A figure suddenly appeared in the lingering haze of dust—it was James Wang. In his hand, he held a massive, still faintly throbbing black heart. My chest tightened; that must be one of those black hearts belonging to the Immortality Society.
A wet, smacking sound rang out as James Wang shoved the entire heart into his vertical mouth and began to eat. Gradually, I saw the crossed, blade-like bones on his chest start to spread apart, and then, astonishingly, flesh began to grow over them—black flesh, sprouting continuously from the bone.
Just then, a thumping heartbeat echoed. As the flesh sealed tightly, I saw a fist-sized, ever-expanding black heart beating steadily inside James Wang's chest cavity.
Gradually, James Wang's previously emaciated body began to sprout sturdy muscles all over. His hair grew longer, hanging wildly. At that moment, I saw his cheeks split open entirely—the vertical mouth fully gaping, pushing his whole face aside to the sides of his head, turning what used to be his face into a gaping maw.
"I can feel it... Heh, now, I'm the strongest one here, Ethan Zhang."
Suddenly, two cages burst open. Out flew a long, snake-like creature with a human head, and another nearly five-meter-tall, hulking monster. Its limbs were thick and muscular, but it had no head—only a pair of eyes and a fanged mouth on its chest.
With a thunderous crash, James Wang was already upon the snake-like monster, grabbing its body with both hands and instantly tearing it into several pieces.
With a ripping sound, James Wang plunged his hand into one segment of the snake-like creature, pulled out a black heart, and swallowed it down, grinning with excitement.
I just sat on the ground, quietly watching it all. With a whoosh, James Wang flew to the hulking monster, thrust his hand into its body, and pulled out a black heart as big as a head, swallowing it in one gulp.
Two monsters that looked formidable were dispatched by James Wang in an instant.
"Can we really leave now?"
James Wang shouted to those around him.
"Oh, I didn't expect a weakling like you to survive this long. And you've even regained consciousness. Heh, when you get out, maybe you can go back to the Immortality Society."
"Ah, do you think you could fix me up? At least, replace this monstrous face of mine."
"That's not too difficult. Hurry up—defeat Ethan Zhang and this ghost array will open."
Urged on by Thousand Hands, James Wang slowly walked toward me.
"You're no match for me now."
"What you said before—about wanting to see your wife and child again—was that a lie?"
James Wang laughed arrogantly.
"What do you think?"
"Answer me."
I roared at James Wang, glaring at him. Then, with a gurgling sound, I saw two eyes on James Wang's chest swimming beneath the skin, shifting to either side of his chest.
"Of course I lied to you. Heh, there are still idiots like you in this world—it's hilarious. Ethan Zhang, hahahaha..." I lowered my head in silence, then smirked coldly.
James Wang walked toward me, step by step.
"It's true, I'm naive—always clinging to those childish ideals, no matter what."
"That's right. If you want to survive, you have to keep stepping over others, taking whatever you can. That's the way of this world."
I lifted my head and smiled.
"You've blinded yourself with selfishness, willing to abandon even what's most important."
"Hahaha, die! If I eat you, I'll advance even further, become stronger, and climb higher and higher. If you don't climb, there's only death. You had a chance to finish me before, but your naïveté will be your end—you'll die here as my stepping stone. You're a ghost, yet you don't even understand such a simple truth?"
Slowly, I raised my right hand. Gradually, a Deathbane Revolver formed in my grip. I aimed it at James Wang's heart.
"Hahaha, I've already checked out your revolver—it's special, yes, but your bullets can't penetrate my fully evolved skin now."
With a whoosh, James Wang was suddenly right in front of Owen, raising his hands and reaching for me. Waves of icy killing intent rushed toward me.
Bang! The gun fired. I pulled the trigger, and a gleaming white bullet shot out from the revolver, piercing James Wang's skin and burying itself in his heart.
James Wang was stunned at first, then burst out laughing again. He gripped my shoulders, but suddenly screamed in pain. His body began to tremble violently, wracked with agony, and his once-powerful muscles started to shrink.
"You... you... Ethan Zhang, what have you done to my body?"
James Wang's hands slipped off my shoulders as he collapsed face-down onto the ground, whimpering weakly. His body had shrunk several times over, and he looked at me, barely clinging to life.
His two eyes slid over to his shoulders, fixing their gaze on me.
"Until you remember what's truly important, you'll rot here forever."
I said in a low voice, then stood up, looked around, and floated into the air.
"Ethan Zhang, what was that thing you just used? How is it possible—he was clearly much stronger than you!"
I clenched my fist, smiled, and looked up at the sky.
"No matter how much you pile up fake strength, it can never defeat me. Even if I hadn't used that move just now, he wouldn't have been my match. I..."
I paused, then gave a cold, sinister smile.
"I'll never lose to someone who's already forgotten what's truly important."
I roared, then slowly raised a hand. Although part of my ghost soul had just been eaten, it was already recovering—thanks to Aunt Ghost, who taught me the method. I used the seven ghost threads within me to wrap my ghost soul. At first, it didn't work much, but now I could feel my ghost soul healing rapidly.
"That's enough, Thousand Hands. This ghost array..."
Before I could finish, the dense black things sealing off everything around us in the sky began to disperse.
"Hmph, Ethan Zhang, I may be ruthless, but at least I keep my word. Heh, the data's been collected—there's no reason for this place to exist anymore."
As he spoke, explosions began to erupt all around, flames shooting up from the ground. The temperature was scorching, but it didn't affect me in the slightest—after all, I'm a ghost.
Violent explosions kept happening as I slowly floated upward. Amid the blasts, James Wang glared at me as I rose high into the air.
The entire Immortality Society facility was engulfed in flames, mountains collapsing and the ground splitting apart. Within minutes, the whole structure had sunk into the earth, thick black smoke billowing upward.
The fire kept burning, destroying all traces. That’s the Immortality Society’s way—never leave any evidence behind. This was just a game to them. Even if I brought the monsters’ corpses back, I’d probably learn nothing.
Guys like James Wang at the very bottom wouldn’t know anything either. He wasn’t dead yet, but as the facility sank, he followed it into the depths—no longer even human, lost in the flames.
I turned my head, and suddenly, a burst of green light appeared before me—it was Thousand Hands, standing in front of me. But I immediately sensed this wasn’t his true form, only his ghost soul.
"I saw plenty of interesting things, Ethan Zhang. Heh, I look forward to next time."
"I'll find you—and kill you, you sick freak."
I roared at Thousand Hands, watching him laugh so hard he nearly doubled over.
"You may have gained some special powers, but it won't be long before everything about you is exposed."
Thousand Hands spoke with absolute confidence. I just smiled.
"Do you really think I used all my power?"
I spoke softly, then in a flash appeared before Thousand Hands's ghost soul, raising my ghost weapon and slashing at him.
Clang! Thousand Hands gripped my ghost weapon tightly.
"You're not qualified to fight me, Ethan Zhang. Hurry up and keep growing—next time won't be so easy."
Then, with a burst of wild laughter, Thousand Hands dissolved into wisps of green smoke, vanishing before me. I checked my bearings and glanced back at the burning, smoke-filled pit below.
"So this is the Immortality Society—absolute power. I finally understand. But your absolute power is a lie."
Clenching my fist, I sped southward. I needed to get back to the city quickly and ask Xiaoyaozi exactly where he heard about the Immortality Society—the thread hasn't completely snapped.
Just then, the Bing app vibrated again. I quickly pulled out my phone.
"Data leak level has reached fifty percent."
I smiled, put away my phone, and sped off.