The man's shocked exclamation disturbed the ethereal girl. Her face was haggard and her body was soft and weak, as if she was made of paper. She slowly raised her head and looked at the ashen man, her thin face showing a trace of a smile.
"Ah Lin… it really is you… you're not dead…" The shocked man looked at the familiar smiling face of his deceased wife. He could not contain himself as he ran towards the ethereal figure and subconsciously reached out his arms to try to hug his beloved. However, he only hugged thin air.
The man was stunned as his arms passed through his wife's body. His fingertips did not encounter any of her previous warmth.
The Ping City citizens were stunned as they looked at the ethereal figures. Many of them saw familiar faces.
Fathers who had died of old age; relatives who had died in an illness; children who had died young…
The familiar faces filled their eyes.
Linghe looked at the scene before him and widened his eyes in disbelief. As he looked at these ethereal figures, a fantastic speculation arose in his heart. He subconsciously looked at Ji Fengyan and trembled when he asked, "Miss… these…"
The trace of a smile flashed across the corners of Ji Fengyan's mouth. "These are souls."
Linghe was slightly taken aback.
Ji Fengyan said, "When people die, they don't really leave. Their souls still wander the earth, or they can choose to be reincarnated—or they can become trapped wherever they are."
Ji Fengyan had learnt the art of Soul Summoning from her Grandmaster. The first time she had used it was when her Master had died, but unfortunately… she had been unable to summon her Master's soul.
When people die, their souls emerge.
With the passing of time, their consciousness fades and they are reincarnated.
However…
There are some souls who are victims of injustice and linger for a long time. As they die under abnormal circumstances, their souls harbor the injustice and they are trapped somewhere, unable to be reincarnated.
The citizens of Ping City snapped out of their shock. When they saw their deceased relatives appear before them, their longing made them forget everything. They all threw down the items in their hands and walked towards the souls of their loved ones.
But…
As they came closer, they realized that their loved ones' faces might look the same, but their bodies looked completely different from what they remembered.
The souls that lingered before them were mostly split open, their abdomens empty. Their familiar faces had faint traces of hate and resentment.
The strong sense of resentment made the surrounding air even more cold and gloomy.
Ji Fengyan lifted her hand slightly and wisps of vital energy spread from her fingertips and sank into the souls.
The beams of faint light sank into the souls, illuminating the various differences in these souls.
The longer they had been deceased, the more ethereal the souls looked, until they were almost transparent. The souls of the recently deceased looked very solid, even the split flesh at their wounds they could see clearly.
"Will today's victims please step forward." Ji Fengyan's voice was ethereal and insubstantial. When her voice entered the citizens' ears, it was like a clear stream pouring into their chests.
More than ten ethereal figures moved through the crowd of souls to appear before Ji Fengyan. They had all died tragically and their souls preserved their appearance before death. Their abdomens had been split open and their organs removed. Their limbs were contorted and they had evidently been tortured to death. As souls, they looked so hideous that people did not dare to take a second look.
At Ji Fengyan's words, everyone's gaze fell on these ten over souls. One could tell at a glance that these ten over souls were people who had been murdered that day.