Vicious Ghost

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Vicious Ghost (厉鬼)
Alias(es)	Malevolent Ghost
Species/Race	Supernatural entity
Occupation/Role	Predatory supernatural threat to living humans and Awakeners 1118
Status	Extant 3154
First Appearance	Chapter 2 — a faceless Vicious Ghost enters Jiang Qiao's home and is sealed into a wall 2

Background

Vicious Ghosts emerge as a widespread danger during the Supernatural Revival, slaughtering people throughout the city while utilities and communications collapse 2. They vary drastically in strength, appearance, intelligence, and methods of killing.

Ordinary people who die do not simply become Vicious Ghosts. An Evolver, however, can become one when the ghost already inhabiting their body completely merges with and takes control of the corpse; the resulting entity is not the original person 1612. Malevolent Ghosts may retain fragments of a host's memories and behavior, but this does not make them human 1247.

Their ultimate origin remains uncertain. Mountain Ghosts are associated with the appearance of many weaker, similarly shaped Malevolent Ghosts, which generally lack self-awareness 2062.

Appearance

Vicious Ghosts have no fixed form. They can resemble decayed humans, distorted corpses, shadows, body parts, animals, or seemingly ordinary people.

• A faceless ghost wearing a gold necklace entered Jiang Qiao's apartment as though it belonged there 2.
• A Hanging Ghost clung upside down to a ceiling, trailing filthy hair while its footsteps sounded from elsewhere 3.
• A Second Tier hotel ghost appeared dry, gaunt, and corpse-like, dressed in a wrinkled shirt and filthy leather shoes 46.
• Some can mimic living humans so convincingly that only their lack of Blood Essence exposes them 1626.
• Their manifestations may be unrelated to their actual rules; supernatural phenomena can take forms such as worms, blood vessels, mouths, or legs without changing their underlying function 2137.

Nature and Behavior

Most Vicious Ghosts are instinct-driven and cannot communicate meaningfully with humans 586. They generally regard humans as prey and are especially eager to attack Awakeners, whose Weirdness makes them desirable targets 1118.

• Self-awareness — A Vicious Ghost can gain consciousness by devouring Weirdness. Self-aware ghosts may speak, feel fear, answer questions, and act strategically 1118 1347 2135.
• Evolver affinity — Most Vicious Ghosts treat Evolvers as their own kind because of the ghosts fused into their bodies, though this does not prevent every attack 81 1626.
• Memory imitation — Possessing ghosts may use limited memories from a corpse to imitate the deceased, sometimes returning to familiar people and places after killing others 1289.
• Rule-bound conduct — Individual ghosts can be limited by location-specific rules. A little ghost could not cross a particular intersection, while another female ghost remained unable to leave her alley herself 1155 3075.

Abilities & Skills

The following are documented manifestations rather than universal abilities shared by every Vicious Ghost.

Supernatural Attacks

Vicious Ghosts can attack through direct physical force, curses, environmental distortions, or intangible supernatural effects.

• A pair of giant legs cast curses across Jiang Qiao's Ghost Domain and repeatedly killed him despite its apparent lack of a body 293 294.
• An awareness-type ghost invaded Jiang Qiao's consciousness through a darkness that could not be seen or touched 2900.
• Ordinary firearms can be ineffective; one ghost continued advancing after being riddled with bullets 3068.
• Powerful ghosts may use attacks that require time to prepare, making interruption before completion crucial 2875.

Possession and Human Imitation

Some Vicious Ghosts possess living or dead bodies, use their memories, and imitate human behavior.

• The Faceless Ghost wore He Tao's skin and withstood an attack far beyond its documented Third Order strength 157.
• A female ghost controlled a human host so completely that the host functioned as its vessel 585.
• Possessed bodies retain no Blood Essence, distinguishing them from living people and incomplete Evolvers 585 1104.
• Powerful ghosts can create Ghost Slaves by influencing living humans 1280.

Ghost Domains

A Ghost Domain exists between reality and illusion, capable of distorting space and trapping targets in false surroundings 469.

• Domains are usually associated with extremely strong entities, typically around the Eighth Tier 1626.
• Exceptional ghosts can develop a Ghost Domain far earlier; Jiang Qiao encountered a self-aware Third Order female ghost with one 586.
• Domain clashes can be decisive: Jiang Qiao's smoke-based domain erased the female ghost's black domain almost instantly 585.

Collective Power

Groups of Malevolent Spirits can act as a single supernatural system rather than a collection of independent entities.

• The spirits in the Weird Tales Inn acted collectively and resisted Jiang Qiao's Eighth Tier Bone Fire 1103.
• The Woman in Qipao could gather and fuse the power of numerous Malevolent Spirits, creating an attack theoretically capable of killing a Ninth Tier being 1193.

Supernatural Items

Most Vicious Ghosts do not collect or control Supernatural Items, making those that do unusually dangerous 2874.

• A coffin-dwelling Vicious Ghost deployed broken dolls, bottles, and other items as defenses 2874.
• Its alarm clock reversed time and regenerated the ghost after Jiang Qiao's earlier attack 2874 2875.
• Once Jiang Qiao seized the alarm clock, the ghost lost its ability to reset the battle and was destroyed by lightning 2875.

Relationship with Evolvers

• Evolvers — Vicious Ghosts commonly mistake them for their own kind because Evolvers are parasitized by ghosts; this grants Evolvers a degree of protection from attack 81.
• Dead Evolvers — When an Evolver dies, the ghost within them may fully merge with the body and become its new master, retaining only traces of the former human's memories 1612 2388.
• Awakeners — Vicious Ghosts instinctively hunt Weirdness and consequently show heightened aggression toward Awakeners 1118.
• Ghost Slaves — Strong Vicious Ghosts may influence living people and turn them into servants whose strength depends on the source ghost 1280.

Notable Examples

• Faceless Ghost — A skin-wearing Third Order ghost that possessed He Tao 157.
• Braided Girl — A powerful Vicious Ghost involved in the assault on Bin City 35.
• Woman in Qipao — A self-aware female ghost who amplified her power by controlling numerous Malevolent Spirits 1193.
• Butcher — An Eighth Tier Malevolent Spirit whose body contained and deployed multiple Malevolent Ghosts 1120.
• Coffin Ghost — A puppet-headed Vicious Ghost that wielded multiple Supernatural Items, including a time-reversing alarm clock 2873 2875.
• Alley Female Ghost — A suspected Weird Tale that used clones to replace parts of Jiang Qiao's body and was gradually escaping her alley-bound restriction 3075.