Soul Possession

"Alright, I'm done arguing with you."

Bai Qiuran asked, "It's quite rare for you to personally come to the Realm of the Living. What happened?"

You should know this.

Xue Ling sighed, a rare occurrence for him, "Recently, the Souls of tens of thousands of people whose lifespans haven't ended have mysteriously disappeared from this place. My Underworld Emissary have searched the entire Human Realm but can't find them."

"Um?"

Bai Qiuran pointed to the reed beds not far away.

"See if those people are there?"

"I've already checked. The bodies are indeed those people, but I can't find their Souls, so they're useless to me."

Xue Ling shook his head and said, "I was just promoted to the head of the branch in charge of this world, and this huge mess has already happened to me."

"Oh? You got promoted? Congratulations!"

Bai Qiuran was taken aback for a moment before saying, "From now on, you Xue Ling, will have the final say on all matters concerning ghosts in the Human Realm."

Bai Qiuran, who had dealt with the Underworld Hades Immortal Realm not limited to the Ten Lands of Jiuzhou. In other Plane, there were also worlds under the rule of the Immortal Realm, and if people there embarked on the path of Cultivation, their final destination was also to Ascension the Immortal Realm.

"Congratulations? No matter how many nice things you say, when your time comes, I won't show you any mercy."

Xue Ling said coldly, "You're lucky this time. Someone sent you materials for a batch of Longevity Pill. You still have several hundred years left to live, so cherish it."

Bai Qiuran touched his nose, remembering the materials Su Xiangxue had given him before. If he were to do it himself, he would probably forget them again and end up fighting with Xue Ling's Underworld Emissaries.

"Alright, if there's nothing else, Ming Ying and I will head back."

Xue Ling glanced at Bai Qiuran, looking somewhat annoyed.

"This time, we clearly knew someone was stealing Souls, but there was no reaction in the Book of Life and Death. It's truly bizarre."

"Um?"

Hearing Xue Ling's mutterings to himself, Bai Qiuran suddenly realized what was happening and called out to his retreating figure, "Wait a minute!"

Xue Ling stopped and turned around to ask, "Is there anything else?"

That's right.

Bai Qiuran recounted the entire story of the Ancient City incident to Xue Ling.

"Earth Immortal? So that's how it is. Was this all the work of Earth Immortal? No wonder there was no record of it in the Book of Life and Death."

After listening, Xue Ling murmured.

Do you know what a "Earth Immortal" is?

Bai Qiuran asked.

"I know, it's recorded in the scriptures of the Ghost Realm."

Xue Ling nodded.

"However, Earth Immortal in this world should have Ascension the Immortal Realm about 100,000 years ago. I thought there were no more Earth Immortal in this world."

"Oh? What exactly happened?"

Bai Qiuran's eyes lit up, and she pressed for an answer.

"I don't know the specifics either. It happened many years before you and I were born... no, it was countless years before I died. I've only heard bits and pieces from some older people, mostly vague rumors."

Xue Ling replied.

"So, do you know how that Ancient City operates?"

Bai Qiuran asked again.

"Let me think..."

Xue Ling paced back and forth in place, then looked up at Ming Ying.

"Brother Xue, the rules of the Ghost Realm..."

"I know."

Xue Ling walked back to Bai Qiuran and said, "Listen carefully. You haven't seen me or Ming Ying today. I didn't know this incident was the work of Earth Immortal, and what you know about the Teleportation Formation and the operating mechanism of the Earth Immortal City..."

"I, Bai Qiuran exceptionally gifted, unparalleled in the world; naturally, I deduced it myself."

Bai Qiuran chimed in.

"Very good, I'll go back to the Ghost Realm and investigate for you. Await my news."

Xue Ling took Ming Ying's hand.

"Also, helping me resolve this incident won't count as a credit."

I don't care about those things.

Bai Qiuran replied.

"I know, after all, looking at the Mortal Realm now, you're probably the only one who can rival Earth Immortal."

Xue Ling said, "I can only rely on you to solve this case. After all, I investigated before you came, but my Book of Life and Death showed no reaction to that Ancient City. It seems that the people inside have had their Earth Immortal."

"Etc?"

Upon hearing Xue Ling's words, Bai Qiuran suddenly raised her hand and said, "No reaction at all? I remember that the Book of Life and Death should react even to Cultivators in the Body Integration Stage, right?"

"Yes, everyone who hasn't Tribulation Crossing has their name on the Book of Life and Death."

Xue Ling asked, "What?"

"Oh no."

Bai Qiuran reacted immediately, her figure transforming into a bolt of lightning as she ran towards the hillside to the side.

"Mmm... Ugh!"

On the high slope, Yue Qianren, lying on a stretcher, suddenly let out a weak groan.

His hand twitched slightly, and his eyes began to tremble with difficulty as he tried to open them.

"Sect Master! The Grand Elder has awakened!"

"What? Big brother! Big brother? Are you feeling alright?"

Hearing some indistinct voices, Yue Qianren slowly opened his eyes and saw Yue Qianlian in front of him with a look of surprise on her face.

"That's great, brother, you're still alive!"

Yue Qianlian was almost moved to tears.

Are you alright? Do you still recognize me?

"Ah, of course I recognize it."

Yue Qianren gave a gentle smile.

"You are my family, my brother!"

As he spoke, a strange black object suddenly appeared in his hand and stabbed towards the back of Yue Qianlian's head.

"Careful!"

In the blink of an eye, a figure appeared and reached out to block Yue Qianlian's head. The strange object also pierced the back of his hand and cracked into pieces with a snap.

"Tsk!"

Yue Qianren pouted somewhat unhappily, and with a swift movement, he instantly darted to the side from the stretcher.

"Where do you think you're going!"

Before anyone else could react, even Huangfu Feng, the strongest besides Bai Qiuran, was stunned by his friend's sudden betrayal. Only Su Xiangxue reacted. The Hehuan Sect let out a delicate shout, and a Jade Zither suddenly appeared in her hand. She reached out and played it, and a melodious and graceful sound immediately enveloped Yue Qianren.

"Hmph, a bewitching technique?"

The alluring quality emanating from the zither music caused Yue Qianren's mind to waver, but he quickly regained his footing. With a flash of his sword, a terrifyingly powerful blade of energy pierced towards Su Xiangxue, who was playing the zither.

Bang!

A figure appeared before Su Xiangxue, deflecting the blade's energy with the back of his hand. The blazing white energy cleaved cracks across the desolate Wilderness for miles. Bai Qiuran raised his hand and struck out with a palm towards "Yue Qianren."

Boom!

However, Yue Qianren's figure was like a phantom. Bai Qiuran's palm passed through Yue Qianren's body and struck the hillside behind Gaopo. Instantly, the entire mountain collapsed and fell to the other side.

"Ha, I never imagined that tens of thousands of years later, there would still be such a powerful figure in the Mortal World."

Yue Qianren's body underwent a phenomenon similar to that of Ancient City shifting, shrouded in a thick fog. He looked at Bai Qiuran and sneered, "But in the end, it's just an unorthodox path, incomparable to the Great Dao of my Holy Dynasty. Just wait, Mortals, the time for the Holy Dynasty's resurgence is approaching. We'll meet again in the Holy Dynasty."

As soon as he finished speaking, his entire body was enveloped in thick fog and disappeared.