Wang Linchi, after reaping the rewards of capturing the Snake Bone Witch and a zombie, naturally returned home with a full load.

Upon his return and further research, he discovered an interesting fact. Although he couldn't control the Snake Bone Witch, he was able to manipulate her through the zombie.

The Snake Bone Witch, who didn't even fear the Three Corpse Brain Worm Pill, was terrified of Wang Linchi threatening her zombie husband.

For instance, when he inspected the zombie's body structure, she was particularly frantic, somewhat resembling a victim witnessing a Minotaur's aggressions.

Thus, Wang Linchi, through the zombie, easily managed to keep the Snake Bone Witch in check.

In doing so, he discovered a new value in this zombie.

If it were any other zombie, Wang Linchi would probably have burnt it after his research because they are essentially useless, possessing at most a corpse-poisoning ability.

Even the highly-esteemed Drought Demon was practically on par with a zombie.

Zombies were at least better off; the Drought Demon would literally be dragged out to be burnt.

But the zombie in his possession was different. Even though it was nothing special, not a Corpse King or such, it greatly assisted him with the Snake Bone Witch.

He could consider using the zombie as one of the Guardian Spirit's components, facilitating a bond with the Snake Bone Witch and enhancing their connectedness. Essentially, this would turn them into an inseparable pair even in death.

Essentially, it was not the zombie that was important but the unique relationship between the Snake Bone Witch and the zombie. Wang Linchi was exploiting this kinship to form a completely new ability.

Through his research, Wang Linchi discovered a previously unexplored ability of the Snake Bone Witch.

That is, what he conjectured to be a Seal Ability.

The tomb she guarded possessed this Seal Ability. Hence, even though her husband had become a zombie, he was unable to leave the tomb, providing a sort of unconventional protection.

However, he would require further research to understand how the two could be connected.

Recently, his research had been making him feel somewhat overwhelmed. Simultaneously studying ten ghosts had him incredibly busy.

Moreover, his actions terrified the Powerful Ghost King and the Raksha Ghost. This was mainly because when Wang Linchi truly began his research, collecting samples of their bodily tissues, they felt a spine-chilling terror.

As for the Fox Ghost, it sensed that something was off. But it had already accepted its fate, chewing daily on various treats concocted by Wang Linchi's high-tech devices. It lived each day as it came.

Although such snacks were unhealthy, they tasted amazing.

This Secret Realm was of an ancient type, with inherently underdeveloped productivity. As such, delicious food was scarce.

"Whew, time to cultivate." Wang Linchi, having finished his research for the day, washed his hands and told the Five Weird Ghosts, who had been his research subjects, to find a cool place to stay.

"Given the current progress, another month or so should see everything wrapped up."

Considering the Five Weird Ghosts' previous experiences and substantial data at his disposal, Wang Linchi felt confident about most of his experiments.

The only uncertainty was potential rejection.

The Five Weird Ghosts could merge together because they were inherently one in five.

He intended to use the Five Weird Ghosts to integrate the Fox Ghost, the Powerful Ghost King, Raksha Ghost, Snake Bone Witch, and the zombie into one entity, essentially cramming five beings into one.

The Five Weird Ghosts merely provided a medium for the fusion, but he needed a little help to truly resolve the issue of rejection.

Wang Linchi found this help in the Longevity Fruit.

He had three Longevity Fruits remaining, enough for his needs.

Originally, there were four, but he sacrificed one to allow himself to stay an extra year in this Secret Realm.

Otherwise, he too would have been rejected from the Secret Realm by now.

"It's truly unimaginable that someone actually lives here."

Wang Linchi heard the murmuring from afar and went outside to take a look.

All his ghost subjects had already hidden on his command.

"You are?" Wang Linchi inquired.

If they hadn't sought him out, Wang Linchi wouldn't have bothered. Since they came, he might as well ask about their intentions.

The visitors were all dressed as house servants. Wang Linchi recognized them at a glance as they were dressed like the servants who accompanied the elegantly dressed youth a few days ago.

"May I ask what brings the Young Master here?" the lead servant inquired with a bow.

"I've been enjoying an outing in the wilderness for a few days, experiencing its hardships. Has something happened?" Wang Linchi replied, asking a question in return.

"A few days ago, our young master heard rumors of a zombie prowling this area. Thus, he hired a Wanderer to help eradicate it. Unfortunately, the Wanderer perished, and the zombie managed to escape. Now, our master has tasked us with tracking down the zombie," the house servant spoke, part truth and part fabrication.

The part about helping and eliminating the zombie was false, but their search for the zombie was genuine.

And of course, the purpose was to avenge his son.

"What?! Zombies here?!" Wang Linchi also exhibited shock and fear.

"Please, go ahead. I must pack and leave. If even the Wanderer they hired was killed, my meager self would likely become zombie fodder."

Wang Linchi began to pack, paying them no further mind.

The house servants exchanged glances. Based on his attire and complexion, Wang Linchi was clearly not an ordinary person.

"Might as well go to Yuan City. Rumor has it that Yuan City is..." Wang Linchi revealed his plan in a voice audible to the servants.

"Young Master, I'm afraid going to Yuan City isn't possible," the lead servant warned.

"Why so?" Wang Linchi intentionally asked, using it as an opportunity to inquire about the circumstances in Yuan City.

"Yuan City has been massacred. They say it was done by foreigners. The whole city turned into a river of blood. I don't know what they were up to."

"Luckily, the Court sent in experts who fought off the villains. However, the villains were so skilled they managed to escape. Now, the Court has issued a Sea Catch Warrant, but no one knows where the villains have taken shelter," the servant added.

Living outside the city and focused on his research, Wang Linchi hadn't taken the time to inquire.

He had never expected such a significant event to occur in Yuan City, and the news shocked him.

Thankfully, he had fled in time. He wasn't sure if Yuan City would be massacred had he been a bit slower, but he certainly would have suffered.

Just because he messed up the plot of what seemed like an Elite Gold Level Awakener, the other party wouldn't let him go.

"Terrifying, truly terrifying," Wang Linchi said this honestly. "The Awakeners of the Dajing Court are ruthless—they would massacre a city at the slightest disagreement."

"Naturally, Young Master, you should return home as soon as possible. It's always unsafe outside."

"We have our master's important affairs to attend to and hence, cannot keep you company," the head servant added before leading everyone away.

They never even considered that it would have been Wang Linchi's doing.

Logic was necessary. Without any logical basis, simply assuming Wang Linchi was the killer would be unbelievable—unless he had some kind of 'taunt aura' drawing suspicion. Under normal circumstances, suspecting a mere passerby wouldn't be credible. Even their master wouldn't believe it; he would only think the house servant was looking for a scapegoat.

The problem was, their master didn't want a scapegoat; he wanted revenge for his son.

After everyone left, Wang Linchi's brow furrowed.

I wonder if this will backfire.

No, experiments must be temporarily put aside. I need to run first.

Saving his life was the most critical thing.

While the Awakener who had arrived had been driven away and was now being hunted, who knew if he would turn up in Lang City? A concealed place must be found.

Wait, not concealed, but a village with no outsiders.

Wang Linchi's reasoning was simple: the fact that the arrived Awakener was now wanted likely meant he couldn't win a direct confrontation. Therefore, he too would probably be looking for a secluded place to lay low and avoid attention.

What if he ran into him?

He wasn't Yan Ming King, so things wouldn't necessarily be so melodramatic, but he couldn't rule out sheer coincidence.

It would be best to find a discreet village around Lang City. Wang Linchi thought it through; that seemed the most reliable plan.

If they met again, then there was nothing Wang Linchi could do.

If such an improbable, needle-in-a-haystack chance occurred, then it would simply be his misfortune.

"All the ghosts gather. We've got to hit the road," Wang Linchi called out, and the hiding ghosts ran out.

The Five Weird Ghosts obediently packed up. They were at the bottom of the oppression hierarchy.

Wang Linchi wasn't slow, and soon he had crammed everything into the Soul Seed Page·Storage Space.

"The plan ahead is..." Wang Linchi briefly outlined his plan.

He was worried. Although he had cleaned up the traces of what he did in Yuan City and prepared for the aftermath, for an Elite Gold Level Awakener, he might have left some kind of aura sufficient to track him. Therefore, he needed to make necessary preparations.

Those preparations were naturally for escaping the Secret Realm.

Fighting an Elite Gold Level Awakener? That was impossible. He and an Elite Gold Level Awakener weren't in the same league.

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