“Excuse me, Reverend Priest…”
Compared to his younger sister Dula, Jianong, as the second brother, clearly had little patience.
Perhaps it was also because his wife kept poking him in the back.
He even raised his hand to interrupt the priest who was praying in a low voice.
“How long do we have to keep praying like this? To be honest, I still have some things to do later…”
His words not only drew the priest’s displeasure but also made Di’an, who had been bowing her head in silent prayer for her grandmother, look up and glare angrily at her uncle.
However, the little girl’s glare did not change Jianong’s attitude. He just pursed his lips with a helpless look.
Compared to this ceremony, which was more about form than substance, he was more concerned about the ownership of the shop the old lady had left behind.
If he could get that shop, his family’s life would improve a notch.
Since there was no older brother above him, as the second son, he should have the first right of inheritance.
“You guys… are so mean!”
Although Di’an was only seven years old, having lost her parents at a young age, she was much more mature than many children.
Her grandmother had taken good care of her, but to live in this town, she had to interact with more than just her kind grandmother.
There were also many other adults, good and bad, and peers who were either friendly or scornful toward her.
So Di’an had always known that her uncle and aunt had ignored her grandmother while she was alive.
Now that her grandmother had passed, they were both flocking over to swallow up her last possessions.
The girl’s eyes gradually deepened, with a determination that children her age could not match.
She had already made a secret decision in her heart: after her grandmother’s funeral, she would return to the home she and her grandmother shared and burn it all down.
Let the bakery, filled with sweet scents and warm memories, the place that had held her entire childhood, be buried with her grandmother. No one could defile it!
“Hah… What the hell do you know? Kid… go over there!” Jianong naturally had no idea what his niece was thinking.
He didn’t care either. A seven-year-old orphan without parents, even if the old lady had a will, what threat could she pose to his claim on the property?
But at that moment, no one noticed that inside the coffin, the black obsessions on the old lady’s body were growing thicker and thicker with their thoughts…
Whoosh… The black obsessions extended like tentacles from the coffin, gradually spreading toward Di’an, whose small fists were clenched.
Whoosh—!
The moment those invisible black obsessions touched Di’an, the girl felt her vision go dark!
“Huh?!” In the next second, she opened her eyes in panic and looked around…
She seemed to be in a pitch-black mist, unable to see her hand in front of her face, with no sound around. Where was this?
Although Di’an was more mature than normal children, she was still a child.
Now she felt a trace of fear mixed with confusion, completely unable to understand how she had ended up here in the blink of an eye.
“Di’an…”
Gradually, Di’an heard a voice calling her name from deep within the black mist. She knew that voice! It was Grandma’s voice!
“Grandma!!” Tears immediately burst from the little girl’s eyes!
Her grandmother had always told her to be strong, so she had held back during the funeral, refusing to let her tears fall.
But now, hearing her grandmother’s voice again, she could no longer hold back.
If Grandma was ahead, no matter how terrifying this place was, for the little girl, it would be heaven!
Pat, pat, pat…
Di’an ran forward quickly! Sure enough, she saw her grandmother’s figure up ahead.
However, her grandmother’s form was blurry now, her face and body shrouded in black mist.
Others might find this scene eerie, but Di’an threw herself into her grandmother’s arms.
Cold. That was the first sensation Di’an’s body registered. But her heart felt warm at that moment.
“Di’an… I… can’t stop worrying about you…”
Her grandmother’s voice sounded again in her ear. But these words made Di’an suddenly snap to attention.
The last words her grandmother had said before she passed were exactly this.
“Then… can you take me with you, Grandma? As long as I’m with you, I don’t care where I am!”
The little girl had no other thoughts now; she just didn’t want to let go of the familial love she was holding on to.
But the next second, the black mist began to tremble. A voice like a great bell or a waterfall plunging into a cold pool suddenly rang out—
【A person’s death is also another beginning. Let go, little girl.】
Whoosh—! Clatter, clatter…
Then the black mist turned into countless chains, binding the old woman’s soul and pulling it into the distance in an instant!
“Grandma!!”
Di’an cried out in despair. In that instant, she seemed to see her grandmother smile kindly at her…
Whoosh!
The girl reached out to grab something, but only caught the dispersing black mist.
“Who are you?! Where did you take my grandmother?!”
The girl shouted hysterically, but as she instinctively looked up, she suddenly froze in place…
She hadn’t looked up before, but now Di’an saw…
In the sloping upper corner of this black mist space were hanging two crimson full moons. No… they weren’t moons. They were… a pair of eyes.
“Huh…?” The moment she met the gaze of the eyes in the sky, Di’an felt the blood in her body freeze.
【No need to panic~ You are a devout believer. I can sense it.】
Devout… believer?
Di’an’s grandmother was a believer in the One God. Growing up immersed in that, the little girl firmly believed in the teachings of the One God.
Moreover, after her grandmother passed, she had prayed most devoutly.
“Um… are you… are you the One God?”
The crimson eyes in the sky were silent for a moment, then slowly spoke.
【I am not the One God. The One God granted me the authority of death. You may call me the Lord of Death.】
Lord… of Death?
The pronunciation of that word was strange. At least Di’an had never heard of it.
“Um… Lord of Death, my grandmother…”
【You don’t need to worry about her. Death is also a gift from the One God. Her path as a living person has come to an end.】
Although she didn’t fully understand, from what he said, it seemed her grandmother had returned to the embrace of the “One God” she had believed in all her life.
That should be a good enough end for her, right?
The little girl seemed to have come to terms with something. Looking at the black mist before her, her eyes moist.
“Grandma… I’ll take good care of myself. Don’t worry about me.”
The atmosphere was silent for a few minutes. Then the girl looked up again, confused.
“Um… Lord of Death, how do I go back?”
【…】
The “Lord of Death” gritted his teeth.
This little girl was mature but still had the childishness of a child.
If an ordinary person had such an opportunity and found themselves in this situation, wouldn’t they immediately bow their head and beg for power to protect themselves?
But this little one was still eager to go back.
【Your faith is devout. Do you want to become my follower?】
The Lord of Death’s voice came from above. For some reason, Di’an felt that besides authority, there was also a hint of helplessness in his voice.
“Huh? I… can I?”
A follower… like Grandma, who prayed to the One God before every meal?
【Of course. Your grandmother’s unfulfilled wish was that you might not take care of yourself. Become my follower, and you will have the power to protect yourself.】
Hearing about her grandmother’s unfulfilled wish, Di’an’s eyes reddened again…
Then, without any further hesitation, she knelt down with a thud and slowly bowed to the pair of huge crimson eyes in the sky!
“I am willing to become a follower of the Lord of Death! I will serve you forever!”
【Very well…】
The Lord of Death said nothing more. The next second, when Di’an opened her eyes again…
She was back at her grandmother’s funeral.
Stagger, stagger… Her body swayed unconsciously, as if she had been riding a high-speed carriage for hours. Her head was dizzy and nauseous…
But amid this unbearable feeling, a lot of things had already appeared in her mind—complex incantations.
However, her state did not draw anyone’s attention at the moment.
Because as the priest slowly closed the book in his hand, it signaled that the lengthy “Soul Returning Ritual” had come to an end.
The next step was to seal the coffin and bury it.
But… this step should have been done by the girl’s uncle, Jianong, as the second son.
Yet he showed no intention of stepping forward to seal the coffin. Instead, he walked over to Di’an.
“Niece, your grandmother has passed away now. You’re still young and can’t take care of yourself…”
He put on a “kind” smile.
“Why don’t you stay at your uncle’s house for now? And the deed to the house you and your grandmother lived in…”
“Hey! Second Brother, that’s not fair… Little Di, uh… she’s my niece too~ How can you be the only one to take care of her~”
Hearing Jianong’s words, Dula also rushed over, full of disagreement.
“Um, little niece, give me the deed. Auntie promises you’ll be more comfortable at my place than before~”
“Dula!! Do you even have any respect for me as your brother?!”
“If you’re my brother, then you should let me, your sister, have my way, right?!”
The two of them started arguing bitterly, completely ignoring that there were other people around.
This made little Di’an unconsciously clench her fists.
These so-called uncle and aunt of hers were nothing but bad people! They showed no sadness at Grandma’s death, only fighting over property…
The girl’s eyes gradually deepened, and she silently began to recite the complex incantation in her heart…
‘With faith as the guide, the soul as the contract… Wraiths wandering in the land of death, show your hatred here!’
Whoosh—!!
The next second, Di’an felt her body suddenly turn extremely cold!
But at the same time, a terrifying power from the depths of her soul surged forth!
“Enough—!!!”
The next second, a terrifying Soul Scream erupted from the girl’s throat like a catharsis! Her long hair floated up with the scream!
“Huh?!”
“Aaaah!!!”
The two arguing people screamed in agony and collapsed to the ground! The others around also felt their brains twitch violently!
When they looked back at the little girl in the middle, their bodies couldn’t stop trembling.
It was a shudder and fear originating from the soul…
Soul attack, for the first time performed by a human, appeared on the surface of this continent.
And it was the future “Mourning Saint” of the [Church of the One God] and the Bishop of the Court of Death, Di’an…
At the age of seven, manifesting her transcendent power for the first time.