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墨書 Inktalez
Divine Consciousness suddenly traveled a hundred miles, and along the way, there was nothing but silence.
Occasionally, Li Hong would feel a shiver in his heart, and Divine Consciousness would pause for a moment, discovering a pile of bones or the desiccated corpses of beasts, yet there was still no sign of life, extending all the way to Nine Separation Peak.
The Chengxian Pavilion still stood tall and magnificent, seemingly unchanged from before, but Li Hong could clearly sense a heavy atmosphere of death. The empty mountains were lonely, with only the sound of the wind; the only movement came from Chengxian Pavilion and The Abode of the Sect Leader on the Twenty-Eighth Floor, where the Dragon and Phoenix Forbidden Stone Beast coiled on the ceiling of the hall, occasionally lazily writhing its body.
On the Six Veins, between the peaks, everywhere was deserted; Elder Yao, Ling Jizi, Yue Mangzi, and others were nowhere to be found.
Could it be that Nine Li Cave Heaven was an empty mountain? Or had the Demon Sect received news and deliberately laid an ambush to attack the army?
After pondering for a moment, Li Hong burst forth from the gray mist, glanced at the dim blue sky, and began to perform the Summoning Technique.
Focusing his mind and calming his spirit, he formed hand seals while standing firmly, silently reciting: “Heaven and Earth, All Things Have Spirits, chaos grants me form; as heaven turns and earth shifts, I wander through the purest realm. Evil spirits and demons, be subdued! Swiftly!”
A gust of cold wind rose from the ground, revealing shadowy figures in the twilight.
A large number of headless and limbless Evil Spirits floated towards him. As Li Hong focused his gaze, he was instantly horrified, his hair standing on end.
The first batch were clearly newly deceased spirits; some faces seemed vaguely familiar—they were low-level disciples from the original Nine Li Sect on Nine Separation Peak. These low-level disciples had cultivation levels only in the mid to late stages of Guarding Middle, at most reaching Initial Stage of Caution. They managed kitchens, storerooms, and cleaning duties. Their deaths were gruesome; some held their own heads while others had gaping holes in their chests that revealed scenes behind them. All had died violently.
However, he did not see a single spirit with slightly higher cultivation. After careful thought, Li Hong immediately understood that those who reached Initial Stage of Caution could absorb Spiritual Energy from heaven and earth. Such disciples must have had their souls and blood taken by Elder Yao and other Demon Sect Monsters for use. Thus, no matter how he used the Summoning Technique, he could not summon these new spirits.
With a long sigh, sorrow appeared in Li Hong's eyes. The new spirits understood this as well and dared not linger around him; they each bowed respectfully and retreated to the sides.
Li Hong shouted: “Where is Ghost King Ji Lingzi!”
The ghostly crowd immediately parted to reveal the sneaky figure of Ji Lingzi. It hid behind the group of spirits, deliberately concealing its cultivation level while secretly observing Li Hong. Now unable to hide any longer, it had no choice but to float out from among them and deeply bow before Li Hong.
Upon examining it closely, it was indeed Golden Lantern Gorge Ghost King Ji Lingzi. It had successfully refined its body; under the twilight, it was now an undeniable entity with a faint shadow behind it. Yet it still pretended to be a dead spirit, with a terrifying scar across its face that nearly split it in half, making it appear quite fearsome.
Li Hong was immediately puzzled and asked, "Why are you avoiding me? Also, what happened to you?"
Ji Lingzi stammered, and under Li Hong's pressure, finally said hesitantly, "I heard that you colluded with the Demon Sect, and I was afraid you would capture me..."
Li Hong found it ridiculous; Evil Spirits loved to spread hearsay, especially when they could take advantage of his elusive nature to circulate half-understood rumors.
Beside him, Heavenly Torch was already impatient and scolded, "Nonsense! My brother is clearly a genuine sect leader. What collusion with the Demon Sect? Those guys, Ling Jizi and his crew, are the real ones colluding with the Demon Sect and even took my brother's position! Quickly clarify where those brats have gone! If you don't honestly explain, I'll believe it or not that I can smash you with one punch!"
Ji Lingzi glanced at Heavenly Torch and suddenly had a very strange expression. He couldn't help but exclaim, "You are the spirit of the Divine Dragon! How did you become a physical entity?!"
"It's best if you know me. Now I'm asking you questions; you better answer honestly. I'm not as easy to talk to as my brother!" After saying that, Heavenly Torch shot out a fireball straight at Ji Lingzi's face. Scared, Ji Lingzi stepped back three paces, his eyes darting around. He quickly complied and transformed back into his original form.
His face returned to its former appearance; dressed in white with a tall crown, his body solidified, giving him an air of a transcendent being. He deeply bowed to Li Hong and Heavenly Torch and recounted everything.
It turned out that after Elder Yao and the other Demon Sect Monsters took control here, they used various magical techniques of Soul Power to frighten the Evil Spirits in Golden Lantern Gorge. Fortunately, Elder Yao was unaware of the secrets of Golden Lantern Gorge and did not know that it hid a large number of lonely souls from heaven and earth. Ji Lingzi and the others were relieved but dared not venture outside; they hid deeply within Golden Lantern Gorge.
Li Hong was labeled as a "traitor colluding with the Demon Sect," which Ji Lingzi had heard from those newly deceased wronged spirits.
Upon hearing that even Ji Lingzi was confused about the situation, Li Hong immediately ordered, "Everyone mobilize! Find Elder Yao and Ling Jizi's hiding places! They are the real traitors; whoever finds them will be heavily rewarded!"
"Yes!" The Evil Spirits were overjoyed and quickly scattered in all directions, leaving only Ji Lingzi behind.
He felt very uneasy, twisting his body and constantly apologizing to Li Hong.
Li Hong was too lazy to say much to him and scolded, "You go too; don't miss any clues."
"Understood!" Ji Lingzi immediately turned around and disappeared into the increasingly deep darkness.
Once the Evil Spirits had left, Heavenly Torch communicated, "Aren't you being too cautious? We might as well charge in directly; if we encounter Elder Yao and Ling Jizi's group, that would be perfect!"
"Let's not act recklessly; something feels Strange about this," Li Hong replied, shaking his head.
After about half an hour, the Evil Spirits began to return, all shaking their heads vigorously. A few even shook their heads off their shoulders.
"Reporting, my lord, we didn't find any living beings."
"Immortal Master, there was nothing; just us."
Li Hong and Heavenly Torch exchanged glances and smiled wryly. They had no choice but to return through the Li Fire Formation passage to bring Xuan Xuzi and the others inside.
The army entered, with thousands of troops heading straight for Nine Separation Peak.
Standing in the square outside the main hall, Li Hong briefly explained the situation to everyone and continued to send out Evil Spirits to scout any hidden corners of Nine Li Cave Heaven.
Everyone was amazed that Li Hong could command the Evil Spirits. However, as the reports came in, their expressions grew increasingly grim.
At that moment, Ji Lingzi hurried in and cupped his hands to Li Hong, saying, "Sect Leader, I've discovered something Strange; do you want to come take a look?"
"Lead the way."
Xuan Xuzi ordered everyone except for the leaders of the Nine Major Sects of the Immortal Sect and the elder guards to split into small teams and carefully search Nine Li Cave Heaven. He then followed Ji Lingzi and Li Hong as they quickly flew northward.
Upon arriving there, Li Hong immediately recognized it as the Original Dan Hall's location.
A large area of square ruins lay before them, completely burned down. The charred remnants crumbled into dust at a touch, indicating just how intense the fire had been at that time.
Ji Lingzi floated over and pointed to a spot, saying, "Master, look here."
While other areas were completely burned, this place seemed to have been covered by the collapsed building, leaving a small patch untouched by the flames. It was a square pool, with a lot of black powder on the bottom and walls. Upon closer inspection, everyone recognized that this pool was made of fine white jade.
Li Hong picked up some of the powder from the bottom of the pool and brought it to his nose. His heart sank immediately. "It's blood! Burnt human blood!"
Xuan Xuzi also picked up a bit of powder, crushed it carefully, and sniffed it closely. He frowned and said, "There are medicinal properties mixed in the blood, somewhat resembling the scent of a healing herb. Strange, what kind of person needs to soak in blood mixed with healing properties?"
A flash of insight struck Li Hong's mind, and he almost instantly recalled the boundless Blood Pools he had seen years ago while rescuing Yun Jiuzi in Fengdu Hidden Palace. He was suddenly alarmed. "Demon Servant! This is a Demon Servant cultivated by the Demon Sect!"
"Demon Servant?" The leaders and elders of the Nine Major Sects turned pale one after another.
These troublesome Walking Corpses had caused significant losses to the Nine Li Sect in the past. Later, Li Hong led the Beast Cultivation to destroy Fengdu Hidden Palace, and the Blood Pool was ruined, leading everyone to believe that the Demon Servants had been eradicated. They never expected that the Demon Sect would remain undeterred and would use countless Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures from Nine Li Cave Heaven along with fine jade to begin cultivating this terrifying poison once again.
The crowd erupted in discussion. However, Li Hong knew that without a Soul Devourer, it was impossible to cultivate a Demon Embryo into a Demon Servant. The Soul Devourer was currently residing obediently in Temple City, and with the Demon Embryo eradicated, could Elder Yao have found another method?
This was troublesome.
Others might not be aware of Elder Yao's capabilities, but Li Hong knew very well. He had learned alchemy from him; Elder Yao was essentially half a master to him. Although Elder Yao's cultivation level wasn't particularly high, he was undoubtedly the foremost expert in alchemy today. Any method he discovered would surely be more powerful than before.
At this moment, teams sent out for search began reporting back with no findings. When they looked at Li Hong and Chuxiong, their expressions carried an unusual pity.
Without them saying anything, Li Hong already understood. While speaking with everyone, he had not given up on searching with his Divine Consciousness; he simply continued to find nothing. As for the pity from others, he knew exactly where it came from.
Everything was destroyed; whatever could be taken had been taken by the Demon Sect. The entire Nine Li Cave Heaven lay in ruins. The only intact area was Nine Separation Peak. Chengxian Pavilion and Nine Li Great Hall were equipped with powerful Restrictions; even moving a single brick or tile would trigger an automatic attack from those Restrictions. Thus, these were currently the best-preserved structures in Nine Li Cave Heaven. However, outside those buildings, the vast White Jade Plaza had also suffered damage; all the white jade had been excavated away, exposing an ugly gray stone base underneath.
Xuan Xuzi felt increasingly uneasy as he thought about it all and decided to take his leave from Li Hong.
Li Hong understood his thoughts and said frankly, "The Demon Sect Monster has abandoned this place, and the next target is Kunlun. Let me call some disciples to tidy things up and rest for a few days. After that, I will head to Kunlun with my junior brother, awaiting the orders of the sect leader."
Xuan Xuzi was overjoyed, "Thank you, Sect Master!" He was not polite and immediately led his army away.
The two men and three beasts escorted them to the Li Fire Formation before returning to Nine Li Cave Heaven. Sitting on the high threshold of Nine Li Great Hall, Li Hong looked at the bare stone square in front of him and then glanced behind him. The long row of Black Jade Chairs was gone, and only the statue of Ji Lianzi, the Ancestor, stood alone in the hall, making it feel desolate.
Li Hongyu felt increasingly bitter in his heart, and his eyes began to burn.
Finally back, but this was what he found at home.
A scene of desolation, a silent mountain; apart from the two of them and three beasts, there was only emptiness.
Although he had mostly guessed that this would be the outcome, when he truly witnessed this scene, Li Hong still underestimated his own sadness and discomfort.
At that moment, Ji Lingzi suddenly floated over: "Report to the Sect Master, I have found a living person! It is a female disciple from Nine Purple Peak!"
Li Hong was overjoyed and excitedly said, "Quickly take us to see her!"
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