Chapter Fifteen: The Mysterious Youth from Grand Xia

This hotel had only eighteen floors above ground, yet somehow, eighteen more had appeared below, as if conjured from thin air. Still, these ghost tamers were all seasoned veterans, unshaken by storms and strangeness; they strode straight outside without hesitation.

No sooner had they stepped out than they were engulfed by darkness, total and absolute, where not a glimmer of light pierced the void. Yet in the instant they all exited the elevator, the world itself shifted. The blackness before their eyes was suddenly replaced by a blood-red expanse, as though the entire world had been scoured with gore. A miasma of crimson mist hung heavy in the air, unsettling and thick.

“So this is the Forbidden Domain of the Immaculate. Everyone, be on your guard!” someone called.

Before the words had even faded, countless streams of blood-red vapor swept toward them. These vapors moved like venomous crimson serpents, blending seamlessly with the hellish environment—almost invisible to the naked eye, their attacks could only be dodged by keen perception.

After a first wave of attacks, the mist began to dissipate, revealing a horde of bizarre and monstrous beings, each with a peculiar visage. There was no time to react; the creatures lunged at them, splitting the air with shrill, piercing sound.

The group was ready to fight when a calm voice suddenly cut through the chaos.

“I brought you, the elite combatants of Heavenly Well City, along on this mission only so you could witness my strength firsthand—not because I need any of you to act.”

“Witness your strength?” Everyone froze, then turned in unison to the speaker.

It was their new director, the enigmatic youth from the Grand Xia, Fan Tianxing.

“Director Fan, what do you mean by that?” one asked, but before the words left his lips, Fan Tianxing had already vanished. In the next instant, no explanation was needed; his meaning became blindingly clear.

Fan Tianxing charged forward like a war god incarnate, a raging wind personified, facing the oncoming horde head-on. It was a full second before the others even saw him move, and then a violent gale rushed in after him, belated and wild.

This wind was charged with turbulent energy. The monsters instinctively raised their arms, bracing themselves to absorb the blow, but this was precisely what Fan Tianxing had anticipated.

There was a flash of cold light in his eyes and a triumphant curl to his lips as he leapt toward a goat-headed abomination, striking out with a single punch.

At first glance, it seemed an ordinary blow, as if devoid of any energy. Yet the moment it landed, the energy within the goat-headed creature turned wild and uncontrollable, surging madly to the point of impact.

A thunderous boom resounded; the goat-headed beast exploded instantly, reduced to nothing but ash.

The other monsters had just begun to react, swarming toward Fan Tianxing. Yet his expression showed not the slightest trace of panic. Instead, he impatiently dug a finger into his ear. “If you keep this up, you’ll cut my grandstanding short,” he muttered.

Then, with a reckless grin: “You all die here.”

Meanwhile, Li Juetian and the others could only gape, dumbfounded, watching their new director dispatch monster after monster with a single punch—without the slightest ripple of energy about him. It was as if an utterly ordinary man were casually lifting cars off the ground—so absurd they half wondered whether he was possessed by the spirit of One Punch Man himself, except he didn’t even have a bald head.

In less than ten seconds, the monstrous horde was gone, and only Fan Tianxing remained in the blood-soaked expanse, lighting a cigarette with casual ease.

“Isn’t it bad for a minor to smoke?” Li Juetian managed, his voice strained.

Fan Tianxing forced a smile, his expression twitching. “I’m already eighteen, damn it! I just look a bit short!”

He narrowed his eyes. “And this isn’t an ordinary cigarette.”

At his words, the smoke hanging in the air coiled and transformed, taking the shape of a small bird that fluttered off in a certain direction.

Fan Tianxing’s gaze followed the bird into the distance. “Immaculate, is it? Is there any point in continuing to hide?”

As if in answer, the entire domain began to tremble violently. Soon, a shadow emerged from the mist—a humanoid creature with a triangular head, in the center of which yawned a square, black void.

One must never gaze into that void, or else have their soul devoured.

A chilling laugh echoed forth as the Immaculate, who had been far off, suddenly appeared before Fan Tianxing.

“There’s a stench on you I find most unpleasant,” the Immaculate said, looking down at Fan Tianxing, who was a good several centimeters shorter.

“Oh? What stench would that be?”

“That stench of the Grand Xia. Last time, a reckless Grand Xia man came here as well; I needn’t tell you what became of him.”

Fan Tianxing lifted his chin and stared into the void on the Immaculate’s face, his voice cold.

“Those who harm the people of the Grand Xia will be punished, no matter how far they flee.”

“What did you say?” The Immaculate sounded as though he hadn’t heard, or couldn’t believe it.

“If you didn’t hear me, I’ll say it again.”

Fan Tianxing clenched his fist, tilting his head, his gaze razor-sharp. “Those who harm the people of the Grand Xia will be punished, no matter the distance!”

With that, he lashed out with a punch toward the Immaculate. The blow was swift as lightning, but in that very instant, the Immaculate vanished once more.

A sinister voice whispered behind Fan Tianxing, “You think you can punish me?”

As the words faded, a tremendous aura erupted, and with it, the very monsters Fan Tianxing had just destroyed reappeared.

That was the power of the Forbidden Domain—any slain within could be revived at will. Within their own domain, these monsters were like gods, controlling the very laws of the space—they could teleport, alter reality at a whim.

Feeling the Immaculate’s aura, Li Juetian and the other ghost tamers gasped in horror. They hadn’t expected the Immaculate to have advanced from B-class to A-class!

The difference between B and A was not a mere increment, but a gulf as vast as heaven and earth. It was said that once a monster reached A-class, it could even commune with demon gods…

Now, despair settled over them all. With such a chasm in power, trapped inside the enemy’s domain, victory seemed utterly impossible.

“Boy from the Grand Xia, you are strong, but unfortunately for you, I am stronger! In the face of true power, all else is but a passing cloud!” the Immaculate thundered.

As his words fell, the surrounding mist surged towards him, merging and swelling him into a monstrous colossus.

Fan Tianxing stood before this titan, looking all the smaller by comparison.

And yet, he seemed entirely unfazed.

“I agree with you,” he said. “In the face of true power, all else fades like a cloud.”