Chapter 222: All Parties Gather
Three days nearly zipped by in a blink. During this time, Bai Yu pillaged five Ghost Gates and devoured nearly two hundred evil ghosts of varying sizes, including some red-clad ones and plenty of ordinary little ghosts with hardly any strength. The quality of these ghosts wasn’t great, but the quantity sure was impressive.
She couldn’t even count how many red-clad ghosts she had gobbled up at this point.
The residual energy inside her was piling up—though it hadn’t yet affected her daily life. She had long gotten used to the whispers in her ears, and meditation typically helped alleviate their influence.
However, now she felt increasingly that absorbing these evil ghosts was becoming ineffective.
It’s not that there was zero effect; the power from the ghosts she absorbed was still the same as it had originally been.
The issue was that the bl**d Threads in her body had just multiplied way too much.
Originally, consuming a red-clad ghost would give her a boost of five to fifteen percent. Now, it was lucky if she got even half a percent from the stronger red-clad ones. As for the little ghosts? Don’t even get her started; the effects dwindled further with each ghost.
She had hit a bit of a bottleneck.
If she continued this way, her strength might still increase, but it was far too slow.
What she needed was a quicker boost.
“Yu mei, what are you looking at?”
Outside the dark, abandoned factory, Zhao Mingyue had scooted up close to Bai Yu, who was staring intently at her palm. This posture had been held for several minutes.
“Nothing.”
As she absorbed the pitch-black bl**d Threads, Bai Yu pondered for a moment.
The embryo of the Evil God brought her a steady stream of malevolent thoughts every day. Once these thoughts entered her body, they automatically flowed into the bl**d Threads.
According to the Gatekeeper, these were called Painful Threads.
The deep red color of the bl**d Threads was gradually fading, replaced by an abyssal darkness.
They were no longer as smooth and overflowing on the surface; they had begun to dry up and shrivel, gaining a thicker texture while also becoming increasingly difficult to control.
The bl**d Threads used to be docile and gentle, but as they transformed into Painful Threads, they became wilder and, deep down, influenced her desire to consume more evil ghosts. This wasn’t a conscious thought but pure instinct.
Was it just her imagination, or did she sense a deep connection between the Painful Threads and the Evil God?
“Mingyue, in the past few days, did you notice anything strange about the power I’ve been transmitting to you?” Bai Yu suddenly turned her head.
Because Zhao Mingyue was already close, when she leaned in to see what Bai Yu was focused on, the two nearly bumped foreheads, with Bai Yu’s lips almost brushing against Zhao Mingyue’s.
“Whoa!” Zhao Mingyue’s eyes widened as both girls took a half-step back at the same time.
That gentle brush made Zhao Mingyue’s face flush instantly, her heart racing.
She had never dared to be bold and kiss Bai Yu like that before.
That was Bai Yu making the move, right? She must’ve, otherwise they wouldn’t have almost touched!
“Um…” Bai Yu, feeling a little awkward, turned her head away as if nothing happened.
“I say, you two didn’t call me over just to show off your romance, did you? I’ll have you know, if you’re showing off love, I need to be included! Whether it’s a three-way hug or whatever, don’t just leave me hanging, or I’ll be really upset!”
Just as the air grew tense, a slightly melancholic voice echoed behind them.
Zhao Mingyue quickly turned around to see the Dragon Lady standing behind them, looking forlorn as she stared at the two girls, her expression practically begging to be described with a giant “Seriously?”
“Hey, little vinegar jar, you’ve got some guts today! But big sis has a few words for you—you’re still too green to pull this off.”
“You should’ve hugged Bai Yu right then and there and gone in for a kiss—preferably the wet kind. And remember, you have to take the lead here.”
“Use that little tongue of yours to break down her defenses while locking eyes with her; let her gaze guide you on how much pressure to apply. If she looks flustered and nervous, tone it down a notch. But if her eyes start to glaze over or even soften, then you can get bolder. Don’t forget, your hands are free, kiddo!”
“Take it slow, little by little, claim her body~”
“Ah~ darling, although I don’t understand why you’d want to have a date in such a dump, as long as it’s with you, I’m game~”
“That’s the correct way to go about it, not just taking a surprised step back! Even if you’re shy like that, you wasted a golden opportunity, you know? When are you two going to progress your relationship?”
As soon as the Dragon Lady finished, Zhao Mingyue sprang up, “Who said I’m like you every day?!”
“Hey, if you were even half as bold as me, you would’ve snagged Bai Yu already!” The Dragon Lady leaned in, facepalming in amusement, a smirk plastered on her face, “Little vinegar jar just gets jealous and shy—so weak.”
“Shut up!”
“Alright!” Just as Zhao Mingyue was about to leap at her, Bai Yu stood up and blocked her.
“The mission is at the final step—the fish are already on the line. We just need to reel them in.”
“That fast?”
“Yep. The Gatekeeper is quicker-witted than I thought; their reaction time is impressive.”
“That’s a good thing, I say. The sooner we finish, the better, to avoid dragging out the dream too long,” the Dragon Lady commented seriously when it came to business.
“Bai Yu, using your current body as bait seems a bit risky, no? When the fight breaks out, you can’t be too careful. If you were to possess me, it’d be like no one controlling this body—trouble waiting to happen. How about this? You send your body to a safe spot first, then come into my body.”
“My body? If I say it’s the Evil God embryo, no one will doubt it.”
The confidence radiating from the Dragon Lady was off the charts. Given the local forces in this world, how could they have seen her transform into a dragon person? They’d just assume it is the Evil God’s power manifesting. No one would believe it was an embryo merging and evolving.
“Don’t worry; no one will spill the beans. Our old friends seem to have taken something funny lately; they all want to come over and take down the Gatekeeper so they can seize the Ghost Gate.”
“Sounds good.”
“Now you’re getting it. Little vinegar jar doesn’t know what she’s talking about; she should just listen to me.”
Patting Zhao Mingyue’s head, the Dragon Lady said softly, “Mingyue, when I call you little vinegar jar, it’s not because I dislike you. Quite the opposite—in my eyes, you and Bai Yu are equally cute and precious.”
Zhao Mingyue wanted to argue but got stifled by the Dragon Lady’s words, her expression turning somewhat confused.
“So, we need to make it back alive, okay? Take care of yourself. If there’s any danger, just get out—don’t worry about us. Listen to big sis; if you’re alive, there’s hope.”
One moment they were serious, and the next, the Dragon Lady switched her tone.
“If you d*e, I’ll have to monopolize Bai Yu all to myself.”
“You dare!”
“Go on, guess if I will!”
“Hmph, don’t worry about me; I’ll be just fine!”
On their way back, Zhao Mingyue and the Dragon Lady bickered away.
Zhao Mingyue understood the Dragon Lady’s point—she was simply worried about the overwhelming number of people involved, while she didn’t have Bai Yu’s protection. Who knew if Bai Yu would have time to help her if she got into trouble? That could turn out badly.
Staying in a hotel wasn’t safe either; both she and Lu Liangting were on the Gatekeeper’s list.
They ended up moving to a different, unmonitored location where there were no Gatekeepers watching. Bai Yu sealed the doors and windows of the inn with bl**d Threads, then entered the Dragon Lady’s body.
Compared to the Dragon Lady, she was much more interested in teaming up with Zhao Mingyue, but alas, Mingyue’s body had room for improvement.
With the constant flow of power she was providing, if Zhao Mingyue tackled the task of the black phone again, picking up a few more skills, she might not be far off from being as capable as the Dragon Lady.
That very question was on Zhao Mingyue’s mind.
She pondered it throughout the journey—when would she finally take the Dragon Lady’s place?
Yes, replace her.
She had to admit, the Dragon Lady was not her replacement; she never had been.
The Dragon Lady’s role was to help Bai Yu unleash greater power. She had never possessed that ability herself; her body just wasn’t as strong as Bai Yu’s true form.
Arriving once more in the small grove, the tall and short figures stepped together into the abandoned factory.
The factory was Bai Yu’s chosen battleground because it had a large open area perfect for group battles.
In contrast, the indoor space was also excellent for limiting the opponent’s options, though it wasn’t as convenient for fighting.
An Que was currently situated a little over ten kilometers away, preparing at another site.
As long as she took down the Ghost Gate here and coordinated with Chen Yunshi to spread the word, An Que and the denizens of the Ghost Domain would undoubtedly arrive within half an hour.
Why do it this way? The reason was simple.
One didn’t need to think hard to know that An Que must have set up some formation over there. The Gatekeepers were experts at this, and given the right conditions, their formations could trap four Evil Gods!
Attacking there would lead to a high risk of disaster.
A sudden shift in location would eliminate a lot of potential complications.
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Meanwhile.
An Que stood in the classroom of a school, arms crossed over his chest.
One hundred Gatekeepers lay in ambush in various corners of the teaching building, surrounded by a vast array of formations near the Ghost Gate—effectively a spider’s web, just waiting for Qian Mu to arrive with her embryo.
Transforming Qian Mu was fine, but her original will could not remain.
An Evil God without will is much like a blank page—without any threat.
This formation was precisely targeted to achieve that.
However, the Evil God didn’t arrive, but instead, a piece of news that sent him into a rage reached him first.
“What?! The intel was wrong; Qian Mu went to the next Ghost Gate!?”
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Please vote, sob sob~~
