Chapter Seventy-Two: Before the Great Battle

In Ling City, Fan Tianxing was busy counting the number of people who had come this time. Looking down at the formidable individuals gathered below him, he nodded in satisfaction. “This is the true strength of our Huaxia,” he murmured approvingly.

There were a hundred people in all, every one of them at least of Grade A, with five already having reached the Kaiyuan realm. With such power at his disposal, he felt confident that Tianjing City would fall into his hands.

“By the way, have we heard anything from Tianjing City? With over a hundred of us, surely we won’t have to keep sleeping in tents?” He turned to Ji Ruyan, who stood beside him.

Ji Ruyan shook her head. “Suddenly, there’s been no word from Tianjing City. I don’t know what happened.”

“What about the survivors?” Fan Tianxing pressed.

“There were a few messages before, but then those stopped too. The last thing we heard was that the strange creatures of Tianjing City were frantically searching for human survivors. I reckon they’ve been found.”

Fan Tianxing nodded, already forming a theory in his mind. It seemed the strange creatures had unexpectedly taken action and wiped out both groups.

Yet he showed little emotion over it. They were insignificant to the bigger picture—dead or alive, it made little difference.

“In that case, let’s move out. Reclaiming Tianjing City is an important step in my plan.” Fan Tianxing rolled his neck, his tone as nonchalant as ever, though his words carried unmistakable authority.

He looked around at everyone. “Does anyone object?”

My goodness, who would dare object now? Anyone who did would have been buried with weeds growing two meters high over their grave.

Seeing the group fall silent, Fan Tianxing was thoroughly satisfied. “Very well! Then let’s depart!”

He had already made up his mind. Sleeping in tents for now was nothing—before long, Tianjing City would be theirs.

...

Inside a survivor shelter in Tianjing City, a group of people huddled together, trembling with fear.

“Old Zhao just went up to look for something to eat and got caught by that bat with the exceptional hearing. Just like that, he’s gone...” said a man, his face etched with unwillingness. Though he didn’t finish his sentence, everyone knew what he meant—Old Zhao likely wouldn’t make it.

“Do you think... he’ll give us away?” A woman’s voice trembled with fear. After all, the strange creatures had gotten smarter; if they had learned to interrogate, and Old Zhao revealed the shelter’s location, the consequences would be dire.

“How could that be possible? They’re just a bunch of monsters, after all. Sure, they’ve gone mad recently, but interrogation? That’s not something they’re capable of.”

A young boy waved his hand dismissively as he spoke, more to reassure himself than the others. Humans are curious creatures; they easily believe what they wish to believe, and refuse to accept what they don’t. Even though every one of them knew, deep down, that the monsters might indeed torture Old Zhao, they still chose to deceive themselves.

Because, apart from this place, they had nowhere else left to go.

Meanwhile, not far from the shelter, Old Zhao lay on the ground, coughing up blood. Hovering nearby was a bat, a doll, and a few of the doll’s minions.

The doll, of course, was Feng Tianlin. He glanced at Chimei. “He’s in this state—are you sure you can do it?”

Chimei snorted disdainfully. “My Yin-Yang Breath consists of Yin Soul Breath and Yang Soul Breath. The Yin Soul Breath can control vengeful ghosts, while the Yang Soul Breath can forcibly extract a human soul—as long as he’s not fully dead, it’ll work.”

Feng Tianlin nodded. “Well then, what are you waiting for? Show us what you can do.”

Everyone perked up, waiting expectantly.

Chimei floated above Old Zhao and exhaled a peculiar energy from his mouth, which seeped into Old Zhao’s body, slowly drawing his soul out.

In no time, a ghost identical to Old Zhao appeared, looking dazed at first. When he saw Feng Tianlin and the others, his first instinct was to flee, but Chimei held him firmly in place—escape was impossible.

“What do you want from me?” Old Zhao stammered.

Feng Tianlin smiled. “Relax. What could we possibly do to a vengeful ghost? You’re one of us now—no, one of our own strange creatures.”

Hearing this, Old Zhao’s heart sank. He looked down at himself and shrieked in horror. “What happened to me? Why am I like this?”

His body had become semi-transparent, floating in midair—what else could he be but a ghost?

“As I said, you’re a vengeful ghost now. Welcome to the lovely family of strange creatures.”

Old Zhao’s eyes were wide with disbelief. He shook his head furiously. “No, this can’t be happening! Let me go!” He struggled desperately.

“Ah, why must you refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit?”

Since his opponent was now a soul, Feng Tianlin’s Soul Interrogation skill was the perfect fit. He wasted no more words, walked over, and activated the skill.

This time, he clearly saw how the skill worked—a black flame burned incessantly, causing no harm to the soul’s essence but torturing it all the same.

Within seconds, Old Zhao could bear it no longer. “Boss Doll, I was wrong! I’ll do whatever you want!”

Feng Tianlin narrowed his eyes. “Anything?”

“Now that I’m a strange creature too, I’ll stick with you. What can’t I do at this point?” Old Zhao seemed to have given up struggling.

“Good. Then tell me where your last shelter was.”

Feng Tianlin’s voice was gentle and tempting.

“What shelter? I’ve always been on my own.”

“What!” Feng Tianlin’s voice turned harsh and angry. “Do you want to try that pain again?”

The threat made Old Zhao lose his nerve entirely—this time, with no hesitation, he betrayed his companions. “Our shelter’s in the basement of the bank at 16 Beilong Road.”

Feng Tianlin nodded, then turned to Chimei. “He’s useless now. Absorb him.”

Chimei nodded back and, in an instant, drew Old Zhao’s soul into himself. He licked his lips. “This soul tastes surprisingly good.”

Such was the upgraded effect of the Yin Soul Breath. Before, it could only control; now, it could directly absorb, serving as nourishment for the vengeful ghosts under his command.

As for Old Zhao, he wasn’t truly a strange creature—just a soul stripped from its body.

Wasting no words, Feng Tianlin turned to Long Mengting. “Bring me the map.”

Long Mengting quickly complied, spreading the map out before him and muttering under her breath, “Guess I’ve earned another half hour of phone time today.”

Feng Tianlin was speechless. Ever since Long Mengting had awakened her intelligence, she’d become addicted to the internet. Upon arriving in Tianjing City and discovering there was no network, she’d nearly flipped out, searching everywhere for a signal.

She eventually found a very tall building with a faint signal. However, Feng Tianlin now required everyone to absorb terror and increase their strength daily—if she spent all her time on her phone, how could she improve?

He had no choice but to limit her phone use, and she’d even tried to bargain, claiming she should get more time if she helped him.

What could Feng Tianlin say? He could only agree. At least she sometimes managed to pick up valuable information online.