Evil Spirits

After stepping off the flying boat, what greeted the eye was a sprawling encampment stretching for several miles.

The moment he entered the camp, Yin Qi surged upward. Chu Zheng's entire aura tightened abruptly, and Spiritual Light flickered in his eyes as he activated the Qi Observation Method.

The surrounding world shifted in his vision. Beneath his feet, a dense mass of Yin Qi was visible to the naked eye, nearly liquefied.

Chu Zheng's expression grew somewhat grave. With such thick Yin Qi, the number of dead in this region likely numbered no less than a million.

Where Yin Qi gathers, there must be a great tomb. But the Yin Qi here could no longer be called a tomb—it was a burial pit.

This place was hard for women to endure for long. Men, relying on their Yang Qi, could hold out for a time, but prolonged exposure would also affect their lifespan.

For Qi Cultivators, however, this place could be considered a rare blessed land. With a Supreme Yang Treasure to balance the Yin Qi, cultivation speed here would rival that of a cave heaven or blessed land.

Chu Zheng had no Supreme Yang Treasure, but he happened to have a Yang-attribute magic tool on him.

Phoenix Blood was inherently a substance of supreme Yang. The Spirit Wood nourished by it absorbed the Great Sun Essence, further amplifying its Yang nature, making its attribute extremely Yang.

But before this sword was fully repaired, Chu Zheng still needed to bask in the sun more to avoid a Yin-Yang Imbalance.

Compared to the environment, what troubled Chu Zheng more was that such a gathering of Yin Qi, if piled high with bones, would likely breed many evil entities.

Chu Zheng looked around for a while, then followed the crowd toward Fu Quanliang's position.

There were only a little over four hundred people in total, and the assignments were quickly completed. Chu Zheng smoothly ended up under Fu Quanliang's command.

Fu Quanliang's cultivation wasn't particularly strong, and the number of people assigned to him was small—fewer than twenty in total.

Once the miscellaneous laborers were mostly settled, a few more people descended from the flying boat.

The middle-aged man they had seen earlier was among them. Behind him followed several young men and women, all wearing matching robes of blue and white, with three Twin Green Lotuses embroidered on their chests.

Chu Zheng stood beside Fu Quanliang and sent a voice transmission: "Who's the strongest one there?"

"Inner Sect Elder, Han Yuliang. Mid-grade Immortal Bone, peak Soul Condensation, not far from Divine Infant. He's very likely the next generation's leader of the Han Family and has an excellent reputation within the sect."

Fu Quanliang glanced over and recited the details like a well-worn list:

"The ones following him are all core members of the Han Family's younger generation. Especially the youngest one, Han Mingdan. Fifteen years old, early Spiritual Spring Realm, Mid-grade Immortal Bone, and she also possesses a special spiritual physique. Boundless potential. She likes to wear green skirts, loves Yellow Origin Fruit, Bamboo Shoot Cake..."

"Stop."

Chu Zheng cut off his endless chatter: "If you put this much effort into cultivation, you wouldn't be stuck at your current level."

Chu Zheng had little interest in Han Mingdan. If they were to talk about her long-deceased Grand Ancestor from thousands of years ago—what color clothes she was buried in, what Grave Goods she had—he might be more intrigued.

"Relying on step-by-step cultivation, I'll never reach Soul Condensation in this lifetime."

Fu Quanliang was completely unmoved by Chu Zheng's assessment and held firm to his own view: "There are ten thousand paths on the great road of cultivation, and shortcuts are the fastest."

At that point, Fu Quanliang suddenly shifted the topic and sent a voice transmission: "By the way, this Han Mingdan used to be on good terms with Song Lingqing. But... in the time I've been back at the sect, I haven't heard of them interacting."

Hearing this, Chu Zheng lowered his gaze and remained silent. Even within Immortal Sects, there was no shortage of cold and warmth in human relationships.

Not far away, Han Mingdan, who had just stepped off the flying boat, seemed to sense something and frowned slightly:

"Fourth Uncle, why does this place feel so strange? The moment I arrived, I felt uncomfortable all over."

Han Yuliang casually explained, "The Sha Qi here is too heavy. Staying long is detrimental to cultivation. You have a Spiritually Connected Profound Body, so you're extremely sensitive to changes in Spiritual Energy. Discomfort is inevitable."

"Then why did you bring us here?" Han Mingdan asked, puzzled.

"We came to see if we could draw out an Ancient Spirit Weapon."

Han Yuliang's expression turned slightly serious: "From the traces of slaughter, a Great Power above Divine Infant once fell here. There's a high probability that a Spirit Treasure remains."

"When a Spirit Treasure loses its master, it usually chooses to seal its edge and hide, waiting for a fated person. If any of you have that fortune and can attract a Spirit Treasure to choose its master, your path ahead will be smoother."

Spirit Treasure...

Hearing that word, excitement overflowed on the faces of Han Mingdan and the others.

A Spirit Treasure had already developed its own Spiritual Intelligence, almost like an Alien Lifeform. Even if damaged, it could slowly repair itself by absorbing Spiritual Energy. Its value far exceeded that of a Top-grade Divine Weapon.

The entire Phantom Spirit Sect, from top to bottom, only had a handful of Spirit Treasures. They were usually kept as part of the Sect Foundation and couldn't be used at all. They had never even seen one.

"Don't get too excited. This place is ominous. We can't go too deep. Just make a small attempt."

Seeing their elated expressions, Han Yuliang poured cold water on them:

"It's naturally a good thing if a Spirit Treasure chooses a master, but don't force it. On the path of cultivation, you still rely on yourself. A Spirit Treasure is just an external aid."

"Got it, Fourth Uncle. Hurry up and take us inside to have a look." Han Mingdan was already eager to try.

Han Yuliang said no more and took the lead toward the mine tunnel. The rest of the Han Family followed closely behind.

"Here." Fu Quanliang tossed a pickaxe over.

"You really think I came here to dig ore?" Chu Zheng sent a voice transmission, raising an eyebrow but not reaching for it.

Fu Quanliang was speechless: "How am I supposed to know why you came? You're just asking for trouble."

He was already somewhat used to Chu Zheng's eccentricities and couldn't be bothered to waste energy trying to figure out the purpose behind his actions.

Guessing was pointless anyway; he'd rather Chu Zheng just calm down and stop causing trouble.

Chu Zheng glanced at Han Yuliang and the others not far away, a flicker of movement in his eyes. "They're heading to that Ancient Battlefield."

Fu Quanliang quickly noticed the group's movements as well, barely hiding his surprise. "Could there really be some unspeakable secret hidden in this place?"

Generally speaking, such Ancient Battlefields had been picked clean by those who came before. Even if anything remained, over the long years, the spiritual energy should have mostly dissipated, leaving at most some scrap metal.

Chu Zheng bent down and picked up the iron pickaxe, sending a voice transmission. "When can we enter the mine tunnel?"

"Wait a moment."

Fu Quanliang, now curious as well, turned to go gather information.

Woo—

A short while later, before Fu Quanliang could return, a sharp screech suddenly erupted from the distant Mine Tunnel—cold, savage, sending a faint chill through one's limbs.

"Evil Creature!"

Right after the screech came a furious roar, followed by a tremor that shook the earth.

Once the violent shaking subsided, a cloud of Black Mist surged out from the Mine Tunnel, spreading across the ground like thick ink. Under the blazing noon sun, a chilling wind suddenly swept through, darkening the sky and dimming the earth, a bone-piercing cold settling in.