Ghostly Meat Ganoderma

Time flies.

Evening.

In the dead of night.

At this moment.

On the battlefield outside the city, all the corpses were burned to ashes by a great fire, leaving only bone ash and a few remains.

And at this time, three figures appeared here.

The view zooms in.

One of the figures was a disheveled old Daoist priest, another was a young maiden with her face veiled by light gauze, and the last was a mysterious person wearing a clown mask.

"Heh heh."

The disheveled old Daoist priest chuckled, "You two arrived just in time. Since you're here, let's start quickly, lest there be more trouble."

"What a pity."

The young maiden with her face veiled by light gauze sighed softly, her voice melodious and tinged with regret, her captivating voice making one want to peek at her true face. "It's still too early. If only it could be half a month later, when the number of refugees and disaster victims reaches a hundred thousand."

"At that time,"

"The Great Array of Ghostly Flesh and Blood can nurture a more perfect Ghostly Meat Ganoderma."

"Hee hee hee..."

The mysterious person wearing the clown mask let out bursts of laughter, even making exaggerated, comical movements with his limbs. "You humans are truly cruel to your own kind."

"Begin."

"Activate the array!"

"Open!"

As soon as the words fell.

The old Daoist priest, the young maiden, and the clown-masked figure exchanged glances. They each made a cut on their wrists, and blood began to flow out.

They stood in the center of the battlefield, at three different positions. As their blood dripped onto the ground, it immediately changed.

Buzz! Buzz!

First.

Blood patterns emerged. On the ground, bloody patterns appeared. These bloody patterns continuously spread outwards, expanding to the surroundings.

Before long.

At the spots where the old Daoist priest, the young maiden, and the clown-masked figure stood, their blood formed a lotus pattern of blood.

Boom! Boom!!!

In an instant.

As this blood-colored lotus pattern appeared, the array that had been defeated by Bu Wuyun and Wei Wohe was formed again.

However.

This was a deeper level of formation.

Before long.

A blood-colored lotus was nurtured. Throughout the entire battlefield, there was a wisp of indescribable strange aura, yin energy, death energy, evil energy, and so on.

All of it converged towards this blood-colored lotus.

Surroundings.

In the battlefield.

Blood-colored lotuses bloomed from the remaining corpses and the scattered bone ash.

Eerie, bloody, beautiful...

Like Mandragora flowers blooming in hell.

Clearly.

The old Daoist priest, the young maiden, and the clown-masked figure were the masterminds behind this incident. This matter had been prepared for a long time, and now it was finally time to reap the rewards.

The Great Array of Ghostly Flesh and Blood.

The Ghostly Meat Ganoderma.

It was nurtured from the lives and flesh of sixty thousand commoners, using the Qingbei Town Yamen to exterminate these people, and from the countless corpses, the 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma' was nurtured.

Legend had it.

As long as one consumed the 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma,' any being could directly ignore any barriers and obstacles, smoothly stepping from the 'First Realm: Mortal World' into the 'Second Realm: Transcendent.'

For example.

For martial artists who cultivated the martial path, in the 'First Realm: Mortal World,' the realm was divided into two steps. The first step was the Force Realm, which included Bright Force, Hidden Force, Transforming Force, and Pill Force.

Afterward.

Stepping into the 'Second Realm: Transcendent', also known as Outer Qi, Inner Qi, Innate Qi, and Seeing God Not Bad.

These are within the 'First Realm: Mortal World'.

As the saying goes:

All things in heaven and earth are born in the mortal world, relying on heaven and earth to live. Amidst the vast mortal realm, one experiences all facets of life, be it martial arts, immortal paths, demons, gods, ghosts, and so on. Before truly shedding the mortal coil, all remain within the 'First Realm: Mortal World'.

Hum! Hum! Hum!!!

The blood-red lotus grew increasingly demonic. The formation activated, the lotus bloomed, absorbing countless energies. From the center of the blood-red lotus, a blood-red fleshy tumor slowly grew.

Plop!

The next moment.

The blood-red tumor shattered, and a ganoderma sprouted. This ganoderma was pink all over, plump in appearance, emitting faint wisps of fragrance.

This fragrance seemed capable of stirring the soul.

"Heh heh, success is imminent."

The disheveled old Daoist priest chuckled.

"Mhm."

The young maiden focused her attention.

"..."

The masked clown remained silent.

Hum!

Finally.

Half an hour later.

The 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma' was completely nurtured. As the blood-red lotus withered, all energies on the battlefield were absorbed.

Boom!

The 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma' also changed, twisting and growing continuously, then transforming into a small pink fleshy person. With a whoosh, it attempted to burrow underground and escape.

"Where do you think you're going?"

The young maiden waved her jade-like hand. A golden net, previously hidden underground, was swiftly retracted by the young maiden as the Ghostly Meat Ganoderma tried to burrow.

Thus.

The Ghostly Meat Ganoderma was captured.

It couldn't escape.

"Good, good, good."

The masked clown also burst into laughter.

"It's mine."

Boom!

Suddenly.

At this very moment.

A figure hidden in the shadows finally made a move. Its speed was incredibly fast; as it charged out of the darkness, it was like an arrow, rushing to the front of the 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma'.

"Sky-Splitting Palm!"

Boom!

The figure hidden in the shadows raised its hand and unleashed a palm strike.

"You wish."

Bang!

The young maiden waved her left hand, and a silk ribbon flew out. This seemingly light ribbon, in her hand, felt as heavy as a ten-thousand-pound iron bar as it swiftly struck the opponent.

Rumble!

With a deafening sound.

The figure hidden in the shadows was forced back.

However.

Those who had been guarding here were not just one person, but a total of four. And each of them had reached a level comparable to 'See God Not Bad'.

"Not good!"

"!!!"

The old Daoist priest and the masked clown were startled.

Without hesitation.

They swiftly attacked, charging forward at their fastest speed to prevent the 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma' from being stolen. The two sides erupted into battle in an instant.

Boom! Boom! Boom!!!

You have to understand.

They had all reached a level comparable to 'See God Not Bad'. Within Qingbei Town, they were the absolute top powerhouses. Even Bu Wuyun and Wei Wohe were a level below them.

Puff!!!

Riiip…

Finally.

The young maiden's golden net was torn apart, and the Ghostly Meat Ganoderma escaped. However, the moment it appeared, it was shattered into several pieces.

As a result.

The seven top powerhouses of Qingbei Town present each managed to snatch a piece of the shattered Ghostly Meat Ganoderma, obtaining one-seventh of it.

"Damn it!!!"

The young maiden's expression turned grim.

"!!"

The old Daoist priest also looked furious.

"Hee hee hee…"

The masked clown let out a laugh. "Interesting, very interesting. No wonder you didn't stop this from happening; you were planning to get a share all along."

"Your human hearts are truly dirty."

"Hmph!"

"Next time we meet, I'll kill you!"

"…"

The four figures who had concealed their true appearances snorted coldly.

Then.

They all departed.

"Let's go!"

"…"

The old Daoist priest, the young maiden, and the masked clown also left.

Meanwhile.

At Xu Qing's residence.

Xu Qing was unaware of the events that had transpired outside the city, nor did he have much interest in knowing. Although the 'Ghostly Meat Ganoderma' sounded quite good, Xu Qing wouldn't have been tempted even if he knew about it.

With the aid of the 'Omni-Codex', stepping into the 'Second Realm: Transcendent' was merely a matter of time.

Xu Qing was very confident.

At this moment.

Xu Qing had finished practicing the Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking. It was getting late, so he returned to his bedroom to rest. As usual, he summoned the Shaman Evil Ghost to guard him.

In a blink.

The next day.

Morning.

Xu Qing woke up early. Since all the refugees and disaster victims outside the city had died, Xu Qing no longer had to patrol outside the city starting today.

Morning.

Azure Hawk Martial Arts School.

The Azure Hawk Martial Arts School had suffered considerable losses this time. Including Xu Qing, only one hundred and eighty-three formal disciples remained. The number of outer court disciples who died was even greater.

However, it didn't matter.

It was believed that the number of outer court disciples would increase again before long.

Fortunately.

None of the seven true disciples of the Azure Hawk Martial Arts School were harmed. Only Jin Hong sustained injuries, but they were not serious and posed no threat to his life.

"A major event occurred outside the city. All the refugees and disaster victims have died. The Yamen also suffered significant losses, and our martial arts school lost many people as well."

Du Cangying coughed, his face slightly pale. He had participated in the battle outside the city, which was unavoidable. Therefore, he was also injured and had not fully recovered yet.

"Starting today, you no longer need to patrol outside the city. It is believed that Qingbei Town will be peaceful for a long time to come, and no further incidents will occur."

Du Cangying continued, "You must practice martial arts diligently and improve your strength to preserve your lives amidst the turmoil."

"That's great."

"Finally, no more patrols."

"Good, good, good."

"..."

Everyone was overjoyed.

"Xu Qing."

Du Cangying called out.

"Master."

Xu Qing stepped forward.

"I didn't find you outside the city the night before last. How did you escape back?"

Du Cangying's gaze sharpened slightly.

After all, on that night, most of the patrols had died, with only a very small number surviving and escaping. Yet Xu Qing had managed to get back.

"Master."

Xu Qing stated directly, "That night, I accidentally encountered that mysterious Sword Techniques master, Lü Dongbin. I quietly followed behind Lü Dongbin and escaped."

"I lost him halfway, but I was still fortunate enough to get out."

"Good luck."

Du Cangying gave Xu Qing a deep look and then asked, "What is your cultivation and realm now? What level have you reached? Have you reached peak Bright Force?"

"Almost, Master."

Xu Qing replied.

"Too slow."

Du Cangying shook his head, his gaze becoming even sharper. "I'll give you one more month. If you don't reach peak Bright Force by then, you'll have to leave the Azure Hawk Martial Arts School yourself."

"Yes."

Xu Qing lowered his head. "This disciple will definitely reach peak Bright Force within a month."

"Mm."

Du Cangying asked no further questions.