The Baleful Intent Ghost seized Zhu Zihua with one hand and lifted him up. Pain shooting through him, Zhu Zihua hurriedly swung his magical sword and hacked viciously backward.
The Kwai Water Heavenly Yin Sword proved worthy of its quality. It easily severed the old man's hand, allowing Zhu Zihua to break free. He scrambled and rolled down the dirt slope, fleeing back to the other two.
"Dammit! Why didn't you two help?"
Having escaped with his life, the first thing this fellow did was actually hold Xu Yuan and Nan Yun accountable.
Speechless, the two turned their heads away, too lazy to bother with him for the moment. Up on the dirt slope, the vicious Baleful Intent Ghost showed no anger at having one hand cut off. As the remaining white mist repaired its body, it watched the three below with keen interest.
"This ghostly thing actually possesses intelligence."
Seeing the faintly smiling expression on its face, Xu Yuan's heart jolted. He exchanged a glance with Nan Yun beside him, and the two charged in from opposite sides.
Xu Yuan used his bare flesh to clash head-on with the creature's broadsword. Bang, bang, bang—iron-forging sounds rang out. Such a ferocious physique left both Nan Yun and Zhu Zihua below staring in astonishment.
Having suitably displayed his strength, Xu Yuan paid no heed to their shock. While fighting, he surveyed the surroundings, searching for the birthplace of this Baleful Intent Ghost.
Just then, Xu Yuan caught sight of a huge tomb in the distance. No white mist rose from it, but it still looked highly suspicious.
"Fellow Daoist Zhu, could I trouble you to inspect that tomb? I believe this Baleful Intent Ghost's appearance may be connected to it."
"Hmph. That old beast injured my body just now, and I was about to take revenge. Who cares how it was born? Its revival must have a limit. Just beat it until it can't come back to life."
With that, he swallowed a pill, suppressing the poison at his waist and his churning blood and qi, then charged straight in.
The words A child like this is not worth plotting with nearly slipped from Xu Yuan's mouth. He quickly gave way, letting Zhu Zihua and Nan Yun temporarily hold off the Baleful Intent Ghost while he approached the tomb.
This place was likely cleaned regularly. No vines or saplings had grown throughout the graveyard, and even the laid stone bricks bore little moss.
But Xu Yuan had no time to care about that. Dealing with the Baleful Intent Ghost came first. He raised his leg and stomped a stone brick to pieces, revealing a tomb passage.
Glancing back, Xu Yuan saw that Nan Yun and Zhu Zihua should still be able to hold on. He descended the passage and discovered that the space inside was unexpectedly large.
A black wooden coffin stood in the center, while all around it were painted with all manner of bizarre formation patterns.
An indescribable chill seeped from those formation patterns. Though Xu Yuan had no idea what they were for, even a fool could connect them to the Baleful Intent Ghost outside.
He stomped again, crushing the solid ground into a complete mess. The formation patterns scattered, and the chill vanished. Xu Yuan then shoved open the coffin with one palm. Inside, an old man who had died who knew how long ago still had a ruddy complexion, and his appearance was identical to the Baleful Intent Ghost outside.
"As expected."
Xu Yuan removed the magical sword from his back, poured spiritual energy into it, and slashed out. The coffin and the corpse within exploded into fragments in an instant.
A wisp of white mist rose from the remains, then vanished with a puff. At the same time, an enraged roar suddenly came from outside, followed by heavy footsteps rushing this way.
Unsure of what had happened, Xu Yuan hurried out of the tomb passage. He saw the Baleful Intent Ghost sprinting toward him with its broadsword in hand, followed by Zhu Zihua and Nan Yun.
"Fellow Daoist Xu, be careful! This Baleful Intent Ghost seems to have gone mad."
Nan Yun called out anxiously. The next moment, the Baleful Intent Ghost had already reached Xu Yuan, who had just emerged from the tomb passage.
"Idiot! What are you standing there for? Get out of the way!"
Zhu Zihua unexpectedly showed a rare shred of humanity. Still, who knew whether he truly cared for his companion or merely feared losing a helper later? By then, the Baleful Intent Ghost's broadsword had already come crashing down.
The wind wailed and yin energy billowed. Beneath this strike, even the moonlight seemed to be torn apart. If it truly landed, even the spiritual barrier of a fourth-layer Qi Refining cultivator would be ripped open in an instant, followed by being smashed into a pulp.
Yet the next moment.
Bang!
With a dull thud, Xu Yuan remained standing where he was, still holding the pose of a punch. Meanwhile, the Baleful Intent Ghost attacking him had its chest caved in and was sent flying backward.
Red and white energies coiled around his fist. Unlike the combination of spiritual energy and blood qi he had used against ordinary yin ghosts earlier, he had now activated the Bright Thunder Body-Tempering Art. What filled his hand was the blood spiritual energy of body tempering.
A high-level Spirit-Martial Unity, the fusion of blood spiritual energy and spiritual energy, further bolstered by the Martial Dao Sacred Embryo—Xu Yuan's punch sent the Baleful Intent Ghost flying, his entire body erupting with momentum. He looked nothing like someone in the early stages of Qi Refining. Anyone would believe he was a veteran mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator.
"A mere yin creature dares make noise before this Daoist master?"
His handsome face was filled with savage ferocity. As Xu Yuan watched the Baleful Intent Ghost raise its blade and charge at him again, he stirred his blood qi and spiritual veins and lunged forward as well.
His fist met the broadsword, and the blade forged from yin energy instantly chipped apart. Seeing the creature try to open its mouth and bite him, Xu Yuan drove a heart-piercing elbow straight into it.
The Baleful Intent Ghost tried to close its mouth, only to find that beneath its teeth was not flesh and blood, but some kind of divine weapon forged from mysterious iron.
"Is it tasty?"
With a savage grin, Xu Yuan suddenly exerted force, driving his elbow directly into its throat. He not only shattered the Baleful Intent Ghost's fine teeth, but also tore apart its entire face.
Once the white mist had completely dissipated, the ghostly creature seemed to finally feel pain. It let out a mournful cry, blood tears streaming from the corners of its eyes, yet it still raised its blade to slash at Xu Yuan again.
But the instant it swung its blade, Xu Yuan's free right hand met it. With a bang, he knocked the yin blade aside, then shot out his hand and clenched five fingers around it, crushing it into scrap metal.
At this point, Nan Yun and Zhu Zihua beside him had long since gone blank-eyed. Who could have imagined that Xu Yuan, who had seemed so mild and unhurried all along, as if he had come merely to pick up some good deeds, had hidden such terrifying strength?
Without the white mist, the two of them could perhaps defeat this yin ghost together. But crushing it as Xu Yuan did, beating it one-sidedly like a father beating his son, was something they could not even dream of.
In just that short while, Xu Yuan had already dismantled most of the Baleful Intent Ghost's parts. He knew such ghostly things were extremely difficult to subdue, and he possessed no similar methods. He simply stopped holding back, tore off its right arm, then punched straight into its wide-open chest.
The two present seemed to hear some enormous horn blaring in their ears. Then, with a thunderous boom, the Baleful Intent Ghost flew into the air and exploded midair.
A Baleful Intent Ghost that ordinary fourth-layer Qi Refining cultivators found exceedingly difficult to deal with had been beaten apart by Xu Yuan with sheer force.
Turning back, Xu Yuan looked at Nan Yun and Zhu Zihua, a smile curling at his lips. "Fellow Daoists, it seems the chief merit should belong to me."
"Naturally. Naturally."
Nan Yun nodded repeatedly. Zhu Zihua had wanted to put on the same contemptuous look as before, but recalling Xu Yuan's demon-like display, he could only reluctantly grunt, "Why didn't that Baleful Intent Ghost come at me instead?"
Ignoring Zhu Zihua's empty words, Xu Yuan turned sideways to clear the way and gestured for them to proceed. "Fellow Daoists, there seem to be further discoveries inside."
Before you continue