Chapter 48: Aftermath (Part Two)

The glow from the ghost core on the wall gradually filled the entire room. Suddenly, a force of suction erupted from the bottom of the pool, yanking Wu Zui directly to the very floor! With a loud smack, he was plastered against the pool’s base.

“Glub... glub glub...”

Caught completely off guard, Wu Zui expelled the last of the oxygen in his lungs, sending a stream of bubbles rising through the water.

[This is bad, I’m being murdered!]

He flailed his arms and legs in a desperate struggle at the bottom, but it was useless—he was pinned tight as if he were a magnet drawn to iron.

[I’m going to die~ I’m really going to die~]

The more Wu Zui struggled, the less oxygen he had, and his mind began to cloud. Just as he felt himself on the verge of passing out, a blue protective membrane of magnetic energy spontaneously formed around his head. The blue light emanating from the ghost cores swirled visibly, spinning into a vortex that converged on Wu Zui’s head.

Though he still couldn’t breathe, Wu Zui’s consciousness was suddenly crystal clear, as if his body had entered a state of suspended animation. Every part of him, except his head, had powered down to the bare minimum.

As the blue glow surged into his mind, Wu Zui’s thoughts became astonishingly lucid—a feeling beyond mere refreshment or clarity.

Crack—

A sound like an eggshell breaking resounded in his skull.

Wu Zui glanced around; aside from himself, the pool was empty. He felt as though his soul had left his body—he beheld himself from a third-person perspective, strangely calm and unafraid.

Then he noticed a flicker of flame at the level of his heart. Before he could react, the image of a red fire rapidly solidified. His submerged body was engulfed in this flame, the water around him evaporating at a shocking rate, while the blue light gathered toward him even faster.

As the red glow filled the entire pool, darkness overtook Wu Zui’s vision. He lost the ability to observe himself from outside, and all the red flames poured into his body.

Now bare and vulnerable, Wu Zui lay in the pool, blue light still seeping into him.

In another room, Xiao Ke’ai was similarly pinned to the pool’s bottom by the same force. Her hair, freed from its tie, floated about her as she kept her eyes closed, her expression peaceful—like a white mermaid in the water.

Unlike Wu Zui, in Xiao Ke’ai’s pool, the blue light gradually took the shape of a cat. The cat, entirely blue with a pair of adorable black eyes, was the very image of Xiao Ke’ai herself. It darted about the magnetic enhancement room, leaping and running, almost escaping outside.

Xiao Ke’ai, perceiving everything from the cat’s perspective, realized it was not a physical creature but something spectral, like a ghost. It could pass through the floor unhindered, and even magnets did not impede it. If not for the density of blue light in the room, escape would have been easy.

Time slipped by swiftly. Eventually, the blue cat, as if exhausted, drew closer to Xiao Ke’ai and finally merged into her body.

When Wu Zui and Xiao Ke’ai left the magnetic enhancement room, three days had passed.

“Master, look! I have a new ability—a cat that can scout for me. I call her Commander Cat! Master, what’s your new ability?”

Clutched in Xiao Ke’ai’s arms was a blue-furred cat with big black eyes, about thirty centimeters long, tail included—a truly adorable sight.

It mewed as if in greeting.

Hearing her, Wu Zui opened his palm, and a ball of red flame sprang forth. Xiao Ke’ai recognized this fire instantly; whether in Qianjia Village or the mirror world, its power had always been formidable.

“That’s wonderful! Master, you won’t have to hurt yourself anymore!” Xiao Ke’ai, overjoyed, let go of Commander Cat and seized Wu Zui’s arm in excitement.

Commander Cat didn’t fall but instead shimmered and reappeared perched on Xiao Ke’ai’s left shoulder.

“Yes, it’s not bad,” Wu Zui answered, though his mood was rather subdued—this meant he’d lost one of his trump cards. He wondered whether this new flame and the one born of his blood would be equally powerful.

He decided not to dwell on it—when the time came to face a ghost, the truth would reveal itself.

After leaving the investigation bureau, the two had yet to receive a new assignment. A glance at his phone showed the mission system was updating, so they headed to Wu Zui’s rented apartment to deal with the situation there—namely, the mirrors, whose number was unknown.

Upon entering, both were left speechless.

━Σ(ﾟДﾟ|||)━

“Master... this is way too much! Did that mirror ghost buy out every supermarket nearby through online shopping?” Xiao Ke’ai gaped at the sight, her mouth agape in astonishment.

Everywhere in the room, mirrors of all sizes were stacked—some towering two meters high, others no bigger than a fist. Styles ranged from ancient to modern, local to foreign, and the place was so packed there was barely room to step.

According to shipping records, all these were purchased by the now-defunct mirror ghost. And—yes—with Wu Zui’s money.

“Seems like it!” Wu Zui growled through gritted teeth. If the mirror ghost weren’t already dead, he’d have hauled it back for another round of punishment.

“What do we do with all these? Sell them?” Xiao Ke’ai picked up a palm-sized antique-style mirror and turned it over as she spoke.

“We’ll return them all. I’ll cover the shipping, though. The online platforms are on the verge of madness from all these mirror returns. If I make them pay shipping again, I probably won’t ever be able to use any of their apps again.”

Wu Zui sighed. The mirror ghost had already returned goods four or five times, each time in massive quantity. If he were a merchant, he’d be driven crazy too—might even show up in person to settle things with the ghost, though he’d stand no chance against the platform.

“Master, can I pick a few for myself? Some of these are really pretty!” Xiao Ke’ai blinked her big eyes, joined by Commander Cat, who raised a paw under her direction.

“Take whichever you like. Don’t be shy,” Wu Zui said, gesturing at the pile.

He’d already checked the nearby surveillance cameras. After being blacklisted by every platform, the mirror ghost had given away many mirrors to keep making mirror slaves, otherwise, these wouldn’t have been unpacked. Now that the ghost was gone and the resentful energy had dissipated, Wu Zui wasn’t worried about the mirrors causing trouble. Otherwise, cleaning up this mess would have been headache enough.

“Yay! I want this one... and this one... and this!” Xiao Ke’ai exclaimed, happily selecting from the pile.

She finally picked a handful of pretty little mirrors and a large standing mirror, saying she wanted it for trying on clothes at home.

Wu Zui called the courier and had the standing mirror shipped to her place; the rest were sent back to their original sellers. The courier, eager and efficient, quickly packed everything and cleared out the room—understandable, since Wu Zui had shipped so many packages recently, earning the courier a hefty bonus for the month.

With the mirrors handled, Wu Zui and Xiao Ke’ai began browsing assignments on the newly updated Ghost Handling Center app.

Now merged with the Ghost Encyclopedia app, the center no longer assigned tasks automatically, given the increasing number of spirit investigators and awakened individuals; one now chose assignments personally, complete with detailed information—much more convenient.

Now that both had reached three-star level, they naturally ignored one- and two-star missions. After all, they’d taken down two three-star ghosts—a lizard abomination and the mirror ghost—when they were still one-star. It would hardly be fitting to stoop to lower-tier assignments now.

(｡ӧ◡ӧ｡)

After some browsing, Xiao Ke’ai settled on this mission:

Mission Level: Three-star+ (Recommended team: at least two three-star awakened)
Location: Laoshan Village and Nanshan Village, Haitian City
Estimated Ghost Strength: Three-star Ghost Bride. Three-star Ghost Groom. High suspicion of illusion and water manipulation abilities.
Mission Description: A case of haunting has been reported in Laoshan Village. Days ago, a boy from one family drowned and died; his body has since been cremated. According to local custom, unmarried deceased must be wed posthumously so their spirits may find companionship in death. Coincidentally, a girl from neighboring Nanshan Village also died unexpectedly, also unmarried. The families agreed to bury the two together after cremation and held a ghost wedding.

But the day after the wedding, elderly members of both families began dying. At first, these were dismissed as natural deaths. But within three days, all the elderly had perished from various accidents, and adults in their prime also began dying.

*Most deaths were due to drowning, suffocation, or terror. Spirit investigators are advised to be well-prepared.

Due to the recent surge in cases, intelligence is less detailed than before.

“Haitian City? That’s the next city over—kind of far, isn’t it?” Wu Zui didn’t mind the mission’s content; two three-star ghosts against two three-star awakened seemed fair. But he worried about the distance—if something happened in Binhai City while they were away, would they make it back in time?