Senior sister, stop working and go home for dinner.

"Boss Li?" Chen Anran was also somewhat surprised. "What's this...?"

"Going back to my hometown!" Fatty Li patted his suitcase, his face beaming with the joy of returning home. "All the formalities are done, and I've handed the shop over to you. I'm ready to return home in glory! I didn't expect to run into you here. Are you also heading out?"

"Okay, back to Lincheng." Chen Anran smiled and paid for the water.

"Lincheng?!" Fatty Li's eyes widened even more, and he clapped his hands excitedly. "Hey! This is just like a lucky coincidence! I'm also going back to Lincheng! We're on the same flight!"

Chen Anran then remembered that Fatty Li's hometown was a county under the jurisdiction of Lincheng, and he had heard Fatty Li mention it briefly during a casual chat before.

"That's quite a coincidence," Chen Anran said, also feeling it was fate. "It seems we'll be traveling together."

"Absolutely!" Fatty Li chuckled. "With Mr. Chen here, I feel much more at ease! You're clearly someone who's destined for great things; your aura is completely different!"

The two chatted for a while at the entrance of the convenience store. Li Pangzi mostly talked about his leisurely life after returning to his hometown, while Chen Anran listened with a smile.

As they were talking, the announcement in the waiting area came on again, but this time the content made all the waiting passengers frown:

"Dear passengers, we regret to inform you that your flight 1213 to Lincheng will be delayed due to weather conditions along the route. The new departure time is scheduled for 23:45. Please wait patiently in the waiting area. Further arrangements will be announced via broadcast..."

Flight delayed!

Chen Anran and Fatty Li exchanged a glance, both seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.

Fatty Li clicked his tongue: "Well, looks like we'll have to wait several more hours. This awful weather..."

Chen Anran looked up at the clear night sky outside the window, her gaze slightly narrowed.

Was it due to weather conditions along the flight route? He recalled Master Shi Haisheng's mention of "ghost flights" and a strange feeling crept into his heart.

He carried the water and said to Fatty Li, "Boss Li, let's go back to our seats and wait. It looks like we'll be staying at the airport a while longer."

"Sigh, that's all we can do." Fatty Li dragged his suitcase and followed Chen Anran back.

Chen Anran returned to her seat and handed the water to Wei Qingyi and Lin Xiaoman, who had also heard about the flight delay.

"Why is it so late?" Wei Qingyi glanced at the time, her brows furrowing slightly.

Lin Xiaoman also said, "Airlines are just that unreliable."

Chen Anran looked out the window at the increasingly deep night.

This time, Chen Anran was smarter. He brought all the exorcism items that Feng Xiaolu had given him, while the peach wood sword and the soul-nourishing shrine were kept in the museum and could be taken out and used at any time.

Chen Anran muttered to himself, "I hope it's just my imagination. After all, Master Shi Haisheng already solved the 'ghost flight' problem."

So the group had a simple dinner at the airport restaurant. The four of them then returned to the waiting room to rest.

Fatty Li seemed particularly excited, pulling Chen Anran aside and telling her many interesting anecdotes he had heard from his travels. With such a mortal among them, Chen Anran and the others couldn't really talk about matters of the cultivation world, mostly just listening and occasionally chiming in.

As time ticked by, the passengers waiting in the departure lounge gradually showed signs of fatigue, and many of them leaned back in their chairs and began to doze off.

"It's already past ten o'clock..." Wei Qingyi glanced at her watch, a hint of weariness creeping into her eyes.

"If you're sleepy, Senior Sister, take a nap." Chen Anran was scrolling through short videos on her phone with her head down. The videos showed strange phenomena occurring in various places due to the revival of spiritual energy.

What does it look like? A pure white cat sits on the wall of an old residential area, its azure eyes gleaming in the night. It looks up at the not-quite-full moon, emitting a strange, low, chanting sound. The poster captioned: "For three days in a row, the cat downstairs has been 'worshipping the moon' on time. It feels like it's about to become a spirit, what should I do? Waiting online, it's urgent."

Or perhaps it's something else entirely. An elderly woman living alone has been using an old iron pot for over ten years, and recently, even without firewood, the water inside has been boiling on its own occasionally. The water has a sweet, refreshing taste, like fine tea. The comments below are all saying it's a blessing from the Kitchen God.

"Tsk tsk tsk..." A chubby head came closer.

While munching on the potato chips he'd bought at the restaurant, Fatty Li stared at the short video on Chen Anran's phone screen. "AI these days is getting more and more amazing! Look at the lighting, the special effects, it's so realistic! And the other day I saw that video of the willow tree dancing, and so many people were saying it was some kind of spiritual revival. Have they been reading too many novels? If you ask me, it's definitely just another marketing gimmick from some tech company, or something an internet celebrity photoshopped for clicks!"

Chen Anran put away his phone and smiled, echoing Li Pangzi's words: "Yes, Boss Li is right. Technology is so advanced now, it's hard to tell the difference between the real and the fake."

Fatty Li rambled on for a few more minutes about his "scientific insights" into various "paranormal videos," before finally settling back into his seat, where he soon began to snore softly.

Time passed slowly, and as it approached 11:30 p.m., the announcement finally came on again, informing them that they could board the plane.

Chen Anran woke up the somewhat drowsy Wei Qingyi and Lin Xiaoman, and then nudged the soundly sleeping Li Pangzi. The four of them followed the flow of people, crossed the jet bridge, and entered the airplane cabin.

This was a medium-sized passenger plane, and Chen Anran and her group were seated in the middle to rear section of economy class. After settling their carry-on luggage, they each took their seats. As soon as Li Pangzi sat down, he leaned against the window and dozed off again. Wei Qingyi and Lin Xiaoman sat in aisle seats, with Chen Anran sitting next to them.

The aircraft doors closed, and the flight attendants began the pre-flight safety demonstration. The cabin lights dimmed, leaving only the faint guide lights under the seats.

Chen Anran watched through the porthole as the airport ground crew vehicles slowly withdrew and the plane began to taxi to the runway. The roar of the engines gradually increased, and the aircraft vibrated slightly.

Everything seemed normal.

The unease he felt from the association with the "ghost flight" gradually subsided.

"It seems I was overthinking it. With Master Shi Haisheng personally handling things, how could there be any lingering issues?" Chen Anran shook his head inwardly, realizing he had been too sensitive. After continuous travel and mental strain, a wave of weariness washed over him amidst the steady hum of the plane.

He adjusted his posture, closed his eyes, and prepared to take a short nap. Wei Qingyi also seemed a little tired, leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes to rest. Lin Xiaoman, on the other hand, nervously gripped her seatbelt, curiously and timidly observing everything inside the cabin.

The plane accelerated on the runway, and with a slight feeling of weightlessness, it smoothly soared into the night sky.