Mysterious Revival

Li Yao indeed remembered. She clearly recalled how she had met Yang Jian and the events that unfolded during the time they were together.

The only thing she couldn't remember was what exactly had happened between the time she met Yang Jian and when she woke up at the Ping'an Hotel.

Her memory told her that she and Yang Jian had spent a night together.

But Li Yao knew that memory was false, that nothing had happened between her and Yang Jian. That night, her memory had been altered by the abilities of a ghost he had utilized.

A memory-altering ghost?

Since when did Yang Jian possess such an ability? It was never recorded in his file.

Was it that he had only controlled three ghosts?

Or did one of the ghosts he harbored have this ability and it just wasn't disclosed?

But now, none of this was important.

Li Yao's psyche was greatly traumatized, and she was on the verge of a breakdown because she had been unknowingly helping an enemy against her circle of friends. What was worse, she had been loyally devoted to a person she deeply despised, without the slightest thought of resistance.

Screaming, agony, a humiliation that toyed with both body and soul.

These emotions shattered the pride and confidence she had maintained, leaving Li Yao devoid of her earlier haughty demeanor. Now she seemed like a fragile, helpless woman who had been hurt.

In this moment, Li Yao collapsed to the ground and cried. The coldness of the floor was nothing compared to the blow she had just suffered.

In her crying, despair and breakdown were evident; there was nothing left to support her spirit. Everything had been crushed under the weight of Yang Jian's oppression, not even a scrap to cover her shame.

Face to face with Li Yao's sobs, Yang Jian's expression remained unchanged, unmoved, still that indifferent demeanor.

He was already a man who had died once, and he didn't know how much emotion he had left. It didn't matter if it was Li Yao before him or even a relative dying; he wouldn't necessarily feel sorrow.

This was the curse of the Evil Ghost.

Those who control fierce ghosts are bound to be eroded by them, assimilated, and eventually turn into fierce ghosts themselves.

"Yang Jian, you beast, how dare you treat me like this. I will not let you off; I will use every method to take my revenge... You will not die a good death," Li Yao shouted with venom in her voice, her emotional collapse driving her to curse him bitterly, as if venting all her anger.

Yang Jian paid no attention to her hysterical curses. Instead, he took out a golden pistol that looked like a piece of art.

The bright metallic sheen was striking, even in the night.

He hadn't used this object for a long time because, most of the time, it was just a piece of scrap metal, useful only for intimidation. Yet, he had chosen to carry it with him, as it was still a deadly weapon against ordinary people.

The cold metal was pressed against Li Yao's forehead.

In this moment.

Li Yao's tirade of curses came to an abrupt halt. She suddenly looked up, and upon seeing the pistol, a sense of deathly threat seemed to suppress all other emotions, silencing her. Only her trembling eyes revealed profound fear.

It was then that Li Yao regained some semblance of rationality.

Ranting angrily in front of Yang Jian was pointless.

Nothing could change the fact that the gun was already pressed against her forehead.

Was Yang Jian going to kill her?

At that moment, Li Yao felt her blood turn to ice, her body numb with an indescribable chill. Her life seemed once again to be in Yang Jian's hands, leaving no room for resistance, even without altering her memory.

Yang Jian gazed at her coldly while Li Yao, rigid and motionless, could only widen her eyes in terror as shivers ran through her body and tears streamed down involuntarily.

The scene seemed to freeze for a few seconds.

It appeared as if Yang Jian was contemplating whether to kill her or perhaps was giving her a few more seconds to taste the flavor of fear.

"Don't, don't kill me..." Li Yao's lips quivered as she pleaded for mercy.

She was truly scared.

She was no match for Yang Jian, and nothing mattered—status, value, academic credentials—none could save her life in that moment. The only way to live was to beg.

To wait for mercy and charity from the man before her.

But did Yang Jian even have any mercy or charity left?

Those eyes, cold as if devoid of any emotion, struck a chilling fear into her.

It was as if she wasn't begging a person at all.

"You have a choice, carry the truth to your grave or live falsely with a memory of a stranger?" Yang Jian said and then added, "Consider it a paycheck for these past few days."

"You have nine seconds to decide, or I'll choose for you."

Upon hearing these words, Li Yao was once again struck dumb.

This was a terrifying choice for her because she knew that if she chose to live, by tomorrow she would willingly do anything for Yang Jian again, just like before. Would she still be herself at that time?

Nothing more than a puppet controlled by the Evil Ghost beside Yang Jian, whose memories could be modified at any moment, with no guarantee of preserving her own personality.

And the feeling of succumbing to this enemy was even more unbearable than killing herself.

But if she didn't agree, Yang Jian would definitely kill her immediately. He wouldn't let her survive the night, as she knew some of his secrets and everything he had been doing recently.

Li Yao's lips moved, but she couldn't speak anymore.

Her inner pride and dignity had previously not allowed her to submit, especially to the person she least wanted to yield to, but the threat of death told her that she would be killed immediately if she didn't agree.

There was no option to agree temporarily and seek revenge later.

With her memory altered by the ghost, Li Yao understood the terrifying extent of this ability; once one's memory was tampered with, it meant their personality had been completely changed.

Yang Jian still had the gun pressed against her forehead, his eyes slightly narrowed as he stared at her.

He thought that if Li Yao chose to have her memory altered without hesitating, he would erase all her memories after the age of twenty, leaving her to live in the era when she attended school, disconnected from her circle of friends, not knowing him, and remembering nothing that happened afterward. That period of her memories should be when Li Yao was most confident and radiant.

Afterward, she would survive.

Yang Jian considered this to be an act of mercy.

Though he didn't know what mercy felt like.

"Hesitating?" Yang Jian's gaze shifted slightly.

Li Yao hadn't immediately agreed to the condition of living; her fearful, struggling appearance seemed as though she was trying to make a choice.

"Hey, buddy, you can argue all you want, but is it really okay to make such a beautiful woman sit on the ground in this cold weather? Come on, call it off. If it doesn't work out, just break up. It's not a big deal."

At that moment, two young men passing by saw the scene from a distance, seemingly unable to stand idly by, and quickly walked over and patted Yang Jian on the shoulder.

Yang Jian looked coldly at the two men, and then at the several strangers watching from around, said nothing, retracted the gun from Li Yao's forehead, and immediately turned to leave.

"Since you can't make up your mind, I'll make the choice for you."

With those words dropped, he didn't look back.

Li Yao panicked at that moment. She wanted to follow him, but her body was cold and stiff, and she nearly stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Miss, are you okay? Cheer up a bit, it's not worth it for such a man," the young man who had tried to mediate urged as he steadied her.

However, his companion whispered, "Something seems off with that guy. Did you see that? He seemed to have a gun in his hand, and he put it away when he saw us coming."

"Yang Jian, don't go, I agree to your terms. Let me survive..." Li Yao cried out.

In the face of survival, her inner pride and firmness were not as strong as she had imagined.

However, Yang Jian had given her a chance to choose, but not a chance to hesitate.

By now, Yang Jian had already walked far away, his figure no longer visible.

"Miss, are you okay? Do you want me to take you home?" the stranger who was steadying Li Yao asked with concern.

Seeing Yang Jian disappear, Li Yao was utterly desperate.

She knew her moment of hesitation had cost her the only chance to live.

"I'm about to die, help me make a phone call..." Li Yao said to the stranger beside her, sounding slightly deranged. But before she could finish, her voice abruptly stopped.

She felt an icy hand clamping over her throat, silencing her voice from inside her mouth.

The ghost had come!

Li Yao's body stiffened.

"A phone call? No problem, give me the number and I'll make the call for you right away," the man hurriedly took out his mobile phone.

But in the few seconds it took to reach for his phone, Li Yao's neck involuntarily twisted to the side in a sluggish movement, as if she was desperately resisting, her eyes filled with despair and helplessness.

"Miss, what's the phone number?" the man was ready to dial.

His companion commented, "Buddy, this lady looks a bit off."

But before he could continue, he was startled.

As a series of bone-breaking sounds ensued, Li Yao's head was forcibly twisted a full one hundred and eighty degrees around, and it didn't stop there, turning back again. Her arms and legs were contorted in an unnatural way, and her gaze had already gone blank, devoid of any spirit.

"What's happening?"

The man prepared to make the phone call was so scared that he almost jumped, but he lost his balance and fell backward onto the ground.

What horrified him even more was that he saw a ghostly half palm eerily stretching out from the woman's mouth.

The five bluish, stiff fingers were clamped against her face leaving several deep bruises.

"Ghost..." He trembled all over, frantically got up, then scrambled away in terror.