Nightmare Apostle

Chapter 910: Chapter 654: Kind Father, Filial Son

"Sister-in-law? Great-nephew?" Yang Xiao was shocked, and it took him a long while to realize that Xi Menxiu must have misunderstood. This young man naturally possesses the soul of gossip, who knows what overly dramatic plot he might’ve conjured up.

Although Yang Xiao tried hard to explain afterward, it was hardly effective; one look at Xi Menxiu’s wise eyes, and it was clear he didn’t believe a word.

Taking the items he had bought back to his apartment and confirming that everything was safe, Yang Xiao eagerly dressed in the Drama Robe and opened the Mirror World.

Reentering the Mirror World, the familiar icy and gloomy sensation hit him once again. Yang Xiao took a deep breath. At a glance, everything seemed as it had been, but upon quiet reflection, there was something slightly different.

The old Mirror World felt dead and alien, a terrifying existence like a black hole, but now, at this moment, he felt an inexplicable familiarity; closing his eyes, it almost felt as though something was calling out to him.

He knew it was the location of the mysterious room; only after killing the Mirror Ghost had he truly gained control over this space.

The oddity of the Mirror World is difficult to describe with words; this place is constantly changing, much like a gigantic Rubik’s cube.

The location of the room that births New Mirror Ghosts is constantly shifting, similar to a respawn in games, but without any discernible pattern; unless led by Yang Xiao, it would be nearly impossible for an outsider to find.

Following the summons in his heart, Yang Xiao clearly sensed that this time the mysterious room was located about the height of three floors above his head, and as his spiritual power grew stronger, the space of the Mirror World expanded significantly, now encompassing two entire apartment buildings along with nearby amenities like a small garden and parking lot.

In other words, as long as he wanted, he could instantly move to any spot within the range as long as there was a reflective surface.

"What a wonderful ability..."

Looking at the copper mirror in his hand, Yang Xiao couldn’t help but sigh, even though he had owned the Soul-Capturing Mirror for a while, this ability still thrilled him.

Recalling the past, he used to live in fear, but that’s all ancient history now, especially since he had personally killed the Mirror Ghost, the major threat in his heart; the current appearances were based on the new template he had set for New Mirror Ghosts.

He had learned from Lu Youdao about the identity of the young master imprisoned by the Dean of Ru Lin Academy; the individual turned out to be the Sect Master of Yu Yuan Sect. Each time he thought about this, he couldn’t help feeling alarmed, considering most of his gear had been pilfered from the Yu Yuan Sect.

This Sect Master truly knew how to keep his composure, treating people with courteous grace and willingly clarifying doubts without a fuss, but who knows what he really thought internally; he might’ve already wanted to tear Yang Xiao limb from limb.

Fortunately, he hadn’t recognized the details of the Drama Robe, but... Yang Xiao furrowed his brows slightly, who could say for sure? Putting himself in the other’s shoes, if he were captured and used as a tool, even if he discovered a treasure, he certainly wouldn’t speak of it.

He had irreconcilable disputes with Yu Yuan Sect; keeping this individual around was bound to be troublesome sooner or later, whether he had figured things out or not. In any case, it would be best to find an opportunity to eliminate him in the future to prevent further complications.

He didn’t have the power to do so now; he was planning to stir some trouble, ideally leveraging the Dean of Ru Lin Academy to kill without bloodshed.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Suddenly, Yang Xiao looked up towards the ceiling as footsteps sounded overhead, not very loud, like those of a child running by.

Using the Soul-Capturing Mirror, Yang Xiao directly located a room upstairs and walked out from the mirror behind the door, swiftly opening the door and running out, just in time to see a figure darting past at the end of the hallway, clambering upstairs.

It was definitely the New Mirror Ghost, but at this moment its growth rate was faster than Yang Xiao had anticipated; from the silhouette, it appeared to be the size of a 7 or 8-year-old child.

Confirming it was the New Mirror Ghost, Yang Xiao didn’t rush to chase it; after all, he couldn’t frighten the child. He still needed to interact with the New Mirror Ghost as a father, to cultivate a relationship, persuade it with reason and touch it with sentiment, ensuring it would willingly become his fighter.

"Child, don’t be scared, Daddy is here." Yang Xiao followed unhurriedly, shaking the bag full of toys and clothes in his hand, wearing a smile and speaking in a sickly sweet tone like a creepy uncle, "Look, what has Daddy brought you?"

Climbing the stairs to an unlocked room on the upper left side, Yang Xiao confirmed from the previous footsteps that the New Mirror Ghost was hiding inside, but after a search, he found no trace of it. The bathroom door was wide open, and items were scattered all over the floor.

Looking at the large mirror in the bathroom, Yang Xiao knew the Mirror Ghost had used its mirror-shuttling ability to escape; it had made quick progress recently.

Likewise, using this mirror as a medium, Yang Xiao followed his intuition, teleporting to a room. Pushing open the door, he stepped out directly across from a nondescript room.

Much like many other rooms in the building, it had a plain wooden door with a number plate on it, but Yang Xiao knew that this room was different from all others in the building, this was the mysterious room where Mirror Ghosts were birthed.

As he stepped forward and his fingertip touched the door, everything changed; the color of the wood rapidly peeled away as if washed off by some force, soon revealing the bronze door hidden beneath.

Yang Xiao first coughed twice as a greeting, then gently pushed open what seemed like an immensely heavy bronze door. Dim light leaked from the room, casting a reflection on Yang Xiao’s face, which sparkled with paternal affection.

"Kid, your dad’s here!"

But there was no response from the room. Peering inside from the door, everything was as it was before. The half box of chocolates he brought last time was still on the floor, albeit trampled beyond recognition.

Looking around the room, he didn’t find any trace of the Mirror Ghost, but the ever-vigilant Yang Xiao quickly noticed something was amiss with a chair that was usually by the bed with two stacks of books on it. Now, the chair was gone, and the two stacks of books were just lying on the floor.

Low...

Lowering his head slightly, Yang Xiao felt that even the light on the ground was unusual, with a strange shadow in it, as if something overhead was partially blocking it.

Putting everything together, Yang Xiao confirmed the hiding spot of the Mirror Ghost. Just like its previous incarnation, it chose to hide above the doorway on the wall, holding the chair, ready to ambush him the moment he walked in.

Yang Xiao could even picture it now; the little guy must be extremely nervous, probably shivering and sweaty-palmed.

"Huh—" Yang Xiao loosened his shoulders a bit and curled up a confident smile on his lips. He decided to teach his foster son a lesson, to let him know that there are people beyond ghosts, and beyond people, there’s dad. To establish his authority.

"Kid, although we’ve known each other for a short time, there’s no doubt that I’m your dad. Today, you’ll see what your dad can do."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yang Xiao made his move. He dodged backward as he entered, simultaneously raising his hand and looking up. But the scenario he anticipated didn’t unfold. There was no chair smashing down on him.

When Yang Xiao looked up, he was momentarily stunned. Something indeed blocked the light above him, but it wasn’t a chair—it was a bundle of books hanging from above.

"Got tricked..."

Before Yang Xiao could react, a gust of wind hit him from the side. He took a heavy blow to the back, his head buzzing.

The Mirror Ghost was actually hiding at the wall behind the door, holding the chair and smashing it down fiercely, "Damn it..." Yang Xiao, in pain, turned around, just about to fight back, when he saw the teenage ghost suddenly raise its leg and deliver a swift kick between his legs.

The kick was solid, causing Yang Xiao to instantly lose his footing. The severe pain made it hard to stand, almost bringing him to his knees in front of his foster son. However, the Mirror Ghost didn’t pursue further but instead swung its fists twice at Yang Xiao’s head and then forcefully pushed him to the ground, before dashing out the door and running away swiftly.

Struggling on the ground for half a minute, Yang Xiao finally caught his breath, his eyes bloodshot, and his forehead and back slick with cold sweat—not just from pain, but also from anger.

Struggling to stand up, Yang Xiao, leaning against the wall, couldn’t bring himself to calm down and chased after him, holding the Ghost Lantern.

minutes later, Yang Xiao returned, carrying the Little Mirror Ghost, bound up like a zongzi. Along the way, he occasionally picked up a mop stick from the road and spanked the Little Mirror Ghost’s bottom, scolding, "Daring to plot against your own dad, are you trying to be a rebel?"

"And you’ve learned to play dirty tricks, who taught you that?" Yang Xiao grew angrier as he thought, "Can you really use such tricks against your own father? Thinking of cutting off your father’s lineage, and then having no one to compete with you for the inheritance, huh? Not big in size, but plenty big in cunning!"

Back at the mysterious cottage, Yang Xiao hung the Little Mirror Ghost up, right under the roof, and himself brought a chair to sit in front of him, eyes fixed on the ghost with fury.

He had not expected the Little Mirror Ghost to be so temperamental, staring coldly at him the whole time, lips pursed, not saying a word.

Yang Xiao had always opposed the saying that filial piety springs from the stick, but now, since having a son, he felt there was some necessity to it.

A wayward kid is too infuriating, and ghost kids are no different.

However, despite his anger, he couldn’t bring himself to be too harsh; Yang Xiao crouched down to closely observe this little fellow, admiring his delicate features, three-dimensional contour, and untamed look in his eyes, already seeing a bit of himself in them, thankfully it’s just a ghost; otherwise, he might capture too many girls’ hearts as he grows up. What a sin.

"Realize your mistake?" Yang Xiao sternly asked.

The Little Mirror Ghost still remained silent.

"Stubborn!"

"Follow me!" fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

While his face showed no emotion, Yang Xiao’s heart grew somewhat fond of this little fellow. Indeed, one loves what they themselves have nurtured; he looked pleasing no matter how he saw him.

But no matter how Yang Xiao tried to communicate with the Little Mirror Ghost, the little guy remained obstinate, like a dead pig not fearing boiling water, eventually simply closing his eyes.