Chapter 60: A Subtle Balance

"Retreat!"

Having confirmed that this place is the spirit hall of Huanggang Village, many people felt their courage waver.

Running away is shameful, but compared to shame, one's own life is more important.

Don't be fooled by the fact that there are only five ghosts in this spirit hall, but don't forget that outside the darkness at least five Ghost Tamers, each capable of controlling two ghosts, have revived.

"Hold off on retreat for now; this spirit hall seems able to block the constantly falling paper money outside," Zhong Shan typed.

"We can no longer hear the crying, and standing at the spirit hall entrance, we can minimize the risk of being attacked by the paper copper coins falling from the sky."

Hearing that, Wang Shuang's eyes lit up.

"Indeed, that's the case, and I wonder if you noticed that the few ghosts wandering outside haven't followed into the vicinity of this spirit hall."

With the situation progressing, many people began to observe.

Earlier, the Ghost Tamers who revived those Fierce Ghosts had been following them, but only because the Ghost Candle hadn't attacked them.

Now those revived Fierce Ghosts are not appearing outside the spirit hall.

Recalling that a Ghostly Servant is an S‑rank Supernatural Incident, the group reached a bold conclusion.

The Red and White Double Evil failed to successfully control the Ghostly Servant; this spirit hall is the result of the Ghostly Servant's clash with the Red and White Double Evil.

Outside the spirit hall, paper money drifts everywhere, indicating that the outside is almost entirely under the Red and White Double Evil's control.

Inside the spirit hall, aside from the Ghost Bride representing the Red Evil, the mourners inside are actually Fierce Ghosts seized by the Ghostly Servant, not the White Evil.

The Red and White Double Evil's ghosts, controlled via Ghost Summoning, cannot approach this area.

The area near the spirit hall resembles a blank zone created by the clash between the Ghostly Servant and the Red and White Double Evil.

The ghosts inside the spirit hall won't attack here, nor will the Fierce Ghosts outside the spirit hall.

The Red and White Double Evil and the Ghostly Servant now form a subtle Balance; although it's unknown how long this Balance will last, as long as the Balance remains unbroken, they are safe as long as they stay within this area.

"Finally, we can catch our breath."

Wang Miao glanced at the coffin inside the spirit hall, feeling gratitude toward a ghost for the first time in his life.

However, before his eyes could leave the coffin, his complexion changed instantly.

Because the Ghost Tamer whose neck was just twisted is now twitching continuously, seeming about to Ghost's Standing Up soon.

Seeing this, Wang Miao hurriedly patted the people beside him.

"What's happening?" Jiang Shangbai frowned, looking toward the direction Wang Miao indicated.

When he saw the constantly twitching corpse, his expression also changed sharply.

"Damn, that ghost has revived; it will break the Balance inside the spirit hall."

Although he doesn't know how the Balance was formed, Jiang Shangbai knows that once this ghost revives—

whether it's controlled by the Red and White Double Evil via Ghost Summoning or seized by the Ghostly Servant, it will become the fuse that makes the spirit hall go out of control.

"No, that's not right; it hasn't revived. Don't act recklessly."

Zhong Shan carefully watched the constantly twitching corpse.

The corpse's limbs twitched intermittently, as if trying to stand up, yet it could never truly stand up.

This ghost was killed inside the spirit hall; both the Ghostly Servant and the Red and White Double Evil are vying for control of it, and the twitching corpse manifests their contest.

The Red and White Double Evil seeks to Ghost Summon and control this ghost, while the Ghostly Servant aims to seize and suppress this ghost.

"Coincidentally, there happen to be exactly five ghosts in the spirit hall wearing mourning clothes."

Someone looked at the inside of the spirit hall and suddenly frowned, saying.

"And the Ghost Bride's wedding dress, veil, embroidered shoes, plus that Ghost Wine and Ghost Spirit Tablet also make exactly five ghosts." "No, that's not right; don't forget the Ghostly Servant itself—according to intel, the Ghostly Servant's actual Suppression Quota is six," Jiang Shangbai shook his head.

"So, does that mean the Ghost Bride in the spirit hall actually counts as four Suppression Quotas?" Zhong Shan asked, puzzled.

"Perhaps, or perhaps somewhere unknown to us, another ghost is still hidden."

Jiang Shangbai mused, "For example, the current location of the White Evil, or whatever else."

While they were discussing the current situation, a sudden anomaly erupted.

A strip of white cloth appeared from nowhere, charging straight at Zhong Shan.

"Again? Didn't they say this place wouldn't be attacked?"

Zhong Shan's face darkened, and he hurriedly used the Ghost Lantern's supernatural ignition to set the white cloth ablaze.

Fortunately, like the earlier straw rope, this white cloth wasn't a real Fierce Ghost; once ignited, it quickly lost its supernatural nature.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Zhang Hao watched Jiang Shangbai and the others outside the spirit hall, frowning.

The current situation indeed matches the conclusion Jiang Shangbai and the others drew; he is locked in a stalemate with the Ghostly Servant.

The Ghost Spirit Tablet's corrosive effect on the Ghostly Servant isn't as strong as Zhang Hao imagined.

In the original work, the Ghost Spirit Tablet successfully controlled Wei Jing and Yang Jian, but Zhang Hao overlooked something.

Wei Jing is Wei Jing, and the Ghostly Servant is the Ghostly Servant.

The disparity between them, whether in power or strangeness, is vast.

Although Wei Jing possesses the Ghostly Servant's solitary, certain death supernatural power, Wei Jing cannot achieve Infinite Restart like the Ghostly Servant.

In other words, Wei Jing is merely a fragment equivalent to the Ghostly Servant, not the Ghostly Servant itself.

The Ghostly Servant's Restart Ability works by discarding its original body and identity to restart.

Once Wei Jing restarts, the revived individual cannot be certain whether it is Wei Jing or the Ghostly Servant.

Thus, when confronting the Ghost Spirit Tablet's corrosion, Wei Jing cannot resist via Restart.

Now Zhang Hao is battling the Ghostly Servant itself; attempting to corrupt the Ghostly Servant inside a Ghost Spirit Tablet simply cannot succeed.

If the Ghostly Servant becomes corrupted by the Ghost Spirit Tablet, or is subjected to Ghost Summoning, it will immediately employ its Restart Ability.

With continuous Restarts, Zhang Hao cannot truly affect the Ghostly Servant inside the Ghost Coffin.

The spirit hall exists because of this, and it counts as the Ghostly Servant's final resistance.

Now Zhang Hao can only suppress the Ghostly Servant and its Ghost Domain by kneeling and performing the Mourning technique, confining it within the Ghost Coffin, but he cannot truly suppress the Ghostly Servant inside the Coffin.

In fact, Zhang Hao's confrontation with the Ghostly Servant is the same as the situation of darkness outside.

The darkness beyond the spirit hall has largely been eroded by Zhang Hao's paranormal incursion, but this spirit hall alone remains beyond Zhang Hao's control.

He can only offset the other Suppression Quotas on the Ghostly Servant.

The Dry Corpse Bride carries three and a half quotas, the Ghost Spirit Tablet has half a Suppression Quota, the Alcoholic Ghost has one quota, and together they exactly offset the number of Fierce Ghosts wearing mourning outside.

Zhang Hao himself continuously erodes the Ghostly Servant, but unfortunately, no matter what, he can never affect the true Ghostly Servant.

Infinite Restart is far too unsolvable.

Moreover, neither Zhang Hao nor the Ghostly Servant is a Fierce Ghost in the traditional sense.

Zhang Hao possesses a living person's memories; the Ghostly Servant, though with fewer memories, also retains part of Wei Jing's memories, enough for simple reasoning.

In this situation, even if the two sides could complement each other like Puzzle pieces, neither is willing to be the side driven by the other.

(End of Chapter)