A simple "What do you think?" in three short words, utterly crushed my heart and simultaneously made me understand the gap between myself and this ancient ghost who had lived for a hundred years.
The old saying goes: the old are cunning, the horses are slick… these life lessons all speak to the fact that whether it's humans or animals, if they live long enough, they will develop their own wisdom.
And humans, as the most intelligent of all beings, are the cream of the crop. Having an elder at home is like having a treasure, because elders have eaten more rice than young people have eaten salt, and naturally, their understanding of life's complexities is beyond what the young can compare. Sui Wan'er had given me a vivid lesson in life.
Reaching up to wipe the blood from the corner of my mouth, I leaned against the wall, smiling nonchalantly at her and saying, "I regret it."
"Regret? What do you mean?" Sui Wan'er's face was filled with confusion, her lips curving slightly upward, as if she was thoroughly enjoying this cat-and-mouse game.
"I regret not suppressing you directly back then, I regret my insufficient strength that prevented me from suppressing you in the underworld, allowing you to borrow a corpse to return to life and wreak havoc on the human world, I regret..."
"Enough!" Sui Wan'er roared, and a tide of Yin energy centered around her surged, spitting out another mouthful of blood from me. I felt the ribs in my chest creak, and I didn't know if they were broken or not.
"My patience is limited! Don't force me to kill you. Find this person for me quickly, or don't blame me for being impolite."
"Impolite? Cough cough… what else can you do?" I looked at her dismissively, the pain in my chest burning like a raging fire, likely an internal injury inflicted by her.
"It seems you won't shed tears until you see the coffin." Sui Wan'er's expression turned stern. Without any visible movement, her right hand grabbed the top of my head. A cold, dark stream of energy rushed into my body from the Baihui acupoint, somewhat alleviating the heat in my chest.
I glanced at her sideways, puzzled. What was she up to? Was she actually trying to heal the internal injuries she had inflicted on me? Was she that kind? Before I could even ask, I felt this strange cold flow like a wriggling black snake, chilling me to the bone.
What had felt comfortable moments ago now felt like falling into an Arctic ice cave, my lips trembling and my teeth chattering.
"Is… is this… all you’ve got? You’re underestimating me too much, aren't you?" I stammered, my words coming out unevenly.
"Is that so? Then I'd like to see how tough your mouth really is." As soon as Sui Wan'er finished speaking, a cold stream twice as powerful as before surged into my body. The icy sensation made my entire body feel warm, as if I wasn't being tortured but rather soaking in a hot spring.
I knew it was all an illusion, because when people are extremely cold, they feel hot, even having the urge to take off their clothes. This is why some people undress when they freeze to death; it's a hallucination caused by extreme cold.
I tried to mobilize the Xuan Yang True Qi within me to resist, but found that it had been suppressed by the vast Yin energy to only the size of a soybean, utterly incapable of counteracting the massive Yin energy entering my body.
Was I going to die like this?
More and more Yin energy entered my body, making my consciousness blur. I felt as if I were submerged in water, my body sinking little by little to the deepest point.
"What a waste, to be rendered immobile by a mere little ghost. You're truly disgracing me." A slightly angry, chilling voice suddenly echoed in my ears. This somewhat relieved my numb consciousness. The voice sounded familiar, but I couldn't recall where I had heard it.
It was then I realized I was floating in mid-air. Not far away, I saw Sui Wan'er holding my head, a look of vengeful satisfaction on her face.
I looked down at my body. It was gray, like a thin mist, not at all human-shaped, floating in the air like clouds. This filled me with dread.
Because I was too familiar with this state. This was the soul body of someone on the verge of death. Only when the life force of the physical body completely extinguished would the earthly soul emerge from the body. At that point, the earthly soul and consciousness would combine to become a ghost. And I was currently in the state between becoming a ghost and not yet becoming one.
Understanding my predicament, I quickly shouted, "Senior, is that you? I know you've awakened my consciousness. I implore you to suppress this evil entity."
After regaining clarity, I knew that the person speaking was the shadowy figure I had seen in that dark space last time. I just couldn't figure out how he had appeared within me.
There was no reply. My mental shout seemed to be speaking to the air.
"Am I hallucinating? That shouldn't be."
"Senior, are you still there? If you don't act soon, I'm going to die."
As I spoke, my ethereal body actually began to grow slowly. Not only did I gain hands and feet, but my torso also grew halfway, with only the area below my abdomen remaining misty.
"What's all the racket? You won't die as long as I'm here."
This time, I heard the voice coming from my physical body. It seemed that the shadowy figure was hidden somewhere within my body, but I had no way of finding out where. With the shadowy figure's assurance, I could only shut up obediently. If I angered him and he decided to abandon me, I would truly be finished.
Fortunately, the shadowy figure kept his word. While my upper body had taken on a human form, the area below my abdomen remained misty, as if some force was constantly resisting the Yin energy surging into my body.
After a minute, Sui Wan'er's face showed surprise, mixed with a hint of confusion. After all, the massive amount of Yin energy she had sent into my body was enough to kill several people over and over again, yet I remained in this half-dead state.
Not only that, but my soul hadn't been forced out of my body either. This made Sui Wan'er, who had wanted to capture my living soul, somewhat angry. Su Dan Novel Network
"Kid, I didn't expect you to have secrets within you. I don't believe a mere Yin Gua Master with the strength of a Ghost General can overturn the heavens?" Sui Wan'er's face contorted into a ferocious expression, and powerful Yin energy raged around her, causing the ground to be covered in frost. As the center of the Yin energy, my face was deathly pale, my eyelashes covered in frost.
Just as I was about to ask the expert for help again, I suddenly saw my own body lying on the ground open its eyes. It first swept a glance towards my current location, then fixed its gaze on Sui Wan'er.
'My' opening of the eyes was no small matter; it startled Sui Wan'er, who twisted her body and moved three meters away from 'me'.
"Who are you? You're not Song Qingyun."
As I watched, 'I' slowly stood up from the ground, gently moved my body, and said, "This body is truly weak," before turning my gaze to Sui Wan'er. "I'll give you a chance to attack. If you wait for me to make a move, you'll be dead." Then, I struck a pose like a master, looking at Sui Wan'er with a casual, impertinent air.
"Then I shall accept your challenge and see if your strength is as great as your words."
"Ghost Dynasty!"