Ghost Wall

Fang Gang's left arm jolted, causing him to tense his entire body instantly!

The deep black Grudge Pupil imprint writhed like a living creature, the slit of the dark gold vertical pupil at its end expanding to its limit, radiating cold, greed, disgust, rejection...

All sorts of extreme, contradictory intentions surged through his nerves like boiling magma, directly targeting the Rookie Station downstairs!

"Mental Meditation... a book?" Fang Gang's eyes were sharp as knives. He looked down at his trembling arm, then abruptly looked towards the direction of the building downstairs.

That shoddy book, bought for 9.9 yuan with free shipping, could actually cause such a violent reaction from the imprint? This was definitely not a regular pirated copy!

He no longer hesitated. Shouldering the Bronze Battle Halberd, he strode downstairs!

His dark golden bald head cut through the dim stairwell light like a cold, hard streak. The blazing aura of his perfected Nine Yang technique, unable to be contained, seeped out and distorted the air with its heat.

Downstairs at the Rookie Station.

The young lady at the counter was idly scrolling through her phone when an intangible, heart-stopping aura of heat, accompanied by heavy footsteps, suddenly loomed closer!

She looked up and was so startled she almost dropped her phone—it was that bald guy again, carrying what looked like a formidable weapon!

He seemed to radiate a heat like he'd just emerged from a furnace, and his eyes were terrifyingly cold!

"The... the pickup code?" the young lady stammered.

Fang Gang stated his code, his gaze locked onto the girl's fumbling fingers.

Soon, a thin express bag with a gaudy cover was handed over.

The cover showed a cartoon old man meditating cross-legged, smoke rising from his head, with large characters next to him: "Introduction to Mental Meditation (Full-Color Illustrations)."

Fang Gang snatched the express bag. The moment it touched his hand, the Grudge Pupil imprint on his left arm felt like it had been seared by a hot iron and recoiled violently!

The surging intent instantly transformed into a sharper, snake-like, cold warning!

Something was strange! Definitely strange!

He turned and left, his steps quickening! Back in his apartment, he locked the door. He leaned the Bronze Battle Halberd against the wall, tore open the express bag, and took out the thin booklet.

The cover felt cheap, the paper rough, and the ink smelled pungent.

Flipping through, he found only pretentious line drawings and vague nonsense like "contemplating the starry sky" and "internal brain observation," accompanied by crude color illustrations. Typical scam material.

However, as soon as Fang Gang's arm touched this shoddy book, the imprint reacted as if provoked by a beast, writhing with an unprecedented intensity!

The slit of the dark gold vertical pupil at its end even faintly glowed red!

A powerful, cold will originating from the imprint itself surged into Fang Gang's mind, trying to force him to throw the book away!

"You're afraid of it?" Fang Gang's eyes turned icy. He gripped the booklet tightly, enduring the searing pain in his arm as if it were branded by a red-hot iron! His perfected Nine Yang vital energy roared to life, the supreme yang true fire flowing within him, forcefully suppressing the imprint's agitation!

"System! Scan!"

[Ding! Detected low-quality paper medium (contains trace amounts of psychoactive ink powder). Content exhibits severe logical fallacies and energy traps...]

[Energy Reaction: Abnormal (Core contains faint fragments of mental laws)]

[Threat Level: Low (Mental induction neutralized)]

[Do you wish to spend 5 Evolution Points to peel away impurities, extract core mental law fragments, and convert them into the introductory mental cultivation technique "True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra" (Basic Chapter)?]

Mental law fragments?! Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra?!

Fang Gang's pupils constricted sharply! As expected! This 9.9 yuan book hid something real! No wonder the imprint reacted so strongly!

"Convert!" Fang Gang didn't hesitate!

[Evolution Points -5!]

[Peeling... Removing induction ink powder... Crushing redundant information flow... Locking onto core mental law fragments...]

[Converting... Constructing basic mental refinement pathway... Generating mental clarity runes...]

[Conversion complete! Acquired mental cultivation technique: "True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra" (Basic Chapter) (Introductory 0/200)!]

Buzz—!!!

A cool, clear, peculiar energy flow, like a mountain spring, instantly surged into Fang Gang's mind!

It was accompanied by profound methods for refining the spirit, clarifying the mind, stabilizing the soul, and resisting external evils!

This cool sensation did not conflict with the Nine Yang True Fire flowing within him; rather, it felt like ice and fire complementing each other, bringing a strange sense of balance!

However, the moment this introductory mental cultivation technique was acquired!

"Roar—!!!"

The Grudge Pupil imprint on Fang Gang's left arm let out a silent scream that pierced straight into the depths of his soul!

The imprint seemed to have received a fatal provocation, and the dark gold vertical pupil at its end instantly turned blood-red!

A terrifying intent, hundreds of times colder, hundreds of times more filthy than before, carrying intense curses and a soul-tearing sensation, like the unleashed waters of the Styx, surged madly into Fang Gang's mind!

[Warning! Detected severe backlash from SS-class Grudge Pupil Imprint! Mental Pollution Intensity: B+!]

[Traits: Soul Rend, Fear Implantation, Mental Domination!]

Fang Gang's vision suddenly went black! Countless distorted images filled with extreme malice instantly flooded his mind!

There were mountains of corpses and seas of blood, endless wails, his most unwilling-to-recall death moment before transmigration, and countless cold, resentful eyes opening in the depths of his consciousness, staring fixedly at him!

Intense fear, despair, and self-negation surged like poisonous vines, attempting to devour his will!

"Ugh—!" Fang Gang grunted, veins bulging like coiled dragons on his forehead! His body trembled violently, the golden-red light beneath his skin flashing wildly, fiercely clashing with the black-red polluted light emanating from the imprint on his left arm!

This was a war on the mental plane! A struggle of wills! Far more perilous than any physical combat!

"Mirror… Still Water!" Fang Gang roared like a beast in his mind!

He furiously activated the "True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra" he had just learned!

The cool, clear stream of energy in his mind instantly spread, forming an invisible yet tenacious "heart mirror," forcefully resisting the mental pollution like a tsunami!

Ch ch ch—!!!

The foul black tide of curses and the clear power of the heart mirror clashed and annihilated each other violently in Fang Gang's sea of consciousness!

It was like boiling oil meeting ice water! The intense, tearing mental sensation made Fang Gang's head split, and blood faintly seeped from his seven orifices!

[Ding! Mental confrontation in progress… "True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra" proficiency +1… +1… +1!]

[Mental attribute slightly increased! Current Mental: 5 (Base) → 7!]

Amidst the intense pain, Fang Gang's will was like fine iron being forged!

Under the terrifying pressure of the SS-class imprint, his newly acquired mental technique was being squeezed and hammered! The "heart mirror," initially on the verge of collapse, gradually became solid and tenacious!

An unknown amount of time passed, feeling as long as an epoch.

The polluted black tide in his sea of consciousness was finally blocked by the "heart mirror," slowly receding.

Fang Gang's body felt as if he'd been fished out of water, sweat mixed with blood, but the light in his eyes was as sharp as ever, even deeper!

Though the brief clash on the mental plane was incredibly perilous, it caused his newly learned mental technique to rapidly solidify!

["True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra" (Basic Chapter): Novice (0/200) → Novice (50/200)!]

[Mental: 7 → 10!]

His mental attribute broke into double digits for the first time!

An unprecedented clarity washed over Fang Gang's mind, as if a dusty mirror had been wiped clean, making his perception of himself and his surroundings much clearer!

The Grudge Pupil imprint on his left arm remained ferocious, but the cold intent it conveyed seemed to be isolated by an invisible barrier, its influence greatly reduced!

"Hoo…" Fang Gang exhaled a long breath of bloody, stale air, his eyes coldly fixated on the imprint on his left arm. "Trying to devour me? Or… afraid I'll purge you?"

The imprint writhed slightly, its scarlet glow dimming, returning to a cold dark gold, but the deep malice remained undiminished.

Fang Gang ignored it.

He felt the more harmonious power within him—his Nine Yang perfected vital energy and blood surged like dragons, and the newly learned Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra constructed the first line of defense in his sea of consciousness.

Power and mind achieved a preliminary balance for the first time!

He needed practical combat! He needed evolution points to push his mental technique forward! To completely resolve this hidden danger!

He grabbed the Bronze Battle Halberd leaning against the wall, which faintly resonated with his vital energy, and opened the door. His phone screen lit up with a message from Chen Tao, filled with anxiety:

"Brother Fang! Something's happened in the 'Lost Alley' north of the city! Everyone who went in is trapped like they're caught in a ghost wall, and there are eerie cries coming from inside! The energy reaction is C+! Suspected to be a mental-type ghost domain! Our people can't get in at all! What do you think…"

Ghost wall? Mental-type ghost domain?

Fang Gang's eyes blazed! He had just gained mental defenses, and they were sending a trial by fire to his doorstep? Plus, evolution points!

"Send me the location," he replied with three words, hoisted the halberd, and strode downstairs.

North of the city, Lost Alley.

This was an old alleyway district slated for demolition, narrow, winding, and dark. Currently, the entire area was shrouded in a layer of grayish, flowing mist, like a translucent "veil."

Within the mist, intermittent, faint sobbing sounds could be heard, coming from left and right, flickering and unsteady, carrying strong mental interference and spatial disorientation.

Chen Tao and several team members stood outside the cordon, their expressions grave. A team member held an instrument, its screen displaying a blizzard of random data.

"Captain Chen, the interference is too strong! The space inside is completely distorted, thermal imaging is useless!"

"The two teams sent in… all lost contact! All that's left on the communicators… is crying…"

Fang Gang's figure was like a javelin planted at the edge of the mist. He carried the Bronze Battle Halberd, his dark gold bald head particularly striking against the gray fog.

He closed his eyes, concentrating his mind, his new 10 Mental points working with the True Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra.

The clear "heart mirror" in his mind rippled slightly. Instantly, the seemingly impenetrable gray mist of the ghost domain, in his perception, was no longer a chaotic mess!

He "saw" the nodes of energy flow within the mist, sensed the faint direction of the flickering crying sound, and even vaguely caught a "gap" in the spatial distortion!

"Follow me," Fang Gang said to Chen Tao, stepping into the gray mist!

The thick gray mist instantly enveloped him, accompanied by strong mental erosion and spatial disorientation!

The scene before his eyes twisted and shifted, the familiar alley becoming strange and eerie, as if countless branching paths extended into the mist.

The woman's sobbing sounded like demonic music, attempting to stir up the fear and confusion in people's hearts.

"Fang…" Chen Tao had just taken a step when he felt dizzy, the scenery spinning wildly. Startled, he quickly retreated, his face deathly pale.

Fang Gang, however, walked with firm steps! The Mirror Still Water Heart Sutra steadied his mind and cleared his will!

The mental erosion of the gray mist was like a gentle breeze brushing against a boulder! He precisely locked onto that sliver of spatial gap and energy node, moving in a straight line through the distorted alley!

With each step, a clear footprint burned with a faint golden-red light was left on the ground under his feet, like a lighthouse, briefly dispelling the surrounding mist!

"It's there!" Fang Gang's gaze locked onto a corner of an inconspicuous dead-end alley piled with clutter! The source of the drifting cries was coming from behind a mottled old wall!

As he walked to the wall, the crying suddenly became shrill and piercing!

The gray mist surged violently, forming countless distorted female faces that let out silent shrieks, frantically assaulting Fang Gang's mind!

At the same time, the sense of spatial distortion around him instantly intensified! It was as if it were trying to completely devour and banish Fang Gang!

"A petty trick!"

He didn't bother looking for any "gates of life" or methods to break the formation!

"Open... for me!"

His fists, like two burning golden-red heavy hammers, carrying a domineering will that tore through space and incinerated falsehood, slammed fiercely towards the old wall from which the cries emanated! BOOM—!!!!

An indescribable explosion! Nine Yang True Fire instantly engulfed the entire wall! The terrifying power imbued with supreme yang will surged like an enraged dragon into the core of the gray mist ghost domain!

CRACK—!!!

A crisp sound, like shattering glass, echoed throughout the Lost Alley!

The thick gray mist that shrouded the alley, like a pricked bubble, distorted and rippled violently, then... it dissipated with a roar! Sunlight instantly pierced the gloom, casting down!

The distorted space returned to normal!

The eerie crying abruptly stopped!

The original dilapidated but clear scene of the alley was revealed!

Behind the pile of junk where Fang Gang's fist had pointed, the figure of a female ghost, curled up in the shadows, wearing a tattered white dress and holding a dilapidated music box, materialized!

Its face was filled with terror and disbelief! Its ghost domain... had been torn to shreds by this bald guy... with sheer brute force?!

[Ding! Tore apart 'Vengeful Woman's Ghost Domain' (C+ class)! Inflicted heavy damage on the core Vengeful Woman Fierce Ghost (C+ class)! Gained +25 Evolution Points!]

[Available Evolution Points: 25!]

Fang Gang retracted his fist, the golden-red flames on his knuckles slowly extinguishing. He looked at the terrified female ghost, his eyes as cold as if he were looking at a pile of evolution points about to be obtained.

"Ghost Wall?" He twisted his neck, making a cracking sound. His dark golden head reflected the hard, cold luster after violently breaking through in the sunlight.

"Couldn't even block one punch from me!"