“Retrieve a corpse?”

  John blinked in surprise. “You’re not here to profit from the dead, are you?”

  “I used to be. Not anymore.”

  The middle-aged man shook his head. “Kid, one warning—if you go into the river, don’t go too deep.”

  With that, he left without looking back, melting into the crowd.

  “Acting all mysterious… definitely not a normal guy.”

  John mumbled to himself, then brushed it off. Whatever the man was here for, it wasn’t him.

  By now, the big shots on the river still hadn’t made a move, and a faint murmur of restlessness spread through the crowd on the bank.

  “They’re not coming yet? We’re gonna miss the window.”

  Wei Feng glanced at the sky and muttered, “The Paranormal Association can’t be this unreliable, can they?”

  Right at that moment,

  the roar of an engine ripped through the air. Everyone on the riverbank turned to look.

  A sleek black sports car sped over, drifting to a sharp, stylish stop in front of the crowd.

  All eyes locked onto it—something this luxurious was an extremely rare sight in a small city like Blackwater.

  The door swung open, and a slim, well-built girl stepped out in front of the crowd.

  She looked around sixteen or seventeen, wearing jeans and a white tee, brimming with youthful energy.

  “Excuse me… coming through.”

  She walked forward, and the crowd instinctively parted to make way.

  Staring at her high, swinging ponytail, many guys couldn’t help but think of their first crush.

  “Boss John, which school is she from? I’ve never seen her before.”

  William’s eyes lit up, his heart fluttering a little.

  “She’s not from Blackwater City.”

  John shook his head and muttered under his breath, “And that girl… is a total freak.”

  “Huh?”

  William froze. “No way. I don’t see it at all.”

  “Boss John, are you just so twisted that you see everyone as a freak?”

  “…”

  John was about to snap back when the girl suddenly turned her head—and locked eyes directly on him!

  She heard me?!

  His heart jolted. He quickly acted casual, staring up at the overcast sky, and said, “William, nice weather we’re having today, huh?”

  “Huh?”

  William blinked, then caught on fast and played along.

  “Yep, perfect! Look at all those… clouds.”

  “…”

  The people around them twitched their mouths. What the hell were these two rambling about?

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  By now,

  the girl had walked right up to John, staring straight at him.

  “Did you just call me a freak?”

  “…”

  John’s mouth twitched. He put on an innocent look. “Huh? What are you talking about?”

  “Cut the act.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “I only have one question.”

  “What?”

  “How did you tell?”

  “Hmm? Wait—what?”

  John stared, completely dumbfounded. He never expected her to ask that.

  Everyone else nearby was just as shocked.

  They thought she was here to pick a fight… but she just admitted it straight up?

  John thought for a second, then answered hesitantly:

  “Maybe… because I’m also a freak?”

  “…”

  The crowd’s faces twisted again.

  That answer was on a whole other level of ridiculous.

  “Not bad. I like that answer.”

  The girl broke into a grin, then turned and left.

  In a few light leaps, she cleared the safety barrier and landed easily on the boat in the middle of the river.

  Clearly, she was another expert here to back them up!

  The crowd gasped, eyes wide with disbelief.

  They’d only thought she was good-looking.

  Turned out her strength was the real highlight.

  And the craziest part? She barely looked older than a high schooler.

  “Told you.”

  John stayed calm, his gaze fixed on the girl.

  From the second he saw her, a faint, lingering sense of danger had prickled at him—not something an ordinary person could trigger.

  “Boss John, she’s really an expert?! But her age—”

  William was also shaken, unable to wrap his head around it.

  “She’s not normal, either.”

  John shook his head. “She must have started cultivating when the paranormal first broke out.”

  It had only been two months since paranormal studies went nationwide. Even eating Ghost Crystals like candy couldn’t get someone this strong—unless she’d been training for years.

  “I see…”

  William’s eyes filled with envy. Now that was a future full of potential.

  “Minister Wei, am I late?”

  The girl’s expression was flat, showing no emotion even in front of the high-ranking Wei Feng.

  “Not at all. Good thing you made it.”

  Wei Feng smiled. “When the time comes, I’ll be counting on both of you.”

  Lu Ming’s face turned cold. He said dismissively, “The Paranormal Association sent a little girl like you? Aren’t they afraid you’ll get wiped out down there?”

  “None of your damn business.”

  Han Yu shot him a glance. “Focus on yourself. If you die by mistake, the Lu Family will probably throw a tantrum for a month.”

  “You?!”

  Lu Ming’s face flushed with anger. He couldn’t believe she had zero respect for him.

  “Alright, you two.”

  Wei Feng quickly stepped in to defuse the tension. “We have a job to do today. Settle your personal issues later, okay?”

  He was already getting a headache. The two factions had always been at odds, but these were the only experts higher command could secure.

  Lu Ming only glared coldly at her and stayed silent.

  At that exact moment,

  Wei Feng’s expression sharpened.

  “Two of you—it’s noon. We start now!”

  According to intel, the Ghost River was at its strongest at midnight. They’d chosen high noon to attack, to limit its power as much as possible.

  “Fine, let’s begin.”

  Han Yu didn’t waste another second. She held out her pale, slender right hand, and a massive bow materialized in her palm.

  The bow was pure black, carved all over with ferocious, terrifying ghost masks.

  This was her Bound Spirit.

  Han Yu’s face turned icy. She drew the bowstring all the way back, and thick black energy swirled around her, condensing into a single pitch-black arrow.

  With a sharp, ghostly wail, the black arrow blasted forward and plunged straight into Peace River.

  Almost instantly,

  Peace River reacted. Countless dark circular shadows surfaced beneath the water!

  At the same time, dozens of people on the bank glazed over, their minds corrupted on the spot.

  “Called it—mental-type Ghost Skill.”

  Lu Ming’s eyes narrowed. A butchering knife had appeared in his hand at some point, its paranormal aura shielding his mind.

  “Minister Wei, it’s your turn.”

  Wei Feng nodded. A dark green bronze bell materialized beside him.

  He focused his Curse Power and slammed a palm into the bell.

  A deafening chime rang out, spreading like a storm over the entire Peace River!

  Ripples exploded across the water’s surface.

  The two paranormal forces clashed head-on!

  The people on the bank who’d been brainwashed snapped back to their senses, fear in their eyes as they realized they’d lost control.

  If not for the top experts holding the line, even a thousand of them would’ve just gotten wiped out.

  “We can go in now!”

  Wei Feng calculated his Curse Power consumption. “I can hold this up for at least half a day.”

  Lu Ming and Han Yu nodded, then dove straight into Peace River without hesitation.

  The second she hit the water, Han Yu felt a bone-chilling cold seep into her, suppressing part of her own paranormal power.

  And this was with Wei Feng battling the Ghost River head-on.

  This thing really is no joke, she thought to herself.

  At that moment, countless bloated severed heads swarmed toward her, ready to tear her apart.

  Han Yu yanked her bowstring tight, flooding it with Curse Power.

  Black energy arrows formed around her, spinning in a defensive circle.

  Any head that drew too close was pierced instantly and sank to the bottom.

  Beside her, Lu Ming swung his butchering knife, cutting down every severed head that came near.

  At their level, these minions posed no threat at all.

  The two didn’t linger. They dove straight toward the bottom of Peace River.

  Their target: the core of the Ghost River itself.