A dozen or so people dared to set themselves up as kings of the mountain. No wonder they'd been wiped out. They had some nerve—did they really think the authorities were pushovers?
"We have nearly a hundred people!" The male ghost shook his head. A dozen or so people wouldn't have had the guts, naturally, but nearly a hundred working together, armed with a few weapons cobbled together using crude methods, would still make for a considerable force.
"Nearly a hundred?"
Lin Chen paused, slightly taken aback, and looked at the male ghost before him. "Then why are there only fifteen ghosts in the stronghold, including you?"
He had killed fourteen ghosts. Including the male ghost in front of him, that made only fifteen!
"Our boss took the other brothers to Xuzhou. Apparently, he was going to discuss territory with some big shots from other regions. Last time, some bastard crossed the line and came onto our turf to hunt." The male ghost didn't dare hide anything.
Discussing territory?
Lin Chen looked incredulous. These ghosts actually understood the concept of dividing up territory? It was quite unexpected. They were clearly much more organized than the ghosts in Qingzhou.
Organization was great. It meant they could provide him with a steady supply of essence!
Lin Chen seemed to think of something and hurriedly pressed him. "So this is Xuzhou territory?"
The male ghost was taken aback, but still nodded. "Yes. Go a few dozen kilometers farther, and you'll reach downtown Xuzhou."
"Do you know where your boss and the others are?" Lin Chen looked at the male ghost.
At that, the male ghost's expression shifted. "Master, you..."
"If you want me to let you go, you'll need to be worth something, won't you?" Lin Chen glanced at the male ghost, his expression calm. "Of course, you can choose to stick to brotherhood and loyalty. Don't worry, I won't make it hurt when I kill you!"
"Master, that's wonderful! I've been sick of him for ages. Whenever there's anything good, he takes it all for himself. And the only female ghost? He gets her all to himself, too. If he weren't so strong, we'd have rebelled against him long ago." The male ghost looked at Lin Chen, practically bursting with excitement.
Good grief, weren't people in the jianghu supposed to value loyalty above all else?
Lin Chen stared at the male ghost before him, utterly dumbfounded. "Aren't you supposed to worship Lord Guan?"
"Bullshit, Lord Guan! He gets to enjoy all the good fortune, and we have to bear all the hardship. We've suffered under him for long enough!" The male ghost was furious.
"Fine. Lead me to them, and I'll let you go." Lin Chen looked at the male ghost, his expression solemn. "I don't lie. May my whole family die if I do!"
"Thank you, Master!" The male ghost beamed.
Lin Chen immediately picked up the male ghost and set off for Xuzhou, with his new free guide in tow. Sure enough, in less than half an hour, they had reached the city.
With the male ghost leading the way, Lin Chen soon arrived at an abandoned factory. According to the ghost, the other brothers were inside the building.
As soon as they reached the factory entrance, two little ghosts spotted the male ghost and greeted him. "Brother Chun! What brings you here?"
"I caught a real catch and thought I'd bring him over for our boss to enjoy." Brother Chun chuckled.
At that, the two little ghosts looked Lin Chen over. Sure enough, he was handsome and sunny—the exact type their boss liked. It was no wonder Brother Chun had climbed the ranks.
With Brother Chun leading the way, Lin Chen entered the factory without any trouble. Inside, he saw forty or fifty ghosts gathered together. Even the weakest, the First-order Ghosts, had twenty or thirty thousand essence.
At the sight, Lin Chen's breathing grew ragged. He was about to strike it rich!
The burly man at the head of the group was holding a thin woman in his arms. When he saw the male ghost, he frowned. "Xiao Chun, didn't I tell you to guard the place? Why'd you come here?"
"Boss, I caught a handsome guy with delicate skin and thought you'd like him. I figured I'd bring him over so you could try something different." Brother Chun smiled obsequiously.
"Not bad!"
The burly man sized Lin Chen up, then nodded slightly. "Since that's the case, I won't hold it against you for abandoning your post."
"It's been ages since I've had a taste. Tonight, I'm going to enjoy myself!" The burly man laughed heartily, put his arm around the beauty, and started toward Lin Chen.
Seeing this, Brother Chun hurriedly asked, "Boss, weren't you negotiating tonight? Why aren't the big shots from the other regions here?"
"Don't even mention it. Nobody was willing to give an inch. We hadn't exchanged two sentences before we nearly came to blows. What's the point of negotiating?" The burly man's face darkened with anger at the thought.
Clearly, he was deeply dissatisfied with how the negotiations had gone. Unfortunately, the bosses from the other regions were no weaker than him. With the talks having failed, there was nothing he could do to them.
"So you're all that's left here?" Lin Chen looked disappointed. He'd thought he might run into a few hundred ghosts, but there were only forty or fifty.
"Pretty boy, you think there aren't enough of us?" The burly man froze, then laughed. "Don't worry, little treasure. In a bit, I'll make you feel so good you'll see stars!"
"Ugh..."
At the words, Lin Chen's stomach turned. "You're like disgust's own mother opening the door for disgust—disgust has come all the way home! Keeping you alive is an insult to the world!"
"Kid, you've got a filthy mouth!"
The burly man flew into a rage and looked at the other ghosts. "Once your boss is done with him, you can have your turn. Tonight, I'll make sure he can't make a sound!"
"Come on, then. Let's see who gets to play with whom!" Lin Chen grinned.
Just then, a little ghost rushed into the warehouse. "Boss, this is bad!"
"You're the one who's bad. Your whole family's bad!" The burly man slapped the little ghost, knocking him to the floor.
"Boss, people from the Demon Suppression Division are here!" the little ghost hurriedly blurted out.
"What?"
At that, the burly man's expression changed. He hurriedly asked, "How many?"
"Two!"
"Fuck you!" The burly man slapped the little ghost across the face, then sneered. "Damn it, two people show up and you're this scared? We've got forty or fifty brothers. What have we got to fear?"
"People from the Demon Suppression Division are here?"
Lin Chen's expression darkened. Damn it, if the Demon Suppression Division had shown up, wouldn't that take a huge bite out of his essence?
The burly man noticed Lin Chen's changed expression and sneered in disdain. "Kid, don't think that just because the Demon Suppression Division is here, you'll be saved..."
"Enough talk!"
Lin Chen sneered. In an instant, he was in front of the burly man, driving his Blood Qi True Flame to its full power as he punched toward the man's head.
"You..."
The burly man's expression changed drastically when he saw Lin Chen suddenly appear. "Xiao Chun, you traitor! You brought a cultivator here!"
As he spoke, the burly man raised his hands to block Lin Chen's attack. But Lin Chen's fist, wrapped in Blood Qi True Flame, tore straight through both his arms and slammed into his head.
Bam!
With a muffled thud, the burly man's head exploded. His entire body was instantly engulfed in Blood Qi True Flame, and the beauty in his arms was reduced to ashes along with him.
Killed a Third-order Ghost. Essence +2000. Killed a Second-order Ghost. Essence +1000.
"So weak!"
Looking at the system panel's notification, Lin Chen's face darkened. The boss of this bunch of ghosts was only a Third-order Ghost. What a disappointment.
"You're next!"
Lin Chen looked at the other ghosts and grinned. He drove his Blood Qi True Flame to full power, wrapped it around his body, and charged at them.
"Xiao Chun, you traitor! You backstabbing bastard!"
"You'll die a horrible death!"
"Spare me!"
In an instant, the factory filled with curses and pleas for mercy. Every ghost Lin Chen touched was slaughtered on the spot. Not one escaped.
Before you continue