On the way down the mountain, everyone was lost in their own thoughts. The air in the car felt like it could freeze solid.

  The mountain path wound downward, moonlight filtering through the trees in dappled patches, yet in Ling's eyes, it felt utterly fake.

  She curled up in the wide leather seat, clutching the Pouch full of loot to her chest, but felt none of the joy of a good haul.

  Doubts circled endlessly in Ling's mind: that fox… he was always the one who played others. And now he might have gotten played himself…

  When she'd first arrived in the mortal world, she'd had a bit of a tourist mentality. Ending up in this garbage body through some cosmic accident—she'd been angry at first, but she'd always figured she could just go back to the Abyss and keep being queen of the hill. So she'd felt somewhat secure.

  But Soran's sudden situation gave her her first taste of survival anxiety as something other than a top predator.

  She'd always assumed that with Soran's cultivation level, he should be someone who walked sideways in the Realm of Form.

  After all, even someone as powerful as she'd been got trapped by him for sixteen whole years. Though she'd eventually broken free from the illusion, her blood and bone had already grown intertwined with it. Breaking the illusion meant breaking her own heart. That scar still hadn't healed.

  And such a powerful opponent—had he really met with misfortune?

  An indescribable feeling of shared sorrow for a fallen kind welled up.

  [System Warning: Energy below 20%. Low-power mode activated.]

  [Recommendation: Immediately locate charging port.]

  Red alerts flashed on her retina, like some ominous death warrant.

  Ling stared out the window.

  Back in the Abyss, the environment was harsh, but she was the apex predator. Rules were simple: eat or be eaten.

  But in this mortal world, everything looked prosperous and peaceful, yet invisible red lines seemed to be everywhere. She couldn't see a specific threat, but she just felt—constrained. Uncomfortable.

  She wanted to find Soran right now and get some answers. But dragging this burden around… if he really had been hit with puppet arts, whoever was behind it had cultivation beyond estimation.

  "Should I even keep going? What's the point of staying?"

  Follow Dax around picking up scraps? Rely on this pile of junk that could malfunction any second?

  Ling's fingers unconsciously picked at the stolen Pouch.

  "I'm done."

  The thought came suddenly. Three days of this tiptoeing-around-watching-faces life was enough. The Abyss might be boring, but she was the boss there.

  "But that annoying stinky fox… still owes me a huge bar tab…"

  Streetlights flashed by one after another. Ling's eyes shifted between light and shadow.

  "Whatever. Let me figure out what's going on with him first."

  "If he's fine, and he doesn't want to talk about it… then forget it."

  Decision made, Ling didn't even say goodbye.

  She quietly fished an Earth Escape Talisman from the Pouch, pinched it between her fingers, and activated the spiritual energy.

  The talisman burned to ash.

  But—

  "Hummm—"

  No expected sensation of sinking. No dizziness of spatial transfer.

  The car continued driving smoothly. The scenery outside kept receding.

  [System Error: Spatial folding request denied.]

  [Reason: High-energy Spatial Loop Lock detected.]

  [Current permissions: Guest. Cannot breach.]

  Ling's expression changed.

  Just then, Dante spoke up, voice trembling: "Un- Uncle Jiang… is it just me, or are we… going in circles?"

  He pointed outside: "That 'Purple Gold Villa' road sign—I think we've passed it five times now…"

  Before he finished, a blinding light suddenly blazed ahead.

  "SCREEEEECH—!"

  Brakes slammed. Tires shrieked against asphalt.

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  Through the glare, two figures approached slowly. One was that dirt-covered Master Bai, but now he was hunched over, following behind a middle-aged man in a black coat like a lapdog.

  Dax's face changed dramatically.

  "Don't get out. No matter what happens, stay in the car."

  He said this to Ling and Dante, then pushed open the door and stepped out. His broad back looked almost resolute.

  Through the window, Ling saw the man in black say only three words to Dax.

  She couldn't hear through the glass, but reading his lips—"Earth. God. Jiang."

  Just three words, and Dax froze like his soul had been ripped out, even trembling slightly.

  The man in black waved a hand. Master Bai, equipped with scanners like those at security checkpoints, began searching Dax.

  Dax didn't dare move, letting him turn his spatial pocket inside out.

  Bai pulled out a pocket watch, scanned it carefully several times, then shook his heads and tossed it back to Dax.

  Clearly, that wasn't what they were looking for.

  The man in black's gaze passed over Dax, looking toward the car.

  He raised his hand and grasped at empty air.

  Without warning, an invisible giant hand suddenly clamped around Ling's throat, dragging her straight out through the car window like a chicken being plucked!

  "CRASH—!"

  The front windshield exploded instantly. Countless glass shards flew, slicing Ling's cheeks, blood streaming.

  "Khhh… urk!"

  Ling's feet left the ground, suspended in midair.

  Screens full of red alerts, but not a single useful countermeasure. Her prided hacked "little tricks" were all jokes against this level of suppression.

  The "Lotus Blooming with Every Step" triggered automatically underfoot, but the generated lotuses shattered the moment they bloomed, torn apart by that force field, becoming pathetic fireworks.

  The man in black walked up to the suspended Ling, looking her up and down, eyes full of mockery.

  "And here I thought it was something impressive, making Fourth Master so nervous he couldn't eat or sleep these past few days."

  He reached out and lightly patted Ling's bleeding cheek. Extremely insulting.

  "So you're the one they call… the 'World-Ending Asura' from two thousand years ago?"

  He roughly grabbed Ling's glossy black hair, turning her head this way and that to examine her.

  "This is it?"

  "…Pffahahaha! I told them rumors can't be trusted. Didn't expect them to be this exaggerated! Isn't that hilarious? Hm?"

  Master Bai immediately stopped whatever he was doing and joined in with hollow "heh heh heh" laughter.

  Ling's pupils were trembling.

  Not from fear—from humiliation.

  Not three days in the mortal world, and she'd been restricted by systems, toyed with by illusions, and now strung up like a dog for mockery.

  Ling's thread of reason snapped.

  Dax sensed disaster and quickly said: "Secretary… Secretary Wang has such keen eyes! Truly worthy of being Fourth Master's right-hand man! This little fairy is just a clerk, handles miscellaneous work at our small temple. With this level of ability, how could she possibly have taken your things… This is a huge misunderstanding…"

  But the man in black didn't even glance at Dax. His expression suddenly hardened as he barked: "Hand it over! That's not something you can handle!"

  With that, he swung his palm down hard.

  "SLAP!"

  Ling's head snapped to the side, blood spilling from her mouth.

  But she laughed.

  A savage, manic laugh.

  "You want it? You think you're worthy?"

  [System Warning: Abnormal soul fluctuation detected!]

  [Warning: Employee attempting forced separation from work station!]

  If this garbage body is limiting me, then—I don't need it!

  Ling's eyes rolled back instantly. A shadow black as ink, radiating endless malice, burst violently from that delicate flesh!

  This was her true form. The apex predator of the Hungry Ghost Realm.

  "DIE!!"

  "NO!" Dax roared, but only managed to catch her body as it collapsed like a ragdoll.

  The black shadow opened its enormous maw and bit directly at the man in black's skull.

  But—

  "Hum."

  No blood spraying. No soul shattering.

  Ling's soul passed straight through the man in black's body, like passing through a holographic projection.

  The man in black froze for a moment, then broke into wild joy: "What the hell? You're not a cultivator… you're an aberration!"

  Far from being afraid, he showed the excitement of a hunter spotting rare prey.

  "Hahahaha! A merit delivery right to my door… then we don't need to follow 'rules'!"

  The man in black formed a one-handed seal. A blinding golden light exploded from his palm.

  "By Fourth Master's power—Divine Judgment!"

  "BOOM!"

  That golden light slammed squarely into Ling's soul form.

  Ling instinctively tried to devour this energy—just as she devoured all souls.

  But this time, she was wrong.

  Unlike Dax's protective golden light, which had flowed in like a gentle stream, the man in black's golden light was like a violent tsunami, a raging whirlpool trying to shred and tear apart her spirit.

  The instant it entered her body, it wasn't digested. Instead, it was like throwing a red-hot iron into ice water.

  Just like when she'd forced herself through the rift and swallowed yang energy—violent rejection!

  "AAAAAHHH—!!"

  Ling let out a blood-curdling scream.

  The sensation wasn't pain, but "pressure."

  Like someone was force-pumping water into her soul. She was being torn, forcibly stretched.

  Little Ears sent a crackling, weak signal: Divine power… can't extinguish… pressure about to destabilize… get back…

  Ling's soul trembled as she used her last ounce of strength to scramble desperately back into that flesh she'd once looked down on.

  The moment she returned to the body, the tearing sensation was somewhat cushioned by the physical shell.

  She collapsed on the ground, gasping heavily, wracked with pain, unable to move even a finger.

  The man in black approached step by step, golden light flaring again in his hand, face wearing the cruel smile of a cat playing with a mouse.

  "What's wrong? Not so cocky now? 'World-Ending Asura'?"

  Dax supported Ling's body, fists clenched until they cracked.

  He knew that once he made a move, he was finished.

  Secretary Wang was just a dog, didn't even have a real divine title, but his master—Dax couldn't afford to provoke.

  But looking at Ling on the ground—once so arrogant, now lying there like a dead dog…

  "Tudi Jiang," the man in black's tone was icy, "hand over the item now, and I'll count it as meritorious service. Bygones will be bygones."

  Dax took a deep breath.

  Looks like there's no getting off this pirate ship.

  Sensing Ling's weakening presence, Ghost-Eye was frantic.

  "Sis Ling! How are you Boss, don't scare me! The thing he wants—could it be this thing on me???"

  As he spoke, Ling's blood-crusted eyes were suddenly covered by Ghost-Eye's view, showing only a single glowing red dot, slowly approaching.

  Ghost-Eye was so overloaded it could barely transmit clear messages. But Ling knew—that was the vital point Ghost-Eye had scanned with its last strength.

  With trembling hands, she fished a crumpled talisman from that bulging pocket.

  Ling used her last strength to shove the talisman and glasses into Dax's hands, her blood-covered face twisting into a savage smile:

  "Old Jiang…"

  "I'm betting big… either strike me down…"

  "Or… kill him!"