飘零影音

Arc 15: Heavenly Secret Realm | Chapter 257: Eliminate

At that moment, a few Nascent Soul Patriarchs used their supernatural powers to scan around, attempting to discern the situation. When cultivators perform mental searches, they become aware of yin energies, which are associated with devil cultivators or malevolent ghosts. They pinpoint the area with the highest concentration of this energy as the weak point and then proceed to resolve the problem.

Despite their efforts, the coffin lid continued to rattle, and the changes in the stone pillars persisted. The animal sculptures became increasingly distinct, and one even poked its head out, revealing an extremely ferocious visage.

Xu Ziqing surmised that these defenses were likely set by the tomb’s owner to ward off grave robbers. If they couldn’t halt these changes, the full manifestation of the beast carvings and the opening of the coffin lid could lead to unknown dangers.

Unfortunately, being a cultivator of the immortal way1As in seeking the truth of life to pursue immortality and ascend to the heavens. Usually gathering energies of heaven and earth via meditating and the energy will gather in their dantian, assisted by cultivation methods., with his shixiong being a sword cultivator2Sword cultivator differ themselves from other cultivation types, A sword cultivator could hold a righteous or chaotic paths for their cultivation Dao, One could be called a sword cultivator when they are able to manifest sword intent/aura. Thus, a sword cultivator will have their own sword cultivation stages based on their understanding of their sword intent/aura., Xu Ziqing had no expertise in dealing with ghostly phenomena and couldn’t contribute in this regard.

Thus, the two retreated slightly, remaining vigilant for other changes.

Xuan Ze’s expression grew solemn. He understood that failure to break this situation could result in the loss of the experts he had brought. The beast head that had emerged possessed an aura comparable to a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, and with dozens more carvings on the pillars, their escape could make the stone room dangerously cramped. Even the Nascent Soul cultivators might not be safe.

As the coffin lid lifted halfway, emitting a fierce energy, a Nascent Soul cultivator finally gritted his teeth and spewed out a cloud of black energy.

From this black cloud emerged an illusory woman in black, her complexion pale and her eyes green—a fierce ghost.

This ghost’s cultivation was formidable, seemingly at the late Golden Core stage, explaining why the patriarch had been reluctant to summon her earlier.

The demon patriarch commanded harshly, “Huanhuan, go investigate!”

The ghost girl responded quietly, “Yes,” and flickered to the front of the coffin.

Black light penetrated the coffin lid quickly, turning into a piece of blue-black light. However, this light failed to suppress the lid, which struggled even more violently.

Startled, the ghost girl withdrew the black light and retreated, shouting, “Something is needed to suppress it, otherwise all spells are useless!” She then approached the stone pillar again, releasing a ghost head, but it was immediately swallowed by the beast head, which grew even more ferocious, with half of its neck and forelegs emerging.

The ghost girl dared not continue and said, “This thing appears both illusory and real. The void form can swallow souls to strengthen itself, while the actual form might consume flesh and blood. I can do no more.”

Everyone listened intently to the ghost girl’s explanation.

A Nascent Soul cultivator with a strong attack then attempted to strike the now-solidified beast head with a fierce punch.

Yet, the beast’s head proved to be illusory, unaffected by physical attacks, solidifying once again after each attempt.

Indeed, the ghost girl had correctly identified that the beast’s head was intangible, impervious to physical assaults.

At this moment, Xu Ziqing suddenly raised his eyes to look at Yun Lie.

When it comes to dealing with invisible entities, besides ghost cultivators and some demon cultivators, only his shixiong’s sword intent and Xi Lin’s abilities can be effective.

Although there are a few demon cultivators present, relying on them to drive ghosts to fight against beast souls would require significant effort, particularly for a Golden Core stage cultivator to combat another Golden Core stage cultivator.

If only Zhengyang’s fire and thunder cultivators were present, their abilities would be useful, but unfortunately, they were not here. The remaining cultivators lack the necessary restraining powers.

Whatever dangerous entity lies within the coffin could escape at any moment.

Thus, everyone’s eyes naturally focused on Yun Lie and Xi Lin.

Understanding the situation, Xuan Ze promptly said, “We’ll need Xi Lin and Yun Zhenren3Zhenren is a Chinese term that first appeared in the Zhuangzi meaning “Taoist spiritual master” in those writings. I forgot this honorifics several chapters back, thus making the translation calling him Master Yun. It’s quite awkward everytime I see that QAQ. to take action.”

Xi Lin immediately leaped up, wielding his natal spirit sword, and slashed a series of sword intents directly at the beast’s soul on one of the stone pillars.

Yun Lie also stepped forward, pointed his sword, and slashed. Instantly, his invisible sword intent burst forth like snow, slicing the beast’s soul that had partially broken free into two pieces!

Indeed, these invisible and condensable beast souls were effectively restrained by sword intent with similar properties, especially the yang sword intent, which suppressed the yin and coldness of souls. Consequently, even though Xi Lin and Yun Lie were at the Golden Core cultivation level, they had little difficulty cutting down these beast souls at the same level.

Yun Lie’s movements were like lightning, swifter than Xi Lin. In a flash, he had already decapitated several beast heads!

Xi Lin also moved swiftly, his black shadow flickering as he mercilessly wielded his sword.

However, despite their efforts, each time a beast’s soul dissipated, a black light flashed on the stone pillar, forming new beast sculptures that began struggling again, seemingly in an endless cycle.

Immediately, someone exclaimed, “This stone pillar must be connected to the contents of the coffin and jar!”

A Nascent Soul cultivator, with extensive knowledge, speculated, “I once saw a spirit-binding ghost array similar to this. The four pillars gather evil spirits into the coffin jar to form evil corpses. These beast souls on the pillars seem different, but…”

If his guess was correct, once the coffin jar opened, the evil corpse nurtured within would be born. Hungry for blood, the beast spirits would escape from the stone pillar, creating continuous havoc… At that point, things would become truly troublesome!

Everyone felt a wave of apprehension.

A Nascent Soul Ancestor then asked, “Does anyone have a talisman to suppress demons? If there’s an evil corpse in the coffin, its demonic nature might be deep. A talisman could prove useful.”

Saying this, he raised his hand and cast a golden talisman directly onto the coffin lid.

Instantly, a cloud of black air emerged from the coffin lid, rising to meet the golden light, engaging it in an endless struggle.

“It really works!”

Everyone couldn’t help but be overjoyed.

However, the next moment, the black air erupted with golden light, dispelling it.

The powerful talisman’s strength could only slightly hinder the black energy.

Still, it was somewhat effective. Without hesitation, all the cultivators who had demon-suppressing talismans used them.

In the blink of an eye, the numerous talismans formed a golden light curtain, firmly pressing down over the coffin bottle, with the black air spreading below. Even though the golden light was weak, it bought them some time.

As they pondered and meditated, someone murmured, “Suppressed things, suppressed things…” Others, frustrated, protested, “We have the opportunity to obtain the fragmented maps. How can we stop now?”

Suddenly, Xuan Ze had an idea, a flash of inspiration. He took out a palm-sized piece of cloth and tossed it into the air, revealing the real map!

With the map, if the tomb wasn’t an illusion, it certainly wasn’t a true treasure.

Those without the map might be deceived, but with the map in hand, they could discern the truth. The secret was likely related to the real map!

Xuan Ze, with his years of experience, quickly grasped the situation.

The tomb’s reaction was immediate, just as he expected.

Almost instantly, the frantic coffin lid quieted down, closed tightly, and resealed itself.

Immediately afterward, the coffin bottle sank, revealing a black hole-like entrance where it had been.

Everyone was ecstatic. “This is the way!”

Xu Ziqing felt relieved as Yun Lie returned. With the coffin quieted, the beast’s soul stopped moving, so he no longer needed to fight.

At this point, the black hole swirled erratically, exuding a powerful attraction.

Even the Nascent Soul cultivators struggled to remain steady.

Yun Lie’s eyes flickered. He reached out, pulling Xu Ziqing into his arms, and whispered, “Hold tight.” Xu Ziqing obeyed, clinging to his shixiong’s arms without hesitation.

Yun Lie paused for a moment, and together with the others, plunged into the black hole!

The wind roared in their ears, as if they were floating a great distance, but Xu Ziqing, firmly grasping his shixiong’s arm, felt reassured and calm.

When his vision cleared, Xu Ziqing knew they had reached their destination, but he immediately sensed several dangers rushing towards them! He caught a faint whiff of something fishy, and without thinking, the Qingyun Needle flew from his brow, multiplying into hundreds and encircling him in a tight, impenetrable barrier.

Suddenly, an icy killing intent swept out—it was Yun Lie, his sword intent unparalleled, cutting down all obstacles.

Xu Ziqing opened his eyes and saw corpses strewn around. On closer inspection, he realized they were snake corpses, severed or crushed by sword intent. Many had also fallen to his Qingyun Needle, their skulls pierced and exploding instantly, leaving behind bloody remains and a pervasive fishy smell.

A few paces away, several more poisonous snakes coiled, while others hung from above. Xu Ziqing realized they had landed within a mountain wall, surrounded by countless snake dens.

Yun Lie stood by his left, allowing Xu Ziqing to hold his arm, his sword intent forming a protective barrier around them.

Countless snakes writhed around, filling the scene with their presence.

But aside from the snakes, there was no one else in sight.

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