The infant was about fifty centimeters tall. Its body lacked realism, with a sparsely-haired scalp, chubby cheeks, and pudgy limbs like lotus roots—undeniably adorable.
It clung to Jiang Yuer's calf like a koala, tilting its head, eyes shut, motionless—as if asleep.
Could Auntie have been telling the truth? Was the hospital really haunted? And by a spirit infant, no less?
Zhang Yuanqing stared at the tiny creature, his mouth slowly falling open.
This completely overturned everything he thought he knew.
"What are you staring at?!"
Noticing her nephew's strange gaze, Auntie shot him a glare.
She pulled out a chair, slumped into it dramatically, and whined, "Mom, I'm exhausted. Help me dish up some rice."
"You don't have arms and legs of your own?" Grandma grumbled but still stood and headed into the kitchen.
"Hey, our family disgrace is back."
While grabbing a piece of roast duck with her fingers, Auntie greeted her older brother.
"If you stay single a few more years, you'll join the disgrace ranks too. Then we'll be a sibling duo fighting the evil witch together," Uncle quipped shamelessly.
Just then, Grandma returned with a bowl of rice. Auntie immediately switched modes, clinging to her mother's arm and resting her head affectionately on her shoulder.
"You're the disgrace. I'm the pure maiden Mom birthed just to suppress trash like you."
It was this kind of act that had earned Auntie all the love from their parents, making her the favored child.
"I could team up with Yuanjun. He's almost a disgrace himself now, right, honey?" Uncle added.
Auntie-in-law shot him a look of disdain.
"Hmm?" Auntie chewed on the duck for a moment, then frowned. "Mom, did you forget to put salt in this? It tastes bland."
"That's store-bought," Grandma replied irritably.
Auntie's brows furrowed further. She sniffed and exclaimed, "I can't smell anything either! The food has no aroma at all."
"Are you catching a cold?" Grandma asked, concerned.
At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing noticed the spirit infant clinging to his aunt's calf twitch its tiny nose. Then it slowly opened its black, button-like eyes. The unfamiliar surroundings left it stunned, its face blank and confused—as if it didn't know how it ended up here.
Seeing this made Zhang Yuanqing even more serious.
This wasn't a normal spirit. Regular spirit entities lacked consciousness. They didn't think—only acted on instinct.
But the spirit infant didn't stay dazed for long. Guided by some innate drive, it sniffed the air and began to climb up Auntie's body like a baby animal.
It eventually reached her shoulder—where it saw the table full of food.
Zhang Yuanqing watched closely as it sped up, crawling shakily along Auntie's arm and onto the table.
Once there, it reached out with its chubby little hands to grab a piece of roast duck—only to grasp nothing.
It tried over and over again, but eventually seemed to realize it couldn't touch the food. Its face scrunched up in frustration, and it let out a piercing wail.
A phantom cry echoed in Zhang Yuanqing's ears—sharp and shrill.
This damned kid's noisy as hell... Zhang Yuanqing concentrated the power of Taiyin into his palm, then pretended to pick up a piece of roast duck—actually grabbing the spirit infant by the scruff of its neck.
"You all eat first. I need to hit the restroom."
He carried the spirit infant like a puppy and walked off.
Behind him, Auntie's voice rang out, "Huh? My nose cleared up. And the duck smells amazing again!"
…
At the sink, Zhang Yuanqing held the squirming infant in one hand. Its tiny pink tongue lapped at the Taiyin Force in his palm.
To spirits, a Night Wanderer's Taiyin Force was pure nourishment.
"It followed Auntie home… probably because she was near me and absorbed some of my aura. That would be irresistible to a spirit…"
But what puzzled him was this: infants had weak mental strength. After dying, their spirits usually faded quickly—lasting maybe a day or two at most.
Yet the haunting at Auntie's hospital had been going on for a while now.
That didn't add up.
If I don't understand something, research it. Zhang Yuanqing pulled out his phone and logged into the official Five Elements Alliance forum.
#Breaking: Judge of the Ghastly Eye possibly deceased. Rogue outbursts expected. Local teams on alert.
#Breaking: Sheling Tunnel conquered. Identity of victor unknown.
Zhang Yuanqing skimmed past the headlines. He wasn't surprised the Judge incident was going public—it was necessary to prepare for rogue spirit walker chaos.
More importantly, word of his success in the Sheling Tunnel had already reached the forums. For the first time, the name "Primordial Lord of Heaven" had appeared in official spirit walker circles.
He typed "special spirit entity" into the search bar.
Soon, he found a knowledge thread on spirit forms.
"Spirit entities are formed from the lingering psychic force of deceased sentient beings. Deprived of most consciousness, they behave in a dull, instinct-driven manner—often guided by residual obsessions.
Upon death, a spirit's energy rapidly dissipates. Regular people vanish in seven days or less. Spirit walkers may persist longer depending on their mental strength.
But exceptions exist. High-level Night Wanderers and Illusionists, even after physical death, can use special methods to maintain their presence."
Zhang Yuanqing glanced at the spirit infant.
This little guy clearly isn't a high-level spirit walker…
He continued reading:
"Now, about irregular spirit entities..."
The content cut off.
At the bottom, a note said the rest was paywalled.
So this is what they call 'paying for knowledge'... He winced, recharged ¥200 into his "Primordial Lord of Heaven" account, and completed the purchase.
(As a side note, his bureaucratic handlers had recently issued him a new SIM card and bank card under this new alias—severing ties to his civilian identity.)
"Irregular spirit entities refer to those created through ritual refinement.
The most well-known example is the Night Wanderer's ghost-taming art, though other classes have their own versions.
Through refinement, these spirits may gain unique abilities and be used as rare tools or pets. In Night Wanderer slang, they are called spirit servants.
Not all spirits can be refined. Only one in ten thousand has the right traits.
Now, the method of refinement…
Finally, a warning: refining the spirits of hostile spirit walkers is allowed. But enslaving ordinary human spirits is a disciplinary offense."
—Post by Yuan Ting
That two hundred yuan was money well spent... Zhang Yuanqing thought, impressed.
This thread gave him a lot of insight.
First, once Night Wanderers reach a high enough level, they can raise ghosts or refine corpses—switching between assassin and summoner combat styles.
Second, this little brat was a rare spirit servant. He'd struck gold.
It had already developed a special ability, which meant it wasn't just a rare spirit—it was a bona fide spirit servant.
Third, there was something seriously wrong with Auntie's hospital.
"When Auntie lost her sense of smell and taste just now, it must've been this thing's doing. So its ability is to steal someone's senses? I'll have to confirm that later. If I can train it well, it might rival a top-tier artifact."
While excited, he also felt a growing sense of unease.
The hospital must be harboring a spirit walker. Now that the spirit infant had followed Auntie home, its original owner—the one who refined it—wouldn't sit idly by.
Trouble was inevitable.
Auntie could even be in danger.
No matter if the refiner was official or rogue, enslaving a civilian's spirit was against the rules.
There would be no peaceful end to this.
"I'll tell my team leader tomorrow. Gotta use my resources wisely..."
With that decision made, Zhang Yuanqing felt a bit more at ease. He turned his gaze back to the infant lying across his palm and forearm.
Sensing his attention, the little creature looked up with shiny black eyes and gave an eager, flattering sound: "Abba, abba…"
When Zhang Yuanqing didn't respond, it just kept licking the Taiyin Force in his palm.
Smarter than a normal baby, but still incapable of proper speech... He grabbed it by the scruff again and flipped it over. "Let's see if you're a little clown or a little menace."
"You'll be Little Clown from now on."
He walked out of the restroom holding Little Clown. Dinner was nearly over.
Returning to his seat, he quietly hooked the spirit onto his uncle's neck and continued eating as if nothing had happened.
Let's test the family disgrace and see if the spirit's ability triggers.
Uncle was picking his teeth with a floss stick, completely unaware that a dead baby was now riding his shoulders.
"Uncle, how about some soup?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.
He wanted to see if Uncle would also lose his senses like Auntie did.
Uncle rubbed his round belly and shook his head. "Nope. Not unless you've got a jianbing."
Then he struck a self-invented rap pose. Just when Zhang Yuanqing expected the usual lyrics—
Uncle suddenly stuffed his thumb into his mouth and mumbled, "Abba abba abba…"
At the same time, the spirit infant riding his neck muttered in a voice only Zhang Yuanqing could hear:
"Yo yo, check it out. Jianbing combo, lay it down!"
Pfft—!
Zhang Yuanqing and Jiang Yuer simultaneously spat out their chicken soup.
Grandpa, Grandma, Auntie-in-law, and Cousin all looked at them with the same expression: Why must we suffer this fool?