Generally speaking, Spirit Refinement Cultivators fell into three major schools.
Weapon Control, Spellcasting, and Demon Servants.
Of these, Weapon Control was the easiest to get started in. All one needed was a handy magical artifact or a sufficient number of talismans to fight with the power of external objects—a textbook tools-based approach.
For that very reason, the Weapon Control school often lacked room to grow. Once its practitioners hit a bottleneck, it was difficult for them to make any further progress.
But nothing in the world was absolute. If a Weapon Control cultivator acquired a Supreme Treasure of astonishing power, their strength could soar sky-high, unleashing terrifying might beyond all imagination!
The Ninth Destiny of the Evil King Pavilion, whom Gu Cheng now faced, was an excellent example.
Beneath the night sky, yin winds howled.
Ghosts and wandering spirits surged toward them like a tide, wailing in anguish as they closed in around Gu Cheng.
"Interesting. Is she using those chains as a Soul Summoning Banner?"
A flicker of surprise crossed Gu Cheng's eyes, but his face showed no trace of panic.
A flash of light passed through his hand, and an antique, ink-black guqin appeared out of thin air. It was none other than Withered Wood Dragon's Roar.
Gu Cheng drew a deep breath and gently brushed his fingertips across the strings.
Twang—
A clear, ringing note resounded through the night sky. His formidable divine sense followed the music, turning into invisible blades that surged toward the vicious, clawing ghosts, wrapped in an aura of righteous might.
Wherever the music passed, ghosts wailed and spirits shrieked. The ghost fire glimmering green went out in an instant, like candles snuffed by a gale.
Beneath the cleansing sweep of the music, the haunted night sky cleared in the blink of an eye.
Gu Cheng put away the guqin, gripped Pagoda Slayer Saber, and flashed toward the Ninth Destiny.
That woman's chain artifact was indeed troublesome, but he figured at least eighty percent of her strength came from that artifact.
As the saying went, to catch the bandits, first capture their leader!
Once he dealt with the Ninth Destiny herself, her bizarre chain artifact would naturally be rendered useless!
Whoosh—
The Blood Saber tore through the air, its murderous edge slashing toward the Ninth Destiny's neck.
But the female assassin was ready. She shifted slightly to the side and dodged the fatal blow.
Her delicate fingers danced as she chanted under her breath. Wuchang Ghost Lock shot toward Gu Cheng like a snake striking its prey, moving so fast it made the eye swim.
Gu Cheng let out a cold snort. His blade flashed, severing the black chain rushing toward him.
But then a bizarre sight unfolded.
The severed chain writhed like an earthworm. Black energy churned at the broken ends, and in an instant, each piece split in two, winding toward Gu Cheng once more!
In the blink of an eye, Wuchang Ghost Lock had bound Gu Cheng tight and suspended him in midair.
The vengeful spirits clinging to the chains let out shrill, ear-piercing screams and lunged at Gu Cheng with claws outstretched, as if to tear him apart. The scene was chillingly grotesque.
"It's over."
The Ninth Destiny looked down coldly at the black-clad young man trapped by Wuchang Ghost Lock, her eyes devoid of emotion.
The spirits within her Wuchang Ghost Lock were saturated with resentment and curses, as deadly to living beings as poison. Even a grandmaster of the Innate Realm would struggle to withstand them.
The few Innate experts from the Demon Suppression Bureau in Chongshan City had met their gruesome ends in just this way.
But it wasn't long before the Ninth Destiny lost her composure.
The black-clad young man bound in chains wasn't being consumed by the spirits. Instead, he was struggling with all his might, trying to break free of Wuchang Ghost Lock.
A powerful force burst from within him, making the chains groan as if they were about to snap.
"How is that possible?!"
The Ninth Destiny froze for a moment, then retreated swiftly, putting distance between them.
Was this man even alive?
What Body Refinement technique had he cultivated? Why was his flesh completely unaffected by the spirits?
Gu Cheng was on the verge of breaking free of the chains.
A cruel glint flashed in the Ninth Destiny's eyes. She brought her hands together, and baleful light blazed in her gaze. She had clearly driven Wuchang Ghost Lock to its absolute limit.
"Hum!"
The once-pitch-black chains blazed with dazzling, baleful light.
Then, like living creatures, they grew and twisted wildly, wrapping around Gu Cheng layer upon layer until they encased him in a colossal ball of chains.
"Soul Burn!"
The Ninth Destiny barked the words. The spirits clinging to the chains ignited in an instant, and ghostly blue flames surged upward, staining the night sky with an eerie hue.
The enormous fireball hung in midair like a sinister blue sun, radiating a heart-stopping heat.
"I refuse to believe you can survive this!"
The Ninth Destiny gritted her teeth, firelight reflected in her eyes. Her aura was somewhat diminished; that move had clearly cost her dearly.
But just as she thought victory was assured—
A terrifying aura suddenly erupted from the ghostly blue fireball!
Boom—
A deafening explosion shook heaven and earth. The enormous fireball burst apart, scattering into countless fiery meteors that shot in every direction, trailing long tails of flame.
The once-lush forest instantly became a sea of fire. Towering flames turned half the sky a strange, blood-red hue.
Amid the flames, a figure clad in dark-red demonic armor slowly appeared before the Ninth Destiny, exuding a murderous aura that surged like a tidal wave.
The demonic armor was terrifyingly fierce in shape, magnificent yet wicked, like an Asura returned from hell. It radiated an oppressive force that made the blood run cold!
"Th-this guy—is he human or some kind of demon?!"
The Ninth Destiny stared at the Asura-like figure, an expression of fear—rare for her—rising in her eyes.
What kind of heaven-defying defense was this?
Her all-out attack hadn't left even a single scratch?!
Even the Spirit Sea Venerable of the Evil King Pavilion, who specialized in Body Refinement, probably couldn't do any better, could he?
As she stood there, uncertain and alarmed—
The shattered pieces of chain bizarrely flew toward her, swiftly joining and fusing together until they were restored in the blink of an eye.
But the vengeful spirits wound around the chains were now visibly weakened. They had clearly suffered considerable damage in the earlier battle.
"Oh? The chains aren't broken after all? What a fine treasure!"
Clad in Asura Demon Armor, Gu Cheng stared at the restored black chains, a feverish gleam in his eyes.
"This treasure and I are destined for each other!"
He gave a chilling grin. Pagoda Slayer Saber whipped up a blood-red storm that swept toward the Ninth Destiny.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Blood-red baleful saber qi crisscrossed the sky like an impenetrable web of death, enveloping the black-clad assassin.
Blade light flashed like lightning, blood-colored shadows layered upon one another.
The Ninth Destiny could only struggle to hold on with her footwork and Wuchang Ghost Lock. In her heart, she had already begun to consider retreat.
When faced with a monster who never tired, dealt absurdly high damage, and couldn't be hurt, continuing the fight could only end in death!
Despair closed in. Just as the female assassin was preparing to flee, the "trump card" the Gray-robed Holy Envoy had given her before leaving suddenly surfaced in her mind.
Her instincts warned her that the trump card was too wicked to be trusted, but at this point, she had no choice!
The Ninth Destiny gritted her teeth, resolve flashing in her eyes.
Clang—
The chain collided with the blade, releasing an ear-splitting crash. Sparks flew in all directions like exploding stars.
The Ninth Destiny sprang backward, flipping her hand at the same time.
A blood-red bead, no bigger than a longan, appeared in her pale palm.
The bead was crimson all over, as if it had been condensed from the blood of countless living beings. It emanated a heart-stirring scarlet light, and faintly, the wails of countless vengeful spirits could be heard.
"This is..."
Gu Cheng studied it closely, his expression shifting.
The bead was a little small, but the aura it gave off was astonishingly similar to that of the Blood Blade Sect's treasured sect artifact!
"...The Blood Soul Bead?!"
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