From beginning to end, Wu Tong never once glanced at Saeko Busujima, who remained wary of him.
"Is that... a soul?" Saeko thought, utterly stunned. Could souls truly exist in this world? Though skepticism lingered, the evidence before her eyes left no room for denial.
As the black mist drifted away, Saeko pondered whether she should follow it. Before she could decide, Shizuka Marikawa—who had been frozen in shock—finally snapped back to reality.
"Ahhh!!! A ghost!!!" A piercing scream erupted.
The sound jolted Saeko from her thoughts. "Quiet, Ms. Marikawa! You'll draw the zombies!" she hissed, grabbing Shizuka's arm. "We need to move. Now."
With the undead closing in, their only escape was upward. Saeko sighed but didn't blame Shizuka; fear of ghosts was natural. Had curiosity not outweighed her own dread, she might have screamed too.
Shizuka clamped her hands over her mouth, eyes wide with apology.
"Don't worry," Saeko reassured her. "Let's just go. The rooftop might hold answers."
Thinking of the black-misted soul, Saeko allowed herself a sliver of hope. Together, they sprinted toward the stairwell.
Meanwhile, on the rooftop, Wu Tong and the others concluded their discussion about the Netherghost. Despite moving on, the group remained visibly awestruck, casting uneasy glances at the spectral entity.
Wu Tong's earlier claim now seemed justified—no one in this world would compete with him for such a cursed resource. (Rimuru: "???")
"Enough staring. Let's go," Wu Tong said, exasperated, and strode ahead.
"Ahem. Right," Gu Ruoli coughed, following suit. She turned to Lieutenant Liu of the special ops team. "No need to protect me. Focus on your own safety—avoid zombie scratches at all costs."
"Understood, Director Gu!" Liu saluted sharply.
"Save the formalities. Improvise as needed—I'm no tactician."
"Yes, ma'am!" Liu barked before deploying his squad.
The team fell into formation, weapons ready, but soon realized their firepower was redundant. Any zombie within 500 meters was swiftly neutralized by the Netherghost's Restless Spirits. The phantoms phased through corpses, yanking souls free and leaving lifeless husks to crumple. The harvested souls were then absorbed by the Banner of the Human Sovereign, reforged into loyal minions.
Like a snowball, the spectral army grew exponentially, its influence spreading outward like a tide.
"Damn. An undead apocalypse?" Gu Ruoli muttered, eyes gleaming with envy.
"Close," Wu Tong corrected. "More accurately, a Spectral Cataclysm." Noticing her covetous stare, he smirked. "Want one?"
"Nodding intensifies.jpg."
The entire group vibrated with enthusiasm. Despite their eerie nature, the spirits' soul-piercing attacks—true damage, bypassing all physical defenses—made them invaluable. And with death fueling their numbers, the Banner was the ultimate army-forging tool. Better yet, it automated troop production and even allowed spirits to evolve through cannibalism. Given enough souls, it might birth a Ghost Path Grandmaster.
Who wouldn't crave such power (aside from righteous types)?
"Sure," Wu Tong said, amused. A glimmer of light bloomed in his palm, multiplying until a wisp hovered before each person. Without hesitation, they let the lights merge into their minds, flooding them with the Banner's crafting method.
...
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(End of Chapter)