Chapter 2: Nearly Ten Thousand Years of Cultivation

Someone—someone just high-fived me!!!

There’s something inside my stomach!!!

At that moment—

A bone-chilling sensation, like a coiling current of electricity, surged from the top of my skull straight down through my entire body.

What the hell was happening?

Never in my life did I think there could be something alive inside me.

This was—completely unheard of.

My entire body froze, stiff and unyielding.

My gaze was locked—no, nailed—to the spot on my abdomen that had slightly bulged.

From the faint protrusion, I could clearly make out a small hand pressing outward, interacting intimately with me from inside my stomach.

“Wh-what the hell is going on?”

My face went completely pale as I stumbled back several steps in horror.

I was just an ordinary person—when had I ever faced something like this?

Could that old man actually have been telling the truth?

Was there really a ghost fetus inside me?

The old Taoist took one look at my ghostly pale face and knew I believed him.

Of course, he didn’t let the chance to mess with me go to waste.

Smiling slyly, he added, “Don’t worry. Once the little monster reaches full term, I’ll personally help you both—mother and child—get through this safely.”

Me: “???”

What the hell is he talking about?

“Mother and child”?

Is he blind?

I’m a fully grown man standing right in front of him—how can he not see that?

I assumed he was just joking, and frankly, I had no energy to argue.

If this man knew the whole story behind this ghost fetus, then he must also know how to get rid of it.

Even though I had late-stage cancer, I still had a year or so to live.

Who would want to spend that time carrying some… thing like this in their belly?

“Please, Senior, tell me what I need to do to get this ghost fetus out.”

The old Taoist kept smiling as he replied, “It’s simple. Since ghost fetuses can hide anywhere, all we need to do is slice open your abdomen. Once that’s done, the ghost fetus will have nowhere left to run. Naturally, your problem will be solved.”

Slice open my abdomen?

And I’d still be alive after that?

The old man’s words scared me so badly I backed up another two meters.

I stared at him in sheer terror—only to watch as he calmly pulled out a gleaming, silver-white blade.

The sight of it instantly conjured an image of myself being cut open, alive.

“Heehee.”

That eerie, bone-chilling giggle of the ghostly infant echoed in my mind like a lingering gust of cold wind in the dark. It sent shivers down my spine, reverberating again and again—as if in direct response to what I had just said.

She—

Was she angry now?

Though there were no words, I could somehow feel her emotions, inexplicably.

She was furious that I had just talked about extracting her from my body.

I didn’t have time to unpack the creepy laughter.

Suppressing the growing rage in my heart, I glared at the old man in front of me.

“If there’s no way to get rid of her, then what was the point of asking me that question earlier?”

“Was it fun messing with me?”

“Not at all,” the Taoist sighed deeply.

“Since the beginning of time, all effects must have a cause. Asking you was, in fact, the most important step. After all, there is no such thing as a fruit that can be forcefully picked—only with your consent can the cycle of karma be completed. Only then can the ghost infant, the most unique one to appear in nearly ten thousand years, be reborn.”

“Reborn? Since when can the dead come back to life? Were you lying to me from the start?” I frowned deeply.

Everything I’d seen and heard today had already shaken the very foundation of my materialist worldview.

And hearing that a ghost fetus could truly be reborn—my first reaction wasn’t even concern for my own future, but pure disbelief.

“In theory, it should be impossible,” the old man replied, “but you, by some absurd coincidence, are a once-in-a-millennium Pure Yin vessel. Combined with the countless baby souls she’s made up of, she technically hasn’t used up her allotted time in the living world. That creates endless possibilities.”

I caught on to the real issue. “And what if I don’t agree to this?”

The Taoist answered lightly, “Then nothing, really. Even if you refuse, she can just stay inside you. She might get angry, though… and end up killing you on the spot.”

As if my life didn’t matter at all to him.

A thick web of black lines formed across my face. ‘…’

So basically, no matter what I do, I’m not making it past the next three days?

My head throbbed worse with every passing second.

Still, I figured this old guy was probably my only chance at survival. I spoke more politely, without even realizing it.

“Please, sir… help me.”

Even a few more days of life were worth it—being humble wasn’t pathetic.

“But of course. In this world, I’m probably the only one left with that kind of power.”

The Taoist suddenly dropped his casual tone.

His expression turned serious and resolute, exuding a powerful aura.

A violent gale, like a level 7 or 8 windstorm, erupted from nowhere.

His long beard swayed in the wind, giving him an air of true transcendence.

He shouted, voice booming, “For the sake of your innocent birth and the fact that you’ve never harmed anyone, I shall grant you one chance. Since this young man refuses to form karmic bonds with you, begone at once!”

“Otherwise, don’t blame me for upholding the will of Heaven and obliterating your soul completely!”

BOOM—

For a split second, it was as if lightning truly cracked across the sky, echoing in response to the Taoist’s righteous proclamation.

I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

So, he really had just been messing with me—cutting open my stomach and all that? Most likely nonsense.

“Heehee.”

Layer upon layer of infant laughter, echoing from no discernible source, reverberated through every corner of the world.

A ghostly wind surged from all directions.

Trees shook violently in unison. An eerie, suffocating aura of death swept across the heavens and earth.

The once-clear sky was suddenly cloaked in dark, oppressive clouds. Bone-chilling howls rang through the air like spirits wailing in torment.

65/’It wasn’t just frightening—it felt like the very gates of the underworld had swung open. My legs turned to jelly almost instantly.

BANG—

Before I could even process what was happening, I saw the Taoist blasted into the air like a cannonball, slamming hard into the ground far in the distance.

He struggled to his feet, only to cough up a massive mouthful of blood.

His face turned pale in an instant.

A long-range spiritual attack… without even revealing her true form…

This was no ordinary ghost king.

Looks like I’m dying here today.

I thought for sure the Taoist would now unleash some secret technique, maybe have an epic battle with this ghost baby.

But instead—he turned around and ran.

I yelled after him, “Senior! What happened to upholding the will of Heaven?!”

*****

In just the blink of an eye, the old man had vanished from sight.

His voice echoed from afar, riding the thunder:

“If I can’t beat her, then who the hell can?! From now on, she is the will of Heaven! Screw upholding anything—good luck, I’m out!”

“You’re on your own, kid!”

Ten kilometers away, the old Taoist came to a sudden stop and spat out another mouthful of blood.

He couldn’t resist turning back for a glance.

Luckily, that ghost infant seemed unwilling to leave her Pure Yin host body.

Otherwise, he’d be dead for sure.

He made a silent vow to himself:

From now on, keep as far away from that guy as humanly possible.

****

Out on the highway, I stood at the center of a vortex of ghostly wind, chilled to the bone.

The ghost infant seemed intent on teaching me a lesson, refusing to withdraw her powers and letting my body temperature continue to plummet.

If I wanted to live even just a few days longer, I had no choice but to temporarily play along.

“…I agree.”

In an instant, all the supernatural phenomena vanished.

The long-lost sunlight nearly brought me to tears.

To still be alive… what a blessing.

Even that flashy Taoist with his dramatic entrance couldn’t do anything against her.

Now, all I could do was hope she’d be merciful and let this fragile little body of mine survive a couple more days.

“Heehee.”

That eerie, nightmare-inducing laugh echoed in my mind once more.

She still didn’t speak, but somehow—I could understand her.

You agreed…

So now, you’re my mama.

I won’t hurt you.

Who the hell agreed to that?!

If I weren’t afraid of being instantly annihilated, I would’ve cursed her out loud.

Ma-ma… Ma-ma…

Ha.

Seriously.

Can no one tell I’m a guy?

If anyone wants to be this “male mama,” they can be my guest.

As for me?

They can all go to hell.

My face may look calm, but deep down I hadn’t given up on the idea of getting her out.

If the Taoist couldn’t solve this, then I’d go to a hospital and find a doctor.

I don’t believe for a second that with the precision of modern surgical tools and thousands of years of medical knowledge, they wouldn’t be able to extract something from my stomach.

…If the old Taoist could hear my thoughts right now, he’d probably laugh at how clueless I was.

Your pitiful few thousand years of medical progress—how can that compare to a being with nearly ten thousand years of cultivation?