The faint candlelight shrouded the main hall. Under the threat of evil spirits, and with the assurance of the immortals from Qianyuan Mountain, everyone maintained an orderly routine.
Bang.
Bang bang.
Heartbeat-like thuds rang out.
Everyone looked toward Yang He in unison, their eyes filled with reverence.
Yang He's shriveled body gradually recovered. Fresh yin qi mingled with his blood, and his organs accepted the yin qi without the slightest rejection.
The confusion between Daoist Priest Qingfeng's brows deepened.
Mingshui could not help asking, "Master, Martial Uncle seems to be returning from Acquired to Innate. Could Martial Uncle be at the same realm as us?"
"Don't talk nonsense. Senior Brother Yang is at least in the Innate Realm, perhaps even the Dantian Sitting stage."
Daoist Priest Qingfeng shook his head as if he wanted to speak but stopped himself. He truly could not make sense of Yang He's true condition.
Yang He's body became fuller, and his skin gained a healthier glow. His originally handsome face now carried a hint of immortal bearing.
Daoist Priest Qingfeng waited for half a day. By all reason, Blood Spirit should have already broken through its bottleneck.
Yet Yang He remained immersed in seclusion.
"The Corpse Daoist is not someone we mortals can fathom. I only hope Senior Brother Yang finishes cultivating soon. Otherwise..."
Even Yang He had not expected that at the instant Pupil Ghost underwent its transformation, Spiritual Vision would stir, causing a strange vision to flash through his mind.
It was a gigantic eye growing from the palm of a colossal hand that reached into the sky.
The eye seemed to conceal the creation of heaven and earth, refracting dazzling five-colored light while foul-smelling blood flowed from it, mixed with heaps of white bones.
Then the words Jiazi Grand Commander appeared on the panel.
"Jiazi Grand Commander should be one of the immortals invested by the Investiture of the Gods, right? Could Pupil Ghost be related to Jiazi Grand Commander? Is the end of cultivation becoming a ghost god?"
Yang He forcefully suppressed his stray thoughts. Pupil Ghost had naturally advanced to the Hungry Ghost stage.
Nine Yin Meridians connected to his body, making his perception of the yin qi outside incredibly keen. Moreover, he discovered that Pupil Ghost's changes did not end there.
Yang He stabilized his cultivation while closely studying Pupil Ghost.
Two days passed without notice.
Daoist Priest Qingfeng gradually grew accustomed to the disturbances Yang He caused and even began to feel that they were only natural.
Suddenly.
He heard footsteps outside the hall. Mingshan happened to be standing by the window. "Master, look. Are those several figures at the mountain gate?"
Daoist Priest Qingfeng's heart tightened as he clutched a spirit talisman and approached the window.
Because of the thick fog, he could only see the vague outlines of the figures. For some reason, Daoist Priest Qingfeng found them strangely familiar.
Daoist Priest Qingfeng fell into a daze. Mingshan said, "They look like Martial Uncle Xuanxu."
"Don't talk nonsense. Xuanxu is clearly cultivating in seclusion on Qianyuan Mountain. How could he..."
Before he could finish speaking, a figure abruptly strode closer. Only then did Daoist Priest Qingfeng realize it was a flayed mass of flesh and blood.
After the figure took only a few steps, aged skin began to grow over it.
Daoist Priest Qingfeng's pupils contracted violently. The figure directly transformed into the appearance of a fellow Daoist from his memories, except its mouth stretched to its ears in an exceptionally brilliant smile.
The figure seemed to possess a demonic allure, and Mingshan stared straight at it without looking away.
"Not good!"
Daoist Priest Qingfeng bit the tip of his tongue and forcibly jolted himself awake. Then he activated the formation flags, and the faint yin qi sealed every outward-facing window.
His chest heaved as he looked around, letting out a long breath.
"Good thing we noticed the anomaly in time."
"It seems the Living Immortal has already finished flaying all the human skins outside the hall. It has probably set its sights on us."
Daoist Priest Qingfeng carefully inspected the formation to ensure there were no flaws. At that moment, a familiar voice came from beside him. "Senior brother."
He turned his head and saw Daoist Xuanxu smiling sweetly at him.
Daoist Priest Qingfeng looked dazed. He was somewhat puzzled by Daoist Xuanxu's appearance at Five Lights Temple, but he quickly accepted the extra person.
"Senior brother, let me guard the door. Don't worry, the Living Immortal won't get a chance."
"I..."
Daoist Priest Qingfeng frowned and clutched his head while Daoist Xuanxu walked toward the door of his own accord.
Before everyone's eyes, Daoist Xuanxu grabbed the spirit talisman stuck in the crack of the door. A muffled, strange laugh came from his mouth as blood flowed from his nose and mouth.
Plop.
The human skin pressed against his face fell away.
What Daoist Xuanxu? It was clearly an evil spirit transformed from a flayed corpse!!
Daoist Priest Qingfeng came to his senses, but he no longer had the strength to stop it. Once the evil spirit opened the door, a blind spot would appear within the hall.
The Living Immortal would surely descend.
At that moment, Daoist Priest Qingfeng noticed that Yang He had opened his eyes.
A hollow for a third eye remained between Yang He's brows, while Pupil Ghost was nowhere to be seen. Immediately afterward, the surrounding yin qi became incomparably chaotic.
"Seize!!"
Daoist Priest Qingfeng heard Yang He's low shout, and the flayed corpse let out a shrill scream.
A huge eye abruptly opened on the corpse's right hand, which tightly gripped the spirit talisman. Nine blood threads formed a profound curse pattern, guiding yin qi into its body.
Yin qi surged in from all directions.
The flayed corpse desperately tried to tear off the spirit talisman, but Pupil Ghost seemed to have taken root and sprouted.
Pop pop pop pop.
Strange sounds came from all over the flayed corpse as eyes covered its entire body.
When Daoist Priest Qingfeng looked at the evil spirit again, the flayed corpse had already collapsed to the ground. Pupil Ghost returned to the hollow between Yang He's brows.
After Yang He's Pupil Ghost advanced to the Hungry Ghost stage, it could now leave his body for a hundred meters.
Once Pupil Ghost successfully parasitized something, it could erode its host by guiding yin qi into it.
Qi Cultivator: Pupil Ghost (Hungry Ghost) Aberrant: Force Ghost (Weak Ghost)
"Senior Brother Yang, I'll seal all the windows shut now."
Yang He said with a grave expression, "Junior Brother Qingfeng, take a careful look around us."
Daoist Priest Qingfeng belatedly swept his gaze across the hall. Cold sweat soaked his Daoist robe. The already somewhat crowded place had become even livelier.
There was not merely one flayed corpse. At least twenty or thirty evil spirits were hidden among the crowd.
The hall remained orderly. There was no sign at all that their relatives and friends had been transformed by evil spirits, while the Living Immortal could use the flayed corpses to break the formation at any time.
Daoist Priest Qingfeng's face turned deathly pale. For a moment, he did not know what to do.
Yang He could distinguish evil spirits through Spiritual Vision, but pulling one thread would move the whole body. Pupil Ghost could only possess one target at a time, and the slightest mistake could lead to disaster.
He glanced at Spiritual Vision. It had originally dropped to 80 points, yet it was about to exceed a hundred again. No matter how he looked at it, Five Lights Temple was a certain death trap.
Yang He looked outside the hall, faintly sensing something. "Junior Brother Qingfeng, Nephews Mingshan and Mingshui, see me off."
"Ah?"
A ghostly hand clamped around his neck.
Yang He walked straight through the doors, and three Yang Fires transformed into yin fire.
Under the gaze of Daoist Priest Qingfeng and his disciples, Yang He disappeared into the thick fog as if no one else were present, seemingly following the steps toward the foot of the mountain.
"Just right."
After taking only a few steps, Yang He noticed the carriage at the foot of the mountain.
Four teams of horses pulled a stone statue covered in white cloth. Dozens of escorts ignored the mountain fog as they tried every possible means to deliver it to Five Lights Temple.
The statue was the Nuwa Statue carved by the Stone Crone Ghost.
Even from so far away, Yang He felt a chilling illusion, as though the Nuwa Statue beneath the white cloth was staring at him as well.
"The Living Immortal is already destined to become an immortal. Li Feng probably survived until Ghost Lotus several years later not because he endured the seven days..."
"But because of Empress Nuwa."
Yang He had no taboos in the Lore World and could not help wanting to see Nuwa's true appearance. Perhaps it would help him complete the lore, Ghost in the Stone.
Come to think of it, what exactly was Nuwa?
I recommend a friend's book, "This Zombie System is Dangerously Stealthy."
Synopsis:
The Zombie Homeland System has loaded successfully.
Weak little zombie, this is a post-apocalyptic world where humanity has multiplied to an extraordinary degree. The terror of humanity exceeds your imagination. To overturn human civilization once more, as the only zombie currently remaining, you must disguise yourself well, develop quietly, and work hard to infect more companions...
Warning, warning: There is a highly aggressive female human ahead. Beware of the red-soled, black-faced high heels on her feet. They can easily pierce your brain. Stay alive, and you will receive unexpected benefits!
"The only remaining zombie? No... I'm human, System Bro!"
As a pure-blooded human, Fang Yi was somewhat dumbfounded.
--
On this day, Fang Yi, nearly thirty and facing an unemployment crisis, set the gears of fate turning.
P.S. This book is also known as "This Zombie System is Dangerously Stealthy" and "Little Zombie, You Are Surrounded by Humans."
Before you continue