“It’s indeed a resentful spirit!”
Wu Ming sighed, suddenly rushing forward and throwing a punch!
Bang!
A wooden shelf collapsed, porcelain vases shattered on the floor, and the girl’s figure vanished.
“In this dream, even Steven’s physical abilities have been accurately replicated… the realism is quite high…”
He burst into laughter: “It’s been a long time since I’ve used my full strength!”
“Do you want to play hide-and-seek?”
The girl’s voice came from behind, and her small hands had already grabbed Wu Ming’s ankle.
Zhen!
Wu Ming twisted his foot, like an iron plow tearing through soil, shattering the hard wooden floorboards. However, the girl’s hands instantly became intangible and disappeared in an instant.
“Heehee!”
Her laughter echoed around, and her tear-streaked face appeared in the mirror, on the walls, and even inside the ceiling light.
Bang!
Wu Ming’s expression remained unchanged as his fists and feet moved like wind, reducing the surroundings to utter chaos in an instant.
“Heehee!”
The bell-like laughter continued, and the girl’s phantom reappeared, completely unscathed.
“Huff… huff…”
Wu Ming exhaled deeply: “Warm-up’s over. Time to get serious…”
His eyes narrowed slightly, and within his consciousness, his spiritual energy radiated outward like a barrier.
Boom! Boom!
It was as if a typhoon had swept through, a tornado raging. An invisible yet terrifying force instantly swept everything away. Under the stirring of spiritual energy, everything before Wu Ming continuously shattered, disintegrated, reduced to dust, revealing a vast emptiness.
The little girl screamed and vanished in an instant.
“When dealing with vengeful spirits, spiritual energy is indeed the way to go…”
“But… although physical abilities in this dream still conform to reality, the effect of spiritual energy has been amplified…”
A trace of regret surfaced on Wu Ming’s face, obviously lamenting the inability to obtain real combat data.
He had clearly treated this spirit-created dream as a free testing ground.
This time, he had clearly inflicted real damage on the girl. The entire dream became hazy, and after an unknown period of time, the villa reappeared.
Everything inside was restored, and the pleasant bell sound rang out again.
“You should know that there’s no way you can defeat me like this…”
Wu Ming sighed, having now gauged the spirit’s limits: “I could definitely destroy this place again and turn this into a battle of spiritual energies, but honestly, I’m just too lazy to keep playing with you…”
His expression turned teasing, and the smile at the corner of his mouth widened: “Who gave you such boldness to dare invade my consciousness?”
Even after one reincarnation, his true soul essence still carried a trace of an immortal’s mark!
No being below or equal to his level could possibly invade his consciousness or inner mind, let alone attempt mental control or enchantment.
Snap!
He casually snapped his fingers.
Crack! Crack!
Suddenly, countless cracks appeared in the void, followed by a cascade of breaking sounds, as if space itself were shattering like a mirror.
“Little darling, let’s see you now!”
Wu Ming stepped forward, picking up a music box from the broken void.
It was exactly the same shape as the real one, except for a small trace of bloodstains.
“Here I come!”
His eyes sharpened, and the surrounding scenery instantly changed.
Scene after scene of memories were drawn out, forming vivid projections.
It was the same villa as before. A middle-aged couple stood solemnly, drawing a hexagram formation on the ground with blood and bone powder, murmuring prayers.
Through years of ritual, their personalities had become increasingly peculiar, eventually developing neurotic tendencies.
Neighbors gradually distanced themselves, but the couple remained obstinate in their ways.
In the end came a bloody scene.
“It’s impossible… why hasn’t any demon god, or even a single vengeful spirit, responded to our call…”
The couple cried out in despair, their expressions turning increasingly grotesque, finally fixing their gaze on the little girl.
“Our plan will definitely succeed. You must help us, little darling!”
“No… no…”
The girl was backed into a corner, tightly clutching the music box.
“Illote, you have noble blood and will surely awaken. If we can’t get help from a vengeful spirit, why not create one ourselves?”
Their voices grew increasingly frenzied.
Finally came a yellowed newspaper page, reporting a major case: “Family of Three Found Dead Under Mysterious Circumstances! Suspected Tragic Result of Overdosing on Hallucinogenic Substances. The Police Department Will Continue to Intensify Crackdowns on Illegal Dangerous Drug Transactions…”
…
“Sigh…”
Morning sunlight poured through the window, illuminating the music box before Wu Ming.
His hand gently brushed over it. Whether it was just an illusion or not, a trace of dark energy immediately vanished: “Rest in peace…”
This vengeful spirit had been purified, but the incident raised deeper questions for Wu Ming: “The discontinuation of traditions… a family of shrine maidens unable to even handle the most basic summoning ritual…”
He couldn’t help but recall history.
The former Kingdom of Golden Oak had experienced multiple coups and uprisings, even enduring a fifty-year Dark Age. War combined with the Black Death epidemic had made barbarism and ignorance the mainstream, nearly dragging the entire kingdom back to a primitive society.
It was under such conditions that the continuity of civilization was severed, even for supernatural forces.
It wasn’t until the technological revolution that the kingdom and the world were saved, but some things had already been completely lost to history.
“Perhaps this item could serve as a good bait?”
Wu Ming weighed the music box in his hand.
Although supernatural forces in this world seemed somewhat weak, barely able to resist national authority, there were still remnants.
The lingering resentment and spiritual energy on this music box would be as obvious to them as a torch in the dark.
If properly arranged, it might lure something out.
“I wonder if the Kingdom of Golden Oak has any preparations for such things…”
The nation must certainly have records of supernatural existences. Whether they had established specialized agencies to deal with them was another issue Wu Ming had to consider.
Otherwise, instead of attracting supernatural beings, he might end up drawing the Kingdom’s attention to himself, which he definitely didn’t want. He had no desire to live under surveillance or be captured and experimented on like a lab rat.
…
“Hey, Neville, how’s your sister doing?”
A few days later, Wu Ming found Neville.
“Much better!”
Neville’s face lit up with joy: “Ever since you took that cursed box away, my sister has finally been able to sleep well, and her mental state is recovering…”
“Good!”
Wu Ming casually tossed something into Neville’s hands.
“What is this… ah?”
Neville fumbled to catch it, but when he realized it was the mysterious music box, he nearly dropped it in shock.
“Don’t worry, I checked it. It’s just a regular music box…”
Wu Ming shrugged: “As for your sister’s situation, I think she was just too stressed. Just a child’s nightmare…”
“But…”
Neville clearly wanted to say more, but suddenly, he looked into Wu Ming’s eyes.
Those sapphire pupils seemed like the ocean itself—deep and unfathomable, with a shadowy depth beneath.
His expression instantly changed, his eyes clouding with confusion, then murmuring unconsciously: “Just a child’s nightmare…”
With Wu Ming’s current level of spiritual energy, he could easily outmatch any hypnotist. This was merely a simple mental suggestion.
After all, spreading such matters around would benefit neither Neville nor himself.
“Alright, go ahead and sell it!”
Wu Ming pointed at the music box in Neville’s hands, a faintly eerie smile on his face.
He had made a few subtle modifications to the box.
Given its unusual nature, some real “collectors” would surely take an interest in it.
“I wonder how many will take the bait?”
Wu Ming felt a slight anticipation, then dismissed the still-dazed Neville and made his way to St. George’s High School.
The high school curriculum was quite relaxed, almost like a university from his past life. Teachers taught in designated classrooms, students brought their own textbooks to lectures, and roll calls were rare.
Moreover, there were only half a day’s worth of classes, with the other half completely free for personal activities.
As long as sufficient credits were earned and the final exams passed, one could graduate smoothly. Of course, only after obtaining this diploma did students have the right to apply to various universities for further studies.
According to the current schedule, Wu Ming still needed a small portion of the first-year credits, which he planned to earn through club activities.
“These clubs have a semi-official nature. No wonder the club presidents are key candidates for recommendation lists…”
A blank sheet of paper lay before Wu Ming, filled with random scribbles as he listened to the lecture.
Appearing like a diligent student taking notes, he kept writing while attending class.
But when Verdi leaned over, he was immediately dazzled by the strange symbols on the paper.
“Steven, what are you doing?”
After enduring an entire class, Verdi couldn’t help but ask the moment the teacher left.
“Nothing much, just doodling…”
Wu Ming casually crumpled the paper and tossed it into the trash can.
These were his calculations regarding several difficult points in the “Great Luo Sutra.” After all, to these people from another world, Daoist symbols and true script were even harder to understand than ancient texts. Besides, they were incomplete and didn’t truly activate any energy or power.
“But if there’s a real genius, maybe they could glean something from my drafts… Am I essentially leaking a secret martial arts manual?”
A mysterious smile curved at the corner of Wu Ming’s lips: “I wonder if there will really be such a lucky—or unlucky—person…”
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage