FCRCG Chapter 1

Drip—

Water droplets slid down from a broken light fixture above, pooling into a small puddle on the ground.

Nan Deng huddled in the corner, curling up his legs, too afraid to move.

This was an abandoned small amusement park and a fractured section of the wall perfectly shielded him.

A few people stood on the other side of the broken wall, their voices faintly reaching Nan Deng’s ears.

“How many have you caught?”

“With the six from tonight… thirty-seven.”

The speaker held a clay jar in his hands, which trembled constantly as if something inside was desperate to break free.

He moved swiftly, pasting two talisman papers onto the jar’s lid.

The talismans glowed faintly before dimming, and the jar gradually settled.

“There were 261 of them that escaped from the tower.”

Another person raised a wooden compass, scanning the surroundings cautiously. “That’s just the second-level resentful spirits. There must be at least a hundred left, and we’re not even halfway through.”

The group consisted of four individuals, all dressed in matching gray robes with simple golden embroidery on their shoulders. Small silver badges were pinned to their chests, engraved with a simple pattern—the emblem of celestial masters.

Nan Deng glanced toward the top of the broken wall, contemplating a way to escape.

Most of the ghosts that had originally inhabited the abandoned amusement park had been captured. He had managed to evade detection, but now he might be the only one left.

The celestial masters had a compass that could track the location of ghosts and they’d also used an invisible barrier to enclose the entire amusement park.

Nan Deng had personally seen several ghosts try to flee, only to be intercepted by the barrier, their agonized screams echoing as they failed to escape.

Listening to the group’s movements, he slowly shifted toward the other side, trying his best to keep himself hidden.

Falling water droplets passed through his semi-transparent spectral body without making a sound.

He could only wait for them to leave; only then would the barrier vanish.

“There’s a heavy presence of malicious energy here. Let’s search further inside.”

The four celestial masters continued forward, carefully inspecting the area with slow, deliberate steps. Bits of conversation occasionally broke the silence.

“That karmic tower stood for a thousand years. This is the first time it’s collapsed…”

“And right at a time like this…”

“Dawn’s coming soon. Let’s hurry.”

Taking advantage of this brief opening, Nan Deng shifted to the right side of the broken wall.

The needle on the wooden compass wavered, failing to lock onto a specific direction.

The four celestial masters truly hadn’t noticed him and, with their backs to the wall, moved farther away.

Nan Deng let out a strained sigh of relief, rubbing his cold palms against his knees.

“Over there!”

Bang—

A sudden loud noise startled Nan Deng, causing him to tremble.

He looked toward the source of the commotion and saw a tall, slender black shadow roaring as it darted and climbed through the collapsing rubble.

It was another ghost. Moving on all fours with grotesquely distorted proportions, it continuously spat blue flames from its mouth, attacking the four people surrounding it.

“It’s a third-level resentful spirit!” shouted the tallest of the group as he dodged to the side, scattering a handful of talismans into the air. The talismans spun in a circle but were deftly avoided by the shadow.

“A third-level…?” His companion beside him gripped a wooden sword tightly, fear evident in his voice. “Should we call for backup?”

Recently, the area had been shrouded in heavy malicious energy, attracting numerous ghosts. A few days ago, higher-ranking celestial masters had already conducted a round of purging here.

A third-level resentful spirit was moderately powerful. Although their group had four people, two of them were newly promoted from apprentices to junior celestial masters. This time, they had accompanied their seniors to capture stray low-level ghosts.

For their small team, subduing a third-level resentful spirit was a daunting task.

The shadow seemed unwilling to engage the celestial masters. It spat a large burst of blue flames before leaping to the top of the rubble and vaulting into the air.

The junior celestial master wielding the wooden sword couldn’t dodge in time and a scorch mark appeared on the side of his face.

Bang—

Another loud crash echoed as the shadow slammed into an invisible wall. With a furious roar, a small patch of web-like light shimmered in the air.

It climbed back to its feet, tearing off the talismans stuck to its body before charging toward the barrier, attempting to break through.

Bang—Bang—

The shadow struck with immense force, causing tiny sparks to flicker along the barrier as though it might truly break.

Nan Deng grew nervous as well. If this ghost could destroy the barrier, he might finally have a chance to escape.

The leader of the celestial masters remained composed, driving a wooden sword coated in talisman water toward the shadow.

The shadow, fixated on fleeing, took a hit to its back. It let out a harrowing scream, shaking its body violently until the wooden sword was flung off.

Then it turned abruptly, lunging at the closest person.

The dim night made visibility poor. Nan Deng dared not look up for too long. Instead, he kept his eyes fixed on the fence beside him, praying for the barrier to fail.

The commotion intensified. The shadow’s blood sprayed from its wounds, glowing blue and sizzling as it hit the ground, burning anything it touched. Several celestial masters were injured.

“We’re almost out of talismans!”

“Watch out!”

The glowing blood splattered. One celestial master stumbled back, clutching his burned arm. “This resentful spirit… It’s nearing the fourth level!”

Minor wounds seemed to have no effect on the shadow, but the blood it shed successfully restricted the group’s movements.

The barrier managed to trap it, but that was all it could do—just trap.

The team had already sent a signal to the inner court, summoning nearby celestial masters for assistance. But if no one came…

They would have no choice but to let the ghost go and track it down later.

The leader of the celestial masters put away his communicator. Distracted for a moment, he didn’t notice as the shadow raised a section of an iron pillar and swung it down forcefully.

A companion quickly pulled him aside, taking the hit instead. Blue flames seared his wrist, drawing a cry of pain.

The shadow seized the opportunity. Its withered arm grabbed the injured celestial master by the collar, dragging him closer. Its mouth opened wide, revealing jagged, uneven fangs.

The situation escalated rapidly, the danger palpable. One of the other celestial masters immediately considered deactivating the barrier to release the shadow.

“Pfft—”

At that moment, a beam of light shot in from afar, piercing through the black shadow’s body completely.

The black shadow staggered forward, clutching the wound on its chest as it struggled to stand upright.

The beam of light dissipated, revealing a silver Bagua ring suspended in midair, spinning continuously.

A junior celestial master nearby brightened at the sight. “Reinforcements are here!”

His companion, however, stared at the Bagua ring with a mix of shock and uncertainty. “That’s…”

Sensing something unusual, Nan Deng cautiously lifted his head.

From his vantage point, he could see a faint silhouette appear at the amusement park’s main gate.

The newcomer was also a celestial master, striding effortlessly into the barrier’s range.

Though heavily injured, the black shadow remained imposing, screeching as it retreated.

Realizing the dire situation, it carefully observed the person who was steadily approaching.

At the same time, the four celestial masters also retreated, as though they shared the same apprehension as the ghost.

“It’s Chief… Lian,” someone whispered.

There were only seven chief celestial masters in the inner court. The team had expected reinforcements to be a nearby squad like themselves, not someone as formidable as Lian Yi.

Of the four-person team, only the leader had ever seen Lian Yi in person. The others had only heard of the name but never encountered him directly.

At some point, the surrounding malicious energy grew even thicker, the clouds overhead blotting out the faintly brightening sky.

An oppressive, chilling aura pressed down, as though freezing the very air.

If not for the Bagua ring hovering midair, the celestial masters might have doubted whether the approaching figure was even alive.

In just a few breaths, the figure stepped through the barrier and finally revealed a coldly handsome profile.

He was tall and clad in black robes, similar in style to those worn by the other celestial masters. With a slight lift of his right hand, the Bagua ring moved again, launching another attack on the black shadow.

The black shadow dodged swiftly, narrowly evading the strike.

However, blood continued to gush from the gaping wound in its chest. It gasped heavily, scooping up a handful of its own blood before lunging toward the man.

But before it could take more than two steps, the Bagua ring whirled back at high speed, slamming into the black shadow’s back.

The ghost collapsed awkwardly to the ground, pinned by the seemingly small silver artifact, which weighed on it as though it carried the force of a thousand pounds. Its twisted spine creaked under the pressure.

The earlier team retreated to the side, their expressions filled with awe.

The chief celestial master’s strength was indeed terrifying. The ghost that they couldn’t handle even as a group had been subdued effortlessly.

Seeing that the third-level resentful spirit was entirely incapacitated, the team leader stepped forward. “Thank you, Chief, for saving us. We were responding to an urgent mission to capture resentful spirits that escaped from the Karmic Tower…”

It was customary to report to a higher-ranking celestial master. Bowing his head, the leader continued, “The guardian spirit of this area was confirmed dead yesterday, which caused many resentful spirits to flee here. Over the past three days, we’ve captured thirty-seven of them. This one is the thirty-eighth.”

The guardian spirit of this area had originally been an ancient tree. Its presence had served to weaken the malice in the atmosphere. Now that the guardian spirit was dead, the ghosts had naturally become more rampant.

“Apart from that, more than a dozen locals have been harmed by resentful spirits, resulting in varying degrees of vitality loss. They’ve all received medicine and gone home. We’ve also affixed talismans to their houses…”

On the ground, the black shadow continued to struggle. The Bagua ring remained immovable as the ghost clawed angrily at the earth, spewing indistinct curses: “I’ll kill you all…”

Standing at the forefront, Lian Yi gazed downward, his cold aura exuding superiority.

A faint furrow appeared between his brows, a sign of growing impatience. It seemed he wanted the ghost to shut up.

The Bagua ring pressed down further, snapping the black shadow’s spine. At the same time, white flames rose from the ground, encircling the ghost completely.

Burned by the flames, the black shadow let out a series of harrowing screams.

“Chief, may I ask…”

The team leader’s voice trembled slightly at the horrific scene. After taking a deep breath, he continued, “Why have you come here?”

Typically, when celestial masters captured resentful spirits, they would seal them in clay jars or similar artifacts before transferring them to the Karmic Tower.

The tower contained formations designed to purify resentment and malice. Over time, the spirits would lose their strength, reverting to ordinary souls and eventually moving on to where they belonged.

However, purifying a resentful spirit on the spot—forcing it to relive the manner of its death before killing it again—not only consumed a great deal of spiritual energy but was rarely done, even by powerful celestial masters.

Resentful spirits were once human. For celestial masters to kill them again would inevitably increase their own karmic burden.

The white flames continued to burn, illuminating the surrounding grass. Aside from the sound of the wind, the only noise was the ghost’s mournful wails as it approached complete dissolution.

The junior celestial master standing at the very back had never seen such a scene before. Unable to suppress his unease, he glanced to the side.

Lian Yi stood at the forefront, his expression still cold and detached.

In the firelight, his left eye reflected an unnatural gleam, its grayish hue marking it as unusual.

He wore no badge and the all-black uniform made it difficult to identify his rank at a glance. Coupled with his heterochromatic black-and-gray eye, he exuded an indescribable aura of menace.

The junior celestial master recalled certain rumors about Lian Yi and quickly averted his gaze, bowing his head under the suffocating pressure.

At last, the resentful spirit on the ground was completely destroyed, leaving behind only a faint orb of light that drifted away by the wind.

The Bagua ring let out a soft hum before returning to Lian Yi’s hand.

He stowed the ring away and spoke: “Just passing through.”

The implication was clear—he wasn’t here on official business and didn’t need anyone’s assistance.

The team leader discreetly exhaled in relief. “Understood…”

Meanwhile, Nan Deng, hiding in the corner, trembled uncontrollably.

He had heard everything. The newcomer seemed incredibly powerful and that ghost hadn’t been able to escape its fate.

If he were caught, he would likely meet the same end.

At that moment, Nan Deng caught sight of another translucent figure crawling toward him.

It was the ghost of a young girl. She slowly approached the broken wall and looked up at him, revealing a face marred with burn scars.

Nan Deng’s eyelashes quivered as he made a shushing gesture and waved his hand gently.

The little girl didn’t seem to understand. She tilted her head, remaining motionless.

Summoning his courage, Nan Deng whispered in a barely audible voice: “There’s not enough space here.”

The broken wall wasn’t big enough to hide both of them; the little ghost needed to find another spot to conceal herself.

In the distance, the team leader was preparing to see Lian Yi off, while the others stayed behind to handle the aftermath.

The team leader maintained a respectful distance from Lian Yi, bowing his head deferentially.

Lian Yi suddenly stopped in his tracks, his gaze shifting sharply to a section of the broken wall off to the side.

The team leader immediately tensed. “What is it, Chief?”