Chapter Fifty-Five: Capturing the Azure Essence

We couldn't just stand by; we had to find a way to help!

I whispered urgently to the man in the long trench coat, “Save him!”

“What’s the rush? Wait a bit longer,” he replied.

Another dull thud echoed. Second Master Wei was coughing uncontrollably. That young man was fast, but as Xiao Qingwan had said, he was powerless against these things. If we waited any longer, something might go wrong! Huang Yunlei’s injustice still needed him to clear her name!

Without hesitation, I acted. In the darkness, I suddenly reached out and twisted the man beside me hard.

“Ah—!” he shrieked like a slaughtered pig, “Why did you pinch me?!”

Second Master Wei’s scrambling noises ceased. The sudden outcry had indeed drawn the creature’s attention.

A fierce sound of sand and stones swept toward us. The man in the trench coat sprang to his feet and, with powerful force, kicked me squarely in the chest, sending me flying two meters and collapsing painfully onto the ground. I clutched my battered chest, grimacing in agony, unable to utter a sound.

Damn it! This guy’s sense of vengeance was way too strong. All I did was pinch him, and he nearly broke my ribs!

He hadn’t turned on his flashlight, and the darkness was absolute. Sounds echoed all around us as the man in the trench coat began battling the unknown creature. I couldn’t see them, but from the noise, it wasn’t a one-sided chase like Second Master Wei’s—it seemed this man actually had some skill.

The commotion shifted around, covering a wide area, accompanied by the swishing of vines whipping through the air. I carefully retreated into a corner to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

The duel raged on, sounds unceasing. After a while, a beam of flashlight suddenly pierced the gloom. Under its light, vines hung suspended in midair, poised like serpents ready to strike, but there were no other shadows.

The man in the trench coat tossed aside a fistful of vines he’d been gripping, drew a talisman from his coat, and waved it several times, muttering an incantation under his breath. Instantly, the surroundings grew chaotic; the forest rustled, and from within, a swarm of creatures surged forth, their cries mingling with the beating of wings.

I looked up in astonishment. In the flashlight’s limited glow, countless birds flocked from the woods, fierce and overwhelming. What was happening now? Controlling vines wasn’t enough—could that thing also control birds?

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Then I realized it wasn’t the invisible creature commanding the birds. The man in the trench coat wielded the talisman, waving it toward the front. The birds, as if following orders, immediately surged forward. Compared to them, the vines suspended in midair seemed utterly weak, unable to resist. In a flash, the bird army devoured them.

A strange, startled cry sounded out of nowhere. The flock converged on a specific spot, encircling it tightly, forming the outline of a human figure. I couldn’t make sense of what was happening, but whatever the unknown entity was, it must have been trapped inside.

From within the bird swarm came a low, woman’s sobbing. I froze—what was going on? A woman’s cry?

I moved closer to the man in the trench coat and asked, “What is that thing?”

“It’s a Soul Seeker,” he replied.

“Soul Seeker?” What on earth was that?

“A person suffering injustice who, unable to find redress, wanders into the deep mountains, sleeps in graves, feeds on the juices of rotting corpses when hungry or thirsty. After seventy days, if their spirit endures, they transform into a vengeful phantom, invisible but audible—a Soul Seeker.”

In short, it was a ghost. But who was she? What could drive someone to become such a ghost?

Suddenly, the flashlight turned away, revealing Ze Yi, the little ghost, emerging from the undergrowth. I started—having just dealt with one, now another appeared! Well, the man in the trench coat seemed capable; maybe he could handle them both at once.

He made no move, but examined Ze Yi with the flashlight. “Just as described. Looks like you’re the one.”

I looked at him in confusion. Was he here for Ze Yi? Thinking back, the first thing he said to me mentioned “the child.”

Ze Yi gazed nervously at the Soul Seeker surrounded by birds, his gaunt cheeks betraying panic. He let out a strange cry at the man in the trench coat, raising his hand.

The man nimbly sidestepped, apparently dodging something, and pointed the talisman in a direction. Several birds fluttered over, pouncing on something in the darkness. I could just make out unnaturally long claws and a five-inch bow—whatever it was, it looked bizarre.

“So it’s possessed, but the child’s too young; the power is limited,” the man said.

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I looked down. Not far behind the man was a lychee-sized object—a forbidden bundle! He’d dodged it just now. Was it fired by that strange thing the birds attacked?

Ze Yi stood helplessly, his expression finally matching his age. He ran to the Soul Seeker encircled by birds, spreading his arms protectively: “No… don’t hurt my mother!”

I was stunned! His mother was Huang Yunlei! So the invisible Soul Seeker was Huang Yunlei? How could that be? It didn’t make sense—wasn’t Huang Yunlei murdered by Huang Wenyang and the others a year ago? She shouldn’t meet the conditions to become a Soul Seeker! What was going on?

His frail body shielded the human-shaped figure surrounded by birds, watching the man in the trench coat with wary vigilance, not daring to relax for a moment. He was simply a child trying to protect his mother, using his thin body, slender arms, to stand between her and danger.

His gaze turned to me, his protruding eyes filled with deep helplessness and a hint of plea—a plea that had always been there but I’d never noticed.

I was bewildered, recalling earlier moments—whether he pushed me or watched me from the doorway. Stripping away the oddness, if I saw him as an ordinary child, his actions were simply attempts to get my attention, to…

The man in the trench coat raised his hand with the talisman. I hurriedly grabbed it to stop him. “Wait! Please! He might mean no harm!”

He frowned at me.

I turned to Ze Yi and asked, “You’ve always wanted to ask for my help, haven’t you?”

He pressed his lips tightly and nodded.

A mingling of emotions surged within me. It seemed I was only now realizing that this little ghost was just a child—only five or six years old. A child whose mother bore grievances in life, became a ghost in death, and who himself was possessed by a forbidden spirit—a pitiful child.

I didn’t know if being possessed by a forbidden spirit was voluntary, but he was so young and weak that even the possession left him unable to avenge his mother or himself!

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