The Cruelty of the Evil Soul Master

In a hidden mountain hollow on the outskirts of the Sunset Forest, at the entrance of a cave, A dozen figures in black robes stood scattered about.

Beneath their hoods, cruel faces were revealed; short blades hung at their waists, and their cuffs were stained with blood that would never wash away.

Before long, three more black-robed figures emerged from the cave.

Unlike the others, they wore dark red, blood-colored patterns embroidered on their chests that snaked up to their necks, faintly radiating fluctuations of soul power.

The three possessed thick, heavy auras, and their eyes glowed with an unnatural red light—all of them were six-ringed Soul Emperors.

The dozen guards at the entrance were mostly Soul Kings.

Not far away, another dozen Soul Ancestors were carrying the carcasses of soul beasts into the cave.

Most of those soul beasts were cubs—newborn Nether Wolf pups, curled up amidst the piles of corpses, their fur still smelling of the mother beast's milk.

There were also several pregnant mother beasts, their bellies distended, being dragged along roughly.

The air was thick with a pungent, bloody stench.

An aged voice came from beneath a black hood, laced with impatience: "Why are those fellows so slow?"

"Secrecy takes time," another deep voice replied. "This shipment bypassed three towns along the border to avoid the patrols of the Martial Soul Hall."

"Hmph! A month ago, the Black Tiger Mercenary Group was wiped out, and the Martial Soul Hall grew suspicious, forcing us to hide in this godforsaken corner. How comfortable we were in the manor outside Heaven Dou City!"

"Damn it, who exactly is sabotaging the grand plan of our Dark Blood Alliance?"

"The flames that incinerated the Black Tiger Mercenary Group were highly unusual, and the soul power signature was different, yet we haven't found the culprit. The higher-ups have urged us three times; if we can't deliver the goods, both you and I will be tossed into the furnace."

"Enough." The elder in the lead cut off the argument, his gaze shifting toward the mountain path. "Let's get this batch sorted first. The higher-ups want a hundred-person supply of Blood Spirit Pill; this batch makes fifty, which is barely enough. Catch more next time."

"They're here."

A team dressed in armor, acting like a mercenary group, hurried over.

They were escorting a dozen carriages, the large iron cages behind them covered with black cloth, with living things stirring faintly inside.

The convoy reached the cave entrance. A mercenary leader stepped forward and bowed: "Elder Zhao, Elder Hai. The goods have arrived."

"Spare the pleasantries, bring them over."

The black cloth was ripped away violently—

Inside the iron cages were dozens of the elderly, weak, women, and children, all bound with ropes.

Their clothes were tattered, their bodies covered in bruises and whip marks, old and new overlapping, some wounds already festering.

Their eyes were filled with terror and despair.

An old woman shielded her grandson in her arms, trembling uncontrollably.

A young woman cried out as she was dragged from the cage: "Please, spare my child—he's only three years old!"

The mercenaries lashed out with whips, driving these people toward the cave.

A child tripped and was kicked in the waist, letting out a shrill scream as blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

The mercenary grabbed his hair impatiently and dragged him inside like a chick.

The cries and wails gradually vanished into the depths of the earth.

"Are these goods fresh enough?" the black-robed elder squinted.

"Rest assured, Elder Zhao, they were all snatched from border villages in the last two days without alerting the Martial Soul Hall. Thirty-seven of them, plus the ones we had in stock, makes fifty."

"Fifty is barely enough. The spirit of the young is the purest; the medicinal effect is three times that of an adult. The Blood Spirit Dew refined from those two little ones last time—the higher-ups didn't leave us a single drop."

"Accept your fate. Once this batch is processed, we'll switch to three temporary strongholds and move further north."

"Why go to such trouble when this isn't even Heaven Dou City?" one black-robed man muttered, unwilling.

"Shut your mouth!" Elder Zhao barked sharply. "If you draw the attention of the Martial Soul Hall again, neither of us will be able to bear the consequences. The incident with the Black Tiger Mercenary Group hasn't even blown over yet."

The man remained defiant, whispering, "What is there to fear? There's no one in this forest..."

His voice cut off abruptly.

In the bushes at the edge of the clearing, ten figures had appeared out of nowhere—

There was no sound of wind, no sound of footsteps; they appeared like ghosts manifested from thin air.

A silver-haired girl in an ink-wash dress held an archaic longsword, cold as frost, the whisk tassel on the hilt swaying without a breeze.

She was accompanied by nine women in black dresses with enchanting figures, eight of whom wore crimson-gold flame masks.

Behind all nine swayed nine snow-white fox tails, and fluffy fox ears twitched amidst their hair.

All the black-robed men froze in unison.

The one in the lead wore no mask, her beauty as bewitching as a catastrophe.

Though the other eight had half their faces hidden by masks, they possessed the same proud figures, their graceful bodies draped in black and red long dresses.

Any one of them would be enough to drive a man to madness.

"They all have the exact same beast soul?"

"Everyone, stay alert!"

Various spirit rings rose: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black—a six-ringed Spirit Emperor, with the rest being Spirit Kings and Soul Ancestors, their radiance flickering into a sea of light.

However, it was already too late.

"Sisters, shall we see who kills the fastest?" the main body of Yan Lingji parted her red lips.

"Sounds good."

"Hee hee."

Nine figures vanished from their spots simultaneously.

The leading Spirit Emperor's pupils constricted as he released his martial soul—

A three-meter-tall blood-colored giant wolf manifested behind him.

"Sixth Spirit Skill, Black Wolf Roar!"

A black-red sonic wave blasted out in a fan shape, a move that had previously shattered the protective spirit power of Spirit Emperors of the same rank.

But the sonic wave passed through the air, striking nothing at all.

"Such a weak sonic attack," a voice came from behind him.

He turned in horror, only for a streak of pitch-black sword light to bloom before his eyes.

Puff— The Venom longsword pierced through the back of his head and exited through his brow.

His six spirit rings flickered wildly, and the giant wolf phantom dissipated.

The Venom surged in, devouring his memories, spirit power, and life force.

His body withered rapidly, turning into a skin-and-bone corpse before collapsing and shattering.

A six-ringed Spirit Emperor was equivalent to a ten-thousand-year spirit beast, but Jiang Ce had no desire to eat humans; he only drained their blood and life force, converting five percent.

The age of the Venom on the main body of Yan Lingji rose from five thousand five hundred years to six thousand five hundred years.

The other two Spirit Emperors reacted slightly faster.

"Sixth Spirit Skill, Black Blood Turtle Shield!"

"Sixth Spirit Skill, Blood Harvest!"

A turtle shell phantom lit up, and a black scythe glowed with intense blood-red light.

However—the turtle shell was like paper under the Venom longsword; the tip pierced the defense and stabbed into their bodies.

The scythe was severed by black light, and the blade cleaved through their torsos.

Both men were likewise devoured by the Venom, collapsing into withered husks.

In just a few moments, over a dozen black-robed figures—

Including three Spirit Emperors and thirteen Spirit Kings—were all dead.

Several Yan Lingji rushed into the depths of the cave; sounds of slaughter and screams rang out in succession, then abruptly ceased.

Deep within the cave, flames swirled.

Human bones burned in fire pits, the fat sizzling and filling the air with a charred stench.

In the center was a massive blood pit, filled with viscous gore, its surface floating with clots and scraps of flesh.

The blood pit was soaked with the corpses of numerous spirit beasts—bellies sliced open, decapitated cubs, and mother beasts with their eyes gouged out.

Many pregnant mother beasts were nailed to wooden stakes, their bellies slashed open to have their cubs ripped out alive, the mothers still staring with wide, silent, mournful eyes.

The edges of the blood pit were carved with dense, blood-red runes, dissolving the flesh and blood into a crimson mist, Which was absorbed by crystal vessels at the top, condensing into a thick, scarlet liquid—

That was the "Treasure Medicine."

It was refined from the life force of living people, the flesh and blood of spirit beasts, the placentas of pregnant women, and the bone marrow of infants.

Consuming it could forcibly increase one's spirit power, but the price was a drastically shortened lifespan, mental derangement, and becoming a bloodthirsty lunatic.

Several old, weak, women, and children who had been brought in were already dragged to the edge of the pit, stripped of their clothes, covered in runes, and tied to stone pillars.

A young woman struggled desperately, the ropes cutting into her wrists as blood dripped down.

Her three-year-old infant lay on a stone platform opposite, still fast asleep.

Those who were bound huddled together, watching all of this in terror.

Yan Lingji flicked the blood droplets off her sword, her fox tail swaying slightly, the killing intent in her eyes not yet faded: "We shouldn't have killed them so quickly just now."

"A thousand cuts would not have been enough."

Even Xiaomeng, the Sect Leader of the Taoist Heavenly Sect who believed in non-action, Could not help but be moved when faced with such a scene.

To actually use the lives of the old, the weak, women, and children to forcibly refine these Blood Poison Pills.

It was simply insane.

Jiang Ce's voice rang out coldly:

"Clean everything up. Leave no one behind. Burn it all."

Outside the cave, the sun was setting.

Nine black shadows emerged from the cave entrance, with towering flames rising behind them.

The fire swallowed the blood pit; runes, crystal vessels, and human bones burst amidst the flames.

The rescued prisoners were mostly hollow-eyed, unable to speak a word.

Only one old woman, clutching a three-year-old infant, knelt on the ground and kowtowed incessantly.

Yan Lingji remained silent for a moment, gazing toward the direction of Heaven Dou City.

There, the lights were brilliant and the singing and dancing continued in peace; no one knew what had just transpired in the shadows of this forest.

"Great King, that Black Cloud Chamber of Commerce..."

Jiang Ce's voice coldly cut in:

"They have all been dealt with."

Jiang Ce did not consider himself a righteous person.

But he could not bring himself to be this deranged.

These evil Spirit Masters deserved to die!

"Have a few of your clones escort these old, weak, women, and children to a place of safety."

"As for the rest, go to the other branch and wipe them out as well."

"Yes!"

"Master!"