“Why did you…” Jiang Luo said with difficulty, “tie them up?”
The malicious ghost’s voice was gentle. “Because they couldn’t heal you.”
He lifted Jiang Luo’s face, dropping a kiss at the corner of his mouth. His tongue flicked out to take away the remaining blood there. “Because they let you get hurt on their turf.”
The ghostly markings writhed on his face. At such close range, they looked almost alive—terrifying to behold, yet impossible to look away from. Though grotesque and menacing, on Chi You’s face they had an oddly mesmerizing allure after a while.
Jiang Luo felt a chill. He glanced toward the Lian family members hanging in the hall—Ji Yaozi wasn’t among them.
His head throbbed, the pain physical and mental. “What’s happening to my body?”
“Too much power. It’s crushing your flesh and bones,” Chi You said mildly. “But don’t worry, the Lian family are witch doctors. They’ll find a way to fix you, won’t they?”
He let out a low chuckle. Teng Bi and Huali suddenly appeared at the end of the corridor, holding water hoses. They turned the jets on the unconscious Lian family members.
Teng Bi moved stiffly. Of course, he had no pity for humans—he was just afraid Jiang Luo would show disgust when looking at him.
The Lian family members were doused awake one by one. Closest to Jiang Luo, Daoist Elder Wei He coughed and raised his head with difficulty. He looked utterly wretched, his face streaked with blood, white beard clumped and tangled, eyes bloodshot.
The others were in worse shape than he was. Jiang Luo saw Lian Xue’s face flushed red, unmoved by the cold water—she seemed to have fallen into a deep coma.
The stench of blood in the corridor thickened. Water flowed from their bodies, soaking the floor, staining it a dark, blood-like hue.
The ceiling was low, the suffocating space inducing a psychological pressure that made it hard to breathe, weakening mental defenses. Some of the conscious Lian family members began to sob quietly. The crying spread, infecting the younger ones who had never been through anything like this, and they too began to whimper.
Chi You’s expression didn’t change. He continued licking the blood from Jiang Luo’s lips. Jiang Luo swallowed hard and met Daoist Elder Wei He’s gaze.
The look in the Daoist’s eyes was complicated—but, unexpectedly, there was no hatred. Only a mixture of sorrow and resignation.
Noticing Jiang Luo’s distraction, the malicious ghost followed his gaze to Daoist Elder Wei He. Suddenly smiling, he carried Jiang Luo over and politely said, “Daoist, have you figured out how to treat him yet?”
Daoist Elder Wei He panted heavily, then replied with effort, “I need to take his pulse.”
Chi You glanced at Huali.
Huali stepped forward, extended a claw, and lightly dragged a sharp nail across the iron shackle on Daoist Elder Wei He’s right hand. The iron ring instantly snapped in two.
The malicious ghost handed Jiang Luo’s wrist—still wrapped in the blanket—over to Daoist Elder Wei He.
No one knew how long Daoist Elder Wei He had been hanging there. The marks on his wrists were swollen and purple from congested blood. His hand trembled from prolonged poor circulation, and even as it fell onto Jiang Luo’s wrist, it wouldn’t stop shaking.
Daoist Elder Wei He quietly took Jiang Luo’s pulse. His expression kept shifting, and his trembling fingers became even more pronounced, nearly unable to maintain contact with the pulse point.
The malicious ghost watched the movements of his fingers, then smiled pleasantly and politely asked, “Daoist Elder Wei He, what did you find?”
Daoist Elder Wei He opened his mouth, gritted his teeth, and said, “I can’t treat him.”
The malicious ghost’s expression didn’t change. He drew out a long “Oh,” and said considerately, “That’s all right. You are, after all, my elder. I heard of your name even when I was still alive—I’ve always respected you. If you can’t diagnose it now, that’s fine. I trust your abilities. Even if you can’t figure it out now, I’m sure you’ll come up with a treatment later.”
With that, Chi You gave a faint smile, nodded at Daoist Elder Wei He, and moved on to the next person.
Daoist Elder Wei He hadn’t expected such a reaction. He stared at Chi You, full of suspicion and disbelief that he would be let off so easily.
Next to Daoist Elder Wei He was Lian Qiang. The malicious ghost also raised Jiang Luo’s arm again. “Your turn.”
Lian Qiang’s eyes were dark with exhaustion, his face haggard. After Huali freed one of his hands, he reached out and checked Jiang Luo’s pulse. Gradually, his expression turned pale. He glanced fearfully at Chi You, then at Jiang Luo. “His… his body is… a bit strange…”
The malicious ghost asked gently, “What’s strange about it?”
Afraid he had misread the pulse, Lian Qiang checked again. Then he looked at Jiang Luo’s face. “His body keeps getting injured and then healing again…”
The malicious ghost couldn’t help but laugh. His fingers slowly stroked Jiang Luo’s forearm, as though finding Lian Qiang’s explanation quite amusing. “So, how do you treat that?”
Lian Qiang shivered. “I… I don’t know.”
Silence fell.
A suffocating stillness swept away everyone’s breath. Even Huali and Teng Bi subconsciously held theirs.
A few seconds later, the malicious ghost sighed. “So you don’t know either.”
He turned and walked toward the next person. His voice turned cold. “Then there’s no need for you to stay alive.”
Huali immediately stepped up, grasping Lian Qiang’s neck, ready to twist it.
Daoist Elder Wei He was alarmed and shouted, “Stop!”
Huali looked toward his Master. The malicious ghost halted mid-step and turned back with interest. “Hmm? Daoist Elder Wei He, have you thought of a way to treat Jiang Luo?”
Daoist Elder Wei He’s face flushed with anger, his chest heaving violently. “Chi You! Just because I couldn’t treat him, you let me live, but because he can’t, you’re going to kill him?!”
“You can’t compare to these people,” the malicious ghost said gently. “Daoist Elder Wei He, your medical skills are extraordinary—you’ve treated all kinds of difficult illnesses. If you say you can’t do it, I believe you. But I also believe that if given enough time, you’ll come up with a solution. The others don’t have that capability. Since they can’t treat Jiang Luo, what’s the point in keeping them around?”
Daoist Elder Wei He’s fingers trembled. “You… you—”
But the malicious ghost had already moved to the next Lian family member.
Huali once again grabbed Lian Qiang’s neck. Seeing Lian Qiang about to meet a violent end, Daoist Elder Wei He slumped in defeat and said, “I’ll treat him. I can do it… Just spare them!”
The Lian family members who had been checking Jiang Luo’s pulse visibly relaxed, almost collapsing, and began to cry from narrowly escaping death.
The malicious ghost, holding Jiang Luo, turned back around with raised brows, somewhat surprised. He returned to Daoist Elder Wei He and asked, “You can treat him?”
Daoist Elder Wei He’s face was solemn. Though he didn’t want to answer, for his sake and that of his clan, he firmly declared, “I can.”
The malicious ghost smiled as he stared at him, only withdrawing that smile once he confirmed Daoist Elder Wei He was telling the truth. His expression darkened.
“So you had a way, but didn’t say anything earlier,” the malicious ghost said softly. “You lapdog of the Fated One. Your loyalty is truly admirable.”
The ghost markings on his face shifted, making his expression even more sinister. Jiang Luo felt that after waking from his coma, Chi You had changed—his murderous aura had grown more terrifying.
Jiang Luo was just about to speak when the familiar pain struck again. His eyes lost focus, and he suddenly coughed up another mouthful of blood.
The blood ran down his delicate chin into his collar, thick and sticky. But Jiang Luo was in so much pain he felt like writhing on the floor—there was no room to care about such discomfort. Blood kept spilling from his mouth, and his eyes seemed to be tinted red with it.
Daoist Elder Wei He saw it all. After Jiang Luo vomited blood, the malicious ghost’s face abruptly froze. He held Jiang Luo tightly, staying still for one or two full seconds before reaching out to wipe the blood from Jiang Luo’s lips.
The malicious ghost wiped again and again—mechanically, repeatedly.
But there was too much blood. By the time Jiang Luo finally passed out from the pain, the malicious ghost’s clean clothes were already soaked with it.
He reached out to touch Jiang Luo’s eyelid, smearing it with blood in the process.
The malicious ghost paused, tried to wipe it off, but his own hands were too bloodied—the more he wiped, the worse it got. In the end, he simply carried Jiang Luo into the room and said in a low voice, “Bring him in.”
Teng Bi, worried about Jiang Luo, moved faster than Huali and brought Daoist Elder Wei He into the room.
Huali pouted and stayed outside to watch the others.
Lian Qiang looked at him hesitantly and whispered, “Who are you guys? Why did you kidnap us?”
Huali ignored him.
Lian Qiang glanced again at the room whose door had already been closed. “Jiang Luo… what happened to him?”
Huali said coldly, “Isn’t that what we should be asking you?”
Lian Qiang was confused. “Why ask us?”
Huali replied, “Because he was injured on your mountaintop.”
Lian Qiang instinctively wanted to refute—how could that be possible? The Lian family had never done anything to harm others; every one of them was a good person. But just then, he made eye contact with Lian Bing, who had his hands tied across from him. Lian Bing gave him a signal and began forming hand signs, indicating that Lian Qiang should keep stalling Huali.
Lian Qiang recognized the sign—it was a technique Jiang Luo had demonstrated to them in the mirror world, a method for summoning wind.
He quickly continued chatting with Huali, trying to keep his attention occupied.
Inside the room.
Jiang Luo had only been unconscious for a short while before he came to. He stared blankly at the ceiling, slowly coming back to his senses from the intense pain earlier.
Turning his head, he saw Daoist Elder Wei He kneading the acupoints on his hand using some strange finger technique. Jiang Luo’s throat was full of the taste of blood. He coughed and said hoarsely, “Why are you here?”
Daoist Elder Wei He had no interest in answering such a pointless question. Instead, he instructed the tall and upright Chi You standing nearby, “Give him a cup of water. Just a small amount.”
Chi You poured a cup and helped Jiang Luo drink. Jiang Luo sighed in relief, “I just realized how blissful it is when your body doesn’t hurt.”
Daoist Elder Wei He said calmly, “There’s a tremendous power inside your body. This power isn’t something a human body can withstand. And it’s extremely similar to the power within the Fated One. Logically speaking, your body is just in its twenties, it hasn’t been tempered. It shouldn’t be able to contain this much power. But your soul is incredibly solid—shockingly so. It’s almost no weaker than the Fated One’s soul that’s over two hundred years old. That’s the only reason you’ve been able to absorb so much power, even to the point of forcing your body to endure what it shouldn’t be able to.”
So that’s why—no wonder he’d been able to use the Word Spirit for just one hour and extract half of the Fated One’s power. Seemed like he had his transmigrated, powerful soul to thank for that.
Jiang Luo pondered, then said suddenly, “I took half of the Fated One’s worship power.”
Even though he’d already had some suspicions, Daoist Elder Wei He was still shocked when Jiang Luo admitted it openly.
Who was the Fated One?
The first false god since ancient times. Even if he was only a false god, he still bore the title of “god.” In the eyes of the Lian family, he was a true celestial being. But such a being had actually had half of his power stolen by Jiang Luo.
If he hadn’t taken Jiang Luo’s pulse himself, Daoist Elder Wei He would never have believed it.
Then he suddenly remembered—about a month ago, the Fated One had once stood by the window and said to him: “Maybe, he’ll become the next me.”
Didn’t that mean he thought Jiang Luo could become the next false god?
So then, was Jiang Luo taking the Fated One’s power something the Fated One had foreseen? Or was it entirely outside of his expectations?
Cold sweat broke out on Daoist Elder Wei He’s forehead. Jiang Luo’s voice suddenly rang out, “Daoist Elder Wei He?”
He gathered his thoughts and said, “Precisely because your soul can bear it, the worship power is now desperately trying to transform your body, pushing you out of the human category and making you stronger. If not for that, your body would have exploded long ago. At the same time, however, your body can’t handle such an excess of power, so it collapses again and again—causing you to vomit blood and suffer.”
“I figured that out,” Jiang Luo said calmly. “Do you have any way to stop my body from breaking down?”
Daoist Elder Wei He answered without hesitation, “Make your body stronger. Strong enough to hold the worship power.”
Jiang Luo asked, “Specifically, how?”
Daoist Elder Wei He fell silent for a moment. “I need time to think it through.”
The malicious ghost suddenly chuckled. Daoist Elder Wei He stiffened. But Jiang Luo, before Chi You could speak, agreed, “Alright. But you have to guarantee that while you’re thinking, I can at least reduce how much blood I cough up.” Otherwise, Jiang Luo feared he’d die of blood loss first.
Seeing Chi You remain silent after Jiang Luo’s words, Daoist Elder Wei He relaxed a little and quickly agreed, “That I can do.”
After hearing that, Jiang Luo raised his eyes to look at Chi You.
He stared at the ghost patterns on Chi You’s face, and the dangerous smile on his lips. The malicious ghost’s appearance left Daoist Elder Wei He trembling, but Jiang Luo, after staring for a while, actually burst out laughing.
His eyes curved, and the blood on his face had been completely wiped clean. The brilliance between his brows returned to him alone, though his pallor from blood loss dulled it somewhat—giving him an extra pitiful air that tugged at the heart.
“I’m hungry,” he said.
Teng Bi immediately said, “I’ll go prepare food.”
Jiang Luo looked over at him. “A bowl of beef noodles. Extra beef, no cilantro. Thanks.”
After Teng Bi left, Chi You remarked blandly, “He sure listens to you.”
Jiang Luo didn’t respond. Instead, he blinked at Chi You. “I’d like to take a shower before the food comes.”
The malicious ghost returned his gaze without any emotion.
Jiang Luo added, “You say you’re trying to woo me, but you won’t even let me take a shower?”
Then, curling his lips mischievously, he added, “Teacher Chi, could you give me and Daoist Elder Wei He a bit of private space to talk?”
No matter what he said, the malicious ghost didn’t move. Jiang Luo was almost tired out before the ghost finally stood and slowly walked out.
The door closed, leaving only Jiang Luo and Daoist Elder Wei He in the room. But both of them knew full well that the malicious ghost was everywhere—if Daoist Elder Wei He dared to do anything to Jiang Luo, he’d be dead without question.
Jiang Luo was the first to speak. “Daoist Elder Wei He, you should realize by now—you’ve been abandoned by the Fated One.”
Daoist Elder Wei He’s expression darkened, but he said, “Only today did I realize—so your previously pure-hearted, indifferent demeanor was all just an act to fool us. You little rascal, you really played us like a fiddle.”
“It was just turning their scheme against them,” Jiang Luo smiled. “I haven’t even told you about Lian Xue yet. I always found it strange—Lian Family is one of the Six Great Clans, and yet the younger generation doesn’t even know basic astrology or fortune-telling. They have nothing for self-preservation. But after meeting Lian Xue, I understood—it’s not that you all won’t learn, it’s that the Fated One won’t let you learn, isn’t that right?”
Daoist Elder Wei He’s expression changed drastically, blurting out in shock, “How do you know that?!”
Jiang Luo smiled slightly. “Why doesn’t the Fated One let you learn? Because your bodies carry something else—he’s sealed his shikigami inside you. When the time comes, he can awaken them for his own use. Isn’t that right? That makes your whole Lian family his vessel—without even knowing it yourselves. But there must be drawbacks to this too, right? Looking at how Lian Xue keeps growing weaker, I’m guessing the drawback is that it shortens the vessel’s lifespan, causing irreversible damage?”
Daoist Elder Wei He: “…”
He clenched his fists, his expression filled with pain. That look alone told Jiang Luo that he had guessed correctly.
Jiang Luo sneered coldly, mocking, “The Fated One treats you all like this, and you don’t even hate him?”
“What about you?” Daoist Elder Wei He suddenly raised his voice in anger. “You’re together with that inhuman fiend, Chi You! He’s harmed so many innocent people for your sake—don’t you hate him?”
“Innocent?” Jiang Luo said calmly. “Chi You’s soul was refined into the Yuan Tian Bead. I’ve always wondered—did your family have a hand in that? After all, you’re a family of witch doctors, and you’re the Fated One’s loyal dogs. Turning a soul into something that boosts others’ spiritual power shouldn’t be hard for you, right?”
Daoist Elder Wei He fell silent, his eyes looking at Jiang Luo with unfamiliar fear—only now did he truly realize how terrifying Jiang Luo was.
Jiang Luo said, “There are a thousand reasons I could dislike him—but harming you all is not one of them.”
He looked back up at the ceiling, voice low. “Because every crime he’s committed, it’s all been for me.”
“Others can curse him, hate him. But I can’t. I won’t. Got it?”
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