NABC 069 New Party Member?
069 New Party Member?
069 New Party Member?
Hei Mao hesitated for only a moment before stepping forward and wrapping his small arms around his family.
It was warm.
Warmer than he remembered.
The light surrounding them grew brighter and brighter until it consumed everything. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Hei Mao felt whole.
But then—his arms met empty air.
The warmth faded.
And when the light receded, his family was gone.
Hei Mao blinked. He stared at the now-empty space where they had been, then looked down at his own hands. He was still here. He had not moved on with them.
Confused, he turned to Da Wei, the strange man who had helped him. “Why...?”
Da Wei studied him for a moment before shrugging. “Guess you still have unfinished business.”
Hei Mao lowered his gaze.
Unfinished business.
Right.
The people in black masks were still out there.
Hei Mao clenched his fists.
He had spent so long clinging to the past, afraid to let go, afraid to be alone. But his family had moved on. And now... maybe it was time he did too.
He turned back to Da Wei.
“Thank you,” Hei Mao said.
Da Wei grinned. “No problem. So, where are you going to go now?”
Hei Mao paused, then met Da Wei’s gaze with newfound resolve.
“I’m going to find the people who killed my family.”
Da Wei tilted his head. “I don’t know about revenge, but do you want to come with me?”
Hei Mao’s lips parted slightly in surprise. “I... I can’t...” His voice trembled. He lowered his gaze. “I’m a dirty ghost...”
Da Wei groaned dramatically and ran a hand through his hair. “How do I put this... Uuuh...” He snapped his fingers. “I think there could be another reason you weren’t able to move on.”
Hei Mao frowned. “What do you mean?”
Da Wei nodded to himself, then pointed at Hei Mao. “I think it’s because of your cultivation.”
“...What?”
“Well,” Da Wei started, rubbing his chin. “Ghosts sometimes, after death, have so much resentment or spiritual power that they kind of cultivate? Yeah, that’s about it. Looking at you right now, I’d say you’re about at the Spirit Mystery Realm.”
Hei Mao stared blankly.
Da Wei continued, completely unfazed by Hei Mao’s silence. “Which is the Fourth Realm, by the way. A pretty decent level, honestly. I don’t know how long you’ve been haunting this place, but it could’ve been years. Hundreds? Maybe thousands?” He shrugged. “Who knows if you’d even recognize the people responsible for this tragedy?”
Hei Mao stiffened, staring at his hands. They were no longer ghostly and translucent but solid—almost real. He flexed his fingers, feeling a strange warmth coursing through them, a sensation he hadn’t felt in...
How long had it been?
His breath hitched—no, he wasn’t even breathing. He didn’t need to. He was still a ghost. And yet...
“What... What did you do to me?” Hei Mao whispered.
Da Wei rubbed the back of his head, looking a little sheepish. “Ah, yeah... So, you kind of transformed into a Holy Spirit... because of my skill.” He gestured vaguely at Hei Mao as if that explained everything.
Hei Mao’s gaze snapped up to him. “Holy Spirit?”
Da Wei shrugged. “Don’t ask me. Divine Possession and Turn Undead interacted in some way, and boom—you got an upgrade. Congratulations.”
Hei Mao clenched his fists. He didn’t feel much different. But the oppressive miasma that had surrounded him before was gone. His mind was clearer. “So... what now? What do I do now?”
Da Wei continued, his tone shifting to something softer. “I don’t mean to impose, but you’re kind of asking the wrong person here.” He met Hei Mao’s gaze. “What do you want to do?”
Hei Mao hesitated. “...I said I wanted to find the people who killed my family.”
Da Wei nodded. “Alright. And what are you going to do once you find them?”
Silence.
Hei Mao hadn’t thought that far ahead.
Da Wei tapped his chin. “And what are you going to do in between?”
Hei Mao frowned.
Da Wei smirked. “Let’s say finding the people who killed your family is your long-term goal. What’s your short-term goal?”
Then, Lu Gao clapped his hands together, grinning. “We’re honored to meet a powerful elder like yourself.”
Powerful what? Hei Mao blinked.
Ren Xun looked intrigued. “To think Master Da Wei had such a formidable subordinate hidden away...”
Subordinate? Hei Mao’s eye twitched.
Gu Jie, though more reserved, still studied him with wary interest. “I hadn’t heard of you before. But considering our Master’s eccentricities, I suppose that isn’t surprising.”
Hei Mao turned his head sharply, eyes locking onto Da Wei.
Da Wei, standing off to the side, met his gaze with a completely unrepentant grin. Slowly, as if adding insult to injury, he raised a thumbs-up in a sneaky manner.
Hei Mao’s mouth fell open slightly.
What was this nonsense?!
Hei Mao thought about it... and then decided to ride the wave, straightening his back and lifting his chin ever so slightly. If they wanted to believe he was some mysterious, powerful figure, then who was he to deny them?
“I am Hei Mao,” he said in what he hoped was a regal tone. “An... er... friend of Da Wei.”
For a brief moment, he felt pleased with himself. Yes, that sounded good.
Then, immediately, he regretted it.
Lu Gao’s eyes gleamed with excitement. “Senior Hei Mao, what was your relationship to the Holy Spirit Dai Fu?”
“The... what?” Hei Mao asked, blinking.
Ren Xun stepped in smoothly, his tone full of admiration. “The Holy Spirit Dai Fu, of course. Master Da Wei must have mentioned him to you. A being of great spiritual power and wisdom. Surely, as a fellow spirit of high cultivation, you must have known him.”
Hei Mao had never heard that name before in his existence. He carefully nodded, pretending to be deep in thought. “Ah, yes... Dai Fu...”
“Then, is it true?” Gu Jie asked, narrowing her eyes. “That the Holy Spirit Dai Fu once faced the Demon Seal Sect’s elder in single combat and won?”
“Uhh... sure?” Hei Mao replied hesitantly.
Before he could even process that conversation, Lu Gao leaned in with another question. “What about your relationship with the Black Clan?”
“The what?” Hei Mao asked, feeling lost again.
“The Black Clan,” Ren Xun repeated. “The cultivators who protect the Empire! They lurk in the shadows and hunt in the shadows. They were believed to have vanished centuries ago. Your aura... it feels reminiscent of their teachings.”
Hei Mao was starting to sweat—if ghosts could even do that. “Oh, uh... well, you see... the Black Clan and I...” What was he even saying?
Gu Jie’s eyes sharpened. “So the rumors are true?”
“Y-yeah?” Hei Mao offered weakly.
His own words were digging him deeper and deeper, and there was no escape.
“And your cultivation?” Ren Xun asked, changing the topic. “At your level, surely you have reached the Sixth Realm?”
Hei Mao almost choked. “The... Fourth Realm,” he blurted out. At least, that’s what Da Wei had told him earlier.
The trio exchanged glances, nodding in approval as if that explained everything. “The Fourth Realm and already this powerful... as expected.”
Hei Mao forced a smile, feeling exhausted just from this conversation. Why were these guys so aggressive? They asked their questions like they were trying to interrogate him for top-secret information.
For a moment, Hei Mao imagined if he actually had the power they assumed he did. He would have struck them where they stood... or maybe... uuh... lightly flicked them? Yeah, that. That sounded better.
Hei Mao had enough.
“No!” he snapped, throwing his hands in the air. “I am the new guy, okay?! Please don’t call me senior! My name is Hei Mao! And no, I don’t know any techniques! I also don’t have any powerful backing! I’m just a stray ghost that the weird guy picked up!”
Silence.
Gu Jie covered her mouth, shoulders shaking as she suppressed a chuckle. Lu Gao looked serious, but a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. Ren Xun chuckled a bit too obviously before retreating into the tent.
Da Wei, on the other hand, didn’t hold back at all. “Ha ha ha ha~! You should have seen your face!”
Hei Mao pouted. “You are so mean.”
Ren Xun returned from the tent, holding a small bracelet. He sighed and handed it over. “I don’t know what’s really happening, but orders are orders. Please don’t hold it against me, Mr. Hei. Master Da Wei told us to do it.”
Hei Mao blinked, taking the bracelet. A jade magatama hung from it, polished and cool to the touch.
“Gifts from us,” Gu Jie clarified. “I’ve received so much from Master, so this is a small thing.” She hesitated before handing over a scroll. “Sorry, this is the best I can do, and it’s a bit improper. I don’t think Master would mind, so here it is... This is a Scroll of Invisibility. Something Master gave me before.”
Lu Gao pulled something from his robes and handed over a ring. “This is my old storage ring. There’s nothing in it, but the ring itself should be useful to you. I can just buy a new one if I... ever regain my cultivation.”
Ren Xun snorted. “That’s some tough flexing.”
Hei Mao stared at the gifts in his hands. “It’s... too much.”
Da Wei nodded sagely. “Yeah, it’s too much.”
Hei Mao snapped his head up. “W-what?”
Da Wei grinned. “Just to clarify, I told them to prank you a bit, but the gifting part? That was wholly their idea. Why did they do it? I dunno...”
Gu Jie coughed awkwardly. “We were carried away, Master... that’s all.”