In a corner of a dead-end alley near the airport, a frail, dying homeless man was crouched beside a little girl. She looked adorable, but she was tugging at the man’s ragged cloth bag, asking, “You’re about to die anyway. Give me the last valuable thing you have, won’t you?”
“No, no, no…”
Inside the cloth bag were the man’s clothes and photos of his family from before. Those photos were the only spiritual support keeping him alive. He would never give them away, even at the cost of his life.
Seeing that the homeless man refused to let go of the bag, the little girl’s face suddenly turned pale like paper, completely drained of color. Her eyes turned blood-red, and she hissed, “I don’t want to kill you, but if you don’t give me something right now, I promise I’ll erase you completely—your soul won’t leave even a speck of residue.”
“Here… take this…”
The man pulled out a crumpled 50-cent coin from the bag. This was his only possession.
“I don’t want money. I only want the thing you cherish the most—the photos.”
The little girl edged closer to the homeless man.
He weakly struggled and backed away, because he saw blood-dripping fangs in her mouth. She was like a demon wearing human skin!
“I’ll give you one last chance. If you don’t give me those photos…”
“No! Even if I die, I won’t give them to you!”
The girl’s words were interrupted by the homeless man, whose eyes brimmed with tears. He tightly clutched the bag to his chest, refusing to let go.
In fact, the man was only in his forties. He had become a drifter because of illness and poverty, unwilling to return home. Now his condition had worsened, and he was nearing death. Encountering such a demon at the end of his life was unbearably frustrating. He had endured years of hardship and pain without shedding a tear, but today, for the sake of his family’s photos, the tears finally flowed.
“Then go to hell!”
Suddenly, the little girl transformed into a terrifying demon, baring her blood-red fangs and lunging at the man’s neck!
“Wait…”
Shui Miao rushed into the alley, panting.
Shui Miao’s voice had been amplified using immortal energy. The evil spirit felt a sudden jolt in her soul and quickly transformed back into the little girl. She stood up and turned toward Shui Miao, asking, “Are you talking to me?”
“Yes. How about we have a chat?” Shui Miao approached the girl, catching his breath. “I know you’re a vengeful ghost. I want to make a deal with you—take my life instead of his. What do you say?”
“Why?” The vengeful spirit was puzzled.
Shui Miao squatted down. “No reason. I just want to be a good person. This man has had a hard life. If I can help him, why wouldn’t I? Enough talk. Bite me. Kill me if you must!”
Shui Miao stretched out his neck, offering himself to the vengeful spirit.
“You think I won’t bite you?” The girl transformed into the terrifying demon again.
Shui Miao waved his hands frantically. “I’m serious—I want to die. Please, bite me. Hurry up. I’m a cultivator. My soul is much more nourishing than his.”
The vengeful spirit had encountered many dying people, and nearly all of them feared death. But today was an exception—someone was actually begging to die. She didn’t bite Shui Miao. Instead, she turned back into the little girl, smiled, and said, “You want me to kill you, but I won’t. I’m a vengeful spirit with personality. I won’t listen to you. I won’t bite him either.”
“Why? Don’t you like biting people?”
Shui Miao sat on the ground, scratching his head, curiously engaging the vengeful spirit in conversation.
The girl rested her chin on her hand and smiled. “Can’t I suddenly find biting people boring? I’ve devoured so many souls, and I’m getting tired of it. Continuing like this isn’t sustainable. Also, do you know why I ask them for things?”
“I’m all ears.”
Shui Miao smiled faintly, feeling that this vengeful spirit girl wasn’t too bad after all.
“Big brother, you’re really interesting. I suddenly like you a bit,” the vengeful spirit said without hesitation, sitting in front of Shui Miao. She sighed calmly and continued, “I was an abandoned baby, adopted by a homeless man. When I was six, the mother who raised me died of illness. I was dirty, smelly, and had a contagious disease. I begged passersby for food, but no one dared to come near me because of my illness. One night, a few rabid dogs came and tore me apart… Tell me, can you blame me for being so resentful? But today, I met you, and I know there are still good people in this world. You’re willing to exchange your life for a stranger. Big brother, you must be a living Bodhisattva reincarnated!”
“Uh…”
Shui Miao was stunned. He suddenly felt ashamed. He wasn’t the selfless living Buddha or a good person. His real intention was to let her bite him, then use the Five Dao Stone Tablet Formation to counterattack and kill her! But things didn’t go as planned—he had actually softened the vengeful spirit’s heart!
It was unexpected. Too unexpected!
“Big brother, don’t you believe me?” The vengeful spirit smiled. “Hehe, it’s normal if you don’t. There are many things you don’t know about me. In fact, when I take people’s souls and devour them, I’m actually helping them. Remember when I became a ghost after death, I saw a child just like me, suffering terribly from illness. Then I helped him.”
“What? What do you mean? Are you saying killing people is helping them escape their suffering? Then why do you devour their souls?” Shui Miao frowned. If the vengeful spirit could provide a reasonable explanation, she shouldn’t be killed.
“Exactly! Instead of watching them suffer and wait for death, isn’t it better to help them die quickly? As for the souls I devour, they’re all evil souls. I let the good souls go. Those evil people committed countless wrongdoings. Isn’t it justified for me to devour their souls?” The vengeful spirit pouted. “Like this man behind me—he was clinging to his family memories. If I take the photos from him, I’m helping him let go. After death, he won’t suffer anymore. He can peacefully reincarnate, right?”
“Bravo!”
Shui Miao slapped his thigh and stood up, casually tossing a Yin Holy Spirit to the vengeful spirit. “From now on, follow me. I’ll give you these to eat, and stop devouring souls. Oh, and I’m Shui Miao. What’s your name?”
“The mother who rescued me called me Wild Grass, saying that wild grass has the strongest vitality. It can’t be burned away by wildfire. When spring comes, it grows again.” The vengeful spirit didn’t recognize the Holy Yuan Spirit. After putting it in her mouth, she jumped up excitedly. “What a wonderful treasure! Big brother, you’re the second person who’s ever given me something to eat. From now on, I’ll follow you.”
“Haha! Great!”
Shui Miao laughed joyfully, not expecting the vengeful spirit to be so adorable.
“Lord Yang Cha, this seems against the rules,” the female ghost officer Shui suddenly revealed herself.
The vengeful spirit was startled. “Wow! Who are you? Where did you come from? How come I didn’t notice you?”
The female ghost officer Shui looked at the vengeful spirit and answered, “I’m a ghost officer born from Yin Holy Spirits. I can hide invisibly, so of course you couldn’t detect me.”
This female ghost officer was indeed naive. She answered every question without hesitation!
“Shui, when others ask you questions, you don’t have to answer. I’ll teach you how to speak differently to different people. But Wild Grass is an exception. She’s actually kind-hearted and a good ghost,” Shui Miao scratched his head, quickly thinking, then added, “Shui, I know it’s against the rules to spare a vengeful spirit, but you must remember that rules are rigid while people are flexible. Some things must be handled according to specific circumstances. I trust Wild Grass. Once she understands more about life, she’ll be like a butcher who attains Buddhahood the moment he lays down his knife.”
“Big brother, you understand me so well!!”
Wild Grass hugged Shui Miao’s leg happily, just like she used to hug her mother, feeling waves of warmth in her heart.
Witnessing this scene, the female ghost officer Shui remained silent. A strange feeling began to grow inside her—warm, comfortable, and blissful.
“Hehe, okay Wild Grass, let me help this homeless man now!”
Shui Miao patted the vengeful spirit’s head and walked toward the homeless man.
However, the female ghost officer hurriedly stopped him. “Lord Yang Cha, this man committed grave sins in his past life. His current suffering is karmic retribution. If you use your immortal energy to save him, it’s a waste of power. Heaven’s decree cannot be defied. Even the gods of the underworld cannot alter fate.”
The female ghost officer Shui had undergone sixteen years of training in Fengdu. She didn’t know much about the human world but was thoroughly familiar with the underworld.
“Can’t we defy fate?”
Shui Miao frowned at the female ghost officer, then turned to look at the dying homeless man and shook his head. “If he had sins in his past life, he should have paid for them in this life. Now that I can help him, I will. I also want to see if fate can truly be changed!”
After saying this, Shui Miao approached the homeless man, placed his hand on the man’s crown, and channeled a surge of immortal energy into his body…
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