[Chapter 119: Psychic Anchor]
Daniel was speechless. Why were women so gossipy? Scarlett had been like this, and now Rachel was too. Weren't you just scared a moment ago? Not scared anymore?
Daniel couldn't complain.
He wanted to tell her his relationship with Amanda was purely transactional, but that would obviously hurt Amanda's reputation. So, on the surface, he admitted Amanda was his girlfriend.
Daniel said, "Yeah, what about it?"
Rachel smiled. "Nothing, I was just asking. Amanda's really lucky. Since meeting you, her career just keeps rising -- two lead roles in a row."
Daniel nodded. "You're doing pretty well yourself."
Rachel smiled confidently. "Yeah."
Seeing her confidence, Daniel didn't try to discourage her. She'd been on the verge of A-list status once but had taken a wrong turn, and her career had plummeted.
Rachel seemed to pick up on the meaning behind Daniel's eyes. "Mr. Cross, do you not think highly of my career?"
Daniel replied, "What? Your career's been good."
"But I feel like you don't think highly of me," she said.
"Don't jump to conclusions."
"It's not a guess," Rachel said. "It's a feeling, a woman's intuition."
Daniel was speechless. Was a woman's intuition really that accurate?
Rachel asked, "I heard you can change luck. Could you help me change mine, too?"
"Let's deal with the immediate problem first," Daniel said.
Rachel realized he was right and set aside her wish to change luck for now.
...
After dinner, they returned to Rachel's house. It was nearly 9 p.m.
Daniel instructed her to draw all the curtains, turn off the lights in every room except the living room.
With a wave of his hand, a Ritual Table appeared. After lighting incense and candles, Daniel told Rachel to turn off the living room light.
Suddenly, only two candle flames flickered in the house, casting a faint glow over the small area in front of the Ritual Table. Everywhere else was pitch black.
It had been a long time since Daniel had lit incense and candles like this -- and he rarely turned off all the lights. But he had no choice. This ghost was too unusual; normal methods couldn't summon it.
Daniel glanced at Rachel. He suspected the ghost had a deep bond with her. That was why he couldn't forcibly summon it before.
"Come sit," Daniel said, pointing to a chair in front of the Ritual Table.
Rachel walked over and sat obediently.
Daniel pulled out a red cord, tied it around her wrist, and tied the other end to a bowl made of ashwood.
He grabbed the consecrated ashwood sword and pressed its tip onto the table. Instantly, a Seal appeared on the sword tip.
Daniel swung the consecrated ashwood sword, chanting incantations.
By sealed authority, let hidden command go forth in silence.
Warden of Seizure, traverse all bounds and leave no refuge.
From every quarter, let the unclean be named and brought to account.
Let the bell of judgment sound—no spirit may conceal itself.
By mandate, seize and present them. So ordered.
It was the same Soul Summoning Incantation, but this time, the power felt even grander. That mysterious force echoed through the house, lending solemnity to the darkness.
Suddenly, Rachel threw her head back, her face twisted in pain, and she cried out in agony. Her expression contorted as if something powerful was being pulled from her very soul.
A chilling wind swept through, causing the candle flames to flicker wildly -- bright, dim, threatening to go out.
Then, the Red cord trembled and snapped with a sharp crack.
The cold wind vanished, the candlelight steadied, and Rachel's face gradually relaxed.
...
Bathed in the dim candlelight, Rachel looked at Daniel with dazed eyes. "Mr. Cross, what... what just happened to me?"
Daniel replied, "My guess was right. That ghost was using you as a psychic anchor, attaching itself to your spiritual world. No wonder I couldn't summon it before. The Incantation for Purifying Souls was useless."
Rachel didn't understand all of it but knew the ghost had latched onto her spirit.
She gasped, "It can do that?"
Daniel nodded. "The world's full of strange things."
Rachel asked, "What do we do now?"
"I just forcibly summoned it, but that ghost's skilled. It snapped the red cord and avoided being trapped in the bowl. But now that it's out, it'll be easier to handle."
Daniel handed Rachel a Seal. "With this, the ghost won't be able to enter your body anymore."
He shifted his gaze into the thick darkness ahead.
Though silent, Daniel was certain the entity was lurking within.
By sealed authority, let hidden command go forth in silence.
Warden of Seizure, traverse all bounds and leave no refuge.
From every quarter, let the unclean be named and brought to account.
Let the bell of judgment sound—no spirit may conceal itself.
By mandate, seize and present them. So ordered.
He began chanting again.
The power spread through the room, candle flames glowing stronger.
As the incantation ended, a faint figure materialized in the darkness before Daniel. The silhouette was human-shaped but blurry. Its hands looked strange, like ten sharp blades.
The shadows were too thick for Daniel to see clearly.
"Ah!"
Rachel caught sight of the figure too. She jumped back in fright and hid behind Daniel.
Daniel pinched a small flame from a candle between his fingers, flicked it toward the figure. "Go."
The flame shot forward, illuminating the figure.
Something strange happened: the figure vanished the moment the flame touched it.
After the flame died out, the faint silhouette reappeared.
"Hm?"
Daniel found this odd. He hadn't sensed it move, yet it disappeared as light touched it.
He pinched out another flame and flicked it. The same thing happened.
Could this be that kind of spirit?
He thought of the horror movie Lights Out. The plot was cheesy, but the ghost was unusual: it only appeared in darkness and vanished whenever light shone on it.
In the movie, the female lead encountered the ghost in a hospital. That matched their situation perfectly.
If this was the same kind of ghost, it should be easy to handle.
Not knowing what kind of ghost it was had unnerved Daniel before, but now he had a plan.
In Lights Out, the ghost was tied to the protagonist's mother. The spirit's existence depended on her.
In the end, the mother committed suicide, and the ghost disappeared.
Daniel couldn't help but glance back at Rachel.
She was trembling.
"Mr. Cross, what's wrong?" she asked nervously.
*****
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