Divine Level Witch Doctor

Zhao Yuan was taken aback.

He had received Wu Peng’s legacy and embarked on the path of Cultivation, but he had never really considered the pursuit of longevity. All he had thought about was mastering an Extraordinary level of medical skill and becoming a Witch Doctor like Wu Peng, an agent of the Celestial Dao.

Now, after hearing Ying Ji’s words, he suddenly understood. ’So most people pursue Cultivation for longevity?’ But then again, it made sense. If not for the allure of immortality, who would have nothing better to do than spend so much money and suffer so much for the sake of Cultivation?

This only strengthened Zhao Yuan’s resolve to teach the Cultivation Technique to his parents and sister. If for no other reason than to ensure they would be healthy and live long lives.

Ying Ji had already stepped onto the stairs and crossed the high threshold of the main gate. Seeing Zhao Yuan still standing outside in a daze, she turned and urged, ”What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and come inside. Oh, right. Do you want the Ghost Chaining itself to you to hide inside my jar? The stone lions on either side of my family’s gate are house-warding Magical Artifacts. You don’t want it to get hurt.”

Reminded by her, Zhao Yuan finally sized up the stone lions flanking the entrance. They did indeed contain Qi and were house-warding Magical Artifacts. However, they were far inferior compared to the two characters on the plaque above.

’Looks like Ying Ji doesn’t know there are exorcising and house-warding Runes hidden within those two characters on the plaque,’ Zhao Yuan mused. He didn’t mention it out loud, saying instead, ”I can’t communicate with it at all. It doesn’t understand what I say, and it’s been completely silent the whole time, like it’s mute.”

Ying Ji let out a snicker. ”My bad. I forgot it’s not your Ghost Spirit yet, so you can’t communicate. As the saying goes, humans have human speech and ghosts have Ghost Language. Not only that, but the scripts humans and ghosts use are also different. Why else do you think there’s that old saying, ’looks like a ghost’s scrawl’? It refers to this Ghost script—people can’t understand it, so they think it looks like a randomly drawn Talisman.”

Zhao Yuan sighed. ”I see. No wonder every method I tried to communicate with it was useless.” He suddenly thought of something and quickly asked, ”Hey, wait. If I can’t communicate with it, how am I supposed to find out what kind of unresolved wish it has? How can I help it fulfill it?”

Ying Ji answered, ”There are three ways to communicate with a Ghost. First, make the Ghost your Ghost Spirit. Once you do that, there will be no more barriers to your conversation. Second, raise your Cultivation to the Qi Listening Realm and communicate with the Ghost through Qi. The third way is to learn the Ghost Language and its script.”

”You can learn Ghost Language and its script?” Zhao Yuan was surprised.

”Of course you can.” Ying Ji gave him a look that screamed ’you uncultured swine’ and said, ”This is exactly what Witch Priests specialize in. What, you’ve never learned it?”

She was quite puzzled. Zhao Yuan could even recognize the script used by Witch Priests in Ancient Times for sacrificial rites, so how could he not have learned Ghost Language and its script? From his expression, it didn’t look like he was faking it; he seemed to have genuinely never heard of such a thing.

Zhao Yuan gave a wry smile. ”I’m not a Witch Priest, so why would I have learned that? Oh, right, you must have learned Ghost Language and its script, right? Could you talk to it for me? Tell it to get into your jar. And while you’re at it, ask what unresolved wish it needs my help with.”

Zhao Yuan really wasn’t used to having a Ghost clinging to him every day, especially a female one. He wanted to get rid of it as quickly as possible.

A flash of embarrassment crossed Ying Ji’s face. ”Well, I... I’ve learned it, but I’m not very proficient...”

She was telling the truth. Although she had been studying Ghost Language and its script since she was a child, it was much harder than learning a foreign language. Even though Ying Ji had the best aptitude among the younger generation of the Ying Family, she was still terrible at it. She could manage a simple greeting, but asking about an unresolved wish was too much to ask of her.

Zhao Yuan rolled his eyes and retorted, ”You haven’t even mastered it yourself, and you have the nerve to lecture me... Huh?”

Ying Ji was about to fire back a sarcastic comment when she heard Zhao Yuan’s cry of surprise and couldn’t help but ask curiously, ”What’s wrong?”

Zhao Yuan pointed into the grand courtyard. ”It went inside.”

”The Ghost that’s Chaining itself to you?” Ying Ji asked.

”Yes.” Zhao Yuan nodded, stepping over the threshold and into the courtyard.

Ying Ji was astonished. ”It actually got through my family’s main gate? The stone lions didn’t even stop it? What’s going on? Is it so powerful that the lions couldn’t stop it, or does it have some Secret Technique to get past them undetected?”

Zhao Yuan was just as surprised. The stone lions at the gate were one thing, but the Runes in the plaque should have also worked. Recalling how the Fearless Pearl and the Exorcism Talisman had also been ineffective, he felt that this female Ghost was truly shrouded in unsolvable mysteries.

After her surprise faded, Ying Ji’s expression grew serious. She said in a solemn tone, ”Come on, I’m taking you to see the Ancestor! The Ghost Chaining itself to you is just too strange. In our family, I’m afraid only she can solve this for you!”

Zhao Yuan nodded. ”Then I will have to impose on Her Ladyship. Please, lead the way.”

Ying Ji led Zhao Yuan through the estate, crossing courtyards until they entered a beautiful garden. A two-story building with carved railings and Jade masonry stood within it.

The two humans and one Ghost had just stepped into the garden, not yet having reached the small building, when its wooden door opened with a CREAK.

A burly, broad-shouldered middle-aged man appeared by the door. His chilling gaze swept over the two humans and the Ghost—Zhao Yuan was certain he had seen the female Ghost, because his eyes clearly lingered on her for a moment.

The middle-aged man’s gaze finally settled on Zhao Yuan.

That gaze carried an intense chill. The moment it locked onto Zhao Yuan, a powerful, hair-raising sensation washed over him.

However, the middle-aged man made no other moves. After staring at Zhao Yuan for a few moments, he made a gesture of invitation and said, ”The guest has arrived. The master bids you enter.” Then, his form suddenly contorted, dissolving into wisps of black smoke and vanishing in an instant.

HISS!

Zhao Yuan sucked in a sharp breath. Only then did he realize that the middle-aged man he had just seen wasn’t a person, but a Ghost!

’This must be the one Ying Ji mentioned before—her Ancestor’s Ghost Spirit that has reached the level of a Human Soul!’

’This Ghost Spirit can actually speak human words. It seems the Ying Family Ancestor is truly an expert at Ghost Cultivation and training.’

Ying Ji whispered, ”Looks like the Ancestor already knew you were here. For her to have Grandpa Niu come out to greet you, she must have a pretty good impression of you. Come on, let’s go in quickly. We shouldn’t keep the Ancestor waiting.”

Zhao Yuan nodded and followed Ying Ji into the small building.

As for the female Ghost, she of course followed them inside as well. She showed no signs of worry, still looking like a curious child as she glanced around at everything.

Inside the building, the light was somewhat dim, but Zhao Yuan could still see an old woman with white hair and a youthful complexion sitting in a grand armchair, studying him.