Chapter 360: Ghostly Apparitions
Although Qin Luan was destined to have conflicts with the Great Witch Kingdom, Jiang Li didn’t believe she would lose.
After all, both Qin Luan and Yuan Wuxing were people he favored, and Jiang Li had great confidence in his judgment.
…
Jiang Li quickly handled the matters reported by the guards.
The Human Sovereign Hall now had far fewer issues to deal with compared to before.
Jiang Li still remembered over four hundred years ago when he first arrived at the Human Sovereign Hall and saw Commander Liu and the previous Human Sovereign struggling to handle various reports from guards.
Conflicts breaking out here, demonic cultivators appearing there, some regions refusing to obey the Human Sovereign Hall’s orders…
Most of these issues stemmed from many forces paying lip service to the Human Sovereign Hall, like the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion.
After reaching the Mahayana Stage, Jiang Li personally visited these forces and politely suggested they behave themselves.
Upon learning that the current Human Sovereign had achieved the Mahayana Stage through extraordinary means and having Jiang Li personally visit them, these forces immediately vowed to fully implement the Human Sovereign Hall’s principles.
They knew clearly that Jiang Li’s politeness was just the first step – if they remained obstinate, Jiang Li would take the second step and show them the true power of the Mahayana Stage.
Since then, the matters requiring the Human Sovereign Hall’s attention drastically decreased, allowing Jiang Li to comfortably leave Commander Liu in charge.
Two days passed as Jiang Li yawned boredly while playing rock-paper-scissors with his mirror reflection.
Unfortunately, they remained evenly matched.
It would be fun if he could beat the mirror just once, or if the mirror could beat him.
The Human Sovereign Hall indeed had much less to handle compared to four hundred years ago.
“A matter requires your judgment, Hall Master,” a guard stood ramrod straight, wanting to make a good impression.
“Speak.”
“Several nations report appearances of ‘ghosts’ within their borders. Guards stationed there confirm sightings of what appear to be ‘ghosts,’ though their nature remains uncertain. So far, no reports of these ‘ghosts’ harming people.”
Jiang Li put away his mirror and straightened slightly – this sounded serious.
Folklore abounded with ghost stories – vengeful spirits seeking lives, unfulfilled love between humans and ghosts…
When he first transmigrated, naive Jiang Li believed these tales, thinking his cultivation was too low to see ghosts. But as his horizons broadened, reading immortal texts and listening to Immortal Elder Changcun and Venerable Sumeru Buddha explain the underworld’s soul reincarnation process, he stopped believing ghosts existed in the human world.
After death, souls automatically enter the underworld – none linger in the mortal realm to cultivate.
Only the underworld has ghosts.
As Immortal Elder Changcun said, this was the law of heavenly operation, an unbreakable rule.
Just as one plus one equals two, or Foundation Building leads to Golden Core then Nascent Soul – fundamental truths that, if altered, would throw the world into chaos.
Jiang Li unfolded the Nine Provinces map: “Show me where these ghosts appeared.”
The guard pointed out locations.
“Great Zhou, Tianyuan, Mengjiang, Great Wei… so many places?” Jiang Li was surprised. If some mysterious cultivator techniques made people mistake them for ghosts, that would be explainable.
But when six of the nine great dynasties report ghosts, with stationed guards confirming sightings, this likely wasn’t so simple.
The nine great dynasties represented not just power but profound heritage – their discernment wouldn’t mistake shadows for ghosts like ignorant cultivators.
Reports described an invisible presence undetectable by vision or spiritual sense, yet an inner voice constantly urged: “Look back, look back, something’s behind you.”
Especially at night near graveyards, this feeling intensified.
And these weren’t experiences of low-level Qi Refining cultivators, but Divine Transformation stage experts.
Jiang Li examined drawings by guards who claimed to have seen ghosts – white, blurry figures seeming ready to dissolve into air.
Jiang Li frowned – these did resemble ghosts.
He wrote an order for the guard: “Take thirty men to these locations. Coordinate with local authorities under my command to investigate for clues.”
Jiang Li then contacted Commander Huang via Communication Talisman, giving the self-pitying commander something to do.
“You’re closest to Mengjiang Dynasty – investigate there and report findings.”
“Yes!” Commander Huang felt honored by the important assignment.
“Hall Master, I’ve returned.” Commander Liu looked revitalized, his rejuvenated appearance making him seem middle-aged rather than elderly.
“Perfect. You’ll oversee the Hall while I investigate Great Zhou.” Jiang Li departed. Since Mengjiang was the westernmost dynasty assigned to Commander Huang, he’d personally check easternmost Great Zhou.
Commander Liu smoothly took Jiang Li’s seat.
After Jiang Li left, another guard rushed in excitedly: “Hall Master, there’s a matter… Commander Liu? You’re back so soon?”
The guard’s face fell with disappointment.
Commander Liu: “…”
Looks like someone doesn’t want their salary this month.
…
Following the guard’s marked locations, Jiang Li arrived at Great Zhou’s Anyang City.
Officials had repeatedly reported ghost sightings here.
Though his spiritual sense detected nothing, Jiang Li encountered a familiar face at the government office.
Du Ping – the Great Zhou Law’s most frequent offender, a Unity Stage cultivator.
“Du Ping, how did you get in trouble again?” The Anyang mayor sighed. Having risen from prison warden, he knew Du Ping from the latter’s previous incarceration.
Rumor said Jiang Li would allow Du Ping to join the Human Sovereign Hall if he stayed crime-free for fifty years. Yet Du Ping apparently rejected this kindness by reoffending.
“This is blatant slander!” Uncharacteristically, Du Ping vehemently denied wrongdoing.
“I understand – you think committing crimes disqualifies you from the Hall. But that’s no reason to deny your actions.”
“The facts are clear. Does denial change them?”
“Du Ping owns his actions – what I did, I admit. What I didn’t, I won’t. They accuse me of drunken harassment, which I’d never do!”
Du Ping pointed at witnesses who claimed he harassed women while blackout drunk last night.
Though lacking memory of the event, Du Ping knew such behavior was beneath him.
Among his thousand offenses, never once had he harassed women!
“Drunk Du Ping strips and rolls around – he doesn’t harass women!” Du Ping declared proudly.
The mayor wondered what exactly he had to be proud about.