Netherworld’s Spirit Envoy - -

All the ghosts had hollow, lifeless eyes, icy cold and devoid of warmth. Now that I had become the center of attention, the feeling frightened me so much that I hastily took a step back.

A sharp, abrupt voice came from behind me, “Idiot, move aside.”

I quickly stepped to the side, and then a Shadow flew past, with the little girl landing in front of the Ghost King. She crossed her arms and laughed shrilly, “Ghost King, hope you’re well. But I’m afraid your big wedding today won’t happen with me around.”

I didn’t expect the little girl to start with such harsh words. The Ghost King’s face remained unchanged-as his expression could not alter-and he snorted coldly, “You monstrous child, how did you get out? I locked you up once, and I can do it again!”

The two had hardly exchanged a few words before they began to fight fiercely. All the ghosts’ eyes were fixed on them, and no one noticed me anymore. Seizing the moment, I wanted to rush to the platform and rescue Lin Shishi.

However, just as I moved, the ghosts at the very back all turned their heads in unison to look at me, their eyes filled with a hint of confusion as if they couldn’t quite understand what was happening.

A chill ran down my spine, and I carefully moved a bit to the left. The ghosts’ gaze followed me, and I froze instantly.

Suddenly, a loud bang from the platform drew the attention of me and the ghosts back to it.

There, a crack had exploded on the platform, and the little girl and the Ghost King were at a standoff. It seemed their powers were evenly matched, and the little girl was not at much disadvantage.

Curiosity got the better of me. How could this little girl be in the Serpent Ghost Domain? Wasn’t this the Ghost King’s territory? And why would she be imprisoned here by the Ghost King? The moment they saw each other, it was as if they were sworn enemies, their eyes blazing with hostility and their attacks deadly-clearly, there was deep resentment.

Before I could ponder any further, the two, one big and one small, resumed their fight. Even the ghosts in the front row seemed tense, some shifting restlessly, their upper bodies swaying slightly as if they wanted to move forward.

At that moment, the row of ghosts standing in front of me also got excited; their attention was completely captured by the struggle on the platform. My mind raced, and I started to slowly move my feet again.

This time, their attention was not drawn to me. Each step I took was light and large, trying to get as close to the platform as possible in the shortest time to rescue Lin Shishi.

At the time, I hadn’t noticed that from the moment the little girl charged onto the platform, the fight between her and another had become so intense that I couldn’t tell them apart. Lin Shishi had been sitting there the whole time, completely motionless.

I took a wide detour to avoid being detected by the ghosts, and by the time I reached the platform, both the Ghost King and the little girl had moved away from it. They leaped into the air, drawing the gaze of the ghosts upwards.

Seizing the opportunity, I quickly climbed onto the platform in a few strides, grabbed Lin Shishi’s hand, and urged, “Shishi, come with me.”

I turned to run, but Lin Shishi remained seated, unmoving. Glancing back, I was shocked to find that what I held in my palm was not her wrist but a black, withered root, complete with strands of rootlets.

“Shishi, what’s wrong with you?” I yelled, and in frustration, I pulled off the red cover from her head.

That wasn’t Lin Shishi at all, but a large humanoid clump of withered roots!

Confused and desperate, I rushed to the center of the platform and shouted at the Ghost King, who was floating mid-air, “Where have you hidden Lin Shishi?!”

After pushing back the little girl with a palm strike, the Ghost King laughed heartily. “I knew you would come back. How could you possibly think I’d let her go? Dream on!”

The little girl yelled and charged at him again. The Ghost King’s expression turned cold, and he resumed fighting the girl, ignoring me.

Feeling powerless, I stood on the platform, clueless and watched by the vigilant ghosts below. Any slight movement would attract their attention.

I was truly at a loss, standing beside the humanoid root, too afraid to move, hoping that the little girl in mid-air would be able to defeat the Ghost King once and for all.

Just then, the little girl screamed and was thrown back, crashing onto the platform and stirring up a cloud of dust that obscured my view.

“Are you okay?” I asked cautiously as the dust settled.

Half-rising, the girl glared coldly at the Ghost King, who was not far in front of her. Her eyes brimmed with deep-seated hatred, indicating a serious grudge between them.

Regardless, my priority was to deal with the Ghost King swiftly and find Lin Shishi. “How are you holding up?”

My question seemed to infuriate her even more. She turned and glared at me, indicating that my words had touched a raw nerve.

“When you first promised me, I led you to the Ghost King, isn’t it time you fulfilled your promise?” The little girl’s voice changed, suddenly sounding much younger, babyish, as if she were three or four years old.

Not just her voice, but her stature began to shrink as well. Her hair, which had reached down to her waist, was now getting shorter and was almost shoulder-length.

Was this reverse aging?

“Come here!” The little girl glanced back at me. Her previously slender figure had suddenly turned into a chubby toddler’s appearance, yet the sinister hue on her face remained unchanged.

I cautiously moved closer to the little girl, uncertain of her intentions but feeling somewhat frightened by her demeanor, as if she might do something terrible to me.

“Look into my eyes.” Originally, there was a half meter between the little girl and me, but with a stretch of her hand, she pulled me right in front of her. Compelled by her command, I couldn’t help but look into her eyes.

Her eyes were pitch black, devoid of any whites, making it impossible for my gaze to find a focal point, only seeing my own reflection shadowed in her eyes.

On her eyes, there was a dark shadow, which I initially thought was my own reflection, but it gradually expanded until it eventually enveloped all of the little girl’s eyes.

Then the shadow continued to approach me; originally, the shadow included a body within the girl’s eyes, but now only a head remained. Suddenly, a large black hand shadow extended out of the girl’s eyes and pulled me inside.

“Ah!” Along with my scream, I suddenly found myself in complete darkness, unable to see anything and losing control over my body.

The little girl’s voice suddenly echoed, though I couldn’t tell from which direction, “Now, I control your body. Once I deal with this Ghost King, I will return your body to you. Gather all your consciousness and merge with me.”

“Merge with you?” Although I didn’t understand her intentions, a sense of unease grew within me. I knew nothing about the little girl’s background, and merging with her could mean being controlled by her.

Without allowing me any hesitation, the little girl urged me on, “Hurry, the Ghost King is about to charge at us.”

Under her urging, I couldn’t spare any time to think further. I quickly gathered all my consciousness, closed my eyes tightly, and focused on sensing the presence of the little girl.

Suddenly, I could distinctly feel my soul being hit by a violent impact. This impact didn’t cause me any physical pain, but it shook my whole consciousness, like a piece of glass that remained intact but was entirely affected around the edges.

It was an assault on my awareness.

Along with the tremor came an indescribable coldness that swiftly invaded my entire mind, as if freezing me from the outside in.

“Ah!” Unable to withstand it, I shouted and opened my eyes to see a massive Shadow lunging directly towards my body.

“Take action!” A childish command echoed in my mind.

Almost reflexively, my hands moved defensively on their own. While blocking the Shadow’s attack, I instinctively launched a counterattack. As my left arm blocked the Shadow, my right hand slipped under my left arm, fingers clawed, aiming straight for the Shadow’s chest.

There seemed to be something the Shadow feared in that spot, as it flipped backward, creating distance between us.

What just happened? I looked at my hands in surprise, unable to believe that the clever reaction had been mine.

“What are you doing? He’s coming at you again!” the little girl’s voice rang in my mind once more. This time, though, I was a beat too slow, and the Ghost King landed a heavy blow on my shoulder, sending me flying through the air.

I landed on the platform, but to my surprise, my body bounced right back up, standing firmly on the stage, with my eyes still locked on the Ghost King, a few meters away.

At that moment, I couldn’t help but wonder. The previous series of actions and responses were nothing like what I normally possessed. Moreover, I’d only heard the little girl’s voice but hadn’t seen her anywhere. Where exactly was she?

“Stop looking around aimlessly. I’m inside your body,” the little girl’s disdainful voice echoed, indeed coming from within my mind.