Lamp Wick

Qiao Sang's pupils suddenly contracted.

Vital energy was a characteristic of living beings. The more abundant a person's vital energy was, the more spirited and lively they appeared.

As long as someone was alive, they possessed vital energy; it was merely a matter of how strong or weak it was. But for that vital energy to draw the attention of Ghost Type pet beasts, simply being alive was not enough.

Their entire body needed to be brimming with an enormous amount of vital energy.

The Ghost Type pet beasts in horror movies all liked to feed on the vital energy of young people. She had never seen them specifically seek out the elderly.

An old person naturally had little vital energy to begin with, and what little they had was contained within their body, where Ghost Type pet beasts could not sense it at all.

According to big data, pet beasts like Ghost-Sucking Lamps, which liked to guide lost people in exchange for vital energy, also helped young people find their way.

Death Qi, meanwhile, was an aura of lifelessness.

The places with the most Death Qi were funeral homes, morgues, and cemeteries.

When Death Qi appeared on a person, it meant their life was nearing its end.

Death Qi strong enough to attract Ghost Type pet beasts had to be extremely dense. If it could be sensed on a living person, it basically meant they would definitely be dead within three days.

Logically speaking, the vital energy and Death Qi that Ghost Type pet beasts could sense should both be beyond the normal range of energy.

Yet Little Treasure Hunting Ghost had sensed both on the Old Lady.

That didn't make any sense!

Qiao Sang pondered silently. Every abnormal phenomenon was caused by Extraordinary Creatures. Could this be related to the missing Ghost-Sucking Lamp?

For a moment, Qiao Sang's mind ran wild.

She tried hard to connect everything together. The Old Lady herself had been close to death, but her family had rushed over that same day. Then the Ghost-Sucking Lamp disappeared, and the Old Lady was alive again.

When she strung together the sequence of events...

Qiao Sang unconsciously propped her chin up with her right hand and began concocting conspiracy theories.

Could it be that the Old Lady's family knew about some ability of the Ghost-Sucking Lamp and had forced it to use that ability to extend her lifespan?

But the price of doing so was death, so the Ghost-Sucking Lamp vanished. The Old Lady, unaware of this, was still foolishly posting missions to find it.

No...

Qiao Sang quickly rejected her own theory.

If the Ghost-Sucking Lamp had died, the Old Lady, as its Pet Tamer, would definitely have known immediately...

But what if the Ghost-Sucking Lamp had saved the Old Lady without dying?

Qiao Sang took out her phone and began searching.

What ability does a Ghost-Sucking Lamp have that can bring a dying person back to life?

The webpage quickly gave her an answer.

Sorry, no webpages related to "What ability does a Ghost-Sucking Lamp have that can bring a dying person back to life?" were found.

Qiao Sang: "..."

It seemed no one had ever asked this question...

Still unwilling to give up, she logged onto a forum and made a post about it.

Only a dozen or so seconds after posting it, several replies appeared below.

I don't know how a Ghost-Sucking Lamp can bring a dying person back to life, but I do know how it can make them die faster. Want to hear it?

Why did this question show up on my feed?

OP, your way of thinking is a little concerning.

Come on! It's a Ghost Type pet beast! Do you think it's some divine pet with a God-rank healing skill?!

Then I have to educate OP here. Ghost-Sucking Lamps absorb vital energy; they don't give vital energy away.

Qiao Sang fell into thought as she stared at the last reply.

That was right. What Ghost-Sucking Lamps liked most was vital energy. There had to be at least some stored within their bodies. If it could transfer that vital energy into someone at death's door...

Qiao Sang exited the forum, quickly checked her recent call history, and found the number she wanted.

For a question ordinary people would never discuss, it was naturally more reliable to ask someone knowledgeable.

The call was picked up after two rings.

"Hello, what is it?" A calm voice came through the speaker.

"Vice Principal, can a Ghost-Sucking Lamp give vital energy to a person?" Qiao Sang asked directly.

Liu Yao put down the document in his hands. Qiao Sang had contacted him fairly often lately. He did not even need to check the caller ID; he recognized her as soon as he heard her voice.

Still, he had not expected her to call and immediately ask such a question.

Although Qiao Sang's Academic Scores were not particularly impressive, the questions she liked to explore had already far surpassed a high school student's level.

After pondering for several seconds, Liu Yao answered, "No. A Ghost-Sucking Lamp absorbs vital energy through the lamp wick within its body. Even if it releases the vital energy it has absorbed, that energy would only disperse into the surroundings. It would not enter a human body by any means."

"The human body is built as it is. It cannot absorb this kind of energy like Ghost Type pet beasts can."

Qiao Sang frowned slightly. Had she guessed wrong?

"Then can a Ghost-Sucking Lamp's lamp wick be transplanted into a person's body?"

Since the Ghost-Sucking Lamp's lamp wick was the key to absorbing vital energy, would it work the same way inside a human body?

Liu Yao's expression turned grave. He had not expected Qiao Sang to ask that question.

Putting a Ghost-Sucking Lamp's lamp wick into a human body was equivalent to removing a pet beast's most important organ.

Several centuries ago, some researchers had conducted such insane experiments in order to gain certain abilities from pet beasts for themselves. They had only stopped after the Alliance strictly prohibited it.

He had not expected Qiao Sang to think of something so dark at such a young age.

He felt it was necessary to correct her thinking. With her level of talent, her future was surely boundless. If her mindset went astray, it could lead to disaster.

Liu Yao said sternly, "Of course not. A Ghost-Sucking Lamp without its lamp wick is like a person without a heart. Moreover, the human body simply cannot withstand that kind of energy. If this were done, both the Ghost-Sucking Lamp and the person receiving the lamp wick would perish."

Qiao Sang pondered. If that was the case, then all her earlier deductions had been wrong.

But what explained the changes in the Old Lady?

When Liu Yao did not hear Qiao Sang speak, he asked uneasily, "Where are you right now? Did you see something or hear something from someone? Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

Qiao Sang sighed. "I'm outside doing a mission right now. Today, we went to the Pet Tamer Center..."

After spending two minutes explaining the entire sequence of events, Qiao Sang realized there was no longer any sound from the other end of the call.

She held her phone in front of her eyes and saw that the call was still connected.

"Vice Principal?" Qiao Sang put the phone to her ear and called out uncertainly.

"...I'm here. The signal was bad just now."

Liu Yao felt a little embarrassed. While she was out working hard on missions, he had actually suspected her of having dangerous thoughts...

"Actually, a Ghost-Sucking Lamp's lamp wick can stay inside a human body for a period of time," Liu Yao said with a dry cough. "It just can't stay there too long, or the Ghost-Sucking Lamp itself will perish. And the lamp wick must be removed willingly by the Ghost-Sucking Lamp."

"Someone studied this before. Whether they used instruments to scan for it or waited until a Ghost-Sucking Lamp died and dissected it, they could never find its lamp wick."