Chapter 84: Causal Cycle

This time, the Five Thunder Spell had no diffusion effect.

But five bolts of lightning descended in sequence, each striking Xu Ming’s head with perfect accuracy, forcibly halting his charge.

Now, Xu Ming’s face was no longer charred.

It was truly burned.

Without a leader, the Body-Stealing Wraiths dared not act rashly.

If they were still mere malevolent spirits driven by desire, a mass rush would have surely killed Wu Xian.

But now, wearing human skins and possessing intelligence, they knew Wu Xian was at his last breath—yet if a few Body-Stealing Wraiths sacrificed themselves, they could feast on his flesh and blood.

The supreme Body-Stealing Wraith, standing atop the hierarchy of evil spirits, let out a piercing, human-like scream.

But none of the Body-Stealing Wraiths wanted to be the one to sacrifice themselves.

Leader, delicious!

Although Xu Ming’s body housed a wraith, it was still a genuine living human form—its fresh, vital flesh stirred their taste buds and awakened their ferocity.

Ahead lay a transparent barrier; beyond it was the scene Wu Xian recognized—the Thirty-Three Layers of Discontented Heaven.

The restless Body-Stealing Wraiths fell silent once more.

…

Wu Xian was startled at first, then realized a large black dog had darted out.

Suddenly, they smelled a sweet fragrance—coming from…

The insatiable Body-Stealing Wraiths immediately erupted into bloody infighting.

The Great Gate opened a narrow crack outward, forming a small triangular space between the gate and the barrier to the Thirty-Three Layers of Discontented Heaven—this dog had been lying there all along.

The Body-Stealing Wraiths stirred restlessly.

Wu Xian walked calmly, without incident, to the gap in the gate.

While the Body-Stealing Wraiths were locked in chaotic battle.

Hidden in darkness, active in rural fields, slashing with knife in hand, heads rolling—this was the infamous midnight legend.

Only when the flag’s command finally faded did the Head-Cutter Wraith regain freedom; he stared at the chaos before him, his hands itching again.

So they turned their gaze once more to the high-ranking wraiths who had feasted with Xu Ming—all of them were stained with the spray created by Jia.

“Wait, get away from me, get… ah, ah!!”

The Body-Stealing Wraiths scattered in a burst, leaving only a pool of blood on the ground.

After Wu Xian left.

The burly Head-Cutter Wraith stood in shadow, lost in thought, occasional black lightning flickering over his body—the friendly lightning had permanently altered his ghostly form, transforming his power in mysterious ways.

The Body-Stealing Wraiths’ eyes blazed with malice; like locusts, they devoured every corpse Wu Xian had slain—but even those charred remains failed to satisfy their hunger.

The Head-Cutter Wraith had once been an ordinary pig slaughterer.

Once Wu Xian realized he was safe, he no longer rushed to leave; he turned back, gazing at the scattered Wraith-Scent, his eyes burning with desire.

Suddenly, a dark shadow flashed by.

Since you’re here, why not take some local specialty back?

So, before the eyes of hundreds of Body-Stealing Wraiths, he stepped out of the gap again and picked up the Wraith-Scent.

It’s because they can’t!

Then…

“What are you all standing around for, useless? Go—”

“What are you doing? Look who I am! Do you want to die?”

His blood, flesh, bones—even his colon—were slowly devoured…

After being cheated by a barber, he flew into a rage and slaughtered the barber’s entire family with his pig-killing knife; even then, his fury hadn’t subsided, and after death, he became the Head-Cutter Wraith who severed heads.

They dared not attack Wu Xian, but their desires remained unfulfilled—they now craved something to eat.

Wu Xian raised his hand again.

So, can we eat the leader?

The horde of Body-Stealing Wraiths turned as one, staring at Xu Ming with eerie smiles, then lunged at the unconscious man, opening their bloody maws and tearing flesh from his body.

But like the humans he had once devoured, no matter how Xu Ming screamed or howled, the Body-Stealing Wraiths felt no pity—instead, it only heightened their appetite.

“So delicious!”

Human historical experience applies equally to malevolent spirits pretending to be human—when a group has no external enemy, it turns to internal conflict…

Wu Xian looked back at the corpses of the Body-Stealing Wraiths and noticed that only those within one meter of the gate gap bore traces of their bodies; given how crowded it had been, the Body-Stealing Wraiths had not approached the gate—not because they didn’t want to, or couldn’t dare…

After returning to the Blessed Land, there were only three chances to worship; extra Wraith-Scent couldn’t be stored anyway.

Five bolts of thunder descended!

After that, the Head-Cutter Wraith remembered nothing.

Wu Xian took a quick look and understood at once.

He only remembered seeing something terrifying, then falling into unconsciousness; when he woke, he found himself inside a flag, endlessly cycling with a human.

But the Head-Cutter Wraith wanted a hairless human head, so he fixated on that man’s head.

Xu Ming was blasted backward, his legs twitching violently—he was knocked unconscious outright.

Moments later.

Xu Ming watched Wu Xian casually picking up the items, and fury boiled within him.

“How did this dog appear out of nowhere?”

“Still hungry, want more—where’s the meat left?”

Its glossy black eyes stared pleadingly at Wu Xian, its tail wagging like a propeller, mouth open panting, head slightly swaying—as if urging Wu Xian to follow it into the gate.

Someone once came with a candle and asked him: Do you want to wear a human skin?

The Body-Stealing Wraiths who had devoured the leader’s flesh stood in place, licking meat scraps from between their teeth, savoring the taste.

Ordinary Wraith-Scent was not worth taking.

But did the Body-Stealing Wraiths just let it lie there, ignoring it?

Probably…

Xu Ming jolted awake from searing pain, roaring in fury.

Xu Ming!

The leader is delicious, the leader is unconscious—so…

Wu Xian selected four silver Wraith-Scent, then stood up satisfied, strolling back to the gap—no Body-Stealing Wraith dared to stop him.

…

At least he outlived most humans—until half his body was devoured and all his organs shattered, he finally lost consciousness.

Wu Xian hesitated briefly.

But the Body-Stealing Wraiths’ vigorous vitality did have its advantages.

Most of the Body-Stealing Wraiths who died here were useless, and corpses blocked the way—so Wu Xian picked up the Wraith-Scent slowly.

“Kill!”

“Kill!”

He took the dog’s paw and stepped into the Thirty-Three Layers of Discontented Heaven.

But the Head-Cutter Wraith did not charge—he vanished into the darkness, never to be seen again.

The warring Body-Stealing Wraiths, lost in the ecstasy of drinking their own kind’s blood, failed to notice that from time to time, a human head rolled through the crowd.

(End of Chapter)