The Otherworldly God I Serve Is Actually a Demon - Chapter 15

It was Ruan Jiao.

She stood on the second floor, maintaining a safe distance from the battle below, clutching a pile of edible items she had scavenged from nearby shops.

Shouting down to the grandmother and grandson duo, she yelled, “First Person, I know its weakness now, I’ve figured it out!”

Just as the Starving Ghost devoured the decoy, the elusive flash of insight she had been desperately searching for in her mind finally struck.

The Starving Ghost had once livestreamed, and she happened to have seen it eating during one of those streams. Every time, it would finish the food in its hands before looking up at the screen. No matter how much the viewers provoked it, it remained unmoved until it had finished its meal.

So.

“It will finish all the food in front of it before seeking more, and that food doesn’t necessarily have to be a person. Feeding it with food might slow down its movements.”

The emaciated ghost looked up toward the second floor, its blood-red tongue licking all the remnants from around its lips into its stomach. Its gaze at Ruan Jiao was filled with intense hunger and interest.

As if struck by a thought.

“Ah~,” it trembled with excitement, “Miss Fragrance, I must eat you.”

A chill ran down Ruan Jiao’s spine.

If Jun Gongyu said she wanted to eat her, Ruan Jiao would have taken it as affection. But when the Starving Ghost said it, she only felt violated and disgusted!

Immediately, she hurled the food in her hands at the Starving Ghost. As if to prove her guess correct, the Starving Ghost dodged the attack in a flash.

Seeing Ruan Jiao’s expression freeze instantly, the Starving Ghost laughed even more gleefully.

“You didn’t think I’d just stand there and let you throw food at me, did you?”

So, what if you guessed its weakness? Knowing a snake’s weak spot is its seven-inch mark, does that mean you can catch it barehanded?

“Miss Fragrance, I’m coming for you.”

The Starving Ghost vanished from its spot, ignoring the grandmother and grandson entirely, and charged straight toward the second floor.

“It’s going after innocent civilians, Great-Grandma, stop it!” Zhong Wanlan sprinted forward in pursuit.

“That girl’s scent… so that’s it, no wonder the Starving Ghost risked exposing itself by unleashing its ghost domain.”

The purple-robed old woman focused her gaze on Ruan Jiao’s direction before leaping forward to intercept the Starving Ghost.

What kind of scent did she have on her? Why could both the Starving Ghost and the purple-robed old woman smell it?

Ruan Jiao was puzzled but kept running upstairs, scavenging for food from the surrounding shops as she went.

She needed to find more food to hinder the Starving Ghost.

“Jiaojiao, I’ll help you too.”

Xiang You ran out from the fifth floor, clutching vegetables and eggs she had scavenged from who-knows-where, and dashed downstairs.

The vegetable leaves stained her newly bought little dress, but she held onto them tightly.

After the initial fear, she had now steeled herself. Knowing someone had come to rescue her, she wanted to contribute in whatever small way she could.

The two met on the third floor.

While Zhong Wanlan and the purple-robed old woman fought, Ruan Jiao and Xiang You stood by the glass railing of the third-floor corridor, hurling vegetable leaves and eggs at the Starving Ghost below.

Although it managed to dodge most of the attacks, it was occasionally hit. Whenever it was struck, its movements would falter, giving Zhong Wanlan and the purple-robed old woman an opening to strike.

Slowly, the Starving Ghost began to lose ground.

Its crimson eyes glared fixedly at Ruan Jiao and Xiang You upstairs, then a surge of ghostly energy erupted from its body, rushing toward the glass handrail on the third floor.

The ghostly energy deliberately avoided Ruan Jiao, heading straight for Xiang You’s position.

The fragile glass handrail cracked instantly upon impact. Xiang You’s foot slipped, and before she could even cry out, her body plummeted from the third floor.

“Xiang You!” Ruan Jiao reached out to grab her but only managed to tear off a piece of fabric from her clothes.

In her vision, the tangerine-colored figure grew smaller and smaller, and Ruan Jiao could already imagine a pool of blood spreading beneath Xiang You.

At this critical moment, a bright yellow figure shot like an arrow toward where Xiang You was falling. With a graceful leap, she caught the falling girl mid-air, landing steadily in a horse stance.

The entire sequence flowed as smoothly as if rehearsed countless times. Xiang You remained dazed even after being set down on the ground.

“Th-thank you,” she stammered, unsure how else to react.

Zhong Wanlan hid her trembling hands behind her back, the strain of the impact still evident, and smiled calmly. “It was nothing. No need to thank me.”

Ruan Jiao’s heart, which had been pounding wildly from Xiang You’s fall, finally began to calm. Then came the shock at Zhong Wanlan’s physical prowess.

Jumping from three stories high, catching a grown woman barehanded, and remaining unfazed, was she even human?

Meanwhile, the purple-robed old woman seized the moment when the Starving Ghost had expelled all its ghostly energy. She summoned a surge of her own and struck its stomach, the source of the Starving Ghost’s power. With a piercing shriek, it dissipated on the spot.

The purple-robed old woman withdrew her hand and hurried toward Zhong Wanlan.

“Wanlan, are you hurt?” the old woman flew to her side, her eyes filled with concern as she inspected her from head to toe.

The Zhong family had only one heir, this precious child. While others saw Zhong Wanlan’s brilliance, only she worried whether she was injured or in pain.

“Just a bit of dirt on my clothes,” Zhong Wanlan replied, her hands still trembling behind her back.

“Your mouth could hold up the sky,” the old woman retorted, seeing through her stubbornness with a hint of exasperation.

Her great-granddaughter was perfect in every way, except for occasionally being a bit… eccentric.

Ruan Jiao arrived moments later, first checking that Xiang You was unharmed before turning her attention to Zhong Wanlan.

“First One, are you alright?”

“First One?” Xiang You blinked, not quite processing the title.

“Yes, this is the forum legend whose identity you tirelessly uncovered, the First One of the Supernatural Revival Era,” Ruan Jiao explained, feeling a bit embarrassed just saying the name.

Zhong Wanlan looked at Xiang You with approval. “Even you have heard of my stories?”

To think that the person whose identity she had relentlessly exposed was actually a legend in the supernatural community. Now, as both her idol and savior, Xiang You felt overwhelmed with gratitude.

“This is such a coincidence! I’m a huge fan of yours on the forums,” Xiang You exclaimed, her eyes sparkling as she pulled a pink notebook from her bag. “Could I get your autograph?”

“A minor supernatural incident, and I meet two of my fans. My irresistible charm, I suppose.”

Zhong Wanlan took the pen, her hand shaking slightly as she scribbled a few strokes on the notebook. The signature looked more like ghostly scribbles than a name.

“Um… are you really okay, boss? Maybe you should go to the hospital. I’ll cover all your medical expenses.” Xiang You only then noticed that the other person was actually injured.

It made sense, even an egg falling from a building could kill someone, let alone catching a full-grown person barehanded. It would be strange if he weren’t hurt.

“I’m fine, and I have medical insurance, all expenses are covered.” Zhong Wanlan forced a smile, flashing a row of white teeth as he gave a thumbs-up.

Ruan Jiao had never met someone so stubborn, but aside from his chuunibyou tendencies, this person was quite interesting.

“By the way, Granny Zhong, earlier you mentioned that I have a certain smell on me. What kind of smell is it?” She turned to the elderly woman in the purple robe beside her.

The old woman looked at her and shook her head. “I don’t quite understand why it’s like this either, but you carry a scent that ghosts find particularly appealing, like the irresistible aroma of a perfectly roasted, juicy chicken to a person.”

In simpler terms, she smelled more delicious than others.

“If you’re also a ghost, why don’t you want to eat me?” Ruan Jiao pressed on, voicing another doubt in her mind.

“I am no ordinary ghost. Through a family secret technique, I attached my spirit to this peach wood sword after death, retaining my memories from life. You could say we are merely half-finished products, artificially created ghosts, harmless to humans. Ghosts born from supernatural phenomena, however, are naturally filled with malice toward people.” The purple-robed old woman gave Ruan Jiao a brief explanation.

After hearing her answer, Ruan Jiao’s confusion only grew. Moreover, the old woman had said “we,” meaning there were more artificially created ghosts like her.

How could a person be artificially turned into a ghost?

The purple-robed old woman didn’t elaborate further. Instead, she turned to Zhong Wanlan and spoke with a serious tone, “Wanlan, that Starving Ghost is not so simple. What I dispersed earlier with a single strike was likely just one of its avatars. From now on, you must be extremely cautious of any supernatural incidents occurring anywhere in Jiangcheng, it could return at any time. I’ve been out for too long today and am nearing my limit. I must take my leave now.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she transformed into a wisp of black smoke and returned to the peach wood sword.

Xiang You, standing nearby, stared in stunned silence, after all, it was her first time witnessing such a supernatural phenomenon. Ruan Jiao, however, took it in stride, having already encountered other supernatural occurrences and thus having a higher tolerance for such things.

“If it wasn’t completely dealt with, then things are about to get messy,” Zhong Wanlan muttered to himself as he dialed his walkie-talkie. “But we’ll worry about that later.”

“Calling Director Shangguan. The supernatural incident in the mall has been resolved. There are casualties, and rescue personnel are needed on-site. Over.”

Before long, a sharp-looking woman in a black overcoat led a team inside. A few survivors were found in the mall, all of them terrified out of their wits.

Grimacing in pain, Zhong Wanlan was carried onto a stretcher. Xiang You, as the one responsible for the incident, dutifully followed to accompany her. Ruan Jiao, meanwhile, was taken back to the Special Case Department for follow-up procedures.

In this Starving Ghost supernatural incident, over 100 people were killed or injured. Rescue teams also found remnants of dismembered limbs in some of the mall’s restaurants.

Forensic examinations later matched these remains with recent missing persons cases from various parts of Jiangcheng.

Ever since the Starving Ghost’s live broadcast of cannibalism, the Special Cases Department had been secretly investigating and tracking its whereabouts. No one expected it to be so brazen, disguising itself as a human and blending into the mall. If Ruan Jiao hadn’t lured it out today, who knows how many more people would have been harmed.

Outside the mall, oblivious onlookers still stood watching from over 500 meters away. Yet, at this moment, a slender figure wearing a baseball cap, hidden among the crowd, turned and left the scene.