Vital Source Deprivation

That black cloud should have already arrived at White Grass Market.

However, it stopped above a stretch of marshland and slowly descended until it hovered over the water's surface.

Speed is of the essence in warfare, and the same applies to tracking down the source of information.

To follow the vine to the melon, one must act before someone cuts down the vine.

In Bai Shuilán's opinion, the sooner they reached White Grass Market, the better.

He didn't understand what was so fascinating about a broken umbrella that they kept looking at it.

Although he knew this umbrella was the Yin Thunder Umbrella, a rare Spirit Treasure.

But the crucial point was, since this umbrella had fallen into the hands of these two mysterious black-robed cultivators, they could examine it anytime. Why stop in this desolate marsh now, looking at it from every angle?

Given the power and status of these two mysterious cultivators, a Spirit Treasure like this wouldn't make them act so cryptically.

He couldn't understand.

He didn't dare to ask.

But there must be something wrong with this Yin Thunder Umbrella.

The black-clothed female cultivator and the white-haired cultivator she called Qing Xu had been intently examining the Yin Thunder Umbrella for the time it takes to burn a stick of incense.

Bai Shuilán couldn't help but steal a glance at Kong Mengzhu beside him.

Kong Mengzhu was usually quite dull.

Now, his expression was even more vacant.

Bai Shuilán sighed inwardly. He had no idea what these two mysterious cultivators would do to him and Kong Mengzhu after they were brought to White Grass Market. The longer they lingered, the more agonizing it became.

After about another cup of tea's time, the black-clothed female cultivator finally seemed to withdraw her spiritual sense from the Yin Thunder Umbrella, which was being supported by black mist in front of her.

Her slightly furrowed brow didn't relax; instead, it tightened further.

She glanced at Qing Xu, whose expression was equally grave, and said slowly, "Vital Source Deprivation?"

Qing Xu, as usual, was concise, "Likely."

"Vital Source Deprivation?" Bai Shuilán was instantly shocked.

His gaze shifted from the umbrella he had previously thought unremarkable to one that held a completely different significance.

Vital Source Deprivation was recorded in many texts and was simple and easy to understand.

Spirit Treasures were called Spirit Treasures because their spiritual materials were unique, imbued with the essence of heaven and earth, and impossible for humans to replicate.

The primary reason for this impossibility was the unique Vital Energy laws contained within the spiritual materials.

These Vital Energy laws, formed naturally over countless years, were like a profound, natural magic array, or like the soul of the spiritual material.

Cultivation World texts referred to this as the Spirit Treasure's Vital Source.

Just as a person cannot live without a soul, neither can a Spirit Treasure.

If a Spirit Treasure's embryonic form suffered too severe damage, much like a cultivator sustaining grievous injuries and being unable to heal, the loss of its Vital Source would be normal.

But Vital Source Deprivation was an entirely different concept.

It wasn't about violently destroying the core of the Spirit Treasure through brutal means, but rather using some heaven-defying method, as if forcibly stripping away the very origin of the Spirit Treasure's embryonic form.

It was akin to using some heaven-defying method to forcibly extract the Nascent Soul of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator and use it for oneself.

Bai Shuilán was already a cultivator at the first layer of the Golden Core stage.

Yet, as a Golden Core cultivator, he could still sense spiritual energy from this damaged Yin Thunder Umbrella. In his perception, the umbrella was clearly still absorbing and expelling Vital Energy.

Therefore, if he were to judge, he would believe the Yin Thunder Umbrella was self-repairing. He absolutely wouldn't have perceived that its Vital Source had been deprived.

From this point alone, these two mysterious black-robed cultivators were far superior to him.

But the crucial question was, who could deprive the Yin Thunder Umbrella of its Vital Source?

The black-clothed female cultivator slowly raised her head.

She hadn't believed this fact at first.

But after spending so much time confirming it, the fact was solidified.

The Yin Thunder Umbrella's Vital Source was gone. Within tens of days, its spiritual energy would completely dissipate.

The key was, who could strip the Vital Source so silently? The clean and efficient nature of this deprivation felt like an overwhelming crushing from a completely different level, yet it was also gentle, leaving the Yin Thunder Umbrella unable to resist.

It wasn't until the Yin Thunder Umbrella stopped absorbing spiritual energy within her spirit-nourishing sand that she and Qing Xu noticed something was amiss.

Who was it?

Old Ancestor Tong Hui, that pair of disciples from Profound Heaven Sect, Meng Xiqiong – in total, only these people had come into contact with the Yin Thunder Umbrella.

The highest cultivation among them was Old Ancestor Tong Hui, who had just condensed his Nascent Soul. By all logic, even if Old Ancestor Tong Hui reached the peak of the Nascent Soul stage and successfully underwent tribulation to reach the Spirit Transformation stage, he wouldn't be able to deprive the Vital Source so silently.

It seemed impossible, yet it had happened right before her eyes.

"This is getting interesting."

The black-clothed female cultivator looked at the Yin Thunder Umbrella, now of little use, and smiled with narrowed eyes. She didn't feel much anger; instead, she found it amusing.

Among them, the two from the Profound Heaven Sect seemed least capable of stripping the Yin Thunder Umbrella of its Vital Source, yet they also seemed the most suspicious.

"Let's go! It seems our trip to Lesser Jade Continent wasn't in vain after all."

She put away the Yin Thunder Umbrella, and the black cloud once again soared into the sky.

For some reason, she also developed a strong interest in the upcoming White Grass Market.

The people at White Grass Market didn't feel anything different today.

Even though an unusual black cloud appeared in the sky, only a very small number of people noticed it when it got closer.

The flying artifacts used by cultivators of all sorts were strange and varied, let alone this black cloud which didn't seem particularly remarkable.

In front of a shop selling low-grade talismans, a cultivator was negotiating a price with the shop owner.

Although the price of these low-grade talismans was extremely cheap, their consumption was enormous, and there was still considerable profit to be made if the price was negotiated well.

The shop owner happened to be facing the direction the black cloud came from. He looked up at the black cloud, and his complexion suddenly turned dark.

Not a dark mood, but his skin genuinely turned black, as if thick black oil was about to seep out from his skin.

The cultivator negotiating with him was startled. He turned his head and also saw the black cloud.

He couldn't see his own face.

Nor did he realize that his own complexion was rapidly turning black.

At this moment, terrified screams began to erupt throughout White Grass Market.

The cultivator negotiating with the shop owner also let out a scream of horror.

Because he had only glanced at the black cloud, and the moment he turned his head back, the shop owner collapsed.

Thick black water gushed out unrealistically from the shop owner's seven orifices, and the clothes stained by the black water were rapidly dissolving.

The shop owner, who had been haggling with him just a breath ago, turned into a piece of human skin floating in the black water.

The cultivator's scream of horror lasted only a brief moment.

Because thick black water surged out from his throat.

Black water also poured out from his seven orifices simultaneously.

He, too, became a piece of human skin that fell into the black water.

The entire White Grass Market, with the continuous short screams, saw everyone collapsing to the ground one by one, floating in the black water.