Chapter 147: The Completely Forgotten Wraith

Facing the assault launched by six captains, Zhang Hao was not suppressed at all.

On the contrary, the black-and-white Ghost Domain began, in an incomprehensible and bizarre way, to turn the captains' assault back upon them.

Li Leping, who had direct contact with Zhang Hao, was at that moment invaded in his consciousness.

An incomprehensible memory surfaced from deep within Li Leping's heart and began to replace his existing memories.

"Are you the Soul Summoner of Taiping Ancient Town?"

At that moment, an aged, hoarse voice sounded; as the Soul Summoning Incense was lit, a long‑deceased elder returned in the form of a Wraith.

"Yes, senior, I am the Fourth Generation Soul Summoner of Taiping Ancient Town."

"My friend is currently being attacked by a ghost; please, senior, lend a hand."

He Yiner spoke; although she did not know the elder's identity, her words were very respectful.

"Is it that thing? What a terrifying fellow; how did you get involved with such a ghost?"

The elder, hearing He Yiner's words, looked toward the nearby spot where a supernatural confrontation was unfolding.

Clearly, that colorless, black-and-white Fierce Ghost, which was invading everything around, even the elder felt wary of it.

"If I were alive, I might have confidence to fight that ghost, but now, for me, completely eliminating it is difficult."

Nevertheless, when he saw that ghost, the elder still acted.

They left these relics precisely to aid later generations; now, facing this group of youngsters and such a ghost, he could not possibly let them die here.

"Stop!"

【7】 As the elder spoke, an old, yellowed newspaper fell from the sky.

As the old man spoke, an old, yellowed newspaper fell from the sky.

The newspaper passed through the black-and-white Ghost Domain, heading toward Zhang Hao and covering his face.

The newspaper seemed to possess an extremely terrifying supernatural aura the instant it covered Zhang Hao's face, which was hidden by a Face-Covering Cloth.

Everything around, including the ghost fire shrouded by the black-and-white Ghost Domain, returned to normal.

"You are not Zhang Hao; you are only yourself, Li Leping!"

Then, a second utterance fell, and another newspaper drifted down, covering Li Leping, whose whole body was pallid and half of him already replaced by Funeral Clothes.

After being covered by the newspaper, the Funeral Clothes on Li Leping began to vanish.

And Li Leping's previously slightly frantic expression regained a hint of calm at that moment.

"Thank you, senior."

Li Leping nodded toward the elder, then turned into a wisp and slowly vanished on the spot.

Although the newspaper's supernatural effect was strong and unique, Li Leping's level of invasion was too deep to be easily shaken off.

Therefore, Li Leping chose to actively Restart, forgetting the recent experience and the memory that did not belong to him.

"Senior, there's another over there; could you help Yang Jian?"

He Yiner, seeing Li Leping regain his senses, hurriedly pointed at Yang Jian nearby and shouted to the elder.

Hearing this, the elder looked at Yang Jian, whose body had been completely overtaken by Funeral Clothes, almost becoming a funeral‑clothed ghost.

Perhaps having discovered something, the elder's eyes showed a hint of surprise as he looked at Yang Jian.

"I didn't expect you to have obtained that newspaper."

"In that case, I'll temporarily borrow your body."

The elder's words carried a trace of nostalgia, perhaps recalling the past.

"Senior?" He Yiner was startled by the words.

"Rest assured, I won't do anything bad to him." The elder perhaps sensed He Yiner's worry and spoke softly.

"However, his body has already been so corrupted that even I cannot fully cleanse him in a short time."

"I will now borrow his body for a while; when I leave, the corruption will naturally clear him."

As the elder finished speaking, a red phantom suddenly appeared on Yang Jian's face—a newspaper hidden behind his visage.

The newspaper solidified from the phantom and quickly fully manifested.

The next moment, the 'Yang Jian' whose face had been full of sorrow opened his eyes, but the weary gaze indicated that the person before them might not be Yang Jian.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything to you or your master; first, rest assured I will help your master dispel the supernatural influence, and I will restore his body."

The awakened 'Yang Jian' seemed to sense something; he spoke forward, as if addressing an unseen entity.

"Wu Laogui, I didn't expect you could still come to this era; I thought everything about you had completely vanished in that era."

At this moment, a female voice sounded.

"Zhang Youhong? I also didn't expect you to choose this way to live into this era; it does fit your death‑afraid personality." The elder gave Hong Jie a cold glance.

"Afraid of death? At least I can protect the younger generation, can't I? Unlike you, who left a rotten newspaper to plague the world." Hong Jie retorted, unwilling to be outdone.

The person summoned by the Soul Summoner, called Wu Laogui, seemed at odds with Zhang Youhong; the two exchanged barbs as soon as they met.

"Both of you, stop arguing; there are still enemies now." He Yiner, seeing this, hurriedly tried to mediate.

"Long hair, short insight; I won't argue with you." Wu Laogui snorted coldly, turned his head toward Zhang Hao, his eyes cautious.

"That's still better than you, and I'm now called Hong Jie, not Zhang Youhong."

Hong Jie spoke coldly, let out a sneer, and commanded the wooden puppets behind her to double from eight to sixteen.

At this moment, the newspaper covering Zhang Hao's face had been completely eroded by the black-and-white Ghost Domain; the yellowed paper lost its color, turning to powder that fell to the ground.

"A Republic Era Wraith? It seems closely linked to that newspaper company."

Zhang Hao stared at the current Yang Jian; although he had just been affected by that newspaper, it did not mean he knew nothing.

"By using a portion of Fierce Ghosts related to one's former life, thereby extending one's existence in reality? Not a bad idea."

"Unfortunately for you, you met me."

After assessing Wu Laogui's situation, Zhang Hao acted immediately.

Accompanied by the eerie dark eroding this Square, strips of White Curtain fell from the sky.

A puddle of water appeared at Zhang Hao's feet.

The water spread, instantly covering the entire Square, and Yang Jian, controlled by Wu Laogui, also became drenched.

"Not good, this youngster has a portion of spiritual anomaly stolen by the ghost before us; when the two anomalies touch, his body will be eroded in reverse."

Wu Laogui sensed the abnormality in his body and immediately understood.

Within Yang Jian are four layers of Ghost Lake spiritual anomaly, and now Zhang Hao is contacting him through the Ghost Lake water to erode his body.

But at that moment, Hong Jie acted.

Having already stacked sixteen Wooden Puppets, she just acted, startling the captains.

The cement of the Square was ripped open by underground soil, and crimson, corpse‑smelling Grave Soil surged out, instantly filling the Square.

The lake water covering the Square mingled with the Grave Soil, making the Square slick like a pool of mud.

"Wu Laogui, don't say a single lake of water will render you helpless."

Hong Jie sneered, and with a flick of her fingers, as if pulling invisible strings, the sixteen Wooden Puppets behind her all sprang to life.

Bright yellow, golden terror flame rose at that moment, spreading over the Grave Soil and strangely using it as fuel to advance toward Zhang Hao.

"Is this Li Qingzhi?"

Zhang Hao saw the flame approaching and vanished on the spot.

He knew this flame was the furnace fire deep within Caesar Grand Hotel, capable of igniting any spiritual anomaly, even Ghost Domain.

As the bright yellow furnace fire rose, everything around began to regain color.

The flame ignited the Black and White Ghost Domain's effect on reality without igniting real objects; it only targets spiritual‑related things.

This situation resembles the revived Zhang Dong, which only targets Fierce Ghosts and not living people.

Since it was his first encounter with such furnace fire and the original work gives little about Li Qingzhi, Zhang Hao remains wary of this fire.

According to the Seven Elders, each of them has some method targeting time.

Headless Ghost Shadows and tall male corpses are Li Qingzhi's defenses; this furnace fire must be his offensive method and Ghost Domain.

"If it can ignite all spiritual anomalies, could it also ignite and seal the Restart anomaly?" Zhang Hao thought, already making a decision.

A strange echo resonated in the Ghost Domain, and three White Curtains fell from the sky, each trapping a Li Qingzhi puppet.

The White Curtain carried an incomprehensible spiritual anomaly; the moment it touched a puppet, the puppet lost its mobility.

"Be careful, those White Curtains are infused with the Coffin Nail and Funeral Cloth's spiritual anomaly."

At this moment, Wu Laogui also dispelled the Ghost Lake's erosion of Yang Jian's body; noticing the motionless Wooden Puppets, he warned.

Although he is at odds with Zhang Youhong, he can still discern the magnitude of matters.

Wu Laogui seems to know much; with a brief glance he can quickly provide information, giving everyone an informational edge.

With that informational advantage, one can know how to better deal with the enemy.

For a moment, Hong Jie and Wu Laogui together showed faint signs of suppressing Zhang Hao.

Terrifying knocking sounds kept echoing, and the sixteen Wooden Puppets earlier had risen to twenty‑seven.

"Play infinite stacking with me?"

Zhang Hao looked at Zhang Youhong, his eyes not overly worried.

If there were twenty‑six puppets with original memories, Zhang Hao truly could not cope.

But Zhang Youhong can only summon puppets, which act solely on instinct.

Even if Zhang Youhong personally controls some puppets to attack, it is not weaker than the Seven Elders' own control.

Yet Zhang Youhong is only one person; unless she concentrates fully on a few puppets, she cannot unleash all their spiritual anomalies.

On the muddy Grave Soil, slick lake water kept appearing.

Ghost Lake can form a lake, and now Zhang Hao intends to release Ghost Lake.

After using Ghost Domain to alter the terrain to some extent, Da Dong City's center soon featured a lake stretching hundreds of miles.

On the lake, as the water churned, one male silhouette after another emerged.

These men, upon emerging, each attacked the puppets controlled by Zhang Youhong.

The emergence of Ghost Lake also cut off those captains' assaults.

Once the terrifying lake water contaminates, it can sink the majority of spiritual anomalies into its depths.

Pale‑green Ghost Fire, upon touching Ghost Lake, is drawn to the bottom, leaving only a dim gray glow, adding further eeriness to the lake.

When the silhouette under Han Mo's feet attacked Zhang Hao, the moment it stepped on the lake water it was instantly pulled in, fully sinking.

Ghost wind rose on the lake surface, yet even the seemingly invisible wind, upon touching the water, is drawn into the depths.

Conversely, these cold gusts made Ghost Lake more turbulent, spawning whirlpools on the surface.

The swirling waves could coat anyone at any moment.

As for Liu San, facing this lake, he lacks even the ability to resist.

He has no Ghost Domain and no long‑range attack means.

Before such a lake that can sink all spiritual anomalies, Liu San cannot launch an attack; his Paper Person sinks instantly upon stepping onto the lake.

These Paper Persons are not highly terrifying; they rely on stacking to attack, but once they sink, they quickly lose their spiritual anomaly and cannot stack.

"The dead should rest in peace, not meddle with the present."

Zhang Hao stared at Wu Laogui, swung the skull bone club toward his direction, and a surge of waves rose on the lake, sweeping Wu Laogui and pulling him into the water.

The Black and White Ghost Domain invaded Yang Jian's body again, and white Funeral Clothes appeared on him, supplanting his being.

"The dead should be forgotten, not seek existence."

As the Black and White invaded Yang Jian's body, everyone's perception of Wu Laogui grew increasingly vague.

The Soul Summoning Incense that He Yiner used to summon Wu Laogui was now dissipating at a visibly rapid pace.

Several heirloom items in He Yiner's hands turned black and white, as if invaded by an unknown spiritual anomaly.

Soon, as the Soul Summoning Incense burned out completely, the things in He Yiner's hand turned into powder.

"Who was the Wraith that just helped us?"

At this moment, it seemed everyone had forgotten Wu Laogui's existence; all traces he left in this world had been erased, including every record and memory of him.

Black and White Ghost Domain's horror was fully displayed at this moment.

This is a Supernatural that has a huge impact on Wraiths, because it can cause all things to vanish, erase all traces of the Wraiths, making those Wraiths be forgotten more quickly.

"Want to use the Seven Elders against me? But are you perhaps a bit overconfident?"

Zhang Hao looked at Hong Jie, and although she could replicate and stack the Seven Elders' Supernatural.

But at this moment, it seemed she had already hit her own limit; after stacking the replicated Seven Elders up to sixty‑four, she could no longer continue stacking.

Even though sixty‑four Seven Elders, even if they cannot fully exert Six‑Tenths of the Ghostly Power, are enough to resolve the vast majority of Supernatural Incidents in this world.

But at this time, Hong Jie was facing Zhang Hao, who could already contend with the Seven Elders.

Hong Jie can replicate the Seven Elders, and Zhang Hao can likewise use Ghost Lake to duplicate a clone possessing his own Six‑Tenths of the Ghostly Power.

Compared to Hong Jie's limited stacking, Zhang Hao's stacking is infinite.

"Heh heh heh! As expected, we should have left no room for you from the start, and locked you completely in that room."

"What a pity, that stubborn old Zhang Baihua refused to believe me, allowing a thing like you to grow, and even fully acquire intelligence no less than a human's."

Hong Jie's expression darkened; four incense sticks appeared in her hand, and she quickly lit them.

Then Hong Jie took out a half‑burned incense stick.

Although this incense was only half a stick, for Zhang Youhong it could provide far greater help than the other four incense sticks.

This is the Soul Summoning Incense crafted by the First Generation Soul Summoner.

Both the Ghost Power contained in the incense and its resistance to other Supernaturals are far higher than those of other Soul Summoning Incenses.

"Hey, what's happening? We old men have to go out together."

An aged voice sounded, and several elders stepped out from the smoke of the lit Soul Summoning Incense.

"Zhang Youhong? You were the one who lit it voluntarily? Could there be any danger in this era that even you cannot resolve?"

Luo Wensong had just stepped out, and upon seeing Hong Jie, showed a look of astonishment.

"Indeed, I cannot solve it."

Hong Jie nodded, pointing to Zhang Hao nearby and the hundred‑mile‑long lake beneath his feet.

"This ghost thing has already reached our step, and also possesses the ability of Infinite Derivation."

"Although it still has flaws—the derived entities have only Six‑Tenths of the Ghostly Power of the original—but this situation is precisely the most troublesome for me."

As Zhang Youhong's reincarnation, Hong Jie inherited the Supernatural of Zhang Youhong's Wooden Puppet series, yet did not fully inherit all of her Supernaturals.

Given Zhang Youhong's own strength, she naturally does not fear Zhang Hao's flawed Infinite Derivation.

The problem, however, is that Hong Jie cannot achieve infinite stacking; her stacking, though terrifying, has an upper limit.

This situation is much like Yang Jian forcibly stacking the Ghost Eye; his own terrifying strength cannot bear the usage after the Fierce Ghost techniques were developed.

"I see. If so, it is indeed a bit troublesome."

Luo Wensong nodded, and the moment he did, he had already launched an attack.

The building gates that had sunk into the lake in the city were torn open, and at this moment they eerily floated, drifting continuously on the Lake Surface.

Countless doors appeared, completely sealing off the lake, allowing everyone to move freely on the Lake Surface without falling into the lake water.

"Dong dong dong!"

The terrifying, eerie knocking sounded from behind countless doors, as if someone beneath the water were knocking.

"Hurry and act, we don't have much time."

Meng Xiaodong glanced at the crowd, tossed a Puppet Doll from her hand, and then walked toward the direction where Zhang Hao stood.

As she advanced, she soon vanished from reality, as if stepping into an incomprehensible bizarre realm.

(End of Chapter)