The poem goes:

Life is a play, divided only into watching and participating. Those who watch the play will never be able to get into it, and those who participate will ultimately be defeated.

Right and wrong are hard to judge! Good and evil are hard to determine! In the end, the struggle is only mutually devastating. All I want is to breathe, to have a clear conscience!

Since the gods disappeared, at some unknown time, ghosts and monsters have appeared on the earth, preying on humans. Over the years, demonic shadows roam the world, and vengeful spirits intertwine.

In the struggle against ghosts and monsters, some, drawing on the divine power left within the gods, gain insight into the mysteries of heaven, cultivating mysterious techniques and all-encompassing souls. They then exorcise evil spirits, slaying demons and monsters, and are revered as Yin-Yang Masters.

Soon, the ghosts and monsters return to the ghost world, and the Yin-Yang Masters reside in the Yin-Yang realm. Those who have not cultivated souls and techniques reside in the human world, and order is restored to the world. The peace didn't last long. Fearless ghosts began to lurk into the mortal world, prompting the Yin-Yang Realm to send Yin-Yang Masters to the human world, tasked with exorcising them to this day.

Zhang Shi became an Yin-Yang Master that summer.

He had just passed a crucial crossroads in his life: the college entrance exam.

In three months, he would be a freshman, but before he could savor the scenery on his path, another crossroads quietly approached.

If I remember correctly, it all began the day he received his university acceptance letter.

The delivery guy confirmed Zhang Shi's identity and handed him the letter, "Open it and take a look. If everything looks good, please sign for it and give me a good review."

Zhang Shi pulled out a stack of papers. After confirming his identity, but before he could give his review, he noticed a corner of one sheet that looked distinctly different from the others.

Before he pulled it out, Zhang Shi felt something was off as his fingers touched it.

At the very top, written in large, square characters, was the message: "Acceptance Letter." The next line of words startled him: "Welcome to become an Onmyoji..."

"Will you sign for it?" the delivery guy asked at the perfect moment.

Zhang Shi looked up at him. He had been so caught up in the excitement of receiving the letter that he hadn't recognized him carefully. Sure enough, this wasn't the usual delivery guy from the same company. He was just wearing a work uniform. Who was this guy? What was he up to?

Zhang Shi waved the acceptance letter from the Yin-Yang world in his hand. "What's this? A prank?"

The delivery guy smiled and said, "You know what I mean. I hope to get the answer I want."

Without waiting for Zhang Shi's reply, the delivery guy suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a single sentence: "You can think about it."

Zhang Shi didn't turn back, but walked directly to the nearest trash can, ready to discard this strange letter.

His hand was almost outstretched, and on the verge of letting go, Zhang Shi hesitated for the first time. After a moment's thought, he finally pulled his hand back.

For the next few days, Zhang Shi waited for the guy to come, but he seemed in no hurry and never "came to visit." Since they weren't anxious, what was there for him to worry about? He'd just deal with it.

So, Zhang Shi began to enjoy his long summer vacation.

That evening, Zhang Shi was passing a park on his way home when he saw two children happily playing on a slide. However, there wasn't a single adult around.

Zhang Shi paused and looked around again. Indeed, there were only these two little ones. It was clear that the parents were incredibly generous, and the children were incredibly brave.

After all, six or seven-year-olds had something to play with and friends their own age—that was enough fun. As long as they didn't start fighting, they'd be able to keep playing.

As expected, the girl who had slid down the slide hadn't even gotten up when the boy following closely behind her came down. His tiny feet slammed into the girl's back, sending her into tears. With a cry of pain, tears streamed down her face.

Still seeing no one nearby, Zhang Shi sighed and trotted over. Running up to the girl, Zhang Shi squatted down and coaxed her, "Don't cry, don't cry. You'll only make yourself look ugly if you cry. How can such a beautiful girl cry? Tell me what happened. I'll help you."

"Okay!" The girl's voice suddenly changed, no longer childish. Her eyes glared fiercely, and she opened her mouth to bite, as if Zhang Shi was the culprit.

Zhang Shi quickly reached out from his pocket and pressed forward, placing a talisman on the girl's exposed fangs.

The talisman emitted a chilling aura on the girl's fangs, visibly freezing them.

This was clearly more painful than the boy's tiny feet rubbing against her back, but this time the girl was stubborn and didn't cry or shed a single tear.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Who bullied you? Be good and tell me, and I'll help you get revenge," Zhang Shi asked, his eyes fixed on the boy, whose tiny feet were still pressing on her back. The girl's fangs were frozen, but the guy was crouching right in front of her, holding a talisman. If she moved, he'd be able to restrain her with just a stretch of his hand. She was hoping the boy would take the initiative.

It wasn't that the boy didn't want to move, but he simply couldn't. The guy stared at him, implicitly promising that if he moved, the talisman would be his. Who knew he might have more talismans in his pocket?

Zhang Shi waved the talisman in his hand, intentionally or not. "Since she won't talk, you're the only one who can do it. Tell me who you are."

"Why don't you put up a fight? I'm ready to fight this guy to the death. Am I really going to listen to him? What will happen then..." the girl didn't dare to think about it.

As expected, the moment the boy spoke, the girl internally grumbled. She knew this timid guy couldn't stand the intimidation; otherwise, she wouldn't have been the first to fall down the slide.

"Sigh, why don't you just pause for a moment? Why wait for each question he asks before answering? Uh, big brother, don't tell him everything. He won't know if what you're saying is true or not." After a while, the boy confessed everything.

He had been wandering the streets since he could remember. At an intersection, he saved a girl who had nearly been hit by a car. She was dazed at the time, and Zhang Shi, worried about her safety, had to follow her closely. From then on, they wandered together, feeling a sense of sympathy.

In the girl's words, the boy was alone, timid, and unable to find a companion. When he finally ran into her, he desperately clung to her, even inseparable.

After he finished, the boy, though frightened, asked a curious question, "Why can't others see us, but my brother can?"

Zhang Shi almost said it, but changed his words, "You're in a deep sleep."

Sleep is a minor death, deep sleep is a major death, and after death, people become ghosts.

Yes, they were ghosts, ghosts that shouldn't be in the human world.

Ghosts are the souls that leave the body after death, following the instinct of knowing after death and heading to the underworld. The two exchanged glances, clearly unsure of what he meant.

The boy hesitated, "So, when will he wake up?"

"Nowhere to go? You can stay at my house for now," Zhang Shi replied, irrelevant to the question.

Feeling the boy was taking too long to speak, the girl, already slurring her words, asked, "Anything delicious? Anything fun?"

Perhaps feeling the question was inappropriate, and the days spent with the boy were incredibly boring, the girl hastily corrected herself, "It's okay, it's okay. We're not picky. As long as we have somewhere to go, it's fine."

Then, as if afraid he'd change his mind, the girl turned to the boy and asked, "Right, right? Let's go to the good brother's house."

With that, the girl's previous fierce expression faded, and she chuckled. If it weren't for the ice on her upper teeth, she might have been even more playful and adorable. However, her hidden hand pinched the boy again, because he was really holding back and hadn't given her a satisfactory answer. Zhang Shi didn't care whether she truly believed that or not. He casually peeled off the talisman stuck to her fangs and said, "Just kidding, leaving."

Although the girl was a bit bolder, she still stared at Zhang Shi, who had just left, bewildered and confused, just like the boy.

Don't eat anything given to you by strangers.

As for the reason, would you give food to a stranger for no reason?

Unless the ulterior motive is ulterior motive.

Similarly, what good could come of a stranger approaching you for no reason?

So, when Zhang Shi approached, the girl opened her mouth to bite him—it was a subconscious defense. She wasn't afraid of biting the wrong person, she was afraid of missing him.

However, he seemed to have some magical powers. Once he stuck a piece of paper on her teeth, they froze. Seeing that he still had another piece of paper in his hand, she didn't dare move again, and was even more frightened. It was strange that the man just casually asked and then left. Actually, I don't know what the boy was thinking when he said he could go to his house for a while, but she was a little moved. Otherwise, she wouldn't have said the awkward phrase "good brother"—after all, she'd never called him that before.

"Do you think we should follow him?"

When the girl came to her senses, the boy was already standing in front of her, pointing his little finger at Zhang Shi.

The girl retorted, "Do you think he's a good person?"

After hearing this, the boy began to think seriously.

Before the boy could answer, the girl stood up and answered firmly, "He's probably not a bad person."

The boy nodded.

Then, the boy and the girl ran after the receding figure.

As they approached, the boy breathlessly called out, "Wait a minute, good brother, we're going to your house."

Zhang Shi turned around and waited for the two little ones to finally catch up before confirming, "Have you decided?"

The girl chuckled, "Not really. I'll just listen to you, brother."

That day, two little guests came to Zhang Shi's house. Aside from a few days of awkwardness, the little guests felt like they were home, gradually becoming more comfortable.

Since they hadn't spoken out at first, Zhang Shi wasn't going to reveal the fact they were ghosts, at least not yet.

Today was Zhang Shi's birthday.

The two little ones, who had been living and eating for free for days, felt a little embarrassed. Now that they knew it was Zhang Shi's birthday, they had been saying "Happy Birthday, Brother" and similar greetings countless times since morning.

The dinner was sumptuous, with just enough space for three. The two little ones had been eager to join in, but since this wasn't their home, they waited obediently for dinner.

"We're almost ready to eat. Aren't you happy?" The girl's lips curled slightly, clearly delighted, especially at the thought of cake.

"Yeah," the boy replied with a smile. "I'll go get Brother."

With that, he ran off to fetch someone.

The boy, walking back, glanced at the table. There were only three seats, and he felt even more disappointed. After Zhang Shi finished his video chat with his parents, he came out and saw that the two little ones weren't sitting on the dining stool. They must have been waiting for him. So, Zhang Shi called out, "It's time for dinner." The girl replied, "Brother, I'm not hungry yet. You guys eat first." The boy quickly replied, "I'm not hungry either." Zhang Shi was a little surprised that the two little ones weren't hungry. "I can't finish such a big cake by myself." "Aren't your parents with you for your birthday? The three of you should be able to finish it," the girl asked. But she was thinking, maybe there might still be some cake left, so she could have some too. "They're on a trip and haven't come back yet..." Zhang Shi, who had just sat down and hadn't finished his words, was startled when the two little ones ran over and sat down with him. "I think we could eat a little more. I heard cake doesn't taste good the next day, right?" The girl finally looked at the boy. "Yeah," the boy nodded vigorously. Zhang Shi understood. It wasn't that they weren't hungry, but that they were thinking that his birthday would be with his parents, so it wouldn't be appropriate for them to be there. "Then eat as much as you can, and it's best if there's nothing left."

Halfway through his meal, and before he'd even opened the cake, Zhang Shi felt a sudden pang of fear.

Before he could cut the cake, he nearly lost his balance and dropped it.

As they ate, the boy and girl happily spread the cream on the cake. Seeing Zhang Shi's absent-mindedness, they lost interest in making any more noise, assuming it was because his parents weren't home for his birthday.

The boy's smile suddenly faltered, and at the same time, a strange sound came from outside.