Mountain Ghost Money

[Picking this back up. I'll resume updates after the whole story is finished.]

Before Shiluo entered Jiuyi to become a mountain spirit, she had once been human for eight years.

She didn't believe human nature was inherently good. She didn't seek the Buddha's compassion, and she disliked so-called gentlemen of virtue. In short, she had no love for the human world and no wish to be part of it.

Shiluo never imagined that, on one chance trip down the mountain, she would meet such a pitifully foolish monster.

He was a court official, yet lived in utter poverty. Imprisoned in Zhongnan for ten years because of his identity, he had never even been recorded in his family's genealogy. He held fast to his principles, though it meant spending his whole life unable to bear bright light and going blind after nightfall.

Other than his noble and refined bearing, he had almost nothing.

Unlike her, who stubbornly insisted she was a monster, he truly considered himself human, and he truly still loved the human world.

Shiluo didn't understand Shanglu, just as she didn't understand the human world.

That is, until an accident revealed that Jiuyi's formation had fallen into disrepair over the years, and a slumbering great demon awoke and entered the world. Shiluo and Shanglu joined hands to venture among humans and track down the escaped monsters.

A little pen spirit searches desperately for his missing elder brother. His brother once set out with a paintbrush in hand, hoping to heal the sick and save lives, but became hopelessly entangled in the emotional struggles of a married couple. Will anyone believe his promise of undying devotion to painting?

The widowed Marquis of Luoning returns to her hometown, still unable to forget the green-clad fox she loved before her marriage. Were they teacher and student, or lovers? Was she seeking love for an outward appearance, or a love that transcended appearances?

Countless tangled stories of humans and monsters unfold, each with its own twists and turns. After going through it all, Shiluo finally returns to that winter day when she was still human.

Life has its fate, and the world is ever-changing. How fortunate that this time, before our heads are covered in frost and snow, I have you by my side to see the human world.

*An alternate-history Tang dynasty tale of the strange and supernatural, full of ghosts and monsters. Each volume features a story of a human and a monster. Beyond the main plot, there are eight stories in total, including the leads' pasts. Romance and plot unfold side by side, and the pace is slower at first.

Theme: The righteous path through life is one of hardship