Exorcist's Self-Cultivation

In the outskirts of New York, beyond the oil painting.

In the deserted graveyard of Hill Psychiatric Hospital, Boine's Three Stone Coffins lay silently docked.

And below.

The entire city's reflection had already overlapped with New York.

The public bus and the Horror House had not appeared in reality.

Instead, somehow, both had become entangled in a sort of stalemate.

The grudges and conflicts between the two Strange entities had not been a matter of yesterday.

From the school, to the Evil Spirit students, and then to the city reflection.

Since their paths had crossed, they had engaged in countless confrontations.

The public bus no longer carried Evil Spirits.

The Horror House did not ravage any territory either.

Now, they were in a very awkward predicament.

Once again, they constrained each other.

Not to let New York fall as Du Wei had previously thought, but to pull this second or third-tier city into the city reflection.

There, that was their turf.

In a sense.

These two Strange entities could be seen as a contradictory whole.

Their actions and goals were completely aligned.

They were just more selfish.

Du Wei looked at everything outside and suddenly felt a sense of nervousness.

"Something's off, Boine's Three Stone Coffins, Strangeness..."

"Boine has already been killed, though I don't know by whom, but since it no longer exists, then the Three Stone Coffins' attraction to Strangeness should not be so great."

"Could there be something I haven't discovered?"

Du Wei actually wanted to get Boine's Three Stone Coffins too, because they were the closest to him and also seemed the most harmless object related to the Demon God.

It's just that the sudden appearance of the public bus and the Horror House had been too abrupt.

Forcing him to immediately hide inside the oil painting.

He didn't have time to take the Three Stone Coffins with him.

If he now wanted to get them, he'd have to first leave the painting, but as soon as he did that, he would be targeted by the public bus and the Horror House.

These two Strange entities...

Honestly, as long as Du Wei appeared, they would certainly set aside all grudges and prioritize killing him.

And yet.

Du Wei was in an embarrassing period of weakness, with Evil Spirit Du Wei not yet awakened.

"This..."

"Do I really have to start living on the edge of death again?"

Walking a tightrope was a decision made out of sheer necessity.

If he could be absolutely safe, Du Wei would not be willing to risk his life.

But now.

His intuition told him that Boine's Three Stone Coffins might still conceal some secret he hadn't discovered.

If the public bus and the Horror House got them.

Should they become more terrifying, it would only make him more vulnerable in the future.

He couldn't be sure when Evil Spirit Du Wei would awaken.

Yet he was certain that even if he played all his trump cards, he couldn't possibly withstand the two Strange entities.

Arming the enemy was out of the question.

Thinking about this.

Du Wei clenched his teeth: "I'm sick of this kind of life, and besides, this isn't a certain death sentence."

Saying so.

Du Wei turned his head to look at the shadow.

The latter hesitated neither to pull the Dagger out from Gascogne's chest nor to step behind him.

The Envelope was not to be outdone.

[Master, Envelope requests to die for you.]

Du Wei spoke indifferently: "You stay inside the painting, keep an eye on Gascogne, and let some blood every ten minutes — make sure he doesn't wake up."

[Ah? Master, Envelope doesn't want to stay here, Envelope has already learned the methods you use to persecute Evil Spirits, Envelope can help you.]

Du Wei shook his head, "Your staying behind is more helpful to me. As my most loyal subordinate, you should know that I treat you and the Black Shadow differently."

He had seen through it.

Sometimes, to make the Envelope wholeheartedly work for himself, he had to be capricious, neither too kind nor too demanding.

When the Envelope heard this, it almost cried.

[What virtues or abilities do I, Envelope, possess to receive my master's recognition? Rest assured, master, as long as I, Envelope, have a breath left in me, Gascogne will not wake up.]

Du Wei hummed in acknowledgment and then pulled out the Joker Card from his pocket, which represented making a wish.

He now needed to set some preliminary conditions for himself.

That is, to make a wish.

However, the Black Shadow instinctively turned into a thin mist, enveloping Du Wei.

In the past.

No matter what means were used, Black Shadow would bear the cost.

Now that Du Wei was about to use the Joker Card, it seemed to unconsciously act out of habit.

It had to be said.

Having survived by Du Wei's side until now and transforming from an Evil Spirit to a Demon Spirit, the Black Shadow was indeed different in a certain sense.

Du Wei wasn't surprised, either.

He said in a deep voice, "I make a wish in the identity of Black Shadow, starting now, when Boine's Three Stone Coffins enter the painting, I will instantly return to the painting."

The Joker Card became slightly cold.

But the wish was fulfilled much faster than before.

Perhaps it was because the one making the wish had evolved from an Evil Spirit to an even more terrifying Demon Spirit.

Creak...

The door of the painting opened.

Du Wei appeared instantly in the graveyard.

And at this moment.

The city's mirrored reflection overlapping with New York City, where the buses and Horror House had been restraining each other, suddenly stopped.

The headlights of the buses went off in an instant.

The Horror House emitted a terrible evil intent, mixed with a gray fog, madly rushing forward.

The buses reacted the same way.

The two Strangenesses seemed like sharks that had scented blood, directly locking onto Du Wei's presence.

The feeling was incredibly strong.

Du Wei felt a tingling chill run down his scalp as his hand touched one of Boine's Three Stone Coffins and the gray fog seeped out of the ground.

"Damn it!"

He cursed under his breath, immediately putting the coffin into the painting, then hurried to another coffin.

He could hear the honking of the buses growing impatient.

He used the painting again, but by now, the bus's front end was already poking out from the city's inverted reflection at the third coffin.

Behind him, the Horror House rose from the ground.

The two Strangenesses trapped him in the middle.

Yet there was no chance to get close to the last Stone Coffin.

Moreover.

Both Strangenesses stopped caring about the last Stone Coffin and instead stared dead at Du Wei, the dense malice forcing the temperature around them to plummet.

Fine, black threads, like living things, leaked out from the driver's seat of the bus, forming a humanoid silhouette like a source, and then spread out along the front door.

The door of the Horror House slowly opened, with a semi-transparent humanoid silhouette inside, seemingly beckoning to Du Wei.

"Do you really want my life that much?"

Du Wei kept his cool and without hesitation, charged towards the bus.

The bus remained silent, but those fine, black threads surged even more violently.

On the other hand, the Horror House.

It seemed enraged and charged directly.

Boom...

Du Wei said in a low voice, "Black Shadow."

The next second.

Black Shadow, along with the painting, flashed past the bus and landed on the last Stone Coffin.

Meanwhile, Du Wei's right hand was entangled by the fine black threads from the bus.