With a clear goal in mind this time, Li Feng quickly flipped to the directory of Ghost Cultivator arts toward the back.
"Thousand Ghosts, Ten Thousand Spirits Art": enslave countless Vengeful Ghosts and resentful spirits, becoming a one-man army...
Drawbacks: individual Vengeful Ghosts and resentful spirits are weak; countless streams of Ghostly Energy erode the body, while endless resentment assaults the consciousness...
"Heavenly Ghost Great Art": an orthodox Ghost Cultivator method. Absorb boundless Yin Energy and transform into a heavenly ghost, freely switching between tangible and intangible forms, walking through the cracks in space, unimpeded in all things...
Drawbacks: the impact of Yin Energy and the erosion of Ghostly Energy gradually strip away human emotions...
"Ghost-Raising, God-Inviting Method": worship ghosts as gods and gain divine power and divine arts through offerings. Suppress evil and destroy demons with unparalleled combat prowess...
Drawbacks: the ghost is the god, and the practitioner is its believer, ultimately becoming subordinate to the Vengeful Ghost...
"Yin-Devouring, Ghost-Absorbing Art": an orthodox Ghost Cultivator method. Devour Yin Energy and Ghostly Energy to strengthen the soul, become a Yin Spirit, then a Yin Deity, and undergo sunlight and the Tribulation of Thunder to become a Yang Deity. Move objects, control energy, and wield ghost skills and supernatural powers...
Drawbacks: Yin Energy and Ghostly Energy erode the soul. Failure to become a Yang Deity quickly enough will result in the loss of human emotions and increasingly ghostlike behavior...
"Ten Thousand Ghosts Body-Merging Method": command Vengeful Ghosts, either directing them to fight independently or merging them into the body during combat to instantly enhance fighting ability.
As long as the body can withstand it, large numbers of Vengeful Ghosts can be merged into it to unleash formidable combat power.
Drawbacks: Ghostly Energy erodes the body, gradually weakening it. Ghostly Energy and the consciousnesses of Vengeful Ghosts assault the mind, causing mental exhaustion and confusion.
Commanding too many Vengeful Ghosts may cause the body to collapse or result in a loss of control over them, leading to a backlash from the ghosts.
Li Feng examined the Ghost Cultivator arts one by one, carefully weighing their advantages and disadvantages.
Arts like the "Thousand Ghosts, Ten Thousand Spirits Art" made someone a one-man army. That sounded impressive, but Li Feng preferred to keep all that power within himself.
The "Heavenly Ghost Great Art" and the "Yin-Devouring, Ghost-Absorbing Art" essentially turned the practitioner into a Vengeful Ghost. Li Feng had no intention of doing that either.
That left the "Ghost-Raising, God-Inviting Method" and the "Myriad Ghosts Body-Merging Art."
The "Ghost-Raising, God-Inviting Method" involved worshipping a ghost as a god, becoming its believer and servant. Li Feng ruled that out as well.
After weighing his options, Li Feng ultimately chose the "Myriad Ghosts Body-Merging Art."
It allowed him not only to command Vengeful Ghosts in battle, but also to merge them into his body and unleash greater combat power.
That would also help conceal why his combat abilities far exceeded the norm despite his practicing the "Human Body Tempering Art."
Having made his decision, Li Feng handed the book back to Zhou Xing.
"Made your choice?"
"Yes. I'll take this 'Myriad Ghosts Body-Merging Art'!"
"The 'Myriad Ghosts Body-Merging Art,' huh?"
Zhou Xing considered it for a moment.
He thought of Li Feng's perfected skin tempering realm, along with Yuan Chengfang's account of how he had effortlessly commanded three weird entities and Vengeful Ghosts without practicing any cultivation art...
"Hmm... yes, that does suit you!"
Zhou Xing nodded.
He, too, felt that the "Myriad Ghosts Body-Merging Art" was indeed a good fit for Li Feng.
Then Zhou Xing placed his hand on the Weird Library's subsidiary catalog and began channeling power into it to communicate with the library.
The next moment, the book glowed with an eerie light. That radiant power gathered into a book with a yellowed cover, floating above the Weird Library's subsidiary catalog.
Zhou Xing withdrew his power, caught the falling book, and handed it to Li Feng.
Li Feng took it and looked at the cover, where the title "Myriad Ghosts Body-Merging Art" appeared in large characters.
He opened the cover and examined its contents. The first section explained how to control and command Vengeful Ghosts.
For Li Feng, this merely broadened his knowledge and understanding. It was of little practical use.
What truly helped him was the latter half, which explained how to merge Vengeful Ghosts or their power into the body.
Reading it proved tremendously enlightening.
He had originally thought that this cultivation art would mostly serve to conceal the truth about his own cultivation.
After reading it from beginning to end, however, Li Feng realized that it was far from useless. In fact, it could greatly enhance both his combat power and the methods at his disposal.
After a moment's thought, Li Feng formed one of the hand seals described in the book.
Noticing his movements, Zhou Xing made no attempt to stop him. Instead, he watched as though waiting for an entertaining show.
As the Personnel Office Director at the Yuanyang City Investigation Bureau's headquarters, he had seen far too many people act just like Li Feng.
The moment they received a cultivation art, they could hardly wait to try practicing it.
And as for the outcome...
Most attempts produced no response whatsoever.
Even those that did have an effect usually involved a mistake in circulation, throwing the power within the practitioner's body into disorder.
Cultivation arts that truly touched on the supernatural were not as simple as the Human Cultivation Method. That method was perfectly suited to humans, with no risk of errors during practice; at worst, cultivation would merely progress slowly.
Arts that truly involved the supernatural required personal instruction and supervision while practicing.
Only once a practitioner had genuinely grasped the basics would they be allowed to cultivate independently.
Even then, regular check-ins and guidance were necessary.
Still, with him present, there was no need to worry about any real danger.
Yet to Zhou Xing's utter astonishment, as Li Feng formed the hand seal, he actually drew out the Delivery Ghost's power.
After circulating once through the hand seal, the Ghostly Energy transformed into a mysterious, icy power and instantly merged into Li Feng's body.
In an instant, Li Feng's bearing changed dramatically, taking on a sinister chill.
"You... you..."
Watching the sudden change in Li Feng, Zhou Xing nearly sprang to his feet in shock. His finger trembled slightly as he pointed at him.
Someone with... with this cultivation speed, this kind of talent, had been rejected by both the Response Department and the Night Patrol Bureau?
Had the standards for genius really risen that high?
Even the top geniuses in the Response Department or the Night Patrol Bureau would struggle to master something instantly like this, wouldn't they?
Seeing Zhou Xing's jaw hanging open, Li Feng paused. He had intended to try out the Delivery Ghost's ability as well, but immediately released the seal instead.
The icy power flowing within him quickly returned to his Mind Space and merged back into the Delivery Ghost.
The key to merging Vengeful Ghosts or their power into the body lay in controlling and guiding them.
A Vengeful Ghost's power was different from one's own, after all. The slightest carelessness could lead to a misstep and a backlash from its power.
Yet that was precisely what posed no problem at all for Li Feng.
Controlling a Vengeful Ghost's power was no different from controlling his own.
Thus, something that might be extremely difficult for others came effortlessly to him.
As long as he understood and mastered the method, he could easily merge either a Vengeful Ghost's power or the ghost itself into his body.
But seeing Zhou Xing's astonishment, Li Feng abruptly realized that he had shown a little too much.
That was why he had ended the state of merging with the Vengeful Ghost's power and dispersed it.
Yet this only astonished Zhou Xing even more, and he stared at Li Feng in shock.
To release and gather back the power so easily on his very first attempt was even harder than drawing it out.
"Tsk, tsk. When Old Yuan said you were a genius, I still had my doubts.
"Now it seems she was actually understating things.
"Not only did you master the method of merging Vengeful Ghosts into your body in one go,
"you even released it so smoothly on your very first attempt.
"Even in the Response Department or the Night Patrol Bureau, you'd probably rank among the very best geniuses..."
Zhou Xing stood up, walked around his desk, and circled Li Feng, looking him up and down while clicking his tongue in admiration.
"Heh, heh..."
What could Li Feng possibly say?
Knowing he had overdone it, he started playing dumb and grinning foolishly.
"Hey, all right, off you go. Stay any longer and the Department Chief will be getting impatient..."
Seeing Li Feng's foolish grin, Zhou Xing could not help saying this with a smile.
"Oh, right, of course!
"Goodbye, Director Zhou!"
Li Feng smiled and nodded repeatedly before turning to leave.
But after taking a few steps, he suddenly realized something.
Personnel Office Director Zhou Xing had been walking beside him the whole time, smiling broadly.
"Director Zhou..."
"Why call me Director? You're being too formal! Just call me Brother Zhou!"
Although Zhou Xing had been reasonably friendly earlier, there had always been a certain distance in his manner. He had been nothing like this familiar.
He had great confidence in Li Feng's future. As long as Li Feng did not die prematurely, he would certainly reach or even surpass Zhou Xing's current level.
It was not a matter of currying favor with Li Feng, but Zhou Xing was certainly willing to become a little closer to him.
Looking at Zhou Xing's face, which was smiling like a blooming chrysanthemum, Li Feng felt his scalp prickle. Still, he could only steel himself and call out.
"Brother Zhou!"
"That's right! Little Brother Li Feng, come to me whenever you need anything. If it's within my power, I certainly won't refuse..."
"Heh, all right, of course. Thank you, Brother Zhou!
"So, Brother Zhou, what are you...?"
Li Feng smiled gratefully, then voiced his question.
"Oh, naturally, I'm heading upstairs with you to see you in action when you merge with the Ghost Eye..."
"Uh... all right!"
Helpless, Li Feng could only nod. He left the Personnel Office with Zhou Xing, and they headed for the Fourth-Floor Investigation Department Chief's Office.
When they returned to Wang Jianfeng's office, both Wang Jianfeng and Yuan Chengfang looked at Zhou Xing in surprise, unsure why he had come along.
"Director Zhou, did you need something?"
"No, no..."
Zhou Xing shook his head, then said excitedly:
"You have no idea. Our Investigation Department really has gained a first-rate genius..."
"Oh?"
At his words, Wang Jianfeng and Yuan Chengfang both glanced at Li Feng in surprise.
They had no idea what had just happened to make Zhou Xing praise Li Feng so highly.
As for why they were certain he meant Li Feng—
There was simply no one else at the moment.
Before either of them could ask, Zhou Xing launched into a breathless account of what he had just witnessed.
"Oh?"
Once again, Wang Jianfeng and Yuan Chengfang looked at Li Feng in surprise.
Yuan Chengfang's eyes, however, were filled with shock, her mouth slightly open.
Wang Jianfeng was much more composed. His eyes merely brightened a little, and a delighted smile spread across his face.
He had seen a few geniuses like Li Feng before.
In fact, he himself had been just such a genius.
Yet only he and two or three others had survived to the present and truly matured.
The rest had all died for one reason or another.
So, to him, discovering a genius was certainly something to be happy about.
But for that genius to truly make a difference and help the Investigation Department, they would have to wait until he had grown into his potential.
Of course, discovering a genius was still always a cause for celebration.
Before you continue