I spent all night reading posts, but nobody mentioned being able to see Ghosts all over the streets. Looks like I'm the only person in the world who can see them.
Fang Xiu sank into thought. The forum said Ghosts appeared out of thin air, without any pattern, but he knew they had actually been there all along. Their supposed appearance out of thin air was simply a matter of certain conditions being met, allowing them to enter reality.
To everyone else, that looked like appearing out of thin air.
These free posts barely offer any information. My next goals are to make money and get stronger!
He began recalling the basic techniques for controlling spirituality he had just read. They were all elementary techniques.
They taught him how to channel spirituality quickly and train it daily. They were somewhat useful, but not much.
Aside from that, however, Fang Xiu's greatest gain was learning about Ghost Artifacts.
Ghost Artifacts were objects imbued with the power of Ghosts. Some were weapons, such as swords and knives, while others were everyday objects, such as mirrors and bracelets...
Regardless of their form, these objects carried the power of Ghosts and possessed all manner of incredible functions.
Every one was worth a fortune. Some powerful Ghost Artifacts could even sell for over a hundred million.
However, using Ghost Artifacts came at a price. The more powerful the artifact, the greater its ability to contaminate the mind, much like radiation.
Frequent use of Ghost Artifacts inevitably contaminated the mind, eventually causing the user to mutate completely into a monster resembling a Ghost.
When Fang Xiu read the introduction to Ghost Artifacts, his first thought was of his Scalpel.
Without a doubt, the Scalpel was a Ghost Artifact. Having cut through countless Ghosts, it had long since been contaminated by their power and transformed into one.
He was not worried about its contamination of his mind. His mind was already twisted beyond recognition anyway.
That meant he could use Ghost Artifacts without regard for the cost, with no fear of mutation.
Besides introducing Ghost Artifacts, the post also briefly explained how to control them.
The most basic method was to inject spirituality into them and activate their power.
But to wield a Ghost Artifact as naturally as an extension of one's body, making it respond to every thought, one had to penetrate its core with spirituality and establish a connection. Only then could its power be brought out to the fullest.
It was much like a divine weapon recognizing its master in a fantasy novel.
However, making a Ghost Artifact recognize its master carried enormous risks. Once a connection was established through spirituality, it was equivalent to abandoning every defense. Each time the artifact was used, its contamination would reach the mind directly, greatly increasing the risk of mutation.
Fang Xiu checked the time. It was already five, with just over three hours left before the Investigation Bureau came to his door.
"That should be enough time."
With that, he took out the Scalpel, channeled his spirituality, and began pushing it deeper and deeper into the blade.
Gradually, his consciousness seemed to enter a realm of darkness. Countless howling Ghosts seemed to lurk within it, crashing against his consciousness as though they had gone mad.
Countless negative emotions-brutality, bloodlust, and despair-surged into him, seeking to twist his mind into that of a monster.
Yet Fang Xiu's mind was like a bottomless abyss. No matter how those negative emotions flooded in, his expression remained calm.
The Scalpel's aim was to twist Fang Xiu's mind, but what if his mind was already twisted?
It was like murder. If the person you wanted to kill was already dead, how were you supposed to kill them?
"Is this all the despair you have?" Fang Xiu asked calmly.
The next moment, he channeled his spirituality and left his own mark inside the Scalpel, instantly establishing a connection between them.
When he withdrew his spirituality, he discovered that it had grown stronger!
Another one percent had been lit up.
In other words, two percent of his spirituality was now lit up.
It looks like the Scalpel's power helped light up part of my spirituality.
That made Fang Xiu even more satisfied with the Scalpel.
Besides the increase in his spirituality, he had also discovered the Scalpel's true abilities.
The Scalpel had two abilities. The first was its basic ability: cutting.
The more spirituality he injected, the stronger its cutting power would become.
The other ability was to draw upon the power of the Ghosts contained within it to strengthen himself.
However, because the Scalpel contained the power of too many Ghosts, that power was extremely chaotic. Strengthening himself with it would generally cost him his sanity and place an immense strain on his body. If he remained in that state for too long, he might even mutate outright.
Fortunately, Fang Xiu was not worried about losing his sanity. He only worried that his body might not withstand it.
He checked the time again. It was already past seven. Time for breakfast.
He left the bedroom, planning to make himself breakfast.
His wife approached him with a gentle smile. "Honey, it's time for breakfast."
Fang Xiu walked straight through her body and went to make his own breakfast.
One fried egg, two slices of bread, and a glass of milk.
While he was eating, Zhao Hao called.
"Xiu! Xiu! I know what my ability is!" Zhao Hao's excited voice came through the phone.
"Yeah. Sexual prowess," Fang Xiu said calmly, taking a bite of bread.
"Hehe, you're going to be shocked when I tell you... Huh?! H-how did you know?" Zhao Hao was stunned.
Fang Xiu said nothing and continued eating his bread. He did not want to answer such a stupid question.
A moment later, Zhao Hao caught on.
"Xiu, did you foresee it?"
"Yeah."
"Ugh, how boring! Seriously, how boring! I wanted to show off a little, but you already foresaw it. Xiu, I think I've found the downside of your Future Prediction ability. You'll never have any surprises in life again."
"All right, if there's nothing else, I'm hanging up. I've got two guests coming over shortly."
"Hey, hey, don't..."
Click.
Fang Xiu hung up and continued eating breakfast.
Outside the residential complex, Li Wenhao sat monitoring the call in a black minivan, shock written across his face. The listening device fell from his hand and hit the floor with a sharp clatter.
Beside him, Shen Lingxue immediately frowned. "What are you doing?"
Li Wenhao snapped out of his daze. Without even bothering to pick up the device, he said in shock, "I heard what Fang Xiu's and Zhao Hao's abilities are!"
"Oh?" Shen Lingxue's interest was piqued. "What abilities could make you lose your composure like this? One at a time. Start with Zhao Hao."
"Zhao Hao's ability is sexual prowess."
Shen Lingxue: "..."
Her expression darkened visibly. "That certainly is shocking."
"No, Zhao Hao's ability doesn't matter. Fang Xiu's is what matters!" Li Wenhao said urgently.
"What's Fang Xiu's ability?"
Shen Lingxue grew a little more serious. She knew perfectly well that although Li Wenhao was an ordinary person, he had received professional training and seen plenty of Spirit Tamers, and even Ghosts. Something trivial would not have shaken him like this.
"Future Prediction!" Li Wenhao said gravely.
Before you continue