Traces of the Trio

Wang Dao Xuan and the others were no strangers to the people of Dongying.

During the Battle of Luoyang, Dongying forces infiltrated White Horse Temple and posed as members of the Maitreya Sect, plotting acts of sabotage to aid Ghost Emperor Wang Xuanmo.

Outside the imperial palace, an old Dongying monk had performed the shikigami "Aoi no Goryo, Nightmare of the Hundred Tales" at City God Temple. He had even stubbornly claimed it was Inviting the Gods, earning a torrent of mockery from Yin JiuGe.

Though the spell was ultimately broken, Yin JiuGe had also suffered severe injuries and withdrawn from the martial world completely.

In short, Dongying's mystic arts had been heavily influenced by the Central Plains.

Onmyodo had originated from the theories of yin-yang and the Five Elements in the pre-Qin era, while many ninjutsu techniques had evolved from Daoist escape and armor arts. Ninja schools such as the Hattori Hanzo family even traced their ancestral roots to Minzhou.

But due to differences in regional customs, they had already taken another path.

A more sinister and savage path—and one skilled at controlling ghosts.

With Wang Dao Xuan and the others' cultivation, dealing with them was naturally easy.

However, the attack had not come in only one wave.

Just as Wang Dao Xuan had defused the hidden-weapon ambush—

"Pop!" A dull sound rang out.

The soft mud beneath his feet collapsed and liquefied without warning.

A tremendous, viscous suction instantly wrapped around his legs.

The mud seemed to have come alive.

Ninjutsu: Earth Release: Swamp of Mud!

"Child's play!"

Wang Dao Xuan's expression remained calm. His left hand shifted through hand seals, while his right hand suddenly pointed downward. A Yellow Talisman that had somehow been caught between his fingers shot into the mire with a whoosh.

"Suppress!"

The