Daily Life of a Villain at Work [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 74

Chapter 74: My Second Day as a Malignant Spirit~

Wen Qingyun’s movements froze. Feeling a surge of power rushing into her body, she instinctively checked her soul-form for any signs of damage.

Seeing that the malignant spirit had absorbed her essential blood yet remained energetic and unharmed, Chu Yu stopped her unfinished ritual.

“You… how are you fine?” Chu Yu asked blankly.

Chu Yu couldn’t understand. Shortly after birth, she had been discovered to be the natural nemesis of all things supernatural. Specifically, her flesh and blood smelled sweet to monsters and ghosts, but if they consumed it, they would suffer a backlash and die instantly.

A single drop of her essence blood should have caused the spirit to explode. She had verified this many times. Talismans drawn with her essence blood were dozens of times more powerful; even a mediocre Taoist could use them to annihilate a powerful wraith.

She was certain that what she had just released was essence blood. According to her experience, a ghost should have screamed in agony upon contact, let alone absorbing it.

What is happening? Has my constitution failed? Or is the ghost before me truly unique?

“Ha, of course I’m fine,” Wen Qingyun snorted. She pulled out the cleaver and swung it directly at Chu Yu’s head.

Chu Yu raised her sword to parry. The cleaver, which had previously held its own against the longsword, shattered into fragments the moment it touched the glowing blade.

“Huh?” Finding only a wooden handle left in her hand, Wen Qingyun was momentarily stunned.

The cleaver was an artifact of malice, tempered by the blood of over seventy people. Was it really just junk now?

Chu Yu’s brow relaxed slightly. Her special constitution hadn’t failed; her blood still acted as a deterrent. The malice on the cleaver had turned to scrap iron after drawing her blood.

“Can we stop for a moment? I think we should sit down and talk,” Chu Yu said. Her mind was racing, but her face remained expressionless.

Wen Qingyun said nothing. A broken cleaver was just one weapon; she had others. Seeing ghostly claws lunging toward her, Chu Yu’s eyes flickered. She retreated instantly and, refusing to believe her blood was useless, squeezed out more to draw a Stasis Talisman in the air.

“Go!” Chu Yu used her spiritual power to hurl the talisman at Wen Qingyun.

Wen Qingyun didn’t slow down, planning to tank the hit with a claw swipe. But as her ghostly fingers touched the blood-drawn symbol, the talisman—which should have bound her—twisted and melted into her palm.

Silence.

The human and the ghost stared at each other.

“Are you… giving me supplements?” Wen Qingyun asked earnestly. After two helpings of Chu Yu’s blood, her strength had spiked significantly.

Chu Yu’s brow furrowed tightly. She seemed utterly unwilling to accept the fact that her blood was being used as a tonic by the spirit in front of her.

“The one who slaughtered seventy-some lives in the village… was it you?” Chu Yu asked.

“It was me. What of it?” When Qingyun floated before her, the yin energy radiating from her body slowly circled the area, trying to block Chu Yu’s escape routes.

Chu Yu gripped her sword, her confusion deepening. She hadn’t found the wrong ghost; this was indeed the one responsible for the massacre. But why was her blood still effective against the weapon, yet useless against the ghost itself? Not only was the essence blood ineffective, but the blood-drawn talismans were failing too.

Chu Yu pulled out a handful of talismans. Seeing Wen Qingyun raise her claws in a defensive reflex, she hesitated, then swapped them for a regular Stasis Talisman drawn with cinnabar.

She activated it with her power and threw it. Wen Qingyun, sensing no killing intent, stood her ground and merely swiped at it as it reached her face.

The moment the claws tore the talisman, Wen Qingyun’s movements stiffened for a fraction of a second. It lasted less than a second, but the talisman had worked. It had an effect.

This realization made Chu Yu’s confusion nearly manifest into a physical weight. It even triggered a system notification for Wen Qingyun.

[Congratulations Host, mission progress has increased. Current progress: 8%.]

So, wounding the protagonist doesn’t do much, but causing mental/existential damage to the protagonist increases mission progress.

Wen Qingyun noted this and, while Chu Yu was lost in thought, launched a sneak attack. Even if it was futile, she wanted to deal with this “smelly Taoist.” She had been chased for three hours; she needed her revenge!

The battle fell back into a stalemate. However, Wen Qingyun knew she had the advantage. This was her home turf; the forest was a reservoir of resentment and yin energy. She could fight for three days and nights and only get stronger. Worst case, she could simply grind the Taoist down through attrition.

…

As time passed, Chu Yu, having exhausted too much spiritual power, began to show openings. Her wounds grew from one shoulder gash to over five. Her teal Taoist robes were shredded, revealing a white T-shirt underneath.

Realizing she had less than one-fifth of her power left, Chu Yu pulled out her trump card: a small jade porcelain bottle. She uncorked it with her teeth and gulped down the contents.

Wen Qingyun watched as the “smelly Taoist,” who had looked ready to collapse, suddenly became radiant again. Her sword strikes grew faster.

She’s using potions to restore mana? That’s cheating!

Wen Qingyun refused to lose. She fully manifested her body and began attacking with both claws and teeth. If she can recover by drinking potions, I’ll increase my strength by eating the Taoist!

After biting Chu Yu’s other shoulder, Wen Qingyun’s intentions became clear. Chu Yu, realizing her blood was becoming the enemy’s fuel, gritted her teeth and slapped her remaining talismans directly onto her own body to bolster her defense.

Three hours later…

Chu Yu sat cross-legged on a rock, meditating to regulate her breath. Wen Qingyun sat opposite her, holding a small jade bottle filled with blood, sipping it slowly.

“I’ve given you the payment. Now tell me why you killed them,” Chu Yu said, opening her eyes.

The stalemate had led to a truce at 4:00 PM. Chu Yu realized that continuing would likely lead to mutual destruction. Wen Qingyun, her soul form flickering from exhaustion, finally agreed to the request to “talk,” provided she was paid in blood.

“Because they killed me. Killing them was just revenge,” Wen Qingyun replied, savoring the taste. The flavor left in her mouth was exquisite. If Chu Yu’s blood is such a tonic for me, isn’t she destined to be my ‘snack’?

“Seventy-three people killed you together?” Chu Yu frowned, skeptical. “Where is your body?”

“Burned,” Wen Qingyun said. “That’s the second question. One small bottle only buys you three answers.”

Chu Yu thought for a moment. “I can’t detect any karmic connection between you and those seventy-three people. What proof do you have that what you say is true?”

“No proof,” Wen Qingyun said casually. She had crushed their souls and the karma was settled; of course, there was nothing left to find.

“You should provide proof,” Chu Yu said, puzzled.

“Why should I?” Wen Qingyun countered.

Chu Yu spoke matter-of-factly. “Because you killed them. If you have no proof they deserved to die, then you are a malignant spirit that the world cannot tolerate, and you will be hunted by the entire Occult Bureau.”

“Oh. Then let me be a malignant spirit the world can’t tolerate,” Wen Qingyun replied flatly. “I’ll kill whoever can’t tolerate me.”

Chu Yu felt a tightness in her chest. Communicating with this ghost was impossible. “Then I will hunt you until you are destroyed,” Chu Yu said seriously. “I will never let a spirit that has taken human lives go free.”

“Yes, yes, you’re right. You’re such a ‘good person’,” Wen Qingyun replied dismissively. She handed the empty bottle back. “Any more questions?”

Chu Yu said nothing. She took the bottle, sliced her finger, filled it again, and handed it back.

“Will you continue to kill?” Chu Yu asked.

“Yes. I’ll kill whoever makes me unhappy,” Wen Qingyun smiled, taking a deep sniff of the bottle before drinking.

Chu Yu: “Is there any way to change your mind about killing?”

“Yes,” Wen Qingyun licked her lips, looking blissful.

Chu Yu: “What must I do?”

“Eliminate me, of course~” Wen Qingyun laughed. Seeing Chu Yu’s dark expression, she added playfully, “Or, give me three bottles of blood every day, and I’ll promise not to kill anyone.”

“Impossible,” Chu Yu rejected immediately. That was no different from feeding the monster. If she fed the ghost her blood, it wouldn’t be long before the spirit was strong enough to crush her.

“Oh. Then let me rephrase: If you don’t feed me three bottles a day, I’ll kill three people a day,” Wen Qingyun said with a smile. “I’ve already killed today, so starting tomorrow, for every bottle missing by sunset, one person dies.”

Chu Yu said nothing. She drew her sword. Such a spirit had to be destroyed today, even if it cost her life.

…

Chu Yu, having exhausted her spiritual power, should have been no match for Wen Qingyun. But as her mana hit zero, she entered a state of burning her essence blood, doubling her strength for a short burst. Spiritual energy from the surroundings rushed into her like a vacuum.

[Host, the protagonist of this world bears a Heavenly Mandate. It is very difficult to kill her before she fulfills her mission.]

“Mandate? What mandate?” Wen Qingyun asked while retreating.

[To repair the Ancient Demon-Sealing Array and then use herself as the eye of the array to seal the Great Demon for another five hundred years.]

Wen Qingyun made a face of disgust. “What ‘Mandate’? It’s just giving someone enough talent and power so they can eventually be sent to their death. Only brainwashed protagonists enjoy the ‘dying to save the world’ trope.”

Wen Qingyun gathered her power and swung. If Chu Yu was going to be an array eye, she might as well be her supplement. If Wen Qingyun became strong enough, maybe she could just eat the Great Demon later and end the trouble forever.

Dark mist filled the woods. Chu Yu, unable to burn much more essence blood, stood her ground and sliced her palm, letting her blood dye her sword crimson.

“Evil spirit, be destroyed!” Chu Yu swung with everything she had, a suicidal blow.

She was lucky. Despite being unable to see Wen Qingyun, her strike landed true, nearly splitting the spirit in half. When Qingyun, her form wavering, tried to pull in energy to repair herself. Chu Yu swung again.

Is she really going to hit me again? Heaven is too biased! Wen Qingyun tried to move, prepared to lose an arm to save her life.

BOOM—

The sword light hit… something else. A wall of black mist had condensed in front of Wen Qingyun.

“Why…” Chu Yu’s face was full of disbelief.

Both Wen Qingyun and Chu Yu recognized the mist. It wasn’t the blind-mist from before; it was composed of hundreds of small, ignorant soul-fragments—the infant spirits.

Chu Yu’s final attacks were special: they dealt massive damage to those with much blood on their hands, but zero damage to spirits who had never committed a sin. These infants, who had died before they could even open their eyes, had never even stepped on an ant.

Wen Qingyun laughed. She stood up and walked through the mist, looking down at the exhausted Chu Yu.

“Because I took revenge for them. I set them free so they could have a chance to reincarnate.”

“Chu Yu, you call yourself ‘just’. You want to destroy me, the ‘evil spirit’. But do you know? The people I killed… they were the ones living as malignant spirits in the human world.”

Wen Qingyun reached out and used her pale hand to grip Chu Yu’s hand on the sword hilt, pulling the blade out of the mud.

“Using your own sword to send you on your way… you shouldn’t feel slighted, right?” Wen Qingyun smiled wickedly.

Chu Yu said nothing. She simply collapsed. If Wen Qingyun hadn’t been holding the sword hilt along with her, Chu Yu would have hit the ground face-first.

“Chu Yu?” Wen Qingyun frowned. “Smelly Taoist?”

The girl was unresponsive. Her face was bloodless, her breathing shallow, her pulse almost undetectable.

Should I kill her while she’s down? The thought crossed her mind but she pushed it away. Considering Chu Yu’s sword didn’t harm the innocent spirits—and the person beneath the skin might be her “involution” rival—Wen Qingyun decided to spare her for now. She slung the girl over her shoulder like a sack of grain and headed off to find a cave.

…

Meanwhile, the appearance of seventy-three corpses had brought a fleet of police cars to the village. The medical student who reported it was questioned over ten times.

“Block the news! This must not appear on social media!” the arriving officials shouted.

“The cuts are incredibly clean, both the skin and the vertebrae. This is hard for a human to achieve,” the Police Chief said seriously. “We may need to ask the Occult Bureau for help.”

“Then ask! You have their contact info!” the Secretary said, relieved. If it wasn’t a human crime, he wouldn’t be blamed as much by his superiors.

“Chief… I can’t get through. It says they’re out of service range,” an officer reported.

“I forgot! Their office lines are the only way. Go back to the station and call from my desk,” the Chief ordered.

They counted the survivors: five women recently kidnapped. A sixth was missing.

“She’s likely dead,” a subordinate reported. “A local woman said her husband returned at dawn and claimed the girl Old Liu bought fell to her death while running, so they buried her.”

The Chief had a massive headache. Seventy-three deaths could be blamed on the supernatural, but the kidnapping and the “fell to her death” girl were 100% human crimes.

…

As the sun set, a woman in teal Taoist robes arrived on a flying sword. It was Qin Mian, head of the Occult Bureau. She closed her eyes to divine the situation.

Finding no information through divination, her face darkened. She ignored the officials, gripped her sword, and used a “Shrinking Ground” spell to race toward the forest.

There was no information at the scene, but she could still track her disciple’s aura. For her brilliant disciple to be unable to escape, the enemy’s strength must be nearing that of a Ghost King.

…

Wen Qingyun, being a cautious ghost, removed Chu Yu’s tattered outer robes in the cave. She tore the robe into three pieces and dropped them in different directions far away to confuse any pursuers.

Seeing that Chu Yu showed no signs of waking after three hours, Wen Qingyun pulled out the little bottle and cut the girl’s finger again to fill it. After stowing it away, she left and returned ten minutes later with some wild fruit and a fat rabbit.

She used the Taoist sword to skin the rabbit and set it on a spit over a fire she started with magic.

As the rabbit began to sizzle, the eyelashes of the girl who had been unconscious for four hours finally fluttered.