The infant was about fifty centimeters tall, its body not yet fully solid—sparse downy hair on its head, round cheeks like lotus stems, short and plump limbs that seemed to bulge in segments. It looked especially endearing. It hung from Jiang Yubi’s lower leg like a koala, tilting its small head, eyes closed, completely motionless—as though asleep. Was the aunt really telling the truth? Did their hospital actually have ghostly occurrences—real infant spirits? Zhang Yuanqing watched this tiny spirit with growing wonder. His mouth slowly parted. This utterly overturned his understanding. "What are you staring at!" Jiang Yubi saw her nephew fixedly examining her, so she hurried to glare at him. She pulled out a chair and slumped back onto it, pouting, "Mom, I'm exhausted—I’ll just ask you to bring the rice bowls." "Even though you don’t have arms or legs," Grandma said, yet still rose to go into the kitchen as instructed. "Hmm, family traitor—you've finally returned," Jiang Yubi said while holding up a roast duck. "If you stay single another few years, you'll be an even greater failure. Then we’ll form our twin swords and stand together against that heartless witch," Uncle said with a dismissive tone. At this moment, Grandma came out with the rice bowl, and Jiang Yubi immediately acted obedient, wrapping her arms around Grandma’s arm and resting her head on Mother's shoulder. "You’re the real family traitor," she said. "I’m the little girl who used to sit in your lap—specifically placed there to keep you under control." This was exactly how Jiang Yubi managed to win over both Grandparents and secure their special favor. "Then I’ll partner with Yuanjun for that matter, too," Uncle added. "Yuanjun is nearly becoming a family failure as well, isn’t he, wife?" The wife gave him a sharp look. "Huh?" Jiang Yubi chewed on her roast duck thoughtfully, puzzled. "Mom, didn’t you forget to season the duck? It tastes bland." "That’s from outside," Grandma replied with impatience. Jiang Yubi furrowed her brows, inhaled deeply, and exclaimed, "I can't smell anything at all—my meal isn’t even fragrant!" Grandma asked with concern, "Are you feeling under the weather?" At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing noticed the spirit hanging from Jiang Yubi’s leg. The infant’s small nostrils quivered once, then opened its eyes—black buttons—and gazed around in bewilderment at the unfamiliar surroundings. It seemed to be trying to understand why it was here. Watching this scene, Zhang Yuanqing felt increasingly serious. This wasn’t just a typical spirit. Typical spirits lack consciousness and thought, acting only by instinct. The infant didn't remain bewildered for long. Following some instinctive impulse, it wiggled its nose and slowly climbed up Jiang Yubi’s body until reaching her shoulder. Then it saw the rich spread of dishes on the table. Zhang Yuanqing followed the infant’s movements with his gaze—watching as the spirit accelerated in its climbing motion, finally reaching the dining surface and placing itself upon the table. It reached out with its short, plump hands to catch a piece of roast duck but failed each time. After repeated attempts, it seemed to realize that it could not reach the food, and began crying loudly—chokingly, heartbroken. Immediately, Zhang Yuanqing heard an ethereal cry rising from his ears—a bright, persistent sound that made him sigh deeply. What a fussing child! This was truly exhausting… Zhang Yuanqing summoned the Power of the Moon to gather at his palm, reached out, and effectively carried the infant in his hands. "Please enjoy your meal—my turn to go to the restroom." He held the infant by its neck like a small puppy and walked into the bathroom. From behind came Jiang Yubi’s voice: "Huh! My sense of smell has suddenly returned—the duck now tastes delicious!" … At the sink, Zhang Yuanqing held the infant in one hand, watching it extend its pink tongue to gently lick the Power of the Moon concentrated on his palm. The Power of the Moon was a vital tonic for spirits. "Based on this, it seems likely that the spirit will follow Jiang Yubi home—since it has absorbed my energy. This creates a strong attraction for spirits," Zhang Yuanqing thought. Yet what didn’t make sense to him was: infant spirits typically lose strength quickly after death—their form dissolves rapidly—usually within one or two days, sometimes even just hours. But the hospital’s ghostly reports had been going on for some time now. That didn't add up. So, he decided to look into it—he pulled out his smartphone and logged onto the official forum of the Five Elements Alliance. # Shocking: The organization of the Night Wandering Deity may have perished; during the coming period, there could be incidents of loss of control among the The Fallen Ones—staff members across locations should remain vigilant # # Shocking: The She Ling Tunnel has been successfully captured—the identity of those who passed through remains mysterious # Zhang Yuanqing glanced over these two top-posted threads but didn’t find them particularly urgent. The official organization would naturally promote public awareness about the potential loss of control among the The Fallen Ones—so the Night Wandering Deity incident would surely be announced. But his own achievement in capturing the She Ling Tunnel had already been shared on the forum, and now, for the first time, the identity "Yuan Shi Tian Zun" was recognized by the official Realm Walkers of the Five Elements Alliance. Zhang Yuanqing used the search function to enter the term “special spirit.” Soon, a post about general knowledge of spirits appeared. ["Spirits are formed from residual spiritual energy after the death of wise beings. Since they have lost most of their consciousness, spirits appear in a state of dullness and act only by instinct or deep dedication."] ["Once any living being passes away, their spirit begins to dissipate—ordinary people can maintain this condition for up to seven days; spirits of Realm Walkers may remain longer depending on the strength of their spiritual energy."] ["Yet there are always exceptions. As far as I know, high-level Night Wandering Deities and Illusionists can preserve their spirits even after complete destruction of their physical bodies through special techniques."] As he read this, Zhang Yuanqing couldn’t help shifting his gaze toward the infant spirit, thinking that clearly it lacked the ability to endure in the world—thus not belonging to a high-level Realm Walker. He continued reading: ["These are typical cases. Now let’s discuss atypical spirits—that is, non-standard spirits."] The content abruptly ended. Zhang Yuanqing scrolled down and discovered the latter half of the post was locked—requiring payment for access. Ah—the phenomenon known as "paying to access knowledge"—he smiled wryly, and used his smartphone to charge a two-hundred-yuan amount into his “Yuan Shi Tian Zun” account. Notably, over these past few days, administrative staff had already established dedicated mobile phone and bank accounts under the name of “Yuan Shi Tian Zun,” effectively separating it from the identity "Zhang Yuanqing." ["By atypical spirits are meant those artificially cultivated through ritual training. The most renowned example is the Night Wandering Deity's technique of commanding ghosts—though other professions also possess corresponding methods, these will be briefly described."] ["Such cultivated spirits may develop unique abilities and thus serve as valuable props or pets—the Night Wandering Deity often refers to such spirits as Spirit Servants."] ["However, one must note that not all spirits are equally suited for this cultivation. Only a rare fraction possess the potential to become Spirit Servants—let’s now discuss the methods of training them."] ["Finally, it should be mentioned: cultivating spirits from the Evil Organization is permitted—but enslaving ordinary people's spirits violates established protocols."] ["Posted by: Yuan Ting."] The two hundred yuan investment was well worth it. Zhang Yuanqing sincerely remarked upon finishing. This post revealed several key points: First: As Night Wandering Deities gain higher levels, they can maintain and nurture ghosts and corpses—during combat with Realm Walkers, their fighting style can switch between a defensive, precise technique and one involving strategic summoning of spirits. Second: This infant is indeed an exceptionally valuable Spirit Servant—he had just discovered his treasure. It already possesses special abilities—a true Spirit Servant, not merely a unique spirit. Third: Jiang Yubi’s hospital has a problem. "Jiang Yubi suddenly lost her sense of smell and taste—this must be the spirit's doing. So its ability is to steal people’s senses? Yes—the next step will be to verify this. If we can nurture it well, perhaps it could replace one of our valuable props." Zhang Yuanqing felt both delighted and concerned. There should be a Realm Walker stationed within Jiang Yubi’s hospital—now that the spirit follows her home, its mentor would certainly not allow such an important asset to be lost. Complications were inevitable—and possibly even at risk for Jiang Yubi herself. It was against protocol—for either official or wild Realm Walkers—to use ordinary people's spirits as servants. This situation could no longer remain unchallenged. "Tomorrow I’ll inform the Chief of this matter—using resources available right here and now," Zhang Yuanqing thought, instantly feeling relieved. He carefully observed the infant spirit resting on his palm and at his elbow. Noticing his attention, the spirit opened its eyes—black buttons—and looked at him with a pleasing expression, uttering softly: "Ah-ah, ah-ah..." Seeing that Zhang Yuanqing paid no attention to it, it continued gently licking the Power of the Moon gathered in his palm. It clearly had higher intelligence than an ordinary infant—but still couldn’t communicate effectively. He grasped the infant by its neck and turned it over: “Now—let’s see if you’re a charming person or just a troublemaker.” "From now on, you’ll be known as Xiao Doubi." Zhang Yuanqing carried the spirit out of the bathroom—the family dinner was drawing to a close. He returned to his seat, gently hanging the infant from Uncle’s neck while casually eating his meal—using the family failure as an informal test for its abilities. Uncle was carefully brushing his teeth with a toothpick, completely unaware of the infant riding on his neck. "Uncle," Zhang Yuanqing said, "would you like to have some soup?" When he thought it would be time, he poured soup for Uncle. He wanted to see if Uncle would experience the same loss in taste and smell as Jiang Yubi had. Uncle stroked his round belly, shaking his head: "No—no thanks. Only if you serve me a pancake with bacon." At this point, he performed an original hand gesture—a form of spoken rap—only to find that when Zhang Yuanqing expected familiar lyrics, Uncle suddenly closed his mouth and pressed his thumb into it, murmuring: "Ah-ah-ah-ah..." Simultaneously, the infant riding on Uncle’s neck emitted a sound only Zhang Yuanqing could hear: "Yoh-yoh, Ché-kè-nào—bring me a pancake with bacon!" "Ahem!" Zhang Yuanqing and Jiang Yubi both gasped and sprayed out their hot chicken soup. Grandmother, Grandfather, the wife, and the uncle all looked on in helpless sympathy. ...