Ghost Citizens of the Mountains and Wilds

After taking out a yellow talisman, Li Hai wore a solemn expression, his hands forming seals while he chanted an incantation.

After a few breaths, he let out a sharp, low shout:

"Armor Horse Incantation, quick!"

Under this low shout, the yellow talisman held between his fingers instantly ignited without fire, transforming from solid to ethereal. It turned into a strand of invisible energy that danced and swirled, wrapping itself around his legs and feet.

Whoosh~

Then, Li Hai experienced what it meant to have wind beneath his feet.

Originally walking at a normal human pace, his speed surged dozens of times over. It was as if he were riding an invisible divine steed; his feet barely touched the ground as he drifted and sped toward the rolling mountains at the edge of the wilderness.

"Awesome! Hahahaha~"

Bathed in the brilliant sunlight, Li Hai, whose legs remained perfectly still while he flew at high speed, spread his arms and laughed aloud.

At the same time, while "flying" close to the ground, the rays of sunlight enveloping his body miraculously transformed into wisps of Yang energy. He drew them into his body and soul, undergoing three refinements and nine tempers, turning them into bundles of invisible magic power.

The reason Li Hai could convert sunlight into Yang energy and then refine it into magic power was that the sun hanging in the firmament was the greatest source of Yang energy in heaven and earth.

It was also because the Heavenly Scorching Yang-Drawing Technique he learned from Zhang Miaoji had the core purpose of summoning sunlight and converting Yang energy.

As for the other technique that also contained the word "Yang," the Primordial Breath Yang Refining Method, it was the more important foundational technique for converting Yang energy into magic power.

Subsequently, with the aid of the Armor Horse Incantation, Li Hai crossed the entire wilderness in a short time without consuming any physical strength or energy, arriving at the rolling mountains he had seen from afar.

Upon arrival, the effect of the talisman reached its end, and Li Hai's pace dropped significantly to that of a normal person.

Although he could continue to use the Armor Horse Incantation to travel, it was not suitable for mountainous or forested terrain, and in truth, it was no faster than his own two legs.

So, after having his fill of fun with the Armor Horse Incantation, he decided to walk the rest of the way himself.

As a top-tier Iron-grade martial artist, Li Hai was terrifying when he utilized his own physical prowess.

Though his body was as sturdy as a tiger, he could move like a phantom, darting through the mountains and forests with the speed of lightning.

With a light step, he could span dozens of feet in a single bound.

At such a frightening speed, Li Hai could traverse steep slopes and uneven pits as if they were flat ground.

Even when giant boulders or sheer cliffs blocked his path, he only needed to kick off their solid surfaces, leaving small indentations, to borrow the force and easily vault over the towering stone walls.

As Li Hai climbed over mountains and ridges, the surrounding terrain became increasingly rugged, and the trees scattered in all directions grew taller and denser.

These trees were tall and lush, their branches and leaves intertwined to form vast, dark green canopies. Coupled with the hazy mountain mist drifting about, the light in this secluded mountain domain was as dim as twilight.

In this dark wilderness, Li Hai suddenly stopped his rapid pace and turned his head to gaze toward the southeast.

"The aura of a ghost."

He stared quietly at the southeast. "Within it, there is also a thick scent of a living person. The two auras are intertwined, inseparable from one another. How strange."

A ghost is a ghost, and a person is a person; the two are distinct, with no middle ground.

This had always been the view of the world, and it was also Li Hai's consistent understanding.

Even though he could freely switch between the states of a ghost and a living person, he could not become a state that was both ghost and human at once.

But what was this aura that was both human and ghost, blurred and inseparable?

"Strange, truly strange."

Li Hai muttered to himself, "Let me take a look."

With that, he changed direction and sped toward the source of that neither-human-nor-ghost aura.

Possessing three perception-type techniques—Ghost and Monster Seeking, Qi Observation Technique, and Yin-Yang Eyes—Li Hai was extremely sensitive to the flow and changes of various auras in the outside world.

Therefore, even though this strange aura was very weak, almost to the point of non-existence, Li Hai was able to hold onto the trail and track it against the current.

The process of dodging, shifting, and crossing streams goes without saying; in short, after traveling about ten miles, he arrived at the edge of a narrow, murky mountain stream.

And that strange aura, which had become much clearer, was hidden beneath this rather turbid creek.

Something that hides in the water and is neither human nor ghost... what kind of thing could it be?

Li Hai couldn't help but recall the many strange tales he had heard in his past life:

"Could it be... the legendary water monkey?"

Just as his thoughts turned, the murky stream suddenly rippled, and a humanoid creature covered in filthy green fur, whose face was completely indistinguishable, crawled out.

When this green-furred monster emerged from the water and saw Li Hai, it shrieked as if a person had seen a ghost and immediately scrambled to return to the bottom of the creek.

But Li Hai wouldn't let it get away so easily.

He pulled a yellow talisman from his pocket and quickly formed a seal, chanting:

"Spirit-Fixing Incantation, quick!"

The paper talisman ignited without fire, turning from something into nothing.

Shoo~

A strand of invisible energy arrived in an instant, striking the green-furred monster with precision.

"Gah..."

Under the immobilization talisman, the green-furred monster only had time to let out half a scream before it froze on the surface of the stream as if dead.

Swish—

The next instant, a mysterious gust of wind swept past, blowing the monster to the edge of the stream at the feet of Li Hai.

Yes, this strange wind was also created by Li Hai, manipulated through the Wave Impact Palm "provided" as a gesture of friendship by Zhang Miaoji.

This technique was originally intended for Zhang Miaoji to project yellow talismans, but using it now for telekinesis was just right.

"Who would have thought..."

Bending down to look at the motionless green-furred monster, Li Hai clicked his tongue in wonder. "There really are half-human, half-ghost creatures in this world."

Indeed, through observation and system detection, this green-furred monster was truly a thing that was both human and ghost.

And the personal interface of this monster was—

Name: Unknown

Rank: Ghost Citizen → Yin Qi Dark Birth

Skills: Adverse Survival (Damaged)Minor Yin Absorption (Damaged)Ghost Eye Night Vision (Damaged)

Trait Entries:

Stronger Fragment: None

"Ghost Citizen..."

Li Hai furrowed his bald brows as he looked the so-called Ghost Citizen up and down, feeling for the first time no desire to learn the other's cultivation system or skills.

Because according to the system's detection results, once one possessed this damn Ghost Citizen bloodline, their lifespan would be cut nearly in half, and they would become muddled in thought, fearful of light and cleanliness, and fond of darkness and raw meat.

Damn it, this was simply a low-class, short-lived species even worse than humans.

Just as Li Hai, filled with disdain, released the immobilization on the green-furred monster and prepared to kick it back into the stream, the creature scrambled up, kowtowed incessantly, and stammered in human speech:

"Master... spare... spare me, this lowly one... this lowly one is no monster, please don't kill me!"