I am a mountain guide.

During the day, I patrol the mountains, gather herbs, and serve as a guide for travelers. At night, I dispel dark energy and lead wandering spirits to their rest.

That evening, I set out as usual, carrying my eternal lantern and a burlap sack full of spirit money.

Along the trail, I saw two men and two women heading deeper into the wilderness with livestreaming equipment strapped to their backs.

When they noticed the guide badge on my chest, they insisted I lead them.

Seeing the daylight fading fast, I urged them to head back down.

The man in front looked arrogant, and without warning, spat right in my face.

“We’re a famous livestream adventure team,” he sneered. “One night’s broadcast earns us over a hundred thousand dollars. You going to pay us back for that if we lose it?”

The other three folded their arms and watched the scene with amusement.

I tightened my grip on the sack. Sure, I had that kind of money — but it was meant to be burned for the dead.

The mountain wind grew colder, the darkness creeping in.

When I still refused to guide them deeper, the man in front became more agitated.

“Do you know who I am? My family owns the largest influencer incubator in New York City!”

The blond-haired man beside him jabbed a finger at me. “His family’s the richest in the city. People line up just to work with them. You’d better cooperate and lead the way.”

Ryan Brooks snorted through his nose, pulled out his wallet, and flung a few hundred-dollar bills at my face.

“Hurry up. Don’t delay our stream.”

“Being needed by us is your privilege.”

My heart sank. I had really run into trouble this time.

They were dead set on going into the deep forest — far too dangerous. My only option was to guide them in a roundabout way, back down the mountain.

The moon had not yet risen; there was still time before the spirit guiding ritual.

The trail here was rocky and treacherous, harder to walk with each passing minute.

I walked ahead, leading the way, while they followed behind with their phones, broadcasting live.

This mountain was called Shadow Pass Mountain, said in legends to be a crucial crossing for spirits on the River Styx Path. Online stories made it sound even more mystical.

They chatted excitedly about the scenery and how they planned to camp deep in the Redwood National Forest overnight, urging their viewers to send them virtual gifts.

My scalp prickled. I should have checked the timing before leaving home today — fate had cursed me with running into them.

We kept walking until they suddenly stopped.

The sound of the livestream cut off.

Puzzled, I turned back.

Without warning, Ryan slapped me across the face.

“I’ve never hit a woman before, but you’ve gone too far! I asked you to take us up the mountain, and you’re leading us down instead!”

I hadn’t seen it coming. My vision flashed with stars, my cheek burned, and my sack flew from my hands.

The spirit money scattered across the ground.

My head was spinning. I braced myself against a tree, taking a moment to steady my breath.

“This place… is dangerous at night. I’m doing this for your safety!”

Ryan mocked me. “Dangerous? And yet you, a lone woman, think it’s safe to wander here at night?”

Jake Miller picked up some of the spirit money, clicking his tongue.

“This woman’s weird — carrying spirit money up the mountain.”

Before I could reply, the two women stepped forward and searched me.

They found my guide badge — No. 001.

The four of them examined it, eventually finding a listing for a company called Mountain Supply Co.

When I tried to snatch it back, they shoved me hard to the ground.

Ryan, furious, ground his heel into my palm.

“In all my life, I’ve never met anyone who dared disrespect me like this!”

He pressed harder until blood seeped out before stepping back.

Emily Carter, the red-haired girl, clung to Ryan’s arm, chewing gum.

“A hillbilly like you doesn’t know your place. Serves you right.”

My palm was numb from the pressure, small stones embedded in the skin, blood still oozing.

Cold sweat dripped from my forehead.

But thinking of the importance of tonight’s spirit guiding ritual, I didn’t want to make the situation worse. I gritted my teeth and endured.

It took me a long while to steady myself.

Shakily, I bent down to pick up the scattered spirit money, explaining to them,

“When you live by the mountains, you rely on them. I work here as a guide and gather some goods, and sometimes I burn spirit money for the dead in these hills.”

Hearing that, they became even more excited.

“Then we have to go deeper. With a local leading us, this is going to be even better!” Ryan Brooks said, tossing my guide badge back to me.

My heart sank again.

I had miscalculated — I’d hoped to scare them off.

In the mountains, time slips away quickly.

The moon was already brushing the treetops, the air alive with the sound of crickets and night birds.

The moment for the ritual was almost here. Before I left, Master Daniel had warned me not to miss it — the spirits coming tonight carried particularly strong dark energy, and I’d need to burn extra offerings.

I hesitated, wondering if I should just leave them here. We were close to the foot of the mountain; they wouldn’t be in much danger.

But before I could decide, Ryan suddenly snatched the eternal lantern from my hands and headed straight toward the deeper forest.

The other three followed him, laughing.

Panic shot through me.

“That’s not something just anyone can handle — give it back, now!”

I swung the sack over my shoulder and jogged after them, trying to reclaim it.

Ryan refused, tossing it to Jake Miller, who then tossed it to Emily Carter. The four of them began throwing it back and forth like a game.

I was left running in circles between them, begging each in turn, like a dog chasing scraps.

When Ryan grew tired of playing, he threw it high into the air. The eternal lantern crashed to the ground, shattering into glowing shards.

My heart clenched in horror — this was a disaster.

Without the eternal lantern, I couldn’t break through the veil of dark energy, and they would soon be haunted by restless spirits.

The shards glimmered faintly, then began to fade.

I bit my finger and crouched, trying to gather them, but my injured left hand was useless.

I could only watch as the pieces sank into the soil and vanished.

Clenching my jaw, I glared at Ryan.

“You’ve just caused a catastrophe. Keep this up, and you’ll all die.”

Ryan raised an eyebrow, smirking.

He kicked me to the ground and gripped my chin.

“You’ve really pushed me this time. No one has ever told me ‘no’ this many times in a row, let alone threatened me.”

He gestured, and the two women closed in.

I backed away quickly, only for Jake to block my path.

“What are you doing? Get away from me! Stay back!”

The women exchanged a knowing smile.

They yanked off my shoes and socks, stripped away my jacket, and tossed it over the cliff’s edge.

Ryan crossed his arms, grinning with malice.

“Just a little punishment. Defy me again, and I’ll strip you bare and make you run down the trail like that.”

I clenched my guide badge in my fist, glancing at the moon overhead — already high in the sky. The time for the ritual was nearly here, and my chest felt heavy with despair.

Jake gave me a hard shove.

“Stop standing there like an idiot. When you had the chance to guide us properly, you didn’t. Now look — barefoot on a mountain trail. You asked for it.”

It seemed I had no choice now but to take them along while I worked.

The deeper we went, the quieter it became, until even the sound of our breathing was sharp in the still air.

Without my jacket, the chill cut deep. I gripped the sack on my back more tightly.

The forest was growing darker, and without the eternal lantern, the veil of dark energy was thickening all around us.

I walked in front, guiding the way, murmuring incantations to dispel the veil of dark energy. Behind me, the four of them chatted and laughed, their flashlights sweeping the forest, completely unaware of the danger surrounding them.

The moon climbed higher until it hung over the treetops.

A chilling wind swept through the mountains.

Ryan Brooks, irritated by my slow pace, went out of his way to find a branch covered in thorns and lashed my back with it.

The pain burned hot, my shirt tearing under the strike.

The trail was covered with sharp stones; my bare feet were already bloody, and I could barely walk straight.

“Hurry up,” he barked. “My livestream’s already running thirty minutes late. You owe me at least fifty, sixty grand now!”

I regretted not learning more self-defense from Master Daniel. I had assumed I’d rarely deal with hostile people, but now I saw how wrong I’d been.

I could feel the currents of air shifting around me — the time for the spirit guiding ritual had come.

With no choice, I stopped, knelt respectfully, and bowed to the ground. From my sack, I took out spirit money and cast it into the air.

The paper drifted upward, transforming into golden light before vanishing.

Ryan and the others watched, laughing so hard they could barely stand.

They even pulled out their phones to film.

I didn’t care — they wouldn’t capture anything on camera. Even if they did, it would just look like empty darkness.

I continued leading the way, scattering more spirit money as we went.

Seeing they’d stopped causing trouble, I felt my tension ease.

But after we turned down a few narrow paths, Ryan called for a stop. He and the others said they’d found the perfect spot to set up camp for the night.

My chest tightened.

This area was too low-lying — a place where dark energy pooled. Staying here for long would be dangerous, and I doubted I could handle it alone.

I spoke carefully.

“This spot is low ground. We should find somewhere else.”

Ryan cracked the branch against me again.

“Shut up.”

The blow made me flinch, and I stumbled to the ground.

The spirit money scattered once more.

Ignoring me, they busied themselves setting up their livestream equipment.

Bright lights flared, forcing me to close my eyes.

When I opened them again, I saw the dark energy already drifting toward them, the veil creeping closer.

The forest around us was illuminated, revealing several shadowy pits in the ground. Under the cover of leaves, they looked especially ominous.

The burning pain in my back was a constant reminder of their cruelty toward me.

For a moment, I thought, Let them face the consequences themselves.

But I was a practitioner. Letting someone die when I could prevent it would damage my spiritual merit — and Master Daniel would never forgive that.

So I forced myself to try again.

“This place is dangerous. Please, let’s move somewhere else.”

Ryan’s hands stilled. He frowned and slowly stepped toward me.

“Are you itching for another beating?”

I had no choice but to reveal part of the truth.

“I’m a practitioner. I can see things… and this place is truly dangerous.”

Jake Miller burst into loud laughter.

“This woman must be crazy! She’s been acting weird all night — probably escaped from a psych ward.”

Emily Carter clapped her hands mockingly.

“Yeah, maybe that ‘Guide 001’ badge she has is actually a patient number!”

With that, the four of them exchanged looks and began closing in on me, their expressions turning sinister.

I swallowed hard, backing away step by step.

“What are you doing? Don’t do anything stupid. I really am a practitioner!”