Ghost Domain

In the ruins of Fahua Temple.

Suddenly, a large amount of black smoke spread from the ground, and yin energy permeated the entire surrounding space.

In the blink of an eye, Zhang You and the Old Daoist disappeared from their original positions.

Immediately after, the surrounding smoke vanished, and the yin energy receded, as if it had never appeared.

Only a large, deep pit remained at the scene, indicating the ferocity of the battle that had taken place.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."

Figures landed one after another, most of them having rushed over from the marketplace.

But the place was already empty, with only faint traces of blood and evil energy remaining.

"It's the Blood Shadow Ghost Mother's aura, Qingyuan Old Daoist's aura, and an ordinary person."

Pang Biao of the Demon Suppression Division investigated the surroundings and reached a conclusion.

He could already sense that the ordinary person was Zhang You.

Not long after, Shopkeeper Li, Boss Ren, the Tang Family Head Tang Julou, and the City Lord Qin Fengtian also arrived.

Pang Biao stepped forward and informed them of his findings.

"Shopkeeper Li, where is that little one?"

Everyone looked towards Shopkeeper Li.

"I can no longer sense his location, only that this is where he last disappeared."

Shopkeeper Li's expression was also somewhat displeased.

"Hmph! If it weren't for you, we would have captured him last time!"

Pang Biao snorted coldly.

"I've already explained it clearly to you last time; the time wasn't right, and I wasn't bothered to explain again."

Shopkeeper Li closed his eyes again and began to sense Zhang You's location, but still found nothing.

The world in the eyes of Zhang You and Qingyuan Old Daoist had changed.

The surroundings slowly grew dark, the sky turned blood-red, and two blood moons hung in the sky.

A dense yin energy emanated from all around.

Looking up, they were at the entrance of Fahua Temple!

But Fahua Temple had been razed to the ground in the previous battle, and its main gate had long since vanished.

Now, everything was intact!

This was highly illogical!

Looking around again.

Previously, the area around Fahua Temple was a ruin, but now there were still houses around.

Although no lights were on in any of the houses, everything was too unbelievable!

"This must be that Ghost Domain! The surrounding area should be the region that was burned down!"

Qingyuan Old Daoist said, taking a deep breath.

"Isn't that just a rumor? I heard even the Demon Suppression Division couldn't find anything mysterious!"

Zhang You sensed the surroundings; it was deathly quiet.

"Heh heh! That was just to keep the civilians calm. Otherwise, why would the people nearby have moved away later?

It was all led by the government.

In fact, a Ghost Domain had indeed formed at that time, and the government wanted to eliminate this hidden danger, so they gradually sent people from the Demon Suppression Division into it.

But even cultivators in the Foundation Establishment Realm, without exception, never returned!

Finally, they had no choice but to use brute force to seal and bury the entrance to the Ghost Domain.

It's estimated that the previous battle was too fierce, which broke open a passage into the Ghost Domain, and we were unfortunately swept in!"

Qingyuan Old Daoist revealed what he knew.

"If that's the case, we're probably in grave danger!"

Zhang You sat on the ground and began to recover his blood and Qi.

"It's highly likely!"

The old Daoist sighed.

One had to know that the Demon Suppression Division had even sent cultivators in the Foundation Establishment Realm back then, but none of them returned, which showed how dangerous this place was.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Suddenly, a wooden fish sound echoed from within Fahua Temple, followed by the sound of chanting scriptures.

"Gulp!"

The Old Daoist swallowed, looking towards the temple's main gate.

"Putting on a show!"

Zhang You had recovered his composure. He stood up and squinted towards the temple's main gate as well.

"Can't find it by searching the book title? You can try searching by author, maybe they just changed the name!"

"Creeeak!"

The gate opened automatically!

"Are we going in?"

The Old Daoist was a bit spooked.

"Of course... we're not going in. If they want us in, we'll go in. That'd be too undignified!"

Zhang You turned around, preparing to look for another way out. He hated being led around by the nose.

But just then, the path behind them vanished. The surrounding buildings disappeared, replaced by a dense black fog. It was as if the only structure left in the entire space was Fahua Temple.

As the Yin energy intensified, both Zhang You and the Old Daoist felt a chill.

"Looks like we have no choice but to go in!"

Zhang You pondered for a moment, then channeled a trace of his blood energy to empower his body. He stepped through the gate.

"Sigh!"

Qingyuan Old Daoist quickly followed.

"Creeeak, Clang!"

The gate shut again, and the space fell silent once more, like still water.

Along the way, they didn't see any other living beings, let alone any monks. The courtyard was empty.

"Creeeak!"

When they reached the entrance of the main hall, the door opened by itself again. From the outside, the interior of the hall was obscured, appearing only as a hazy grayness. The sound of the wooden fish and the chanting originated from within the hall.

As they entered the hall, the door closed on its own once more. The moment Zhang You stepped inside, the scene before his eyes shifted, and everything became clear.

The Buddha statue in the center of the hall was intact, but its head was obscured by some unknown power, making it impossible to see. The lower part was visible, however. Excluding the head, this Buddha statue was at least five to six zhang tall and entirely golden.

On the prayer mats lining the sides of the hall sat many bald monks, striking wooden fish and chanting an unknown scripture, all with their backs turned to Zhang You and the Old Daoist.

At this point, Zhang You felt the chanting possess a magical quality, penetrating deep into his mind, drawing him in. Before long, he began to feel lightheaded and drowsy.

Suddenly, a dark shadow appeared above his head, exhaling a puff of black smoke that descended towards his mind.

"Hmm?"

Zhang You detected the abnormality and sent a surge of blood energy straight towards his head.

"Pop!"

Zhang You instantly felt much more awake, and the dark shadow above his head was dissipated. A wisp of blue-white energy entered his body. He glanced back to see Qingyuan Old Daoist had already closed his eyes, with a dark phantom above his head already connected to him. The shadow was about to merge completely into the Old Daoist's body.

Zhang You flashed to the Old Daoist's side and, with his right hand covered in blood energy, reached out and grabbed the shadow. The shadow tried to escape, but it was clearly too late.

"Ka..."

He tightened his grip, pulling the shadow out. Then, he injected a stream of blood energy into it, instantly shredding it. He absorbed another wisp of blue-white energy.

"Slap!"

Seeing the Old Daoist still in a daze, Zhang You delivered a resounding slap.

"Ah! I've been hit!"

The Old Daoist jolted awake, only realizing what had happened afterward. He immediately clutched a stack of talismans and nervously scanned his surroundings.

"Relax, don't misfire and hit an ally!"

Zhang You took a few steps back, quickly calling out, afraid that the Old Daoist would start fighting if they disagreed.

"Thank you, young man!"

The Old Daoist recalled the situation just now and knew that Zhang You had saved his life.

Then, his expression turned serious, and he said, "These sounds are problematic!"

At this moment, the chanting voices suddenly stopped abruptly, and the sound of striking the wooden fish also ceased.

"Gulp!"

Blood began to stream down the surrounding walls, doors, and windows, and a large amount of Yin energy gathered towards the two of them.