The Profound Yin Mine lay in the barren mountains thirty miles north of the Provincial City. It had once been an important silver mine of the previous dynasty, but after frequent mining disasters and rumors of hauntings, it had been abandoned for many years.
At this moment, evil energy soared from the depths of the mine, staining half the night sky an ominous dark red.
Uncle Nine and Mo Yuan pushed their movement techniques to the limit and reached the outskirts of the mine in less than the time it took to burn an incense stick. Black mist swirled around the mine entrance, and faint runes flickered within it. Clearly, an extremely powerful defensive formation had been set up there.
Four Black Robe Cultists guarded the entrance, all of them at least in the middle stage of Qi Refinement.
"An all-out assault won't be easy. We need to end this quickly." Uncle Nine murmured, forming a hand seal. His figure gradually blurred, as though merging into the shadows of the night. It was the Shadow Stealth Technique, something only Foundation Establishment cultivators could use. Like a ghost, he silently approached the entrance.
Mo Yuan took a deep breath and gripped the Thunder Dragon Evil-Slaying Spear tightly. Spiritual power and Dragon Essence circulated quietly within him. Though he could not use an escape technique, his Ghost Shadow Footwork had already reached perfection. Combined with his advanced Aura Concealment Technique, he moved like a wisp of smoke slipping through the air.
Just as Uncle Nine, like an invisible gust of wind, instantly sealed the acupoints of two cultists guarding the entrance, Mo Yuan moved as well! His body shot forward, and the Thunder Dragon Evil-Slaying Spear became a streak of purple lightning as it stabbed toward the other two cultists!
"Enemy attack!" The two cultists reacted swiftly. One raised his blade to block, while the other rapidly retreated. At the same time, he crushed the warning jade talisman in his hand.
"Screech!" The Thunder Dragon Evil-Slaying Spear was incomparably sharp, and the lightning power within it was the bane of evil arts. The black-robed man who tried to block was shredded together with his blade by the spear's radiance! Though the other man retreated several yards, a streak of golden light casually flicked out by Uncle Nine struck the back of his heart, sending him sprawling to the ground.
However, the warning had already been sent! Roars and hurried footsteps immediately echoed from the depths of the mine, while several powerful auras rapidly closed in!
"Go!" Uncle Nine did not hesitate. With a sweep of his sleeve, a gentle force wrapped around Mo Yuan, and the two of them shot into the mine like arrows leaving the bowstring.
At the same time, Uncle Nine flicked both hands repeatedly. Several Evil-Slaying Talismans flew out like golden butterflies, accurately attaching themselves to the formation nodes at the entrance. They temporarily disrupted the formation's operation and slowed the pursuers.
The inside of the mine was deep and winding, with countless branching paths. Yin winds howled through the tunnels, and the evil energy was so dense it had nearly become tangible. The air was filled with the stench of blood and rot.
Countless twisted, bizarre runes were carved into the tunnel walls, constantly drawing Yin fiend energy from the earth veins and funneling it deeper inside.
The two rushed in the direction where the evil energy was most concentrated. Along the way, they encountered several groups of cultists trying to stop them, but Uncle Nine swiftly dealt with them through thunderous means.
The strength of a Foundation Establishment cultivator was fully displayed. Ordinary Qi Refinement evil cultivators were like chickens and dogs before him.
The deeper they went, the greater the pressure became. Corpses drained dry of blood essence began appearing along both sides of the passage, their bodies withered and emaciated. They were clearly unfortunate people used as sacrifices.
Resentful energy and fiendish energy intertwined, forming invisible resistance that tried to erode their minds. Mo Yuan had no choice but to activate the Soul Cleansing Banner, releasing a clear radiance to shield himself. Only then did he feel somewhat better.
Suddenly, the passage opened up before them, revealing a massive underground cavern. At the center of the cavern was a blood pool more than a hundred feet across. Thick blood churned and boiled within it, while countless pained, twisted faces rose and sank amid mournful wails.
Above the blood pool floated the phantom of a huge black banner. It was the embryonic form of the Ten Thousand Souls Banner! At that moment, the banner phantom was madly absorbing the Yin fiend energy and soul power gathered from the blood pool and the runes on the surrounding rock walls. Its aura rose without cease, already at the peak of a high-grade evil artifact and advancing toward the supreme grade!
Eight black-robed elders sat cross-legged around the blood pool. All were at the late stage of Qi Refinement or even the great completion stage, jointly presiding over the formation.
And atop a towering rock directly above the blood pool stood the Holy Maiden in her black veil! She held a pitch-black bone urn in her hands and chanted under her breath, guiding massive amounts of energy into the Ten Thousand Souls Banner's phantom.
Even more chillingly, three Golden Armored Corpses stood in the shadowed corners of the cavern. Clad in heavy armor, they emitted fluctuations no weaker than those of early Foundation Establishment cultivators! They were clearly one of the Black Fiend Sect's trump cards.
Mo Yuan and Uncle Nine's arrival immediately drew everyone's attention.
"Lin Fengjiao! And you little bastard! You dare barge into the sacred grounds of my holy sect!" Killing intent burst from the Holy Maiden's eyes. She had not expected them to arrive so quickly.
"Demoness, you refined such a heaven-defying evil artifact. Today will be your death day!" Uncle Nine's voice boomed like thunder as the pressure of a Foundation Establishment cultivator erupted without restraint, crashing down upon them like a mountain in an attempt to disrupt the formation.
The auras of the eight elders presiding over the formation immediately stagnated, and the Ten Thousand Souls Banner phantom's rate of condensation visibly slowed.
"Hmph! So what if you're at Foundation Establishment? Anyone who ruins my holy sect's grand plan must die! Kill them!" the Holy Maiden ordered sharply.
The red light in the three Golden Armored Corpses' eyes flared as they let out low growls and charged at Uncle Nine like three small mountains! They possessed immense strength, were impervious to blades and spears, and feared no death. They were extremely troublesome opponents.
At the same time, the Holy Maiden personally activated the bone urn. A concentrated black beam, nearly solid in form, shot toward Mo Yuan! The beam contained a deadly poison and curse that corroded the soul!
"Mo Yuan, be careful!" Uncle Nine warned, already entangled by the three Golden Armored Corpses. His Peach Wood Sword flew from its sheath, its blade blazing with golden light. He unleashed exquisite Maoshan sword techniques against the three corpses. Sword energy crisscrossed the cavern and corpse roars rang out continuously, but neither side could gain the upper hand.
Facing the Holy Maiden's enraged strike, Mo Yuan felt tremendous pressure.
He did not dare be careless. He fully activated the Thunder Dragon Evil-Slaying Spear, and a phantom thunder dragon roared around the spear shaft as he fiercely thrust out Thunder Dragon Emerges from the Abyss!
"Boom!"
Purple-black lightning collided viciously with the cursed beam, causing energy to explode outward as the cavern shook violently. Mo Yuan felt a sinister, ice-cold force spreading up his arm. His blood and qi churned, and he staggered back several steps before steadying himself. Even the lightning radiance on the spear dimmed somewhat.
The Holy Maiden's strength far surpassed that of the Red Robe Elder. She had likely already stepped halfway into Foundation Establishment!
"You have some skill, but it's still not enough!" the Holy Maiden sneered. The bone urn shook again, and several more streams of black energy shot toward him like venomous snakes.
Mo Yuan knew that a direct clash would not benefit him, so he immediately changed tactics. Using Ghost Shadow Footwork, he moved rapidly through the cavern, dodging attacks while continuously hurling Evil-Breaking Talismans and Fire Cloud Talismans at the formation nodes around the blood pool and at the eight elders!
"Annoying fly!" Seeing this, the Holy Maiden had to split her attention between controlling the bone urn to intercept the talismans and maintaining the refinement of the Ten Thousand Souls Banner. For a moment, Mo Yuan's harassment tactics actually held her back.
Mo Yuan seized the opportunity. His gaze locked onto an elder whose aura had become unstable from the formation's backlash, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes!
"Now!"
Dragon Essence erupted within him, pushing his speed to the limit. Man and spear became one as the Thunder Dragon Evil-Slaying Spear transformed into an incomparably condensed bolt of purple lightning, stabbing straight toward the elder's back with lightning speed!
This strike was fast! Precise! Ruthless! It contained all of Mo Yuan's cultivation and killing intent!
"Pfft!"
The elder had no time to react. His protective fiendish energy was like paper, and the lightning spear radiance instantly pierced through his heart! He looked down at the bloody hole in his chest in disbelief before his body crashed to the ground, dead.
The Eight Fiends Soul Refining Formation instantly lost one corner! The Ten Thousand Souls Banner phantom shook violently, and its condensation process was nearly interrupted!
"You brat! You're courting death!" Seeing this, the Holy Maiden flew into a complete rage. Abandoning her ranged attacks, she pounced toward Mo Yuan like a ghost. Her fingers curled into claws, her nails instantly turning black, long, and sharp as she clawed toward the top of his head with a foul wind.
She intended to use her absolute strength to tear apart this fellow who had repeatedly ruined her plans!
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