"Are you prepared to stake your life? When facing evil?"
A deep, solemn voice rang out, carrying a sense of authority. I opened my eyes—my cheeks already wet with tears. I reached out to wipe them away, quietly gazing at the spirit before me.
Everything I had just witnessed felt like a long, sorrowful dream, yet it was all real. What I saw in the dream truly happened. The three disciples made their choices for their beliefs, and those choices are deeply connected to me.
I quietly watched the spirit before me and slowly drifted closer.
"Master, are you Taoist Master Zachary Justice?"
The spirit's stern expression faded, replaced by kindness. The golden glow around him dimmed, and his eyes, relieved of their burden, quietly met mine.
"I am already dead. What remains of me is only a lingering will. I could not let go of the Starshard Radiance and what comes after, so I forced myself to persist. But now, seeing you, I am at peace, Ethan Zhang."
I trembled, quietly gazing at Zachary Justice before me. Some of my temperament and habits were much like his—even my actions mirrored his. As I pondered, I realized I was never truly human. Why did I possess everything human? Now I finally understood: within my body was the Starshard Radiance, imprinted with Zachary Justice’s aura.
My ability to enter the Nine Yin Domain beneath Mount Immeasurable, where the Soul Fragment of the Wraithlord is imprisoned, was no accident. John Chou sending me to Mount Immeasurable to retrieve something was no accident either. Because I possess the Starshard Radiance, I could enter the Nine Yin Domain where the Soul Fragment of the Wraithlord is held.
"Master..."
Choking back my tears, I wanted to speak but couldn’t. I was truly grateful to this master who risked his life for the righteous path—he was my greatest benefactor. Only now do I understand everything.
"Ethan Zhang, you don’t need to be so emotional."
Zachary Justice approached me, placing both hands on my shoulders, his eyes fixed intently on mine.
"Answer me, Ethan Zhang. Do you have such resolve? To stake your very life?"
I nodded.
"Of course I do. This isn’t the first time, Master."
Zachary Justice nodded, then smiled at me. The power within his body was fading.
"Master..."
I raised my hand, but Zachary Justice shook his head.
"I told you, I am already dead. My body and soul were destroyed in the Immortality Society’s repeated experiments. Not even the Shadow Realm exists for me anymore. Ethan Zhang, come with me..."
I responded with a hum and quickly followed. Zachary Justice seemed urgent.
"Let me tell you something first. If you truly wish to become human again, you must avoid contact with ghosts. If you stay with your wife, Lan Ruoxi, one day your physical body will be restored. Using the Starshard Radiance, you will reconstruct your flesh—this time, a body truly human in every sense."
I hesitated. Zachary Justice burst out laughing and shook his head helplessly.
"Even so, with your temperament, you wouldn’t just stand by if your friends were in trouble, would you?"
"Of course not, Master. There’s not only one way in this world, right? I’ll find a way to become human again."
Zachary Justice nodded and stopped. I sensed a strange aura filling the space around us.
With a wave of Zachary Justice’s hand, I gradually saw a room filled with corpses of animals and humans—and their spirits.
"What is this?"
"Ethan Zhang, I want to tell you something about the Immortality Society. They’ve succeeded in using a forbidden art to nearly perfectly fuse their own souls with those of animals. Remember this well—their strength comes from merging countless animal souls with their own, and their flesh is combined with animal bodies. Their souls and bodies far exceed human limits, but they are not truly invincible."
I nodded as the scene continued to shift. Large jars filled with black liquid appeared, and masked men tossed animal parts and souls into them. Then I heard a gloomy voice, followed by a sinister laugh—it was Thousand Hands, the doctor in the Immortality Society: Specter Thousand Hands.
And another Taoist wearing a brightly colored mask.
"These two are the Immortality Society’s most capable assistants. For over two thousand years, they have aided in the Society’s experiments. The Taoist’s power isn’t strong—since he is a cultivator, without a pure heart, his skills cannot grow. He has devoted himself to studying forbidden arts. The Society’s ability to keep their bodies undying is closely linked to him. I still don’t know who he really is, so Ethan Zhang, if you ever meet him, don’t hesitate—just kill him."
I widened my eyes, then calmed down and nodded.
The scene shifted again—now it was baleful energy. I saw a pool of malevolent energy, with disfigured people soaking in it.
"To gain resilient bodies and souls, one must undergo the baptism of baleful energy. If they can endure, their transformation is complete. Those who fail or are unqualified become the lowest level—White Masks. Those who fully cross over become Black Masks. Black Masks face even harsher trials to become Red Masks. Most Blue Masks were the earliest test subjects, used as stand-ins for the Society’s thirteen Golden Masks. After suffering a major setback, the Golden Masks rarely show their true bodies; now, most you’ll face will only have the souls of those thirteen, but not their original bodies."
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As Zachary Justice spoke, the scene shifted again. I widened my eyes, staring at large wooden barrels wrapped in animal skins, filled with dark red liquid—apparently blood.
"This blood is the most mysterious. Though it’s a mix of many animals’ and humans’ blood, it doesn’t affect their bodies. It’s as if their bodies and souls are separate, and the blood exists independently. To figure this out, you must bring back at least one Blue Mask corpse for Ji Yun’er. She has many skilled doctors who can analyze it."
I nodded seriously, listening to Zachary Justice.
Then the scene changed once more: in an open space, there were birds caught by people—crows, eagles, magpies, all kinds of birds.
A ragged Taoist, with a round face and two thin mustaches, held a peachwood sword. Two benches were set up in the center, covered in incense ash, with two altars on each side.
A Black Mask stood on the left. The Taoist took a crow, stuck a purple talisman on it, then placed an identical talisman on the forehead of an Immortality Society member on the other side.
Then the Taoist walked with splayed feet, tracing sword patterns in the air, chanting and forming seals with his hands. I saw human footprints on the incense ash on one bench, and crow footprints on the other.
Suddenly, there was a burst of cawing—the Black Mask began to resemble a crow, flapping his hands like wings. Someone quickly bound the Society member with a black rope. The crow slowly flew up; the Taoist extended his arm, and the bird landed on it. He removed the purple talisman.
"What is this?"
"It’s not just birds—even dogs, cats, and other animals you see in daily life are the Society’s spies. They use this forbidden art to constantly swap human and animal souls, controlling animal bodies with human souls. This lets them surveil people unnoticed. Their spies are everywhere in the Living World. Their ability to transform and predict events comes from this. Remember, Ethan Zhang—watch the animals around you. If they’re always watching you, and their eyes seem unnatural, they’re Society spies."
I swallowed hard. Thinking about it, the Society truly knew our every move.
The scene shifted again—to what seemed like an underground space. There stood a black stone idol over two meters tall: the Wraithlord. My eyes widened. Layer upon layer of formations surrounded it.
"The Society already possesses the Wraithlord’s body, Ethan Zhang. Now they want to gather the Wraithlord’s Threefold Soul and Seven Spirits and place them in this body. This vessel is nearly divine—immortal and indestructible. They must not be allowed to revive the Wraithlord."
"How do you know all this?"
My eyes widened in surprise, but then I understood.
"Is it Zhang Anle?"
Zachary Justice smiled and nodded.
"Anle is now their absolute core. Remember, Ethan Zhang—unless absolutely necessary, never seek help from Anle. He is the last fatal nail I planted in the Society. Even now, we don’t know everything about them, but as long as Anle remains, one day he’ll uncover the truth."
Suddenly, I recalled that battle during the Society’s large-scale assault. Zhang Anle and I fought in the underground garage—it was tough, but he seemed to be holding back. Then the Red Mask appeared, and Shen Yanjun incinerated him with karmic fire, destroying even the inner baleful ghost.
"Did that guy suspect Zhang Anle at the time?"
I looked at Zachary Justice in surprise. He smiled and nodded.
"There’s no need to dwell on the past, Ethan Zhang."