Ghosts

Chapter 34: Ghosts

Although Chen Lin had learned a little about the Demon Prison from the jade slip, actually entering its gateway still filled him with an eerie feeling. He found it hard to believe that the narrow tunnel would open onto another world.

This world had no clouds and no daylight, only endless darkness. It was as if an enormous black cloth hung over the sky, with only faint, flickering starlight to barely illuminate the land.

The bitter wind howled past, carrying faint, mournful cries of ghosts.

Chen Lin looked up at the faintly twinkling stars, yet a strange feeling lingered in his heart.

"Does something about this place feel strange to you, Brother Chen?" Situ Kong asked with a light laugh, apparently noticing the odd look in Chen Lin's eyes.

Chen Lin's gaze flickered, and he slowly nodded. "That's right. This world feels real... but I can't help feeling something is missing."

"Exactly. This world was created and evolved within the body of an ancient, mighty ghost cultivator. Its laws of heaven and earth and the power of its realm are incomplete, which gives people a sense of unreality. And where we are now is, in fact, inside that ancient mighty being."

"Inside his body?" Chen Lin was startled. He shook his head, looking as though he couldn't believe it. "This world is absurdly vast. How could one person's body possibly be so large?"

Situ Kong smiled. "Heh, Brother Chen doesn't know? Though this world is vast, it's actually just like the Storage Bag at our waists, opened up through an against-heavenly divine ability."

Creating and opening up a world inside one's body—such a feat was simply shocking and beyond imagination!

A trace of astonishment appeared on Chen Lin's face.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, you must have only just entered the cultivation world, haven't you? No wonder you find it hard to believe. When I first entered the Demon Prison and learned this, I was just as astonished as you."

The female cultivator named Han Shuitong smiled gently and continued, "Opening up a world inside one's body and evolving its laws may be unimaginable, but according to legend, every True Immortal in the Celestial Realm possesses such abilities. Of course, that's far beyond anything we can imagine at our current level."

"The Celestial Realm? True Immortals?" Chen Lin's heart stirred. "Does that mean there's a Celestial Realm above this world?"

"Indeed."

As Situ Kong led everyone onward, he said to Chen Lin, "You've only just come into contact with the cultivation world, so I'm afraid you don't know much about it. According to the records of the cultivation world, at the beginning of time, countless years ago, heaven and earth were in their primordial state, a chaotic expanse. There were no such things as worlds or living beings. Later, heaven and earth split apart, all things came into being, spiritual energy coalesced, and life sprang forth everywhere..."

"In ancient times, heaven and earth bestowed the power of laws, dividing chaos into the Nine Realms, the Thirty-Three Heavens, three thousand great worlds, ten million minor worlds, and various special dimensional worlds. The Nine Realms stood supreme and were known as the Nine Heavens Immortal Spirit Realm. Next came the Thirty-Three Heavens, followed by the three thousand great worlds and ten million minor worlds."

"The world we inhabit is the great world known as the Wild Continent, one of the three thousand great worlds." A trace of longing appeared in Situ Kong's eyes as he sighed. "The ultimate goal of us cultivators is to endure countless trials, ascend to the Nine Heavens Immortal Spirit Realm or the Thirty-Three Heavens, and seek the chance to live forever."

This was the first time Chen Lin had heard any of this, and he was naturally deeply shocked.

"Ascend to the Celestial Realm? Hmph. No one from our world has ascended there for thousands of years. You'd better give up on such wild fantasies as soon as possible. Right now, we should focus on completing our mission instead of talking about such irrelevant things." Walking behind the three of them, Liu Han spoke with a trace of impatience. "Fellow Daoist Situ, how much farther is the spirit medicine's location?"

"Fellow Daoist Liu is right. Thinking about such things now really is wishful thinking. Let's complete the task at hand first."

Situ Kong nodded and took out a jade slip. He closed his eyes to scan it, then pointed in a direction and said solemnly, "According to the information gathered by the sect's disciples, the spirit medicine mentioned in the mission grows to the northwest, less than two hundred li from here. But that place is already close to the center of the Demon Prison, so everyone must be careful. If we're unlucky enough to run into a ghost at the Sea Opening Realm, we may not make it out alive."

At Situ Kong's words, everyone's expressions grew slightly grave.

"Hmph. If we're unlucky enough to run into a ghost at the Sea Opening Realm, then everyone will have to flee on their own. Don't expect me to stay behind and die with you."

Liu Han sneered and glanced at Chen Lin, speaking without the slightest courtesy.

Chen Lin frowned slightly, knowing Liu Han's words were aimed at him. But he returned a cold smile and said nothing.

"When our lives are at stake, what Fellow Daoist Liu says is only natural." Situ Kong furrowed his brow, but still spoke with a smile. "Actually, there's no need to worry too much. Ghosts at the Sea Opening Realm usually cultivate deep in the Demon Prison's center, where the yin energy is dense. They rarely venture out."

At his words, Chen Lin finally felt somewhat reassured.

For some reason, perhaps because of Advanced Perception, he had felt watched ever since entering the Demon Prison. The feeling made him deeply uncomfortable and uneasy.

Maybe he was just overthinking it.

Chen Lin couldn't tell where his unease came from, but seeing that none of the others seemed to notice anything, he wondered if he really was imagining it.

The bitter wind howled, and black mist swept across the sky as if trying to blow the souls from their bodies. The Demon Prison was full of bare mountains and hills, with ghostly green corpse-fire flickering everywhere. The place was terrifying and gloomy.

To conserve their spiritual energy—or perhaps out of consideration for Chen Lin's cultivation—the group did not fly. Instead, they trudged onward in silence.

Although they were being careful, they still inevitably encountered several waves of ghost attacks along the way.

Whoosh!

Chen Lin's five fingers curled like hooks, clamped onto the head of a Yin Corpse in the early Xiantian stage, and squeezed hard without changing expression.

Squish!

The Yin Corpse's head burst apart. Thick, pitch-black blood sprayed out, but vanished as soon as it touched Chen Lin's skin. Then a wisp of black gas, visible only to Chen Lin, swiftly rose from the corpse and burrowed into his body.

It was Death Energy, of course.

Chen Lin hadn't expected ghosts to give him Death Energy points—more, even, than the deaths of living beings! The discovery delighted him.

He circulated the Soul-Devouring Soul-Refining Scripture, and a strand of emerald-green soul flame rose from the Yin Corpse's shattered head, transformed into a stream of pure power, and shot into Chen Lin's forehead.

"Hm?"

While fighting other ghosts, the others had naturally caught sight of Chen Lin's methods during a lull in the battle. Surprise showed in their eyes.

"Looks like Brother Chen has also cultivated a ghost-path immortal art. He can actually condense the remnants of a ghost's soul." Situ Kong lashed out with a Dharma Artifact resembling a Jointed Whip, smashing a ferocious, beastlike ghost into several pieces. Only then did he turn to Chen Lin, surprise in his gaze.

"Indeed." A flicker of surprise crossed Han Shuitong's eyes. She smiled at Chen Lin, her expression laden with meaning. "Ordinarily, ghost-path immortal arts like this are passed down only among direct disciples. They're already beyond the realm of ordinary immortal arts. It seems Fellow Daoist Chen has had quite a fortuitous encounter."

"Hmph! It's nothing but a crooked little trick." Liu Han crushed the throat of a pallid skeleton in front of him with his five fingers. His pale face wore a cold expression as he glanced at Chen Lin in disdain.

"Heh, Fellow Daoist Liu is right. It's only a crooked little trick, without much power. Naturally, it can't compare with your methods. We'll probably run into more ghosts along the way, so we'll have to rely on your divine abilities, Fellow Daoist Liu." Chen Lin chuckled, glossing over the matter. He had no intention of arguing with Liu Han.

A smug look flashed through Liu Han's eyes. Seemingly eager to show off his abilities, he quickly killed the ghost before him, then glanced at Chen Lin and nodded with a detached air. "Hmph. Good that you know it."

Situ Kong paused in surprise. For some reason, ever since they started fighting the ghosts, Chen Lin seemed to have forgotten his earlier conflict with Liu Han. His attitude toward Liu Han had done a complete turnabout, and he even complimented him from time to time.

Could Chen Lin fear Liu Han's cultivation and worry that he would hold a grudge and take revenge?

Han Shuitong thought the same as Situ Kong. Even Liu Han himself seemed to believe it.

After all, offending a Peak Xiantian cultivator wasn't wise. Everyone thought Chen Lin was being sensible, but they couldn't help looking at him with a trace of disdain. Their attitude toward him grew much colder.

Chen Lin naturally noticed the change in their attitude. His expression remained unchanged, but inwardly he sneered. Heh, Liu Han is arrogant and conceited. A few casual compliments, and he's already floating in the clouds, killing ghosts as if he were chopping melons and vegetables.

Go on, kill them. The more ghosts you kill, the easier it is for me. Let those Death Energy points come on even stronger!