With a sharp tearing sound, I felt a stabbing pain all over my body. The whip wrapped around us suddenly sprouted sharp little thorns that pierced into my flesh. I screamed.
The Ironmask flapped his wings, trying to take off again.
"Evil spirits, heed my command, devour..."
Suddenly, the four remaining ghosts swooped in, surrounding us. They opened their mouths wide and began tearing at Ironmask's wings. In no time, his wings were eaten away.
We were thrown to the ground, the whip tightly coiled around us. I struggled, but the sharp thorns had already pierced deep into my body, and blood kept flowing out.
The man from the Ghost Syndicate gripped the whip, his eyes full of amusement as he walked over.
"Hmph, you’re asking for death."
Suddenly, I saw the Ghost Syndicate man pull out a black needle from his coat. He pressed Ironmask’s head down and stabbed the needle into his eye.
With a scream, Ironmask howled in agony, his whole body writhing as if in unbearable pain. As he struggled, the thorns embedded in my flesh twisted, making my pain unbearable.
"It’s not over yet," the Ghost Syndicate man said, taking another black needle and stabbing it into Ironmask’s neck, making him struggle even harder.
I screamed in agony.
If you were just a regular person, you’d be dead by now—or at least unconscious, which might be a mercy. But you’re different. Savor it. This is what happens when you defy us. You’d better remember that.
“Zhang… Zhang… Ethan Zhang… help… help me…” Ironmask reverted to his cowardly self, crying and whimpering, begging me for help.
"Damn…" I gritted my teeth and cursed, my whole body aching, sweat pouring down my face.
Don’t worry, Ethan Zhang. You'll get your turn soon. I’ll throw your last two souls into the Soul Refining Execution Platform, and you’ll suffer plenty.
Enough… enough, I won’t dare anymore, I won’t, please let me go, I won’t…
Ironmask wailed and begged for mercy. The Ghost Syndicate man squatted down and lifted Ironmask’s head with both hands.
Not a pleasant feeling, is it? Fine, I’ll go easy on you today. You should thank me—I’m much kinder than the others.
The Ghost Syndicate man said, pulling out the two black needles and then untying the whip. After Ironmask got up, he ran to the corner, clutching his head and crying.
Covered in wounds, I lay on the ground, glaring at the Ghost Syndicate man.
"You’re the one who urged him on, Ethan Zhang."
I had to do something.
"Ethan Zhang, it doesn’t feel good, does it? Heh. How about I give you a choice? Join us. I personally think you have potential, and even Grandpa Crying Ghost said anyone with ability can join the Ghost Syndicate. Your talent isn’t great, but your fate is special. In the future…"
"Keep dreaming…" I said.
Suit yourself. Those guys up there are slow—I’ll go help them out. Think it over.
"Brother, use your blood."
Suddenly, John Chou’s voice rang in my mind. I remembered what he taught me about dealing with the Twin Reapers, and the red bloodline I used in Exile Town.
But I still didn’t know exactly what to do.
"Brother, why are you so dense? That’s your blood, you know."
I stared at the blood pooling in front of me, dazed. Suddenly, I noticed a small patch of blood reacting—it moved slightly, unmistakably upward.
I kept recalling the feeling from that day, slowly calming myself. Back then, all I wanted was to escape—survival was my obsession. I closed my eyes, and the only thought in my mind was to take down this Ghost Syndicate man.
With a gurgling sound, something seemed to react. The blood flowing before me shifted as I moved my finger—it streamed toward my fingertip.
The Ghost Syndicate man was already heading toward the main building.
"Now’s your chance, brother."
Suddenly, I glared at the Ghost Syndicate man. With a sharp motion, the blood pooled together, forming a bloodline. I flicked my finger, sending the bloodline whipping toward him.
Sensing something, the Ghost Syndicate man spun around, raising his whip. In an instant, the bloodline sliced through his hand, sending it flying through the air. He stared at me in disbelief.
It worked. I quickly flicked my finger again, sending the bloodline at him once more.
"Bloodbane Power."
Mona Ouyang’s mocking voice rang out. She gripped the entire bloodline in one hand, staring at me coldly.
A sizzling sound echoed. Mona Ouyang’s hand shriveled as if drained, and in a flash, she was standing right in front of me.
With a cracking sound, I screamed in pain—my finger controlling the bloodline was twisted and broken, flipping upward.
"You’re looking for death, Ethan Zhang."
Mona Ouyang’s shriveled hand gripped my neck and lifted me into the air.
The Ghost Syndicate man clutched his severed hand, glaring at me with hatred.
"You little brat, how dare you—how dare you cut off my hand…"
"John Chou, I know you can hear me. Hmph, let me tell you—I’ve already found the solution in the archive on the second floor. By the time you get here, your little toy will be broken, hehehe…"
With that, Mona Ouyang threw me forcefully toward the Ghost Syndicate man.
"You little brat." The Ghost Syndicate man grabbed my arm, and with a few sickening cracks, broke both of my arms.
"Brother, looks like you’re in real trouble this time…"
John Chou’s voice echoed. It’s your fault I’m here, you bastard—I cursed him in my heart.
"Alright, alright, brother, just hold on a bit longer, heh."
(This chapter isn’t finished yet~ Please click next page to continue reading!)
I was dragged back to the sixth basement floor again, tossed beside Shi Jian like a rag.
The Ghost Syndicate man wrapped his severed hand, glaring at me with hatred as he held the other hand in his good one.
What, feeling sorry for yourself? Or maybe you should go find a doctor—maybe they can reattach it.
Mona Ouyang laughed and said.
"Miss Ouyang, it’s just a hand, nothing to be upset about. What matters is finishing Grandpa Crying Ghost’s orders. If he’s happy, we’re happy—otherwise, we’re in trouble."
Soon, the man with the corroded face came down, followed by the long-haired Blue Wraith. Eight students—five boys, three girls—were brought down with them.
"What happened to your hand?"
It was this brat—damn it. Enough talk, let’s throw his soul into the Soul Refining Lock Platform first.
"If you want to break this formation, I just looked into some details. I didn’t expect it to be so simple, so childish. This is a Yin-Yang harmonizing formation—Yin belongs to ghosts, Yang to humans."
"What do you mean, Miss Ouyang?"
"Don’t you know? Yin-Yang cycles, endless renewal. This formation is built on that principle, composed of Yin and Yang. Yang is the foundation, Yin is the barrier. To break it is easy—let the ghosts possess these eight people, use the method I just described, and send seven of them in."
"I get it, Miss Ouyang. You want to disrupt the Yin-Yang balance. Women naturally have more Yin, and with ghosts possessing them, the Yin will outweigh the Yang, throwing the cycle into chaos, right?"
"Good, now get to it."
The man with the corroded face looked at Vivian Ouyang in confusion.
"And the last person?"
"First, gather seven. The remaining one will be the living sacrifice. Later, slit his throat and let his blood spill onto the ghost soldiers. That’s your job."
Mona Ouyang said, glancing at the long-haired Blue Wraith.
"Throw Ethan Zhang’s soul into the Soul Refining Lock Platform first."
"Ah, leave it to me. What do you take me for? I don’t want to go back in there—it hurts too much," complained the long-haired Blue Wraith.
"Hmph, you! Just now upstairs, you could’ve easily gone in and grabbed those people, but you just watched, costing me several ghosts for nothing."
"Those low-level trash can’t compare to me. I just got out—I need time to recover."
Suddenly, the two Ghost Syndicate members began arguing with the long-haired Blue Wraith.
"Enough! Shut up, all of you. If anyone keeps arguing, I won’t be so nice."
Then the man with the corroded face crouched down, pressed his palms together, and began to chant silently.
After a long, solemn chant, there was a rumble—the ground glowed eerily, and the Soul Refining Lock Platform rose up from below.
With a clatter of chains, the Ghost Syndicate man dragged me up. Then a ghostly green chain flew over, and in an instant, my soul was yanked out.
With a thud, my body collapsed.
I was dragged forward bit by bit. Instantly, wails of ghosts echoed from the Soul Refining Lock Platform. I saw the same scene again—ghosts inside tearing at each other.
"Alright, open the formation. This kid’s body is useless now—throw it in as food for the ghost soldiers. John Chou, let’s see if you can piece Ethan Zhang’s body back together, haha."
"Damn…" I shouted. Mona Ouyang laughed mockingly, her voice grating in my ears.
Fear took hold of me. I struggled desperately as my body was lifted by the long-haired Blue Wraith. The Ghost Syndicate man chanted an incantation, and the formation opened a small doorway.
"No, no…" I screamed.
I didn’t want to die, but I was dragged bit by bit toward the Soul Refining Lock Platform. My will to survive made me fight with everything I had.
"Kid, haha, how does it feel to watch yourself get torn to pieces?"
"No…" I tried to scream, but the long-haired Blue Wraith lifted my body and threw it into the formation.