Merging with Demon Spirits
Chapter 703 - 519: Human or Ghost
The siege by the Demon Beasts turned the once prosperous Zhouyun City into ruins, with buildings collapsed everywhere.
The scattered corpses and remnants that once littered the city have vanished, leaving only the bloodstains on the ground and walls as evidence of the past bloodbath.
The city, engulfed in pain, begins its reconstruction. Every hundred meters, soldiers patrol, maintaining a semblance of order amid the chaos.
Though more than half a month has passed, the people still carry traces of pain and confusion in their eyes.
Offerings and variously colored Netherworld Coins strewn across the ground add a sense of desolation and despair to the city.
In this catastrophe, many lost their jobs, lost their homes, lost loved ones.
In just a day, life underwent an earth-shattering change.
Many, like the Gongshan siblings, faced similar fates, and homeless children could be seen wandering everywhere.
They varied in age, some as young as four or five, others seventeen or eighteen, gathering in small groups, meandering aimlessly.
Although the government provided some arrangements for these orphans, they refused to leave home and didn’t want to move into the cold orphanages, so they wandered the streets out of boredom.
Some children played with stones in the ruins, others used sticks to prod through crevices, hoping to find something valuable.
"Yay, I found a phone."
An eight or nine-year-old child lifted a dirty face, cheerfully waving a phone in his right hand.
Even though the phone’s screen was cracked like a spider web, almost broken in two, he still waved it around happily.
This treasure-hunting joy temporarily made him forget his grief and pain.
Gongshan hugged his sister tightly, looking at the devastated city, his excitement at joining the Avengers Alliance gradually fading.
Compared to these children, they were still fortunate.
Because of his sister’s uniqueness, the siblings had a chance to join the Avengers Alliance, unlike those who had nowhere to stay.
Seeing Gongshan’s gloomy mood, Yun Tianqi and Ye Xing remained silent.
The journey home was quiet.
Under their protection, the return trip was smooth, with no encounters with King Level Demon Beasts, and those below King Level were easily avoided by the two.
If unavoidable, they would simply solve the problem with a slash or punch.
Three hours later, at lunchtime, the four returned to the hotel, appearing before Lin Feng and his group.
Lin Feng also saw the Gongshan siblings.
Gongshan appeared ordinary, like a high school student. Perhaps the experiences of recent times made him seem somewhat gloomy, reticent, and lacking the vitality typical of his age.
Lin Feng nodded at Gongshan as a greeting, then turned his attention to Gong Xiaoxiao.
Wearing a princess dress, Gong Xiaoxiao was not nestled in her brother’s embrace. Her small face peeked out, with long, curly hair like seaweed partially obscuring her face. Under long eyelashes were big, round eyes like black gemstones, but they seemed lifeless.
As if her soul was missing.
Even without approaching, Lin Feng could distinctly sense a faint yet extremely cold aura emanating from Gong Xiaoxiao. Though her frame was slender, her face appeared unusually swollen, her head larger than normal for a girl, and her pale skin was almost transparent.
"Let’s eat first."
Though filled with questions, Lin Feng didn’t ask immediately.
He could see Gongshan’s tension and decided to eat first.
Gongshan nodded, suppressing his excitement.
Although familiar to the point of knowing each individual’s detailed information, it was his first time seeing Lin Feng’s team—the current Avengers Alliance—face to face.
He slightly lowered his head, discretely observing the familiar figures with a furtive glance, internally reciting: "Ye Qiu, Yun Kai, Zhan Tianyu, Yang Ningbing, Huang Tianze...."
Each was a heaven’s chosen, with backgrounds and Earth Chart Demon Spirits refined, making him excited yet pressured.
He questioned again if he was worthy of joining the Avengers Alliance.
"No need to be nervous or restrained; Lin Feng and the others are only a few years older than you, all young folks. You can sit here."
Noticing Gongshan’s tension, Ye Xing patted him on the shoulder with a smile.
Compared to others, he had talked with Gongshan a little, so they were somewhat more familiar.
Gongshan revealed a little grateful but somewhat reserved smile, sitting on the chair with a surprised look at the twenty to thirty dishes on the round table.
Seven dishes made from the blood and flesh of Advanced Demon Beasts, five nourishing medicinal concoctions, and various seafood were all foods rich in Qi and Blood, with only a scant three vegetable dishes.
This meal must cost millions, right?
It was extravagantly outrageous.
Even though Gongshan’s family was well-off, he was still shocked.
A meal costing millions, what kind of concept was that?
Not counting breakfast, two meals a day, sixty million a month, seven to eight hundred million a year.
Spending seven to eight hundred million just on food annually, perhaps even more.
His parents’ lifetime of hard-earned money couldn’t afford half a year of the Avengers Alliance’s food expenses.
Even major conglomerates might not dare to spend so lavishly.
Of course, Gongshan understood that this was nothing to the Avengers Alliance, with their background and earning capacity, they could even afford a two-million-a-meal extravagance.
To eat is a blessing.
Even more so for a Martial Artist.
Food is the main way to enhance the physique.
Some people even buy Pills to aid digestion to eat more.
Seeing so many nourishing dishes, Gongshan was delighted, as they were just what his sister needed.
From this meal, the strength of the Avengers Alliance could be inferred.
Gong Xiaoxiao, with her slightly vacant gaze, showed clear signs of longing, drooling and swallowing in hunger. She turned to look at her brother Gongshan, as if asking for permission to eat.
Gongshan took a handkerchief from his pocket, wiping his sister’s drool.
"Eat as you please, no need to be polite."
Lin Feng said, casually putting a few dishes into Gongshan’s bowl.
"Thank you."
Gongshan thanked him. Having traveled for three hours, he was hungry too, but he first fed his sister.
"Eat."
Seeing his sister happily eating grilled meat, he smiled indulgently.
Since the Infant Spirit fused with her, his sister had a huge appetite, sometimes eating thirty pounds of rice a day, yet still crying out in hunger.
Clearly, ordinary food couldn’t satisfy his sister’s bodily needs.
This is also the reason why the sister’s body is becoming increasingly frail.
"Eat slowly, no rush," Gongshan said with a smile.
It was the happiest and most satisfying meal his sister had had in over half a month.
Gong Xiaoxiao’s appetite startled everyone.
In the Avengers Alliance, Ye Xing had the largest appetite, but compared to Gong Xiaoxiao, it was like a drop in the ocean, not even a fifth of Gong Xiaoxiao’s intake.
Gong Xiaoxiao’s small cherry mouth was like a devouring black hole.
Such a small body, with so much food—who knows where it all went?
While Gong Xiaoxiao ate with joy, it pleased Gongshan, but the exaggerated amount of food also made him feel awkward and nervous.
This meal cost at least 200,000. He feared his sister might be disliked; just the food intake alone was beyond what ordinary families could support.
Fortunately, although Lin Feng and his group were surprised, they didn’t mind.
Because his sister ate so much, he didn’t dare eat too much himself, eating more rice and vegetables instead.
"Haha, watching her eat improves my appetite,"
Ye Xing said with a laugh.
The others also smiled.
Gongshan’s tense mood eased.
The meal lasted more than an hour, and in the end, only Gong Xiaoxiao was left.
Facing everyone’s gaze, she didn’t mind and was very focused on eating her food.
"Brother."
After eating and drinking her fill, Gong Xiaoxiao reached out her hand, her eyes slightly squinting, looking a bit sleepy.
Gongshan picked up his sister, gently rocking her.
"Let’s go to the living room."
Lin Feng suggested, and the group left the dining room for the living room.
Dong Yunan took out some tea leaves and began to boil water to make tea.
"Amazing."
Glancing at Gong Xiaoxiao who had fallen asleep, Lin Feng marveled at how effective this sleep therapy was.
Just finished eating, asleep in five seconds—who else could do this?
"Let’s talk. We only know a general idea about the Infant Spirit’s abilities. After all, it’s a Demon Spirit on the Exotic Beast Chart, and besides, it has fused with your sister."
Lin Feng inquired, noticing that the cold aura around Gong Xiaoxiao intensified after she fell asleep.
"It’s normal for a Demon Spirit to possess someone, but a Demon Spirit and a human becoming indistinguishable, I’ve never heard of it,"
Ye Xing curiously asked, "How did you get this Demon Spirit? Is it a unique ability of the Infant Spirit?"
"No."
Gongshan, holding his sister on the sofa and adjusting her to a comfortable sleeping position, began to explain to everyone: "It was refined on the Awakening Day, and this Ghost-type Demon Spirit, the [Demon-Revealing Mirror], couldn’t be detected. I knew the Infant Spirit was special, so I didn’t mention it..."
In Gongshan’s explanation, everyone’s doubts weren’t resolved.
The fusion between the Infant Spirit and Gong Xiaoxiao wasn’t due to its innate ability.
Gongshan himself wasn’t sure why his Demon Spirit fused with his sister.
At that time, they were playing at an amusement park when Demon Beasts attacked the city.
Later, due to the demon attack, the building collapsed, and they were buried under the rubble. Although they weren’t injured, the air was thin under the debris, causing his sister to fall into a coma and eventually stop breathing.
At that moment, Gongshan was in complete despair, looking at his sister’s body.
Then, he summoned the Infant Spirit.
Perhaps wanting his sister to stay with him in a special way, he let the Infant Spirit devour her soul.
To his surprise and delight, his sister survived.
Though her consciousness was unclear, and her gaze was somewhat vacant, she was alive and still called him brother.
"Are you sure the one calling you brother is your sister, not the Infant Spirit?"
Ye Xing asked seriously.
The others also shared this concern, instinctively looking toward Lin Feng.
Inside Lin Feng was also a Demon Spirit.
That Demon Spirit was called Nightmare.
The Nightmare constantly tried to take over Lin Feng’s body and devour his consciousness.
And it succeeded once.
During that time, if Lin Feng hadn’t been well-prepared, the consequences would have been severe.
It’s basic knowledge that a refined Demon Spirit loses its consciousness.
Under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t have such doubts and concerns.
But with Lin Feng’s prior experience as a lesson, this concern is quite normal.
Ghost-type Demon Spirits are extremely rare, and there is little information available, especially about such exotic Demon Spirits as the Infant Spirit on the Exotic Beast Chart. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞
"I am sure."
Faced with Ye Xing’s doubts, Gongshan’s face changed slightly, and he explained somewhat agitatedly: "My sister’s memories are still there, she still calls me brother—it’s sufficient proof!"
Gongshan explained quite a bit.
However, this clearly wasn’t enough to fully dispel everyone’s doubts.
Remember, the Nightmare could also disguise itself, and it disguised very convincingly.
If it weren’t for the ’Heart Contract’, they couldn’t distinguish between the real and fake Lin Feng.
Gongshan’s face turned somewhat pale; he wanted to refute but couldn’t find a reason for a moment.
His body trembled slightly, a vague fear enveloping him as if pulling him into the abyss.
"Alright."
Lin Feng spoke, breaking off further questioning from the others.
It’s quite simple to tell true from false—just sign a ’Heart Contract’.
Lin Feng wasn’t sure if a Demon Spirit could sign a contract with a human, but every soul’s aura is different, and those of Demon Spirits and humans are even more distinct.
At the moment the contract is signed, he can determine whether the contractee is human or ghost!