Taboo Mage - Chapter 82 - The Wolf Nightmare Ghost
usea. Suddenly, a white shadow burst through the golden light, lunging at the puppet placed on the table.
At first, I didn’t react, but when I saw the shadow dragging long hair, I snapped to attention. Jue Chi, that bald monk, had actually summoned this thing!
“Holy shit! What the hell is this!”
Among the people present, only I, Jue Chi, and Mr. Cao could see the nightmare ghost. Jue Chi was obviously not afraid, and although I was still somewhat disgusted, I managed to stay composed.
It was Mr. Cao’s first encounter with a nightmare ghost, and he yelled out loud.
I glared at him, quickly pondering why Jue Chi would summon a nightmare ghost, especially now that over fifty Resentful Spirits were lying outside the golden light barrier like zombies, ready to burst in at any moment.
And now this thing was added into the mix. What was he thinking…
“Qingshu… go get the puppet…” Jue Chi suddenly spoke as I was thinking.
His voice was weak. Although I didn’t understand why he asked this of me, I gritted my teeth and headed towards the direction of the fast-food table.
The nightmare ghost, as if it had found some delicious treat, clutched the puppet tightly in its claws, its large tongue drooling as it licked the puppet’s head.
Facing this horrifying scene, I kept telling myself, this thing doesn’t bite… it’s gentle… just pretend it’s the neighbor’s big golden retriever…
After repeating this to myself a few times, I rushed forward, grabbed the puppet from its claws before it reacted, and ran back to Jue Chi without looking back.
“Damn! Damn! It’s chasing me!”
Mr. Cao’s eyeballs almost popped out, his hoarse voice uncontrollably trembling.
“Monk! Save me!”
As I stepped into the golden light, I yelled out. Jue Chi, who had been slouching against the wall, suddenly opened his eyes and flung his Kasaya towards me.
The Kasaya flew over my head. I gasped for air and turned to see the nightmare ghost that had been chasing me now covered by the Kasaya. Its claws seemed bound, only able to emit muffled groans.
“What’s… what exactly are you doing?” I looked bewilderedly at Jue Chi sitting to the side, unable to grasp his methods anymore.
“Qingshu, go take the talisman paper off.”
Jue Chi suddenly spoke, catching me off guard. The only thing holding the Resentful Spirits at bay was that talisman paper. If we removed it, we’d be torn apart by them in no time.
“Hurry!” Jue Chi frowned, his tone suddenly more forceful.
I let out a long breath and reached up to remove the talisman paper above me. Without the protection of the golden light, the Resentful Spirits, who had been gathering resentment for so long, flooded in instantly.
Surprisingly, as soon as the once-fierce Resentful Spirits saw the nightmare ghost, they stopped in their tracks and then began to scatter.
Seeing this sudden change, I started to understand why Jue Chi had done this.
“Take the Kasaya off, quickly!” Jue Chi shouted.
I hurried forward and yanked the Kasaya off the nightmare ghost. As soon as the Kasaya left its body, its once-docile eye turned blood-red. It sprang from the ground and chased after a Resentful Spirit.
I watched in shock as the nightmare ghost opened its massive mouth and swallowed the Resentful Spirit whole.
In the blink of an eye, the nightmare ghost had devoured three Resentful Spirits. I stood there, dumbfounded, subconsciously swallowing and reaching to feel my neck.
Thankfully, my head was still securely attached to my neck.
What I thought was a docile golden retriever had suddenly transformed into a ferocious wolf. The stark contrast left me momentarily unable to process what had just happened.
The Resentful Spirits, encountering their nemesis, desperately rushed towards the entrance of the fast food restaurant, only to be instantly repelled. I was puzzled until a flash of insight hit me.
At the entrance of the fast food restaurant, Jue Chi had already placed prayer beads and yellow talisman paper, barring the Resentful Spirits from escaping.
The fifty or so Resentful Spirits that had been like demonic beings from the Netherworld suddenly became like turtles in a jar, while the nightmare ghost was the hand ready to capture and savor them.
What initially seemed like a scene from hell suddenly turned into a predatory display of big fish eating little fish. Despite the horror and gore, I found it oddly fascinating.
In less than half an hour, all fifty Resentful Spirits were consumed by the nightmare ghost. Satiated, it licked its tongue that trailed to the ground, glanced at us, and a glint of greed appeared in the Eyeball drooping on its cheek.
Heh! I couldn’t handle the Resentful Spirits, but a nightmare ghost? Bring it on!
I gripped the copper coin sword and charged at the approaching nightmare ghost. It lunged towards me, dragging its body. I deftly sidestepped and drove the copper coin sword deep into its body.
The nightmare ghost let out a wailing cry, writhed a few times, and then vanished into white smoke.
Finally done with the ordeal, I dragged myself back to the corner. Jue Chi, now recovered, gave me a thumbs-up.
I smiled and glanced at Mr. Cao, who stared at me wide-eyed, incredulous.
Thick fog cleared after half an hour, and Mr. Cao started organizing the cleanup. Jue Chi and I climbed back into the wagon to catch some sleep, waiting for Li Jianjun to be released.
But even after tossing and turning in the wagon for over half an hour, I couldn’t figure out why the nightmare ghost suddenly attacked the Resentful Spirits.
Curious, I turned my head to ask Jue Chi.
Jue Chi curved his lips in a gentle smile.
“Because nightmare ghosts feed on the flesh and bone of the dead, and if there are no dead bodies, they will settle for ghosts to satisfy their hunger.”
I suddenly understood. No wonder Jue Chi had me retrieve the puppet, creating the illusion of a corpse to attract the nightmare ghost.
Deceived by the puppet, the nightmare ghost’s appetite was whetted, but with no dead bodies to consume, it could only settle for a room full of Resentful Spirits.
