Luo Fan's eyes widened as he stared at the Mantis Weird in disbelief.
He knew that voice all too well.
When Tomeko, the female samurai from Eastern Japan, was alive, they had spent several days together on Fallen Sea Island.
He remembered her voice, her swordsmanship, and the expectant look in her eyes whenever she ate, all with perfect clarity.
"Tomeko?"
He blurted out her name, his voice filled with shock.
The Mantis Weird's body shuddered violently.
Chaotic light flickered a few times in its compound eyes, then gradually settled.
A moment later, it spoke.
This time, there was only one voice.
The voice Luo Fan knew.
"Luo Fan... it's me."
Tomeko's voice carried a trace of exhaustion, along with a hint of something too complicated to put into words.
Luo Fan drew a deep breath, suppressing his shock.
"How did you end up inside it?"
Tomeko fell silent for a moment, then slowly spoke.
"I have a skill. A rule-type one."
Her voice was soft, as though she were recalling the past.
"But the conditions for using it are extremely demanding."
"My soul can only activate it after I die. Then my soul can seek out a nearby Weird and inhabit its body, continuing to exist that way."
Luo Fan's pupils contracted slightly.
Activated after death? Inhabiting a Weird's body?
No wonder...
"On Fallen Sea Island, I was petrified and couldn't enter the Tower in time. The erasure rule descended, and I died."
Tomeko's voice grew even lower.
"But my soul didn't dissipate. I activated that skill and found the nearest Weird, this mantis. Then I took up residence inside its body."
Luo Fan fell silent.
So that was it!
No wonder the Mantis Weird could speak. It was because Tomeko's soul was inside it.
Something stirred in Luo