Chapter 55: Ultraman Tiga
Swish... The female ghost’s slender figure, clad in red and white, traced a graceful arc through the air. Before the three could even blink, a thunderous crash erupted! The newcomer had lifted the ghost that had left them helpless, slamming her straight from the sky into the ground. The dilapidated building shook and raised a cloud of dust.
“Awesome, huh?” Amid the haze, the trio glimpsed a vague silhouette, gripping the ghost’s head and smashing it against the floor.
“Even more awesome!” Another crash sounded, and all three were stunned.
Brutal.
Have you ever watched Tom and Jerry? You know how Jerry torments Tom in all sorts of ways? Left, right, back and forth—now this figure was doing just that. The female ghost flailed like a broken kite in his hands, as he cursed with each slam, “So you think you’re something just because you follow that Cao guy?”
Boom!
The floor trembled.
“Sss!” The ghost screamed in rage and agony, clawing madly at the air, but catching nothing.
“Still resisting?”
Boom!
“Running a club? Collecting protection money? Violating the core values of socialism?”
Boom, boom!
Cracks began to spider across the floor as the ghost howled in madness.
“You think you’re some kind of gangster? Don't you know gangsters in Huaguo never end well?”
Boom! Boom, boom!!
As dust billowed and the three gaped in disbelief, the figure kicked the ghost into a corner: “Were you there that night? I’ve never been looked down on like that in all these years! Can’t find the big fish, but I can still beat the hell out of you!”
“Sss!” The ghost crashed into the wall, shrieking, and crawled spider-like onto the ceiling. Her head was nearly split open, streaked with blood, making her look even more terrifying. Black-red blood dripped down like a stream as she gritted her teeth and hissed, “Who... are you?!”
The other three forced their eyes open.
Who was this?
Such strength… at least a ghost official! And clearly much stronger than the ghost. No—it felt like a food chain domination. Could there really be such a master in Bao’an City?
Swish... As the dust settled, the figure came into view, and the three fell silent.
Camouflage uniform, just like theirs.
But what set him apart was the mask on his face.
The mask itself was nothing unusual.
The key was... it was a mask of Ultraman Tiga...
So, was he here to beat up little monsters?
“Who am I?” Ultraman sneered, yanking open his shirt.
Under the camo was a black T-shirt, emblazoned with three bold white characters in a flamboyant script.
“Call me Daddy!”
The corners of the three’s eyes twitched.
But that wasn’t all—Ultraman turned around, pulled down the camo, revealing a line of text across his back.
“Don’t mess with Grandpa—I’m annoyed!”
Page (1/3)
The female ghost fell silent.
This style... didn’t match Lord Cao’s elegance and nobility at all.
“Feels good.” Ultraman let out a long breath, the gloom from his earlier defeat by Arthas suddenly dispelled. He gestured to the three, “You guys get down, so you don’t get in my way.”
The three exchanged glances. The square-faced young man at the front bowed nearly ninety degrees, clasped his hands, and said gravely, “May I ask which senior came to aid us? I am—”
“Later. Hurry up and go!” Ultraman waved impatiently. No sense at all—my blade is itching, and you’re standing here being polite?
The three paused, bowed together, “Words cannot express our gratitude!”
Then, they left immediately.
Silence.
Only Ultraman and the female ghost remained atop the building. This time, unlike before, the ghost did not make the first move.
Instead, she kept shifting her position, unsure why, but she felt an overwhelming sense of dread emanating from him.
She was a living ghost, never having experienced the era when the Underworld's words became law. But this kind of food chain suppression could not be broken within the same realm.
Ultraman slowly pulled off his mask, revealing Qin Ye’s face.
The wind through the unfinished building tousled his bangs. He brushed aside the hair on his forehead and exhaled through gritted teeth, “Comfortable.”
His pent-up anger finally eased, he placed the soul-sealing orb nearby, and looked at the wary ghost, smiling, “You know…”
“It’s because of you bastards that I’ve been looked down upon worse than maggots!”
“That old hag has a venomous tongue, but her words are reliable. Yes... since I can’t avoid it, I have to adapt. So… why not start with you?”
“No answer? I’ll take that as agreement…”
As the last word fell, with a roar, his aura surged, ghost official garb materialized, and the ghost-headed blade ignited with two green flames, far surpassing the ghost’s sinister energy.
The ghost’s pupils sharpened suddenly.
Within her blood, a feeling called terror sprouted wildly.
It was a sensation she had never felt since becoming a ghost.
A ghost, feeling fear.
“Sss!” She screamed, crawling frantically away. Qin Ye didn’t even spare a glance, lightly brushing his blade, “I’ll allow you thirty-nine meters head start…”
“Thirty-nine… zero.”
The moment the words dropped, his arm muscles bulged, and a dazzling blade light swept out, carrying all of Qin Ye’s rage from being underestimated by Arthas and pressured by Cao Youdao—like a bolt of lightning!
It was catharsis.
A catharsis unleashed with all his strength.
Boom!
For several meters, the air seemed to vibrate, as if a crack had opened. Yin energy from all directions rushed madly toward the fissure. The ghost’s body dissolved into swirling Yin energy, accompanied by an unwilling “sss sss,” vanishing instantly.
Thirty-nine… zero…
Where are the numbers in between?!
Did a dog eat them?!
“I thought I’d finish counting to thirty-nine, but turns out venting first and acting cool is better for my health.” Qin Ye sheathed his blade. A stream of Yin energy flew in, entering his chest. The ghost official badge floated out, as if someone were writing, and a line of bold ink slowly appeared.
“Slayed one vengeful spirit. Merit: twenty points.”
“Current merit: forty points. One hundred sixty more needed for Soul Collector rank.”
As these words appeared, the badge trembled. A burst of Yin energy exploded from within, snaking into the ghost-headed blade. In the next instant, the skull on the blade hilt, its eyes lit with two ghost flames, suddenly erupted with several meters of green fire! The flames traced the blade, finally transforming it into a fiery long sword.
Page (2/3)
“What is this…” Qin Ye stared, astonished at the transformed blade. He gave it a gentle tug and saw, with the naked eye, a faint crack appear in the air around the blade.
He could never have done that before!
“Can Yin energy evolve the ghost-headed blade?” Qin Ye spun it casually; the blade responded perfectly, blossoming into a flurry of flowers.
“It’s not just the soul flames on the edge… the weight has lightened… No, it’s more attuned to my body. This must be a change as I near the Soul Collector rank?”
Just as he was about to test further, he suddenly looked up toward a certain direction.
Ghost officials…
And not just one… two of them!
That’s the direction of the next hunting zone… He suppressed his curiosity about his body’s changes and sped off in the opposite direction.
………………………………………………
Almost at the same time, Cao Youdao of the Yulan Club opened his eyes first.
The previously raucous Yulan Club was now quiet, save for the paper servant beside him, who carried a silver tray topped with cut cigars and mixed red wine.
Cao Youdao lounged comfortably in the soft sofa, sinking deep, gently swirling a glass of red wine. After a long silence, he spoke: “The first hunting zone has been breached.”
The paper servant looked up in shock, his mismatched features twisted strangely: “Master… was it a cultivator from the living realm?”
“Who can say?” Cao Youdao massaged his brow. “Tonight, while searching for that adorable colleague of mine, I’ll conveniently probe the Special Investigations Department. Likewise, they’ll use my offensive as an opportunity to remove their thorn. But… this was too fast.”
“Zhang Chenghai won’t act rashly… From what I know of Bao’an’s defense, the remaining cultivators are at best equal to the first hunting zone. So…”
He drummed his fingers on the sofa arm, sneering, “Can I safely assume this is the desperate last struggle of my reckless, foolish former colleague?”
“Only a ghost official can exert absolute suppression over ghosts of the same rank.”
The paper servant replied respectfully, “Master, then… is he trying to advance to Soul Collector?”
“Daydreaming!” Cao Youdao scoffed, lighting a cigar. He exhaled a puff of smoke. “A maggot like him—a lowly ghost official who can’t recognize his own limits. Doesn’t he know? Without the Underworld Registry, even if he earns the merit, he’ll never advance.”
His gaze burned as he looked toward the pit below. “In this world, only I can reach Impermanence, even Lord of the Domain, Yama. Only me!”
Meanwhile, underground at City Hall, Zhang Chenghai and the others were stunned.
The first hunting zone has fallen!
Silence.
No one spoke.
A few seconds later, Zhang Chenghao turned and shouted, “Quick! See when the first hunting zone was breached! By whom! Who was there?”
“It’s already out,” a lab-coated figure stood up. “Ten minutes… ten minutes ago, ghost official-level power erupted on East Shuncheng Street. The vengeful spirit in the first hunting zone was almost instantly killed. The trainees present were AC47424744, three of the fastest-advancing students in Bao’an City this year.”
Zhang Chenghai’s eyes flickered. “They weren’t a match for that spirit. Surviving would be lucky… Where’s Old Mei?”
“Old Mei is at the fourth hunting zone on Fangcao Street. Mr. Zhang, with respect, Old Mei wouldn’t be a match for the spirit in the first hunting zone either. This person… we suspect is a civilian ghost official.”
At these words, everyone found it hard to believe.
A civilian ghost official…
Having chosen the path of cultivation, only today do they realize how difficult advancement is.
Even now, Zhang Chenghai, at fifty-four, is only at Soul Collector rank; reaching Impermanence in his lifetime would be a stroke of luck. A civilian ghost official?
Alive?
Zhang Chenghai took a deep breath, “Connect me at once to leader of AC4742 group—I want to speak to them now!”
Page (3/3)