"What do you want? Since we're no match for you, kill us or torture us as you please." Mr. Cooper closed his eyes, and Mrs. Blake looked utterly spent, her head drooping.
Just as I was about to speak, the ghost let go of Mrs. Blake.
"What do you mean by that?" Mr. Cooper stood up, furious.
The ghost suddenly floated behind Mrs. Blake, leaned against the wall, crossed his legs, rested his chin on his left hand, and started to laugh.
"You want us to go along with your evil plans? Hah! Even if it kills us, we won't help you."
Mr. Cooper pulled Mrs. Blake over and stood protectively in front of her.
"Hmph, stop worrying. I only need you to save that boy."
The ghost's finger slowly pointed at me.
"No way. What exactly do you want to use that boy for?"
"Oh? Is that so?"
"Then I'll just have to tell the Nether Syndicate about your little secrets!"
"Just kill us already!"
There was a look of grim determination in Mr. Cooper's eyes; he clearly refused to bow to the ghost.
"Do I even need to dirty my hands? You both know the Nether Syndicate is truly ruthless. How long do you think you two old bones can last? A few days, years, decades? Centuries?"
The ghost slowly descended and walked toward them step by step.
Mrs. Blake and Mr. Cooper began to tremble. I didn't know what the Nether Syndicate was, but the two of them were clearly terrified.
The standoff lasted a long while. No one spoke. Mr. Cooper's face was clouded with indecision. Finally, Mrs. Blake sighed and shook her head.
"Old man, we've always had a connection with Ethan Zhang, haven't we? So be it. Besides, we're hardly paragons of virtue ourselves."
The old couple relented, and the ghost started laughing.
"I know for a fact that your Nether Syndicate has a technique that can defy fate itself. Even if this boy's soul is incomplete, with that technique, you could easily make him a fake soul, couldn't you?"