Guo Fan was a very special necromancer, too, his uniqueness lay in his ability to swap places with the "person" in the spirit tablet photo he held in his hand.
It would be more accurate to say he swapped with a ghost rather than a person.
The old and eerie spirit tablet concealed a real ghost, no one knew where he had found such a terrifying object, nor did anyone understand why he had become a necromancer; they only knew his ability was extremely valuable under certain circumstances.
While holding the spirit tablet and walking forward, Guo Fan, having transformed into a true ghost, could handle almost any dangerous situation.
Because ghosts do not die.
Even when faced with S-class paranormal events, he was completely confident he could survive.
Never underestimate the significance of these three words: to survive.
Even the most skilled necromancers had a high probability of being killed when they were in actual contact with ghosts, thus any ability that could save a life was extremely precious.
Chen Yi, who stood beside him, watched as Guo Fan, now a ghost, walked forward with an especially grave expression.
He just hoped that no accidents would occur during the process, otherwise things would become exceedingly troublesome, and it was quite possible that he himself would die here.
"All that’s needed is to cautiously lead away the ghost that emerged from the ghost painting, there should be no problem, although it’s not far from the ghost inside him awakening, as long as the mission is completed successfully, the headquarters will definitely protect Guo Fan, and using the ghost’s power just once, he should still be able to withstand it," Zong Shan silently thought to himself.
Guo Fan dared to take such risks because he was fighting for a chance to live.
Unlike others, he was a necromancer who had harnessed two ghosts and was close to the phase of a fierce ghost’s revival, so the cost and price of wanting to continue living far exceeded those of someone controlling a single ghost.
Without significant achievements, Professor Wang wouldn’t spend too much resources on Guo Fan.
On the silent street.
The frightening silhouettes of five figures approaching from afar were getting closer and closer.
Guo Fan continued to walk slowly forward, his body cold and dreadful, his person reeking of the stench of decay. His face, slightly different from his own, was tattered and ferocious, and what was most eerie were those dim, dead gray eyes which seemed numb but emitted a strange gleam.
It was as if a person who had long been dead was assessing the world.
If an ordinary person were to make eye contact with such a figure at night, they’d likely be trapped in nightmares for life.
However, using the power of a fierce ghost was not without its costs.
As the ghost continued to move forward, the Guo Fan within the spirit tablet photo was looking increasingly ill, his face not just pale and bloodless, but now also darkening as if about to rot away.
Moreover, scars began to slowly appear on Guo Fan’s face, as though they were brutally clawed by some terrifying entity.
The scars slowly multiplied, but conversely, as the ghost holding the spirit tablet continued to move forward, the scars on his face began to vanish.
The ghost was gradually eroding Guo Fan.
This ability to swap with a ghost also came with a price.
In times when Guo Fan was in good condition, he could release the ghost from the spirit tablet to replace himself when in danger, to withstand other ghosts’ attacks, or even transfer parts of his damaged body to the ghost, thus ensuring he wouldn’t die easily.
But as time passed, Guo Fan discovered that the ghost in the spirit tablet was becoming increasingly similar to himself.
Every time he swapped places with the ghost, the ghost also swapped with him.
Ultimately, Guo Fan could foresee that he would be trapped in the eerie spirit tablet, and the ghost would completely take his place, emerging from it.
"If it weren’t for that attack at the airport last time because of Yang Jian, I wouldn’t be in such bad shape right now," Guo Fan thought coldly while inside the spirit tablet photo, recalling the attack.
That attack was fatal.
The scratch on his face was caused by another ghost.
Though the injury seemed small, its impact was vast, and Guo Fan hadn’t recovered to this day, even the ghost within the spirit tablet was unable to repair it.
Ordinarily, even if he had an arm amputated or his body run over dozens of times by a car, his injuries might immediately heal after one swap with the ghost.
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Indeed.
Only a ghost can deal with another ghost.
A ghost’s attack, however minor the damage, far exceeds the injuries caused by some conventional physical means.
After a brief advancement, those five figures who had emerged from the ghost painting finally came within a very dangerous distance.
Whether it’s Guo Fan or the bystanders Zong Shan and Chen Yi, they could now clearly see the attire, appearance, and even facial expressions of those five figures.
"It’s them."
But when they recognized the somewhat familiar faces, all three were taken aback for a moment.
They had previously assumed that the figures emerging from the ghost painting were five unknown ferocious ghosts, yet when they actually began to make contact, they were shocked to discover that these five individuals were colleagues who had participated in headquarters meetings before.
Li Jun, Leuk San, Su Fan, Ah Hong, Xu Yiping... Chen Yi could even name all five.
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"How could it be like this?" Zong Shan’s face showed changing expressions.
Although surprised, he was beginning to realize what the situation was.
The headquarters had had an operation before.
Now, five people appeared before him in such a bizarre posture, the outcome was obvious.
Li Jun and the others had been obliterated.
By now they might have died at the hands of resurgent evil spirits, turned into real ghosts, or possibly controlled by some incomprehensible paranormal force, becoming like Ghost Slaves.
Either way, it wasn’t good news.
"A team like this was taken down? You’ve got to be kidding me."
Zong Shan’s mouth twitched fiercely, though the brutal reality was before him, he still couldn’t quite believe it.
He was more experienced than Yang Jian, and knew a thing or two about the standout ghost manipulators from headquarters.
Not to mention Li Jun, Professor Wang’s personal bodyguard, who was amongst the first at headquarters to possess the Unsolvable Ghost Realm.
And there was Leuk San, codename: Paper Man, shrouded in mystery, a veteran older than he was, one of the first ghost manipulators to join the headquarters and still alive, never showing any sign of ghost resurgence.
Su Fan was even more remarkable; it was said that he survived to the end unscathed in every paranormal incident he handled, and those who had partnered with him had changed over a dozen times.
...
It could be said that each one had top-notch survival skills.
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If a team like theirs was completely wiped out, Zong Shan really didn’t believe anyone could survive this level of paranormal event.
No, maybe a few people could.
For some reason, Zong Shan thought of someone at that moment.
Yang Jian.
The one codenamed Ghost Eye, who had resolved the Hungry Ghost incident all by himself.
Some said he was just lucky, with fluke success, but Zong Shan knew well that for an incident classified as S-level by Professor Wang, there was no fluke involved.
The case with the Ghost Envoy was the best proof.
If not for Yang Jian, the training base would’ve faced much more than a few casualties; those involved in the operation later would probably have been annihilated too.
"Something isn’t right." Suddenly, Chen Yi’s solemn voice rose beside him.
The voice wasn’t loud, but in that environment, it was especially clear.
"It’s more than not right, those five have become real ghosts, don’t be deceived by their appearances." Zong Shan immediately snapped back to reality and seriously warned, "We continue with the plan."
"I know well that Li Jun and the rest are no longer human, but what I mean is the problem isn’t with them, it’s with Guo Fan," said Chen Yi.
Of course, he wasn’t naive enough to think the ones walking towards them were still alive.
"Guo Fan... he hasn’t lit the Ghost Candle..."
Huh?
Zong Shan was jolted with shock and immediately focused on Guo Fan.
Though it was only a silhouette, it was clear that Guo Fan didn’t have a lit Ghost Candle in his hand.
According to the previous plan, they were meant to light the white Ghost Candle to lure away the ghosts from the ghost painting and ensure the safety of the city behind them.
But now, Guo Fan had stopped moving.
"Damn, something has gone wrong," Zong Shan’s complexion turned grave.
The thing he feared most had happened; Guo Fan might have lost the ability to control his ghost, thus failing to act as agreed.
However, the most pressing issue was that Guo Fan walking forward was about to come into contact with those five ghosts.
"What are they trying to do?"
At that moment.
Under an unlit streetlamp, Yang Jian hid in the darkness, his Ghost Eye flickering with eerie red light, observing from afar.
Yang Jian had been watching these people all along.
He couldn’t understand why, knowing how dangerous the ghosts coming out of the ghost painting were, these people would still risk getting closer.
Did they have some preparation? Or perhaps, they were already in danger.
```