CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 36: ARTIFACT

The moment blue pulsing energy struck Xander, he let out a piercing, agonized shriek.

"Ahhh!"

Mathilda’s heart trembled hearing her son’s painful voice, tears welled up in her eyes, and she had to bite back the urge to go and comfort her son.

Lana panted as the steady stream of mystic energy left her body, making her feel weak and dizzy.

Maybe it was because fear was raging in her mind, or the earlier encounter had left a deep mark; anyhow, Lana’s senses were heightened.

When the impact of the mystic energy became more profound, Xander collapsed on the ground, his body curling up.

Lana’s heart constricted as her mystic energy eventually reached the depleting stage.

’No... no! Please not at this crucial moment! I will die!’

The goddess must have heard her pleas, because Xander fainted the next second.

Mathilda’s hands were trembling as she touched her son.

On receiving no response, she called out softly, "Son? Xander?"

The only response she received was deafening silence.

Mathilda pursed her lips tightly and inched closer toward Xander.

Her hand slowly wrapped around Xander; her gentle moment made it seem as if Xander were some porcelain doll that might shatter if not taken care of properly.

Lana’s heart that was hammering in her chest slowly calmed down.

The strength borrowed from the high adrenaline slipped out of her body, and she collapsed on the ground with a thud.

The plush, soft carpet tickled Lana. It was almost like a cat’s fur, just a bit softer and fluffier.

’I will install a plush carpet in my own house someday...’ She thought in her heart.

The sound of faint sobs echoed through the air, snapping Lana out of her dazed state. Her demeanor changed, yet she didn’t rush to comfort Mathilda.

Now that the danger was temporarily dealt with, Lana fell into a deep thought.

’This case is too dangerous for me, and my level of cultivation is insufficient to confront this powerful ghost. I heavily suspect that this ghost is cultivating for 1.5 years! Otherwise, how can I not deal with it? Or is it that... my energy is insufficient to even deal with a ghost possessing 1 year of cultivation?’

"You have sufficient energy, but this ghost has two years of cultivation. I wondered how you can even stand a chance against him in the first place." Mr. Crow’s hoarse voice echoed in Lana’s ears.

"Oh? Mr. Crow, are you here? I thought you were on a vacation, considering how you didn’t bother to help me, even though you are my contracted beast." Lana’s nonchalant voice, laced with sarcasm, sounded like the scraping of glass against a floor.

Mr. Crow rolled his beady black eyes. "I was investigating a strange phenomenon."

"Oh? Care to enlighten me about the so-called phenomenon you were working on while I was facing a life-and-death situation?" Lana mercilessly exposed him.

"Instead of blaming me, why didn’t you use the Aether barrier in the first place?" Mr. Crow looked irked.

"Excuse me? I did try... only... I didn’t have the practice and couldn’t activate it." Lana accepted her mistake readily.

It wasn’t that she didn’t consider using Aether Barrier; rather, executing a skill that is only understood at first glance is challenging. It’s like asking a hamster to copy a K-pop idol’s dance step.

"Now don’t change the subject and tell me what you found." Lana redirected the question back to Mr. Crow.

Mr. Crow didn’t hide it and said,

"Usually, even a ghost with 2 years of cultivation shouldn’t have so much power. The only explanation that I have is that it had some kind of artifact supporting it."

Lana’s eyes narrowed.

Having dealt with ghosts in her previous life, she knew that some ghosts indeed use certain artifacts to cultivate or to possess, or worse, they might use them as a defense too.

"The ghost possessing that boy... it seems to be using some artifact to collect evil qi, or evil energy, to enrich its body." Mr. Crow’s expression was grim.

"While you injected the mystic energy into its body, I noticed that the evil energy around it lessened before recovering."

Lana understood what Mr. Crow was pointing out, and her eyes shot up to the strange statue.

She heavily suspected that it was the strange statue that was causing trouble.

Without hesitation, she pointed her index finger in the statue’s direction, and blue pulsing spiral strands of energy shot in the statue’s direction.

Puti!

The moment mystic energy hit the statue, Xander coughed up crimson black blood, his face turned pale, and his aura started to weaken.

"Xander? Baby? What has happened? Don’t scare Mommy!" Mathilda shouted, her heart skipping beats.

"Ugh oh..." Lana froze and quickly took back her mystic energy.

Meanwhile, Mr. Crow’s brow furrowed before he flapped his wing and bolted toward the statue.

"What happened?" Mathilda, seeing the crow with Lana inspecting the statue with a fervent gaze, asked in a trembling voice.

"This statue... is a bit strange. Do you mind if I take it away and inspect it?"

"Sure." Mathilda’s eyelashes were shimmering with tears, and she nodded. Her eyes were looking at Lana with deep admiration and respect.

After all, Lana proved her capability, and it was enough to make Mathilda feel ashamed.

Mr. Crow didn’t need Lana’s order, as he picked up the statue using his claws and returned to Lana.

"Miss Fern, I will leave for now." Lana’s legs were shaking like jelly, yet her composed face betrayed nothing.

"My Xander..." Mathilda’s heart was filled with desperation as she looked at Lana.

"The ghost possessing him won’t return, at least for now. My mystic energy must have weakened it severely. So no need to worry." Lana assured her in a gentle voice.

"Okay..." Mathilda heaved a sigh of relief and offered, "My driver will drop you off today. Can you share your phone number?"

"Okay." Lana nodded and took out her phone.

After exchanging numbers, Lana left.