Chapter 65: Soul Relieving Scripture

"Mr. Lopez, what are you going to do with this little devil?"

After her initial panic faded, Zara Remar blinked and asked curiously.

The fear that once filled her heart had vanished, replaced by an odd sense of fondness. She now found the ghost boy inexplicably adorable—even giggling as he continued making mischievous faces at her.

Childish.

John shook his head in quiet amusement. If only Zara had seen how menacing and violent the ghost boy had been moments ago, she might not be so quick to call him cute.

"There's nothing inherently wrong with the ghost boy," John explained. "He was just being manipulated by someone evil. I'm going to help him transcend."

Without another word, John silently recited two lines from the Soul Relieving Scripture.

Zara clapped her hands excitedly. "Oh! I've never seen a real transcendence before. Mr. Lopez, quick, show me!"

"It's done," John replied calmly.

"What?"

Before she could fully react, the purple and blue hue that had tainted the ghost boy's face had vanished, and the ferocity in his eyes melted into deep gratitude.

John released the seal he had placed on the little ghost.

The boy spirit knelt in the air, kowtowed deeply, and then faded from sight like a dissipating shadow.

"I've seen Taoist priests transcending spirits in movies," Zara said, clearly unimpressed. "Don't they need to build an altar, burn incense, and chant for hours? That was way too fast!"

She had expected something far more dramatic. This felt like cheating.

"I no longer need an altar to channel my spiritual power," John said with a smile.

He leaned slightly toward her, gently flicking her forehead. "And never say a man is too quick."

Zara tilted her head, confused. "But you are quick, Mr. Lopez! You're quick at everything—even riding a bike!"

John almost choked on air.

They stayed atop the mountain for a little while longer, basking in the peace. Gradually, the others who had been hypnotized began to stir and wake up.

"Eh? Where's the Yellow-Eyebrow Immortal?" someone mumbled, still dazed.

Faces filled with confusion surrounded them.

Zara ran up to Wendy Shelby and beamed. "Wendy! You're finally awake!"

"Hmm... something feels off. My head's a bit heavy this time."

"It's probably just an illusion," Zara replied, sticking out her tongue playfully before glancing back at John with a secretive smile.

She had no intention of telling anyone what had just happened. That moment—John helping her, the ghost boy's transcendence—it was their little secret, shared between just the two of them.

As they descended the mountain, Zara completely ignored her best friend's resentful glares and, without hesitation, shoved her into Jonathan Sinclaire's Audi SUV.

As for herself, she gleefully leapt onto the back seat of John's bicycle, wrapping her arms snugly around his waist.

Perhaps this was the kind of happiness money couldn't buy—she'd rather laugh on a bike than cry in a luxury car.

Passersby smiled knowingly.

Ah, young people... always so innocent.

—

When they returned to the Remar estate, three figures could be seen from a distance, peeking over the courtyard wall as though they'd been eagerly awaiting their return.

"What the heck are they doing over there..." John muttered. He helped Zara off the bike, bid her a casual farewell, then pedaled away leisurely.

The moment he disappeared from view, the three hidden figures rushed forward, bombarding Zara with eager questions.

"Hey, hey! Zara, how did it go with Mr. Lopez?"

Laughter and curiosity filled their faces.

Zara blushed—an extremely rare occurrence. "Ugh, you guys are so annoying. I was only with Mr. Lopez for one afternoon. What do you think could've happened?"

Her coy response left the three of them wide-eyed.

She's blushing? This unruly girl is actually acting shy?

And from the sound of her voice, it was almost as if... she didn't want the afternoon to end.

This is huge.

Stratton Remar leaned forward anxiously. "Zara, so... you don't dislike Mr. Lopez?"

"Dislike him? Mr. Lopez is amazing. Why would I dislike him? You guys are so weird."

We're the weird ones?

The three men stared at Zara with increasingly peculiar expressions.

This was not the same girl who had been making sarcastic comments about John at lunch.

Zara caught on quickly and rolled her eyes. "You never told me he was such a powerful magician. I made a fool of myself earlier because of that!"

Powerful magician?

The three froze, exchanging looks filled with shock.

Stratton and Simon Remar seemed to be silently asking each other, Wait, wasn't he supposed to be a miracle doctor? Since when is he a magician?

Maxwell Remar's thoughts ran even wilder: Wasn't he the brother-in-law of the King of Horizon? How did he become a magician?!

But in the end, it didn't really matter.

What mattered most was that Zara now had a favorable opinion of Mr. Lopez—and, judging from the events, Mr. Lopez didn't dislike her either.

That was all the opening they needed.

If they could just create more opportunities for them to spend time together, they were sure something romantic would bloom.

Hahahaha, the Remar family's rise is imminent!

Maxwell's face lit up with curiosity. "So, daughter, how far have you and Mr. Lopez gone?"

SMACK!

Stratton slapped the back of his head. "Idiot! Don't ask it like that! Can't you see she's shy?"

He turned back to Zara, adjusting his tone and softening his smile. "Sweetheart, have you... held hands with Mr. Lopez?"

Father, that's not subtle. At all.

Zara tilted her head thoughtfully. After a moment, her face lit up as she recalled John helping her during the exorcism.

"He touched me."

"WHAT?!"

The three men nearly dislocated their jaws.

He already touched her?!

In just one afternoon?

And Mr. Lopez always seemed like such a serious person!

Stratton was the first to recover. Stroking his beard, he chuckled with delight. "That's wonderful! Good! It's great that he touched you, hahaha! Zara, my dear, you must learn to act like a proper lady from now on. Don't show him your usual wild side, alright?"

"Grandpa!" Zara exclaimed, blushing furiously. "How can you say that? I am a lady. I don't need to pretend!"

"Cough... yes, yes, of course, you are," Stratton replied awkwardly. "Could you now... maybe let go of my beard?"