Audience with the Venerable!

"Unfortunately, your service held no value whatsoever to me!" Yang Zhengshan said flatly.

White Jade Capital could take in foreign Golden Core cultivators and Demon Kings, but it did not accept just anyone.

First of all, White Jade Capital would certainly not accept people from the Wuchang Ghost Sect, because many within White Jade Capital bore grudges against the Wuchang Ghost Sect.

Lin Xiqiu had the blood feud of an exterminated clan with the Wuchang Ghost Sect. The Fox Clan and Spirit Deer Clan had been forced by the Wuchang Ghost Sect to relocate their Tribal Land, and many of their clansmen had died at the hands of the Wuchang Ghost Sect's Yin Soldier Blood Puppets.

Second, the cultivation methods practiced by the Wuchang Ghost Sect did not suit White Jade Capital. Although Spirit Source Land also had places thick with Yin Energy, few people in Spirit Source Land cultivated Yin-attributed techniques.

Spirit Source Land simply did not suit Yin-attributed Immortal Cultivators. Likewise, Yin-attributed Immortal Cultivators had no future to speak of in Spirit Source Land.

Thus, taking in Yin-attributed cultivators would not only fail to strengthen Spirit Source Land, but might instead disrupt its harmonious state.

Finally, every member of the Wuchang Ghost Sect was evil—not because they were evil by nature, but because the sect's cultivation methods and environment affected their character, making them act without restraint or fear, brutal and cruel, lacking all moral constraint.

Yang Zhengshan was no benevolent man either, but neither did he like keeping evil people at his side.

Sensing Yang Zhengshan's displeasure, Li Shanghun panicked. "I-I still know many things about the Wuchang Ghost Sect. I—"

He still wanted to demonstrate his worth, but Yang Zhengshan interrupted him.

"No need!"

The rapidly spinning Life and Death Yin Yang Diagram gradually slowed. A wisp of white aura drifted out from Li Shanghun's body and fell into the Yang aspect of the Yin Yang Diagram.

"No!"

Li Shanghun cried out in terror, his face aging at a speed visible to the naked eye.

His original appearance had already seemed extremely aged, but that age had carried no air of decay. Now, however, his aged features were filled with rot.

He wanted to flee, but an invisible force gripped him tightly, making it impossible for him to break free or leave.

After several breaths, Li Shanghun became a corpse devoid of all life.

With a sweep of his sleeve, Yang Zhengshan collected Li Shanghun's remaining divine soul into the Seven Treasures Soul Suppressing Pagoda, then tossed Li Shanghun's corpse into the Divine Soul Hall.

The battle on Yang Zhengshan's side had ended, while everyone else's battles were also nearing their conclusion.

Kou Ta, Hong Fuxiu, and Yu Qingyi besieged Xie Wushuang. Although Yu Qingyi's current strength ranked near the bottom among the Golden Core cultivators, Hua Qingzhu had given her considerable aid. Several hundred Treants merged into one enormous Treant. They feared neither pain nor injury, and could recover with astonishing speed.

Even when facing Xie Wushuang's Way of Soul Devouring, those Treants felt no fear.

Treants possessed Spirituality, and thus naturally possessed divine souls. Their divine souls were comparatively weak, far inferior to those of cultivators, but when they merged together, their divine souls became several times stronger, no weaker than a cultivator's.

Yu Qingyi still had too few Treants, and their grades were too low. They were far inferior to the Wanhua Demon Emperor, so the enormous Treant she created could not compare to a Golden Core cultivator. At most, it could provide some restraint against Xie Wushuang.

But Yu Qingyi also had Kou Ta and Hong Fuxiu beside her. With the three of them joining hands, and Yang Zhengshan sealing off the Great Void, Xie Wushuang could neither win nor flee. He could only be dragged to death by the three of them.

Among them all, Su Mei, the strongest, displayed even more terrifying power. Her art of enchantment was enough to make enemies fall head over heels. Even women found it difficult to free themselves beneath her allure.

Ling Baishuang was the Division Master of the Soul Suppressing Division in the Soul Refining Hall. Her cultivation had reached Golden Core Late Stage, and she was on the verge of entering Golden Core Peak.

Whether in cultivation or combat strength, she surpassed Yue Yao. But the opponent she faced was Su Mei.

Her seductive eyes were like autumn waters, her smile like spring flowers. Gauze wrapped her tender body, like the most exquisite beauty in the world. Every frown and smile seemed to bear a hook. Even Ling Baishuang, deeply versed in the Way of Soul, found it hard to keep herself under control before such soul-snaring seduction.

Su Mei's enchantment was not the allure between man and woman, much less the lure of lust. It was a temptation that drew in the human heart.

Without noticing, one would come to feel affection for her; without realizing it, one would be captured by her and reduced to her Servant.

Mere enchantment was insufficient to describe her ability. Her power was more like the devil's temptation. Beauty was merely the surface; ensnaring souls and stealing spirits was the root of it all.

They had exchanged blows for only several breaths when Ling Baishuang felt herself no longer obeying her own will. Her thoughts, her body, even the Magic Power within her—all slipped beyond her control at that instant. Had her True Spirit not remained, she might have lost herself completely.

She was like a puppet on strings, manipulated and controlled by Su Mei, made to attack her subordinates and companions.

Su Mei simply stood there, a faint smile on her delicate face, her narrow eyes brimming with tender sweetness. Yet the terror in Ling Baishuang's heart could not be compounded any further.

Under Su Mei's control, Ling Baishuang fought Ye Zhongxing. No matter what Ye Zhongxing did, he could not stop Ling Baishuang from slaughtering him.

Ye Zhongxing died at Ling Baishuang's hands, while Xie Wushuang died beneath the joint siege of Kou Ta, Hong Fuxiu, and Yu Qingyi.

But Ghost Exquisite and Qi Heiyun suffered the most. They were Vice Hall Masters of the Soul Refining Hall, both with Golden Core Late Stage cultivation. Among the many Golden Core cultivators, they could be called formidable experts.

But they faced too many opponents: Yue Yao, Su Qingfu, Su Jiangxue, Xuan Zhen, Yunxiao, Lin Xiqiu, and Green Ox—seven people besieging two.

Among them, Yue Yao's strength was no weaker than theirs.

There was no need to say more of the result. In the end, they could only fall unwillingly beneath everyone's siege.

Yang Zhengshan flew over at an unhurried pace. Looking at the fallen Ghost Exquisite, he gave a slight nod.

This time, they had won a resounding victory.

They had lured out the Golden Core cultivators of the Soul Refining Hall and wiped them out in one stroke, perfectly completing the plan he had made earlier.

"Greetings, Venerable!" Having ended their battles, everyone bowed upon seeing Yang Zhengshan.

They had all kept an eye on Yang Zhengshan's battle. Seeing that he had not only blocked Chang Buzai, the Sect Master of the Wuchang Ghost Sect, but seemingly made Chang Buzai suffer a severe loss, their attitude toward Yang Zhengshan became even more respectful. Su Mei, Yue Yao, Su Qingfu, and Su Jiangxue in particular finally understood Yang Zhengshan's true strength.

Yang Zhengshan was quite satisfied with everyone's attitude. Smiling, he said, "Let's go. It is time for us to return as well. I wonder how the battle at the Forward Outpost Base is going."

Afterward, everyone left the Great Void and returned to the real world.

Compared with their battle, the battle at the Forward Outpost Base had been far more difficult.

Over a Million Yin Soldier Blood Puppets, together with more than a hundred Bone Flying Boats, launched a siege against the Forward Outpost Base. Although the terrain limited the scale of the assault, the soldiers defending the Forward Outpost Base still endured tremendous pressure.

Even the Yellow Earth Thick Spirit Array had repeatedly teetered on the brink of collapse. Had Spirit Source Land not prepared a great quantity of Yellow Earth Stones and Spirit Stones in advance, the Yellow Earth Thick Spirit Array would have collapsed long ago.

But now that Yang Zhengshan and the others had returned, the course of the battle naturally changed.

Yang Zhengshan did not even need to act personally. The moment Xuan Zhen, Yunxiao, Kou Ta, Hong Fuxiu, and Yu Qingyi made their move, the tide of battle immediately turned.

The five Golden Core cultivators were like tigers charging into a flock of sheep. Wherever they passed, whether Yin Soldier Blood Puppets or disciples of the Wuchang Ghost Sect, not a single one could resist them. They could only allow the five to slaughter them.

Xuan Zhen in particular recited the Purification Divine Incantation. Any Yin Soldier Blood Puppet that approached him instantly became a dried corpse. The dense Xue Sha Qi within its body vanished in an instant, transforming into pure spiritual energy that either dispersed into heaven and earth or flowed into his body.

Fighting the Wuchang Ghost Sect was like consuming great tonics for Xuan Zhen. Each Yin Soldier Blood Puppet he purified added another fraction to his reserves.

Though that fraction was tiny, so small it could almost be ignored, the sheer numbers were impossible to overlook.

One meant nothing. Ten or a hundred meant nothing either. But tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands—that was truly considerable.

For that reason, Xuan Zhen was the most enthusiastic in fighting the Wuchang Ghost Sect. His disciples were equally eager, because this was an excellent opportunity for them to improve their cultivation.

At the same time, Xuan Zhen was the fastest-improving among them. He had formed his core over twenty years later than Yunxiao, yet his cultivation had already surpassed Yunxiao's by a considerable margin. He was not far from Core Formation Mid Stage.

As the battle gradually neared its end, Su Mei stood behind Yang Zhengshan, looking over the battlefield below as she asked, "What should we do next?"

This time, they had thwarted the Wuchang Ghost Sect's plan to occupy the entire Wanhua Mountain Range and had nearly wiped out its Soul Refining Hall. Next, they might face retaliation from the Wuchang Ghost Sect.

Yang Zhengshan shook his head slightly. "We need do nothing. We will wait here. I want to see whether Chang Buzai dares to come!"

White Jade Capital's foundation was thin; it could not compete with the Wuchang Ghost Sect in a war of attrition. Once they abandoned defense and turned to offense, they would surely be swallowed by endless Yin Soldiers.

Therefore, the best course of action was to do nothing and wait for the Wuchang Ghost Sect to come knocking.

Yet the Wuchang Ghost Sect's response afterward exceeded Yang Zhengshan's expectations. Chang Buzai did not come to retaliate, nor did he send another Yin Soldier Army to besiege the Forward Outpost Base. Instead, he contracted the Yin Soldier Army's defensive lines, abandoned the Central Region of the Wanhua Mountain Range, and returned to the Northern Region they had previously held.

Yang Zhengshan waited for over a month without seeing the Wuchang Ghost Sect. Only then did he send Lin Xiqiu to investigate. The news Lin Xiqiu brought back was that the Wuchang Ghost Sect had retreated to the Northern Region.

Within the Forward Outpost Base.

Yang Zhengshan's heart was filled with doubt. "Strange. Why did the Wuchang Ghost Sect retreat?"

Su Mei and Yue Yao, beside him, were equally perplexed.

In truth, Chang Buzai's retreat to the Northern Region was not unexpected. What Yang Zhengshan and the others did not know was that the Wuchang Ghost Sect's strength had already become exceedingly weak.

When the Wuchang Ghost Sect first attacked the Wanhua Mountain Range, the sect possessed more than thirty Golden Core cultivators and Ghost Kings in total. Now, fewer than fifteen Golden Core cultivators and Ghost Kings remained.

At the beginning, the Wuchang Ghost Sect possessed over a hundred million Yin Soldier Blood Puppets. But after the great battle with the Wanhua Demon Emperor, it had fewer than thirty million left.

Yang Zhengshan and the others only knew that the Wuchang Ghost Sect's Yin Soldier Army had suffered enormous losses. They did not know that its Golden Core cultivators had suffered heavy casualties as well.

Starting with Xing Nan, as many as eight Golden Core cultivators from the Wuchang Ghost Sect had died at White Jade Capital's hands. The Golden Core cultivators of the Soul Refining Hall had practically been swept away in one net.

Even before that, the Wuchang Ghost Sect's Soul Controlling Hall had suffered a devastating blow. At Hidden Sword Mountain, An Wusheng, Yu Yuan, and the others had their Dao bodies and divine souls cleaved apart by a single sword from Heavenly Sword True Monarch. They had yet to recover even now.

Adding in the Golden Core cultivators lost before then, the Wuchang Ghost Sect had lost nearly twenty Golden Core cultivators since it began attacking the Wanhua Mountain Range.

At present, the Wuchang Ghost Sect's remaining strength was roughly limited to the Soul Controlling Hall and Ghost Island. The Soul Controlling Hall had seven Golden Core cultivators, Ghost Island had six Ghost Kings, and there were another Two Or Three Golden Core cultivators who had advanced within the past century.

It could be said that the Wuchang Ghost Sect's strength was now basically on par with White Jade Capital's.

Facing such circumstances, Chang Buzai had no choice but to abandon his plan to occupy the Wanhua Mountain Range and instead contract his defensive lines, waiting for a change in circumstances.

Yang Zhengshan did not know any of this, so he could not act rashly. He simply remained at the Forward Outpost Base.

As the Wuchang Ghost Sect contracted, several forces in the Wanhua Western Regions noticed it, because the Yin Soldier Blood Puppets in the Yunxiao Mountain Range had clearly become far fewer.

Hidden Sword Mountain, Hidden Sword Hall.

Heavenly Sword True Monarch lounged lazily in a spacious chair while Que Lingyu reported, "For some unknown reason, the Wuchang Ghost Sect has withdrawn many Yin Soldier Blood Puppets!"

"Oh! How many have they withdrawn?" Heavenly Sword True Monarch asked casually.

"There were originally three hundred thousand Yin Soldier Blood Puppets east of Cangyu Mountain, but fewer than one hundred thousand remain now!" Que Lingyu said.

After the Wuchang Ghost Sect suffered a crushing defeat beneath Hidden Sword Mountain, it established its defensive line east of Cangyu Mountain and left behind three hundred thousand Yin Soldier Blood Puppets to guard against an attack from Hidden Sword Mountain.

In the Wuchang Ghost Sect's view, there was no need to lock horns with Hidden Sword Mountain. Hidden Sword Mountain merely occupied an isolated corner. Although its Blessed Land possessed a third-rank Spirit Vein, compared to the vast Yunxiao Mountain Range, that little corner was not worth insisting upon.

As for retaliating against Hidden Sword Mountain, that was even more impossible.

Chang Buzai was not a broad-minded man, but neither was he someone willing to risk his life for his subordinates.

After learning that An Wusheng and the others had suffered severe injuries at Hidden Sword Mountain, he not only abandoned An Wusheng and the others, but also gave up targeting Hidden Sword Mountain.

After all, Chang Buzai's goal was the entire Wanhua Mountain Range, not the mere Hidden Sword Mountain.

Heavenly Sword True Monarch rose to his feet, his expression turning much more serious. "They withdrew?"

"Most likely. They did not relocate elsewhere. It seems they withdrew eastward!" Que Lingyu replied.

Heavenly Sword True Monarch considered for a moment. "It seems someone has stopped the Wuchang Ghost Sect!"

Que Lingyu was somewhat puzzled. "Stopped the Wuchang Ghost Sect?"

"Yes. Chang Buzai's goal is very simple: the Wanhua Mountain Range. After the Wanhua Demon Emperor disappeared, it seemed that no one could stop them from occupying the Wanhua Mountain Range!"

"By all rights, they had no need to withdraw the Yin Soldier Army here! Since they have withdrawn it, that means they encountered trouble in the Wanhua Mountain Range!"

"Immediately send people into the Wanhua Mountain Range to find out what happened!"

Heavenly Sword True Monarch ordered.

The Cloud Sparrow Clan excelled most at flight, and their flying speed was extraordinarily fast. Whether Demonic Beasts or Immortal Cultivators of the Same Rank, few could catch up to them. Thus, they were the best scouts, able to venture deep into the Wanhua Mountain Range to investigate the situation.