Even hybrid monsters have their day

Chapter 143 Demon Plays with Ghosts

"I was playing with him, but he didn't seem to like it much." There was an undisguised disappointment in the headless ghost's tone.

"Play?" This was the first time Geng Miaowan had ever heard of a ghost wanting to play with a person, especially a headless ghost. It would be strange if someone actually wanted to play with her.

"Yes, I was wandering around in the woods earlier when I heard someone scream. It was late at night, and in this desolate place, I thought maybe someone was robbing us or something, so I rushed over to see what was going on..."

Upon hearing this, Geng Miaowan choked on her own saliva. This ghost was not only headless, but also enjoyed watching a spectacle; it seemed she had encountered a rare species of ghost today.

She didn't say anything, but the headless ghost continued, "When I got to the roadside, I only saw an old man running down the mountain in a panic, looking like a man-eating tiger was chasing him. I thought there was nothing to see and was about to leave when I noticed a figure in white wandering around in the woods across the way."

"A white figure?" Geng Miaowan suddenly remembered that when she first saw the headless ghost, the person sitting on the ground was indeed dressed in white, and from a distance, his attire was somewhat similar to hers.

"Yes, when I first looked over, I found that the figure was headless and was swaying as it walked towards the middle of the road. I thought to myself, 'Oh no, I've encountered a ghost,' so I quickly found a place to hide and wanted to see what it was up to."

For some reason, Geng Miaowan felt an urge to laugh while listening to the headless ghost speak. She was already a ghost, yet she was still afraid of seeing other ghosts…

But after she said that, her interest grew even stronger. "And then what happened?"

"Later... the man in white came to the mountain path, fiddled with his head, and took off a black hood. It turned out he was a living person. Standing in the woods with that black hood on, he really did look a bit like a headless ghost from a distance." At this point, the headless ghost laughed. "You don't know, it scared me so much! I thought I was seeing a ghost."

Geng Miaowan found the headless ghost itself more interesting than the incident, and a smile involuntarily appeared on her face. "So you went over and scared him. Is that right?"

“I already told you, I was just playing with him,” the headless ghost corrected, seemingly angry at her accusation. “After that person took off his hood, he picked up the winter melon and the flashlight from the ground, saying, ‘Jiang Lao Er, I’ll play you to death this time!’ When I heard him say ‘play,’ and he was holding that fake human head, and he was dressed up like a ghost, I thought he really liked playing these kinds of games, so I went up to him and played with him for a bit. Who knew he wasn’t fun at all? He couldn’t even say a word when he saw me.”

The headless ghost's words revealed her dissatisfaction with the old man.

After hearing her recount the story in that complaining tone, Geng Miaowan couldn't help but chuckle. Not because of the story, but simply because the way the headless ghost spoke was just too amusing.

The headless ghost saw her smile and approached her. It stood close to the edge of the sky-high cage and said, "I've discovered that you're more fun. Not only are you not afraid of me, but you even smile at me."

Seeing her like this, Geng Miaowan suddenly felt playful. She looked at her with a bright smile, a sly glint in her eyes. She asked softly, "Do you know why we're not afraid of you?"

"Why?" she asked, her voice still carrying a hint of naivety.

“Because…” Geng Miaowan leaned closer to the cage. She was extremely close to her and said in a chilling tone, “Because… I am a demon, and a demon that specializes in eating ghosts.”

The headless ghost let out a scream, flew up, crashed into the top of the cage, and then fell to the ground, clinging to the corner furthest from Geng Miaowan. It trembled and said, "You...you don't eat me, don't eat me...I don't have a head. I don't taste good..."

Seeing that the headless ghost was terrified by her, Geng Miaowan laughed out loud. She suddenly felt that it was a pity that the headless ghost didn't have a head, otherwise the expression on her face would have been quite interesting.

Even Xu Ruwen couldn't help but smile slightly, amused by Geng Miaowan's vivid acting, finding her quite hilarious.

While she was enjoying herself, Geng Miaowan didn't notice that the purple mist inside her body trembled slightly. After her laughter subsided, she leaned back against the tree and looked at the headless ghost, asking, "What's your name? Why did you die? And why didn't you reincarnate?"

"What's my name?" If she had a head, she would probably be looking confused right now, because her tone was utterly bewildered.

"You don't even remember your own name, do you?" Seeing that she couldn't utter a single sentence for a long time, Geng Miaowan instinctively asked. Isn't that what they always write in those stories? They've been dead for too long, so they forget who they are or something.

Seeing that Geng Miaowan seemed to have misunderstood her, the headless ghost quickly explained, "No, I know. It's just that it's been so long since anyone has asked my name, and I'm feeling a bit sentimental."

Seeing this, Geng Miaowan, perhaps wanting to comfort her, said, "If you answer me properly, I won't eat you."

"Really?"

"real."

The headless ghost then continued, “My name is Zheng Xiuxiu. I am a villager from Qiluo Village at the foot of the mountain. I was sixteen years old when I died. After becoming a ghost, I wandered in this forest for forty-nine years. Tomorrow will mark fifty years.” - At this point, her tone turned somber. “That day was my sixteenth birthday. I don’t know how I died. I only know that after regaining consciousness, I looked like this.”

Geng Miaowan didn't know how to comfort a depressed ghost, so she turned around and asked, "Then why don't you reincarnate?"

"I don't have a head," she said with certainty, but Geng Miaowan didn't understand. "What do you mean you don't have a head?"

"Because I don't have a head, I can't be reincarnated. This is what Brother Niu told me when I met him once."

Who is Brother Niu?

"They are the officials of the underworld who take the dead to be reincarnated."

Geng Miaowan thought to herself, "Brother Niu, he's taking ghosts to be reincarnated again, could it be... 'Ox-Head and Horse-Face'?"

"Yes, Brother Ox is a very kind person. He said that as long as I find the head, he can take me to be reincarnated." The headless ghost's voice became lighter when he talked about the ox's head. (To be continued.)