The Birth of a Malevolent Spirit's Spirituality

The Malevolent Spirit was harbored within the Divine Banner.

The Divine Banner had now become the Malevolent Spirit's true form!

This "Evil Banner" summoned a chilling wind, encircling half of Ox Horn Mountain and trapping everyone within.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Mr. Jing's voice was filled with shock. "How could this happen?"

The Divine Banner contained Lord Liu's energy, yet instead of suppressing the Malevolent Spirit, it had been used by the spirit as a vessel!

He burned talismans, invoking Lord Liu's Divine Nature.

But the Divine Nature did not destroy the Malevolent Spirit; instead, it made the spirit grow even stronger!

He had cultivated in the Temple of Lord Liu since childhood and had never heard of such a case.

How could there be a Malevolent Spirit in the world that feared no Lord Liu?

Even if it feared no Lord Liu, how could it possibly grow stronger by borrowing Lord Liu's Divine Nature?

How could such a terrifying Malevolent Spirit fall into the hands of someone like Clerk Luo?

His lifelong understanding, built on his legal studies, was shattered at this moment.

"..."

Meng Lu's heart was filled with horror, and his expression grew even more complex.

When he came to assist Mr. Jing, Grand Commander Zhao Zhou had told him they were there to deal with Demonic Creatures.

This was because Mr. Jing was not skilled in martial arts and was afraid of being harmed by them.

However, Meng Lu didn't need to worry about the Malevolent Spirits.

Mr. Jing was a top disciple of the Temple, and all his knowledge was designed to counter Malevolent Spirits!

The Malevolent Spirits that entered the city last night were merely Wandering Spirits. While troublesome for Martial Artists, they were a piece of cake for Mr. Jing.

He had never expected to encounter such a situation.

At one point, he even wondered if Mr. Jing had been sent by the enemy.

Otherwise, why would the Malevolent Spirit grow stronger and stronger under Mr. Jing's "rituals"?

If, at the beginning, Meng Lu could have protected himself from the Malevolent Spirit's corruption with his Martial Arts cultivation, then this current Malevolent Spirit, which filled half the mountain with its malevolent energy, was more than capable of devouring Meng Lu's soul with ease.

"What do we do now?"

Just then, a Divine Messenger spoke solemnly, asking in a low voice.

"I have one more method. You all cover me!"

Mr. Jing said this with a grave expression.

But as soon as his voice fell, several voices rang out in succession!

"No!" Meng Lu exclaimed, his heart filled with dread.

"Please stop your Divine Abilities, sir!" the leader of the Night Patrol Envoys, his face pale with fear.

"Please spare our lives, Mr. Jing!" More Night Patrol Envoys and city guards, their faces ashen, pleaded one after another.

"I..."

Mr. Jing opened his mouth, momentarily speechless.

He turned his head and saw the six Divine Messengers behind him also hesitating to speak, clearly intending to dissuade him.

And at this moment, a cold voice sounded again.

"If you help 'It' grow any further, I'll assume you're in league with them."

Lin Yan's expression was indifferent, his tone icy. "Stand there and don't move, or I'll split you with my saber!"

The atmosphere in the field was quite tense.

Lin Yan's heart was also quite complicated. At first, he had only wanted to witness the Temple's methods for exorcising spirits.

He hadn't expected that under the Temple's techniques, the Malevolent Spirit would seem to have received a great fortune, growing to such a degree in mere moments.

If it grew any stronger, it might exceed the scope of Wandering Spirits and become an Evil Spirit.

Although for Lin Yan, the stronger the Malevolent Spirit, the more Malevolent Energy he would gain.

He had no experience dealing with Evil Spirits.

While he could protect himself, facing an Evil Spirit he had never fought before, he wasn't entirely confident he could guarantee the lives of everyone present.

In Lin Yan's eyes, these people were the guardians of Gao Liu City. To risk their lives for a bit more Malevolent Energy would not be the act of a true man!

Therefore, he directly stopped Mr. Jing, preventing him from taking further action.

"I..."

Mr. Jing's expression flickered, and he finally lowered his head in dejection.

He was a direct disciple of the Temple Priest, and was treated with great respect wherever he went.

He hadn't expected to encounter such a strange and bizarre event at the edge of the outer city, in Lin Jiang Ward.

He felt deeply ashamed and unable to lift his head, having made repeated mistakes in the past few moments that had allowed the Malevolent Spirit to become so powerful.

However, the divine envoys behind him could not stand to see people from the outer city show such disrespect to Mr. Jing.

One of them immediately stepped forward and shouted, "If Mr. Jing doesn't act, what other methods do you have to face this Malevolent Spirit?"

"If you were facing Demonic Creatures, as Martial Artists, you could bravely draw your swords and cut down their physical bodies."

"But Malevolent Spirits are formless and intangible, your blades are completely useless."

"Moreover, within Gao Liu City, even the Divine Nature of Lord Liu cannot suppress it. What other methods are there to escape from here?"

As his voice fell, they saw Mr. Jing raise his hand again.

Seeing this, everyone turned their attention back to Mr. Jing, who looked somewhat apologetic.

"Actually, this Malevolent Spirit isn't too powerful. It hasn't completely surpassed the category of 'Wandering Spirits' and hasn't yet developed its 'Innate Evil Nature'."

"By rights, I should have been able to subdue it easily."

"But for some reason, it is fearless of Lord Liu's Divine Nature and can even absorb Lord Liu's Divine Nature to strengthen itself."

"Such a strange Malevolent Spirit is unprecedented, and I truly don't know how to deal with it. It seems that if I were to use all my learned skills now, it would only make it stronger, not destroy it."

"Currently, if there were an existence in the Essence Refining Realm, who has entered the Martial Path, with an integrated body and spirit, Blood Essence like fire, and a physique like a Vajra, they could withstand 'its' erosion."

Mr. Jing said this and then spoke in a low voice, "As it stands, the Temple's specialized methods and items for dealing with Malevolent Spirits are all ineffective against 'it'! But if there were an existence in the Essence Refining Realm, who could draw forth their heart's blood with the tip of their tongue, perhaps a mouthful of 'essence blood' might have a chance to break through the Malevolent Spirit!"

"Where would we find an Essence Refining Realm cultivator here?"

Just then, a cold laugh echoed, old and hoarse, chilling and piercing.

Everyone looked in horror to see that the eyes of the old man's corpse, lying on the ground with a wine pot, had opened, revealing a hideous grin.

His abdomen was riddled with holes, like a sieve.

But he struggled to rise slowly.

He crawled up in a twisted, stiff posture.

His aged face gradually contorted, his expression becoming menacing and ferocious.

"In Gao Liu City, which of these important figures isn't in the inner city, holding great power?"

The old man grinned, his mouth full of blood, and said, "Hoping for such a person to save you is less likely than you becoming a part of me, jointly ascending to godhood in the future, living eternally with heaven and earth, and being immortal forever..."

Everyone retreated, filled with terror and dread, feeling an intense chill in the night.

Only Meng Lu gritted his teeth slightly and stepped forward, bringing his saber down to lop off the old man's head.

But as the head rolled to the ground, it stared fixedly at Meng Lu and spoke, "Such courage. A pity your skill is a bit lacking, otherwise, I would have taken your body."

As the voice faded, the head closed its eyes and became completely still.

"A Malevolent Spirit that has developed 'Spirituality'..."

Meng Lu's heart sank abruptly.