Man-Eating Ghost

"Come in and have a seat, Grandpa Village Chief."

Bai Mo stepped aside and invited the old village chief into the house. He helped him sit on the only halfway decent wooden stool in the room, then turned to pour him a cup of warm water.

"Hello, Grandpa Village Chief."

Na'er, who was tending the fire by the stove, turned around as well and obediently greeted him.

As for Fufu, it merely lifted its head from beneath the covers, glanced at the old village chief with its golden eyes, then lay back down with an impatient rumble in its throat.

Other than Bai Mo and Na'er, no one in the village could come within three yards of it.

The children who adored its cute appearance had never once succeeded in touching its smooth fur.

The old village chief took a sip of water to warm himself, then kindly asked about Bai Mo and Na'er's lives, telling them to come find him if they ever encountered any difficulties.

After the usual pleasantries, the old village chief set down his cup, and the smile on his face grew more serious. "Little Bai, aside from bringing you these things today, I have something important to tell you."

Bai Mo's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

He raised his head. A glimmer flashed through his golden eyes, and even his breathing became more hurried as he vaguely guessed what it was.

"Grandpa Village Chief, could it be...?"

His voice carried a trace of barely perceptible trembling and anticipation.

Seeing him like this, the old village chief nodded with a smile and stroked his grizzled beard. "That's right, just as you think. I received word from the town. In a few days, the Spirit Hall branch in the city will send a Soul Master to our village to hold a Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony for all children of the proper age."

"Little Bai, you and Na'er are both about old enough now, so you should be prepared."

The old village chief continued, his tone full of expectation for the younger generation. "Once you awaken a Martial Soul and possess soul power, you can become an honored Soul Master. Then you can register at the Spirit Hall branch in the city and receive a subsidy of one gold soul coin every month."

The old village chief stroked his beard and looked at Bai Mo with a beaming smile.

An unprecedented light instantly burst from Bai Mo's eyes.

One gold soul coin.

That was enough for him, Na'er, and Fufu to live without worry for two or three months.

With that money, they would no longer have to worry about their next meal, and Na'er would no longer have to wear patched-up clothes.

But that was not the most important thing.

Most importantly, awakening a Martial Soul and becoming a Soul Master meant gaining strength—the strength to establish himself in this world and protect himself and his family.

Because of the nightmare that repeatedly tormented him, Bai Mo possessed an almost obsessive craving and fixation on strength.

More than anyone else, he understood the dangers and cruelty lurking beneath this seemingly peaceful world.

Without strength, one was like fish on a chopping block, left to be slaughtered at another's whim.

And Martial Soul awakening was his chance to break free from that fate.

As for whether he, someone who had physically crossed over from another world, could awaken a Martial Soul, Bai Mo had no answer himself.

But if he did not try, how would he know the result?

Before long, the old village chief rose to take his leave.

Bai Mo wanted to keep him for a hot breakfast, but the village chief waved him off with a smile, saying only that his old wife was waiting for him at home.

Bai Mo escorted the old village chief to the door and watched his increasingly hunched figure slowly vanish into the frigid wind at the end of the village road.

A warmth rose in his heart.

How fortunate he was to have met the simple, kind villagers of Blackstone Village. Otherwise, he likely would have truly "landed in a box," dying silently in this unfamiliar land.

After a simple breakfast of rice porridge, Bai Mo carefully reminded Na'er and Fufu not to run outside, then slung the old basket, wider than his own body, onto his back and pushed open the door.

While the weather was still good, he planned to take a walk through the woods outside the village to gather some edible wild vegetables and see if he might find any valuable medicinal herbs.

The village road was covered in thick snow that crunched beneath his feet.

"Little Bai Mo, heading out to pick wild vegetables again?"

A villager clearing the snow in front of his home saw him and immediately greeted him with a smile.

Bai Mo lifted his little face as well and answered with an obedient smile.

Not far away, several village women gathered together to mend clothes spotted him and began whispering among themselves.

"Look at little Bai Mo. He's so adorable and sensible."

"Exactly. At such a young age, he already knows how to manage the household and take care of his little sister. If my boy were even half as worry-free as him, I'd be satisfied."

Bai Mo had long grown used to such well-meaning praise.

Just as he was about to leave the village, an old man sitting on a stone block and smoking a pipe called out to him.

"Little Bai Mo, if you're going into the woods today, remember to come back early. You must return to the village before dark."

Bai Mo paused. He recognized the man as Old Zhao from the village.

There was an unusual gravity in the old man's words.

His heart stirred, and he took several steps forward to ask curiously why.

Old Zhao tapped his pipe against the stone block, knocking off the ash. Without beating around the bush, he lowered his voice and said, "Word came from several nearby villages. The woods haven't been peaceful lately. It seems some Soul Beast has been appearing at night, specifically attacking villagers who are alone. People have gone missing in several villages. When they were eventually found, they either had only a few tattered scraps of clothing left, or... only severed limbs. Judging from the wounds, they were eaten alive."

Bai Mo's brows furrowed tightly.

It appeared only at night and fed on humans? What kind of Soul Beast was that?

There were as many types of Soul Beasts on Douluo Continent as stars in the sky. Though he had read the novels in his previous life, what was described in those books was only the tip of the iceberg. Moreover, many Soul Beasts had their own habits and territories, so he had no way to judge.

"What Soul Beast? Old Zhao, don't talk nonsense."

Just then, a rough voice cut in.

A middle-aged man wearing thick animal hides and carrying a longbow walked over. Having heard Old Zhao's words, he immediately stepped forward to refute him. "It's clearly a Man-Eating Ghost causing trouble."

Bai Mo recognized the middle-aged man. He was Zhao Kang, the best hunter in the village.

Douluo Continent not only had Soul Beasts, but also a great number of ordinary wild animals. Zhao Kang made his living by hunting those beasts.

"Uncle Kang."

Bai Mo immediately put on an innocent, adorable smile and looked up at him. "Tell me, what is a Man-Eating Ghost?"

Zhao Kang was amused by his appearance. He reached out with his rough hand and rubbed Bai Mo's soft white hair. "The reason I say it isn't a Soul Beast is because something happened in the neighboring village a few days ago. I went into the mountains with them to search for people. Later, I took a careful look at the bite marks on those... body parts they found."

At this point, the smile on Zhao Kang's face faded somewhat. He bent down close to Bai Mo's ear and lowered his voice to an extreme, as though he feared the wind might overhear him.

"Those tooth marks didn't look like they were left by a wild beast at all. They looked more like... they had been bitten out by a person, one mouthful at a time."

That final sentence was like an icy current filled with shards of frost, instantly drilling into Bai Mo's ears.