Episode Summary
The group takes shelter in a remote mountain temple where a storyteller’s spooky tale about demons begins to mirror reality with the arrival of a mysterious couple. Tensions over a past death cause a fight among the guards, revealing a secret plot to assassinate Su Wuming. The night descends into chaos as one guard disappears after being robbed, another is found hanged, and a third is discovered decapitated in the woods.
Spoiler Alert
A Spooky Story Gets a Little Too Real
This whole episode kicks off in a creepy, rundown temple. The gang is stuck here for the night, listening to a storyteller who calls himself Baize Shanren. He’s telling a classic ghost story. A beautiful female demon pretends to be a lost girl to lure in a scholar. But the scholar is also a demon in disguise. They fight, and a demon hunter shows up to take them both down.
You can tell a lot about the Jinwu Guards by how they react. Huo You looks like he doesn't buy a word of it. Chen He seems more interested in picturing the pretty demon girl. Wei Qi is terrified but also can't stop listening. And then there's Ding Heng. He’s completely stone-faced, as usual.
The Sales Pitch
While the story is going on, a woman named Azi tries to sell everyone some strange-looking dolls. She also has a scroll she calls the "Baize Diagram." She claims it's a super rare artifact from an ancient dynasty. This immediately gets Su Wuming’s attention. He borrows it for a look and says he’ll pay good money if it's the real deal.
Lu Lingfeng starts sorting out the sleeping arrangements in the empty rooms. The jumpy guard, Wei Qi, scurries off to his room right away. Li Nai'er isn't in the mood for stories, so she leaves too.
Life Imitates Art
Just as the storyteller is getting to the good part, a loud scream echoes from outside. Everyone rushes out to check. It turns out to be nothing. Baize Shanren tells everyone to calm down. He says it’s normal to hear wild animals in the mountains. The real trouble would be if the scholar and the girl from his story actually showed up.
And right on cue, a man named Scholar Shi and his wife, Xiao Jiao, walk in. They’re looking for a place to stay for the night. Everyone freezes. After a tense moment, they realize these two are just regular people. Xiao Jiao sees the temple's statue and gets excited. She says they have one just like it at home, and she and her husband immediately start praying. You can see the gears turning in Chen He's head. He’s already got his eyes on Xiao Jiao.
The Plot Thickens
The storyteller continues his tale. In the story, the two demons decide to team up. They kill the demon hunter and run off together. Su Wuming, who knows something about everything, chimes in. He says these demons sound like "Nai Zhong Gui." They are spirits who need to find a human replacement to die in their place so they can live again. The storyteller is seriously impressed with Su Wuming's knowledge.
Su Wuming then asks if the Baize, the mythical creature the mountain is named after, is even real. Baize Shanren gives him the whole legend. An ancient emperor brought them from the sea. A later king used them to clear demons from the mountains. He then left four of them behind to guard the area. The storyteller says they were probably just ancient animals that are now extinct. He even bets his temple that they won't see a Baize.
Li Nai'er Wants Blood
Things are just as tense inside the temple as they are in the ghost stories. Li Nai'er is still furious about her friend Huo Jing's death. She corners Lu Lingfeng and accuses him of protecting Huo You. Lu Lingfeng tells her to stand down. They have orders, and they need to deal with this back in the capital.
Later, Ding Heng and Huo You are walking together. Ding Heng brings up Huo Jing's death again, which is a really bad move. Li Nai'er overhears and flies into a rage, attacking them. During the chaos, Ding Heng actually tries to kill her. Lu Lingfeng has to jump in and stop the fight.
A Secret Mission Comes to Light
Here’s the real kicker. We learn that Ding Heng isn't just being a jerk. He has secret orders from his boss, Yang Xu. His mission is to assassinate Su Wuming. This changes everything.
The Body Count Begins
While all this drama is happening, Wei Qi gets a stupid idea. He wants the glory of finding a Baize. So he wanders off into the woods alone to search for it. You can probably guess how that ends for him.
Back in the temple, Su Wuming decides to buy the "Baize Diagram" scroll. He's clearly obsessed with it. At the same time, Chen He makes his move on Xiao Jiao. He gets her drunk, and they start flirting right in front of everyone. Su Wuming is disgusted by the scene and goes back to his room.
A Thief and a Disappearance
It was all a setup. Scholar Shi pretends to pass out drunk. Chen He then carries a willing Xiao Jiao off to his room. Later that night, Shi and Xiao Jiao try to sneak out of the temple. But Lu Lingfeng is waiting for them. He figured out their game. They're a team of thieves who use Xiao Jiao to drug and rob men. Lu Lingfeng gets Chen He's money back, but there’s a new problem. Chen He is gone. His room is empty.
Two More Down
The next morning is even worse. The group finds Lingji, Li Nai'er's quiet companion, hanging from the rafters in his room. Su Wuming inspects the body. He finds no signs of a struggle and declares it a suicide. Li Nai'er is devastated and asks for help burying him.
Just as they finish making a small grave marker for Lingji, they hear a scream from the forest. It's Ding Heng. They run toward the sound. They find him dead. His head has been cut completely off.
