Chapter 97: Fierce Ghost Old Residence, Completing the Corpse‑Wrapping Cloth

Because it is inherently colorless, when Meng Xiaodong invaded to replace Zhang Hao, it could not replace the color on his body and therefore could not truly emerge.

One by one, Meng Xiaodong's phantoms stood near Zhang Hao, trying to attack him, but ultimately could not truly touch him.

The two sides are not in the same dimension; these Meng Xiaodong exist in the past and have not truly arrived in the present.

Yet even so, the Supernatural Incident power on Zhang Hao is heavily suppressed now, and the colorless Black and White Ghost Domain can only circle around Zhang Hao, unable to expand.

"It seems we've reached the limit; since that's the case, let's bury you here."

"Buried in his hand, you haven't lost," a pleasant female voice said.

Accompanying it was a vast, stinking cloud like grave soil soaked with blood, pouring over Zhang Hao as if to bury him underground.

"You think you can solve me so easily?"

Zhang Hao stared at the scene without panic.

Luo Qian, though possessing the ability to bury everything and prevent Fierce Ghosts from restarting,

Zhang Hao knows, however, that it has a prerequisite.

A Fierce Ghost must be buried in grave soil to be unable to restart.

Just as the grave soil was about to bury Zhang Hao, his body suddenly vanished on the spot.

He restarted himself, but this restart is not like Yang Jian's, which resets his own time to revert his body to a previous state.

Zhang Hao's restart placed him beside the Ghost Bride.

That's why Zhang Hao had the Ghost Bride first hide inside the Ghost Painting world.

As long as the bride remains, he can restart without limit through her.

However, unlike before when he needed to restart after being confined, facing Luo Qian, Zhang Hao must restart beforehand, before the grave soil can bury him.

Without a target, Luo Qian's burial naturally fails.

And the Ghost Bride evidently will not restart voluntarily, so Zhang Hao let her hide first.

"Did you dodge?"

Zhang Youhong looked somewhat surprised at the pile of grave soil stacked on the ground.

Generally, Luo Qian's burial never fails, because a Fierce Ghost that cannot restart cannot evade it.

For a Fierce Ghost that can restart, restarting himself in front of Luo Qian is useless, and the restart time cannot affect Luo Qian's grave soil.

That grave soil can bury the present and cannot be affected by past or future time.

"Indeed, a clever ghost, even if its level is low, is still a big trouble to deal with."

Zhang Youhong looked toward the portrait in the corner of the Red Room, intending to enter the Ghost Painting world there to restrain Zhang Hao and the Ghost Bride.

However, at that moment,

"Bang!"

A coffin suddenly appeared in the room, and four Fierce Ghosts dressed in Funeral Clothes lifted it and slammed it into Zhang Youhong.

Zhang Youhong was knocked airborne and slammed heavily against the wall.

"Cough cough cough!"

This blow seemed to cause Zhang Youhong considerable injury.

But that's normal; now Zhang Youhong is merely a single incense stick of a Supernatural Incident.

The Ghostly Servant's Mindless Suppression ability may not suppress Zhang Youhong, but Liu Qingqing might be different.

Under this collision, Liu Qingqing's body took a huge blow, and the Red Cheongsam she wore and her high heels no longer looked so vivid.

If not for Zhang Youhong's incense, Liu Qingqing, even though she commanded several ghosts, would have died from this collision.

Zhang Youhong rose slowly, but at that moment, an anomaly suddenly erupted.

The scarlet wall seemed to come alive, clinging tightly to Zhang Youhong's body.

Those walls began to writhe, and the concrete started seeping into the gaps of Zhang Youhong's wooden body.

"So this thing finally makes a move?"

Zhang Hao watched the scene and let out a sigh of relief.

He dares to fight Zhang Youhong here, so he isn't completely lacking confidence.

The Red Room has already made a deal with Zhang Hao, and now the Ghost Bride is entangled with the Red Room.

Moreover, with Liu Qingqing's Cheongsam, under these circumstances, the Red Room's intervention is inevitable.

However, at that moment, the wooden puppets that Zhang Youhong had summoned earlier began to move.

Two of the puppets representing Luo Wensong hurried to the doorway of the Red Room and began knocking on the blood‑red door.

"Dong! Dong dong!"

The terrifying knocking echoed through the Ghost's Zhang Dong's Ghost Residence's Interior; this time there was no burial by the Red Room, and everyone heard the sound.

"Is this the Knocking Ghost's knock?"

Yang Jian, who had just returned to the coffin, turned pale upon hearing the sound.

Why does the Knocking Ghost's knock appear everywhere? The first time I encountered a Supernatural Incident was a Knocking Ghost, and later at the Ghost Post Office I met an Opening Ghost that made the same knocking sound.

Now this place has another knocking sound—what kind of ghost is it?

Unexplainedly, hearing the knock gave Yang Jian an uneasy feeling.

Although he couldn't see the source, he observed that after the knock sounded, the room, which had begun to lose control, calmed down once more at that moment.

Although this knock wasn't as terrifying as the old man in the coffin, this single knock nevertheless suppressed many Fierce Ghosts.

If the Fierce Ghosts inside the Ghost's Zhang Dong's Ghost Residence's Interior are affected this way, the Red Room, as the target of the knock, is even more so.

The wall, which was about to swallow Liu Qingqing whole, leaving only her feet outside, soon spat out a slick wooden puppet.

"How dare you steal my stuff?"

The wooden puppet stood up and looked toward the Red Room.

The pitch‑black Ghost Shadow spread outward; before long, the originally red wall turned into a pitch‑black appearance.

Li Qingzhi's Ghost Shadow invaded this wall.

The Ghost Shadow's ability is to splice bodies and seize memories, but in Li Qingzhi's hands it is clearly more than that.

For him, a body is merely a concept; even this wall, when faced with Li Qingzhi's Ghost Shadow, becomes part of that concept.

After a short while, a red Cheongsam and a pair of Red High Heels were thrown out by the pitch‑black wall.

Zhang Youhong took the Cheongsam and quickly put it on.

"It really is troublesome."

Wearing the Cheongsam, Zhang Youhong did not attack Zhang Hao this time; she merely cast a wary glance at the red room and then left.

It wasn't that she didn't want to strike Zhang Hao; the main reason was that she couldn't imprison him in this red room.

Her supernatural capacity is limited, and she still has to revive Liu Qingqing to ensure Hong Jie's existence.

Whether it was just now replicating the Seven Elders or the various supernatural abilities used by these people, each is a huge drain for Zhang Youhong.

If she were still at her peak of life, she naturally wouldn't worry about the consumption of these few puppets.

But now she is merely an Incense Stick; whether it's Luo Wensong's attack or Meng Xiaodong's attack, in essence they both consume the supernatural of this Incense Stick.

Watching Zhang Youhong leave the red room, Zhang Hao did not try to stop her.

Although proactively using Restart can indeed avoid Burial, that is only when Zhang Youhong does not continue stacking supernatural.

If Zhang Youhong is forced, you can actively dodge one Luo Qian, barely dodge two Luo Qians, but three or four? Perhaps after the recent Restart, she would have been imprisoned by another.

With Zhang Youhong gone, the room returned to calm.

Only, compared with the previously tidy, like‑new room, the current room is undeniably messy.

The wall, once bathed in scarlet light, is now pitted and has a large hole, resembling a badly damaged old house.

In the room, clumps of grave soil emitting a foul, fishy odor mixed with bloodwater pile up, like graves without headstones.

Zhang Hao walked to the edge of the large hole in the wall; although a big hole is visible, it actually does not damage the red room much.

This thing can be restored after some time.

The real trouble is the grave soil in the room; this soil carries Luo Qian's supernatural, making it hard to clean.

Zhang Hao tried to use Ghost Domain influence, but could not move it, so he could only clear it physically.

However, when Zhang Hao took several iron shovels from the Ghost Painting world to clear the grave piles, the shovels melted as soon as they entered the grave soil.

These iron shovels are products derived from Ghost Paintings; upon contact with the grave soil, they are corroded by its supernatural.

In the current situation, ordinary iron shovels are needed to dig out the grave soil.

Nevertheless, Zhang Hao did not want to waste that time. He immediately summoned a horde of ghosts controlled by Ghost Summoning, letting them use their hands to dig up the soil and throw it outside the room.

The grave soil is indeed terrifying when used for Burial, but when only a source‑less grave soil remains, it is less frightening.

Digging the grave soil from outside, the Fierce Ghosts were not affected in any effective way.

After confirming everything was fine, Zhang Hao summoned the Ghost Bride and tallied the losses of the derived Ghost Paintings.

Last time in Da Dong City, the Ghost Bride derived over ten thousand Ghost Paintings.

However, merely using them for Zhang Youhong consumed about a tenth of that amount.

The recent confrontation between Zhang Hao and Zhang Youhong lasted less than a minute.

It also included the time when Zhang Hao, after Restart, collided with Zhang Youhong again.

With such a short time, losing so many derived Ghost Paintings makes the Seven Elders' Terror Level unimaginable.

"We still have to find a way to complete the Puzzle."

"Mastering Ghost Blood should be put on the schedule, and on my side I must also hurry to complete the Ghostly Servant."

Zhang Hao walked to the doorway, his eyes darting as he contemplated his next plan.

Mastering Ghost Blood is the key to the Ghost Bride's Terror Level transformation.

Completing the Ghostly Servant will give me a spirit hall comparable to the red room; then confronting the Republic Era Seven Elders won't be a hindrance.

Thinking of this, Zhang Hao looked at the Bride.

After establishing a link with the red room, the Ghost Bride's Terror Level rose considerably.

Previously, after Zhang Hao mastered the Black‑White Spirit Tablet and obtained the Ghost Coffin, his Terror Level was already close to the Bride's.

Later, the Ghost Bride consecutively mastered the female corpses inside the Ghost Cabinet, and together with the red room link, widened that gap again.

There's also the Ghost Rice; once it is stained with blood and fed to a Fierce Ghost, the ghost will refrain from attacking the one who fed it for a period.

This can be used to soak Ghost Blood and feed it to other Fierce Ghosts.

As for what will happen, Zhang Hao does not know.

For now, this is merely a consumable and holds little meaning for Zhang Hao.

The reason he wants this bowl of rice is to locate the Source Ghost of the Ghost Rice through it.

"Complete the Ghostly Servant, forge a spirit hall, grave soil, Ghost Blood, and restore the red room."

Having planned all this, Zhang Hao raised his hand; on his left side he wore a jade bracelet.

The jade bracelet comes in a pair, deepening the bond between the wearers so they can sense each other's location.

Zhang Hao and the Ghost Bride each wear a jade bracelet; thereafter, regardless of distance, they can sense each other's presence.

This solves the trouble of Ghost Seeking Kin, which required both parties' perception to Restart.

From now on, as long as they carry this, even if separated by two terrifying Ghost Domains, Zhang Hao and the Ghost Bride can instantly Restart beside each other.

Although, for now, completely isolating the Bride's Ghost Domains is practically impossible.

Zhang Hao slowly walked out of the room and closed the door.

"Bride, let's try: can we now use the derived paintings to enter the red room?" Zhang Hao said to the Ghost Bride beside him.

The Ghost Bride, hearing Zhang Hao, quickly summoned a grayish Ghost Domain that enveloped the two.

In the next moment, Zhang Hao and the ghost bride returned to the red room.

Closing the red‑room door does not block the ghost paintings inside, so later Zhang Dong's revival need not worry about being unable to enter the red room.

Leaving the red room, Zhang Hao led the ghost bride toward the old mansion's main hall.

At this time, Liu Qingqing had already returned to Yang Jian's group, joining Yang Jian and the others to fight those fierce ghosts.

However, while Zhang Hao was clearing the grave soil in the room, the fifth day seemed about to pass.

At this moment, the fierce ghosts in the room were out of control; the old man in the coffin could no longer balance so many fierce ghosts and began attacking Yang Jian and the others.

Seeing the flash of red in the crowd, Zhang Hao's mind briefly entertained killing the opponent, but he quickly gave up.

Better wait until after leaving the old mansion; who knows what methods Zhang Dong and Zhang Youhong left in this mansion? Zhang Hao and the ghost bride's exit was also noticed by Yang Jian and the others, and for a moment the onlookers fell silent.

Fortunately, Zhang Hao had no intention of attacking them here.

Inside the old mansion, he had already taken everything useful to him, so there was no need to stay.

Although Zhang Hao is a ghost who seems immortal and has plenty of time, his enemies keep growing.

Those Republic Era Seven Elders, upon seeing Zhang Hao appear, immediately think of imprisoning him.

At Headquarters, they also treat the Red and White Double Evil represented by Zhang Hao as the number‑one enemy.

Leaving the old mansion, Zhang Hao walked along the winding path toward the highway outside.

Reaching the highway beyond Old Forest, the Spiritual Bus had already returned to normal before anyone noticed, and left this place.

Seeing this, Zhang Hao also had the bride release a Ghost Domain, returning to the Ghost Newspaper Agency.

"Customer, what do you need?"

Zhang Hao and the ghost bride had just appeared inside the agency when a controlled waiter immediately stepped forward.

Zhang Hao ignored the waiter; the Caesar Grand Hotel was just a transfer station for him.

After appearing at the Caesar Grand Hotel, Zhang Hao quickly used the Ghost Domain to turn the tables and invade the chain of hotels spawned by the Caesar Grand Hotel, then left the real Caesar Grand Hotel.

"Tap tap tap!"

However, at that moment, a footstep suddenly halted far from Zhang Hao and the ghost bride.

It was a tall male corpse, its upper half wrapped in an old burial cloth.

"It's Li Qingzhi's corpse."

Zhang Hao stared at the tall male corpse, but his attention was not on the corpse itself, but on the burial cloth.

The burial cloth was supposed to cover the whole body, yet now it only wrapped half of it, and the loosened part left a long trailing strip on the ground.

"This thing is nice; I happen to lack a weapon that can burst instantly right now."

Zhang Hao's current crying can stack terrifyingly, but that takes time.

Kneeling Death, for a weak Ghost Tamer, is an unsolvable terror, yet against some powerful Ghost Tamers it cannot exert sufficient effect.

The Black and White Ghost Domain is similar; it can turn colorless people into portraits, but when facing some resistant fierce ghosts, this invasion is slowed.

These sufficiently strong Ghost Tamers often have fierce ghosts that protect them, capable of resisting or slowing such Certain Death attacks.

Encountering Li Qingzhi's corpse now perfectly fills Zhang Hao's lack of an instant‑burst method.

Although the burial cloth's attack speed is not fast and can be easily broken free, don't forget that Zhang Hao holds a Ghost White Curtain in his hand.

The burial cloth could wrap the tall male corpse left by Li Qingzhi; although after a while the corpse broke free, it still demonstrates the cloth's suppressive power.

Zhang Hao led the ghost bride and immediately employed a ghost‑summoning supernatural artifact, directing the tall male corpse toward them.

He had no intention of clashing with this ghost.

The ghost was terrifying, so Zhang Hao only used the summoning to influence its path, without forcibly controlling it.

Thus, when the tall male corpse passed Zhang Hao, he made no move.

Only after the tall male corpse was some distance away did Zhang Hao reach out and grab the long trailing strip the burial cloth left on the ground.

The moment Zhang Hao seized the burial cloth, the portion that had been wrapped around the corpse instantly loosened and then rolled toward Zhang Hao.

But at that moment, a White Curtain fastened to Zhang Hao's waist shot out, coiling around the burial cloth.

If judged purely by suppressive power, the Ghost White Curtain could not naturally contend with the burial cloth.

But don't forget, the holder of the White Curtain is Zhang Hao.

The White Curtain he tied to his waist now carries part of his supernatural artifact.

In this situation, even though the Ghost White Curtain still cannot match the burial cloth, there is still some basis for resistance.

The two white fabrics wound around each other, constantly extending, entering a state of confrontation.

This was Zhang Hao's first time, while completing the Puzzle, to confront other fierce ghosts himself.

He lost his mobility, emanating a terrifying, chilling aura.

Fortunately, the burial cloth's terror level was ultimately not as high as Zhang Hao's.

In the end, this thing was merely an unrevived supernatural artifact; after some time, Zhang Hao successfully mastered it.

At this point the burial cloth and Ghost White Curtain tangled together, complementing the Puzzle as a White Curtain wrapped around Zhang Hao's waist.

The White Curtain enhanced the burial cloth's flexibility, while the burial cloth boosted the White Curtain's offensiveness.

(End of Chapter)