The message came a little late, but overall it was timely. Just as Wen Xishu was sighing over the elder's death...
Dozens of ghastly smiling faces suddenly appeared around Wen Xishu.
These were a group of children, though their bodies looked like infants, their walking posture was not the crawling of infants, but rather the leaping of frogs.
Although their bodies resembled infants, they all had adult heads, each face bearing an eerie smile, their faces white as if painted with a coat of paint.
If not for the colorful crow's textual warning, Wen Xishu would surely have shown a reaction.
These are Spirit Testers.
Spirits do not die without cause, and if a spirit doesn't die at the hands of the Law Enforcer, then these horrifying-looking Spirit Testers will appear around the deceased spirit.
They all stared intently at Wen Xishu with their smiling faces.
Wen Xishu felt a chill, but he remained motionless, pretending to stare blankly ahead.
Two Spirit Testers jumped onto Wen Xishu's shoulders, but they felt weightless, as if not even there.
Then, one Spirit Tester climbed onto Wen Xishu's head, lowering its head for a terrifying face-to-face encounter.
Wen Xishu acted as though he hadn't seen a thing.
These Spirit Testers messed around on Wen Xishu for quite some time, mostly trying to scare him with little tests.
Their scares are invisible to normal spirits.
Only "Sin Spirits" can see them. But Sin Spirits feel an unbearable cold in their presence.
By rights, Wen Xishu should feel cold too— for he was guilty— but he wasn't dead. His feelings were different from those of Sin Spirits.
In the Upper Spirit District, spirits can only die by suicide or at the hands of the Law Enforcer, and given Wen Xishu seemed to ignore the Spirit Testers...
Soon enough, the Spirit Testers found everything normal and left.
Just as one wave settled, another rose. Just as Wen Xishu thought the Spirit Testers had left and was pondering who in this vast Underworld could provide him information...
He suddenly felt a pain in his palm.
Wen Xishu was a bit surprised.
[The chill of the Spirit Testers invaded, but was repelled by the powerful 'Yang energy' you possess as a living person. However, this also caused your Yang energy to be significantly depleted. Your time is running out. Although I've said this many times, you'll soon see an actual countdown. Once the Seven-colored Flower blooms, you'll become a dead man.]
[The more petals there are, the more your aura will attract the attention of underworld officials. You can continue your journey, seeking the person to be taken away, or you can choose to escape now. The way to escape is to praise Brother Crow.]
A petal appeared on Wen Xishu's hand, it was green.
Green, blue, gold, red, purple, black, white.
Seven colors; once the final white petal appears, Wen Xishu will die.
Although he hadn't attracted the attention of the Netherworld officials, the rules of the Netherworld still rejected Wen Xishu.
Liu Zhizai's ruthless soul destruction ultimately brought trouble to Wen Xishu.
Wen Xishu looked at his palm and could faintly feel... the blue petal slowly "forming."
In about thirty minutes, the second petal would appear.
The green petal hadn't brought any negative effect to Wen Xishu, but once the blue petal emerged, he would feel the chill turn into frost.
Yet Wen Xishu realized, even with this understanding, he still didn't know whom to take from this vast Netherworld?
Now he was nearly certain Mr. Jin wasn't dead, so taking Mr. Jin was impossible.
Then who to take?
Wen Xishu thought of the Wen Family.
If he took the Wen Family now, even if they returned to the Bunker, he could protect the Wen Family, and perhaps unlock the secrets of the Wen Family's Old Mansion?
Just then, footsteps unexpectedly came from what should have been an empty basement.
Wen Xishu immediately raised his guard, but soon his vigilance faded, replaced by mild surprise.
"You really are... a living person!"
Wen Tingyun had somehow found Wen Xishu.
Wen Xishu asked:
"How did you get here?"
Wen Tingyun's gaze was complex:
"What if I told you... I was following you all along, would you believe me?"
Wen Xishu was taken aback.
Wen Tingyun said:
"Ever since I returned, I noticed something was wrong. I suddenly received Merit; how could that appear out of nowhere? After encountering someone who looked like you today, and receiving your Merit that night—it was too coincidental. So, I immediately contacted the Patriarch."
"Then I went to the center at Yin Yang Mansion, and found you waiting there. I suddenly became very curious about what you were planning to do."
"So I disguised myself. Not only are you not a dead person, but you can even harm spirits..."
Wen Xishu hadn't thought he would be trailed. This Wen Tingyun indeed had some skills.
Fortunately, Wen Tingyun wasn't an enemy.
Wen Tingyun sighed:
"You're doing something very dangerous. I shouldn't pry; after all... I don't want to hold you up."
"But let me warn you, Ah Shu, I don't want to see you on the roster. Whatever you're planning to do... absolutely do not try to bring the dead back to the land of the living."
Wen Xishu felt slightly touched. Wen Tingyun guessed even this? He looked at Wen Tingyun in some disbelief.
"The Patriarch said, if you've really made a name for yourself in the world of the living, then you've already gained the ability to break the rules. Honestly, I truly envy you, and congratulate you on your success."