"What was that?" Startled by the sudden change, Ryan Ling instantly calmed down. This was the place where his parents had their accident—any disturbance here could be packed with crucial information.
In that split second, a wisp of green energy slowly emerged from a pitch-black cave.
"Ryan, grab it quick! That looks like a soul-breath—it could be from your parents!" the Ghost Elder shouted immediately.
Ryan reacted fast and snatched the green wisp into his hand.
Ryan took a closer look—it really was soul-breath. Soul-breath is a remnant of the soul, actually a part of it. It doesn't have any direct use, but since it comes from the soul, you can use it to trace where the original soul went.
And sure enough, his father's aura was inside this soul-breath. With it, maybe he could actually find his dad.
In that instant, Ryan's heart nearly leapt out of his throat—right now, this soul-breath was worth more than anything.
"System, what should I do now?" At this moment, Ryan didn't dare move a muscle, terrified he might accidentally shatter his father's soul-breath.
"Hold it steady. If it's lasted ten years here, that means it's incredibly resilient. Wrap it with your Foundation-Stage qi, then seal it inside the Demon-Snaring Bowl. That bowl is a cold-attribute artifact—perfect for preserving soul-breath!" the Ghost Elder said. Ryan followed the instructions, smoothly sealing his father's soul-breath inside.
"What do I do next?" Ryan asked right away.
The Ghost Elder swallowed hard and said, "You did great on step one. But if you want to use this soul-breath to find your father, you'll need a special artifact called the Soul-Tracing Compass!"
"Soul-Tracing Compass? Where do I get one?" Ryan asked right away.
"I don't have one, but I know where you might find it—the Yan Family of Jinling. Serena Yan is a Fifth-Rank Spirit Officer and basically runs all of Jinling. She should have one; I remember the Netherworld issued them to her family a few years ago!"
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go find her now!" Ryan didn't hesitate for a second. Finding his father's soul was the absolute top priority.
Without delay, Ryan drove back to Jinling. It was nearly evening by the time he arrived. He called Lily Yan, who was still in class, but her mom Serena Yan was at home, so Ryan could go straight to the estate.
Honestly, after spending so many days in Jinling, Ryan figured he should pay a proper visit to the Yan Family. After all, one of his goals when he first came was to help Serena Yan restore the family's reputation.
Right now, the Yan Family might still be one of the four great clans, but their power had seriously declined. The real problem was that Victor Yan, the patriarch, had fallen ill with some mystery disease—he'd been bedridden for half a year and was getting worse by the day. Serena had tried all sorts of remedies, but nothing worked, so she couldn't focus on the family business either.
After Ryan finished his call with Lily Yan, he rushed to the Yan estate. The estate sat in Jinling's northern district, which was heavy with yin and full of old graves. The Yan Family had somehow made it big here: they started as middle class, but in just over a decade, they'd become one of Jinling's top four families—all thanks to Serena Yan becoming a Spirit Officer.
A female Fifth-Rank Spirit Officer is super rare in the Netherworld. Ryan had met Serena Yan twice before, but they'd never actually sat down and talked—since they're both in the biz, you know there's plenty to discuss.
Half an hour later, Ryan was already at the Yan Family's front gate.
"Excuse me, could you let them know Ryan Ling is here to pay his respects?" After all, this was a top-tier family, and with eight guards at the gate, Ryan knew he couldn't just barge in.
"Do you have a greeting card?" one of the burly guards asked coldly.
"No, but your Madam Serena Yan invited me herself!" Ryan replied quickly.
"My Madam invited you? Wait here, I'll go check!" The guard looked Ryan up and down, clearly skeptical, then hurried inside.
About five minutes later, the guard came back out and waved his hand. "Sorry, the butler says Madam is busy and can't meet right now. You'll have to make an appointment some other day!"
"What? Another day? Are you sure you got that right?" Ryan was stunned. With his current status, plus Serena Yan needing his help, she should be welcoming him with open arms. They'd already arranged this in advance—no way she'd just cancel. And the message was relayed by the butler? What a joke.
"What's with your attitude? Do you even know where you are? I'm telling you to leave—didn't you hear me?" The burly guard snapped.
Ryan shot him a fierce glare. He wasn't about to waste time on these nobodies, but he wasn't leaving either. Instead, he slipped around to the back alley, made sure no one was looking, and jumped right over the wall.
It was Ryan's first time inside the Yan estate. The place looked fancy from the outside, but inside it was even bigger. He had no clue which room Serena Yan was in. Just then, two pretty maids walked by, chatting.
"The butler is getting out of hand—he kicked us all out just so he could be alone with Madam. With the master so sick, is he trying to take advantage of her?" one maid whispered.
"No way! Even if you gave him a hundred guts, just look at that idiot—Madam would never let him get away with it. Besides, she's a powerhouse; she could slap him to death!"
"Don't be so sure. That butler is pure trouble. Look at Chunhua, the head maid—she's not just pretty, she's a female martial master. And even she got drugged and assaulted by the butler. That old creep is poison!"
"If you put it that way, maybe Madam really is in danger. The master is basically useless now, and the butler's obviously been drooling over her. Now that you mention it, I did notice Madam looked off earlier. You think he’d really dare make a move? No way, I have to help her!"
"What are you gonna do—get yourself assaulted too? Listen to me: find a man, one you can actually trust. I refuse to believe the butler runs the whole Yan Family now!"
(Chapter not finished yet ^.^ Please click next page to continue reading!)
"Yeah, but who can we actually find on such short notice? Who could even handle the butler?"
...
"Let me help!" Ryan stepped forward, realizing just how serious things were. The butler had just told him to leave, so clearly he was trying to clear everyone out. His intentions couldn’t be more obvious.
"Who are you?" The two maids jumped, their little chests trembling with fright.
"I'm Serena Yan's friend. The butler's people blocked me at the gate just now. Trust me—take me to her, quick, or Serena's definitely in danger!" Ryan urged.