Strange Spirit

The sky was unusually dark. Gao Wu could barely make out the lake water surging below, but Song Mingyue was nowhere to be seen.

With his previous experience, Gao Wu knew that Bailin Lake's cold was wickedly unnatural. Song Mingyue probably could not withstand it.

Besides, no matter why Song Mingyue had jumped into the lake, he could not stand by and do nothing. Especially since she had asked him for help beforehand.

Gao Wu did not rush into Bailin Lake. Drawing on his previous experience, he silently recited the incantation first. Once he was sufficiently prepared, he leaped down.

Icy lake water closed in on him from all sides. The chill pierced straight through his marrow and organs, freezing his whole body stiff.

He recited the final two lines of the incantation and activated the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation. The divine dragon formed from Qingguang instantly swam through every part of his body, inside and out.

The Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation had reached the minor mastery realm. The speed at which he could invoke it had greatly increased, and its power had risen considerably as well.

The cold freezing Gao Wu's body was immediately dispelled. He adjusted his posture and swiftly swam forward.

The lake water was dark and deep. Gao Wu could not see Song Mingyue, but there was a subtle connection between them, one that played a vital role at this moment.

Gao Wu quickly found Song Mingyue. The girl's body was stiff, yet her eyes were exceptionally bright—bright enough to illuminate the dark, icy lake water. Gao Wu could even see his own reflection in her pupils.

Such a strange sight surprised even Gao Wu. He had no time to think. Grabbing the girl by the collar, he tried to haul her back up.

Just then, Gao Wu felt the cold around them surge violently. Even with the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation supporting him, his body was frozen stiff.

The cold was like an invisible giant snake, coiling around him and Song Mingyue layer by layer as it continuously constricted.

This was no illusion on Gao Wu's part. Under the suppression of that invisible force, he and Song Mingyue had already been pressed tightly together, face to face, their eyes locked.

As the invisible giant snake continued to tighten, Gao Wu felt as if his spine were about to snap. Even his thoughts seemed to be freezing over, leaving only fear of cold and death in his heart.

Fortunately, the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation protected him, and he did not lose his mind to fear.

Song Mingyue clearly was not faring well either, but there was no panic in her bright eyes. Instead, they held a sharpness like a blade.

Gao Wu did not know what Song Mingyue was thinking, but he could feel her soaring, formidable fighting spirit. This girl seemed to be struggling against something invisible!

No—it was a fight to the death!

He recalled what his grandfather had said about Strange Spirits: invisible yet tangible lifeforms from the Otherworld, very similar to the evil ghosts and Demons people often spoke of. They were also called Demon Spirits.

The invisible cold around them was not natural heat loss caused by the lake water. It was some kind of Strange Spirit?

Gao Wu did not care what that invisible cold was. The crucial thing was to break free of its restraints and escape their predicament at once.

If this dragged on, even if the cold did not freeze them to death, the loss of breath alone would be enough to kill both him and Song Mingyue.

Gao Wu silently recited the incantation again, urging the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation into action. The divine dragon formed from Qingguang soared and danced, dispersing the cold that had frozen his body.

With his powerful physique, Gao Wu immediately regained the ability to move. Carrying Song Mingyue, he swam with all his strength. Before long, he broke through the ice and emerged, drawing a long breath before rushing ashore with Song Mingyue in one burst.

Song Mingyue remained stiff, her body as cold as a block of ice. Fortunately, her eyes were still bright, though they no longer held that blade-like sharpness from before.

It was still too cold outside. Gao Wu directly carried Song Mingyue back to the dormitory.

The senior students were all attending evening self-study. At this hour, only an old caretaker was in the dormitory. The old man was watching the big television with rapt attention and did not notice Gao Wu bringing someone in at all.

There were surveillance cameras in the corridor by the dormitory entrance. But unless some incident occurred, no one would bother checking the footage.

After closing the door, Gao Wu finally let out a breath. If someone saw him carrying a beautiful girl back, it would be easy enough to explain, but hard to make sound good.

Song Mingyue was soaked through and looked somewhat bedraggled. After thinking it over, Gao Wu still placed her on the floor. He only had one bed, and she was covered in water and mud. If it got dirty, he would have nowhere to sleep.

Song Mingyue probably would not care about such details either.

Song Mingyue's body was still cold and stiff. Gao Wu felt that would not do, so he pressed a hand to the beauty's forehead and bestowed the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation upon her.

He had plenty of experience bestowing Divine Mantras on others. He was certain that others could not see the spiritual light of the Divine Mantra, nor would they sense anything particularly unusual.

The Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation was indeed wondrous. As the Divine Mantra's spiritual light flashed, Song Mingyue's body softened, and a large flush spread across her pale little face.

"Cough, cough..." Song Mingyue coughed a few times and spat out some water. She struggled to sit up, leaned against the radiator, and let out a long breath.

Gao Wu took an unused towel from the cabinet and handed it to Song Mingyue. Sitting down casually beside her, he said, "Sis, tell me. What exactly happened?"

He had nearly lost his life saving Song Mingyue. He had not felt much at the time, but now that he thought about it, lingering fear rose within him.

Song Mingyue had to give him an explanation for this.

Song Mingyue inspected the towel and only wiped her face after confirming that it was new. Being drenched from head to toe was extremely uncomfortable, but without the Strange Spirit stirring up cold, those discomforts were nothing.

She was silent for a while before softly asking, "You know about Strange Spirits, right?"

"I've heard of them, but I don't know much." Gao Wu asked, "Was the strange cold at the bottom of the lake caused by a Strange Spirit?"

"You can regard Strange Spirits as wandering souls and evil ghosts. The scientific explanation is that they are a kind of stable life-spirit-domain force field. Only the Otherworld, where source energy is abundant, can give rise to Strange Spirits that are invisible yet tangible.

"In the real world, physical laws are stable. Even if life can transform into a spirit after death, it quickly dissipates. As the real world and the Otherworld continuously merge, stable regions where the two worlds overlap and fuse transform into Void Realms."

Song Mingyue looked at Gao Wu, a questioning expression appearing in her bright phoenix eyes.

Gao Wu shook his head. "I've never heard of Void Realms."

"Void Realms are actually the so-called Secret Realms. In terms of spatial state, a Void Realm is like a mirror, simultaneously reflecting the Otherworld and the real world while stably fusing the laws of both worlds.

"That is why Void Realms always present two portions: one is a projection of the real world, and the other is a projection of the Otherworld. Strange Spirits cannot endure in the real world, but they can survive in Void Realms."

As Song Mingyue said this, her expression grew several degrees more solemn. "The one that attacked us just now was a Strange Spirit from a Void Realm. In the real world, it probably retained only one percent of its power.

"I was born with unusually keen spiritual power. Somehow, I formed a resonance with that Strange Spirit. When I came to inspect the situation at Bailin Lake during the day, the Strange Spirit beguiled me, and I fell into the water without realizing it. Luckily, you saved me. Otherwise, I would have died that time."

Gao Wu was somewhat puzzled. "You can't beat it, but surely you can avoid it? Why seek your own death?"

"I formed a resonance with the Strange Spirit. My spirit has already become entangled with its. I can't escape it by hiding. If this continues, its resonance with me will grow deeper and deeper. Even from thousands of miles away, it could easily destroy my consciousness. I have to kill this Strange Spirit as soon as possible," Song Mingyue explained.

"So that's how it is." Song Mingyue had explained it simply and clearly, and Gao Wu understood completely.

After thinking for a moment, he asked again, "Did you jump into the water tonight because the Strange Spirit beguiled you too?"

"Not exactly. I only thought I would try to see whether I could deal with the Strange Spirit after I saw you," Song Mingyue said.

"You really trust me that much!" Gao Wu was somewhat flattered. Song Mingyue had only met him once, yet she had simply placed her life in his hands.

If he had hesitated for even a moment, or if he had not jumped in, Song Mingyue would have died.

Song Mingyue looked deeply at Gao Wu. Then she lowered her eyes and said softly, "Humans have six billion genomic codes. Throughout their lives, people instinctively search for the person whose codes correspond to their own six billion genomic codes.

"I am very certain that you are the person whose genomic codes correspond to mine. You are worthy of my trust."

It was the first time Gao Wu had heard such a theory. He was surprised, secretly delighted, and a little proud. The corners of his mouth could not help but curl upward.

When he looked at Song Mingyue again, everything about her seemed pleasing to the eye. This little lady was icy cold, but what she said sure sounded nice...