MDZS - In Cinemas Now! Starring WWX and LWJ

Chapter 35 - Grasses

He couldn't help but loosen his hand, yet Wei WuXian saved the oil lamp just as it was about to hit the ground. Calmly brushing it against the burning fire talisman on the other hand, he lit it up and set it onto the table, "Did you make these yourself, Manager? They're quite well-made." The rest finally realized that the people who stood in the room were not real humans, but actually paper mannequins. 

"...just.. just paper mannequins..." 

"Damn, that one got me!" sulked a junior.

"Hahaha, don't worry! We all screamed as well!" Zizhen cheerfully reassured his shivering Ouyang disciple friends

"Speak for yourself, I didn't scream." snapped Jin Ling, crossing his arms haughtily. 

"Yeah, you did, we can all see you on screen right now, you're literally still screaming-" Jingyi's snickers were cut off by Jin Ling's yell of anger.

Sizhui pulled Jingyi out of the fight, shaking his head with amusement. "Shh, Senior Wei's explaining the mannequins!"

The mannequins' heads and bodies were delicately crafted, the same size as those of real people. There were men, women, and even children. All of the men were "Nether Brawlers", crafted with tall, sturdy bodies and angered expressions. All of the women were fair-featured beauties, with hair in either single or double buns. On each mannequin's cheeks, there were two smears of blush in pretense for a living person's rosy complexion. However, none of their pupils had been added yet—the eyes were entirely white. 

"Ew... they look like fierce corpses!"

"Don't be stupid, they're made of paper! Even if they came to life, what's the worst they could do to you, give you a papercut? Hahahaha!"

The juniors glanced at each other and smirked. The rest of the cultivators were about to get a big surprise.

The bolder the blush was, the gloomier they looked. There was another table in the room. On the table, there were a few candlesticks, each a different length than the others. Wei WuXian lit them up one by one, and the yellow light illuminated most corners of the house. Aside from the paper mannequins, there were also two wreaths placed on both sides of the room. Paper gold, ghost money, and pagodas were heaped up beside the walls. Jin Ling already had his sword slightly unsheathed. Seeing that it was only a shop that sold burial goods, he sighed with discreet relief and sheathed his sword again. 

"Hah, I bet you thought no one saw that!" Jingyi teased. "Jin Ling, you're actually a bit of a softie-"

Sizhui sighed and tried to focus on Senior Wei's words over the sounds of his shrieking friends. Where those two got the stamina and energy to be fighting every minute of the day (and night), he had no idea. 

In the cultivational world, even if a cultivator passed away, nobody employed the eerie, chaotic obsequies of the common folk. Since they hadn't seen such things before, after the initial scare, curiosity sprouted from within their hearts. With skin covered in goosebumps, they felt that it was even more exciting than night-hunting ordinary beasts. 

"These kids are sort of cute," commented a cultivator who had grown up as a commoner. "They might have had sheltered lives, but at least they're brave and curious in the face of unknown frights."

"And they're not snobby or rude, like some other older cultivators." added his friend, sending a side glance at the Jin sect. 

No matter how dense the fog was, it couldn't seep into houses. Ever since they entered Yi City, this was the only point in time were they could easily see one another's faces, which set their minds at rest. Wei WuXian saw that they'd relaxed, and asked the old woman again, "Would it be possible for us to borrow your kitchen?"