Erjiu

The name the patched-robed Daoist uses for Li Huowang. It may be a mishearing or deliberate mockery, possibly related to Li Huowang’s alias or lack of a formal title in this context.

Definition

The name the patched-robed Daoist uses for Li Huowang. It may be a mishearing or deliberate mockery, possibly related to Li Huowang’s alias or lack of a formal title in this context.

Story context

Get ready for a serious mood whiplash, folks. After the grotesque body-horror of the last few chapters, we finally get a *victory*. The ghost is dead, Pi County is saved, and the people are throwing a party big enough to wake the dead—which, given this world, is probably not a great idea. Li Huowang is treated as a hero. Banners wave, firecrackers pop, and everyone’s stuffing their faces at the finest restaurant in town. But of course, this is *Dao-Twisted World*, so the celebration is only skin-deep. While kids chase dragons and old men get drunk, there are still courtyards with green couplets and weeping families. And Li Huowang isn’t relaxing. He’s got one last piece of grim business to handle: a quiet visit to the mortuary, where a certain corpse isn’t quite as dead as advertised.

Why it matters

This chapter is a masterclass in tonal contrast—and it’s exactly why I love this novel. You get this huge cathartic release, this “happy ending” vibe where the people finally cheer and the hero gets his due. But the author never lets you settle. The moment you see the green couplets, you remember the cost. The moment the food hits the table, Li Huowang is already walking toward the cold dead bodies. And then, bam—the corpse opens its eyes and introduces a brand-new power player. The **Supervisory Heavenly Office** is a major new piece on the board, and Li Huowang, who’s been flying blind and scraping by on guts and luck, just got himself a live line into the empire’s occult intelligence. The best part? He didn’t stumble into it. He planned this conversation. He faked the exorcism of a “lingering ghost” to get a private audience with a dead man he suspected wasn’t dead. That’s some *cold*, strategic thinking. Also, note how Li Huowang uses the alias “Erjiu” from the Ao-Jing Sect. The boy is building a network of lies that spans multiple secret societies. Get ready—the info war just went national.