Battling Mud Old Ghost

Banner Bro had been living alone in the forest for a long time. It looked like someone had set their sights on him. Jiang Hao raced through the shadows toward him. He had to be faster. If he arrived too late and someone chopped Banner Bro down, what a loss that would be! Of all the Clones, Banner Bro was the one who absolutely could not die. Without him, how would they raise their Soul Power quickly?

Elsewhere, Banner Bro had escaped death by a hair. Only after unleashing three more Soul Beast Undead had he broken free of Mud Old Ghost and begun sprinting toward Jiang Hao.

Once I meet up with Main Body Old Rogue, I'll be safe. Banner Bro slid across the ground, dodging a streak of mud overhead, then stopped and turned to face the old man pursuing him.

"You're a slippery little brat. Let's see where you run now." Mud Old Ghost gave a sinister grin. A Yellow Soul Ring lit up, and a massive beast made of earth lunged for Banner Bro in the center of the clearing. At that moment, Banner Bro no longer concealed his aura. Undead Hymn—he was a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster!

Banner Bro unleashed the Undead Arts. Dozens of spectral Undead floated in the air, roaring at the old man. These were all the trump cards he had, including his earliest acquisitions: a Soul Emperor's Soul Fragment and a Soul King's Soul Fragment.

"Just as I thought! This little brat really does have an Evil Martial Soul! Come with me quietly, boy, and I might spare your life." Mud Old Ghost stroked his beard and surveyed Banner Bro with satisfaction.

So many Undead—and after the boy had refined them, they bore no resentment at all, only a dense Netherworld attribute. If he refined them all, his Spiritual Power and Soul Power would surely soar.

The boy was brimming with vitality, too. Once he was no longer useful, the old man could refine him into a Qi-Blood Pill.

Smiling, Mud Old Ghost walked slowly toward Banner Bro, who seemed to have resigned himself to his fate.

At that instant, Banner Bro seized Mud Old Ghost's arm. He raised his head, his eyes filled with blood-red pupils. "What makes you think you can kill me?" The ground around them suddenly split open. Dozens of Blue Silver Grass vines coiled around the old man's waist like pythons, then yanked him backward and slammed him into a tree trunk.

"Hahahaha! You idiot! You couldn't even spot a trap this obvious!"

Banner Bro mocked him, but inwardly he was grateful Main Body Old Rogue had been nearby lately. A few days later, and Banner Bro might already have lost his life.

"You think being a Five-Ring Soul King makes you strong?" Banner Bro looked at Mud Old Ghost, pinned against the tree. "And you call yourself an Evil Soul Master? You've been far too lazy with your training!"

Atop a tree on the other side, Jiang Hao relaxed as well. Their ambush had caught the old man like a turtle in a jar.

Our opponents are too weak right now. As long as no big shot sets their sights on us, hardly anyone can stand against us.

Across the clearing, Mud Old Ghost coughed up a mouthful of blood and forced himself to endure the poison spreading through his body. His Soul Power erupted, tearing him free of the Blue Silver Grass wrapped around him. Both his hands turned into cracked clods of mud and plunged into the earth.

The ground shook violently, and the Blue Silver Grass Clones hiding in the surrounding brush stumbled, giving away their positions.

Coughing blood, Mud Old Ghost glared at them. "You low-level trash Soul Masters dare ambush me?"

"Fifth Soul Skill—Endless Mire!" A black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring descended. Soul Power shot through Mud Old Ghost's legs into the ground. The once-solid earth rippled in rings, dragging several Clones under.

On the other side, Banner Bro held his Soul Banner and lifted himself lightly off the ground. "Main Body, this old fellow will do nicely. He's just right for testing my Second Soul Skill."

Banner Bro had escaped being hunted. Now their roles had reversed, and he was the hunter.

With a wave of his hand, Banner Bro activated his First Soul Skill again. The surrounding Undead flew into a frenzy and dove at Mud Old Ghost below.

The spectral soul of a Horned Rhinoceros slammed into the old man, but he blocked it with ease.

A single Clone had virtually no chance of defeating a Soul King head-on. But Banner Bro was far from alone.

"Take my Mother's Entanglement!" One of the Blue Silver Grass Soul Masters struck again. Though his body was sinking into the ground, he drove his Soul Power through his Blue Silver Grass. It burst from the earth and surged through the mud toward Mud Old Ghost's ankles.

"You think the same trick will work twice? Do you take me for a lump of mud?" the old man roared, hurling a clod at the Blue Silver Grass Soul Master restraining him.

"You think you get to attack with a spell while I'm here?" As the Clone was about to be hit, another Clone broke free of the mud and rushed in front of him, tracing patterns with both hands. "Mirror Martial Soul, First Soul Skill—Optical Refraction!"

A smooth mirror appeared before them. As a Yellow Soul Ring surged with light, the clod ricocheted into the sky like a ping-pong ball.

"How is that possible?" Mud Old Ghost stared in shock, but the other Clones gave him no chance to catch his breath.

The Blue Silver Grass squad immediately put their strengths to work. Countless strands of Blue Silver Grass spread and intertwined like a spiderweb, forming a sturdy platform. It reached out like a tentacle and hauled up the Clones struggling in the mud, one after another.

"Lone Bamboo Pole Vault!" Bamboo Bro planted his Martial Soul in the ground and used it as a paddle, steering their little boat across the sea of mud to evade Mud Old Ghost's attacks.

More Clones piled into the fight. "Soul Power Pressure! First Soul Skill—Lust-Pollen Poison!"

One debilitating effect and hard crowd-control technique after another interrupted Mud Old Ghost's attacks. As he sustained his area-type Soul Skill, his Soul Power gradually ran dry. Scorpion Bro spotted his chance and immediately used Martial Soul Possession. He stamped both feet against the ground, and an enormous Scorpion Tail grew from his back. "Red Poison Scorpion, First Soul Skill—Poison Tail Needle!"

He sprang from the Blue Silver Grass cushion like a cannonball, hurtling straight at Mud Old Ghost's face. With a flick of his Scorpion Tail, he drew a fine line across the old man's throat. Purple venom seeped into the wound. Within three breaths, Mud Old Ghost had turned purple all over and lost consciousness.

Scorpion Bro landed. The mire had settled, leaving firm earth beneath his feet. Looking at Mud Old Ghost, whom he had poisoned into unconsciousness, he thought, This Soul Skill is strong, but it only causes paralysis and confusion. It isn't lethal. What a shame. Once I reach level twenty, I'm definitely getting a stronger single-target burst Soul Skill.

With Mud Old Ghost subdued, the surrounding Clones stopped fighting. Several Blue Silver Grass Soul Masters began digging their half-buried teammates out of the earth.

Jiang Hao came over and looked down at Mud Old Ghost. "What does your Second Soul Skill do?" he asked Banner Bro. "How are you going to test it on him?"

Banner Bro kept smiling. "My Second Soul Skill is incredible. It's called Nether King's Servant. It brands a living being with a mark, stripping away their soul and making it impossible for them to betray me. Marked Undead get an additional boost, too."

Banner Bro chuckled, letting out a cackle that sounded remarkably like an Evil Soul Master's. Under his control, the Soul Banner Martial Soul rose into the air. Intricate characters appeared around it, gradually forming threads of scripture that bored into the brow of Mud Old Ghost, who lay on the ground.

Watching this, Jiang Hao thought of Huo Gua's most outrageous advantage in the original story: Electrolux, a veritable undead calamity. If the time had already come, Jiang Hao would have snatched Electrolux away from Huo Gua. How could he leave something so good for him? Electrolux was clearly a much better match for Banner Bro. They both wielded the Undead Arts.

"Just wait, Banner Bro. In a few years, when Huo Gua appears and the main story begins, we'll go to the Star Dou Great Forest and snatch Electrolux away together." Jiang Hao patted Banner Bro on the shoulder. Seeing that he was still busy, Jiang Hao began releasing the Clones that had piled up in his Spiritual Sea.

Before long, the entire long chain of scripture had locked itself inside Mud Old Ghost's mind.

Occlumency took effect.