Vengeful Souls in the Anyang River

"How is that possible? Brother Bai is an S-rank Contract Anomalist—even if he faced an anomaly capable of destroying an entire city, he could contain it!"

For an anomaly with a semi-complete Ghost Domain, a B-rank Contract Anomalist could already carry out containment.

Let alone an S-rank—even an A-rank Contract Anomalist would be enough to suppress such an anomaly.

"Well, Bai Zuo's classification is a bit special."

Ji Wu looked troubled. Bai Zuo's situation wasn't exactly a secret within the Aberration Association, and Xu Zhou himself was a contractor marked by Bai Zuo, the two of them tightly connected.

The Aberration Association only allowed this arrangement because of that bond. Otherwise, given Bai Zuo's disregard for life, they wouldn't have trusted him with Xu Zhou's care.

If Ji Wu explained clearly, it would touch on Xu Zhou's identity, and Xu Zhou's mental state was already unstable.

Ji Wu didn't know whether telling Xu Zhou now would make his condition even worse.

Xu Zhou: "Special? But isn't an Anomalist's rank determined by their strength?"

"Yes, normally it is. But Bai Zuo's contracted anomaly is special. His S-rank isn't actually aimed at anomalies... but at people."

People?

Xu Zhou was startled, then suddenly understood.

"Looks like you've figured it out."

Ji Wu: "The anomaly he contracted is powerful, but its strength lies more in affecting humans. It can suppress weaker anomalies with raw force, but when facing an anomaly of similar grade, he needs a strong contractor to fight the anomaly while he slowly invades its mind."

Ji Wu saw the dejected look on Xu Zhou's face and knew he was overthinking again. "You're a newcomer—it's normal that you can't handle an anomaly of this level. Your performance has been better than most."

"Once we get out, we'll report to the Aberration Association and have them send reinforcements."

Xu Zhou forced a faint smile and replied, "Alright."

Ji Wu walked ahead, holding the Soul Lamp.

Xu Zhou kept a wary eye on their surroundings. Hu Xingde was terrified, huddling close to Ji Wu.

Along the way, they encountered no Funeral Procession and no abnormalities. Finally, they reached the abandoned bridge.

Xu Zhou glanced down at the river by chance. Below was a wide river encircling Anyang Island, called the Anyang River—clear water, swift currents.

Xu Zhou rubbed his eyes. "There's something in the river."

Ji Wu: "Where?"

Ji Wu leaned toward the bridge railing and looked down.

The water was clear, making the floating objects easy to see.

One by one, faces twisted with anguish, misery, despair, resentment, and hatred bobbed on the surface, wailing in agony.

Their bodies were submerged, only their heads exposed, trapped in the river, unable to find release, suffering endlessly.

Just looking at them, you could feel their deep, thick malice.

Xu Zhou's hair stood on end!

Cold sweat broke out on his forehead almost instantly.

"Ji, Ji Supervisor."

Ji Wu held him back. "Let's go. Don't look down."

Hu Xingde was far more timid. As soon as he heard there was something unclean on the river, he immediately turned his head away. If he didn't need his eyes to walk, he wouldn't have dared open them at all.

The Soul Lamp burned, its glow cutting through the White Mist, illuminating the path ahead and revealing many hidden oddities.

Along the way, they kept their eyes straight and ears deaf, even when voices called their names from behind.

Hu Xingde almost gave in at first, wanting to look back. The call carried an inexplicable allure, making it hard not to respond.

Luckily, Xu Zhou noticed in time and pulled him back, snapping him out of it.

Hu Xingde broke out in a cold sweat too, thanking him repeatedly.

Who knew if turning back would have cost him his soul right there?

Fortunately, crossing the bridge went smoothly, without any incidents, and they made it out safely.

Hu Xingde glanced back at the bridge shrouded in White Mist, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and swore to himself he'd never come near this place again.

He spotted his bicycle parked by the roadside, hurried over, unlocked it, and swung onto the seat. "Well, I'll be heading back first!"

With that, he pedaled away frantically, as if he could spark flames from the wheels.

Xu Zhou watched him leave, knowing that once home, Hu Xingde wouldn't be able to resist telling everyone about what he'd experienced.

But neither he nor Ji Wu was in a hurry.

First, without experiencing it firsthand, few people would believe his story. Most would think he was spinning a tale, exaggerating, or just bragging.

As soon as they left the area and his phone got a signal, Ji Wu sent the pre-edited message to the Aberration Association.

It included their observations and their guesses about the anomaly.

Next, the Association would dispatch an Anomalist of suitable strength to contain it.

Then, Ji Wu started bombarding Bai Zuo with calls again, full of fury, as if he wouldn't stop until he blew up the other's phone.

Xu Zhou's mouth twitched as he watched, not daring to make a sound, afraid the fire would spread to him.

Finally, after calling the other party over twenty times, Bai Zuo picked up.

"You little brat! If you don't give me a proper explanation this time, your self-criticism is as good as written!"

"Hahahaha! What are you saying? I can't hear you!"

"Don't pretend you can't hear me! Why is it so noisy over there? Where are you?"

"I'm on Anyang Island! It's so lively here, lots of people playing with lanterns!"

"Wait! Lanterns? How did you get in? Do you have a Soul Lamp?"

"No, Anyang Island is holding an event. There are lots of people here, and crowded places are where more evil can gather."

Great, that's exactly the kind of thing this guy would do.

Xu Zhou held up his phone and exclaimed, "Supervisor Ji, Anyang Island is hosting a famous local event today—the Lamp Mansion Festival!"

He handed the phone over. Ji Wu looked at it, and a video was playing on the screen, showing the official promotional clip for the event released by Anyang Island.

The Lamp Mansion Festival is a well-known commemorative event on Anyang Island, passed down through the ages, its exact dynasty of origin now lost to time.

The festival primarily honors Yama, aiming to accumulate merit for deceased family members, so they suffer less in the underworld and reincarnate sooner.

To participate in the Lamp Mansion Festival, one must prepare a lantern, write a message to the dead on it, and join a parade led by locals who chant incantations meant to reach the underworld. The festival ends only when the lamp oil and candle inside the lantern burn out.

"What connection does that Ghost Domain have with this event?" Ji Wu asked after watching the video and reading some cultural background on the Lamp Mansion Festival.

Ji Wu wouldn't claim to know Bai Zuo inside out, but having watched over him for so long, he roughly understood that Bai Zuo was far from as simple as he appeared on the surface.

Sometimes, an offhand move, when reflected upon later, carried deep meaning.