The First Summoner - Chapter 56

Shen Yan immediately cast the summoning formation.

A black totem formation burst into being beneath her feet, radiating a faint glow.

She closed her eyes and sent her consciousness into her sea of consciousness. In the blink of an eye, countless otherworldly beasts appeared before her!

And besides the beasts, there were even… ghosts!

Their faces were as pale as paper, and their bodies floated in the air.

The ghosts were bewildered. They looked around without the slightest idea where they were, then jumped in fright when they saw so many otherworldly beasts.

It was not only the ghosts. Even the beasts were dumbfounded.

One beast demanded, “Aren’t human Summoners only able to summon otherworldly beasts? What are you ghosts doing here? This is a summoning mindscape!”

One ghost answered, “How should we know? Who dragged us here from the Netherworld?”

A second beast cried, “By my beastly grandmother, I’ve never seen so many of my own kind inside a human’s summoning mindscape! And there are ghosts too!”

A second ghost shouted, “Who was it? Who summoned us here?”

The sight of so many beasts and ghosts shocked Shen Yan speechless.

The otherworldly beasts alone would have been strange enough. How had she summoned ghosts as well?

Then, in the dim light, one beast began to emit a faint white radiance, illuminating much of the domain.

When the beasts and ghosts saw it clearly, they started in shock.

Was that Bai Ze?!

The ghosts hurried away from it as though they had encountered their natural nemesis.

Bai Ze was enormous, with fur as pure and white as snow and a pair of curved horns upon its head. Wisdom shone in its bright eyes as it stared at Shen Yan.

“Human, do you wish to choose several of us as your contract partners, or establish deep connections with us?”

Only then did the assembled beasts and ghosts notice the slender young woman standing nearby.

Another otherworldly beast spoke. “In all these years, you are the second human to summon me. Your eyes resemble those of the first.”

Everyone turned toward the voice and saw a chicken…

No!

It was a Chongming Bird!

The Chongming Bird resembled a chicken, but each of its two eyes held two pupils. Its strength was terrifying.

Bai Ze had been summoned, and now even the Chongming Bird had appeared!

Who was this tiny human? How could she possess such power?

The beasts fell silent.

An unbearably arrogant voice suddenly rang out. “A pack of barbaric beasts, reeking of blood and filth.”

Dangerous power rolled from the Chongming Bird. It narrowed its eyes toward the speaker.

A young boy stood there with skin as pale as paper and black hair reaching his knees. His features were exquisite but carried an eerie quality. A silver hoop hung from his left ear. He stood barefoot, rings of bells encircling his ankles. His crimson eyes slanted toward the Chongming Bird with arrogance and contempt.

The Chongming Bird sensed the challenge and was about to attack—

“Little girl, since fate has brought us together, Big Sister can only wait for you on the road to the Yellow Springs. Big Sister doesn’t enjoy a life of fighting and killing for humans.”

The seductive, laughing voice belonged to a female ghost who slowly stepped forward.

She stood at least six feet tall, with a graceful waist wrapped in a dark-red dress. Heavy, exquisite makeup covered her fierce-ghost features. A massive blood-colored saber rested in her right hand as she approached Shen Yan with a smile.

The ghost stopped and placed the blade against Shen Yan’s throat.

Looking down at her, she laughed. “Little girl, Big Sister has no time for your summoning game. I still have a pot of human-head soup simmering at home, and the fire hasn’t gone out. If I’m late and the soup spoils, Big Sister will be very unhappy~”

The other ghosts’ expressions shifted in shock.

Even she had been summoned from the Netherworld?

This human was courting death!

Despite the cold blade at her neck, Shen Yan remained perfectly calm. She slowly lifted her eyes to the female ghost.

“Take it away.”

The ghosts went even paler.

The female ghost froze. Shen Yan’s eyes suddenly reminded her of someone she had once known.

She laughed softly and withdrew her saber.

“Very well.”

The other ghosts stared in disbelief.

Shen Yan had merely wanted to confirm what she had seen, yet she had summoned this entire horde of beasts and ghosts.

Her contract with the flood dragon already placed her under strain. She had to provide it with her own blood vitality and spiritual power; those were the rules of a summoning contract. Otherwise, why would beasts from the other dimension ever agree to contracts with Summoners? They were not fools. Who would willingly accept such a losing bargain?

“Let’s establish deep connections for now.”

The beasts and ghosts looked conflicted.

The Chongming Bird flared up. “Are you looking down on us?!”

“No,” Shen Yan explained. “My cultivation is still low, and I’ve already contracted one beast. Supplying it with my blood vitality and spiritual power is difficult enough. I cannot support any more of you for the time being.”

The Chongming Bird’s anger subsided slightly.

It remembered the human who had summoned it many years ago but refused to contract it.

The humiliation had never faded.

It opened its mouth to speak, only to hear Shen Yan say, “Goodbye.”

“Hey—!”

The Chongming Bird’s furious shout vanished completely.

Shen Yan’s consciousness returned to reality. The moment she opened her eyes, dizziness overwhelmed her and she nearly collapsed.

She caught herself against the table and took a moment to recover.

Pain pulsed through her sea of consciousness, the consequence of overusing her mental power.

From the ability space, Feng Xingyao asked, “What happened inside your sea of consciousness?”

After a brief silence, Shen Yan answered, “I summoned a horde of beasts… and ghosts.”

Feng Xingyao frowned. Shock and suspicion mingled in his heart. A Summoner could summon ghosts?

He had never heard of such a thing.

Many things about her were inherently unreasonable. Yet when they happened to Shen Yan, they somehow began to seem reasonable.

Shen Yan entered the ability space. She glanced first at Feng Xingyao, then at the flood dragon lying on a shelf, still unconscious.

Ninefold rushed at her in delight.

“Master!”

Shen Yan stroked their head.

Feng Xingyao rose and walked toward her. Sensing his movement, she looked up. Color had returned to his handsome face, making his beauty breathtaking. The slightest lapse in caution could make anyone fall into his seemingly gentle trap.

He studied her deeply, then parted lips as vivid as blood.

“Shen Yan, don’t come in here for the next few days.”

“Why?”

“Because it would be inconvenient.”

“Inconvenient?”

Coldness flashed in Feng Xingyao’s eyes. He bent close to her ear, his voice a devil’s whisper and his soft laugh half warning.

“Because I might eat you.”

Wedged between them, Ninefold frowned and immediately protested, “You’re lying. You don’t eat humans. You’re about to trans—”

A large hand clamped over Ninefold’s mouth.

Their eyes widened as they struggled.

Shen Yan looked at Feng Xingyao. “About to transform into what?”