Guided by Lingling's voice through the earpiece, Song Jie quickly arrived at the food street.
It was around ten at night — the street still lively, with people queuing at food stalls and vendors shouting over sizzling pans.
Song Jie scanned the crowd, assessing the environment while keeping an eye out for their target.
"Song Jie, that demon is right in front of you!" Lingling's voice came urgently.
"In front of me?" he frowned, looking ahead.
Directly ahead was a stall selling hand-grabbed pancakes. Several people were lined up, waiting for their orders.
He focused his gaze on the stall but saw nothing suspicious.
"Lingling, are you sure? I don't see the demon," he asked quietly.
"I'm certain," Lingling insisted. "The tracker shows it's right there."
Song Jie's brows knitted tighter. There was clearly nothing in sight. Then, realization struck him — it was a shadow-type demon!
Immediately, he began scanning the shadows. That was likely where it hid.
Suddenly, Lingling's voice grew excited. "Song Jie, it moved!"
Startled, he looked around. The stall itself was unchanged, but one of the customers had just left — a young man carrying his food to another stall.
"Lingling, did it move to my right?"
"That's right!" Lingling confirmed after checking the feed.
Song Jie's eyes sharpened. Could it be possessing him?
He studied the young man carefully. Then his gaze lowered to the ground.
Of course!
The demon wasn't inside the person — it was clinging to his shadow!
But why was it following him? The creature hadn't attacked anyone yet… Was it a stalker? Or just strange?
"Lingling, I think I've found it," Song Jie reported.
"No wonder it kept vanishing from the cameras," Lingling realized. "It was attached to people's shadows all along."
"Don't startle it yet," she advised. "Let's see what it intends to do."
"Understood," Song Jie said, keeping his distance.
He followed quietly, watching the man shuffle between stalls. But the young man's demeanor began to unsettle him — his expression was blank, his movements mechanical, his eyes dull.
A thought flashed through Song Jie's mind. Could this demon be controlling people too?
He continued to tail the man, who simply bought one snack after another, eating robotically.
"Is it… a foodie?" Song Jie muttered, half amused.
The demon didn't harm anyone — it just controlled a person to buy food!
So that's why it stayed in the food district all this time!
When the young man finally seemed satisfied, Song Jie whispered, "Lingling, I think it's time to act."
"The surrounding Light Mages are in position," she replied. "If you fail, they'll back you up."
The street was quieter now, though plenty of dark corners remained. If the demon escaped into the shadows again, they might never catch it.
To prevent that, Lingling had already called Old Man Ling, who dispatched several Light-element Mages to surround the area.
They'd spent an entire month chasing this thing. It had to end tonight.
Song Jie moved casually toward a nearby stall, pretending to order.
"Boss, one Jianbing Guozi… with extra sauce," he said casually, keeping his eyes fixed on the man next to him.
The moment the young man turned around—
Light Blessing: Imprisonment!
A golden radiance burst forth, forming a Sacred Shield that enveloped the man's shadow.
The demon inside immediately realized something was wrong and tried to flee, but the holy light sealed it in completely.
Song Jie exhaled in relief. "It's done."
"Nice work!" Lingling's voice replied. "I'll be right there."
Within moments, curious onlookers surrounded the glowing barrier.
"Whoa! What's that golden thing?"
"I heard there was a demon haunting this place!"
"Good thing they caught it, or we'd be done for!"
The crowd's chatter grew louder as Song Jie maintained his focus, reinforcing the Sacred Shield to ensure the creature couldn't slip away.
Soon, several Light-element Mages arrived to clear the civilians.
A familiar voice called from above — Lingling had descended from her Wind-Riding Sky Eagle, landing beside him.
"Is that it?" she asked, peering into the golden barrier.
Inside sat a small black cat, its pupils glowing faintly as it stared back at them.
Song Jie nodded. "That's the one."
The young man who had been controlled was already taken for examination — his condition stable, though his mental energy was a bit drained.
Song Jie couldn't help but admire the demon's power. Then, a bold thought crossed his mind.
"Lingling… do you think I could subdue it?"
"You want to tame it?" she blinked in surprise.
"I just want to try. If it doesn't work, then we'll hand it over."
Lingling thought for a moment, then smiled faintly. "Alright. If you succeed, I'll help you talk to Grandpa Ling."
"Thanks!" Song Jie grinned, ruffling her hair.
Lingling scrunched her face and swatted his hand away with mock disdain.
Chuckling, Song Jie crouched beside the Sacred Shield and looked at the small demon within.
The black cat, curled up like a ball, was only half the size of a basketball. Its golden eyes gleamed with wary intelligence.
Song Jie extended his spiritual sense, gently attempting to communicate.
Follow me, he projected.
The little black cat shook its head.
Follow me, Song Jie tried again, smiling. And I'll buy you anything you want to eat.
The cat's eyes widened slightly.
I can go buy it for you right now, he added.
Song Jie stood up and bought a pile of snacks from nearby stalls — skewers, dumplings, pancakes, everything.
He placed the food inside the golden barrier.
The black cat stared between Song Jie and the food, clearly tempted.
It had always possessed humans to experience the scent of food… but never the joy of eating it.
Now, the aroma wafted closer, almost tangible.
The little demon trembled, hesitating — its glowing eyes flickering between hunger and pride.
For the first time, Song Jie smiled faintly and said, "Follow me, and you'll never go hungry again."
...
Author's Note:
The first half (completed version) of Versatile Mage: My Magic Has Gone Beyond Limits! is now available on Patreon!
🔗 patreon.com/Shadow_demon_007
Thank you all for your continued support! 💙