Wraith

"That's a Wraith! A Bronze-level Wraith!"

Ithil swallowed, her face looking terrible. A tremor in her voice revealed the fear in her heart.

"A Wraith?"

It was a fitting description, but this was Parr's first time hearing of one and his first time seeing one. He did not understand why a Bronze-level Wraith had emerged from Ma Xi's head.

The old man-like Wraith's next words answered Parr's question.

"Hehehe, you little brats, you're good, truly good! You actually destroyed my most satisfactory vessel!"

The Wraith somehow spoke, though Parr had no idea how. His aged, furious voice carried a shrill edge that made Parr's head buzz. Ithil was unaffected, but the Dazzling Light on her body began to sway as if buffeted by a fierce wind.

Before the Wraith's laughter of rage faded, Parr and Ithil saw him wave an arm. Gray Mist rose within a ten-meter radius around him. Parr's Stamina on the Status Panel began to slowly decline, though not as quickly as it had when the Black-Robed Man used Gray Mist on him last time.

"Not good! It's a Death Barrier!"

The Dazzling Light around Ithil's body surged. The Gray Mist could not approach her because of the Dazzling Light, but that was only a matter of time. With the gray mist present, the rate at which Dazzling Light consumed Stamina abruptly doubled. With her current strength, she could not last more than a few minutes.

"Ithil, what do we do now?"

Parr looked away from the Status Panel and turned to Ithil, the only person present who could answer him.

"There's no way!"

Despair entered Ithil's voice, but she still reached out and grabbed Parr's arm. The Dazzling Light on her body spread onto Parr, temporarily stopping his Stamina from draining away.

After doing that, Ithil pulled Parr back into a corner. Yet they could not escape the barrier formed by the Gray Mist, and with the mist obscuring their vision, they lost track of the Wraith Old Man as well.

The Wraith Old Man did not immediately kill Parr and Ithil, because he needed a new vessel. Otherwise, once tonight passed and the sun rose, his death would be certain. So, the Wraith Old Man was now examining Parr and Ithil.

Gender was no obstacle. Having become this kind of ghost, the Wraith Old Man did not care about such things. What he cared about was the vessel's aptitude.

During this brief time, Ithil, backed against the wall, gave Parr a simple explanation of what Wraiths were.

Like Walking Corpses, Wraiths were one of the Death Cult's specialties.

Bronze-level cultists used death magic to extract a creature's soul and turn it into a Wraith, but the success rate was extremely low. Only creatures that harbored obsessions before death could become Wraiths. Yet even after becoming Wraiths, they lost their sanity and became puppets that hated the living and were controlled by cultists.

Bronze-level Wraiths with intelligence, like the Wraith Old Man, were rare. They were produced by a second method: through various arrangements, Bronze-level cultists might become intelligent Wraiths after death.

Wraiths could only appear at night. If they failed to find a vessel, hide in a dark place, or enter a specially made object before sunrise, they were finished.

Ordinary, mindless Wraiths could hide using the latter two methods, but intelligent Wraiths could not. Especially in a city, the Death Aura emitted by an intelligent Wraith was like a beacon for the Church. Only by entering a living person's body could an intelligent Wraith conceal its Death Aura and continue enjoying the life of the living.

Did that mean becoming a Wraith made one immortal? No, no, no! Intelligent Wraiths gradually lost their sanity as time passed, slowly fading away. That was unavoidable.

"Ithil!"

By now, the Dazzling Light around Parr and Ithil had become extremely faint. Exhausted, Ithil's body began to sway, and she looked ready to collapse. Parr hurriedly reached out, supporting her as she sat against the wall.

Throughout this, Ithil never released Parr's arm. The faint Dazzling Light continuously spread onto him, keeping him from being harmed by the Gray Mist.

"..."

Parr looked down at Ithil's little hand gripping his arm, then lifted his head to look into her large pink eyes. With a trace of confusion in his voice, he asked, "Ithil, you didn't have to do this. You could have held on longer that way, and there might have been a chance for reinforcements to arrive..."

"I can't do that!"

Ithil tightened her little hand and looked stubbornly at Parr.

"I know how much this Gray Mist harms the human body, so I can't just watch you be killed by it. It's the duty of someone from the Church."

"Is that so?"

Parr suddenly smiled, and Dazzling Light rose from his body as well.

"You..."

Ithil's pink eyes widened. She was too shocked—far too shocked. She had never imagined Parr could use Dazzling Light too. Wasn't that a skill exclusive to their Church?

"Don't ask, Ithil. Tell me, is there any way to kill that Wraith?"

Parr raised a hand and pressed it onto Ithil's head, staring confidently into her large pink eyes.

"No matter how difficult it is, just tell me. I'll do it!"

"..."

Ithil froze. Then a mist rose in her pink eyes. She once again felt the warmth of family. At this moment, Parr was like Bolen Knight. His thin body seemed so towering in her eyes.

But...

"It's impossible!"

Ithil shook her head, despair in her voice. "Only by training Dazzling Light to its peak can you kill a Wraith."

"Why?"

Parr opened the Status Panel and checked his Life Energy Points. That doesn't sound hard! "Because only then does Dazzling Light gain the ability to attack actively. Its damage against Wraiths increases several times over, and a single hit is enough to kill a Bronze-level Wraith."

Ithil closed her eyes in despair and muttered the reason. She did not believe anyone could raise Dazzling Light to its peak in such a short time. Not her, not Parr, not...

"That's easy!"

Parr's relaxed words reached Ithil's ears. She could not help opening her eyes, only to see that Parr beside her had turned into an incredibly dazzling electric lamp—ah, no, an incredibly dazzling Light Man.

"You..."

Shocked beyond words once more, Ithil could only stare at Parr with her wide pink eyes in disbelief. This was Peak Dazzling Light!

"Ithil, watch closely. Watch how your big brother takes down that Wraith!"

As if getting revenge, Parr took the chance to rub Ithil's head, then turned to face the Wraith.

Ding! Consume 10 Life Energy Points to upgrade Dazzling Light LV1 to LV2?

"Yes!"

Ding! 10 Life Energy Points consumed. Skill upgraded! Ding! Consume 10 Life Energy Points to upgrade Dazzling Light LV2 to LV3?

"Yes!"

Ding...

Ding! Consume 100 Life Energy Points to upgrade Dazzling Light LV5 to MAX?

"That's twice what it cost to max out my other two skills. Looks like Dazzling Light is much stronger than those two!"

Parr paused, then checked his Life Energy Points again. He had just enough, so what was there to say?

"Yes!"

Ding! 100 Life Energy Points consumed. Skill upgraded! Dazzling Light MAX (also known as Life Light, the most basic and fundamental skill of the Church of Neutral Light. Forms white Dazzling Light over the body, which can intimidate and burn evil creatures. Casting cost: 1 Stamina for 30 seconds. Max-level effect: Attack Conversion. While Dazzling Light is active, attacks can be converted into Dazzling Light attacks, dealing ten times the damage to evil creatures.) Life Energy Points: 22 Mental Energy Points: 11

"So that's how it is!"

After reading the description of max-level Dazzling Light, Parr finally understood why Ithil had said max-level Dazzling Light could kill a Bronze-level cultist in one strike.

"!!!!"

After patting Ithil's head, Parr had barely turned around when his Talent Danger Prediction was triggered. He shifted his body, and a mass of Cold Air smashed into the spot where he had just stood. Ithil, who was very close by, frowned from the cold and barely managed to move aside.

"I can't see the enemy!"

Only then did Parr realize that the Gray Mist was obscuring the Wraith Old Man from view. But he did not panic. He directly activated Talent Bright Eyes.

"Bright Eyes: Low-level Elemental Vision!"

In an instant, Parr spotted the Wraith Old Man, who was giving off dense fluctuations of death energy. However, he did not reveal this. Instead, he charged toward the direction from which the Cold Air had come.

The Wraith Old Man was quite clever. Parr's sudden burst of speed shocked him, but he was not worried in the slightest. Although Parr now had the ability to kill him, it was useless if Parr could not find him! Meanwhile, he could slowly wear Parr down. Parr was not a Bronze-level Knight, after all. If he got hit a few times, he would definitely fall dead, frozen into an ice block.

So the Wraith Old Man fired a shot and changed positions, using his home-field advantage to toy with Parr. At least, that was what he thought. He had no idea Parr had discovered him long ago.

Parr began feigning weakness again. Anyone with an overview of the situation would have noticed that, while dodging again and again, Parr was gradually closing the distance to the Wraith Old Man. He also picked up his Black Short Sword.

"Come out! You coward, come out! What kind of ability is hiding?"

Parr wildly swung the Black Short Sword, impatience gradually appearing on his face. Like an enraged brat, he shouted and raged, making the Wraith Old Man laugh.

"Hehehe, little fellow, you tell me to come out and I come out? Do you take me for an idiot?"

"You coward!"

After dodging another Cold Stream attack, Parr stood still and caught his breath before shouting, "Then don't come out if you've got the guts! My reinforcements will arrive soon anyway. We'll see then whether you die or I do!"

"That's true!"

The Wraith Old Man nodded, then said eerily, "In that case, I won't play with you anymore. I need to find a vessel and leave this place quickly. That little girl is quite good. She'll do. You, little fellow, can keep wandering around here!"

After saying that, the Wraith Old Man sent out two Cold Streams in other directions and floated toward Ithil, whose Dazzling Light was about to go out. Parr, seemingly lost, lunged toward the direction the Cold Streams had come from.

"You dare!"

"Hehehe, just watch whether I dare!"

The Wraith Old Man lowered his guard. He even became somewhat carried away and floated past not far from Parr, believing Parr could neither see nor sense him. But this was the opportunity Parr had been waiting for!

Clang! Parr sheathed his sword, then instantly veered while charging forward and drew his sword at the Wraith Old Man's back.

"Upward Flick!"