Mo Lin arrived with a group of spirit handlers. Without hesitation, he struck, immediately crushing the Nightmare-level spirit in front of him. As he made his move, every eye in the vicinity turned to him in astonishment.
"Did I just see that correctly?"
"Is he... using a thunder talisman?"
"Good heavens... how does he have a thunder talisman?"
"This guy is incredibly mysterious."
Mo Lin hadn't expected that his casual display of power would elicit such astonishment from the onlookers. Seeing Mo Lin's arrival, Lin Xi and the others, whose faces had been etched with despair, now showed a flicker of hope. Zhonghai's eyes revealed a glimmer of surprise. Mo Lin's abilities reaffirmed that his choice of deputy minister had been no mistake.
Mo Lin turned his gaze to another Nightmare-level spirit and suddenly remembered something—something very important... capturing spirits. He had nearly forgotten about the significance of capturing spirits. Such a grievous oversight!
A Nightmare-level spirit produced 800 spirit coins per day, 24,000 per month. They were veritable money-making machines! Mo Lin had just killed one—what a loss! This sensation of having destroyed a profitable asset was far worse than losing money.
He thought back to the Nightmare-level spirit he had slain earlier, his stomach sinking. In his recent flurry of activities with the Ghost Realm, he had almost neglected this crucial task. These spirits might not be particularly powerful, but as revenue generators, they were invaluable.
The principle of "small amounts accumulating into large sums" applied here. A single Nightmare-level spirit earned 800 spirit coins a day. Ten spirits would make 8,000 a day. A hundred spirits would net 80,000 a day. What does that amount to? It was an absurdly large sum!
And from what he knew, there were plenty more Nightmare-level spirits in Beihai.
At this moment, Zhonghai and the others, who had been fighting another Nightmare-level spirit, were about to subdue it together. Mo Lin quickly stepped forward to stop them.
"Wait... wait a moment."
Zhonghai, puzzled, looked at him. "What's the matter?"
"Leave this Nightmare-level spirit to me," Mo Lin said.
In Mo Lin's eyes, this spirit was nothing more than a gold mine—a guaranteed one at that. Killing it would be an enormous waste.
"Mo Lin, you don't mean to tame this contract spirit, do you?" Zhonghai guessed Mo Lin's intentions. "These spirits were cultivated by someone, they can't be tamed."
Everyone wanted to tame a Nightmare-level spirit, but if it were possible, Zhonghai wouldn't have wanted to destroy it.
"No worries, leave it to me."
Though no one else could tame it, Mo Lin was an exception.
"Leave it to me," he repeated.
He stepped forward and placed his hand atop the spirit's head. The spirit seemed to be sucked into a vortex, spinning through the air before being sealed within the "Taming the Ghost Book."
And so, Mo Lin had captured another Nightmare-level spirit.
"Name: Zhong YangshuLevel: NightmareSkills: NoneSpirit Coin Yield: 800 per day"
This spirit was quite ordinary—no ghost techniques, and much weaker than those of Chen Xi and the others. It had no combat capabilities. But Mo Lin didn't care for their combat skills. They were tools—nothing more.
He took stock of his current spirits. With the addition of this one, he now possessed one Terrifying-level spirit, nine Nightmare-level spirits, and one Fatal-level spirit. The Fatal-level spirit brought in 8,000 spirit coins daily, but Ice Jade, currently the only Fatal-level spirit, had to remain inside the Taming the Ghost Book for now, unable to be summoned.
Just then, a golden line of text appeared on the front page of the Taming the Ghost Book:
"[Catch 20 spirits, reward: Ten Thousand Demise Seal of Immortality.]"
Another task. It had been a month since the last one. This time, the reward seemed quite impressive. Mo Lin couldn't help but gulp.
The Ten Thousand Demise Seal of Immortality. Just the name alone sounded incredibly prestigious. It was undoubtedly of a higher caliber than the Thunder Talisman.
Excitement bubbled within him, and his hands trembled slightly. A smile unconsciously spread across his face.
Catching twenty spirits was no difficult task, especially in Beihai, which was teeming with spirits. But of course, he wouldn't just capture any random spirits to meet the quota. Ordinary spirits were unnecessary; Nightmare-level spirits must be captured. Not only would this increase his income, but it would also provide him with more spirit coins. It was a win-win situation.
Mo Lin proceeded to capture another Nightmare-level spirit, under the awestruck gazes of those around him. Zhonghai cast him an extra look of admiration. Mo Lin was indeed as formidable as Li Bingyan had described.
"Why are you here?" Mo Lin asked Lin Xi.
Lin Xi grew visibly agitated at the question. "That bastard, Cao Minglang, sent us here to capture spirits. But it turned out to be a trap. He had ill intentions—he wanted to kill us."
It confirmed Mo Lin's suspicions that this situation was connected to Cao Minglang. When he had gone to the western suburbs to capture spirits and encountered a Nightmare-level spirit, it must have been part of Cao Minglang's plan.
Cao Minglang must have wanted to eliminate Mo Lin, but Mo Lin's strength had been greater than expected, and the spirit had been killed by Mo Lin instead.
Mo Lin stepped up to Zhonghai and recounted the events that had unfolded at the Ghost Handling Society's headquarters. Zhonghai's face turned red with fury.
"Cao Minglang, that bastard, wishes for my death?" Zhonghai ground his teeth in anger. "I think Cao Minglang should be investigated thoroughly."
Mo Lin nodded seriously. "I believe you should look into him."
"I understand," Zhonghai said, clearly not naive. He too had noticed something strange about Cao Minglang. His motives might not be as simple as just wanting to rise to power.
The group followed Zhonghai back to the Ghost Handling Society.
Upon their return, the first order of business was to interrogate Cao Minglang. This matter was Zhonghai's responsibility, not Mo Lin's.
It was late, and Mo Lin, along with Lin Xi and the others, were arranged to rest in a hotel.
A knock on the door interrupted Mo Lin's sleep.
He rose leisurely to answer it and found a woman in gray-white attire standing at the doorway. Her hair was styled high, and her skin was pale and smooth. She stared intently at Mo Lin, a faint smirk on her lips, but there was a trace of anger in her expression.
"Well, well... didn't expect this," Zhuge Mingyue muttered to herself.
"Can I help you?" Mo Lin asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course," Zhuge Mingyue responded, extending her hand toward him in a demand for something.
"What is this about?" Mo Lin asked, his tone calm.
"The Thunder Talisman... it belongs to my Thunder Talisman Master's Mansion. Don't you think it should be returned to its rightful owner?"
Ever since Zhuge Mingyue had learned that the Thunder Talisman was in Mo Lin's possession, she had been restless, unable to focus on anything else. She had searched for him in Yun Chuan, but when she couldn't find him, she had followed him to Beihai.
"I obtained it through my own abilities. Why should I return it to you?" Mo Lin asked, his voice sharp.
"You..." Zhuge Mingyue was momentarily speechless, caught off guard by Mo Lin's straightforward reply.
"Not a shred of sincerity. You come here demanding the Thunder Talisman?" Mo Lin continued.
Zhuge Mingyue forced a smile. "What kind of sincerity do you want?"
"For example... how about a few Nightmare-level spirits?" Mo Lin proposed.
4o