[Devour Soul: Any ghost or evil spirit may be devoured to restore your own Prayer Power.]
"Huh?"
When Bai Jue saw the system reward, he froze for a moment—then his eyes burst with brilliance.
"This ability… is insanely strong."
And just at that moment—
The figure he had split in two with a single scythe strike suddenly twitched.
Its severed body parts wriggled unnaturally, then fused back together, restoring its form as it lunged at Bai Jue once more.
Now Bai Jue could finally see it clearly.
It was a jet-black, mist-shrouded feral beast, vaguely resembling both a hound and a lion-tiger hybrid.
This was a Soul Beast.
A creature formed after the death of beasts—or sometimes even humans—when resentment condensed instead of dispersing.
Compared to ordinary undead, Soul Beasts were stronger, faster, and far more cunning.
Just the one in front of him alone possessed First-Tier strength.
After regenerating its body, it opened its gaping maw.
Its tongue suddenly shot forward, extending like a whip, wrapping toward Bai Jue.
"Still not dead?"
Bai Jue sneered.
"Perfect. I'll use you to test this out."
The scythe flashed.
One clean slash—
The tongue was severed instantly.
Before the Soul Beast could retreat, Bai Jue stepped forward in a blur, grabbed it with his left hand, and activated Devour Soul.
He opened his mouth—
And swallowed it whole.
His mouth was nowhere near large enough, yet the Soul Beast dissolved into smoky wisps and flowed directly inside him.
The sensation was strange.
Like swallowing ice-cold cotton candy—
no taste, no texture.
But the effect was immediate.
Bai Jue could clearly feel his Prayer Power surge, restoring nearly thirty percent of his reserves.
After all, it was a First-Tier Soul Beast—only two minor realms below him.
Naturally, the recovery was significant.
And this made the terror of the ability all the more obvious.
With Devour Soul added to his arsenal, Bai Jue could now confidently say—
He was a true nemesis of evil spirits.
He could suppress them.
He could subdue them.
And now—
He could eat them to replenish himself.
As long as there were enough evil spirits, he could quite literally fight without end.
Scythe resting on his back, Bai Jue pressed deeper into the mountain, his expression radiant with excitement.
—
At the same time…
Tian Kui City.
Inside an office within a tall building.
A black-robed figure stood before a middle-aged man seated behind a desk, frowning.
"Where is it?"
"H-Here."
Fear was written all over the man's face as he hurriedly handed over a file.
The black-robed figure opened it and skimmed through.
Soon, his brows furrowed.
"Ghost Festival—Zhongyuan?"
"Yes. He awakened just a few days ago," the man replied nervously.
"He's already joined Tian Kui City's Night Watch division."
"According to my intel, this student has entered Spirit Domain, the Sequence Seven space gate."
"And before that… on the same day the Nie vanished, he had visited the slums."
The black-robed figure's eyes gleamed coldly.
"So you're saying… the Nie was most likely subdued by him?"
"Barring any surprises—yes."
Silence followed.
After a moment, the black-robed figure closed the file and left the office.
He stopped in a dim alley, pulled out his phone, and dialed.
The call connected quickly.
"It's confirmed," he said calmly.
"The Nie was most likely subdued by a high school student who awakened Zhongyuan Festival."
"Zhongyuan?"
"Yes."
"…Interesting."
"With Zhongyuan's authority, subduing a Nie is indeed possible. But once a Nie is subdued, it can never be reclaimed."
"Should we kill him?"
"No."
The voice on the other end chuckled softly.
"Zhongyuan is a rare and powerful Festival. The organization currently lacks truly monstrous talents."
"Go recruit him."
"Recruit?" the black-robed figure hesitated.
"Is that really necessary?"
"You know what happened in Yinhu City yesterday?"
"I don't."
"Someone awakened Bathing the Buddha Festival."
"…What?"
The black-robed figure's eyes widened in shock.
"Bathing the Buddha Festival? That's a legendary Festival ability! How could anyone awaken it?!"
"Why not?"
"As long as it's a Festival, someone can awaken it in this era."
"And as a legendary Festival… its terror lives up to the name."
"On the day of awakening, Buddhist light filled the skies. Countless Buddha phantoms manifested."
"Zhongyuan doesn't compare to Bathing the Buddha—but it's still extremely valuable."
"If his second Festival awakens well, he may yet rival it."
"So go."
"I understand."
The black-robed figure nodded respectfully and ended the call.
He stood still for a moment, eyes gleaming with thought.
"Bathing the Buddha Festival…"
"If something like that has appeared… then the Daoist Festivals probably aren't far behind either."
Even without witnessing it firsthand, he could feel how terrifying such legendary Festival powers must be.
Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward—
His body rippled like liquid, sinking directly into the ground and vanishing into the earth.
—
[Prompt: You have slain a Soul Beast. Prayer Power has slightly increased.]
[Prompt: You have slain a Soul Beast. Prayer Power has slightly increased.]
[Prompt: You have slain a Soul Beast. Prayer Power has slightly increased.]
[Prompt: Your actions have drawn the attention of Qingming. Qingming's appreciation for you has deepened.]
[Prompt: You have slain a Soul Beast. Zhongyuan Recognition +5.]
The system notifications echoed endlessly in Bai Jue's mind.
His eyes lit up, and a thrilled smile spread across his face.
At this point, he was almost certain—
If he awakened another Festival in the future, Qingming was the most likely candidate.
Of course, nothing was guaranteed.
Shaking his head, Bai Jue exhaled slowly.
Several hours had already passed since he entered the mountain.
He was now deep within the inner region.
He had slaughtered countless Soul Beasts along the way, and even now, more lurked everywhere.
He couldn't afford even a moment of carelessness.
After a brief pause, Bai Jue decided not to advance further for now.
With a thought—
The gates of Netherworld Authority opened behind him.
Bai Jue looked up at the Ghost Bride, raised his hand, and produced the Nie Transformation Pill.
Smiling faintly, he said,
"This is for you."
"Go ahead."
"Let me see… what you look like after becoming a Nie."
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