Before long, Lin Rouniang returned to the room with the old woman at Foundation Establishment. Finding everything just as it had been, she looked puzzled. "That feeling... it's gone?"
"Young miss, you really are worrying too much," the old woman said calmly.
With that, she hurried away again.
The situation looked grim. Whether they fought or fled, she needed to keep an eye on things.
Lin Rouniang approached the oil lamp cautiously. Pointing from a distance, she condensed a flame with her spiritual energy and lit it.
Lamplight once again illuminated the room, bringing a cozy warmth, like sunlight driving away all that was sinister.
But just as Lin Rouniang began to relax, that inexplicable feeling of being watched swept over her again.
And it was growing stronger and stronger!
At first, she had only felt as though something were hiding outside the window, peering in. A little later, it had entered the room. Now, it felt more like it was standing right in front of her, openly looking her over.
There was an inexplicably appraising air to it, as though it were passing judgment. "That's it?"
"Are you human or ghost?"
"Show yourself!"
Lin Rouniang shouted, embarrassment turning to anger. Her blood spirit surged, unleashing a mental shock.
Everything remained utterly still.
Haunted by suspicion, she stayed on guard for a long time before that feeling of being watched gradually faded.
Lin Rouniang inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
Whoosh! The oil lamp went out for the third time!
Almost simultaneously, a streak of white light appeared in the room, stabbing like a blade toward the source of the disturbed air.
This was a safeguard the old woman had left behind!
A faint, serpentine silhouette appeared in the air, its fangs spread wide as it bit down fiercely.
But it had no effect whatsoever.
"It seems some formidable presence really has latched onto you. But there's no need to worry, young miss. Simply activate your protective gang, and you'll be perfectly safe."
The old woman's voice rang out in the air, a message left through Divided Spirit Manifestation.
"How can we cultivators be as superstitious as ordinary mortals? There are no ghosts in this world, only ghost-path cultivators and lurking yin spirits at most."
Lin Rouniang blushed slightly, but nodded earnestly.
She really had been frightened out of her wits just now. Ghosts were unknowable and unpredictable, entirely at odds with the principles of immortal cultivation.
She was the daughter of a demonic-path elder, after all. To ignorant commoners, the blood spirit she commanded was no different from a ghost. How could she possibly be afraid of ghosts?
There's nothing to fear. At worst, I can activate my protective gang. If that doesn't work, I still have my Blood Spirit Garment, and...
Lin Rouniang gradually steadied herself.
Just then, her heart-sensing gift suddenly stirred, as though she had heard a faint, lingering sigh in the air.
Then she saw the oil lamp wobble up into the air.
It...
Flew away!
Lin Rouniang's hair stood on end. Her mind went blank, and she could only watch as it floated out the window and vanished into the distance.
"Ah, I can't get anywhere with her."
"She's no ordinary mortal, after all, but a cultivator pursuing immortality and comprehending the Great Dao. I might scare her once or twice, but I can't keep fooling her forever."
"At least I managed to snag an oil lamp. It contains the power of the sun, so it's a good tool for soul tempering."
Li Ling's spirit body floated inside an ordinary house nearby, watching the demonic-path stronghold in the darkness from afar.
Before long, he hid the oil lamp atop a beam, then turned and flew toward the street.
He decided to leave Lin Rouniang alone for now and let her frighten herself.
If that failed, he could think of something else later.
By now, a group from the Unusual Events Bureau was advancing in formation across the open ground, launching its attack.
In the open space before the estate's main gate, at least a Hundred-Man Battalion of soldiers had formed a battle array. Cavalry and skirmishers spread out around them, with another Hundred-Man Company ready to provide support at any moment.
With so many mortals gathered together, their vigorous blood and yang energy piled up like kindling, sending rolling waves of heat surging forth.
The mortal soldiers' faces showed tension, fear, resolve, and composure. All moved to the beat of the drums, advancing steadily under orders.
Spears bristled like a forest. There were no fancy flourishes, only forward thrusts. The battle spears, over ten feet long, had a reach far exceeding that of ordinary zombies and all manner of monstrous creatures, punching bloody holes as thick as a forearm straight through them.
Wolf brushes resembling rakes pinned down monsters impervious to blades and spears. Several men worked together to hold firm against their attacks, while soldiers wielding magical artifact blades and axes coordinated with their comrades to chop the monsters' heads off.
Li Ling felt it resembled the Mandarin Duck Formation. Each squad of a dozen or so carried wolf brushes, wooden shields, blades, axes, long spears, and mechanical crossbows, with at least two of each. They could split into smaller formations at any time, forming Three Powers Formations to engage the enemy in groups of three or five, or combine into a great formation of over a hundred men.
There were no profound mysteries or ingenious formulas, nor any transformations wrought by divine abilities. They relied entirely on flesh and blood, mortal courage and strength, and the various tools born of civilized ingenuity.
With these, the mortals easily withstood the ordinary monsters' charges, even cutting them down with remarkable efficiency without suffering a scratch themselves.
But casualties began to appear when several vicious spirits attacked, their bodies radiating frosty yin qi as they drifted along like phantoms.
Water monkeys also hid at the foot of the walls, firing Water Arrows from afar, proving exceptionally troublesome.
Various kinds of poison baleful intent and bursting blood created patches of deadly poison, making it even harder for the troops to advance.
The Unusual Events Bureau's extraordinary individuals and martial experts reacted swiftly, while the leaders of each unit began deploying talismans and medicinal powders to counter them.
The officers ordered, "Bomb throwers, ready!"
A dozen or so long-armed strongmen stepped forward with bags. They paused briefly to brace themselves, while the soldiers ahead automatically adjusted their positions to give them room for a running start.
"Thunderbolt Bombs, powder charges, incendiary bombs..."
"Throw!"
Explosive weapons rained down. Amid violent blasts, every manner of fiend and monster was swept away.
The demonic cultivators hiding in the shadows were horrified. Most were ordinary people who had only just set foot on the path of cultivation and had yet to undergo a true transcendental transformation. Never had they imagined that mortal strength could be so terrifying.
Suddenly, Li Ling spotted someone familiar.
"Isn't that Zuo Zhongliang? He's leading the force here this time?"
Li Ling had begun learning about the Unusual Events Bureau. He knew that although this man was highly capable, he was upright, lacked a knack for scheming and currying favor, and had never been entrusted with particularly important duties.
The bureau's main force was attacking a stronghold a hundred li away in a major operation, yet he had been assigned here.
It was hard for a man like him to rise in rank and make a fortune.
Zuo Zhongliang ranged beyond the main force, taking the initiative and fighting the enemy valiantly.
There were few formal disciples in the demonic-path stronghold. More than half its occupants were novices, rogue cultivators, and the like.
Even lackeys who possessed no five elements spirit roots and had merely been taught evil arts and martial techniques, then forcibly trained, were being thrown in as cannon fodder.
They had no hope of resisting the troops and were soon routed, scattered like fallen petals on flowing water.
Just then, Senior Brother Pang, the burly man Li Ling had seen last time, emerged from inside and charged into the crowd through explosions, flames, and arrows.
His body was like an iron tower, his fists like great hammers. In an instant, he crashed into the wall of men.
Amid screams, the wolf brush wielders blocking his way suffered first, their weapons knocked from their hands.
The shield bearers were hammered to the ground next. One man stood his ground desperately, only for his arm to snap with a crack before a ferocious burst of Fist Gang blasted him away.
"Stop him, quickly!" the officer overseeing the formation ordered.
Crossbow bolts flew. A series of metallic clinks rang out, as though metal were striking metal, but they failed to penetrate his defenses.
"Die, villain!"
Zuo Zhongliang charged, blade radiance gathering over his weapon as he struck with all his strength.
Yet a moment later, he too was flung away by a burst of outward-projecting gang qi.
"This fellow..."
Everyone who saw it was appalled.
Zuo Zhongliang flipped upright and sprang to his feet, light flashing over his body. He used a Swift Movement Talisman, a Golden Light Talisman, an Armor-Piercing Talisman, and numerous other talismans at once. Their magical enhancements instantly sent his offense, defense, and speed soaring, and he charged forward again to engage his opponent.
He had abundant combat experience and knew all too well what would happen if a towering brute like this broke their battle formation.
Zuo Zhongliang was not fighting alone. Within moments, several other accomplished martial experts joined the fray, working together to surround and kill Senior Brother Pang.
There was even a cultivator to one side controlling a flying sword, holding its keen blade ready to support them.
This cultivator hid among the crowd and had yet to reveal himself, waiting for the demonic cultivator to expose an opening so he could deliver a fatal strike.
But even though they had steadied their formation for the moment, the Unusual Events Bureau's experts were still being tied down by a single man. The ordinary soldiers immediately felt the pressure mount.
"Individual strength makes such an obvious difference. This really is one man taking on a hundred!"
"And the real threat hasn't even appeared yet."
Watching from the sidelines, Li Ling saw things clearly. The old woman concealing herself was the true threat.
Fortunately, she seemed wary of something and had yet to act.
The Unusual Events Bureau had experts overseeing its operations, and the Skycloud Sect stood behind the Mystic Xin Kingdom. This was the home ground of the Mystic Continent's orthodox immortal sects.
Having lived to her age, she could hardly fail to understand that.
Yet they seemed to have decided to abandon this stronghold. Before leaving, they released large numbers of expendable troops, and the number of monsters suddenly soared.
"How can there be so many? There are already over two hundred!"
"There are more inside... this is bad! Bring all our men over, quickly!"
The soldiers struggled increasingly, and signs of unrest even began to emerge.
The Unusual Events Bureau's forces, which had originally held the numerical advantage, suddenly found themselves surrounded by surging monsters. They had no choice but to summon the troops originally assigned to encircle the enemy.
An idea stirred in Li Ling's mind. He circled around the back and, sure enough, found the old woman and several demonic-path experts protecting Lin Rouniang as they broke out.
It seemed they really were abandoning this stronghold. Even Senior Brother Pang had been sold out.
The Unusual Events Bureau had not expected to find such big fish here and had assigned too few men to stop them. In mere moments, they broke through.
Li Ling hesitated, then decided to leave them alone for now.
He left the battlefield and went to the wilderness outside town, opening all the poison bottles he had hidden nearby earlier. Large quantities of powder mixed together, forming a foul, reeking wind.
A moment later, his spirit body carried it soaring into the sky and flew toward the estate.
Soon, he found some lackeys who had been left behind to cover the retreat.
They had effectively been abandoned. Now was the perfect time to beat these dogs while they were in the water.
Li Ling showed no mercy. He sent the foul wind rushing into the crowd, and in an instant, their eyes bulged as they clutched their throats and convulsed violently.
Within a few short breaths, every last one was foaming at the mouth and collapsing.
Li Ling took the trouble to use his divine sense to move objects, gathering the spoils, piling them together, and hiding them before flying toward the next concentration of rotten stench.
This time, it was a cellar filled with corpses. Two men, still unaware that their superiors had fled, were chanting incantations. As an icy aura spread, yin baleful intent condensed.
The corpses inside stirred and opened their eyes.
Controlling the poisonous wind, Li Ling slipped behind the men and blew a breath.
Thud!
The two demonic-path lackeys chanting their spells collapsed at once.
After he repeated this several times, some of the demonic-path lackeys finally realized something was wrong.
"Be careful! Someone's broken in!"
But that warning was practically useless. Li Ling appeared and vanished like a ghost, making him impossible to guard against. He simply used the darkness to hide poison in various corners, scattered a handful when they least expected it, and his opponents dropped dead.
These were spiritual-material-grade poisons obtained from Elder You. For mortal lackeys, they were all but impossible to counter.
After killing roughly a dozen men, Li Ling encountered a genuine early-stage Qi Refining cultivator. It took a little more effort, but he likewise smothered the man in poisonous fumes, then formed a sword from gang and baleful intent to kill him.
Just then, cheers erupted outside.
Li Ling flew over to look and discovered that the Unusual Events Bureau's men had successfully entangled Senior Brother Pang with over a dozen chains. Someone was raising a spray tube to drench him in flammable oil.
Whoosh!
Raging flames sprang up. Senior Brother Pang, who had relied on his formidable body-hardening arts and charged straight at the formation, began screaming in agony.
Bang, bang, bang, bang!
Steel cables snapped one after another under the force of his tensed muscles. Throughout it all, however, two chains that were clearly magical artifacts remained firmly wrapped around him.
One was held by an early-stage Qi Refining cultivator, the other by a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator. Their divine senses spread outward, firmly suppressing his mental power.
Judging by his previous encounter, Senior Brother Pang was not a mindless brute who only knew how to fight to the bitter end. But the Unusual Events Bureau had employed its methods, and once caught, he could no longer escape.
A dozen soldiers mustered all their strength and pulled desperately from both sides, finally managing to fasten the chains to several warhorses.
Neigh!
A few lashes of the whip sent men and horses moving together. Senior Brother Pang's entire body was pulled straight, leaving him suspended in a full split.
Without his legs to brace himself, escaping through divine sense alone was even more impossible.
The flames could not burn him to death for the moment. Instead, they brought excruciating pain, leaving him howling and cursing incessantly within them.
Li Ling shook his head inwardly as he watched. "What a miserable man! He's finished this time."
"A mighty expert might be able to charge around without using his brain, but Qi Refining is nowhere near enough for that."
"Perhaps he was confident he could retreat whenever things turned bad. He never expected one careless move to capsize his boat."
It seemed he too needed to take this as a warning. Even with his ability to send his spirit body out, he should add several more layers of protection. Perhaps he would even need to create alternate identities and aliases.
Li Ling paid no further attention to the fighting. After watching for a while, he returned to the estate, looted every corner, then quietly departed under cover of night, concealing both his deeds and his name.
A little under an hour later, he stopped on an uninhabited barren mountain along the way to inspect his haul.
He discovered that he had obtained another eight portions of devil finger wood, along with over thirty portions of assorted spiritual materials.
"Eight portions here, and another dozen or so from the Unusual Events Bureau-that makes around twenty altogether. I can make another huge leap this time!"
"According to cultivators' experience, once mental power reaches a certain level, it develops other changes. The improvement is by no means limited to brute force!"
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