Chapter 0011: Spirit Servant

Everyone had gotten back in the vehicle.

Cheng Bin's body was left beside the car, lying in a pool of blood.

Ning Fan sat inside, his emotions difficult to settle.

This was the first time he had ever killed someone.

Yes.

Cheng Bin — he was the one who had killed him.

Lin Chuan had handed him that opportunity.

Even though Ning Fan understood that walking the path of a Walker meant facing something like this sooner or later, he hadn't expected it to come so quickly, so suddenly.

His stomach churned in waves, the Shadow Hound meat he'd eaten earlier feeling like it was writhing around inside him.

That sour, rancid stench kept creeping back up from his throat.

Despite how awful he felt, no one offered him any comfort.

No one even patted him on the back.

If you chose the life of a Walker, don't expect anyone to treat you like a child.

Lin Chuan's brow stayed tightly furrowed.

After about an hour of driving, he finally broke the silence.

"That's Ghost Mist Forest up ahead, right?"

"Yeah, less than ten kilometers out."

Huizi said flatly.

"Turn right. Head to that cave where we had the barbecue last time — let's regroup there."

"Got it."

Huizi pulled the vehicle up and stopped in front of a cave.

Ning Fan could see faint traces of burned charcoal still left inside.

Just as Lin Chuan had said — this route was far too familiar to them.

During their last mission, they'd been relaxed enough to find a cave and throw a barbecue.

Everyone climbed out and entered the cave. The man called Dazhuang gathered some wood and started a fire.

This time, though, they weren't here for a cookout.

"We've been targeted."

Lin Chuan held his hands toward the fire, his gaze fixed on the flames, expression distant. "If I'm guessing right, the [War Bear] crew is already waiting for us inside Ghost Mist Forest."

No one spoke, but no one looked particularly rattled either.

"Two options. First — we change routes, take the Serpent Den, and go around Ghost Mist Forest."

"Second — we fight through."

Lin Chuan lifted his head, the firelight casting a deep red across his face. "Seven votes, majority rules. I'll go first — we fight."

"Fight through!"

"Fight."

"I don't think we need to prove anything. It's not like we haven't taken the Serpent Den before."

"Safety first."

"We don't know enough about [War Bear]. Going in hard could lead to risks we can't control."

Six people, three votes for fighting, three votes for going around.

The result surprised Ning Fan.

He'd assumed that since Lin Chuan had spoken first, people would at least give their captain some face.

But Huizi, Qiao Fei, and even the seemingly simple-minded Dazhuang had all voted against it.

More importantly, the deciding vote had somehow fallen to Ning Fan — the newcomer.

Every pair of eyes turned to him, waiting for his decision.

Ning Fan was a little uncomfortable with the attention, but kept his composure. "Brother Chuan, before I vote, I want to ask a few questions."

"Go ahead."

Lin Chuan nodded.

"What exactly is a Spirit Servant?"

Ning Fan had been holding that question in for a while.

Whether or not you had a Spirit Servant made an enormous difference as a Walker.

He needed to know how to get one.

It seemed like Lin Chuan had already expected the question — yet he didn't answer directly.

"Do you remember what you saw when we first left the inner district?"

Ning Fan remembered clearly.

How could he ever forget that sight?

Bodies strewn everywhere. The dead piled in the open.

Dried, dark brown bloodstains coating the ground.

"Out there, Wraiths are everywhere."

Lin Chuan said quietly. "These Wraiths, given enough time to accumulate and gather, eventually become a Spirit."

"A Spirit has no consciousness, no thoughts — but it feels the agony from the moment of death."

"A Spirit is the product of many Wraiths fused together. The suffering of one person at the moment of death might still be bearable — but what if countless Wraiths gathered into one?"

"So Spirits need release. And their way of finding it is by attaching themselves to our weapons."

"We give them a home inside our weapons, and in return, they lend us their power."

Lin Chuan raised his blade. "This knife of mine holds a Spirit formed from six Wraiths fused together. It's called Butcher."

"Six Wraiths fused together?"

At first, Ning Fan thought six sounded like a lot.

"Don't be so surprised. Think about it — what's most plentiful out there in the wild? Not strange plants, not bloodthirsty Aberrant Beasts — it's Wraiths."

Lin Chuan pointed to Qiao Fei. "Qiao Fei's Spirit Servant is formed from seventeen Wraiths. She's also the only one among us with a [Ten-Soul Tier] Spirit Servant."

Ning Fan immediately looked over at Qiao Fei and found her quietly wiping down her Tang Blade.

That Tang Blade of hers...

It held a Spirit born from seventeen Wraiths.

"So that means — if you don't have your weapon on you, you can't use your Spirit Servant?"

Ning Fan didn't have time to dwell on the feeling.

"Not quite. In the beginning, the Spirit only attaches to the weapon — which is why I said we borrow power from the Spirit."

Lin Chuan explained, "But once you've built enough of a bond with your Spirit Servant, the weapon becomes just a medium. Even if you switch weapons, you can still use the Spirit Servant."

Ning Fan roughly understood.

"So how do you actually get a Spirit Servant?"

"That question, I can't really answer."

Lin Chuan smiled. "There's a saying that goes around in Walker circles — when the time is right, a Spirit will come find you on its own."

Ning Fan was a little disappointed by that answer.

When the time is right?

That was a bit too mystical for his taste.

"Could it have something to do with mental strength?" Ning Fan pressed. "Like — being close to death makes it easier to sense a Spirit's presence?"

"You're overthinking it."

Huizi pointed to the three claw marks on his neck. "My first mission, I nearly died out there, and I didn't get a Spirit Servant. Then on my third time out, I was just walking along and one suddenly came to me."

So it really did come down to timing and chance.

"Kid, don't rush it. As long as you can survive out there, you'll have a Spirit Servant of your own someday."

Lin Chuan gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Now let's vote. Everyone's waiting on you."

Ning Fan pushed aside his eagerness to obtain a Spirit Servant and turned his mind seriously to the matter of the vote.

He knew his decision would affect the fate of the entire team.

Ning Fan thought it over for half a minute, but still didn't give an answer.

"Brother Chuan, honestly — I think your whole approach is wrong."

All six people turned to look at Ning Fan at once.

This kid had just cursed out Brother Chuan earlier, and now he was questioning his judgment again...

"Kid, you angling for a coup?" Huizi raised an eyebrow.

But this time, Lin Chuan didn't show the slightest irritation. Instead, he tilted his head with a look of genuine curiosity.

"Alright, Talented Student — let's hear your thinking."