Exorcist's Self-Cultivation

In the heavy rain.

The bus slowly traveled along an endless road.

Inside the bus.

Linda seemed to have had a breakdown, completely losing the will to survive, sobbing softly.

Meanwhile, Du Wei held an umbrella, covering his upper body, his face calm and indifferent.

He glanced at the time displayed on his phone, it was now 9:13 p.m.

More than half an hour had passed since the last stop.

There was no immediate danger inside the bus, but there was absolutely no cell signal, so looking at the time was all he could do.

Besides, separated from him by one seat, Linda seemed to have completely fallen apart, stopping her sobbing and all other actions.

But being in a state of Spirit Vision, Du Wei had a faint feeling of unease, and a sense of irritability slowly welled up inside him.

The more severe the erosion by evil spirits, the deeper the phenomena of Spirit Vision became.

Consequently, the "sight," hearing, and sensations that came with it would increase.

And this, in turn, would accelerate a person's emotional breakdown.

But what puzzled Du Wei was that Linda, sitting a seat away, didn't seem to show any Spirit Vision phenomena, indicating that the other beings on this bus were different.

He deduced a possibility, that he was constantly in a state of Spirit Vision, possibly due to some form of oppression brought by these passengers.

Just as the human body instinctively reacts to certain external factors, like getting goosebumps from a sudden drop in temperature or becoming dizzy and lightheaded from the heat.

Regardless, being in a state of Spirit Vision for an extended period would increasingly impact Du Wei, and he would gradually enter the next stage.

He recalled the information about the erosion by evil spirits provided by Father Tony from within the church.

"It seems that I am now already in the second phase, perhaps even close to entering the third phase."

His mood was somewhat heavy.

The first phase of Spirit Vision gave the ability to see, the second phase deepened that concept, and the third phase would bring about unknown phenomena that even church personnel couldn't ascertain.

Unknown was synonymous with uncontrollable.

Du Wei narrowed his eyes, feeling that it was time to leave this bus. Spirit Vision was not a superpower but a burden that drained his own energy.

As for restraining it, given the current circumstances, it didn't seem very realistic.

This bus did not conform to common sense; it could appear anywhere in the rain, disregarding distance, and had no physical requirements for propulsion—no need for fuel.

It didn't even require a driver—it was itself some sort of entity akin to an Evil Spirit, incomprehensible and indestructible.

To restrain this eerie bus, perhaps only an exorcist from the church would know what to do.

Of course, this was assuming that the exorcists from the church were indeed powerful and had adequate means.

Casually glancing at the pair of slender, beautiful legs under the umbrella beside him, Du Wei's brow furrowed as he reached into his pocket, caressing the baby-palm-sized mirror covered in cracks.

[This mirror once served as a medium for an Evil Spirit's existence, but after the spirit was destroyed by an exorcist from the church, the residual power made it somewhat controllable. If you encounter extreme danger, shatter it, and its power can bring you to safety, but the precondition is that no other evil spirits are attacking you.]

These were Father Tony's exact words.

Suppressing the urge to crush the mirror right now, not considering the bizarre bus, there were at least fourteen passengers who could either be Evil Spirits or some other terrifying entities.

Any rash action could likely make the situation even more dangerous.

"Now is not the time,"

He told himself this in his mind, reminding himself to stay calm, patiently waiting for an opportunity.

...

Late at night, 10:38 p.m., the torrential rain continued.

The speed of the bus slowed, showing signs of coming to a halt, but this indication had been ongoing for ten minutes.

A sweat broke out on Du Wei's forehead; he had been in a state of Spirit Vision for a full hour. His body could hardly take it anymore, and his breathing had become much quicker.

Ten minutes earlier, the bus began to slow down, and the interior lights dimmed even further.

The bus, which was already dim, was now plunged into darkness.

All that was visible were the pitch-black surfaces of umbrellas, and the atmosphere became even more eerie.

This situation had never happened before.

Under the influence of Spirit Vision, Du Wei instinctively felt that the bus might have entered an area so dangerous that even it perceived it as a threat, hence this bizarre change.

"Half an hour at most. If there's no suitable opportunity, I must crush the mirror and leave, or I'll only be facing a dead end."

Du Wei gritted his teeth, calculating the maximum amount of time he could hold on.

The ghostly entities within the carriage were putting too much pressure on him.

Spirit Vision consumed his own physical and mental strength.

The longer time dragged on, the sooner he would collapse into unconsciousness.

And Spirit Vision wasn't something he could control at will; it was a passive state.

As long as there were Evil Spirits around, it would be passively activated.

In other words, even if the entities in the carriage that might be Evil Spirits had no ill intentions toward him, their mere presence would slowly torment Du Wei to death.

Du Wei wiped the sweat from his forehead, while the hidden camera on his chest continued to record.

Suddenly...

Du Wei felt the vehicle shake violently, followed by a sharp braking that sent him lurching forward involuntarily. He leaned back instinctively and barely managed to keep his balance.

"Have we reached the next stop?"

Du Wei let out a long sigh of relief in his mind.

He watched the back door, guessing based on the previous pattern and the words of the deceased African-American couple that at this stop, some passengers should disembark.

Aside from him and Linda, the other presences on the bus were from the previous group of passengers. Their destination should be the same, and they would leave together.

He would wait until the next time someone like Linda boarded, and that would be his chance to escape.

A draft of cold air blew into the carriage, carrying with it a stench of decay.

Du Wei's expression darkened—the back door had not opened...

He abruptly looked toward the front door.

"Damn it!"

He cursed silently to himself, only to see the front door wide open and a tall figure stepping on board.

He appeared to be male, wearing an old-fashioned coat that hung down to his knees, and his palms and head were wrapped in mildewed bandages without a single gap showing.

At over two meters tall, he nearly touched the ceiling when he stood up, giving off an overwhelming sense of oppression.

Immediately upon boarding, he walked towards the back of the bus.

Du Wei's heart pounded violently, and as the man took steps, the effects of Spirit Vision grew stronger.

Even this bandage-wrapped man posed a much greater threat than the fourteen previous entities carrying Black Umbrellas.

"Evil Spirit?"

Du Wei's eyes were cold as ice. Now there was another passenger on board without a seat. With the remaining seats occupied by himself and Linda, this ghostly entity's target must be one of the two of them.

A choice between two?

No, he didn't like being passive.

And he liked even less the idea of someone else deciding his fate.

Du Wei closed his umbrella, raised his head, and looked towards Linda on the right, somewhat surprised to find that Linda was also looking up at him with complex eyes.

Her gaze revealed a touch of unwillingness and even resentment.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Du Wei understood her message and then noticed that the wide-open front door hadn't closed...

So, Du Wei picked up his bag and stood up. Under Linda's incredulous gaze, he left his seat and headed towards the front door.

Linda was filled with confusion. She admitted to herself that she had had many thoughts just now. This doctor named Du Wei was a mystery, and he had a gun. She felt certain that Du Wei would force her to give up her seat, or even kill her with a single shot.

Human nature doesn't stand up to trials.

So, she resented and was unwilling to accept.

But now, watching Du Wei pass by the bandage-shrouded tall man, Linda quietly breathed a sigh of relief, feeling thankful and even a touch of pity. She thought to herself that if she could survive after Du Wei's death, she would definitely commemorate him annually as her way of making amends.

Then Linda's face twisted in horror as she saw another dark figure slowly stepping aboard at the front door.

This time, there were two passengers...

Meanwhile, Du Wei had reached the front of the bus. He glanced at the shadowy figure, who was petite, presumably female, but dressed and adorned like the bandaged man.

Both were Evil Spirits...

Then, the door closed.

Du Wei breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the driver.

Many people's thoughts fall into a common misunderstanding: on any vehicle, besides the passenger seats, there is actually one more.

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