Do You Believe It

Little Fatty was carried by the ghost soldier, who strode out a few steps as black wind suddenly rose beneath him, lifting the ghost soldier into the sky.

Riding the black wind, the ghost soldier flew to the Ghost City in no time, but instead of landing, he dangled Little Fatty in midair with one hand, shaking him until the boy's face turned pale and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.

On a nearby pavilion, a graceful female ghost with a complex expression—shy yet fierce—swept her gaze across the scene, her pretty face filling with disappointment before she turned and went back inside.

The Tusked Ghost Soldier's expression soured. After a moment's thought, he carried Little Fatty down into the Ghost City and casually tossed him in front of the Black Prison, shrouded in thin black mist...

"Lock him up."

The Tusked Ghost Soldier flew off, and a Warden emerged from the black mist, sizing up Little Fatty with a critical eye.

"Tsk, tsk, there really are plenty of people who aren't afraid to die. Do they really think our Ghost King runs a charity? Anyone dares to come and cheat him—courting death!"

Little Fatty, still unable to control his body, was unsurprisingly thrown into the Black Prison as well...

Once the Black Prison fell silent again, Little Fatty lay on the ground, gritting his teeth and muttering curses, when a familiar voice suddenly reached his ears.

"Junior Brother Zhang, what a small world it is..."

After regaining a bit of control over his body, Little Fatty turned his head with difficulty and saw the person in the next cell, his eyes going wide.

"So it's Senior Brother Qin. You're here too..."

Then came a dead silence, as if both of them found it a bit awkward to meet here...

Once Little Fatty fully regained control of his body, he walked to the edge of the cell, sat down on the ground, and with a hint of admiration, cupped his hands toward Qin Yang.

"Senior Brother Qin, the older the ginger, the spicier it is. I never thought you'd seen through it all long ago and turned the tables on me instead. Impressive, impressive."

"Junior Brother Zhang flatters me. You're too kind." Qin Yang cupped his hands back with a cheerful smile.

"Senior Brother Qin, since you got the jump on me, how did you end up caught here too?"

"What if I said I did it on purpose?"

"Heh..." Zhang Zhengyi let out a dry laugh, his face clearly saying, Do you think I'd believe that? "Senior Brother Qin, that joke isn't funny at all..."

"Fine, if you don't believe me, suit yourself. Have the people from Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce arrived? What about Boundless Dao Academy?"

"The Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce people are here, led by Steward Qiu, with rumors of experts backing them up. As for Boundless Dao Academy, they haven't arrived yet. Word is that because their genius was injured and risks falling in cultivation, they're pretty furious. This time, they might send an elder personally to deal with Dole Ghost King." Zhang Zhengyi didn't hide any of this...

But after saying it, he suddenly had a thought and asked casually, as if offhand, "Senior Brother Qin, since you're already here, why are you asking about this?"

"Waiting for them to start fighting so I can slip out in the chaos. Why else do you think I got myself caught on purpose?"

"Heh, Senior Brother Qin, you're joking again. If you don't want to say, fine..." Zhang Zhengyi curled his lip, losing interest in talking.

"Suit yourself if you don't believe me." Qin Yang couldn't help but chuckle at Zhang Zhengyi's expression. Making up lies was too much trouble, so he told the truth, and the guy didn't believe it anyway.

Seeing this kid come in, Qin Yang knew that plenty of cultivators had already arrived, but they hadn't started fighting yet. If they had, Little Fatty wouldn't have been thrown in here to be locked up—he'd most likely have been torn apart on the spot.

Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce just wasn't up to it. It all depended on Boundless Dao Academy. As the undisputed overlord of a thousand-mile radius, if their genius disciple had nearly been beaten to death and they didn't react, that would be strange.

Plus, with the Purple Firmament Dao Lord's Seated Transcendence Land here, Boundless Dao Academy would definitely use this as an excuse to stir up trouble and go all out. They might even take this chance to wipe out Dole Ghost King entirely, so they wouldn't have to deal with a Ghost King squatting in their territory—annoying as hell.

On the other side...

At the entrance of the Nether Acacia Ghost Tomb, cultivators and ghosts were locked in a standoff, all waiting for confirmation from inside. If they could avoid a fight, naturally no one wanted one—especially the Ten Thousand Eternity Commerce people, whose forces here were weak. Summoning experts wouldn't get them there instantly...

But the problem was, this matter couldn't be delayed any longer. If word spread and attracted true top-tier experts, no one would get even a sip of the soup.

Steward Qiu's face was dark, his mind churning with ways to resolve this with minimal losses...

Just as he was thinking, the faint mist around them suddenly seemed to boil, ripples spreading everywhere, stirring up howling Yin winds, and the ground began to tremble violently.

Boom! A dull roar struck, and everyone present—human and ghost alike—felt their chests tighten and stars flash before their eyes. When they came to, the spreading mist looked as if a pair of giant hands had forcibly torn it apart.

Inside the Nether Acacia Ghost Tomb, they could actually see the Mass Burial Ground outside, and even Green Forest City in the distance!

Everyone was shocked, and many cried out in alarm.

"What the hell? Who tore open the barrier?"

"The Nether Acacia Ghost Tomb's barrier was ripped apart by force? A Three Origins cultivator? No, could it be a Divine Sea Stage grand cultivator?"

Amid the shouts, a crimson Divine Rainbow appeared at the edge of the sky, like a rainbow bridge spanning heaven and earth. In the blink of an eye, it shot from the horizon straight into the Nether Acacia Ghost Tomb.

As the rainbow light faded, an old man with wrinkled, chicken-skin-like temples stood in midair. He wore a dark red robe, his eyes gloomy, Sha Qi bursting from his gaze. His aura churned, stirring up gales that howled mournfully.

Around the old man, a fire dragon coiled and spun without pause. Just by standing there, he made the surrounding temperature skyrocket.

The mist covering the area was driven away by the scorching heat. Sparks flickered in the air, and when they landed on the black forest nearby, trees dozens of feet tall turned to ash the moment they touched even a single ember.

"The Blazing Fire Divine Aegis—they even brought out a town-guarding spiritual artifact like that. Boundless Dao Academy is really ready to break with Dole Ghost King completely..." Steward Qiu stood on the ground, staring at the fire dragon, his expression turning ugly...

Because the one wielding the Blazing Fire Divine Aegis was none other than the master of the genius who had nearly been beaten to death—Boundless Dao Academy's elder, Xu Shen.

His name meant "cautious," but he was anything but. Instead, he had a notoriously explosive temper and had fought Dole Ghost King more than once...

All along, Dole Ghost King had kept quiet here and never left, so Boundless Dao Academy had been reluctant to start a conflict, wasting resources and energy. But now that they'd handed this top-tier spiritual artifact to Elder Xu Shen, it meant they were ready for an all-out break.

Sure enough...

"Dole, you little brat, get out here and die! If you don't come out, I'll burn your damn nest to the ground!"

Elder Xu Shen's roar was like a thunderclap, carrying Yin Qi and mist like a cannonball, shooting straight into the depths of the Nether Acacia Ghost Tomb.

In an instant, black Ghost Qi surged into the sky from afar, condensing into clouds and forming a ghostly face several miles wide, which opened its mouth and let out a roar.

Instantly, the black clouds roiled, transforming into surging tidal waves that collided with the oncoming force.

Boom, rumble...

Thunderclaps roared one after another, Yin Lightning writhing like dragons, crackling and snapping through the air. The Nether Acacia Ghost Tomb, which never saw sunlight all year round, had actually...

cleared up...

"Red-Haired Chicken Eyes, don't think that just because you brought some crappy fire shield this time, I'm scared of you!"