Chapter 124

After Randy sat down, the séance officially began. On the surface, Randy appeared sorrowful, asking how his parents were doing in the other world, but in reality, he just wanted to test Doris's abilities.

The planchette on the Ouija board began to move rapidly, pausing briefly on different letters. Doris seemed to receive some kind of guidance and immediately responded, "They want me to tell you that they are doing well in heaven. They were very kind-hearted and gentle, different from others, so of course, they are being treated well."

Randy's expression froze for a moment before he continued, "Could you help me apologize to them? Although I'm not sure how to explain what happened."

He then quickly constructed a story in his mind: a rebellious child who ran away in the middle of the night, causing his parents to drive out and search for him, leading to a car accident that took their lives.

The planchette began to move again, forming various words.

Doris, in an almost adult-like voice, responded, "No parent can let go of their child. They're still worried about you. This wasn't your fault. You should let go of your guilt."

This sudden, mature response startled even Alice and her elder daughter, Pauline.

Randy's expression became even more nuanced—this was clearly a response to the scenario he had just constructed in his mind. In reality, the death of Randy's original parents had nothing to do with him.

This girl could read minds! Or, more accurately, the spirit inside Doris could read minds.

Randy maintained a facade of relief, saying, "Thank you, I feel much more at peace now."

Doris immediately looked pleased with herself, while Alice seemed relieved, and Pauline frowned deeply, as if she wanted to say something but refrained.

It was clear this family wasn't fully on the same page.

The mother, Alice, was firmly convinced her daughter had real spiritual abilities.

The younger daughter had a misplaced confidence in her own abilities, believing them to be a natural talent.

Meanwhile, the elder daughter, Pauline, seemed to suspect that her younger sister's abilities were not entirely natural and might even bring disaster upon their family.

Randy turned toward Alice and Pauline. "Ms. Alice, I'd like to speak with Doris privately. This concerns some family secrets."

Alice hesitated, "Well..."

Randy immediately took out another bill.

"Alright, come on, Pauline. Let's give Mr. Randy some privacy."

Pauline wanted to object, but under her money-hungry mother's influence, she eventually relented and was persuaded to go to the other room, leaving only Randy and Doris in the living room.

"So, what do you want?" Doris still had an arrogant tone.

Randy, however, returned to his usual cold demeanor, picked up the planchette from the Ouija board, and inspected it before turning to Doris.

"Who are you? I mean the one hiding inside this girl."

Doris's expression shifted dramatically. "I don't know what you're talking about."

She immediately tried to stand up, but suddenly realized she couldn't move.

When she looked at Randy in surprise, she was met with a sudden flash of lightning.

Randy, his face cold, warned, "You'd better answer me truthfully. Don't make me resort to violence."

Doris's expression twisted, and in the next moment, her eyes rolled back, turning completely white. Her mouth opened unnaturally wide, and she transformed into a spirit entity. A deep, male voice came out of her: "Young one, what do you think you're doing?"

"What am I doing? You're trying to live peacefully in Derry Town, but you haven't paid any rent."

Doris, or rather the entity inside her, shouted, "This is my house!"

Randy smirked in disdain, "And? Do you even pay property tax? What's wrong with me collecting a little spiritual tax?"

"You're bullying a ghost too far!"

Doris screamed, and suddenly, thick black mist began to seep out from the cracks in the basement. The mist coalesced into ghostly figures, all with hollow, white eyes and twisted faces.

"Attack!"

With Doris's command, the spirits flashed towards Randy, whispering ominously in his ears. The sound carried a certain dark magic that could mentally enslave a normal person after prolonged exposure, turning them into a puppet.

Randy remained unfazed.

"If I didn't care about Alice's family reputation, do you think I'd even bother with someone as weak as you?"

An electric field appeared around Randy, and without damaging any of Alice's household appliances, he annihilated the horde of spirits instantly. Doris, or rather the entity inside her, was utterly shocked.

Randy casually tossed a seed into the air, and energy from the surrounding environment began to converge on it.

"No! You're draining my power!"

Randy wasn't truly planning to destroy the spirit; he just wanted to collect some of its energy for his own purposes—to use as raw material to grow a magical seed for future use.

Weak power was fine, he thought. His followers could make use of it.

"Don't worry, I'll leave you a little."

After collecting the seed, Randy turned back to the now gasping Doris. She seemed to have realized something.

"This familiar energy… You're the one controlling the rain?"

"That's right."

Randy stood up. "So, things have changed in Derry Town. You will either submit to me willingly or be forced to submit."

Doris's expression flickered, but realizing the strength of her opponent, she eventually knelt in submission.

"I submit."

"Good choice."

Randy then conjured a necklace with a seed embedded in it.

"Here, wear this. It's the symbol of my followers. You should be grateful that your family is of some use; otherwise, I wouldn't have come here personally. If I had waited until the great purge, you wouldn't have survived the second wave."

Doris had no choice but to accept, the power gap between them was too vast. After all, she was just a parasitic spirit, not even a true malevolent ghost. Even her strongest tricks, built up over decades, were wiped out instantly by Randy, leaving no room for resistance.

She obediently took the necklace and put it on.

"Don't worry, this benefits you as well. This girl is still human, after all. If you stay too long, her body won't be able to handle it. But the seed can absorb the negative effects from both of you. You two can live together in harmony, no need to rush to find a new host."

Spirits like this one, unless they were particularly powerful, could not exist without a host. They could only possess or take over bodies, but even then, the physical toll on the host would degrade the body over time.

So Randy wasn't just collecting followers; he was spreading a twisted gospel of evil, helping malevolent entities adapt better to the rules of the living world.