Spirit Realm Wanderer

Chapter 26: Escape

7:00 p. m. , at the dinner table. Grandma looked around at the family gathered at the table and announced, in a rather cheerful mood “Yuanzi, your uncle will be back tomorrow afternoon. Yuanjun, remember to drive out and pick him up. Yuer, come home early after work.” Yu’er was her aunt’s childhood nickname. Zhang Yuanqing and Jiang Yu’er were each gnawing on a chicken drumstick, while Chen Yuanjun sipped chicken soup—all of them looking perfectly unfazed. Seeing this, Grandma tapped her chopsticks on the table and glared at them, saying, “Did you hear what I said?” “Oh.” “Mm-hmm.” “Got it.” Grandma: “......” His uncle and aunt have been traveling abroad for nearly two months. My uncle is irresponsible and carefree, and my aunt never lifts a finger to help around the house—it makes no difference whether they’re home or not. So they’re back—it’s not exactly a cause for celebration. Probably only Grandma would be happy that Uncle is back. Jiang Yuerr munched on a chicken drumstick and said, “Why didn’t that family black sheep stay away a few more months? The house was so much quieter when they weren’t here.” Chen Yuanjun glanced at his younger aunt and said, “Don’t talk like that. After all, that family black sheep is my dad.” Zhang Yuanqing glanced at her cousin and said, “Don’t talk like that—after all, that family disgrace is my uncle.” Seeing Grandma fly into a rage and rise to her feet, ready to tear those ungrateful descendants to pieces, Jiang Yuerr hurried to calm her down and brought up a topic her mother would surely find interesting “Mom, our hospital is haunted.” Haunted? Zhang Yuanqing immediately pricked up his ears. Sure enough, Grandma stopped scolding her son and hurriedly asked “Oh my, why on earth would there be a ghost? Tell Mom all about it.” “It’s Sister Zhou from our department. While she was on the night shift, she heard children’s laughter coming from the office. She went in to check, but the laughter stopped. Then, when she went to the restroom, she saw a baby in the mirror clinging to her shoulder—it nearly scared her to death.” His aunt said with conviction, “It’s not just Sister Zhou—other colleagues on the night shift have also said they occasionally hear children’s laughter in the middle of the night. Everyone says it must be the spirit of a child who was aborted and isn’t at peace, wandering around the hospital.” Grandma listened with great interest and commented, “That’s really spooky. I think that’s probably exactly what’s happening. When it’s your turn to work the night shift, have Yuanzi stay with you. Is there more? “Yes, yes...” Grandma’s gossip didn’t get passed down to Mom—it was all inherited by my aunt....... As Zhang Yuanqing listened to the mother and daughter chattering away about the gossip, the curiosity that had been piqued in his heart slowly faded. As a Night Wanderer, he knew immediately that these were nothing but rumors and ghost stories—not the truth. First of all, spirits cannot produce sound because they have no physical form and certainly no vocal cords—unless the spirit’s power directly influences a person’s mind. However, given an infant’s level of willpower and mental strength, it’s impossible for a spirit to linger after death. Finally, ordinary people with mortal eyes cannot see spirits; those who are near death or have a heavy yin energy might interact with spirits, so occasional incidents are plausible. But for so many people to hear a baby’s laughter—that’s just nonsense. “Auntie, be careful—don’t bring any dead babies home from the hospital,” Zhang Yuanqing said in a somber tone. Just as Jiang Yu’er was getting into her story, her oval face froze instantly, and she cried out, “Mom, he’s scaring me again!” Her grandmother gave her grandson a symbolic flick on the head. After dinner, Zhang Yuanqing quietly slipped out of the house and took a taxi to the nearest top-tier hospital. He was going to the hospital to perform a soul-liberation ritual and gain experience points. The Night Wanderer’s “Soul Devour” skill was currently the best way to level up. With no telling when the Spirit Realm would open next, it was essential to boost his strength before entering it. Even at the same Level 1, there’s a world of difference in combat power between having 99% and 1% of the maximum experience points. Hospitals are excellent places for Night Wanderers to gain experience points; birth, aging, sickness, and death all take place there. Of course, crematoriums are also great options, but in Songhai, they’re all located in the suburbs, with very few in the city center. Sitting in the car, Zhang Yuanqing suddenly recalled what Guan Ya had said earlier that day. “Why are the Night Wanderers of the Taiyi Sect so wary of devouring spirit bodies? Is it an unwritten rule of the profession, a belief that it tarnishes one’s moral character? Or is there another reason?” With that in mind, he took out his phone, logged into the official “Spirit Realm Wanderer” forum, and searched for relevant information. The search results showed: No relevant entries found. In the suburbs, night was beginning to fall. In a cheap rental unit in an industrial park, in a dirty, cluttered, and run-down living room, Ou Xiangrong carried a large bowl of freshly cooked instant noodles and walked over to a table piled high with beer cans. With a casual sweep of his hand, he sent the beer cans and other clutter clattering to the floor, clearing space for the large bowl, then pulled a can of beer from the fridge. He devoured the noodles in big mouthfuls and chugged the beer. The freshly cooked noodles were scalding hot, but they couldn’t burn his tough oral mucosa. Ou Xiangrong, with his sparse eyebrows, wore an expression that shifted from ferocious to indifferent to loathing... just like a mentally ill patient on the verge of a breakdown. Suddenly, his ears twitched; he stopped eating, and his expression instantly turned ferocious. Ou Xiangrong slowly rose to his feet, drew the willow-blade knife from its sheath tucked at his lower back, and moved silently and gracefully toward the door. “Clang!” Just as he neared the entrance, the door was violently kicked open. Immediately afterward, a blinding light flared up, and a searing fireball hurtled toward him. A gust of scorching wind hit him in the face. Ou Xiangrong halted in his tracks and swung his right arm, the blade gleaming as it sliced through the fireball. With a “boom,” the room was filled with a dazzling display of flickering flames. Amid the sudden burst of light, a figure engulfed in flames darted into the rental unit, springing from the knees and hurtling toward Ou Xiangrong like a rocket. Ou Xiangrong was even more ruthless; he shifted his body to the side and rammed his shoulder forward with all his might. “Boom!” The figure was sent flying backward, slamming into the hallway wall with such force that it shook violently. With his right hand and shoulder covered in burn marks, Ou Xiangrong grit his teeth against the pain and turned to dash toward the window. He dared not take the stairwell—the narrow, cramped corridors of the old apartment building meant certain death if he were surrounded. Amid the sound of shattering glass, Ou Xiangrong leaped out from the third floor. “Bang! Just as he smashed through the window, Ou Xiangrong heard two gunshots. He used the blade of his willow-leaf knife to deflect the bullet aimed at his head, but he couldn’t stop the one heading for his chest. The bullet’s immense kinetic energy pierced his skin but was stopped by his powerful muscles. Following the sound of the gunshots, he saw a tall, mixed-race beauty standing in the shadows by the greenbelt. She wore an office-style skirt suit and a white blouse, her long hair flowing in the wind, radiating an unparalleled, icy beauty. She held a silver pistol in each hand, and her long legs, clad in black stockings, were adorned with two holsters. Bang, bang, bang... The mixed-race beauty fired calmly, her aim precise, as if she could anticipate his downward trajectory. After being hit by several shots in quick succession, Ou Xiangrong finally hit the ground. He suddenly turned to look at the mixed-race woman, two blood-red, twisted runes appearing in his pupils. The next moment, the woman’s expression froze; she turned the muzzle of her gun and aimed it at her own forehead. “Bang!” Flames erupted from the muzzle, but the bullet failed to shatter the woman’s smooth forehead, blocked by a pair of rough hands. A worker wearing a miner’s cap had appeared beside her at some point; his swarthy face was etched with gravity as he said “A Bewitching Demon?” “A Level 3 Bewitching Demon.” Out of the darkness emerged a man leaning on a cane, dressed in a black suit with a black vest and white shirt, his slicked-back hair combed with meticulous precision. “Have the men set up a perimeter outside the complex. Don’t let anyone get near here.” Another voice rang out as a beautiful woman in an ink-wash cheongsam emerged from the stairwell; she exuded a gentle, serene aura and possessed striking features. Ou Xiangrong, knife in hand, scanned his surroundings with a grim expression. “Roar, roar, roar...” Just then, the roar of a motorcycle engine echoed from the distance. A blinding beam of light pierced the darkness as a motorcycle screeched toward them. The woman on the bike, clad in a white racing suit, leaned forward, a three-chi-long black sword in hand, and charged straight at him. The next moment, gunfire rang out again, cutting off Ou Xiangrong’s retreat, as a figure engulfed in flames leaped out the window to attack him from the side. Tang Guoqiang, wearing a miner’s helmet, pressed both hands against the ground. The concrete floor cracked with a “crack,” and a pair of hands formed from clumps of dirt seized Ou Xiangrong’s feet. Ou Xiangrong calmly swung his willow blade, deflecting a bullet fired at a tricky angle; the bullet and the blade collided, sending blinding sparks flying. Immediately afterward, the muscles in his legs tensed, shattering the hands formed of compacted earth. He rolled forward, narrowly avoiding the flaming figure plunging down from the third floor. Thud, thud, thud... After rolling to his feet, he took off at full speed, charging toward the woman on the motorcycle. In the darkness of the night, the two passed each other; the sharp willow blade sliced through the woman’s chest, but there was no sensation of cutting through solid matter. The moment the blade struck her, the woman on the motorcycle turned into water. Meanwhile, her long sword sliced across Ou Xiangrong’s chest and abdomen. Ou Xiangrong’s chest was badly wounded, and blood quickly soaked his clothing. Paying no heed to his injuries, he kept running toward the exit of the residential complex. Just then, a beautiful woman in a cheongsam leaped out of a second-floor window. Barefoot, her snow-white feet ran along the exterior wall as if on level ground. With a single leap, she landed in front of Ou Xiangrong. With a sharp command, she spun around—her cheongsam billowing as her long, powerful legs whipped through the air like a lash, striking Ou Xiangrong with brutal force. He was sent flying like a cannonball, smashing through the wall of the apartment building before slowly slumping to the ground. “To dare kill an Official Spirit Realm practitioner in my jurisdiction—you’re quite something.” At that moment, Li Dongze—who had been watching the entire spectacle from start to finish—walked over slowly, leaning on his cane. His expression was stern, as composed as a power broker pulling the strings behind the scenes, and he said calmly “Next, I will personally send you on your way.” “Ah…” A deep sigh echoed through the air. Ou Xiangrong slowly stood up. His eyes were blood-red, brimming with madness and savagery, as a powerful, malevolent force awoke within him. His voice hoarse, he said, “You’re all going to die.” Li Dongze silently took two steps back. “Guys, that was just a joke. I’m definitely not the kind of person who takes all the credit.” Inside the taxi, after failing to find any relevant information on Zhang Yuanqing, he returned to the forum’s homepage and instinctively refreshed the page. Then he saw a post highlighted in red and pinned to the top. #Wanted! Level 3 Seduction Demon Ou Xiangrong# This post hadn’t been there just a few minutes ago. Zhang Yuanqing clicked on the post “Ou Xiangrong, a Level 3 Seductive Demon, killed Zhao Yingjun, a scout from the White Tiger Corps of the Five Elements Alliance, on April 18. On the evening of April 19, at 7:05 PM, he escaped during a ambush by the Lingjing Squad in Kangyang District. “This individual possesses some terrifying, evil power and is no ordinary Seduction Demon. He has already been severely wounded by the Kangyang District Spirit Realm Squad and his current whereabouts are unknown. Attention to all Spirit Realm Wanderer squads across all districts: Ou Xiangrong is on the verge of losing control. Once the target is spotted, kill him immediately. “A reward of 50,000 yuan will be offered for information leading to his capture. A reward of 100,000 yuan will be offered to whoever kills him.” Less than three minutes after the post went live, the comments had already surpassed 100. They were all criticizing the Kangyang District Spirit Realm Squad for their ineptitude in letting a half-mad, seductive demon escape. “Are you kidding me? A dangerous individual like this could lose control at any moment—is the Kangyang District team just sitting around doing nothing?” “Once he snaps and kills someone, the Spirit Realm will issue a warrant for his arrest. By the time we get there, it’ll probably already be a bloodbath. We’ll be the laughingstock of Spirit Realm practitioners nationwide—mocked for our ineffective prevention and control, and for collecting high salaries while doing nothing.” “We’re screwed.” Ou Xiangrong got away? Did Squad Leader and his team pinpoint the target and launch a manhunt that quickly? For a moment, Zhang Yuanqing didn’t know whether to praise the squad leader and his team for their efficiency or to criticize them for their incompetence in letting this ticking time bomb slip away. “Since they’ve already clashed, Ou Xiangrong’s blood—or even tissue—must have been left at the scene. Using the Red Dance Shoes, we should be able to track him down...” Zhang Yuanqing immediately thought of his rule-based item.