She was scared, but not to death. The key was that these two were just too good-looking. In a world where looks are everything, a handsome face made everything less terrifying, even if this was Final Destination.
Besides, her sixth sense told her the handsome men in black and white meant no harm. They hadn't done anything to her last night.
"You can still see us today, can't you?" Bai Qi asked.
"Isn't that obvious?" Xin Huohuo blurted out, then immediately regretted it so much she wished she were mute.
She didn't know where they came from, whether they were good or evil, or what they wanted. She also remembered how she'd passed right through the handsome man in white yesterday. And considering her room was locked tight, yet they'd appeared out of thin air without a sound… she could only conclude one thing: they weren't human!
In the middle of the night, here she was, Xin Huohuo, with a mummified corpse that could grow and shrink at will, and two non-humans. 'If I'm not crazy, then the world is!'
At the very least, discretion was the better part of valor. She shouldn't have been so reckless.
"It's not an obvious question." Bai Qi wasn't annoyed. "I just wanted to hear you say it yourself. A lot of strange things have been happening lately, so I have to be absolutely sure."
'You guys *are* the strange thing happening to me, okay?!' Xin Huohuo wanted to wail.
"Put this thing away." Mr. Hei nudged Bai Qi with his foot, though he was speaking to Xin Huohuo. "Or do you want me to hold it forever?"
"Me? Are you talking to me? Why are you telling me? Are you saying you want me to take… it… this thing?" Xin Huohuo's eyes widened, on the verge of a complete breakdown.
'Okay, she really didn't want to see the shrunken corpse dangling in front of her, but was this stoic hunk out of his mind? Even if she wanted to take it, how was she supposed to do that? What would she even put this… thing… in?'
"You two Heavenly Masters, please stop joking around, okay?" She was about to cry.
"We're not Heavenly Masters, we're real gods—several ranks higher, you know. Why don't you believe me? Look." Bai Qi struck a POSE. "Ever heard of Black and White Impermanence? The famous Master Xie and Fan Wujiu? That's us! Any person in China who hasn't heard our great names is a total idiot. Come here, let me give you a divine hug." He opened his arms.
For a split second, Xin Huohuo almost actually lunged into his arms.
It couldn't be helped; the two of them were just too handsome. These days in China, a woman's lust... uh, no, her appreciation for masculine beauty had been fully awakened, and she found herself driven by instinct, almost unable to resist. However, she quickly remembered her last "intimate contact" with Mr. Bai, when she'd passed right through his body. A chill immediately ran down her spine, and she managed to keep her wits about her, even in the face of such beauty.
"Alright, real gods. I'm a mere mortal. I can't handle your divine radiance. Please leave this filthy human place quickly, and while you're at it, erase my memory. Thank you." She didn't want to remember any of this.
'If you're human, stay human. Don't cross boundaries, not with your body or your mind. As for that mummified corpse, if they were going to take it, she wished they'd hurry up. From that perspective, they were actually helping her. But weren't all gods like that? They were supposed to help kind-hearted creatures from all realms when they suffered. She had no idea how she had provoked this corpse, but even though she was a bit of a penny-pincher, she was truly innocent.'
"She doesn't believe you," Mr. Hei's cold voice cut in from the side of the bed, twisting the knife.
"Why not?" Bai Qi was stunned. "I'm this handsome. I obviously don't have the face of a liar."
"Just because you're wearing black and white period costumes and are a little good-looking, that makes you gods? You can find extras like that by the handful in Hengdian." 'Though they probably weren't as handsome. In fact, their costumes were usually cringeworthy, and they certainly didn't have the peerless grace of the two men before her.'
But Xin Huohuo's fear, exhaustion, and bewilderment had built up to a breaking point, suddenly turning into irritability. "So what if you can walk through walls? For all I know, you could be sinister Magicians!"
"Well then, how about I show you my long tongue?" Bai Qi cupped his chin with one hand and opened his mouth.
Xin Huohuo was so scared she stumbled back three steps, bumping right into Mr. Hei in the small room.
Although the Black and White Impermanence were underworld bailiffs, as two of the Ten Great Yin Marshals, they were officially enfeoffed gods. Their forms in the Yang Realm were Spiritual Bodies, but with preparation, their Mana could take on a tangible force. So, when Mr. Hei put out an arm to stop her, it landed squarely on Xin Huohuo's waist.
Xin Huohuo clearly felt the strong arm supporting her. Although it was cool and lacked warmth, it was solid and real. It didn't make her feel disgusted, horrified, or nauseated. Because of that, she started to believe Mr. Bai's claims.
Human intuition is a strange thing. When you can't tell fact from fiction, you should ask your heart. Evil things will always make you feel uneasy, while things that are good and righteous will calm you.
"Don't be scared, my tongue isn't actually that long." Bai Qi had been intentionally teasing Xin Huohuo, but seeing how frightened she was, he scratched his face in embarrassment. "Don't believe what you see in TV shows. They make the actors bite down on a torn bicycle inner tube and make my godlike face look so terrifying. Hmph, I'm going to have a talk with those directors one of these days."
"Alright, let's get down to business," Mr. Hei said, seeing his partner was ready to chat all day. He quickly steered the conversation back on topic.
He was very close to Xin Huohuo, so he simply lifted the hand holding the mummified corpse and dangled it in front of her. "But, are you sure you want to leave it out here? My arm's getting sore. Maybe I should just let it go for a bit…"
"Don't!" Xin Huohuo nearly shrieked, losing control.
As Mr. Hei was trying to scare her, the corpse had been hanging lifelessly in his hand. But as it got closer to Xin Huohuo, it suddenly raised its head, opened its mouth, and stretched out its claws as if to bite her. Xin Huohuo didn't dodge in time, and its claws passed right through her shoulder.
'She felt a cold, piercing pain, but her body wasn't physically harmed. So, the corpse was a Spiritual Body too? Was that why it could change size? And was the thing that scared her half to death before just a projection of its true form?'
"Then just put it away," Mr. Hei said, giving Xin Huohuo a disdainful look.
But Xin Huohuo was on the verge of tears. "You keep saying 'put it away, put it away,' but are you really telling *me* to do it? I'm a mortal! I don't have that kind of power, and I have no idea how! Can you just force someone to do the impossible because you're a god? I really can't do it!"
"You may be a mortal, but you have a Divine Artifact," Bai Qi said, sauntering over. He casually put an arm on Xin Huohuo's shoulder, acting like they were old friends.
Xin Huohuo tensed up, her body going rigid. But she quickly realized that nothing was happening, aside from a slight chill.
She gritted her teeth. 'I'll just pretend I'm standing under an air conditioner.' To save money, she hadn't even bothered installing an AC unit in her stuffy little room. She could consider this a form of compensation. Once she'd thrown caution to the wind, she wasn't so scared anymore. She just asked in confusion, "I have a Divine Artifact? Stop kidding around! How come I don't know about it?"
"If you knew, would you try to sell it for money?" Bai Qi teased.
"I'd throw it away!" Xin Huohuo said resolutely. "A gentleman may love wealth, but he obtains it through righteous means. I may love money, but I earn every cent of it through my own hard work. A Divine Artifact or whatever, if I can't handle it, I won't keep it. 'Innocence is a crime when one possesses a treasure'—you two gods have surely heard of that, right? I don't want to die."
"Clever girl," Bai Qi said, tapping Xin Huohuo's forehead. "But don't worry, we'll protect you."
'I don't need your protection. The farther away you are, the better,' Xin Huohuo thought. Out loud, however, she asked, "What is the Divine Artifact?"
"Your phone," Mr. Hei replied, feeling incredibly frustrated.