Spirit Realm Wanderer

Chapter 24: The Killer

“Right, I almost forgot about that kid.” Li Dongze’s words reminded the team leaders that the Kangyang District Spirit Realm team had already recruited a Night Wanderer, so there was no need to borrow one from the Taiyi Sect. Da Jiba’s face lit up with delight, and he immediately said, “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s contact that kid right away. That’s why we need to train our own Night Wanderers—when it comes down to it, our own people are the most reliable.” The other captains’ brows relaxed. Da Jiba had a point. Although the Night Wanderers from the Taiyi Sect had always been cooperative when it came to important matters, they were, after all, outsiders, and working with them was certainly less convenient than working with their own people. Li Dongze glanced at Fu Qingyang and, seeing him nod slightly, immediately pulled out his cell phone and walked out of the conference room. “I’ll get in touch with him.” After finishing his morning classes, Zhang Yuanqing slung his backpack over his shoulder and left the classroom. He planned to skip his afternoon classes to visit the office of the Lingjing Squad’s Second Team in Kangyang District. In the future, his social life and other priorities would shift toward the Spirit Realm Squad. Zhang Yuanqing wasn’t particularly fond of school and didn’t have much interest in his studies. The young people of Songhai all possessed a laziness that ran deep in their bones; they lacked a competitive spirit and weren’t willing to give it their all. There are only two kinds of people in this world who strive: those who have cultivated a positive and upward-striving mindset from childhood, and those driven by the hardships of life. After becoming a Spirit Realm Walker, Zhang Yuanqing finally rediscovered his long-lost spirit of striving. Partly because his life depended on it, and partly because it allowed him to fulfill his childhood dream of wandering the martial arts world with a sword in hand. The Spirit Realm is full of danger and the uncanny, but once you’ve tasted its rewards, you’ll never be content to remain an ordinary person again. When he reached the ground floor and was about to unlock a shared bike, his phone in his pocket rang. It was Li Dongze calling. “Squad Leader?” Zhang Yuanqing answered. “Where are you right now?” Li Dongze spoke very quickly, getting straight to the point. “At school.” “Songhai University, right? I’ll have Guan Ya come pick you up right away.” Pick me up? Zhang Yuanqing detected the urgency in Li Dongze’s tone and asked cautiously, “What’s going on?” “A colleague of ours was murdered. We need the Night Wanderer to devour the spirit body and extract the victim’s memories. Um, you’ll be okay with that, right?” Li Dongze asked, sounding a bit uncertain. Um, I guess so... Zhang Yuanqing said, “I’ll give it a try?” Devouring a spirit body isn’t difficult—it’s a Night Wanderer’s innate ability. His mind told him he could do it, but when it came to retrieving memories, he’d never actually devoured a spirit body before and had no experience, so he couldn’t guarantee anything. “It’s settled, then.” Li Dongze said nothing more and hung up the phone. Zhang Yuanqing put away his phone and walked toward the school gate. A few minutes later, he stopped at the school gate and waited silently for Guan Ya to pick him up. At the same time, Zhang Yuanqing noticed a girl in a pleated skirt standing by the roadside not far away, carrying a designer handbag, as if she were waiting for someone. Xu Yingying? Zhang Yuanqing took a few glances at this “class beauty.” She was dressed with great care—bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and a handbag… all looked quite expensive, a stark contrast to most of the girls at school. Girls from average-income families simply couldn’t pull off that kind of look. Sensing Zhang Yuanqing’s gaze, Xu Yingying gave a faint smile. As she swept a strand of hair behind her ear and straightened her back to strike her most alluring pose, she felt a slight sense of superiority. This guy was quite handsome, so she subconsciously put her best foot forward. But she was no longer in the same league as ordinary college students, so she felt a deep sense of superiority. Her outfit alone was worth a year’s living expenses for an average college student. Just then, Xu Yingying saw a blue sports car approaching and pulling up slowly at the school gate. The woman behind the wheel wore a sharp white shirt and sunglasses; though her face was obscured, her fair, sharply defined jawline and exquisitely sculpted lips made it clear she was a stunning beauty. Xu Yingying pursed her lips, shifted her posture, and turned the logo of her designer handbag toward the sports car. At the same time, she saw Zhang Yuanqing jogging toward the sports car, opening the door, and slipping inside. The wealthy woman stepped on the gas and sped off with her young boyfriend in tow. Xu Yingying’s mouth fell open, her face a picture of astonishment. For a moment, she couldn’t tell if this male classmate was a low-key heir to a wealthy family or one of her own kind—a seafood merchant or a steel-wool-ball merchant. Kangyang District Public Security Bureau, morgue. Zhang Yuanqing stood by the morgue table and pulled back the white sheet, revealing a gruesome corpse. The body was covered in bruises and knife wounds; the gaping wound on the chest, with flesh and blood exposed, was a harrowing sight. If he’d seen a body like this two days ago, Zhang Yuanqing would certainly have felt physically queasy, but after enduring the brutal beating at the Mountain God Temple, the sight of a corpse no longer stirred much emotion within him. “We can begin.” Li Dongze, leaning on his cane, said expectantly from the side. Zhang Yuanqing nodded. He scrutinized Zhao Yingjun’s corpse, sensing the lingering spirit within the cold body gradually stirring and coming back to life. The Night Wanderer’s aura held a fatal allure for spirit forms, capable of awakening slumbering spirits. He silently channeled the Taiyin energy within his body; the whites of his eyes and his pupils were covered by a layer of pure black. He reached out and made a gesture as if grabbing at Zhao Yingjun’s body. He pulled out an ethereal figure. This figure bore Zhao Yingjun’s facial features, but its expression was vacant, and its gaze was hollow. After death, ninety percent of one’s consciousness dissipates, leaving the spirit in this vacant state. When consciousness fades, memories naturally become fragmented, with only those deeply rooted in obsession remaining. Memories from just before death are often vivid and occur very close to the moment of death, so they tend to be preserved. After grasping the spirit form, Zhang Yuanqing suddenly felt a craving to “feed.” He instinctively opened his mouth and took a gentle breath. Zhao Yingjun’s spirit form turned into a wisp of blue smoke and drifted into his mouth. A throbbing pain surged in the center of his brow; his consciousness seemed to expand as countless foreign elements flooded in. Zhang Yuanqing heard low sobs and mournful whimpers, and a fierce, menacing voice rang in his ears “I don’t have much patience, so you’d better answer me nicely.” He knew he was accessing the spirit’s final memories. Slowly, he “opened” his eyes, and the surroundings came into sharp focus—it was a lavishly decorated suite. He slumped onto the plush bed, completely naked, with clothes and women’s underwear scattered haphazardly across the floor. Not far from him, near the head of the bed, a young woman lay curled up, equally naked. Her fair, slender legs, toned abdomen, and firm breasts showcased her youthful, striking curves. The sobs were coming from her. A woman? Naked? This sight left Zhang Yuanqing momentarily stunned. He thought to himself, “Why didn’t the squad leader explain the crime scene clearly? How could he let me see something unsuitable for minors? I’m still just a kid...” From the deceased’s perspective, he looked at the figure by the bed—a man with a menacing face, a scar half a finger long on his left cheek, sparse eyebrows, and a fierce, sinister gaze. In his hand, he clutched a gleaming willow-blade knife. The killer... Zhang Yuanqing stared at that face, committing its features firmly to memory. At this point, half of his mission was complete. The man pointed the tip of the knife at “Zhang Yuanqing’s” chest and snarled “Where is the Holy Grail? Where is the roster?” He seemed to have asked this question many times before; his expression was filled with impatience, and his eyes glinted with murderous intent. “I don’t know, I really don’t know... Please, spare me.” Zhang Yuanqing heard “himself” pleading for mercy. The man crouched by the bed, having completely lost his patience. Rubbing his face as if exhausted, he muttered “I gave you a chance, but you were useless. As he spoke, he thrust the tip of the willow-blade knife into “Zhang Yuanqing’s” chest. Intense pain surged through him, and his consciousness instantly blurred. Zhang Yuanqing slumped limply to the floor, watching as the man undid his belt, grabbed the beautiful woman’s ankle, and yanked her forcefully toward him. The scene came to an abrupt halt amid the woman’s screams.