Gradually, I regained consciousness. At the corners of my mouth, uncontrollable laughter erupted. Inside, a destructive impulse surged, a murderous intent to crush everything spilled forth endlessly. My mind was awash in blood-red, and my eyes slowly turned a deep red-black.
I slowly stood up and looked at my skin—it was splitting open, and streaks of black light kept leaking out from within. Tilting my head back, I roared furiously.
With a thunderous crash, a ring of black light blasted outward in all directions. Instantly, swathes of insects turned to ash. I roared over and over, feeling everything inside me—anything called restraint—had been purged.
"You've already lost control, Ethan Zhang. Heh, a ghost's rampage is a sign of doom. Looks like I won't need to intervene myself."
I gasped for breath, my long tongue lolling out, black vapors pouring from my mouth. My whole body trembled—trembling with excitement.
I fought desperately to stay lucid, my mind spinning. Everything was happening too fast for me to keep up. My consciousness began to blur—I had to suppress the power surging within me.
With a scream, I shouted and slowly floated up.
"Ghost... worms... come forth..."
I couldn't hold back anymore. With a furious wave of my hand, a torrent of black Curse Aura surged out like a waterfall. With a roar, countless insects were crushed and obliterated in the aura.
A bottomless chasm split open in the ground, and more insects crawled out. I drew my Hell's Sentinel and gripped it tightly.
"Come forth, Ghostworm..."
I roared again, agony wracking my body. I could only keep suppressing it—if this power burst out, my body would instantly collapse.
"Oh, heh, Ethan Zhang, it hurts, doesn't it? Let it explode. Everything here can be destroyed. Don't force yourself anymore. Heh, Howard Zhang, I'm taking him with me."
With a roar, I crashed into the distant mound of insects. Instantly, all the bugs around me turned to dust.
A constant sizzling filled the air. With a clang, my Hell's Sentinel slipped from my grip and hit the ground. I collapsed to my knees with a thud—the pain inside me was beyond imagination. Clenching my fists, I hammered the ground again and again, sending cracks through the earth and chunks of stone flying, only for them to turn to ash around me.
With a whoosh, Desire Ghost appeared beside me.
"Qingyuan, you are yourself—don't forget that."
As she spoke, Desire Ghost's slender hand pressed to my forehead. The sizzling sound continued—I couldn't last much longer in this state. I had to find Brother Owen.
Suddenly, a golden light flared in the distance. With a boom, swarms of insects were blasted away by the golden glow.
"Cousin, let me help you."
I saw him—it was my cousin. In an instant, my eyes widened. He wielded a golden Monk's Staff and struck Brother Owen under the jaw, sending him flying. I let out a beast-like roar; with a thunderous crash, the ground caved in beneath me. I became a mass of black light and charged toward Brother Owen.
"Die, Ghostworm..."
I roared, swinging Hell's Sentinel in a blur—dozens of strikes in an instant. Brother Owen spat blood, his body torn apart before me. Grabbing his severed head, I opened my mouth and bit down.
Green blood splattered everywhere. With a crack, Brother Owen's head exploded in my grasp.
"Nobody move—unless you want this girl to die."
Suddenly, my cousin blocked my path and struck me with the staff. With a crash, I hit the ground, my ability to restrain myself lost. All I could think of was killing Brother Owen.
My cousin was shrouded in golden light, standing over me. I saw Brother Owen gripping Sophie Sun by the throat. Tears streamed down her face as she whimpered.
"Ghostworm, I'll have your life..."
I couldn't endure it any longer. With a boom, I charged again. Suddenly, my cousin turned; golden Brahma script appeared, climbing onto my body and locking me in place.
"You six, don't waste your strength. Come help my cousin."
Suddenly, my cousin shouted. The sound of rushing wind filled the air as my six ghost souls, wracked with pain from the burning Brahma Lock, flew back into my body.
I screamed, staring at Brother Owen as he kept letting out chilling laughs.
"You lying monk—you tricked me."
"Heh, Howard Zhang, you always need a backup plan. I did say I'd let Sophie Sun go, but I never said I wouldn't catch her again."
"You..."
My cousin raised his Monk's Staff, pointing at Brother Owen. His gaze burned with intensity, then he smiled gently and turned to me, showing a tender expression.
"Cousin, don't blame me. I'm sorry—I can never ignore a woman's tears..."
"Howard Zhang, don't worry about me. Kill the monk—don't worry about me..."
Sophie Sun struggled with all her strength, shouting. But my cousin just kept shaking his head, a look of absolute resolve in his eyes.
"Let him go, Ghostworm. If you want my body, take it."
Brother Owen kept laughing maniacally as I pounded the ground in agony, shouting. The golden light around my cousin slowly faded.
"That's right, Howard Zhang. Your Buddhist affinity runs deep. If I want to reincarnate, I need a body like yours to bear my karmic burden—it's the ideal vessel. Come here, Howard Zhang, or I'll kill her right now."
Brother Owen threatened viciously. I kept shaking my head, but the Brahma Lock binding me was too strong. My cousin must've used the power of Buddha's Aspect—I couldn't break free or even make a sound. All my grief and pain kept building up, leaving me only able to whimper with my mouth open, my heart aching with sorrow and despair.
Slowly, my cousin approached Brother Owen. With a swishing sound, I saw green, rope-like things binding my cousin's arms, legs, and neck.
"You can let her go now, Ghostworm."
Brother Owen let go, pushing Sophie Sun into my cousin's arms.
"For your final moment, I'll let you enjoy it a little, Howard Zhang. This is your last chance."
I kept shaking my head, hoping my cousin would break the restraints. Even though Brother Owen released Sophie Sun, I saw her still bound by many green ghostly cords.
"Don't cry, Sophie..."
My cousin reached out, wiping away the tears from Sophie Sun's cheeks, then smiled at her.
"My cousin will take you home. Everything I said in that room that day was true."
Sophie Sun kept nodding, crying all the while. She hugged my cousin tightly, and then he turned, pushing her into my arms.
With a shout, I roared.
"Cousin, take Sophie and leave. You have the strength—can you promise me that?"
I kept shaking my head. Tears streamed down my cousin's face.
"Cousin, this is my last request. I've made many mistakes before, but now, what I'm doing isn't for redemption—it's to bear the burden, cousin..."
"No, cousin, I can't do it! Let me go, let me go!"
I roared. Sophie Sun was beside me, crying and pleading, then looked to me for help.
Suddenly, my cousin was lifted into the air with a whoosh. Brother Owen sat nearby, a golden swastika appearing on his forehead.
"Boundless joy..."
Suddenly, a massive formation appeared on the ground, covered in black Brahma script. Centered on Brother Owen, it spread outward, with eight worms in the ghost domain each spitting out a black thread, linking to the formation.
I saw a wall of black light enveloping both my cousin and Brother Owen. My cousin lay suspended, arms spread wide, his gaze locked on me. Gradually, the Brahma script faded from my skin.
The restraints holding me finally vanished. In an instant, I dashed forward, slamming into the black wall of light.
"You can't break this swastika wall, Ethan Zhang. From now on, we're in separate spaces. Do as you wish."
Brother Owen spoke, closing his eyes and starting to chant. A scream came from behind as I kept ramming the black wall of light.
"Cousin..."
My cousin shouted. With a whoosh, I landed beside Sophie Sun, surrounded by worms. With several swishing sounds, the worms all turned to dust.
"Desire Ghost, I'm counting on you—take Sophie Sun and leave."
I shouted, then slowly floated upward. Desire Ghost pulled Sophie Sun, and their forms vanished instantly.
"Ghostworm, don't get cocky. This is my strongest move—I'll use it to end you."
I roared, half-crouched in midair, gasping for breath. I couldn't hold on much longer—I had to unleash my strongest attack.
"Oh my, Brother Owen, looks like you're in trouble now that we're back."
A relaxed voice came from beside me—it was Mr. Oblivion. I turned in surprise to look at him.
"Ethan Zhang, if this keeps up, you'll die. When a ghost goes berserk, it means death. Let me help you relax."