As long as you have the courage, fierce ghosts go on maternity leave.

Even though they were about to face an inheritance-level Ghost Emperor, along with seven other Ghost Emperors from the Ghost Alliance, Edward’s face showed not a trace of fear—instead, it was filled with eager anticipation.

"Everyone, I have a single request while I’m gone—please ensure the lives of the Red-Haired Ghost and the Purple-Haired Ghost are protected!" Alexander clasped his fists and spoke to Kassadin and the others.

"Rest assured, I’ll head to the Lord’s Mansion right away. With my brother there, we’ll certainly find a way to protect them!" Abigail was the first to voice her commitment.

Having resolved to join Alexander, a strange, unexplained trust had developed within her towards him.

Unbeknownst to Abigail, from the moment she successfully won the Imperial-level Ghost Food, the affinity score Alexander could see above her head had skyrocketed past seventy.

Although others were not as enthusiastic as Abigail, their own gratitude for Alexander’s restraint from ruining them financially had nudged their affinity scores up to sixty.

With Abigail leading the way, everyone else was eager to show their support.

"Be at ease. Your friends are naturally mine as well! I’ll make a trip to the Lord’s Mansion right away!" Kassadin was quick to express his intentions.

"I’m free anyway, so I might as well join in!" To everyone’s surprise, the next person offering help was Emperor Kui, whose own affinity score astonishingly also reached over seventy.

What truly baffled Alexander was the inexplicable rise in affinity with Kui. Including today, they had only met twice, yet the increase in her affinity score was astonishingly swift.

The numbers seemed to defy the brevity of their acquaintance, leaving Alexander intrigued but also focused on the urgency of the situation at hand.

The perplexing increase in affinity was not a concern for Alexander now. What mattered was that Kui, bolstered by her formidable natural talent, was a far stronger combatant than any average Ghost Emperor.

"Many thanks to all of you!" Alexander bowed to the crowd, then stood up and called out, "All Ghost King-level members of Fierce Ghost Association, follow me!"

"As soon as you asked Abigail and the others to stall Ash, what’s going through your mind, Alexander? Planning to rally an army?

Even with a whole army, if an Inheritance Ghost Emperor and seven ordinary Ghost Emperors decide to flee, it would be hard to stop them," Edward couldn’t help but inquire as soon as they stepped out of the auction.

Edward understood Alexander’s character well. He might be a bit avaricious at times, a smidgen shameless perhaps, but when it came to friends and brothers, his loyalty was unquestionable.

After all, he had freely gifted items as rare as Emperor-level Ghost Food to both him and Kassadin.

The fact that Ash had severed the arm of the Purple-Haired Ghost was an affront that had crossed Alexander’s line. Now that Alexander had sent Kassadin to hold Ash back, the only thing Edward could fathom was that Alexander was preparing to unleash a full-scale attack.

Shaking his head, Edward continued, "Alice likely won’t lift a finger. Ever since she became the ruler of Dark Hell, she hasn’t been involved in conflicts. What a pity.

If Lady Alice were willing to confront Ash, and with Abigail’s brother and Emperor Kui providing support, perhaps we could even manage to contain them all."

"There’s no need for a grand army," Alexander declared, an air of steely resolve cloaking him. "So what if he’s an Inheritance Ghost Emperor? If he’s afraid of getting cornered, let’s make sure he has nowhere left to run."

With a sweeping gesture of his hand, Alexander conjured two object cards into existence before him.

Ghost City Relocation Card

Description: A Mist Instance Item

Attribute: Enables long-distance movement of a medium-sized Ghost City.

Portal Creation Card (Sub Card)

Description: A Mist Instance Item

Attribute: Upon use, a portal ten meters wide will be generated between the locations of the main card and sub card.

Alexander had bought all the items available on the airship, and these two cards were among them. Items that could be purchased on an airship were top-tier even in the Horror World, regardless of their price.

These two items alone were worth a hundred billion Ghost energy points in the airship’s item store. Among the items Alexander bought, there were four Ghost City Relocation Cards and ten sets of Portal Creation Cards. Just these few items had cost him over a trillion Ghost energy points.

Catching the two cards that Alexander tossed over, Tony paused for a moment, then his eyes widened in disbelief. "You can’t be planning to..."

The implication was unmistakable with the appearance of these two cards, yet everyone found it hard to believe. Alexander was merely a soldier-level chosen one, and he was planning to—siege a city!

Normally, city conquests in the Horror World were the exclusive domain of Ghost Cities. Because under standard conditions, even the most powerful factions have limited numbers.

The various apartments in the Dark Hell housed only hundreds of thousands of ghost citizens, and no major city would permit an army larger than a million. Therefore, non-Ghost City forces simply didn’t qualify for sieging cities.

But here was Alexander, not only pulling out a Ghost City Relocation Card but also a Portal Creation Card. He was clearly planning a city siege!

Facing the astonished gazes of everyone around him, a smile crept onto Alexander’s face. "If Ash dares to harm my friends, then I’ll just go ahead and ’pack’ his Ghost City and take it away!"

"Classic Tommy DeVito! Haha, let’s do it! Let’s go besiege the city together!" Tony’s face flushed red with excitement.

"No, no! Not us, just the two of us! You guys just need to follow up and secure the area," Alexander clarified, his gaze turning toward Edward. "Do you dare? Just the two of us, going to siege a city!"

"Why wouldn’t I?" Edward responded without hesitation.

The moment those words left his lips, he understood Alexander’s plan. The idea of two people besieging a city seemed unreal. After all, they would be up against an entire city’s ghost army.

Even someone like Emperor Kui, who had millions of Devil Babies in reserve and seemingly endless Ghost energy, wouldn’t dare say that they could take on a city with just two people—even if Ash Ghost Emperor wasn’t in the city.

But Alexander was different; he possessed forbidden powers. Though as a chosen one he couldn’t slay a Ghost Emperor as easily as a native in a mist instance could, the situation was different with Edward, who had spatial talents. When teamed up, they would be an invincible force against any Ghost Imperial.

Coincidentally, Ash City only had one Ghost Emperor, Ash, who had now left for the mansion of Dark Hell’s lord. So, Ash City currently lacked even Ghost Imperials, let alone Ghost Emperors.

Ten minutes later!

Above Ash City, a white light flickered, countless snowflakes fell from the sky, and amid a roaring snowstorm, the figures of Alexander and Edward materialized.

A cold, fierce voice echoed like thunder across Ash City: "Alexander and Edward from Dark Hell have come to lay siege! Those who oppose us, come out and meet your death!"

All over Ash City, countless ghost citizens looked up. Amid the whirling snowstorm, Alexander and Edward stepped through the air, each step bringing them closer to the city walls.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Figures soared into the sky one after another. Ash City was home to fifty to sixty million ghost citizens—a population that eclipsed even an entire street in Fierce Ghost Street.

At this moment, hundreds of Ghost Kings simultaneously levitated.

Leading them was a Ghost Imperial known as Destruction Imperial. He was utterly baffled when he saw that one of the intruders was a mere soldier-level chosen one and the other, Edward, was merely a Ghost King.

"You two have gone mad, haven’t you? You dare lay siege to this city with just the two of you?" Destruction Imperial’s face displayed stark incredulity.

Realization dawned on him. "Alexander, Edward, you are the ones who killed our Lord’s kin in the mist instance, aren’t you? Our Lord has already gone to Dark Hell in search of you. How audacious of you to come here seeking your own deaths!"

Whatever Destruction Imperial said fell on deaf ears. Both Alexander and Edward ignored him as though he were merely blustering.

"It seems there’s only one Ghost Imperial," Edward scanned through the crowd of Ghost Kings and began to smile.

"Only one? Well, then, that simplifies things!" Alexander’s face broke into a similar grin.

Their seemingly triumphant attitude only enraged Destruction Imperial further. "You insolent fools! Killing you two will be a significant achievement!"

With that, he became shrouded in ghostly energy, his body encircled by swirling, hot, red flames—his talent power unleashed.

Being cautious, Destruction Imperial went all out from the get-go. Transforming into a blaze of hot red light, he charged directly at Alexander. His speed was such that Alexander only saw a blinding flash of red.

This was the limitation of forbidden powers. Even though Alexander possessed complete forbidden abilities that rendered him impervious to harm, he couldn’t keep up with the speed of his foe. He could barely see Destruction Imperial, let alone attack him.

However, with Edward by his side—a master of spatial control—the situation was entirely different.

Edward’s strength was currently at the Ghost King level, but after absorbing Ghost Food for a few days, he had managed to attain the mid-level King stage.

While defeating a seasoned Ghost Imperial in a higher class was a daunting task, holding his own for a few rounds was feasible. Coupled with Alexander, this was more than sufficient.

Before the red light even approached, Edward laid a hand on Alexander’s shoulder, and the two figures vanished abruptly.

"Spatial talent!" Destruction Imperial was taken aback and halted abruptly. A smirk crossed his face the next moment. "Even spatial talent is useless in the face of absolute power!" he declared.

Swinging around, Destruction Imperial launched a furious punch.

Boom!

With a deafening explosion that sent snowflakes swirling through the air, Edward was sent stumbling backward, blood spraying from his mouth.

Despite the vicious blow, a smile spread across his face. Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he calmly uttered, "You’re done for."

The confidence in Edward’s demeanor sent a shiver down Destruction Imperial’s spine, and his ghostly energy surged alarmingly. But it was too late. Black tendrils snaked out like sentient serpents, wrapping around him.

"Seeking death!" Destruction Imperial roared, his body bursting into flames.

But those dark tendrils he expected to evaporate upon contact with his flames seemed to cause his ghostly energy to spiral out of control the moment they touched.

This spiraling was utterly chaotic and entirely without pattern.

It was as though each strand of ghostly energy had developed its own consciousness, wildly striving to break free from Destruction Imperial’s control.

"Forbidden power!" Destruction Imperial’s eyes widened in terror, his face a canvas of sheer horror. He bellowed in manic desperation, "Kill him! Everyone attack, kill him!"

A sky full of dancing, thunderous blades of light descended, innumerable blades piercing viciously into Destruction Imperial’s form. Closer inspection revealed that each flying blade was enveloped in a thin layer of white mist.

The Ghost Dan bestowed upon Alexander by Karin could not provide him with complete forbidden powers; the quantity was simply too scarce to sustain a real battle. However, its primary purpose was to give Alexander a pretext, an excuse to genuinely wield the forbidden power.

The blades shrouded in white mist were devastatingly lethal against forms entirely made of ghost energy. Previous blades had failed to penetrate the defenses of Ghost Kings in a short time, leading to moments where enemies were skinned alive.

But these forbidden-imbued blades? Even against the body of a Ghost Imperial, they cut through as effortlessly as a knife through bread.

Imperial-level. Instant kill.

As Destruction Imperial’s corpse plummeted to the ground, the surrounding Ghost Kings reacted, faces etched in indescribable terror. Forbidden! A Chosen One with forbidden power!

"Now, this city is ours. Who’s in favor? Who’s against?" Alexander’s gaze swept across the crowd as he coldly commanded.

"Those in favor, stand aside. Those against...die," Edward stepped forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with Alexander. Blades of ice and shards of thunderous light swirled around them.

Ash City had only two Ghost Imperials, one of whom had been taken away by Ash, leaving behind over a hundred Ghost Kings. Many wore faces of hesitation.

Just when Alexander thought he had the situation under control, one of the Ghost Kings roared, "Don’t be afraid! He’s a Chosen One; he’s human. If we all attack, we may discover the secret of his forbidden power!"

At this declaration, not just the Ghost Kings but the entire Ash City seemed to have blood in their eyes.

Forbidden—once an unbeatable existence. Now, a Chosen One with forbidden power stood before them, no longer invincible. In other words, subduing Alexander might offer them the secret to forbidden power.

"Kill!"

With a resounding roar, countless evil ghosts surged toward Alexander and Edward like a tidal wave of wrath and vengeance.