Exorcism Specialist Company: Ghost Soul Trading - Chapter 40

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 40

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat—

The Soldier Ghost, possessed of a body as long as a centipede, charged toward me with its maw gaping wide.
Squelch—
As its jaws opened, the corners of its mouth stretched grotesquely like melting cheese before tearing into a mesh-like pattern.
Within that void, I could make out dozens of fingers.
Instead of teeth, fingers were embedded throughout its mouth.
“Gahhhhh!”
I stumbled backward, but the creature’s assault was faster still.
Thud—
I barely managed to block the ghost’s snapping jaws with my hands.
Grrrrgh—
The ghost lunged to bite my upper body, while I held firm, gripping both its upper and lower jaws with both arms.
Scratch-scratch-scratch—
The fingers sprouting where teeth should be scraped against my wrists.
The sensation was utterly revolting.
Thwack—
In that instant, an arrow flew through the air and lodged itself in the ghost’s skull.
The creature recoiled sharply, turning its head toward the source of the arrow.
Moon So-ryeong stood there, another arrow already nocked and drawn.

Blam-blam-blam-blam-blam-blam—

Ye-rim immediately opened fire on the Soldier Ghost as well.
Dozens of rounds tore through the air and struck the creature, yet it refused to fall.
Based on what I had witnessed in the barracks moments before, this ghost was likely a Grade 5 Murky Spirit.
Its centipede-like elongated body was lined with dozens of arms, and fingers protruded where teeth should have been.
The very form—a grotesque amalgamation of human tissue fused together—suggested it had absorbed other ghosts, its shape warped and deformed in the process.

Shrieeeek—

The ghost let out a long roar at me, leaped into the air, and burrowed into the ground.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud—
The earth trembled.
It was moving with tremendous violence and speed, tunneling back and forth beneath the surface.
“Where is it? Where is it?”
Moon So-ryeong stepped backward, scanning the ground carefully.
Even amid this chaos, the ghosts hanging in the trees continued their assault.
Ye-rim had no spare attention, alternating her focus between the Soldier Ghost in the trees and the ground below.
But I was different.
Through my radar, I could precisely determine which direction the ghost was moving.
This had nothing to do with intuition.
Intuition could tell me whether a ghost was present or absent in the vicinity, but it couldn’t reliably show me which direction that ghost was moving.
Of course, if intuition developed to a high enough level, one could sense that too, but Moon So-ryeong hadn’t reached that degree of sensitivity.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud—
The ground continued to shake.
The surrounding vegetation swayed with the vibrations.
Then it happened.
Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom—
The earth shook more violently, and the ghost burst up from behind me.
But I had already anticipated it, throwing my body forward and swinging my blade backward.
Shhwaaaack—
A long gash appeared across the ghost’s waist.

Sssssssss—

Black smoke erupted from the wound.
But the ghost didn’t dissipate; instead, it lunged at me even more ferociously.
I began running desperately to create more distance.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh—
The Soldier Ghost chased after me with frenzied speed.
Its velocity was so tremendous that even I, empowered by Guihon’s will, was nearly caught in an instant.
I glanced back repeatedly as I ran roughly between the trees.
Crash crash crash crash crash—
The Soldier Ghost toppled trees in its relentless pursuit.
Realizing I’d be caught if I kept running, I stopped and instead charged directly toward the advancing Soldier Ghost.
I turned and rushed toward the ghost bearing down on me.
“It’s dangerous!”
Moon So-ryeong cried out.
Ye-rim, mid-shot at another target, looked toward me with a startled expression.

Screeeeeech—

But now neither side could intervene.
Part of it was that Tae-woo and the centipede-like Soldier Ghost were far from Moon So-ryeong, but the greater reason was that the two of them had already closed the distance until they were nearly nose to nose.
“Hraaaaagh!”
Tae-woo drove harder against the earth and surged forward, sweeping his blade horizontally across his body.
Simultaneously, the Soldier Ghost lunged with its maw agape, as if to swallow Tae-woo whole.

Shwiiiiiiiiiiiiing—

The moonlight reflected off the blade created a brilliant silver gleam that traced the arc of the Guichalddo, forming a laser-like beam of light.
And whether Tae-woo had been devoured or torn apart could not be immediately discerned.
The centipede-like Soldier Ghost, its torso bristling with dozens of arms, simply continued forward in its original direction.
Then came the moment.
Ping—

Shzzzzzzzzzzzzt—

With a sharp sound, the centipede-like Soldier Ghost’s body split cleanly in two from top to bottom.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaa—

And between the severed halves, Tae-woo appeared belatedly, his blade still extended in the follow-through stance of his strike.
Kwakwakwakwang—
The Soldier Ghost, its elongated body bisected, crashed to the ground and tumbled across the earth.
In its descent, it toppled the surrounding brush and trees with tremendous force.

Thud— Shwaaaaaaaa—
Pababababang—

With a sound like a balloon bursting, the Soldier Ghost’s body dissolved into black smoke and vanished.
It was a ‘chain annihilation’ phenomenon.
In an instant, Tae-woo’s body was engulfed in black smoke once more, becoming invisible.
But that wasn’t all.
The countless ghosts that had been swarming around Moon So-ryeong and Ye-rim also vanished in an instant, caught up in the chain annihilation phenomenon.
The entire surrounding area was consumed by black smoke.
Whiiiiiiing—
As a gust of wind swept through, the black smoke dissipated into the sky, and the figures of Tae-woo, Ye-rim, and Moon So-ryeong were revealed.
Moon So-ryeong glanced around the area once, then placed her arrow back in her quiver, and Ye-rim slowly lowered her gun as well.
Through their spiritual sensitivity, they had sensed that the ghosts in the vicinity had disappeared.
Only Tae-woo remained vigilant, his eyes still sharp as he kept his blade drawn.
“Kim. That’s enough. Come here.”
Moon So-ryeong waved her hand as she spoke.
Tae-woo then sheathed the Guihon Blade and returned to them.
“That one just now was also a ‘Mook-jin Ghost’, wasn’t it? A rank-5 Mook-jin Ghost.”
Ye-rim asked.
Moon So-ryeong nodded in agreement.
“Seems like it. Since they’re soldiers with strong grudges, there appear to be many Mook-jin Ghosts.”
She answered casually while picking up her arrows one by one from the ground.
“Why are there so many rank-5 Mook-jin Ghosts? During all the time we’ve been to Incheon, Ilsan, and various university dormitories, I’ve never seen one.”
Tae-woo asked with a puzzled expression.
“Because they’re ‘soldiers’. Soldiers must move as one unified body, like a single organism. That discipline becomes ingrained in their bodies, and even after they become spirits, they remain tightly bound together. It’s like how a charismatic company commander controls his subordinates like they’re his own limbs.”
She placed the collected arrows into her quiver and continued.
“That’s why there are so many ghost stories from military bases. Military installations are often built in places with heavy yin energy, so ghosts naturally gather there. And now with so many ghosts that absorb spiritual energy, of course there would be more Mook-jin Ghosts, right? At minimum, they’d reach the rank of Sak-ryeong.”
“I see.”
Tae-woo nodded in understanding.
“Let’s keep going. We need to finish before sunrise.”
Moon So-ryeong took the lead again and began walking up the mountain path.
Tae-woo and Ye-rim followed behind her toward the next location.

* * *

At that same moment.
Guihon Trading Company Manager’s Office.
After everyone had left for the day, most of the fluorescent lights in the office were off, yet the manager’s office alone glowed brightly with light spilling from within.
Cha Jun-ho, the manager, sat before his computer meticulously reviewing the result reports from all the field operations Tae-woo had participated in.
“Hmm.”
Since his arrival, the result reports had captured video footage intact, allowing for a more thorough examination of which ghosts appeared and how they manifested.
“That equipment is really something.”
He murmured softly to himself, using the keyboard’s arrow keys to scrutinize the scenes where the ghosts emerged.
Then, he detected something peculiar—when a ghost was cut down and dissipated, a portion of the black smoke that erupted was being absorbed into the Guichal Blade.
This was an extremely instantaneous phenomenon that hadn’t been visible during actual field hunts.
Even in the footage, it was only detectable when the playback speed was slowed or paused—a fleeting moment.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.
Knock knock—
Slightly startled, Cha Jun-ho paused the video and responded.
“Yes.”
The moment he answered, the door opened and Kim Hong-seok, the representative, stepped inside.
“Ah. Vice Chairman.”
As he greeted him, Kim Hong-seok gave a small wave and moved further into the room.
“What are you doing so late? You haven’t even left for the day.”
“Ah, yes. I’ve been running overtime because I fell behind on reviewing the reports.”
“Right, that’s true. Manager Cha, you’ve been going out to the field constantly, haven’t you? You must be busy.”
“Not at all. But Vice Chairman, you haven’t left either—why are you still here?”
“I had quite a few things to look over myself.”
He clasped his hands behind his back and walked at a leisurely pace, then glanced at the monitor screen that Cha Jun-ho had been viewing.
“Ah. You’re reviewing the footage that Kim Tae-woo recorded this time, I see.”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Quite a remarkable individual has joined us, wouldn’t you say?”
“Yes. It seems the Guichal Blade reacts intensely, perhaps because he carries the blood of the Founder.”
“Indeed. I previewed the reports uploaded to the web hard drive myself. Later on, he might even be in contention for Employee of Excellence.”
“Yes. I believe so as well.”
“If Kim Tae-woo truly pulls his weight as an assistant manager, Team 4 will be able to achieve even better results.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Should I take a look at the footage?”
“Yes, would you like to?”
At his words, Cha Jun-ho immediately started playing the video.
The footage showed Tae-woo cutting down a ghost with his sword, captured entirely from a first-person perspective.
Though it was impossible to precisely gauge how fluidly and brilliantly he moved or how his swordsmanship unfolded, the dynamic nature of the screen and the speed with which he dispatched the ghosts made it abundantly clear that his skill was far from ordinary.
Kim Hong-seok watched the footage in silence, then spoke.
“Manager Cha. I’m not sure if you noticed, but half of the ghosts he’s dissipating are being absorbed into that Guichal Blade. Did you know?”
“….”
At his words, Cha Jun-ho fell silent.
“Perhaps Kim Tae-woo himself hasn’t realized it yet. What it means to wield the Guihon Blade.”
“Yes. I suspect that’s the case.”
“The nature of the spirit’s energy dwelling within the Guihon Blade. What that energy desires.”
“…Isn’t that the ‘will of the Guihon Blade’?”
“Exactly. It’s because of that will that he can cut down ghosts like that.”
Kim Hong-seok continued as he watched the footage.
“The more ghosts Kim Tae-woo cuts down with the Guihon Blade, the stronger the blade will become.”
At those words, Cha Jun-ho nodded with a grave expression.
“Is it because of the spirit dwelling within the Guihon Blade? The soul of Kim Hwan, Joseon’s greatest swordsman?”
“….”
“His spirit is embedded in the Guihon Blade, isn’t it?”
“That’s right. Ironically, Kim Hwan’s spirit within that blade is growing stronger by absorbing other ghosts.”
“Yes. I’ve heard the rumors. That the blade itself struggles because it wants to absorb more ghosts.”
“The only thing that can control it is the bloodline of the Founder. That’s why we’ve entrusted it to Kim Tae-woo. If he were to meet an untimely end without an heir, we might have to deal with the spirit within that blade ourselves.”
“….”
“An uncontrolled spirit within the Guihon Blade would be no different from a Grade 5 Silent Reaper.”
Kim Hong-seok finished quietly.

Exorcism Specialist Company Guihon Trading Chapter 40

Author
Cha Woo-renz
Publisher
Daon Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yoon Tae-ri
Cover
Lee Chi

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260318158.0040

ⓒ2026, Cha Woo-renz

※ This e-book is protected under the copyright law of the Republic of Korea.
No part or all of this work may be reprocessed in any form without permission from the author and publisher.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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