Chapter 644: Chapter 521: Ghost Knocks on the Door_2
"Clang!"
Suddenly, a resonant sound nearby startled them both, crisp like the clash of metal on stone.
"What’s going on?" Yang Xiao became instantly alert.
Long Zi No. 41 seemed to understand the origin of the sound, but was too tense to speak clearly. "This... this is that ghost nearby, it’s got its eyes on us!"
"You’ve heard this sound before?"
"Of course, I was chased here by this very sound," lamented Long Zi No. 41, close to tears. "We better run!"
At that moment, with no better option, they stopped questioning their whereabouts and turned to run in the direction opposite the sound.
But they couldn’t escape; every time they stopped, the sound would erupt suddenly, neither too close nor too far, as if to exhaust them to death.
"Don’t run anymore; it’s no use. Follow me, I have an illusion-breaking magic artifact, though I don’t know if it’ll work." Yang Xiao was about to take out the Ghost Lantern, focusing on the direction of the sound when Long Zi No. 41 stopped him.
"Don’t you dare. Once you take it out, the ghost will lock onto you, and this one is far more terrifying than any you’ve encountered before!" Long Zi No. 41’s voice was tinged with urgency.
And with those words, Yang Xiao became suspicious; if he were targeted, wouldn’t it give this person a chance to escape? He couldn’t understand; they had just met—why was this person so good to him, willing to share his misfortune? Could it be... he’s a remarkably kind person?
Once suspicion arose, it was difficult to dismiss. Yang Xiao sized up his teammate without alarm; everything seemed in order—the man was clean, had no apparent injury at his waist, and his initial behavior easily gained trust. But still, something felt amiss.
"Brother, do you have any idea?" Yang Xiao tested.
The other man sighed and shook his head. "Not at the moment. How about this, follow me, and we’ll try again."
Those like Yang Xiao, who often encountered the Ghost Hitting the Wall phenomenon, knew well that it was futile to keep trying unless a flaw was found.
The man’s behavior was strangely unlike that of an experienced Angel Envoy. Yang Xiao silently followed behind him, calmly observing. As the man took steps, Yang Xiao finally discovered the problem—it was the man’s shoes; he was actually wearing a pair of leather shoes!
Those who came here were desperate, with various attires, but one thing was sure—they would wear light shoes.
Taking a deep breath, Yang Xiao realized he’d been tricked; the man in front of him was not a person, but a ghost!
As his palm flipped, the Ghost Lantern appeared instantly. With the green light spreading, the "Long Zi No. 41" in front revealed its true form. It was indeed the upper body of the real Long Zi No. 41, but only the upper half, the lower half was a pile of rotting, foul-smelling corpse.
The upper half of Long Zi No. 41 matched horribly with the smaller lower half, grotesquely stitched together. Now it followed the movement of the legs, swaying left and right like seaweed—extremely horrific. It seemed the ghost had killed him, torn off the upper body, and fixed it onto its own lower half.
Meanwhile, the Human Bone Staff transmitted a surge of intense malice coming from the apparition in front!
He had used the Human Bone Staff to probe before but failed to see through the ghost’s disguise, so its power had been blocked. Indeed, the mission wasn’t going to give him any loopholes.
But now the situation was out of control. As the half-bodied ghost turned around, about 5 meters from Yang Xiao, it lifted the limp left arm of Long Zi No. 41, beckoning towards him. And between the man and the ghost, a pitch-black hole suddenly appeared on the ground.
As consciousness began to fade, a cold wind blew, flickering the flame of the Ghost Lantern before it went out. Yang Xiao, like a puppet, staggered towards the hole, seemingly about to fall in.
Clinging to his last bit of will, Yang Xiao desperately tried to connect with the Drama Robe, summoning the strength of his good sister, no matter the terrible cost that would follow. But in the next second, as he was about to step into the void, that crisp metallic clashing sound emerged again.
"Clang!"
At the same time, Yang Xiao heard a distorted, chant-like voice behind him, accompanied by a streak of light. The illusion before him shattered with a loud crash, and "Long Zi No. 41" was flung into the mud. In front of Yang Xiao stood a figure wielding a black Heavy Ruler.
Regaining control, Yang Xiao stumbled a few steps and quickly regained his composure, drawing the Human Bone Staff to his front and holding onto the Ghost Lantern with his other hand.
The dense mist around had mostly cleared, and the dark hole in the ground had vanished. Not far away, the flung "Long Zi No. 41" got up in a position no living person could, with arms swinging bonelessly and his head drooping lifelessly to one side, radiating an aura of death—clearly not a living being.
"Thanks!" The person before him had saved his life; a word of gratitude was in order.
"I warned you so many times, how could you still not catch on?" The man in front complained without turning his head. "Besides, didn’t you know not to go out when it gets foggy?"
He sounded young, just a few years older than Yang Xiao, dressed in a gray tracksuit, with a black, hefty ruler that felt substantial, nearly a meter long, not metallic but seemingly crafted from some kind of jade.
Before Yang Xiao could speak, the man continued, "I didn’t save you for nothing; I’m trapped by this Ghost Hitting the Wall too. Once I deal with this guy, use your lantern to get me out!"
