Chapter 133: To Die Under the Peony, A Romantic Ghost Indeed

"You vixen, I'll scratch your face to ribbons!"
"Go to hell..."
"Go to..."

Phantom paid no mind to these grating, wailing shrieks, weaving through the chaos with agile grace.

"Hehehe, how amusing. Brother Ghost, do not interrupt my game with them, won't you?"

Phantom chuckled, a flash of steel dancing in her hand as the power of a curse surged forth. In the span of a few breaths, the arms of the female ghosts fell one after another.

The severed limbs writhed on the ground, struggling to reunite with their owners, only to find they could no longer reattach. The female ghosts screamed in agonizing torment.

They were actually feeling fear.

Yes, fear!

Having transformed into spirits, they should no longer have been capable of feeling pain, yet at this moment, they felt a sharp, undeniable agony. Even more terrifying was the fact that their severed limbs refused to grow back or be rejoined.

The female ghosts scrambled to their knees, begging for mercy. "Fairy, please spare us!"
"Fairy, we were wrong."
"Fairy, don't listen to those foul men—oh, no, those male ghosts. They are full of sweet talk, only wanting you to bear their children."
"That's right, Fairy..."

Phantom wiped her blade, her eyes gleaming with a hint of mockery as she turned toward the male ghosts. "Do you agree with them?"

Though the old saying goes that one would gladly die under a peony flower, even as a ghost—meaning to die for love—faced with Phantom’s effortless and ruthless methods, these male ghosts were already scared out of their wits. Where was there any courage left for romance?

Ghosts, too, can feel fear, for the death of a ghost means the soul is scattered, never to be reincarnated.

"Fa... Fairy, please see the truth! Do not listen to their nonsense. How would we dare harbor such inappropriate thoughts toward you?"
"That's right, Fairy. Even if we had ten times the courage, we wouldn't dare!"

Phantom’s lips curled into a mocking smile. "Oh? Am I not beautiful enough?"
"No, no, you are beautiful beyond compare."
"Yes, yes, you are as beautiful as a goddess."

The male ghosts fawned over her, desperate to quell Phantom's rage.

"Hehehe, I also think I am quite beautiful. It is a pity that some people just don't know how to cherish it..."

Before Phantom could finish, her silk-like gaze drifted toward the Specter. The Specter, long since impatient with the clamor of the spirits, barked coldly, "All of you, silence!"

Instantly, the surrounding ghosts fell into a terrified, deathly hush.

Shi Nuo: "..."
He cursed inwardly: *What a pack of useless trash!*

The Specter’s icy gaze fixed on Shi Nuo. "Puppet, you need not offer any more futile resistance. Simply tell me whether you are willing to serve me."

"I am not a puppet. I have my own name—Shi Nuo! I have a master, and I will never betray him!"

Though Shi Nuo was small in stature, his eyes were filled with resolve as he stared back at the Specter.

"Hah, a master? Have you ever met him? Are you content to be a mere puppet? Are you content to be trapped in this tiny body forever?"
"What makes you think it will be forever?"
"You are vastly different from those villagers. They are the lowliest of puppets; their soul-to-body compatibility is abysmal, leaving them stiff and barely able to speak. Yet you, you move with grace and possess a silver tongue. The price for this is clearly your inability to shed this form. Otherwise, you would never have chosen such a small, pathetic shell..."

The Specter’s analysis left Shi Nuo stunned, as if his very essence had been laid bare.

Shi Nuo asked again, "Who are you, exactly?"
"We come from the Divine Realm! We know who your master is, and we know full well that you cannot actually contact him. Only his lackeys come to the lower realm to relay his commands, do they not?"
"You actually hail from the Divine Realm? But why do you want me to serve you?"
"You need only answer yes or no. Consider your words carefully before you decide whether to submit to me. I have already revealed so many secrets; this is my sincerity. If you cannot provide a satisfactory answer, then the purpose of your existence ceases to be."

Shi Nuo saw deep, murderous intent in the Specter’s eyes, as if the slightest misstep in his answer would cause his current shell and his very soul to vanish into nothingness.

He was not a real child, after all; he knew how to weigh the pros and cons.

Shi Nuo knelt on one knee and replied, "Yes, Master."

The Specter nodded in satisfaction, then waved his hand to cast a spell, binding Shi Nuo’s soul with a supreme master-servant contract. Should he break it, the only outcome would be the total destruction of his soul. Furthermore, once a soul was bound by such a high-level contract, it could never be bound by another.

His guess was correct: the Lord of the Hall of Light would never descend personally to sign a contract with a lower-realm puppet.

*Hehehe, the first puppet, secured!*

"If you receive any commands from that side in the future, you must report them to me immediately."
"Yes. Master, I..."

Before Shi Nuo could finish, the Specter waved his hand, cutting him off. "Someone is approaching the village."