Thunder Bead

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Tang Changsheng slipped out through a broken window on the other side, vaulted a low wall, and left the dilapidated estate behind.

But before his feet had even settled, he sucked in a sharp breath.

Beyond the low wall, dozens of shadowy figures stood beneath the moonlight. Every one of them wore rags, and every one faced him without moving.

They were the ghosts he had seen earlier in the mass graveyard. Somehow, they had all appeared here without a sound!

What the hell? Did I stumble into a den of ghosts?

Since the world had undergone its great upheaval, vital energy had gradually dissipated. Cultivators could barely continue their practice, and powerful ghosts had grown increasingly rare.

By his master's generation, even Grudge Ghosts were seldom seen. Tang Changsheng had never seen one in his life—until now, when he had encountered so many at once.

Every one of these Grudge Ghosts had the power to kill!

And that female ghost was unquestionably a Vicious Ghost, even stronger than a Grudge Ghost. He might well meet his end here today!

He had not brought his guardian Yin Soldier. Even if he had, what good would it have done?

It was only on the level of a Grudge Ghost. If he sent it out, it would probably be torn apart in less than a minute...

"Where are you going? Didn't you have something to tell me? Why leave without saying it?"

A faint voice came from behind him, making his back crawl as though insects were creeping over it. He did not have to look to know that the female ghost had caught up.

Now there was no road ahead, and a pursuer behind him.

Tang Changsheng sighed inwardly. This time, he truly had been driven into a dead end.

Even so, he was not one to surrender easily. He backed up against the wall, his eyes sweeping the surroundings for an escape route.

The female ghost drifted closer. Only now could he see that her form was not entirely solid; the edges of her body blurred like mist.

Yet the rot on her face and the maggots crawling in and out of it were hideously clear.

It was naked intimidation!

Even then, Tang Changsheng's mind remained utterly calm, racing through what he knew.

To ordinary people, all ghosts might look alike. Tang Changsheng knew better: they fell into several ranks, each with different powers and dangers.

The weakest were the Lonely Wandering Ghosts. Aside from frightening people, they had little ability. They were also the most common—the drifting apparitions ordinary people occasionally glimpsed. They posed almost no threat... except to those struck by particularly bad luck, or those with weak birth charts and frail bodies.

Next came Grudge Ghosts: spirits that retained a spark of awareness after death, refused to disperse, and clung to an obsession.

If a person's vitality was strong and his fortune flourishing, such a ghost might be unable to harm him directly. But let his luck turn bad or his body and fate grow weak, and it could seize its chance, even luring him into suicide.

Most tales of ghosts harming people concerned this kind!

Then came stronger Grudge Ghosts, born when resentment remained lodged in a person's chest after death. They could harm even the living who were strong and healthy and riding a tide of good fortune, draining their vitality and wearing away their luck.

For an ordinary person who encountered one, it was nine deaths for every chance of survival!

Beyond them were Vicious Ghosts, more formidable still. They could show themselves before the living and kill outright.

Tang Changsheng had never seen either kind of Grudge Ghost or a Vicious Ghost with his own eyes. Today, though, he was getting a painfully clear look.

The female ghost could take such a vivid, unmistakable form. She was definitely a Vicious Ghost; there could be no doubt!

"Tell me, you woke me up and then wouldn't talk to me. Shouldn't I kill you? Dig out your heart, hmm..."

As she spoke, she extended a ghostly claw toward his chest. It was bone-pale and mottled with corpse spots, yet its nails were long and pitch-black.

Tang Changsheng had no doubt that claw could pierce his chest with ease and rip out his heart.

He flashed a brilliant smile and opened his mouth as if to speak. The female ghost paused, apparently ready to hear what he had to say.

She had no idea that he had already bitten through the tip of his tongue.

Pfft! A mouthful of yang-charged blood sprayed from his tongue onto her face. She shrieked. Green smoke rose from her face as though it had caught fire, and she retreated again and again.

Tang Changsheng sneered. This body was young, trained in martial arts, and brimming with yang energy. Even a Vicious Ghost would suffer from that mouthful of blood!

It would not get him out of this trap. But Tang Changsheng could never simply submit and wait to die.

Sure enough, the female ghost floated more than a hundred feet away before her form appeared again. "Kill him! Kill him!" she screamed.

The ghosts standing motionless all around heard her. Slowly, they began to move, drifting toward Tang Changsheng.

The female ghost charged at him first, seething with fury. Where the blood had struck her already hideous face, it had left a mass of pits and craters.

Blood from the tip of the tongue was potent, but it did little against a Vicious Ghost. Had she been a Grudge Ghost, that spray might not have scattered her soul on the spot, but it would at least have dealt her a grievous blow.

It seemed she truly was a Vicious Ghost—and every bit as dangerous as one.

As she drew near again, a fierce glint flashed in Tang Changsheng's eyes. He gave a cold laugh and flicked his finger. A bead struck her squarely in the chest.

In an instant, green smoke rose with the smell of sulfur. The female ghost screamed and staggered back barely two steps before her whole body dissolved into a cloud of gray smoke. A gust of night wind swept it away, leaving not a trace.

The large group of Grudge Ghosts in the distance saw it and recoiled in fright.

Tang Changsheng took out another bead and shouted, "If you don't retreat, do you want to taste the power of the Thunder Bead in my hand?"

The Grudge Ghosts instinctively backed away again.

Tang Changsheng let out a small breath of relief, but he knew the truth. It looked as though he had dispatched a Vicious Ghost with effortless ease—a dazzling feat.

In reality, he had relied on the Thunder Bead in his hand. And this was no ordinary Thunder Bead: it had sat before the Deity Statue, receiving incense offerings for more than five years. Only that had given it such power!

There were only five Thunder Beads like it in the General's Temple, and Tang Changsheng had brought every one of them today.

They were what had given him the nerve to venture into this world of unknown dangers!

Unfortunately, only four remained now—and each one he used was gone for good!