0013 - Dark Souls: Scholar of the Dead Edition.

"Petty sympathy for me?" he scoffed at the idea.

[You need allies if we are going to find that escaped soul from hell. How do you think we are going to do that?]

He was frustrated because his own system had flawlessly pointed out the flaw in his argument, leaving him with no rebuttal.

"You have better ideas than me, how about you take over my body entirely and do everything needed and I will only stay behind, enjoy the show as a viewer." He'd reached his limit. He couldn't endure the disrespect, belittlement, and the feeling of weakness any longer.

[That's not possible.]

"Why not? You are already automating all of my bodily functions."

[Because they are part of your unconscious part of your mind. The moment you exert your will, all will fail.]

"Then I will not."

[it's easier said than done. Even the greatest monks failed to do it, I doubt you will be able to do it even for a few seconds.]

He felt like he was going mad. Nothing was going the way he wanted. "Then what am I supposed to do?"

[Be more lazy?]

"What?"

[Think about it. If you become even more lazy than now, then your 'willpower' will become even more weak, and then your 'willpower' will not have enough strength to exert and disrupt the automation.]

"Whoa! Really?"

[Yes, but it will not work.]

"What? What now?"

[It depends on what you have learned or not on your own.]

"Huh?"

[For example, if you haven't learned sword fighting then you do not know what to do in a particular sword fighting situation. You will never exert your muscles to defend optimally as it is supposed to be and I can take advantage of it and perform the expert move to defend and fight.]

"Sounds right."

[But, you will not just stay calm, stand still in the heat of the moment, in a life-threatening sword clash, right?]

"You mean?"

[Yes, you will run for your life, you will listen to your fear and survival instinct. You will raise your hand, close your eyes, or like last time duck under your knees to hide.]

"..."

[At that moment, your will is the strongest and it will nullify my automation, rendering it useless.]

"Oh!... Wait! This is a deal breaker! I didn't ask for this kind of system."

[Deal breaker or not, we both are now stuck.]

"Both? Only me! If I fail then I will be tossed into the hellfire."

[I am now part of you, born from your karma, hence, I would also have to share the same pain. There is no escape for either of us.]

"You can feel pain?"

[How many times do I have to say this? I am part of you. Pain or not, we both are sharing everything.]

"I didn't ask for a sharing system."

[I also didn't ask for a host like you but we are now both stuck, cry over it or use me properly, it's your choice.]

In the end, Lu Sheng was out of words again. He is getting pounded by everyone, even by his own system.

"Fine! How are we going to find this damn soul?" He reluctantly accepted his fate.

[The memories you gained from that naked statue of the woman are not clear, it looks like the information we have is not for one soul but many souls.]

"Okay? Any way to find them?"

[Yes, a Soul Reaping Method has been given to us, the information is very clear on this method. It will heighten our senses when it comes to ghosts and other entities of Purgatory.]

"Then why didn't you mention this method earlier? instead, I got beaten for taking that stupid route."

[Host, at first, I had no idea what that information is all about in your memories but now after reading two methods, The Eternal Life Core Elixir and that half method of malicious essence from Yu Yunxia has given me a basic outline to understand this method too.]

"Fine, Automate this method right now."

[Umm…the requirement is…]

"Requirement? What is it?"

[Graveyard and moonless night.]

"What? Why?" The requirement in the Soul Reaping Method scared Lu Sheng. He hesitated, worried about what it could mean for him.

"Why does it have to be a graveyard, and why the heck does it have to be a moonless night?" Lu Sheng questioned, his mind filled with unease.

[The method utilizes the connection between the spiritual realm and the physical realm, particularly when the barriers between them are weaker. A graveyard is a place where the spiritual energy is concentrated, and a moonless night further diminishes the barriers between the realms, making it easier to sense and locate entities of the afterlife.]

"But it sounds so ominous! Can't we do it in a less spooky place or during the day?"

[It will not work at all in any other time or place, in fact, this method will work wonders in hell as per my deduction. But, we are not in hell or do you want to wait for your next call to hell?]

Lu Sheng grumbled, feeling trapped and desperate. "So, we're going to sneak into a graveyard on a moonless night? Great, just great. Can't this be any more cliche or creepy?"

[It's the most effective method we have. If you want to find the escaped soul, you'll have to endure a bit of discomfort.]

"I hate this," Lu Sheng muttered under his breath. "Okay, fine. Let's just get this over with."

[Yes, let's look for a chance tonight and find a suitable graveyard where no one will disturb us, and also when the night is moonless.]

"Nothing works as I want, when I want, how I want. WTF!!!"

[no need to get depressed, let's start with these books.]

Lu Sheng sat comfortably and looked at the tower of books left by Ming Mei.

"I am not going to do this, you do it. Automate it."

[Of course, Automation initiated.]

His body stood up and picked up the first book, flipping through its pages mechanically without truly absorbing the content. The first book was consumed within a minute. 

He set it down and moved on to the second book, the cycle repeating with robotic efficiency. The words blurred together in front of his eyes as the system processed the information at an astonishing pace.

As Lu Sheng observed his body mechanically going through the books, he couldn't shake the feeling of detachment. It was as if he was watching someone else perform the actions. 

The stack of books slowly decreased as the system automated Lu Sheng's learning process. Time passed, and before he knew it, the entire tower of books had been processed.

It didn't even take an hour and the system was done, while Lu Sheng fell asleep halfway.

[Wake up, Host.]

"Huh?...you done?"

[Yes.]

"What was in these books?"

[They are mostly encyclopedias of herbs, materials, and some early pills.]

"Finally something useful we have…but you are done with it, right? And, no cultivation method?"

[None, just one book containing the basics of cultivation, which you already had taught when you were a toddler and didn't pay attention to the lessons.]

"Anything specific you learned?"

[Yes and you will not like this.]

"What is it?"

[You are cursed.]

"Cursed? What do you mean?"

[Yes, you are cursed and this will get worse from now on.]

"Why are you scaring me more? What is it? Tell me already!!" His heart started to pound louder.

[And I believe it's your luck that is in play here that you are lucky that you got me as an Automated System.]

"You mean I didn't choose you?"

[You did choose me but it was also your luck playing a larger role.]

"Stop talking in circles and say it already."

[Do you remember what the Horse Head Guard said to you recently?]

"Umm…something about I don't have a life or I was not given a new life, right?"

[Yes, and he is right, you were sent here as a soul but not through a process of reincarnation. One of the books in them talks about the Dao of Life Essence and if everything is written in that book is right then this body is in a soulless sleep.]

"Soulless sleep? What is that? Coma?"

[Yes, but not coma, more like the absence of mind, like brain death.]

"So I took over the brain?"

[Yes, and now this body is mimicking like a living organism.]

"Then what is the curse part of it?"

[The curse of not getting proper after-death ritual, the Last Rites. You also suffered a death and were supposed to get a proper afterlife punishment/reincarnation procedure.]

[This accumulates the resentment of life towards you, and also resentment of death towards you because you and this body are not following the rule, the law of the cycle of life and death.]

"Your words make sense and even more in this world where ghosts and all these superstitious mumbo jumbo about life and death are real. What…what should we do now?"

[We would have to pacify the resentment accumulating in you.]

"How?"

[We would have to perform the last rites for Lu Sheng.]

"Last rites? You mean I have to get buried inside a coffin? Or Burn myself alive?" He suddenly imagined himself on fire or stuck inside a coffin. His hair stood up in terror.

[No, it's not that extreme. The last rites involve performing rituals and ceremonies to honor the departed soul and ensure a peaceful transition to the afterlife. In your case, it will help pacify the accumulated resentment and correct the imbalance caused by the soulless sleep.]

"Sounds complicated. Can't we just skip it?"

[No, we cannot. The longer we delay, the more the resentment will accumulate, and it might attract unwanted attention from malevolent spirits or entities. Besides, it will be beneficial for you in the long run.]

"Wait! Didn't you say we need to practice that hell soul method…umm…that shinigami method to reap souls? Wouldn't it work better in front of these spirits and entities, huh?

[Yes, you are right. Maybe you are right. Give me the command and let's try the Shinigami Method.]

Lu Sheng smiled seeing one of his accidental suggestions turned out to be a good solution. He gained little confidence in himself of not being totally useless at all. Although it's still not confirmed yet, in his mind it's the perfect solution.

"Automate Shinigami Soul Reaping Method."

[Automation Initiated.]