Chapter Thirty-Three: The Mutated Spirit of Liu Jing

Wang Sheng arrived with the prop bag at the fastest speed, spending the whole day with me in the male dormitory until the sun set and the moon rose. The moon that night was large and round, illuminating the earth as if it were day, yet the daytime-like brightness only made the night even more eerie.

We went to the agreed-upon place and together stepped into the area strictly forbidden by the academy, a place everyone simply called the No Man’s Land.

The grass was still as tall as before, and apart from the footprints I left last time, there was nothing else on the path. The decaying desks and chairs lay quietly where they always had, resembling corpses. Ever since my true identity was revealed to her last time, she no longer dared to play tricks—especially not on me. The three of us had just arrived when a loud clang echoed, followed by a gust of chilling wind. Though nothing tangible appeared, I alone knew what it meant: Liu Jing’s ghost had come.

A Taoist incantation says, “Ghosts belong to the yin, gods to the yang; gods and ghosts are governed by heaven and earth.” This reveals that ghosts are creatures of the yin.

When the cold wind faded, silence returned. I could sense Zhou Runfa’s trembling legs, so I tried to comfort him, “Hey, you’re a professor—what’s there to fear? Besides, you’ve had a wisp of Liu Jing’s resentful spirit following you for years.”

Though Zhou Runfa couldn’t see the spirit behind him, every night it would appear in his dreams, which made him believe my words.

I knew nothing of Taoist arts myself—after all, as a demon corpse, learning such magic would be courting death. But Wang Sheng was an expert in this field. He took a compass from his bag, then produced a vial of some unknown liquid, spraying it before his own eyes and then around Zhou Runfa’s. Afterward, he put the vial away and explained, “This is Corpse Tears, commonly known as Heavenly Eye Water, collected from the essence in the eyes of celestial corpses. It allows one to see through both the yin and yang worlds.”

Hearing this made Zhou Runfa even more afraid, and he started to waver. Just as he was about to turn back, Wang Sheng shouted, “Don’t turn around!”

But he was too late. I saw what was behind Zhou Runfa—a female ghost with a face glowing blue, her pale eyes wide and unblinking, like Sadako herself. Zhou Runfa had already turned and came face to face with her. Terrified, he collapsed, wetting his pants, while Liu Jing’s ghostly tongue lolled out, her black, shiny fingernails reaching for him.

Seeing Liu Jing getting serious, I called out, “Liu Jing, enough!” But to my surprise, my words had no effect. Her black nails had already dug into Zhou Runfa’s thigh, making him scream in pain. Out here in the wilderness, no one would notice.

Wang Sheng’s face darkened instantly, and he exclaimed in shock, “Save him quickly, this female ghost has turned into a Soul Wraith!”

At the time, I didn’t know what a Soul Wraith was, but from Wang Sheng’s tone, it sounded formidable. Without hesitation, I spun and kicked at her, pulling Zhou Runfa out of Liu Jing’s grasp. The flesh where he’d been grabbed oozed black, viscous fluid.

Wang Sheng, seeing that I’d rescued Zhou Runfa, spun and leapt in front of Liu Jing, shouting, “You demons dare disturb the living? I, Wang Sheng, will destroy you!” With that, he drew a forty-centimeter sword and charged.

I didn’t quite understand his words, but I was puzzled nonetheless—after only a day away, how had Liu Jing’s spirit become a Soul Wraith? It seemed impossible.

Wang Sheng’s sword, inscribed with indecipherable talismans, was the one placed before the Patriarch of the Taoists. I’d seen Uncle Mao open it once, but never knew its use.

Wang Sheng’s cultivation was not deep, and this was his first real battle. Soon, he began to lose ground. Finally, he was struck down. With Zhou Runfa still present, I couldn’t reveal my true form and shifted only into my first state, eyes burning red as I rushed forward. It was night, so I doubted Zhou Runfa would see.

The moment I clashed with the Soul Wraith, I was taken aback—her strength far exceeded my expectations. If she’d struck Zhou Runfa directly with her full power, he would surely have died. Why, then, had she held back earlier?

During my time at the academy, I’d practiced some ancient Chinese martial arts, though my skills were poor and I never mentioned them before. But in battle, I had to admire their profundity—each move showcased the true power of traditional arts against the Soul Wraith, nothing like the empty forms people deride.

Martial arts paired with my abilities multiplied my combat power. I attacked the Soul Wraith with all the speed I could muster. Zhou Runfa, wounded and invaded by chilling yin energy, curled up and shivered—not from fear this time, but from the cold.

The Soul Wraith attacked me with venomous intent; an ordinary person would have died from a single blow. I fought back with all my might and shouted to Wang Sheng, “Hurry, get Zhou Runfa out of here!”

Fortunately, Wang Sheng was only lightly injured. He grabbed the talisman-inscribed sword, helped Zhou Runfa up, and started to leave. The Soul Wraith, seeing this, abandoned her attack on me, took the full force of my blow, and chased after Wang Sheng and Zhou Runfa.

Sensing danger, I realized that if she caught up, Wang Sheng would be finished. Forced into a corner, I revealed my full form in front of Zhou Runfa, spreading my wings and diving at the Soul Wraith. My punch landed squarely on her abdomen, sending her flying five or six meters before she crashed to the ground.

That blow was so powerful even the Demon Ancestor would hesitate to take it head-on, yet the foolish ghost didn’t resist. Was she so bent on killing Zhou Runfa she no longer cared about her own existence?

After my punch, Zhou Runfa found renewed strength. He pushed Wang Sheng aside, limped and stumbled before finally crawling to the Soul Wraith, shielding her with his body as he pleaded, “Please, don’t kill her!”

I had never intended to destroy her, but Liu Jing’s ghost morphing into a Soul Wraith without reason—if not dealt with today, many others would suffer in the future.

Embarrassed to speak, I said only, “Let Wang Sheng decide.”

Wang Sheng, only lightly wounded, was the most suitable to judge. After all, he was a true exorcist. He adopted a dignified posture and declared, “If this female Soul Wraith is not exorcised today, she will bring calamity to all. Let me deal with her!” With that, he raised his talisman-covered sword and began chanting an incantation.

I knew his intent. Though he had some skill, a Soul Wraith was far beyond the abilities of a novice like Wang Sheng to subdue.

...