Chapter 68: Evil Ghost In The Smoke
In the instant Zhang Qian turned his head, a tattered great saber slashed straight at his face with a sharp whistling sound through the air.
The rusty blade was still entwined with indelible bloodstains, unknown whether from a fierce ghost or a human.
This long-prepared strike came too fast; Zhang Qian had no time to think and could only reflexively mobilize his true qi, unleashing his strongest attack method.
In the instant the great saber was about to land on Zhang Qian’s face, a ferocious ghost mask suddenly appeared out of thin air, its hollow eyes staring fixedly at the unknown figure in the black smoke.
Although the figure’s facial features couldn’t be seen clearly, it still possessed vision, and the moment it saw the mask, it triggered Ghost Face’s attack condition.
True qi crossed space and acted directly on the mysterious person, the brutal attack forcing him to pause for a moment.
But it was only for a moment; the mysterious figure’s supernatural power far surpassed the current true qi, and he quickly adapted to the ghost mask’s attack.
But adapting didn’t mean the attack lost its effect; even as the figure resumed movement, blood tears seeped from the corner of its eyes, and it wouldn’t be long before it turned into a rotting corpse.
However, the mysterious person completely disregarded his own injuries, even dropping his defense and allowing true qi to rampage in his body, single-mindedly wanting to cleave Zhang Qian in two.
“Whoosh——”
The icy cold great saber slashed through empty air.
Zhang Qian had already disappeared; he had voluntarily abandoned the attack and completely severed his connection with this black smoke space.
The illusion shattered into a large mass of dark green-black thick smoke, but even the intangible black smoke was cleaved in two by the mysterious person’s saber, writhing powerlessly before dissipating.
……
In the room, Zhang Qian’s body instantly tensed up, his vigilant gaze sweeping around the room.
Without any hesitation, he directly took out the ghost candle and lit it, while maximizing all his senses, staying alert for possible dangers.
The candle flame flickered faintly; the ghost candle’s burning speed was nearly stagnant, indicating no supernatural power was attempting to attack him.
Warm candlelight enveloped Zhang Qian, soothing his tense mind.
“That was close…” Zhang Qian let out a breath of relief, feeling a sense of relief after surviving the ordeal.
Although his self in the black smoke space was just an illusion, that piercing sense of crisis on his back was not fake.
The figure likely had some method, even able to injure the real body by attacking the illusion.
“Big Brother, what happened?” Wang Shang, who had been waiting nearby, immediately noticed something wrong and shoved the annoying Tian Hao aside as he walked over.
Although there was a possibility of danger, he was more concerned about Zhang Qian’s safety.
“Nothing major, just took a loss.” Zhang Qian gently blew out the ghost candle and put it away, secretly resolving to extort two more from Wang Xiaoming.
This delivery mission would probably require dealing with another potential threat; headquarters wouldn’t refuse to give a reward, right?
“That’s good…” Wang Shang hesitated to speak, worried that asking too much would displease Zhang Qian.
“Sigh, actually, I was careless and didn’t dodge, nearly got one-shot by a saber…” Zhang Qian didn’t avoid it and simply recounted what happened in the illusion.
He had intended to select a few teammates, and Wang Shang was a good candidate.
Although Wang Shang’s strength was lacking, his mindset had begun to transform; he was no longer that college student who often clung to legs and cried.
Fear was inevitable, but Wang Shang had already gained the courage to face fear head-on.
Wang Shang’s performance against the jumping ghost last night was commendable; it was clear he was trustworthy, and Zhang Qian felt at ease choosing him as a teammate.
After briefing the general situation, Wang Shang broke into a cold sweat for Zhang Qian. “What an insidious person—strong strength aside, he even plays dirty. Good thing Big Brother you reacted fast; if it were me, I’d probably be down already.”
Zhang Qian shook his head, denying his words. “Not insidious; though I don’t know why he attacked me, it was clearly with killing intent, so no method would be surprising in that situation.”
“Moreover, he nearly succeeded, perfectly catching the moment I relaxed. I have to admit there’s some luck in me dodging this attack.”
Wang Shang was still somewhat worried and hesitated. “In that case, doesn’t it mean your ability has a big flaw? If used again, it might be exploited as a weakness for an attack?”
Attacking others only to bear the risk of being attacked didn’t seem worth it to Wang Shang.
“This depends on how that figure entered the illusion—was it already lurking inside, or did it forcibly intrude just now?”
Zhang Qian analyzed the possibilities and deduced, “But I don’t think the figure was hiding in the illusion from the start; otherwise, why didn’t it attack me the first time I entered?”
Zhang Qian had stayed in the illusion for several hours at the beginning, with plenty of opportunities to attack.
Moreover, while suppressing the jumping ghost, he had also explored that space and was certain nothing else existed inside.
“So the figure likely couldn’t intrude at first, only finding an opportunity to sneak in after a certain moment.” Zhang Qian said.
“After turning on the light?” Wang Shang guessed.
“Or rather, after the fierce ghost disappeared. That fierce ghost vanished from my perception for a while, probably because the darkness blocked my senses. But soon after, I sensed the fierce ghost again—it was likely the figure using some method to transport the fierce ghost there, using it as a starting point to intrude into my ability.” Zhang Qian added.
“Darkness blocked the perception, but you could sense the fierce ghost again just now…” Wang Shang looked around and lowered his voice. “Doesn’t that mean the figure is in the post office? Probably hiding in some nearby room?”
“So we need to keep a low profile lately. That figure took my attack head-on without injury; it’s definitely stronger than most ghost controllers.” Zhang Qian sighed. “Probably another remnant from the old era… These guys are worlds apart from contemporary ghost controllers; any one pulled out could shock the contemporary supernatural circle. Who knows how many such monsters are left.”
The feeling the figure gave Zhang Qian was different from Xun Can or Luo Wensong. Facing a big shot like Luo Wensong, Zhang Qian could only sense a vague, ethereal power, unable to gauge its exact strength.
But from the figure, Zhang Qian could feel a thick threat; though the gap was still large, it seemed catchable.
“Even you think he’s a monster, Big Brother?” Wang Shang was somewhat surprised.
In his view, the figure just got the drop with a sneak attack; in a head-on fight, the outcome wasn’t certain.
“No worries, if we can’t beat him, we can hide. Just be extra cautious around him.” Zhang Qian comforted. “Don’t forget Luo Wensong is the post office’s boss; he won’t let others kill a messenger.”
Moreover, so what if he’s strong now? Once I devour a couple more ghosts, I’ll swallow you too.
