. At least with a man beside them, they felt a bit braver, even if he appeared just a youth—he certainly looked formidable enough.

The three approached the ticket booth, which was little more than a pavilion painted blue—though the paint was peeling badly, revealing its age. They stood by the booth, facing the ticket window.

Under their watchful eyes, a large, translucent figure slowly materialized within the once-empty booth. Though the apparition was hazy, they could make out the semblance of a ticket seller’s uniform.

Its shape was far from human, bizarre in every way—its head disproportionately large, its body tiny. Xu Ying and Zhang Jiao cowered behind Mu Rongxun.

“Don’t crowd me,” Mu Rongxun muttered with disdain, shaking off their grip on his clothing.

The girls fell silent, too frightened to protest. At that moment, the apparition stirred. Mu Rongxun raised his short sword, ready to strike at the slightest provocation. To his surprise, the specter did not attack. Instead, it lifted a tentacle and pointed to the left.

Yes, the creature’s limbs were not human arms and legs, but tentacles, much like an octopus.

Following the gesture, Mu Rongxun looked to the side. Though the writing was in faded traditional script and difficult to decipher, he managed to piece together the general meaning:

[Welcome to your arrival!]
[Ghost Domain Ticket: Required for train passage. Tickets are divided into short-distance and long-distance. You may only hold one ticket at a time. Either type grants you boarding privileges.]
[Short-Distance Ticket: Takes you to the next stop. Successful arrival earns ten Ghost Domain points. Each ticket costs five points. If you lack points, you may exchange equivalent Paradise Coins.]
[Long-Distance Ticket: Choose your destination freely. Points required depend on the journey. Each ticket costs ten points. Paradise Coins may be used for purchase.]
[Warning: Tickets are non-transferable!]

Beneath the text was a map of the area near Tianhai University, with various colored routes crisscrossing the roads. At present, the meaning of these routes was unclear to them.

“What is this?” Xu Ying mused aloud, her academic prowess shining through as she deciphered the message.

Mu Rongxun, however, did not answer, lost in thought. The situation was growing ever more bizarre. The appearance of the ticket booth and tickets made it clear: the Ghost Domain operated by its own set of rules. This realization was chilling—for it meant the supernatural here moved with the order and discipline of humanity, not as rare, chaotic phenomena. They were confined within the Ghost Domain for now, but should they ever break free, it would spell disaster.