Wait for Me, I'll Come Find You—Make Sure You Wait for Me

The setting sun hung low over the treetops, gilding Willow Family Village's earthen walls with a warm glow.

After bidding the villagers farewell, Xu Jin and Wang Lei led their two blue-maned horses toward the village entrance.

As they walked, Wang Lei muttered on and on.

"Once we're back, we'll submit the case-closing report for the Night Charm first, then file a special report on the damaged seal."

"By the Bureau's rules, uncovering an additional hidden danger raises the mission rating by at least one tier, and we can get thirty percent more contribution points."

"You earned the chief merit on this trip, Brother Xu. The Hundred-Household Commander might even summon you when we get back."

Xu Jin gave a slight nod.

Just then, a dull boom suddenly came from the direction of the mass graveyard.

Right after that, black Sha Qi shot into the sky, mingled with the faint, mournful wail of military bugles.

The air, warm just moments ago, instantly turned cold. The villagers who had come to see them off cried out and staggered back one after another, all color draining from their faces.

Xu Jin came to an abrupt halt. His Yin-Soul Eye activated on its own, and in his vision, yin qi from the direction of the mass graveyard churned and spread wildly.

The most central aura was vast and vicious, carrying the Baleful Intent of an iron-blooded army, completely unlike the scattered remnant souls of ghost soldiers.

"The seal has collapsed." Xu Jin's voice trembled with irrepressible excitement. "That ghost general used the Sha Qi to break through. It's reached the Spirit Monster Realm."

Wang Lei's expression changed drastically. He looked toward the hill, his face turning pale. "The Spirit... Spirit Monster Realm? How is that possible? The records said it had been sealed for three hundred years and was already badly weakened!"

"Forget all that for now." Xu Jin made his decision at once. "You stay at the village entrance and guard the road into the village. Don't let any scattered ghost soldiers rush in and hurt people. I'll be back in no time."

Before his words had even faded, the flying sword beneath his feet hummed as it flew from its sheath. Scarlet-gold sword light lifted him into the air, turning into a streak of light that shot straight toward the depths of the mass graveyard.

Wang Lei stood where he was, staring at the golden light tearing through the sky. "Fuck, Brother Xu became an immortal."

When Xu Jin landed, he saw the ghost soldier general standing atop a broken stele.

It wore solid black Sha Qi armor and gripped a long saber. Behind it stood more than a dozen remnant ghost soldier souls armed with spears and halberds, their military Baleful Intent twisted into one, savage and oppressive.

"A mere brat dares to ruin this general's plans." The ghost general's voice was hoarse, ringing with the clash of metal.

"This general has only just broken through and is in need of living men to sacrifice beneath my banner. Since you delivered yourself to me, I'll use your yang qi as the first congratulatory gift for rebuilding my ghost army!"

The instant its words fell, the dozen ghost soldiers behind it howled and charged. Spears and halberds condensed from military Baleful Intent carried bone-piercing cold as they stabbed at Xu Jin's vital points.

In its eyes, a mere junior of the Tongyi Realm could be killed with the lift of a finger.

Once it slaughtered this man, it would lead its ghost soldiers into Willow Family Village, massacre the village as a living sacrifice, and raise its cultivation another level.

Xu Jin's eyes gleamed. These were all experience packs. With a flick of his fingers, the scarlet-gold flying sword swept out.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The ghost soldiers charging in front collided with the flying sword and were instantly burned away by yang fire, vanishing into smoke.

In the blink of an eye, the dozen ghost soldiers had been wiped out, turning into wisps of green smoke that scattered through the air.

The ghost general's pupils shrank sharply, shocked and enraged.

"You're courting death!"

Waving its long saber, it charged personally, gathering all the military Baleful Intent around its body onto the blade and slashing out a black Sha Qi saber beam several yards long.

Xu Jin rode his sword into the air and split off another flying sword. The new sword, trailing molten-gold yang fire, slammed straight into the saber beam.

Boom—

Golden and black shockwaves exploded outward, blasting shattered stones from the entrance of the underground cavern across the ground.

The black Sha Qi saber beam was pierced through in an instant. The scarlet-gold sword light did not slow, shooting straight at the ghost general.

The ghost general was scared out of its wits and turned to flee deeper into the cavern.

But no matter how fast it was, it could not outrun the flying sword.

Sshk—

The sword light pierced its soul core with perfect precision.

Blazing pure yang fire spread from the soul core, engulfing its entire ghostly body in a sea of golden flames.

"No—!"

The ghost general let out a shrill howl. In just a few breaths, it was burned completely clean, soul core and all.

Almost at the same time, the Compendium of Divine Powers unfolded in his mind:

[Slain: Spirit Monster-grade ghost soldier general soul]

[Obtained: Demon Fragment ×15]

[Divine Power "Yin-Soul Eye" upgraded from low-grade to mid-grade]

[New abilities: Accurately determine the grade of yin souls; see through basic yin-Sha Qi illusion arrays]

[Constitution greatly enhanced]

Xu Jin closed his eyes and felt the changes for a moment. When he opened them again, the outlines of yin qi in his vision had become much clearer. He could even distinguish the differing strengths of the residual Sha Qi deep within the cavern.

The mid-grade Yin-Soul Eye had a detection range several times greater than before, and its precision was worlds apart.

He nodded to himself.

This haul was worth it.

He stepped deeper into the underground cavern, intending to inspect the exact condition of the damaged seal.

The moment he reached the seal, his gaze fell upon the surrounding stone walls.

Crooked black patterns had been carved into the walls, arranged along the flow of the earth veins. The edges of the patterns still glimmered with fresh yin-Sha Qi, clearly carved within the past half month.

The center of the patterns pointed directly at the crack in the seal, continuously gathering the yin-Sha Qi from deep within the earth veins and pouring it into the fissure.

A Baleful Qi Gathering Array.

No wonder what had merely been a small crack from years of neglect had collapsed so quickly.

No wonder the ghost general, crippled for three hundred years, had broken through to the Spirit Monster Realm in barely half a month.

So someone had secretly set up an array to nurture souls, turning this ancient battlefield burial ground into a hotbed for raising ghost soldiers.

The Night Charm had likely been drawn here and awakened its intelligence because of this array as well.

Just as he focused on examining the array patterns, a sudden change occurred:

"Boy, you destroyed the ghost general I spent half a year cultivating and ruined my grand plans."

"I'll remember this debt. Before long, I'll come personally to settle accounts with you."

Xu Jin's eyes sharpened. His flying sword shot out in an instant, slashing straight toward the source of the voice.

Bang—

The stone wall exploded, sending fragments flying everywhere. Only a faint afterimage was shattered by the sword qi.

The other party had left long ago, leaving behind only a projected image.

Xu Jin stood in place, his expression shifting darkly.

Fuck, someone's got their eyes on me.

I don't even know who it is. Fuck, just wait for me. When I get back, I'll use the Bureau's intelligence to drag you out, you bastard.

Not long afterward, Wang Lei hurried over.

After confirming at the village entrance that no ghost soldiers had slipped through and arranging for the villagers to shut and bar their doors, he immediately headed for the underground cavern.

The moment he reached the crack and saw the black array patterns on the stone walls, his expression changed with a whoosh.

"A Baleful Qi-Gathering Soul-Nurturing Formation!" he blurted out. "This is the work of Yin cultivators!"

Xu Jin's eyes lit up. There was a lead. "Yin cultivators?"

"That's right! The folk heretical sects of Yin cultivators!" Wang Lei's face was grave as he pointed at the array patterns and explained.

"These people specifically seek out places thick with yin-Sha Qi, like ancient battlefields, mass graveyards, and charity morgues. They secretly set up arrays to nurture souls and refine corpses, raise ghost soldiers and evil artifacts, using them to improve their cultivation or forge wicked treasures."

"They act in secret and with ruthless cruelty, harming countless people. The Bureau has wiped them out many times, yet never managed to clear them out completely."

"No wonder the ghost general broke through so quickly... Someone had been feeding it resources from behind the scenes." Wang Lei sucked in a cold breath. "We accidentally smashed one of the Yin cultivators' strongholds."

Xu Jin immediately pressed on, "Do you know where they are?"

Wang Lei shook his head. "No. They have no fixed residence. We'll need to return to the Bureau and examine the latest intelligence."

The two of them did not waste any more time and immediately investigated the scene.

Wang Lei took out blank hemp paper and carefully made rubbings of the complete array patterns. He also registered the ghost general's grade, recording every detail in the files.

By the time they finished everything, night had already fallen.

The two left the underground cavern and headed back along the official road.

Xu Jin looked into the depths of the night, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

Wait for me. I'll come find you. Make sure you wait for me.