Exorcist's Self-Cultivation

When Du Wei mentioned gambling for a round.

Annabelle shuddered for an instant, but unlike the shadow, she did not abandon the idea of making a move and instead eerily floated in midair, closing in on Du Wei.

The ghosts also gathered around, forming a circle.

On the Joker Card, Du Wei, dressed in a tailcoat, also turned his head to look at Annabelle.

This card was not merely a medium for the Evil Spirit, a part of the Evil Spirit was hidden within it.

As Father Tony had said, it was a "weapon" that could be used against Evil Spirits.

Du Wei did not bother with the ghosts, knowing that if he dealt with Annabelle, they would naturally disappear.

So, Du Wei calmly said, "If you don't speak, I'll take it as your agreement; let the game begin."

"The loser loses everything, the winner takes all."

After these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the room suddenly changed.

The ghosts surrounded Du Wei and Annabelle as though they were spectators at a gambling table.

And Annabelle remained suspended in midair.

Gambling was something equitable if both parties were relatively evenly matched.

Originally, Du Wei was at a disadvantage; all he could do was protect himself. However, after putting on the mask and using this card, things changed.

The mask represented the identity of an Evil Spirit, and a gamble initiated by him was an Evil Spirit's gamble.

Evil Spirit against Evil Spirit, that was fair.

So, Du Wei said to Annabelle, "The game begins. I'm the dealer, and the rule is that after I finish this sentence, whoever says I win first will be the victor."

Annabelle trembled, and the surrounding ghosts suddenly turned their gazes towards Du Wei.

The Joker Card he held in his hand also became somewhat chillingly cold to the touch.

"Well... It seems that with this card in my hand, I cannot establish such a nearly idealistic set of gambling rules, or perhaps, the stakes and the rules do not match."

Du Wei felt a bit of regret, Annabelle was just an Evil Spirit Doll; it shouldn't be able to speak at all, so it seemed impossible to exploit a loophole in this situation.

He thought for a moment and then continued, "Then let's change the stakes. If I lose, I lose everything, but if you lose, you can only stay inside the display cabinet."

"And the rule is, let's see who can take off the mask I am wearing first."

Annabelle seemed angry, staring intently at Du Wei, and so did the ghosts.

It seemed as if the gamble would end in failure the very next second.

This time it likely wasn't a problem with the stakes but that the rules of the game were unfair, so it couldn't be established.

As Du Wei caressed the Joker Card that was becoming colder and colder, he noticed that the version of himself wearing a tailcoat on the card was also staring at him with an indescribably sinister and evil expression.

He was thinking...

Annabelle was different from a typical Evil Spirit. Initially, it had faced off against another terrifying Evil Spirit, and if Du Wei hadn't capitalized on its inability to fight back to trap it once, it would never have been possible to lock it in the display cabinet.

Moreover, the creature had now recovered some of its strength because of him or had grown stronger from what he had fed it.

It would probably be very difficult to kill it through gambling.

Even after changing the rules, the game couldn't be established.

The use of the Joker Card was highly restricted; it had to become fairer to be valid.

Realizing this, Du Wei added another condition to the previous rule, "Before you make a move, I cannot touch the mask, otherwise, the dealer loses."

When he finished saying this.

Du Wei clearly felt an inexplicable sense of strangeness coming from the card.

The version of himself on the card also revealed a creepy smile, and black threads started to appear on both him and Annabelle.

He knew those were the stakes; the game was established.

Then the Evil Spirit Doll floating in front of him moved, rushing towards him with incredible speed.

To this, Du Wei's eyes held a strange expression.

He pressed the lighter once more.

A red flame shot out, and Annabelle jerked to a halt, then shuddered. The ghosts all approached Du Wei and gently blew on the lighter.

The flame suddenly went out.

The doll body of Annabelle reached out its hand, grasping for the mask.

But Du Wei was not alarmed at all; his right hand directly underwent Evil Spirit Transformation, reached forward, and took hold of Annabelle's neck.

The moment he touched her.

His supposedly numb right hand was seized by an icy coldness, a bone-chilling, sinister chill.

And an uncomfortable restlessness started to stir within Du Wei's heart.

But reason forced him to suppress this impulse, and he took off the mask.

The rules had been set up before the gamble commenced, and whether there were loopholes or not, once it stood independently, both sides could only follow the rules of the game.

Unless Annabelle could destroy the mask, the gamble would be null and void.

Although the mask was now full of cracks, it was far from shattered. Even when facing the nun, it had only gained some extra cracks.

It couldn't do it, so it would definitely lose!

Du Wei looked at Annabelle and said faintly, "It seems, I have won."

On the card, the version of himself wearing a tailcoat suddenly looked towards Annabelle.

Then, under Du Wei's somewhat surprised gaze, Annabelle trembled with great anger.

The ghosts, all of them rioting, all rushed towards Du Wei.

But it was of no use. Continue your adventure with empire

Within the Evil Spirit gamble, there was only winning and losing.

The next moment.

As the ghosts charged in front of Du Wei, one by one they vanished, and the only thing he could hear was the sound of their screams, thick with resentment and bitterness.

On the wall, the door of the display cabinet suddenly flung open.

Du Wei let go of his grip on Annabelle's neck, watching as it was pulled back into the display cabinet by an invisible force.

It looked as if a certain scene was being replayed.

The lock on the floor clicked, locking the door once again.

Bang bang bang...

Inside the display cabinet, Annabelle wildly knocked against it, seemingly trying to drill its way out.

But no matter how hard it struck, it was to no avail.

Eventually... the force of its banging grew weaker and weaker...

Du Wei withdrew his gaze, looking at the Joker Card in his hand.

At this time, on the entire Joker Card, the version of himself dressed in a tailcoat, wore a slight smile, while the Evil Wolf lurking in the shadows stretched out its paws and moved forward a little distance...

Du Wei took a deep breath and stuffed it into his pocket.

In the process, the Antique Clock hanging on the wall remained the same.

And the shadowy figure also returned to the darkness, vanishing from sight.

Everything seemed, very beautiful.

Du Wei looked at the Antique Clock, pondered for a moment, and then turned to walk towards the printer.

"I need to find an appropriate opportunity..."

...

Late at night, 21:05.

In the attic.

A corpse, gutted and eviscerated, lay quietly to one side.

Du Wei placed the photos of the Veda Sect people he had printed, inside the chest cavity of the corpse.

The way this Evil Corpse locked on to its target was based on the photos.

Previously, it hadn't seen him, so it needed some time to search before it could lock on to his position.

But for the Cultist who created it, the image was certainly deeply ingrained.

"However, this thing probably won't be very effective, at most it will kill a few Cultists."

"So, I need to add a little surprise to it."

Having said that, Du Wei took out another photo and stuffed it inside.

The photo showed a peephole, and looking further inside was an eye full of blood vessels.

After sewing up the corpse completely, Du Wei took out the Dagger.

He unfolded the white cloth, and placed it in the hand of the corpse.

Suddenly...

The corpse violently opened its eyes, and after trembling, it straightforwardly stood up.

It looked at Du Wei, and Du Wei was looking at it.

"Go do what you need to do."