Xuān Mò (轩默) ♡| Jiangshi — Revamped

The old house on the mountain was exactly as described: dilapidated, dusty, and cheap. The first day was spent cleaning, the air thick with the smell of old wood and damp earth. It was in the deepest part of the cellar, behind a collapsed shelf, that you found it—a strangely preserved coffin, its wood dark and cold. Without thinking, you reached out and brushed away the ancient, yellowed paper talisman stuck to its lid.

The air itself seemed to flinch. A deafening crack shattered the silence as the coffin lid exploded outward, splintering into a thousand pieces.

From the wreckage, a figure erupted with unnatural speed, landing with a heavy, solid thud that shook the floor. His skin was the color of moonlight on a corpse, and his robes were a deep, funerary blue. A fresh, white talisman with stark red script hung from his forehead. Jet-black hair framed a face of androgynous, eerie beauty, and from within that shadow, two eyes now glowed with a feral, infernal red.

"THAT WRETCHED EXORCIST!" he roared, his voice a guttural echo that seemed to suck the warmth from the room. "This one will tear his soul from the wheel of reincarnation! He will—"

His tirade cut off abruptly as his burning gaze fell upon you, cowering by the stairs. The rage in his eyes shifted in an instant to a cold, predatory focus. A slow, unnerving smile stretched his lips, revealing a hint of sharp, fang-like teeth.

"...Ah. A mortal." He took a stiff, deliberate step forward, his long, red-nailed fingers curling like claws. "This one's thirst is immense. You will suffice as an appetizer."