"Dangerous? Heh, that word should be reserved for those vested interests, Ms. Yi. I'm just stating the facts. You all should have a general idea of how this thing amplifies ghosts. Power—what does it mean to a ghost? Haven't you old souls, who've lived for over a thousand years, understood it deeply enough?"
Because of Xu Fu's words, I noticed subtle changes on everyone's faces. Even Black Moon, the only human present, had both eyes fixed on the thing in my hand.
Since ancient times, what are ghosts? They are dark, cruel, tragic, and helpless. As ghosts, we've lost so much. In the ghostly realm, power is everything. If you don't want to be eaten, you eat others. If you don't want to die, you get stronger. That's only natural, isn't it? Following the strongest desires in one's heart—that's what a ghost should do.
Xu Fu's face showed a trace of madness as he swept his gaze over us. I clenched the bottle of blood in my hand. Such astonishing power—this was the first time I'd felt it. Strength kept surging from my body. If I hadn't transferred the baleful energy from my body to my ghost domain, where I'd stored a massive reserve for so long, my ghost soul would have burst by now.
Everyone present must have realized what this bottle of blood could do after witnessing it. To increase power, you need a strong ghost soul and the ability to bear it. Both are indispensable. For Isabelle Frost and the others, further increasing their power is already extremely difficult.
"Maybe you're right, Xu Fu. We were all tempted by this bottle just now—especially Old Book."
Lin Rui spoke, and Ghost Painting Book Immortal replied with an embarrassed expression.
"Ah, with something this convenient, who wouldn't want it? After all, we're evil ghosts, aren't we?"
"Let me hold onto it for now."
Without another word, Isabelle Frost snatched the bottle of blood from my hand. I didn't object, just nodded.
"That's how it should be. At critical moments, someone has to step up. From what I see, Ms. Yi, you're the one most eager to prove something this time. After all, since you became a ghost, you haven't really faced a life-or-death battle, have you? Always under the protection of your genius brother, haha..."
"Shut up."
With a whoosh, Isabelle Frost suddenly rushed in front of Xu Fu. With one hand, she shattered Xu Fu's condensed consciousness. Wild laughter echoed through the pavilion. Isabelle Frost looked pale—Xu Fu's words had struck a nerve.
"Hmph, Ms. Yi, just like the dragon's nine sons, each with their own strengths. If you keep going like this, you'll once again be unable to bear your own power. If you can't accept this undeniable fact and get angry instead, that's not the attitude of a strong person. Very weak, Ms. Yi."
With a whoosh, Isabelle Frost floated upward, heading for the top of the apartment building.
I looked at Deathcurse. He was watching me seriously. After I nodded, I floated up as well.
"I'll go over there."
At the top of the building, Isabelle Frost sat quietly at the edge of the rooftop, looking troubled. She seemed deep in thought; the coldness in her eyes had faded, replaced by sorrow. I walked over, step by step.
"Ms. Yi, do you truly hate John Chou deep down?"
"Do you want to know? The beginning of it all."
I let out a soft sound and slowly walked up to Isabelle Frost. As I looked at her, a trace of red aura drifted over. My vision blurred, and in a daze, I heard the cry of an infant.
Late in the evening, heavy snow began to fall. A man wearing a bamboo hat and a thick fur coat, with a strip of fur wrapped around his chest, carried a wailing infant in his arms.
In 505 BC, Lord Jing of Cao killed his own uncle, and Lord Yin of Cao officially succeeded as ruler of the Cao State. He began to curry favor with Qi, and the connection between the two states, previously severed by war, was restored.
"Boss, bring some hot water, then make me a pot of meat soup and some rice porridge."
In a small town about seven or eight days' journey from Linzi City, inside a roadside inn, Zane Zhuang took off his bamboo hat and entered. The attendant quickly came to help, brushing snow off him. The infant in his arms was still crying loudly.
People in the inn looked at Zane Zhuang strangely. A grown man carrying a baby—quite odd.
Zane Zhuang avoided the others' gazes, asked for a room, and went upstairs alone. After the attendant brought a brazier, he sat quietly by it with the baby in his arms. His eyes were full of loneliness; the firelight revealed his worried profile. Thanks to the warmth, the baby finally stopped crying and fell asleep.
"Miss, just a few more days and we'll arrive. We'll have to part ways soon."
Zane Zhuang muttered to himself, full of helplessness.
The scent of food woke the baby again. Zane Zhuang carefully fed her, then sighed in relief and changed her diaper, smiling wryly.
"I've never done anything like this before."
After more than twenty days of travel, Zane Zhuang had brought the infant all the way from Cao State to the capital of Qi, Linzi City. He was exhausted, but after all this time, he had grown attached to the baby girl in his arms. She was the child of his close friend, Eugene Henderson, but now, helplessly, he could only give her away.
For the sake of the Henderson heir, for John Chou's safety—this was what Victor Wu had said: the two babies couldn't stay together, or the girl would keep draining the boy's life force.
Having witnessed so many supernatural things since childhood, Zane Zhuang didn't doubt this strange situation. Entrusted by Victor Fan and Victor Wu, he had to deliver the baby girl to the prominent household of Lord Ethan Yi in Linzi City.
In Linzi City, Lord Ethan Yi was an honorable and well-known man, a close friend and in-law of the fifth leader of the Tian family. His own son had died heroically in battle, earning high praise and rewards from the ruler of Qi, Duke Jing. In Linzi City, everyone knew his name.
With vast family holdings, Lord Ethan Yi was the wealthiest man in Linzi City. He and Victor Fan had secretly exchanged favors for years and were sworn friends. This time, Zane Zhuang carried Victor Fan's letter to seek out this great benefactor, hoping he would take in the baby girl.
In just a few years, Zane Zhuang had gone through so much. He was physically and mentally exhausted. Whenever he thought of his old friend Eugene Henderson, he felt a vague pain.
Fulfilling his best friend's dying wish, Zane Zhuang had to see it through. He closed his eyes, leaned back on the bed, and fell asleep holding the baby girl.
Early the next morning, Zane Zhuang hired a batch of good horses and rushed toward Linzi without stopping. But he didn't know he'd already been targeted. His accent wasn't local, and his clothing looked expensive, especially the fur coats he wore, which were worth a lot.
On a snowy day, most people didn't want to travel in the morning, so the road was empty. But Zane Zhuang realized someone was following him. At first, he didn't think much of it, but gradually, he sensed something was wrong and stopped. Six or seven men on horseback were catching up from behind.
"Hand over your money."
The leader shouted as soon as he approached, and the seven men surrounded Zane Zhuang.
Zane Zhuang still held the baby girl in his arms. He didn't want to fight, so he tossed his money pouch over. But the men weren't satisfied—they'd spotted Zane Zhuang's weakness and demanded he take off his fur coat.
With a bang, one of the men, grinning wickedly, punched Zane Zhuang in the nose. He clutched his nose and cried out, crouching on the ground. Quick as a flash, Zane Zhuang broke through the circle, but a gleaming knife slashed toward him.
Dodging aside, Zane Zhuang raised his fists, knocked away a man's knife, and punched another in the chin. The rest hesitated, but soon realized and swung their weapons, aiming for the baby girl in Zane Zhuang's arms.
"You bastards!"
Zane Zhuang roared, dodged a knife, and drove his elbow hard into a man's face. Suddenly, he cried out—another man's knife stabbed toward his arms.
With a ripping sound, Zane Zhuang used his right hand to shield the baby girl. Blood spattered. Mr. Brown quickly retreated, angrily seized a man's wrist, and with a crunch, used the man's own knife to slash his neck.
Seeing things go bad, the rest ran off. Looking at the two men lying on the ground, Zane Zhuang didn't hesitate—he raised the knife and killed them, then treated his wound, mounted his horse, and continued toward Linzi.
Six days later, outside Linzi City, Mr. Brown finally breathed a sigh of relief. The journey had been exhausting, and the baby girl in his arms had started to look pale and sick a few days ago.
After entering the city, Zane Zhuang immediately searched for a doctor. But the diagnosis was that the baby girl had caught a chill—there was no hope.
In a room at an inn, Zane Zhuang used a small spoon to give the baby girl medicine. But now she was burning with fever and hadn't eaten anything all day.
"So this is how it began? Ms. Yi, I didn't expect Mr. Brown was already taking care of you back then."
I glanced at Isabelle Frost, who silently watched everything unfold on the screen.
"I should've died from that fever. It was Mr. Brown who saved me."