Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

For several nights in a row, Ling Yun's spirit body did not step out of the Taiji Space. He devoted all his attention to the Yin Yin aspect, fully activating the newly acquired Soul Refining Banner to refine the more than one hundred souls he had recently subdued. Initially, the spiritual light of the souls refined from the banner was pure white. However, as the Soul Refining Banner absorbed soul power and completed its first upgrade, the newly refined souls' spiritual light faintly took on a subtle yet undeniable golden hue!

Gazing at the wisps of golden soul light coiling around the banner, Ling Yun's heart surged with astonishment. He became increasingly certain that this seemingly unremarkable Soul Refining Banner was no ordinary item; its value likely far exceeded his imagination. Recalling the "madman fleeing" notification effect on the system shop interface, he could almost certainly conclude that the system's unusual behavior was closely related to this Soul Refining Banner. But what astonishing power would this treasure unleash after its subsequent upgrades? This filled him with anticipation and curiosity.

He reread the instructions for the "Newbie Gift Pack" left behind by the system, and combined them with the changes before and after the Soul Refining Banner was upgraded. A bold idea took shape in his mind: Could this Soul Refining Banner be the legendary "Innate Treasure"? Judging from its current state of needing to absorb souls to refine blood beads in order to slowly recover and upgrade, it is very likely that it consumed too much energy in a certain earth-shattering battle, resulting in a great loss of power and its fall from grace.

And that upgrade certainly did not disappoint him.

[Soul Refining Banner successfully upgraded for the first time!] [Unlocked Ability: Blood Soul Chains - Can imprison living souls and tear apart spirit bodies] [Unlocked Ability: Soul Banner Domain - Suppresses the strength of all souls within its range after deployment]

The emergence of these two new abilities was like a timely gift, giving Ling Yun a qualitative leap in both self-defense and combat power.

Time slipped by unnoticed, and five days passed in the blink of an eye. Under the continuous absorption and refinement of souls, and the subtle nourishment of the Taiji Space, Ling Yun was pleasantly surprised to find that his spiritual body was showing signs of transforming from Yin to Yang—his Yin spirit body was slowly and steadily transforming into a Yang spirit body! Although there was still a long way to go before he could truly condense a Yang spirit and briefly appear in the daytime, and he still needed to absorb a massive amount of soul power, this was undoubtedly a huge breakthrough, giving him hope of truly "coming alive."

For the next five days, Ling Yun continued to send out five spiritual clones to gather intelligence in the early morning. He remained constantly concerned about Xiao Yuzhu. Although his previous attempt to "transmigrate" into Xiao Yuzhu had failed, his resolve to protect Lü Bingxin never wavered. Only if Lü Bingxin was safe could Xiao Yuzhu's future life be less fraught with scheming and hardship. Furthermore, he needed to gain a deeper understanding of the Japanese forces entrenched in Beijing, especially the ninjas, Onmyoji, and cultivators who controlled shikigami. Although he was confident that the power of modern weapons, such as a heavy machine gun, would be enough to riddle these so-called "superhumans," survival was paramount. The best approach was to deal with the Japanese without making a sound. Otherwise, any potentially valuable items within the Japanese garrison command would have already been swept into his Taiji Space.

He even began to ponder the more distant headquarters of the Japanese North China Area Army. Previously, due to the limited range of his spiritual activity, he could only watch helplessly from afar. But with the increase in his strength and the upgrade of the Soul Refining Banner, his spiritual sensing range has now expanded to an astonishing 15220 meters—an increase of more than ten kilometers! This means that most of Beijing is now within his detection range.

Night fell again, and in the early hours of the morning, Ling Yun recalled his five wandering clones. Tonight, he decided to go out personally. His activity radius of more than ten kilometers was enough for him to take in the night view of Beijing, and many places that he could only look at from afar before, he could now set foot in.

In the cold night of Beijing, all was quiet, and the streets were deserted. The few people one could occasionally see were of three kinds: first, heavily armed Japanese patrols, swaggering about; second, places that remained brightly lit and bustling even in the dead of night, such as the brothels of the Eight Great Hutongs and gambling dens that stayed open all night; and third, intelligence agents or secret workers from various factions—whether puppet troops, Kuomintang spies, or underground workers of the communist forces—who often chose this relatively secretive time to operate.

Lingyun's spirit silently rose into the air, like a silent ghost, overlooking the ancient capital gasping for breath under the invaders' iron heel. Below, scattered lights still flickered—the sleepless gambling dens and brothels. The faint sounds of dice hitting bowls, drunken laughter and curses, and the soft, seductive voices of courtesans, their eager greetings and farewells, could be heard. He watched indifferently the gamblers and prostitutes indulging in debauchery, the girls forcing smiles and selling their youth, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him. This was a chaotic world; some lived in a drunken stupor, while others struggled to survive.

Just as Lingyun's spirit was wandering aimlessly in the air, experiencing the familiar yet unfamiliar Night City, a sudden change occurred!

A sudden, irresistible, and enormous suction force suddenly came from a certain direction, like an invisible black hole, and his spirit was uncontrollably pulled away in that direction!

"Damn it!" A sudden, overwhelming panic gripped Ling Yun's mind!

What's going on?! Could it be that a cultivator has set up a special array to harvest souls? Or is some powerful Onmyoji performing a ritual? If his spirit is torn apart and destroyed by this power, wouldn't Ling Yun be setting a record for the shortest lifespan in the Transmigration World (oh no, now it's the Soul Transmigration World)? It hasn't even been ten days since he transmigrated! And his soul is about to be destroyed!

He desperately tried to mobilize his soul power to resist the powerful force pulling him away, but it was all in vain. That power was like the mighty force of heaven and earth, vast and boundless, and his spirit was as insignificant as an ant before it.

"Soul Refining Banner!" In the critical moment, Ling Yun suddenly remembered his reliance and quickly summoned the Soul Refining Banner, trying to activate it to protect his spirit. However, the Soul Refining Banner seemed to be suppressed by this power as well. The banner trembled slightly, and the golden soul light it emitted could not completely resist the invisible pull.

"Oh no! Nothing worked?!" Ling Yun's heart sank to the bottom. "It's over! I'm doomed! This is just one bad luck after another! Am I setting a record? The shortest survival time in the transmigration world... no, the soul transmigration world!"

The thought of despair had barely crossed his mind when, within seconds, everything went black before Ling Yun's eyes. His spirit seemed to have been plunged into an abyss, instantly entering a deathly black space. Here, he could not sense anything from the outside world, as if he were completely isolated from it all.

However, this deathly silence did not last long. He "saw" that he was not the only "existent" in this void of black space. Not far away, there was another "little ghost" of about twelve or thirteen years old, emanating a faint white soul light, curled up there, seemingly in a coma.

It seems this wasn't a "cage" specifically prepared for him. However, compared to the unconscious ghost, Ling Yun's spirit body, having absorbed and refined souls for a long time, especially after the Soul Refining Banner was upgraded, was now radiating a rich and solid golden soul power, making it particularly conspicuous and powerful.

Just as Ling Yun was filled with doubt and speculation, wondering who was behind this, a long-lost, cold, and mechanical voice suddenly rang in his mind:

[Host, do not panic. This boy's physical body is now yours. The unconscious spirit is the boy's remaining memories.]

"System?!" Ling Yun was taken aback at first, then stared in disbelief. "Didn't you run away?!"

[Host, you can create soul clones, so why can't this system?] The system's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible... arrogance? [What escaped earlier was merely a clone of this system. However, this main body of the system should have completely left after helping you complete this fusion. Otherwise, if other beings coveting the Soul Refining Banner react and launch a counterattack, this system wouldn't be able to protect you. This unexpected situation is a pleasant surprise. Keep your 'Fusion Pill' for now; consider it a safeguard. In case this physical body encounters misfortune, such as dying of old age or an accident, you can use the Fusion Pill to find an opportunity to possess another body and be reborn.]

The system paused, then continued explaining: "This child recently died from starvation; his body is still warm, and his soul has only been separated from his body for two minutes, making him an ideal target for possession. This system will use its last reserves to help you perfectly fuse with this body and his memories. From this point on, our fate is sealed, and we may never meet again."

Finally, the system left Ling Yun with a sentence he would never forget: "[Furthermore, host, your Soul Refining Banner is not a Primordial Treasure.]"

Ling Yun's heart skipped a beat: "Then... what is it?"

Its origins are even more ancient and noble than any innate treasure—it is a primordial treasure. In the future, we must cherish it and make good use of its power.

As soon as the words were spoken, before Ling Yun could ask any more questions, the system's voice disappeared completely, as if it had never existed.

Immediately afterwards, Ling Yun felt a gentle yet powerful force envelop his golden spirit body and the white boy's memory, and then suddenly "pushed" the two together!

There was no rejection or pain as he had imagined, only a smooth, seamless integration. Lingyun's golden spirit surged into the white memory like a tidal wave, and countless chaotic images, information, and emotions flooded into the depths of his consciousness like a burst dam—the short and arduous life of this young man.

At the same time, he felt a strong hunger from the depths of his soul, sweeping over him like a tsunami! If his soul body had not been nourished for a long time and had strong and solid soul power, he would probably have been "overwhelmed" by this hunger as soon as he merged with the memories of this extremely hungry body.

He subconsciously "introspected" his Tai Chi space's Yang side—it was completely empty. Apart from some basic soil and water, there was no ready-made food, let alone seeds that could be planted!

"Damn it!" Ling Yun cursed under his breath. It was the middle of the night, and everyone was still asleep. It seemed that in order to survive, he had no choice but to temporarily become a "gentleman thief" and go get some food to fill his stomach!

As the memories merged, Ling Yun gradually learned about the original owner of this body. The original owner's name was He Damin, a seemingly ordinary name. His father, He Xi, was a skilled chef, but unfortunately, he was a morally questionable man who ran off with a widow surnamed Cai, abandoning young He Damin. He Damin also had an older brother named He Daqing, who was said to be making a living in Beijing. After his father ran away, the desperate He Damin wandered around, relying on his hazy memories to come to Beijing to find his brother, He Daqing. However, in the vast city of Beijing, amidst the sea of ​​people, and with his father not specifying his brother's location, the young He Damin, alone and without relatives, ran out of money and ultimately starved to death on the streets of this foreign land…

After receiving this memory, Ling Yun—no, he should be called He Damin now—felt a mix of emotions. He felt the lingering weakness and extreme hunger in this body, as well as the longing for family and the uncertainty about the future.

"Don't worry, He Damin," Ling Yun said silently in his heart, "From this day forward, I will remember your grudge. I will do my best to make up for your regrets. I will take good care of your body. From today onwards, I am He Damin!"

He took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart and the hunger in his body, and began to carefully sense the exact location of his new "body." His immediate priority was to leave this hellish place, find food, and then... survive! To survive well in this chaotic world!