Reborn As A Ghost: Time To Build My Undead Army!-Chapter 1709: The Last Soul
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"Meow..." The cat meowed as it walked toward the corpses of the children, rubbing its face against them, trying to wake them up. "Meow?"
But it was unable to.
"Did you adopt this kitten?" Maria asked with a light smile.
"He’s... Little Black, Feng Xian’s pet," said Kim Hua. "He’s... the little boy that the second elder is holding."
"He once got lost in the mountains on a rainy day," said Wu Lieng. "We were so worried, searching everywhere for him... When we finally found him, he was carrying a little black kitten in his hands, barely alive. He was more concerned about the cat than himself."
"He... he was a gentle soul," Kim Hua muttered, his eyes filled with pain.
"We sheltered him and named the kitten Little Black," Wu Lieng said, gazing at the small ghost. "The Elders didn’t like the idea of a cat wandering around our sacred sect, especially a black cat, which was said to bring bad luck... but we kept him anyway. We fed him a small fish every day, and he drank goat milk whenever the chance arose. Sometimes, he would steal food from the kitchen, hoho... he was quite the rascal, just like his owner."
"But why?" Emeraldine wondered. "Why did this soul alone remain while everyone else left?"
"Hm..." Maria rubbed her chin. "I think I know the reason... The souls of your people didn’t truly pass away, Wu Lieng."
"What?" Wu Lieng looked at Maria in disbelief.
"I sensed traces of phantasmal energy, crystallized fragments inside their corpses," Maria explained. "This only happens when a soul experiences extreme pain and intense trauma... These people had their souls forcefully extracted from their dying bodies."
"N-No..." Wu Lieng fell to his knees again. Little Black noticed him, walked toward him, and meowed softly before sitting.
"Little Black was most likely overlooked, or perhaps they didn’t care about the soul of a simple cat," Maria said. "Whatever the case, his soul remained as the only ’survivor,’ I believe."
"Little Black... What did you see?" Wu Lieng asked. "Please... please tell me..."
"Mereow?" Little Black tilted his head, not understanding.
"Hah, this is... pointless. He’s just a cat," Wu Lieng said. "Shoo... Just go away, Little Black. Your soul should pass on. Don’t linger in the land of the living, unless you wish to become an evil specter."
"Meow..." Little Black glanced at Wu Lieng, then walked back with a sad expression.
"No, wait," Maria said, stepping forward. "Come here, kitty."
Maria called the kitten, offering him a piece of fish.
The cat’s eyes glowed as he rushed back toward her, attempting to eat it, though he was unable to.
"I can see through souls," Maria said. "We can discover what happened if Little Black allows me to read his soul. I can see what his eyes saw."
"I... I see..." Wu Lieng said, surprised. "I’m sorry, I almost ruined it..."
"It’s fine," Maria reassured him with a smile. "Little Black being here isn’t inherently bad... Sometimes, a soul that lingers in the mortal world doesn’t become an evil specter. This cat’s soul is pure; his only attachment is his love for you and the children."
Wu Lieng looked down, pained by her words.
"I’m sorry, Little Black... Are you worried?" Wu Lieng asked, sighing.
"I wish I could at least pet his head," Kim Hua said.
"You can," Maria replied. "Use the principle of the Phantasmal Fist. With it, you can touch souls."
Surprised, they tried it, and to their awe, they were able to feel the fur of Little Black’s soul. It was soft and short.
Seeing how much they loved him, Little Black purred happily, rubbing his face against the last surviving disciples.
"Let’s keep Little Black for now," Maria said. "So, Wu Lieng, what do you want to do?"
"I... I want to make a proper burial," Wu Lieng sighed. "I want these souls to rest in peace... Even if they were snatched away, I want... at least a part of them to rest."
"What do we do with this building? It might collapse at any moment..." Alma asked.
"We’ll burn it," Wu Lieng said. "It shall serve as a burial for our people... and our sect."
"W-What?!" Kim Hua gasped.
"Master, how could we do that?!"
"This is our home!"
"We can’t just—"
"Our home is gone, you fools," Wu Lieng said. "It was destroyed; our family massacred... There’s nothing left for us to return to. The Blood Demon Sect... is no more."
"Alright..." Maria nodded. "Come on, Little Black, let me see."
Maria gently caressed his forehead, and suddenly a surge of images appeared.
She saw all of Little Black’s life, from his birth, watching his siblings drink milk from their mother... To when they were hunted by birds, some escaping, never to be seen again.
Eventually, he got lost in the rainfall, crying for his mother.
"Meow... meow..."
He cried loudly, but the sound of rain and thunder drowned out his meows.
The little kitten grew tired and weak, unable to walk, growing colder...
"Ah... there you are! Kitty, kitty... come here!"
A little boy with short black hair and blue eyes appeared.
He was completely soaked and looked no better than the cat.
Yet the boy gently picked up the kitten, covering him with his straw hat.
"Cough, cough... Don’t worry... it’s going to be okay..."
Maria saw the boy’s gentle smile.
"That must be Feng Xian..."
Even now, Little Black remembered his owner fondly, from the very first time they met.
"Feng Xian! Feng Xian! Where are you?"
"FENG XIAN!"
"Boy! Where are you?!"
Voices called for the boy, who had hidden inside a tree with the kitten, hugging him tightly against his chest to keep him warm.
"T-They came..."
The boy slowly walked out, collapsing into the mud, but still holding the kitten close.
"D-Don’t worry... it’s... going to be okay."
"Meow..."
As the rainfall intensified, Little Black saw Feng Xian lose consciousness.
Suddenly, footsteps approached, and the kitten meowed louder and faster.
Eventually, they found him.
"Feng Xian!!!"
"He’s with a cat?"
"Did he really go out just to find this kitten?!"
"Come, let’s bring them back!"
The disciples carried the boy and the kitten home.
Both were given warm clothes and plenty of medicine to survive.
At first, they didn’t care much about the cat, but with Feng Xian’s insistence, they treated the kitten too and helped him live.
Months passed, and once both had recovered, the kitten was finally given a name.
"You’re going to be Little Black from now on! My first disciple! I will teach you the Blood Demon Fist Art, and you will become the strongest Demon Beast!"
"Meow?"
Maria smiled faintly, shedding a few tears.
The boy had great dreams.
He was so full of life and hope.
And the kitten knew it—and chose to accompany him.
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