The Spirit Bride

This is the Chinese version of 'Ghosts and Lovers'. Zhan Hui is a scholar who roams widely. One night, while staying in a dilapidated temple in Hubei, he encounters a strange wedding procession. Zhan Hui is shocked to see that the bride resembles a celestial being, but she tearfully begs for his help from inside the sedan chair. At that moment, lightning strikes and a fierce wind rises, as the Ghost King appears to abduct the bride. A heroic figure, Xue San, then arrives to battle the Ghost King. Zhan Hui picks up an ancient sword from Xue San and collects the bones scattered on the ground into a jar before leaving. Upon waking, Zhan Hui doubts whether he has had a strange dream. The next day, he checks into an inn, where the innkeeper's wife keeps pestering him. Suddenly, a woman enters, who turns out to be the bride from the previous night, calling herself Xiao Cui. She comes to repay her life-saving grace. However, by morning, the beautiful figure has disappeared. When Zhan Hui goes out to visit a friend, he encounters Xiao Cui and her maid again, but she treats him like a stranger, leaving Zhan Hui confused and suspicious. Later, he learns that this woman is the youngest daughter of his friend Wei Shu, named Xiao Shu, which adds to his bewilderment. That night, Xiao Cui appears again, revealing that Xiao Shu is her sister. She explains that she has already become a ghost. The Ghost King desires her beauty and wants to prevent her from being reincarnated forever. Zhan Hui wishes to help Xiao Cui be reborn and earnestly seeks the Taoist priest of Wu Youguan to perform a ritual, but the success of the ritual requires the blood relatives of Xiao Cui. Despite her parents' objections, Xiao Shu collaborates with Zhan Hui to overcome the difficulties. They collect Xiao Cui's ashes and the Taoist priest performs a ritual for her ascension...