That Thanks Came Too Soon

Seeing Xiao Ran hoist the old man over his shoulder and run, everyone was stunned.

"W-wait, why'd he run?!"

Zhao Jiguang stared wide-eyed at the shadow carrying off the old man, nearly popping his eyes out. He'd already drawn his blade, and the other guy had turned and run. Fine, he'd run—but why had he taken the old man with him?!

"Damn it! After him! Move!"

Zhao Jiguang's face darkened. The old man wasn't much of a threat, but when that night ghost had run off just now, Zhao Jiguang could've sworn he'd been laughing.

A night ghost with a mind of its own was at least Tier Three. He had to eliminate it before it could grow stronger.

As he shouted for everyone to chase, he pulled a walkie-talkie from his pocket, switched to the right channel, and pressed the talk button. "Radish, Radish, this is Cabbage. There's a Tier Three night ghost on the sixth floor. Quit fucking around and get over here! We've got work to do!"

"Static, static..."

"Garlic Sprouts, Garlic Sprouts, this is Tomato. I'm busy here. Cabbage, handle it yourself."

"Sour Cabbage, Sour Cabbage, this is Chive. Tier Three's too weak. Didn't we agree not to call me unless it's Tier Six or higher?" A man and a woman's breathing came through the walkie-talkie. It was obvious that Chive was currently busy exploring the character for "Kun" with some junior girls.

"Deal with it yourself. You're on duty, remember? Don't bother us."

"Cabbage, you can't even handle a Tier Three?"

Listening to the voices coming through the walkie-talkie, Zhao Jiguang's face darkened. He cursed into it, "You bunch of animals!"

Then, fuming, he switched the walkie-talkie off.

He snatched up the greatsword by his side. "Out of my way!"

At his words, two horizontal curse marks appeared on his shoes. In the next instant, he had vaulted over the others. They felt a violent gust of wind whip past their ears, and some standing nearby were even swept into the air.

"As expected of the captain!"

Yang Kai, still on the ground, tilted his head up and watched the captain's retreating figure with awe.

The squad leaders like them did all the dirty, exhausting work, and nobody dared defy the captain because his inhuman strength put him in a completely different league.

"Big bro, are you okay?"

The other two underlings saw Yang Kai had gotten back up and hurried over. "Big bro, weren't you... knocked out just now?"

"Pah, what do you know? That's what they call coming back from the brink."

Yang Kai pursed his lips.

"So, what do we do now...?"

"Obviously, we go see what's happening! The captain's already in action. What have we got to be afraid of?"

Yang Kai shoved his underlings aside, picked up the axe from the ground, and chased after him.

Xiao Ran was carrying the old man, but he wasn't slowing down at all. With one burst of speed, he leaped five or six meters ahead.

At first, the old man was quite happy. He had no idea where this fellow of his had come from or why he'd rescued him, but at least he'd escaped the trap.

But soon, the old man's expression turned strange.

"Hey, you're pretty firm!"

Xiao Ran patted the old man's butt, pinched it between his fingers, and grinned from ear to ear.

This wasn't an embroidered shoe. The feel, the elasticity—it was a real corpse. He wasn't a zombie, but his body was in excellent shape.

Hearing Xiao Ran's gleeful laughter, the old man clenched his buttocks. His gaze turned strange as he looked at Xiao Ran.

He waved his arms, trying to break free of Xiao Ran.

Before he could get away, a violent gust of wind rushed toward them. The old man looked up just as a greatsword flashing with cold light swept past his scalp.

"So fast?"

Xiao Ran glanced back, startled. He hadn't expected the other guy to catch up, and he seemed even faster than Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran immediately noticed the shoes on Zhao Jiguang's feet. Curse marks flashed across them, making it clear they were a Cursed Object—and judging by their luster, a high-grade one at that.

"Where do you think you're going?!"

Zhao Jiguang roared, fury blazing in his eyes. His steps thundered forward, and with a single burst of speed, his blade swept through the air and came chopping down.

"Blade Draw Slash!"

Just as the blade was about to strike, Xiao Ran's expression shifted. The Black Saber hidden beneath his cloak rose to meet it.

Clang! Sparks flew as Xiao Ran's saber collided with Zhao Jiguang's greatsword, ringing with a piercing metallic crash.

"Ow!" The moment the blades met, Xiao Ran felt an immense force travel along the blade. It was as if someone had kicked him hard in the gut, and he nearly choked from the impact.

His opponent was clearly far stronger. The force numbed Xiao Ran's arm and nearly knocked the saber from his hand.

Zhao Jiguang's advance was also checked for a moment by Xiao Ran's counterattack. He looked at Xiao Ran in surprise.

He hadn't expected this night ghost to know Blade Draw Slash.

But he quickly adjusted his stance, readying himself to attack again.

Xiao Ran didn't dare mess around anymore. He immediately activated [Spirit Walk], and black mist enveloped him in an instant as he darted down the stairs.

At the next turn, he saw the beggar limping up the stairs, leaning on his white funeral banner.

The two came face-to-face. A fierce look flashed across the beggar's face as he raised the banner, ready to strike.

But just then, Xiao Ran lifted a hand and tossed something at him. The beggar looked closely and saw it was his gourd. Afraid it might break, he hurriedly caught it with both hands.

Xiao Ran took the chance to dart past him.

Looking at his recovered gourd, the beggar finally showed a pleased expression. He glared viciously at Xiao Ran's retreating back, as if to say, "You know what's good for you, kid."

But just as the beggar hung the gourd from his waist, something suddenly felt wrong. He looked at his empty hands.

"Where's my banner?!"

In that brief moment of confusion, a searing gust of wind rushed up behind him. Zhao Jiguang leaped down the stairs right after them. Apparently, he hadn't expected a night ghost to be waiting at the landing, and he couldn't stop in time. He simply raised his sword and slashed at the beggar.

The beggar had just gotten his gourd back, only to lose the thing in his hand. His temper was about to explode. He turned around and, for no apparent reason, found Zhao Jiguang's sword coming down on him.

If he'd still had his white funeral banner, he could've handled it. But now he couldn't even defend himself, and the blow sent him tumbling down the stairs.

The blade seemed to carry some kind of special power. The skin and flesh Xiao Ran's claws had failed to pierce were easily split open, leaving a gash as the beggar rolled down the stairs.

Zhao Jiguang had landed a hit, and he didn't want to waste time fighting the beggar. But the beggar flipped up like a carp and opened his mouth wide at Zhao Jiguang.

His gaping mouth was packed with tiny faces, each the size of a fingernail. He blew at Zhao Jiguang.

"Whoosh!"

Zhao Jiguang suddenly felt a chill throughout his body. Every bone turned sore and achy. The sensation was so agonizing it was almost unbearable.

He was shocked. He'd thought the beggar was just an ordinary night ghost, but it was far more troublesome than he'd expected.

His expression immediately darkened. He bit the tip of his tongue and spat blood at the beggar.

"Ptoo!"

The mouthful of hot blood splashed over the beggar like molten iron. A sizzling sound immediately came from beneath his skin, and the beggar writhed in pain. In a hurry, he unhooked his gourd, bit off its stopper, and gulped down its contents.

"Gulp, gulp, gulp..."

No one knew what was in the gourd, but it gave off a pungent stench.

Soon, the flesh on the beggar's body began to crack like wood. With a sharp crack, the beggar's body shuddered a few times, his back arched high, and a huge eye opened beneath his skin.

The temperature around them rapidly dropped, and a mournful song began to ring out from all around.

Pairs of eyes appeared around the beggar. Some were filled with bloodlust, some held tightly suppressed despair, and others brimmed with icy killing intent.

"Whoosh!"

The embroidered shoe on the beggar's left foot seemed unable to withstand the pressure. A flash of red light, and it slipped off like a mouse, darting down the stairwell.

"Damn it! Why did I have to run into something like this?"

Zhao Jiguang frowned as he realized something was wrong. He reached for the walkie-talkie at his waist, only to find it missing from his pocket.

Seeing that, Zhao Jiguang gave a cold snort and wiped his hand along the blade. Blood ran down its length. Once the greatsword was stained with blood, it took on a strange sheen.

"Die!"

Zhao Jiguang swung his greatsword, charging like a tiger released from its cage. As the blade swept through the air, a massive burst of flame erupted around it.

"Impressive!"

Xiao Ran hadn't gone far. He was hiding around the corner, quietly watching.

Seeing Zhao Jiguang's abilities, he couldn't help feeling envious. From Xue Hongling's memories, he knew of a path in another sequence called Body Cultivator, whose next stage was the Martial Monk.

Martial Monks not only had a powerful foundation in martial arts; their blood also possessed the ability to destroy evil spirits.

What Zhao Jiguang had just shown was clearly even stronger than the Martial Monk in Xue Hongling's memories. Perhaps the captain had advanced beyond the Martial Monk stage.

The fight was raging, when Xiao Ran suddenly sensed something. He turned around and saw the old man leaning against the wall, trying to walk away.

Perhaps sensing Xiao Ran's gaze, the old man turned around. His flesh, which had melted away earlier, had mostly recovered. At least his features were recognizable now.

He forced his face into an ugly smile and cupped his hands.

Xiao Ran could sense the old man's gratitude.

"Is he thanking me?"

Xiao Ran scratched his head and walked over to the old man. A flash of cold light suddenly emerged from beneath his cloak, and he slashed the old man across the neck. "You're thanking me too soon."

My kid's starting primary school soon, so things have been a bit hectic lately. I've been running around, and it's delayed the updates. Sorry this one's a little late.