"Wei Xiyuan, fuck your mother!"
The unlucky man Wei Xiyuan had thrown out as a shield cursed him furiously. Wei Xiyuan was usually so damn honest and good-natured. Who would have thought a man like that would be the first to sell out his teammates at a critical moment?
Perhaps because honest people's lives were too dull and uninteresting, many people chose to attribute virtues to them that had never existed, such as kindness and loyalty. But in truth, an honest person might simply be honest, nothing more.
The White Sash wrapped around the unlucky man's limbs and yanked hard. His limbs came apart, leaving him a human pig.
But his sacrifice had value!
The hole in the wall became an escape route, and Wei Xiyuan and another member of the Beifeng Commune had already fled.
The two women in the team went after them. Hu Jiu stayed behind to finish the job, stuffing the "human pig" into a Golden Corpse Bag.
Yue Renchun did much the same, crushing the life out of the tall, thin man whose skull had been split open and containing him.
The two men smiled at each other, each feeling disgust for the other.
Two scheming bastards of the same kind repelled each other.
Elsewhere, Wei Xiyuan and his sole remaining companion were racing away, though a remarkably large safety distance separated them.
"Wei Xiyuan, who would've thought you had that in you? You really can't judge a man by his looks!"
His companion spoke sarcastically. Though he shouldn't have said such things at a time like this, everyone was used to mocking Wei Xiyuan, and the habit wasn't easy to break.
But Wei Xiyuan had already dropped his disguise. Gone was his usual good-natured manner, and a muffled, brutal voice rumbled from his chest. "Shut up, you idiot! If you hadn't attacked first, I could've convinced them. Why would we have had to run for our lives?"
"I didn't!" his companion denied flatly. "I'm not an idiot. In that situation, I'd have to be out of my mind to attack first!"
Wei Xiyuan froze for a moment. "Those tentacles were too similar to the ability of the ghost you control. They were practically identical. How am I supposed to believe you?"
His companion fell silent. He couldn't prove his innocence, and there was no need to.
A sinister wind pursued them relentlessly, and the sound of things cutting through the air rang out again and again.
"They've caught up, but it's only the two women."
The wind was far faster than they were, so Wei Xiyuan and his companion could only stop and fight.
The two sides faced off briefly before Wei Xiyuan suddenly repeated his trick, clawing his companion viciously.
His companion turned and glared at him, but before he could start cursing, the Fierce Ghost inside him suddenly went out of control!
"Thank you for staying behind to cover my retreat. I'll live well enough for both of us!" Wei Xiyuan delivered his farewell with great feeling, and his companion was so moved that his eyes nearly burst from their sockets.
By the time Hu Jiu and Yue Renchun arrived, their side was at a disadvantage. A Ghost Tamer from the Beifeng Commune was in an advanced state of revival. All the flesh on his body had turned into tentacles, and his body was rapidly mutating, losing its human shape as he attacked everything around him indiscriminately.
A tentacle whipped toward Hu Jiu, who dodged it easily. He suddenly felt as though something didn't fit. Why did this Ghost Tamer, codenamed [Ghost Muscle], have such a Cthulhu vibe?
Having read the Beifeng Commune's detailed files beforehand, Hu Jiu found that, apart from Wei Xiyuan, everyone's circumstances were within his expectations.
Expressionless, he activated the supernatural power of the Bloodstained White Silk. At once, white silk swept toward the out-of-control Ghost Tamer, filling the sky.
That wasn't all. A sharpshooter at the scene kept pulling the trigger on him, and for a time, gunshots rang out without pause.
The out-of-control Ghost Tamer had lost his reason and had no Ghost Domain. Like a stationary target, he was struck by every gold bullet, which blasted his flesh apart.
Unfortunately, although gold was unaffected by supernatural powers, it could only confine Fierce Ghosts or harass them. It couldn't deal them any effective damage.
The tentacles wounded by the bullets quickly writhed and healed, as if nothing had happened.
"Damn it, his self-healing is too strong. We can't take him down quickly!" The female Ghost Tamer controlling the gale ground her teeth. "If this drags on, we'll have expended far too much even if we manage to contain him!"
The woman with the gun said, "It's all right. He shouldn't be able to keep up this berserk state for long. We can wear him down slowly."
"You're not a Ghost Tamer, so don't talk nonsense about things you don't understand. He's already close to death. The Fierce Ghost is reviving!"
Hearing the hostility in their voices, Yue Renchun spoke up in time to calm them. "We're all teammates. Don't argue. We'll definitely find a solution."
His words did help. His pleasant, melodious voice soon quelled the anger in both women's hearts.
"Where's the other Beifeng Commune member? Where did that headless guy run off to?" Hu Jiu suddenly asked.
The woman with the gun raised a hand and pointed. "He ran that way."
"I'll go after him." Hu Jiu considered Wei Xiyuan a scheming bastard, and people like him might know more confidential information.
Watching Hu Jiu's retreating figure, Yue Renchun gave a wicked smile. The bothersome third wheel had finally left.
He extended his right hand and spread his fingers, releasing a dazzling, gorgeous pink radiance.
A sound of something slicing through the air followed, and the tentacle monster in front of him was sent flying backward. A mass of sludge pierced its body and formed chains, binding every tentacle tightly.
The next second, Yue Renchun teleported in front of the tentacle monster and contained it directly in a corpse bag.
"Amazing!" Both women looked at him with admiration. Although they knew from memory that Yue Renchun didn't have the ability to use sludge, they couldn't muster the slightest wariness toward him.
Yue Renchun walked slowly toward them and took one woman's hand in each of his.
At that moment, they fell under the spell of his sweet smile, unable to escape.
Feeling the softness against his palms, Yue Renchun smiled even more brightly. Although both women had close ties to Fang Qingjiao, he didn't mind. After all... even Fang Qingjiao himself belonged to him!
He would "recruit" talented people to his side, unite and strengthen his forces, and realize his ambition bit by bit!
Meanwhile, Hu Jiu had left the others' sight and no longer needed to put on an act. He quickly caught up with Wei Xiyuan and tore off his limbs in short order.
An astonishing sight appeared again. Not a drop of blood flowed from Wei Xiyuan's wounds. His severed limbs attracted one another as though magnetized and reassembled themselves in a matter of seconds.
Wei Xiyuan stood up again, alive and well, though his legs were trembling slightly. Clearly, it had taken a great deal out of him. There was no telling how many more times he could use that trick.
"How many more surprises are you hiding from me?" Hu Jiu's eyes gleamed.
Wei Xiyuan's codename was [Zombie]. His file only recorded that he was good at sucking blood and possessed tremendous strength. Yet the abilities he had now displayed were quite formidable. An ordinary person facing him could easily come to grief.
"What will it take for you to let me go?"
Seeing that Hu Jiu had pursued him alone, Wei Xiyuan once again thought of negotiating. If the conflict could be resolved peacefully, he had no desire to fight at all.
"As for the Beifeng Commune's crimes, at most I knew about them and failed to report them. I was forced to join the organization in the first place. You should understand how little control Ghost Tamers have over their circumstances. I want to live."
Hu Jiu nodded. "There are some things I want to ask you. Please tell me the truth."
Wei Xiyuan's heart leaped. It was good that Hu Jiu was still willing to talk. As long as they could talk, there was a chance of finding a way out!
He actually knew who Hu Jiu was. The Beifeng Commune had obtained Hu Jiu's file. Not only that, but he also felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, as though he had met Hu Jiu once before, though he couldn't remember exactly when.
"Why did you release Fierce Ghosts in Yuzhou City?" Hu Jiu walked toward a secluded, hidden corner and asked the first question, meant to throw Wei Xiyuan off.
Wei Xiyuan followed him and protested, "That's a false accusation! The Beifeng Commune really didn't do it. Someone's framing us!"
Hu Jiu asked, "Oh? Then, according to you, your people weren't responsible for the deliberate release of Fierce Ghosts in Lizhou City either?"
"No, that incident really did involve the Beifeng Commune. But I had only just joined the organization at the time and wasn't qualified to access secrets like that." Wei Xiyuan distanced himself from it with a mixture of truth and lies.
Hu Jiu smiled faintly. "Why did Liu Tiancheng and Wu Xuan sneak into Linjiang City?"
Since it had nothing to do with him, Wei Xiyuan chose to tell the truth. "They were retrieving Fierce Ghosts. The Suicide-Hanging White Silk and the Ghost Hand were both ghosts belonging to members of the organization. Zhao Lifeng considered those ghosts the private property of the Beifeng Commune."
Without waiting for Hu Jiu to ask more, Wei Xiyuan volunteered everything he knew about Zhao Lifeng.
"On the surface, our leader only controls the Ghost Footprints, but he actually controls two ghosts. I don't know what his second ghost can do. They say there's also a mysterious organization behind him, and the Beifeng Commune is merely subordinate to it."
Hu Jiu narrowed his eyes slightly. "What's that organization called?"
Wei Xiyuan shook his head.
Just then, a jumble of footsteps approached from afar. Wei Xiyuan pressed his palms together in a pleading gesture. Hu Jiu waved his hand, and Wei Xiyuan immediately concealed his presence and hid.
Hu Jiu walked toward the sound and came face-to-face with the four teammates taking part in the operation.
Yue Renchun and the two women were in fairly good condition, but Fang Qingjiao looked miserable. He was pale and covered in wounds, and his left arm hung limp, probably broken. In his right hand, however, he carried a human leg, leaving a trail of blood on the ground.
Hu Jiu raised an eyebrow at the sight. What a brutal fight~
"I failed. Zhao Lifeng controls two ghosts and also has two supernatural items. He really put me through the wringer," Fang Qingjiao said helplessly. "But that bastard didn't get off easy either. I crippled one of his legs, and he's on the verge of revival. Even if he escaped, he won't live long!"
"How did things go on your end?" Yue Renchun asked.
"That headless Ghost Tamer was tough as nails. I didn't catch him." Hu Jiu had let an enemy escape, and given Fang Qingjiao's short temper, he should have snapped at him. But Fang Qingjiao had failed himself, so how could he have the nerve to criticize someone else?
Yue Renchun shot Hu Jiu a meaningful glance. He didn't believe anyone could escape Hu Jiu, but it was none of his business, so he said nothing more. He took out a Longevity Potion and handed it to Fang Qingjiao.
Fang Qingjiao accepted it happily, a trace of gratitude flashing in his eyes, and used it immediately. The battle with Zhao Lifeng had left him in terrible condition too; he had only been forcing himself to hold on, unwilling to show weakness in front of others.
The Longevity Potion took effect immediately. Fang Qingjiao's wounds healed rapidly, and in the blink of an eye he was back to normal. His broken arm recovered as well.
"This operation was a failure. We didn't manage to kill the leader of the Beifeng Commune, and another member got away by luck. But it doesn't matter. Zhao Lifeng definitely won't live much longer, and that illegal organization is finished."
Fang Qingjiao looked at the corpse bag in Hu Jiu's hand. "What are you going to do with your ghost? Are you handing it over to Headquarters?"
Hu Jiu shook his head. "No, I'm keeping it for myself."
Fang Qingjiao then looked at Yue Renchun. "You took care of both those Ghost Tamers, and I just used one of your Longevity Potions. Both ghosts are yours."
"Any objections?"
Everyone tacitly agreed.
"All right, in that case, we can disband now." Fang Qingjiao issued the order like a captain.
"Goodbye." Hu Jiu turned and left, calling the Satellite Phone as he went to give Xiao Mei a brief account.
He had an excellent impression of his new operator, who neither meddled nor talked too much. As long as it didn't affect him, he was happy to cooperate with her work.
The other four didn't leave, instead staying in Zhenyuan City and discussing going out to eat together. They seemed to get along so well that no one could have guessed these Ghost Tamers had only recently met.
After they had all gone, Zhenyuan City's police officers received notice and quickly arrived to deal with the aftermath.
On a secluded path, a severely injured man missing one leg lay sprawled on the ground in a sorry state.
The skin on his face was ulcerated, bluish-purple and bloody, and it gave off a foul stench. If a passerby saw him, they would probably scream. How could anyone look so terrifying, just like a ghost?
"Damn it, why am I so unlucky?" Zhao Lifeng growled angrily. He had come close—just that little bit closer, and he would have been dead for good!
That Fang Qingjiao was truly powerful, but unfortunately lacked experience. Zhao Lifeng had barely escaped with his life. Lately, it was as though the god of plague had possessed him, with one disaster after another.
He laboriously pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed an unfamiliar number. As soon as the call connected, he said, "Come help me, quick! I'm about to undergo revival!"
"No way! How did you end up in such a mess?" The person on the other end sounded extremely shocked.
"I offended Headquarters, and the Beifeng Commune is finished!" Zhao Lifeng's voice trembled. "I barely escaped with my life. Hurry and come get me. In my current state, I can't hold on much longer."
"All right, I'll be there right away!"
The call ended, and Zhao Lifeng lay on the ground, gasping for breath as he waited quietly for help.
About ten minutes later, a woman in a pitch-black robe suddenly appeared beside him.
"You're finally here." Zhao Lifeng breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he still had a friend he could rely on.
The black-robed woman helped him up and pressed a talisman paper bearing a strange design into his hand. "You're in really bad shape. The talisman can only suppress it temporarily. Why not come back to the Beidou Organization with me and ask the higher-ups? There might still be a way to save you."
Bitterness filled Zhao Lifeng's face. "I messed up the task Old Chu gave me. I don't want to gamble on whether he'll just beat me to death!"
"What will you do next, then?" The black-robed woman was deeply worried.
"Go to the Endless Corridor!" A fierce look appeared on Zhao Lifeng's face. "The Endless Corridor can suppress all supernatural powers. I can slowly recover in there."
"But once you go in, you probably won't be able to come out!" The black-robed woman was somewhat surprised, but she quickly understood. "You don't have any other choice now. I'll take you there."
With that, she hoisted Zhao Lifeng onto her back and left.