Chapter 55: The Cursed House and the Immortal Shard

The young woman offered a faint smile, yet within its gentle curve lay a bitterness difficult to discern.

“This used to be a beautiful place,” she murmured, “but it was later cursed.”

Her voice was low and magnetic, each word seemingly burdened with a heavy truth.

“Many years ago, a shocking tragedy unfolded here. A husband, swayed by groundless rumors, personally murdered his wife and son…”

As she spoke, the young woman’s gaze grew profound, as if lost in distant memories.

She gently turned her head, looking at Bai Mengqi, who stood nearby. “Young lady,” she calmly asked, “if it were you, wronged and even killed by the one closest to you, what would you do?”

Upon hearing this, Bai Mengqi instinctively surveyed her surroundings.

This room, which had initially felt warm and comfortable, suddenly took on a gloomy atmosphere after the young woman’s question.

The light seemed to be swallowed by some invisible force, and every corner of the room exuded a palpable sense of oppression.

****

A middle-aged man, reeking of alcohol and his face contorted in rage, burst into the house.

“Kayako! Get out here!” His voice echoed like thunder through the room, laden with boundless fury and violence.

Soon, a frail, helpless-looking woman stumbled out of the kitchen, her face a mask of confusion and terror as she beheld her husband’s fierce expression.

“Saeki, what—what’s wrong?” The woman’s voice trembled, unable to comprehend the source of his intense anger.

Saeki’s fury only intensified at her words.

He lunged forward, grabbing her hair and violently slamming her to the ground, before unleashing a torrent of abuse and brutal blows.

“You wretched whore, do you know what everyone outside says about you? They say you seduce men, and that little bastard is not mine! Tell me, what is going on?”

The young woman, her face etched with grievance, tirelessly defended herself.

“I didn’t! Don’t listen to their nonsense, I truly didn’t!”

Yet, the man refused to listen to her explanations.

Ultimately, in a fit of uncontrollable rage, he committed a heinous act, brutally murdering the young woman and dismembering her. The scene was gruesome and cruel, unbearable to witness.

Their son bore witness to every horrific moment.

Even more terrifying, the deranged man pursued his own child and murdered him as well.

After the killings, he hid the bodies of mother and son in the attic, seemingly intent on burying this dark chapter forever.

When the police arrived, the man skillfully deflected their inquiries with various excuses.

However, the young woman’s soul did not dissipate.

She transformed into a vengeful spirit, ceaselessly tormenting her husband. Her power steadily grew.

Eventually, she became a resentful ghost. With her newfound strength, she killed her husband, avenging herself and her child.

The house, consequently, became a cursed dwelling. Due to the unique nature of the land in Japan, the young woman’s怨气 could not easily disperse; instead, it grew stronger and stronger.

She began to relentlessly kill everyone who moved into the house.

As her victims multiplied, her resentment grew even more ferocious.

Eventually, this concentrated resentment manifested as a barrier, steadily engulfing the small town.

It was only after she had killed over half of the town’s population that her presence was finally detected, leading to multiple exorcists joining forces to seal her away.

Even so, the area remained a forbidden zone for the living.

Bai Mengqi watched it all unfold from beginning to end, her heart filled with complex emotions.

From a human perspective, she deeply sympathized with the young woman’s plight.

Even when the young woman later transformed into a resentful spirit and killed her husband and those who spread rumors, Bai Mengqi felt they deserved it.

However, the young woman’s later spree of killings had spiraled completely out of control.

Her power was like a virus; anyone who touched it would be tracked down and killed if they had ever entered the house.

An unknown number of innocents met their tragic end at her hands.

“I deeply sympathize with your experience.”

Bai Mengqi finally broke the silence.

“However, I’m not here to kill you. Hand over that energy shard; it belongs to me.”

Before Bai Mengqi stated her true purpose, the young woman had remained relatively calm.

But upon hearing that the other party had come for the mysterious shard she had unexpectedly acquired, her gaze suddenly turned sinister and terrifying.

Her long hair floated like venomous snakes, and a thick aura of resentment emanated from her entire being.

Her once gentle image gradually demonized, transforming into a hideous, malevolent ghost with a distorted face.

“So, you’ve come to steal my treasure?”

The young woman’s voice was hoarse and grating.

“This object allows me to regain my sanity. If I give it to you, I will lose control once more.”

Her tone was filled with resolute anger, as if the shard were her only lifeline.

Bai Mengqi observed the young woman’s transformation and immediately let out a cold snort. With a wave of her hand, a surge of pure spiritual energy diffused outward, forming a massive hand that violently slapped the ghost away.

The young woman, now a malevolent ghost, crashed heavily against the wall and dispersed into a cloud of black mist.

But soon after, the black mist re-condensed into a ghostly form. She began to crawl across the surrounding walls like a spider.

If this were any other ordinary evil spirit, Bai Mengqi could have killed it with a single slap.

Bai Mengqi gazed at the young woman, speaking without sorrow or joy: “The shard within you is inherently mine. It is only right that I reclaim it.”

Upon hearing this, the young woman roared again.

The sound was terrifying and piercing, seemingly capable of penetrating one’s soul.

Simultaneously, various grotesque evil spirits began to materialize all around them.

These were the people the young woman had killed over the years; after their deaths, most had become her puppets.

“In that case, you shall die!”

The young woman cackled menacingly. “Perhaps by devouring you, I will become even more powerful.”

With that, she commanded the evil spirits to charge at Bai Mengqi.

However, Bai Mengqi didn’t even spare a glance for these spirits.

She merely intensified the power of her protective divine light. Any evil spirits that came too close were instantly incinerated into nothingness by the divine light.

Or rather, their ghostly forms were shattered, transforming into formless resentment.

Seeing this, the young woman’s expression subtly shifted. She had not expected this seemingly young woman to possess such formidable strength.

Nevertheless, she had no intention of giving up. Her body gradually merged with the walls, as if becoming one with the house.

Immediately after, countless strands of hair, sharp as steel needles, pierced out from all directions.

These hairs were imbued with potent resentment, making them difficult for even ordinary exorcists to handle.

However, in Bai Mengqi’s eyes, these attacks were nothing more than child’s play.

The hair-needles struck Bai Mengqi’s protective divine light as if hitting an iron plate.

“I told you, it’s useless,” Bai Mengqi said dismissively, then formed a hand seal.

Immediately, a massive surge of golden lightning coursed through the hair strands, striking the entire house.

This was her lightning technique, specifically designed to counter malevolent entities.

“Ah…”

The young woman let out a bloodcurdling scream, her ghostly form continuously disintegrating under the onslaught of the lightning.

Yet, even this lightning technique, which was extremely effective against evil, could not completely eradicate her.

After her ghostly form was shattered, the young woman quickly re-condensed, as if possessing infinite vitality.

Bai Mengqi’s brow furrowed slightly as she observed the young woman’s transformation.

She hadn’t anticipated this evil spirit would be so troublesome.

But soon, she discerned the crux of the problem.

The immortal crystal shard within the young woman had been corroded by resentment, changing from its original golden hue to a dark purple. This indicated that the shard had been inside the young woman for a very long time, and its immortal power was on the verge of being completely assimilated by her.