Nourishment, strange creatures

Evil spirit was the more official term. Among ordinary people, these things were generally called "ghosts"!

Cheng Sheng had watched plenty of horror movies in his previous life, but this was his first time encountering the real thing.

"Sulai said the Strange Mist would cause many evil spirits that normally couldn't be detected and had no effect on ordinary people to reawaken. This must be what she meant..."

To put it plainly, a so-called evil spirit was an amalgamation of resentment and evil emotions.

Under normal circumstances, such things could hardly have any substantial effect on the living. But the Strange Mist brought by the Black Tide seemed to contain some mysterious ingredient that provided the most crucial energy for their birth.

That was why, in areas shrouded by the Strange Mist, these evil obsessions could appear in spirit form.

"No wonder it was jumping so wildly. It was 'hungry'..."

Cheng Sheng rubbed the spot between his brows and his temples for a while, and the swollen feeling in his head finally seemed to subside a little.

He wasn't surprised that the Primordial Mark could devour evil spirits. The Primordial Mark needed soul fragments as nourishment to grow; the mark itself was a Soul-Devouring Seed through and through.

"Still, there were a few too many impurities in that evil spirit's soul fragments..."

After the Primordial Mark finished digesting the evil spirit it had just eaten, Cheng Sheng found a jumble of memories in his head.

These disordered memories showed that the female evil spirit had been a special-effects actress in life. Because her face and figure were somewhat deformed and ugly, she had spent years playing female ghosts in various horror movies.

But while filming a hanging scene, something went wrong with the wire rig on the back of the woman playing the vengeful ghost. The wire wrapped around her neck, and no one on set noticed anything was wrong. Or perhaps they had noticed, but the director didn't stop it, wanting a more realistic performance. As a result, the woman was hanged alive in full view of everyone, her heart full of resentment...

"Forget it. They should gradually fade and be forgotten in a few days..."

Cheng Sheng shook his head and let out a soft breath. His expression soon turned joyful.

After the Primordial Mark took shape, he had made two sacrifices, yet the mark hadn't grown in the slightest. It wasn't that he didn't want it to, but that he couldn't make it happen.

To obtain "soul fragments" in return from the trading demon, he naturally needed more special, higher-quality offerings. As for that, Cheng Sheng didn't even know the specific requirements or standards for the offerings.

But he was also eager to strengthen the mark so he could unlock the second page of the Black Book.

He had been troubled by this all along.

Now, there seemed to be a new solution to the problem!

The Black Tide!

"The evil spirits in areas shrouded by the Strange Mist can be devoured directly by the Primordial Mark, becoming nourishment for its growth. There are a few too many impurities, but when starting a venture, everyone has to blaze a trail through the wilderness. Who doesn't start out eating bran and choking down wild greens? So what if there are more impurities? It doesn't matter..."

"And judging from these evil spirits, those genuine Black Tide creatures might be even more helpful to me!"

To others, the Black Tide was synonymous with despair and terror, but to Cheng Sheng, it might be a breeding ground that could help him advance faster on the path of a sorcerer!

"Calling it a breeding ground is a bit of an exaggeration. There are still risks, but high risk means high reward!

"The fact that I don't fear evil spirits alone gives me a huge advantage no one else can match..."

Difficulties were nothing. Whatever one did in this world, there would be difficulties. What was truly frustrating was being unable to find a direction in which to strive.

Now, the path forward lay before Cheng Sheng. He only had to find a way to overcome each obstacle, one step at a time.

Cheng Sheng suppressed his excitement and went to the back of the screening room to inspect the spot where the projection beam had just shone. He found a projector there, but it had long since broken down. There was no battery in it either, though there was a reel of film.

The strange projection that had played by itself earlier was probably the work of that female evil spirit.

He kicked the projector over and checked the entire cinema, finding nothing else out of the ordinary. The Primordial Mark no longer reacted either, and he was about to leave.

Just then, a "clack, clack, clack" sounded outside the cinema.

The sound was strange, as though teeth were repeatedly knocking together. It came from outside, and Cheng Sheng's heart inexplicably tightened. Only then did he notice that the Strange Mist drifting through the cinema seemed much thicker and darker.

"Another one?!"

Cheng Sheng didn't know whether to call himself lucky or unlucky.

He didn't dare rush outside. After some thought, he went to a window facing the street, crouched down, and quietly peered out.

The fog in the street was astonishingly thick.

The dense black fog almost completely obscured the streetlights, leaving only a few halos barely visible.

Cheng Sheng looked in the direction of the strange "clack, clack, clack" and saw a bizarre figure slowly approaching along the street.

Its outline looked a little like a slender man wearing a top hat, but its body was unusually elongated and incredibly tall. Even the streetlights only reached about its chest!

Its head was tilted, its neck bent at nearly ninety degrees. An exaggerated, ghastly grin hung on its face, and its entire head shook and shuddered in bursts at an inconceivable frequency.

"Clack, clack, clack... clack, clack, clack..."

The strange noise Cheng Sheng had heard was made by its skull and neck bones constantly knocking together!

"A Black Tide creature!"

This was the first time Cheng Sheng had been so close to a genuine Black Tide creature, seeing one so clearly for himself!

Unlike the shock and impact of the giant one-horned anaconda he had seen in the video before, the Black Tide creature before him brought him more of a chilling psychological and mental terror.

It was like a pool of icy water seeping through his clothes, soaking into his collar bit by bit...

Cheng Sheng didn't dare breathe loudly, much less stare too hard at the Black Tide creature.

Fortunately, the strange, eerily grinning man didn't notice Cheng Sheng. Making that odd "clack, clack, clack" sound, it slowly passed the entrance of the abandoned cinema and finally disappeared completely into the black fog.

"Phew-"

Only after a long while, when half his body had nearly gone numb from crouching, did Cheng Sheng dare move.

He had realized that the Black Tide was just like a fire. Even if people at school and at home told you every day, "Fires are dangerous, be careful with fire," you simply couldn't understand how terrifying one was until you experienced it yourself.

"Go!"

After that close scare, Cheng Sheng didn't hesitate at all and headed straight out.

He had only reached the cinema entrance when he heard a rustling sound outside.

Cheng Sheng's nerves instantly went taut. He had been frightened so much tonight that he was almost jumpy. Fortunately, after standing by the door and listening carefully for a while, he realized that this time it was only ordinary people.

Outside the dilapidated cinema, two people holding flashlights were sneaking closer.

"I read online that the original negative of the movie that recorded Sister-in-law Asang's tragic death is in this cinema..."

Of the two, a somewhat cute-looking girl in a pink hoodie bit on a lollipop and said nervously, "Whenever the moon is full and the Strange Mist spreads, Sister-in-law Asang's ghost comes out of the film...

"Several groups have gone in to explore before, and none of them came back out!"

"Pfft."

The boy beside her, who was recording the whole time with a handheld DV camera, curled his lip disdainfully. "You believe rumors on the internet?

"That Sister-in-law Asang's ghost had better actually come out. Then we can upload the video afterward and go viral!

"You'll have money to buy that VV makeup set, and I can buy a new motorcycle..."

At the boy's words, the girl seemed to think of the expensive makeup she had been longing for. Much of her fear vanished at once, and she quickened her pace, even urging him on.

"Hurry up!"

The two ran to the cinema entrance, and the girl eagerly went to push the doors open.

But before she could reach them, "Creak-"

The doors swung open on their own.

Inside, a pale-skinned young man stood there silently, staring at the two of them with a gloomy gaze. He opened his mouth. "You..."

Before the young man could finish, the boy and girl at the entrance, already scared out of their wits, let out piercing screams.

"Aahhh! A ghost!"

"Shit!"

When Cheng Sheng heard the scream pierce the night, his expression changed instantly!

"What the fuck are you screaming for?! You'll draw that thing back here..."

He immediately raised his foot and kicked the girl in the pink hoodie, who was still screaming in front of him, hard to the ground. Then he hurried away without looking back...