"Idiot, get back here! Your sister's been taken over—do you want to die?"
A powerful ghost immediately dragged Lucas Lan back. The situation had completely reversed—those who’d been possessed were now under the Spider Wraith’s total control. Things looked grim. Just moments ago, the Spider Wraith sacrificed one of its own souls to seize control of Violet Swallow, the key person who could help John Chou’s group find the spider silk.
"Sister, sister..."
Lucas Lan screamed hoarsely, his voice spent. Everyone around stared at John Chou, asking desperately what to do next, but John Chou remained silent, quietly watching the spot where the Spider Wraith had vanished.
"John Chou, what do we do now? That old bastard’s hiding again. If it attacks next time, we won’t be able to track the spider silk’s movements..."
Soren Black smiled, raised his wine flask, and took a sip before speaking.
"Alright, John Chou, what will you do now? How will a mere Yellow Page create the miracle you promised? Let me see for myself."
Suddenly, Violet Swallow screamed in fury. Her voice grew louder and louder, and blood began to stream from her eyes and nostrils.
"Spider Wraith, you bastard!"
Lucas Lan shouted, his voice booming. Watching this memory, I could sense Violet Swallow pushing herself beyond her soul’s limits—she would collapse, vanish completely. The Spider Wraith, her puppeteer, seemed intent on using Violet Swallow to wear down John Chou and his allies’ willpower.
"What do we do, John Chou?"
Many wraiths stared at their former comrades, now puppets of the enemy, growing increasingly anxious. Violet Swallow’s voice rose, louder and louder, while John Chou seemed to be sensing something.
Most of the wraiths couldn’t take it anymore. This temporary alliance, already fragile, was falling apart after one mistake. Yet John Chou said nothing.
Every wraith wore a look of impatience, while Lucas Lan had sunk into utter despair, staring blankly at his sister as she slowly burned through her soul.
"Sister, wake up! Wake up..."
Suddenly, Lucas Lan broke free from the wraith holding him and shot toward his sister. With a sharp crack, John Chou appeared before Violet Swallow, his Hell's Sentinel stabbing mercilessly into her body.
"Ah..."
A piercing scream echoed in the air as Lucas Lan wailed in agony.
"She’s my sister—my only sister, John Chou..."
Lucas Lan’s rage nearly drove him mad, yet John Chou remained silent, quietly watching Violet Swallow. In an instant, Violet Swallow regained consciousness.
"Thank you, Young Master Chou. Thank you... Brother, don’t blame him."
Blood trickled from Violet Swallow’s lips as she slowly collapsed. Lan Yin cried out, rushing over to embrace her.
"Sister, oh sister..."
Suddenly, John Chou approached another possessed wraith. His Hell’s Sentinel struck with precision, piercing the wraith’s chest. The once-frenzied wraith coughed up blood and slowly closed its eyes.
All the wraiths watched John Chou repeat this act, killing every possessed wraith one by one. No one spoke; they simply stared at his actions in silence.
"John Chou, what are you doing?"
At last, one wraith couldn’t hold back and roared in anger. All the wraiths glared fiercely at John Chou.
"How cruel you are. The ones who just fought for you—now you kill them without a second thought."
With a flash of green light, the Spider Wraith reappeared, grinning with that mocking, eerie smile.
John Chou remained silent, simply observing everything the Spider Wraith did. The surrounding wraiths looked as if all life had drained from them, having given up on resistance entirely.
"It’s all over now, John Chou."
Soren Black watched quietly, shaking his wine flask and letting the last drop fall into his mouth.
The Blackbelly Greenstripe Spiders began to approach again, hissing. The Spider Wraith slowly floated over, its eight spiny legs twitching on its back.
"I’ve made up my mind. Not a single one of you will be spared. Even if you beg for mercy now, I won’t let you go."
As the Spider Wraith spoke, the wraiths looked utterly hopeless. Many of those struck by John Chou had already lost their limbs, turning to ash, nearly gone.
The Spider Wraith was drawing closer. At that moment, John Chou started to laugh, and his laughter grew louder and louder.
The Spider Wraith paused, staring at John Chou in confusion.
"Have you finally lost your mind? Kid, hmph—you, a mere Yellow Page, dared to kill three of my souls. You seem clever, so I won’t kill you right away. I’ll take my time..."
"Are you really ready to die?"
John Chou suddenly interrupted the Spider Wraith, asking the question. All the wraiths turned to look at him.
"If you don’t want to die, do exactly as I said before."
"John Chou, just now you—"
"What about just now?"
John Chou roared, glaring at the wraith who tried to question him.
"You—you—tell me, what about just now?"
All the wraiths fell silent, staring at John Chou. The Spider Wraith was getting closer.
John Chou pointed at the wraiths around him and shouted, then flashed a cold, sinister smile.
"Have you forgotten? You’re ghosts."
John Chou lowered his voice and spoke, then burst out in wild laughter.
"Since you’re ghosts, what does evil mean to you? I killed them for victory. Weren’t you all alone before coming here? You became wraiths because of grudges and tangled fates from your lives, didn’t you? So don’t lose your will over something like this. Ruthless and poisonous—that’s your true nature, isn’t it?"
John Chou’s words snapped the wraiths out of their despair. Their faces twisted with a terrifying expression as Dark Essence began to seep from their bodies.
"That’s more like it. Do whatever it takes to survive, use whoever you must—that’s what it means to be a ghost. Get in position and attack!"
John Chou roared, and suddenly all the wraiths took flight, howling as they returned to their places and charged the Spider Wraith.
"None of that worked before, you know."
The Spider Wraith said coldly.
"Just keep moving forward. If anyone gets possessed, I’ll make sure the rear is secure."
As soon as John Chou finished speaking, the wraiths charged at the Spider Wraith. Even those assigned to defense threw themselves into the attack. The twelve wraiths who could wield flame unleashed it all around them.
Even when they couldn’t see, the flames still managed to burn some of the spider silk. The Spider Wraith was surprised, frantically whipping its silk around.
"No complaints. If we kill him one more time, we can get out of here."
John Chou spoke with steely resolve. When a wraith was possessed, he rushed over and, without hesitation, stabbed Hell’s Sentinel into its chest.
Weapon clashes rang out again and again. The Spider Wraith was in total panic, forced to block the attacks of the now-maddened wraiths.
A few more wraiths were struck down by John Chou.
"Hmph, a rabble. Courting death."
The Spider Wraith roared, blocking attacks and swinging its cane. Its spider silk crept silently toward the wraiths, while the Blackbelly Greenstripe Spiders soared on the silk, attacking from above.
The Spider Wraith’s eyes never left John Chou. It kept defending, retreating, as more and more spiders crawled out from the cave behind it.
Every wraith fought for their lives, but the Spider Wraith ignored their attacks. All eyes were fixed on John Chou.
With two swift strikes, John Chou cut down two spiders. Another wraith was possessed, and John Chou killed it without hesitation.
Some wraiths were wounded in the clash with the Spider Wraith. Suddenly, the Spider Wraith’s face changed—it couldn’t see John Chou anywhere and began to panic.
"John Chou, don’t you dare hide from me! Hmph, in my Specter Web, you can’t escape."
The Spider Wraith roared, a green light bursting from its body and knocking back the surrounding wraiths. It started frantically searching for John Chou.
"Attack! This is the final blow!"
John Chou’s cold voice rang out; the wraiths, in a frenzy, rushed the Spider Wraith.
"Where are you? John Chou, you bastard, where are you?"
The Spider Wraith roared, and just then, a hissing sound—one Blackbelly Greenstripe Spider appeared before it. In a split second, a sword burst from the spider’s belly and stabbed straight into the Spider Wraith’s heart.
"John Chou..."
The Spider Wraith roared, and its cry shook the entire Ghost Domain.
"Now, head west—the exit is that way."
John Chou shouted. The Spider Wraith stared at him in disbelief as the remaining wraiths flew west. John Chou watched the Spider Wraith, then with a swift motion, pulled out Hell’s Sentinel.
"That’s all there is to it. I... won."