Folklore Games: Keep the Living Away

Zhou Yan, a living person.

Yuanxu, a game for the living.

It was only natural for Zhou Yan to play Yuanxu.

Little by little, he discovered that his in-game character was becoming more and more lifelike, while his real self was slowly dying.

And that wasn't the only change.

Paper figures knocked on doors in the dead of night. Yin gods walked beneath the sunlight. Sedan-chair bearers carried a bridal sedan to marry a mountain spirit.

Ghosts clouded people's vision, little demons devoured hearts, ghost soldiers marched through the streets, corpse drivers crossed mountain passes, painted skins replaced bones, and Nuo opera invoked the gods...

The supernatural events in the game were also unfolding in reality.

The game was coming to life, while reality was gradually dying.

To stop the resurgence of the uncanny, Zhou Yan decided to fight death with death. He learned an ancient method for using secluded caves to suppress ghosts, turning his body into a tomb and containing ghostly energy within himself to subdue evil spirits.

He had to stay alive at all times to keep the dense ghostly energy inside him under control. Otherwise, he would become the greatest evil in the world.

Zhou Yan is a living person. He always has been.