Chapter 25: The Skin-Peeling Ghost

Underworld Soldiers?

The armor on these ghosts seemed to be made from bamboo strips. Among the various ghostly woods, bamboo was certainly notable. Those who had been soldiers in life were generally fiercer in death than ordinary ghosts. Coupled with their bamboo armor, Lin Feng deduced that this group was at least above the level of wild ghosts.

Their armor was worn, yet they still carried a military aura. However, Lin Feng wasn't inclined to treat unfriendly ghosts with courtesy.

"Miss Nie, go! Flatten them!"

"Huh?" Nie Chuxia muttered softly, "Weren't we just discussing being respectful to them?"

Lin Feng replied, "If we show respect after beating them down, it's called balancing grace with power. They'll be even more grateful to us, and the situation might resolve itself. Understand?"

"Oh!"

Nie Chuxia now realized that, when following Lin Feng, she didn't have to think too hard. As a well-endowed woman with a mature demeanor, she enjoyed a thought-free approach.

Nie Chuxia stepped forward and taunted, "Just a few wandering ghosts, and you dare howl before me? Remember this, I am Nie Chuxia of the Southern Sect. When you meet the King of Hell, don't forget who sent you there."

She raised her oil lamp, exhaling blue smoke, which made the faces of the four underworld soldiers across from her grow fearful.

"The Nether Lantern! Extinguish it immediately!"

Three underworld soldiers charged forward, surrounding Lin Feng and Nie Chuxia. With a shout, they formed a battle formation.

"Battle!"

"Battle!"

"Battle!"

The scenery around them suddenly shifted. Lin Feng realized that he and Nie Chuxia had been transported into a military formation, surrounded by hundreds of ghostly soldiers whose battle cries filled the air.

A ghostly maze!

"Wow, such an impressive display?"

Lin Feng raised his two fingers and drew them across his brow.

"Boundless Heavenly Honor, Heavenly Sight on Earth!"

His celestial vision opened, and Lin Feng could see that the hundreds of soldiers were actually manifestations of just three ghosts. The scene only appeared formidable; if he could capture the true forms of the three, he could break the illusion.

"Nie Chuxia, stop daydreaming! Take out the flag-bearing ghost on the left and the red-robed ghost in front of you. I'll handle the last one!"

Nie Chuxia nodded. "Got it!"

With a shout, she exhaled blue smoke, directing it at the flag-bearing ghost. The ghost tried to retreat upon being discovered, but Nie Chuxia wasn't about to let it escape.

"Take this—Single Qi Flame!"

The blue smoke mingled with the lamp's flame, transforming into a fireball that ignited the flag-bearing ghost. It shrieked and vanished, instantly reducing the number of ghostly soldiers in the formation by a third.

As Nie Chuxia went after the second ghost, Lin Feng set his sights on the third.

That ghost stood near a battle drum, looking tense. When his two comrades were exposed and the flag-bearer was swiftly defeated, his unease grew. Catching Lin Feng's gaze, his first instinct was to run.

"Don't run now! Your Master Lin just learned a new move, so let's give it a try."

With a mischievous look, Lin Feng felt his fighting spirit rise.

While Nie Chuxia's attacks were fierce, Lin Feng had always lacked such striking power. It had been a personal frustration, but he had chosen a new skill before coming here tonight.

The Great Blazing Spirit-Binding Hands

Created by the Ghost King of Jade Flames, this skill summoned hellfire in his hands. It was Lin Feng's favorite among the four skill options because it had that dramatic, overpowering effect he loved!

Lin Feng rushed toward the drum-bearing ghost, raising his hands as they ignited with cold, emerald flames. He relished the chill of the fire.

"A mere ghost-hunter from the living realm dares to act so bold in my formation?" The drum-bearing ghost, seeing no chance to escape, lunged at Lin Feng, forming a spectral spear from ghostly energy and thrusting it at his stomach.

Seeing the attack, Lin Feng dodged quickly.

Close call! Almost got skewered!

The second strike came, and Lin Feng found himself unable to close the distance, repeatedly forced back by the spear. He was getting frustrated.

The ghost, noticing Lin Feng's seeming lack of skill, grew more arrogant, thrusting the spear again and again, landing a few hits and pushing Lin Feng to his limit. Furious, Lin Feng grabbed at the spear with both hands.

Hiss—

A metallic screech pierced the air as his hands clashed with the spear, sending jolts of pain up his arms, splitting the skin at his palms. But the ghostly fire engulfed the spear, and the emerald flames spread up the weapon, consuming the drum-bearing ghost until he was frozen solid and then shattered into icy fragments.

With the three ghosts defeated, the scene shifted back to their original surroundings. Of the four ghosts they had faced, three lay on the ground, barely clinging to existence as their ghostly aura dissipated.

The lone remaining ghost glared at them in fury. "You dare strike so hard—are you seeking death?"

Having broken free from the ghostly maze, Nie Chuxia seemed invigorated and raised her eyebrows. "Little ghost, your aura isn't that strong. Watch your words, or you'll bite your own tongue! Care to try my Single Qi Flame?"

"Hah, you two better watch your backs!" spat the ghost, trying to flee, only to collide with another spirit.

Behind him, a shadowy figure gradually took shape: a ghostly figure with the head of an ox, body wrapped in chains, and a plaque at its waist reading "Fengdu."

"A Fengdu Enforcer?!" the ghost stammered in horror.

In the underworld, Fengdu was as lofty as an imperial city. Though Longhuai Ghost City was far removed, the specter of Fengdu was ever-ominous in their minds.

The enforcer, Niu Meng, loomed over the ghost, who was too terrified to resist. He grabbed the ghost and dragged him to Lin Feng.

In reality, Niu Meng's strength wasn't far beyond that of the ghost he had caught, but the mere sight of a Fengdu enforcer had scared the ghost stiff, and he dared not fight back.

"Now, let me ask you a few questions. Let's both show a little respect, alright?"

Lin Feng instructed Nie Chuxia to serve the food. That ghost initially wanted to display some indomitable spirit, but his stomach betrayed him by growling a few times, making any further protest seem quite hollow.

He gave in and started eating heartily, "Ask away. Since we're both giving a little face here and I'm eating your food, I won't be ungrateful."

Lin Feng, hearing this, was very satisfied.

So, two men and a ghost found a stone to sit on in the wild grass. When Lin Feng saw that the ghost had almost finished eating, he finally spoke.

"How should I address you, my friend?"

The ghost replied, "Haven't had a name in forever. I was flayed and tortured to death. Just call me Flayer."

With a wave of his hand, Flayer's bamboo armor vanished, revealing a ghastly ghost covered in blood in front of Lin Feng and Nie Chuxia. His skin and hair were stripped away, and his chest and arms were charred, clearly tortured with fire before he died.

Flayer's pale eyes looked at them as he sneered, "Did I scare you?"

Lin Feng was unfazed. After two years as a mortician, with side jobs retrieving corpses, he'd seen horrific deaths, like victims of insect nests and dismemberment. This was nothing. But Nie Chuxia didn't take it as well. She was unafraid of fighting ghosts, but as a young woman, such a grisly sight made her turn aside and throw up.

"This young lady seemed tough just now. How is she so easily scared?"

Lin Feng replied, "If she really were scared by you, she'd have accidentally killed you by now."

Flayer grinned, "She can't kill me. Don't think I'm boasting, mister, but in my prime, even if you teamed up with the lady here and that Yin Messenger, you still wouldn't stand a chance."

Lin Feng, curious, looked at the ghost. He didn't seem like a particularly powerful ghost, yet he spoke with confidence.

"Haha, I know you don't believe me. Let me put it this way: I used to control this whole area, practically the number one enforcer for the King here. But ever since the King disappeared, I lost my supply of offerings, so now I'm just down on my luck."

"No more incense offerings? So you can't cultivate?"

"That's right. Without offerings, I have to burn through my own power just to maintain this ghostly body. Back in the day, I could take on ten like you all at once."

"If this was your King's domain, why do you no longer get offerings?"

Flayer gnawed on the chicken bones in front of him until there was nothing left, burped, and replied, "This is the King's domain, but he ruled with the help of us lowly ghosts who put in the dirty work. When the King ran out of offerings, not many loyal followers remained. There are plenty of wealthy, powerful ghosts in the city who can compete with him. They've been dividing his forces, so the King had no choice but to focus on his own survival."

Lin Feng understood now.

To rule in the underworld, it still boiled down to resources and manpower. Without enough support, even a ghost king couldn't control the whole territory.

"Why doesn't your King just seize those ghosts' offerings? That way, he'd be stronger."

"Seize them?"

Flayer replied, "Do you think Fengdu's officials are pushovers? Fengdu has strict rules: the various ghost kings may not seize offerings from each other's domains. Otherwise, the Ten Kings of Hell will personally lead an army to punish the violator! We can only assemble forces to raid neighboring ghost kings, so our King is too busy trying to win over the wealthy ghosts to even think of starting a fight."

Wow!

Lin Feng's mind raced, and he couldn't help but give a thumbs up. Fengdu's strategy was impressive—not allowing seizure within territories while turning a blind eye to raiding neighboring domains. It divided the ghost kings outside of Fengdu, preventing any one of them from becoming too powerful. Meanwhile, ghost kings and their wealthy ghosts relied on each other while constantly watching their backs.

Over time, no faction would be able to stir up trouble.

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant!

This form of indirect control required not a single soldier.

After chatting a bit, Lin Feng said, "Flayer, I have plenty of clothes here and some food and wine. How about you introduce me to the other brothers? I'll give everyone some gifts as a token of respect."

Flayer's eyes lit up, "Are you serious, mister?"

"No reason to deceive you."

"Alright!"