Chapter 100: You Owe Me a Favor (25/26)

Ou Xiaolu had been trailing Cameron’s car from a distance. Initially, he relied on the "Purple Thunder Sky-Escape" to maneuver, but he soon realized that darting through the city was far too inconvenient, so he simply summoned his own vehicle.

By keeping a safe distance and using the "Purple Thunder Sky-Escape" to scout whenever the target slipped out of sight, Ou Xiaolu finally managed not to lose them.

As they left the New York city limits, Ou Xiaolu couldn’t help but sigh at his life in the American Lighthouse Nation—ostensibly enrolled in school in New York, yet he found himself constantly running out to the suburbs.

Fortunately, the trip wasn't too long. Cameron’s car came to a stop at an abandoned factory on the outskirts. Both men stepped out, stiff-limbed, and marched toward the facility.

Ou Xiaolu parked his car far away and, accompanied by Alo, snuck toward the factory.

Ou Xiaolu was quite formidable now; with the "Purple Thunder Sky-Escape," he could reach anywhere he could see. As for Alo, which had mastered wind-manipulation spells, it could simply fly by riding the currents.

Rather than taking the main entrance, the two landed on the factory roof, looking down at the scene from above.

Cameron and Steven had already entered the factory. Standing on the roof, Ou Xiaolu complained, "It’s windy up here, the visibility is poor, and I can’t hear a word they’re saying. Total thumbs down."

"Who told you to come up here?" Alo retorted.

"How else am I supposed to look cool? Haven't you seen those superhero movies where they all stand on rooftops looking down at the masses?"

"I think your brain has been mushy ever since you met that girl named Hannah. Truly, women are a man’s grave."

"Grave your sister. I just drank too much cola, felt a bit bloated, and wanted to get some air. It has nothing to do with any girl."

As they joked, a figure emerged from the corner of the factory. It was a white man in his forties or fifties, wearing a suit. He looked somewhat sturdy, but his paunch betrayed his waning youth.

Stepping out, he looked at Steven with a smug, triumphant laugh. "Steven, did you really think you could survive? Let me tell you, no one messes with my property and lives to tell the tale. Look around you—those are the shadows of the evil spirits that have died on this land. Listen to the wind—that is the wailing of the damned. Soon, you will all join their ranks. Aren't you excited?"

The old man’s voice was loud enough for Ou Xiaolu to catch some of it. He whispered to Alo, "Isn't that wind just you? Why is it being called the wailing of evil spirits? Do you see any spirits?"

"No, but I see three points of light around that old man, plus the two hovering over those other guys' heads. He’s raising five ghosts too. Is that Zhong Kui guy still not finished? If he were here, he’d settle this in a minute."

"Didn't he leave his five ghosts for you to manage? Let them out and have them attack."

"Which one?" Alo opened its mouth and plucked five points of light out with its claws.

Ou Xiaolu stared at it, speechless. "Someone entrusts their subordinates to you, and this is how you handle them?"

"It’s for their own good. While they’re inside me, they can cultivate a certain malevolent energy, so they won’t be at such a disadvantage when facing martial artists in the future."

"Fine. Just tell the 'Road-Side Ghost' to separate the three of them, and then have the 'Combat Ghost' take out all those minor spirits around them."

"We don't need to show ourselves?"

"How could we not? Once Steven regains his senses, we’ll jump down. We have to look like superheroes."

"Boring," Alo grumbled, then dived straight down, pouncing directly at the old man who was still prattling on.

The old man was still detailing his plans. "Do you have any idea? This is my turf. I bought this factory specifically to let it rot, using it to raise ghosts. Everyone who has walked in here over the years has died; not a single person has walked out alive. You’re no different. I’m sure it won't be long before you see the reports of your own disappearances in the papers... ah!"

Before the old man could finish his sentence, Alo had already pounced, knocking him flying with a single swipe of its claw.

Following that, Alo let out a roar, and the "Combat Ghost" appeared behind it, punching the minor spirits hovering over Cameron and Steven's heads one by one, scattering them instantly.

Only then did Ou Xiaolu make a fashionably late entrance, appearing behind Steven.

"So, Director, what are we filming today?"

Steven turned, his shocked expression softening into a faint smile. "Ou, is this what you meant by supernatural powers?"

"Something like that, though it seems he’s been practicing the wrong way," Ou Xiaolu said, walking toward the old man.

Even after being struck by Alo, the old man miraculously held on, still able to lift his head and glare in Ou Xiaolu’s direction.

Among the three minor spirits around him, one looked remarkably like him. It was this spirit that had prevented him from being killed instantly by Alo’s strike.

Seeing Ou Xiaolu step forward, Alo let out a low growl. Ou Xiaolu understood perfectly: "That spirit is trouble."

Ou Xiaolu knew there was something off, too. His only reliable attack against souls was the technique he’d learned from Booth.

So, without a second thought, he raised his right hand and pointed his index finger. "Alo, go!"

Alo cursed under its breath but still pounced. It landed in front of the old man, opened its mouth, and spewed out a black gust of wind carrying countless shards of steel, engulfing both the old man and the three spirits.

Then, a voice drifted from the black wind: "Hahaha! After all these years, I have finally reclaimed my bo—ah!"

"No wonder he looked just like the old man. He must have been the original soul. I wonder what kind of entity possessed his body," Ou Xiaolu remarked casually as he watched the old man being ground down to white bone within the black wind.

"What else could it be? Most likely he was messing around and summoned something he couldn't handle," Alo said offhandedly. As it spoke, the black wind died down.

Looking closely, where the wind had passed, nothing remained but white bones and various items shredded into scrap metal.

Seeing there was nothing left to fight, Alo turned and retreated to Ou Xiaolu’s side.

Ou Xiaolu took a moment to smile at Steven. "There you go. That should be Doli. He’s been taken care of, and you can see the reports of his disappearance in the papers tomorrow. Your mission is complete. You owe me a favor."