Watching a swirl of black mist drift past as the Blood Wraith vanished, Jin Locke staggered back, powerless. What should he do? He didn’t want Shangguan Mo to endure the same pain as him, but even more, he couldn’t bear to see her die.
Jin Locke appeared suddenly, but Shangguan Mo’s expression barely changed. She simply glanced at what he was holding, her curiosity piqued. “What’s that?” she asked.
Jin Locke’s hand trembled. His voice was hoarse, “The Blood Wraith wants to control you. This is…”
Before he could finish, Shangguan Mo suddenly took the cup from his hand and drained it in one gulp, leaving him no time to stop her. Staring at the empty cup, Jin Locke cried out anxiously, “Do you know what that is? It’s witchcraft!”
Shangguan Mo glanced at his agitated face and replied calmly, “I know.”
“You…” Jin Locke was speechless. She knew, yet she drank it without flinching. He truly couldn’t understand what she was thinking. Did she really not care about life and death? Why choose a fate worse than death? Was it because… of that man?
Shangguan Mo had her own calculations. What she needed now was to escape this cage and walk out of here. First, she had to put the Blood Wraith at ease. As for the witchcraft, there was a way to break it—she just had to kill the Blood Wraith!
Jin Locke looked at her, his face full of complicated emotions, and suddenly said, “He’s fine. It’s just that the whole world has been thrown into chaos because of him.” He hadn’t expected the power of the Ghost Sect to be so terrifying. Not only Silvermoon Kingdom and Cang Kingdom, but even the smaller states had been plunged into turmoil by Simon Gong’s actions. There was no war, but many had died. Anyone who stood in the Ghost Sect’s way met an unnatural end. Now, the streets were nearly empty; everyone feared running into those fiends if they stepped outside.
Shangguan Mo looked at him for a moment and nodded lightly. Jin Locke watched her for a while before saying, “I’ll try my best to persuade the Blood Wraith to lift this spell.” With that, he turned and left. Though he said so, he had no confidence at all—the Blood Wraith would never listen to him.
Watching him leave, Shangguan Mo recalled the prophecy: chaos sown, salvation foretold. Though Simon Gong had thrown the world into disorder, in the end, it was all because of her.
Shangguan Mo glanced around. After so much study, she had made some progress, but escaping from here would still take time. Her only worry was that Damien Gray might not be able to wait.
She reached up to touch the crescent moon at her earlobe. The longing she had suppressed slowly surged forth. Shang...
Suddenly, a sharp pain twisted through her abdomen. Overcome by nausea, Shangguan Mo rushed to the door and vomited.
She frowned at the thin, long, black-tinged creature writhing on the floor. Was this the witchcraft parasite? But how had she managed to spit it out so easily?
Her ear felt suddenly cold. Shangguan Mo reached up and realized the crescent moon at her earlobe was gone. Was it because of that?
Worried about Shangguan Mo, Jin Locke came again the next day. Seeing she was unharmed, he finally relaxed a little.
He knew Shangguan Mo hated him. It was his fault, and he never expected her to show him any kindness. Lost in thought, he suddenly heard her ask, “What grudge exists between the Blood Wraith and the Sima family?”
Jin Locke was startled from his reverie and shook his head. “I don’t know. He’s never said.” Although he inhabited the Blood Wraith’s son’s body, he was no different from an outsider—just another tool under Blood Wraith’s control.
Shangguan Mo’s brows knitted. She asked again, “Can sorcery be given to someone else?” The force that had knocked her off the cliff before was sorcery, but she could be sure neither the Blood Wraith nor Jin Locke had done it—the power was too weak. Only the Sima family possessed spiritual power, so there couldn’t be many who wielded sorcery!
Jin Locke nodded, not asking how she knew. He had always known she was clever.
Perhaps the Blood Wraith still had no use for Shangguan Mo, as he hadn’t let her out. Shangguan Mo wasn’t anxious; she simply continued to study the formation.
Damien Gray, on the other hand, was far less composed. He’d become a true tyrant, crushing all dissent with brutal force. His violent aura was so fierce that even Gu Yihan and Jing Moxhen dared not approach him.
Just as Gu Yihan and Jing Moxhen were wracked with worry, Quentin Hua, long missing, finally reappeared.
“Damien Gray, I’m taking that little one back!” Quentin Hua shouted as soon as he entered the Ghost King’s Manor, clearly unaware of what had happened.
After being stung by Shangguan Mo’s words, he’d retreated into the mountains to brood. He called it training, but really, he was sulking. He thought a few days would clear his mind, but the gloom only deepened. At last, he decided to reclaim his little beauty, and so he rushed to the Ghost King’s Manor, intent on finding out where she was.
At the sound of his voice, Gu Yihan and Jing Moxhen sprang out, startling Quentin Hua. Before he could recover, they each grabbed an arm and dragged him toward the back courtyard.
“Hey, what are you doing? Are you trying to kidnap me? I’m telling you, I don’t have any money!”
Gu Yihan and Jing Moxhen had no time for jokes. As Jing Moxhen dragged him along, he said urgently, “Where have you been all this time? The Master is nearly mad. You’d better think of something!” He and Gu Yihan were already at their wits’ end.
Quentin Hua’s face turned serious. “What’s going on?” he asked.
After listening to Gu Yihan and Jing Moxhen, Quentin Hua realized how dire the situation was. He knew Damien Gray was strong—so strong that even stripped of power and status, he could remain unruffled. Yet he was also fragile, so fragile that losing one woman could leave him utterly devastated.
Quentin Hua clenched his fists. He was determined to win back his little beauty!
His thoughts really were all over the place. Fortunately, he kept them to himself—otherwise, the two desperate men would surely have beaten him up!
Facing Damien Gray’s cold, cruel gaze, Quentin Hua said directly, “I know where Shangguan Mo is!” Now was not the time for subtlety—who knew if Damien Gray would kill him with a single blow?