# Chapter 14: Stronghold
Zzzt～
The realm-severing thread tightened, but it wrapped around a series of external bones. At this moment, the Nine-Eyed Ghost was like a porcupine, with rows of bones sprouting from the bone armor on its face, forming a cage that protected it within.
The Nine-Eyed Ghost took a deep breath, its head tilting back. As it exhaled, bone spikes shot out from the ventilation holes in its face armor.
Boom!
Several sonic booms merged into one, and eight bone spikes instantly flew to Su Xiao's face. They were clearly coated with poison—biological toxins, not lethal, but even with Su Xiao's constitution, they would paralyze him for several minutes.
In that instant, Su Xiao's right hand gripped the sword hilt.
Clang!
The long blade rang out sharply, and large pieces of bone fragments flew everywhere. Blade auras slashed toward the Nine-Eyed Ghost, severing its prized external bones instantly. Crisscrossing slash marks appeared on its body. This proved that against Su Xiao, who could fight Twelve-Eyed Ghosts, using his blade would make this Nine-Eyed Ghost die a miserable death.
Pfft.
Blood splattered. Su Xiao subconsciously swung his blade toward the Nine-Eyed Ghost's throat. All of the ghost's eyes went wide. Something called death was now incredibly close to it.
The long blade stopped just as it began to cut. Su Xiao couldn't help it—when the Nine-Eyed Ghost shot bone spikes at him, he instinctively drew his blade to counter. If he continued the slash, the ghost's chances of survival were very low. The Azure Steel Shadow energy was no joke; it was true damage that ignored defense.
The long blade returned to its sheath. Su Xiao stepped forward twice and punched the Nine-Eyed Ghost's neck.
Boom!
The Nine-Eyed Ghost staggered back, its body filled with intense pain and numbness. The control effect of Azure Steel Shadow had triggered.
After one punch to the throat and one to the heart, Su Xiao grabbed the Nine-Eyed Ghost's throat with one hand. A syringe appeared in his other hand, and he stabbed it straight into the ghost's eye.
Pfft. The syringe pierced below the eyeball, injecting a pinkish medicinal agent into the ghost's body.
"Immortal!"
The ghost roared as its body regained sensation. Its wide mouth, full of sharp teeth, opened, revealing a long tongue covered in saliva. Its hands stabbed toward its own throat. Clearly, this ghost was no small fry. Several exchanges had shown it the vast gap between itself and its enemy, and it knew what being captured alive meant. It did eat humans, but it couldn't betray its kin. Defeat was defeat; only death could compensate for the impact of its loss on its comrades. Moreover, being captured alive by the Execution Agency was worse than death.
Ding!
Sparks flew. Dragon-Slaying Flash caught the Nine-Eyed Ghost's claws, producing a harsh scraping sound. The drug took effect quickly.
"King..."
The Nine-Eyed Ghost left these words before its body went limp. As it lost consciousness, a face appeared in its mind—a woman who smiled with dimples. Mere humans, just food—how could they stir any emotion in its heart? At least, that's what the Nine-Eyed Ghost believed.
Yet, its appearance here today already explained one thing: the necessary arrangements had been made. The purpose of coming here was simply a woman named You'er. A woman different from food. A woman who, upon seeing its true form, wasn't afraid but instead smiled and poked its breathing holes—a special woman.
'You're pitiful too, only able to live by eating humans. As a human, I should report you to the Empire, you ugly thing. But why don't I want to do that at all? Maybe it's because of that monarch who seems witty but is actually crueler than a ghost.'
Thud. The Nine-Eyed Ghost collapsed. The last blurry image it saw was a man wiping blood from his hands, looking down at it. Kukulin Bai Ye. This must be the kind of person You'er hated. Definitely.
...
Sss, sss, sss...
The sound of metal scraping came. The Nine-Eyed Ghost opened its eyes in confusion. It tried to stand but found itself bound to a cross-shaped metal frame. Finger-thick iron chains pierced through its body, fixing it to the frame.
The Nine-Eyed Ghost looked around. This was a very enclosed room. Everything in sight was gray concrete. Not far away sat a bald old man on a short stool, sharpening a knife.
"You're awake? Then it's time to eat."
The bald old man had slightly mismatched eyes. His left lower leg was replaced by a wooden stick, and at the joint between the stick and his knee, traces of termite damage could still be seen.
"I have a few questions for you, but no rush. You can answer them before I finish eating you. Gah gah gah..."
The bald old man's shoulders shook, his whole body trembling. The next moment, the smile vanished from his face. Sometimes, humans could be more terrifying than ghosts—especially after their loved ones had been devoured alive by ghosts.
...
Inside the Vice Commander's Office.
"That's roughly it. The Ghost Ring's infiltration method should be the second type—they bribed officials in Zu'er City. Their goal is basically confirmed: the Execution Agency headquarters, or rather, something inside it."
Isevi Bonnie finished speaking and pulled out one of her smooth golden hairs, twirling it around her finger.
"If you keep using this reasoning method, you'll be bald by age seventeen at most."
Su Xiao chewed on black pepper steak, with a bowl of pea soup on the side. The steak was tender, each bite filling his mouth with meat juices. The pea soup was average.
"I will never go bald. Family secret hair growth formula. Yes, that's it."
Bonnie stretched. At only twelve years old, she certainly didn't have a curvaceous figure.
A knock came at the door. A bald old man with mismatched eyes entered the room. Seeing his hairstyle, Bonnie's eyes lit up—he might become her client.
"Sir, I've gotten the information. Burp~"
The bald old man smiled apologetically. From his current expression, he just looked like a kind old man.
"The Ghost Ring has four strongholds. One is at the Wild Boar Estate..."
A few minutes later, the bald old man left the office. Bonnie waved at him.
"Commander, I might have to step out for a bit. My client has invited me to lunch. It's hard to refuse. You wouldn't mind me earning some extra income, would you?"
Bonnie looked at Su Xiao with a 'pitiful' expression, using her age to her advantage to act cute.
"You don't want to go. Hank's lunch isn't suitable for you."
"Oh... I see. Yeah, it really isn't suitable for me."
The smile vanished from Bonnie's face. She was clever enough to vaguely guess what that lunch was from just a few words. Hank had just interrogated a ghost.
Su Xiao hesitated. He hesitated over whether to dispatch Awakened ones to surround the Ghost Ring's strongholds. If he did that, the risk would indeed be greatly reduced, but the mission completion rate would also drop significantly—possibly by two-thirds, no, even more.
Hank wasn't exactly Su Xiao's trusted confidant, but he was trustworthy. Because Su Xiao knew Hank's secret, even if he didn't dispatch the Execution Agency's Awakened ones to eliminate the Ghost Ring organization, it probably wouldn't be a problem. Of course, there was still risk—people's hearts are hard to read—but from a profit perspective, it was worth the gamble.
"Bubu, go notify Amu. Bonnie, Ubi has a very profitable business. Are you interested?"
"..."
Bonnie 'ignored' Su Xiao. She pulled a blanket from the sofa, kicked off her little shoes, and clearly intended to take a nap in the office. This proved that dealing with smart people was more convenient.
"Good afternoon, Commander. Bonnie is a bit tired and wants to sleep for a while."
"I heard you have an aunt in prison? After this matter, prepare to welcome her release."
"Mhm."
Bonnie closed her eyes to rest, the corner of her mouth curling beneath the blanket. What aunt did she have? The one in prison was her sister.
Reading URL: m.