I nearly choked, put down my teacup, and looked at Isabelle Frost.
"One or two years?"
I was a bit surprised—would it really take that long? I looked at her in disbelief.
"John Chou spent 58 years in this Forest of Desire. Ethan Zhang, do you think you could do better than him and progress faster...?"
"Stop, stop, stop."
I said, taking a sip of tea. I was deeply worried about the Ghost Burial Squad's situation—if it took one or two years, would I even be able to find them when I got out?
I immediately stood up, drank another sip of tea, and hurriedly prepared to leave.
"What are you doing, Ethan Zhang?"
"I need to control these desires quickly, then master my powers and get out fast."
"Don't be so hasty. Sit down first."
Isabelle Frost actually started laughing, covering her mouth with her sleeve and giggling. It was the first time I'd ever seen her smile like that.
"Just teasing you, Ethan Zhang. John Chou spent 58 years here, and when he left, he became a sovereign—the Bloodbane Ghost Sovereign in the Ghost Path."
Isabelle said, and I let out an 'oh,' watching her playful and cute demeanor—but it vanished like a mirage, and she returned to her cold self.
I sat back down again.
"Expecting you to master all your powers is unrealistic, Ethan Zhang. Only the basics—I can teach you the foundations, but once you're out, you'll have to keep honing your strength yourself."
I nodded gratefully, but after thinking it over, I decided to continue honing my ability to control desire. After setting down my teacup, I prepared to leave.
"So how do you plan to find that person?"
I nodded.
"Figure out a way to restore Yvonne Yang's consciousness—that should do it."
My plan was simple: as long as I could use my powers, connect with her through my ghost network, and see what had happened to her, we'd know the cause. If she regained her mind, we'd find out who was really manipulating things in the Forest of Desire.
Besides, maybe I won't even need her to regain consciousness—just by accessing her memories, I could find out where that person is.
Isabelle Frost nodded, and I headed downstairs. I had to quickly get familiar with methods to control desire. Once I was outside, I looked around and then started running wildly. At first, my pace wasn't fast, but as I sped up, my steps grew heavier.
I immediately did what I did last night when crossing the river—struggling to suppress my urge to run faster. Meanwhile, though my feet felt heavy, I was keenly aware of their weight.
Gradually, the feeling faded. I accelerated through the woods, and after a while, stopped, panting. Next, I climbed a tree and picked branches from it.
When lunchtime came, I enjoyed a hearty meal—two dishes and a soup. After eating my fill, I rested for half an hour, then went back into the woods to practice. My mind kept conjuring all sorts of desires, and as they struck, I resisted them, gradually gaining control.
I had to practice day after day, without a moment's rest, letting my body remember the sensation directly—training until numbness, and eventually adapting.
The day passed quickly. After dinner, I lay down in my little nest to rest, deciding that tomorrow I'd at least use branches to make a bed. That way, I'd sleep more comfortably.
Now, I waited for night to fall—after all, nighttime desires are much stronger than those during the day.
Watching as the sky gradually turned gray-white, I stood up and rested for a while, regaining my strength. Then I started walking into the darkening woods.
"Tonight, whatever you want to create, bring it on."
I shouted, then continued wandering through the woods. Strangely, nothing happened—until suddenly I stumbled and almost fell. There was a swamp beneath my feet.
My body began to sink, but I immediately tried to control my desires. Then a chilling sensation swept over me—there was something in this swamp.
Moonlight shone down, and I almost screamed. The swamp was teeming with venomous insects, scorpions, centipedes, snakes, and many things I'd never seen before, all biting and stinging me. The pain and discomfort overwhelmed me, and I couldn't help but cry out.
This time, it lasted much longer—I'd been bitten by these creatures in the swamp for nearly half an hour, and it still wasn't over. Compared to last night's ten minutes, this was pure torture.
I kept trying to control the desire tied to the swamp. I wasn't wrong—this was deliberate, created by that person, forcing my subconscious to focus entirely on the slow sinking and the venomous insects around me.
I was in trouble. It seemed I'd underestimated that person—the pain in my body, the relentless sinking, and the terror of losing sight of the night sky kept flooding my mind.
At this point, I could barely breathe, submerged in the swamp. I could only tilt my head back, trying to keep my nose above the surface.
I couldn't see the moonlight anymore—just darkness. My mouth, nose, and eyes were full of mud. I couldn't breathe and had to endure the bites of the venomous insects.
I was nearly at my limit. The lack of oxygen made my head dizzy, but I had no intention of escaping. Instead, I kept controlling the desire to get out. My consciousness began to fade.
"Hmph, if this can't take you down, I'm not happy."
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Just as I was about to pass out, I suddenly heard a delicate girl's voice. Then I lost consciousness.
Suddenly, I woke up—everything had vanished. Isabelle Frost stood before me. I gulped in air, my head still foggy. Remembering that girl's voice from before, I rose in anger.
"It's almost dawn, Ethan Zhang. You'd better go back and rest for a while."
I nodded and trudged back to my little nest. Someone was definitely here—the voice I'd heard was a girl's, delicate and soft.
Early the next morning, I got up, exhausted from everything I'd gone through the night before.
"Tonight, you should really get some rest, Ethan Zhang."
I nodded—I couldn't keep being reckless. If I'd given in to the desires at the last moment last night, I might have become part of this place.
When night came, I still decided to go for a walk. I'd rested all day, and didn't listen to Isabelle Frost's advice, wandering through the woods again. Strangely, nothing happened.
I started conjuring all sorts of desires and successfully controlled them. Without any incidents like last night, I kept going until midnight, then returned to my nest and lay down on the bed I'd made from thin branches. It felt familiar as I closed my eyes.
Time flew by. For nearly a month, I adapted to everything here, visiting Yvonne Yang every day to talk. But after almost a month, she still showed no signs of waking up.
At night, the desires were stronger than during the day, but nothing like that incident happened again. I was surprised—the person behind it hadn't attacked me with desires since that night.
We'd just finished eating when Isabelle Frost spoke up.
"Starting tomorrow morning, just rest well tonight."
Isabelle said, and I nodded.
After dinner, I went straight back and lay down to rest. By now, I'd fully adapted—controlling desires here was no longer a big problem, and I could go about most things smoothly. But I still couldn't use my powers.
I'd tried a few times, but got seriously hurt. Isabelle Frost told me not to use my powers until I'd adapted to everyday life here.
Thinking about how John Chou adapted to desire and used his powers in just one day, while I'd spent a month and still couldn't, I laughed at myself.
"Hmph, tonight, I'll take your life."
Just then, a delicate voice echoed through the open woods outside. I jumped up in surprise and ran out. A shadow darted away, and without thinking, I chased after it.
Gradually, the shadow ahead slowed down and stopped. I slowed too, clenched my fists, and approached step by step.
"I went to great lengths to create this, hmph. Tonight is your death, Ethan Zhang."
The girl's delicate voice came again, but under the moonlight, my eyes widened in shock and rage. Standing before me was none other than Lao Chongyuan. He looked at me with a smile, dressed in a white suit, and walked toward me step by step.
Suddenly, a biting chill swept over me, and the surrounding trees began to sway.
"You really want my life, don't you, Ethan Zhang? I'm the villain who killed your lover, Rachel Lan. What's wrong? If you're angry, then fight me."
In an instant, I roared and charged at Lao Chongyuan.