Late July, in the still of the night.
On the barren mountain in the northern outskirts, tree shadows swayed beneath layer upon layer of darkness.
Suddenly, an ebony statue of the Great Lin River God floated out of a hidden stone grotto and landed on a relatively flat rock nearby.
Li Ling had come here through soul projection to communicate through his mind once more.
As he successfully connected to the Great Lin River God's divine kingdom, a familiar sensation welled up.
"May the winds and rains be favorable, the nation peaceful, and its people safe..."
"Grandfather River God, please show us mercy and send some rain!"
"The boat's going to capsize! Spare us..."
The prayers of countless people mingled with their emotions. Layers of dreamlike murmurs carried a magnificent force of the mind, spreading in every direction like ripples across water.
The scent of incense, candles, and paper offerings drifted through the air, while burnt ash fluttered across the sky like butterflies.
Once Li Ling had regained a little clarity, he immediately employed the Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art he had been studying lately.
Incense transformation divine ability-Evil-Repelling Incense!
As his mental power circulated, his spirit body began to smoke.
Smoke rose from his feet, his hands, his body, and the crown of his head.
Before long, vapor steamed from his entire body. Wisps coiled like dragons and serpents, and he resembled a bundle of burning firewood.
Amid the blazing release of mental power, the incense essence of Evil-Repelling Incense came into being.
Li Ling's Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art could visualize scents and manifest incense substances. Over this period, he had fully mastered the properties of this new incense and incorporated them into the art's incense transformation divine ability.
By now, he possessed the properties of four major incense varieties: Spirit-Communing Incense, Returning Soul Incense, Cloud-Producing Incense, and Evil-Repelling Incense. He also possessed the corresponding mental properties of thousands of scents and various aromatics, including the Spirit Materials devil finger wood.
According to Li Ling's own classification, Evil-Repelling Incense should belong to the category of mind-root incense, which could only be cultivated at the fourth realm and was intimately connected to powers of the mind.
Without a teacher, he had created the Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art himself, deducing five realms in a single stretch and crossing the threshold of the fourth. Naturally, mastering this kind of transformation was not difficult for him.
In truth, however, divine abilities and spells with similar properties were extremely high-grade. Their standing was probably comparable to Nascent Soul cultivation, corresponding to the level of a great cultivator.
Only his extraordinary innate gifts made such a feat possible.
Before long, the Evil-Repelling Incense essence spread around him, forming a dense field that shrouded the surrounding void.
Li Ling immediately sensed a tremendous difference.
The influence of incense and fire prayer power has weakened considerably!
He quieted his mind and examined the sensation. The ceaseless murmurs seemed to have receded into the distance, and even the scent of incense, candles, and paper offerings had become almost imperceptible.
Evil-Repelling Incense was remarkably peculiar. To mortal eyes, its smoke looked entirely ordinary and displayed no wondrous effects. Yet spiritual consciousness encountered interference when sensing it, and within the Divine Kingdom Domain, it was as dense as thick fog.
It could not strengthen soul power the way Spirit-Communing Incense did, but it could block mental influence. Sure enough, it had obscured even the anchor through which a deity manifested.
Li Ling moved the incense essence with his divine sense, distributing it evenly over his body to form a protective membrane that enveloped him completely.
This was a little trick he had discovered recently.
The essence of the Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art lay in using mental power to produce transformations, catalyzing the myriad scents of heaven and earth into the incense essence he needed. Infusing it with his own mental power could greatly prolong its existence.
Next, Li Ling made an entirely new attempt.
His spirit body rose, seemingly stepping through a watery curtain of a gateway in the void, and his entire body entered the divine kingdom.
This was his first time entering with his actual spirit body after soul projection, rather than merely sending in a strand of mental power to investigate as before.
So much incense and fire prayer power...
As his spirit body entered, Li Ling felt as though an icy current had soaked his entire being. Those overlapping whispers and murmurs instantly multiplied.
The scent of incense, candles, and paper offerings grew intense once more.
"Please, River God, withdraw your divine ability..."
"We offer sacrificial beasts. May Grandfather River God protect us..."
"Have mercy! Stop the rain..."
Li Ling remained utterly unruffled, continuing to resist their influence with his clear mind and the field formed by the Evil-Repelling Incense essence.
Before long, the illusion of demonic voices flooding his mind weakened again, and the scent disappeared as well.
It really works!
Li Ling felt he had found the knack. Increasing the thickness of the Evil-Repelling Incense essence mist really did help.
He then tried drawing a little incense and fire prayer power through a deliberately created weak spot to temper his mind as he had before.
If the incense and fire prayer power of the past had been muddy yellow water, it was now clear, flowing water filtered through Evil-Repelling Incense. The total mental power it contained remained unchanged, but it was becoming pure and clean, easier to refine and assimilate.
Strands of golden Prayer Power incense essence condensed until they seemed almost tangible, possessing an extraordinary presence. Their potent properties probably belonged to the level of perfected mind-root cultivation.
In other words, he would need to perfect the fourth realm of the Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art before he could manifest this incense through mental power.
This incense transformation divine ability was fundamentally different from generating incense and fire prayer power oneself.
The former could blend the myriad scents of heaven and earth through a divine ability to produce incense essence, which was used for Incense-Feeding Soul Tempering, while the latter truly amounted to taking wool from the sheep's own back.
Soon, Li Ling's mind stirred, and he felt his soul grow stronger.
Just as I thought. Even accounting for the trouble of purifying and refining it after a coarse filtration, the overall efficiency is still impressive.
Although I can also cultivate by using the Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art to generate Spirit-Communing Incense out of thin air, once I account for the trouble of producing and absorbing it, that's actually far less efficient than using incense and fire prayer power like this.
Li Ling had noticed the incense and fire prayer power here long ago, but because he was not pursuing apotheosis through incense and fire, he had never attempted anything like this.
Now, at last, he had found a shortcut.
With a turn of his thoughts, Li Ling swallowed the initially filtered incense and fire prayer power like a whale gulping water. In the time it took to eat a meal, he absorbed tens of millions of incense essence strands.
As so much Prayer Power incense essence merged into his mind, Li Ling felt drunk, and indistinct voices began appearing in his head.
"May the winds and rains be favorable..."
Here it comes again!
Li Ling jolted back to his senses.
This should be the limit of what I can endure right now.
If I continue cultivating this incense transformation divine ability and strengthen the filtering effect of Evil-Repelling Incense, I may achieve greater efficiency through finer filtration of prayer power, perhaps even rivaling Spirit Materials. For now, though, I must not be greedy.
Silently committing this limit to memory, Li Ling resisted the temptation of further growth with tremendous resolve. He drove the Myriad Wonders Incense Transformation Art at full strength to repair the protective membrane, shutting out more of the Prayer Power incense essence that seemed so readily within reach.
I should try something else.
While refining and digesting the incense and fire prayer power he had already absorbed, Li Ling prepared a new experiment.
This time, it concerned divine authority.
During this period, he had obtained considerable information from various sources and learned that the Great Lin River God should exist in name only; the deity's true body had fallen long ago.
Any faction with the ability could steal the deity's incense and fire prayer power, or even divine authority.
A moment later, mental fluctuations rippled around his spirit body as he attempted to use divine authority to open a gateway between the void and reality.
As watery ripples spread, the surrounding scene suddenly changed. The view ahead, previously shrouded in layers of dense mist, instantly became clear and vivid.
This was the normal sensation of Soul Departure, with spiritual consciousness replacing sight.
He had returned to the material world.
Wonderfully, however, Li Ling was no longer on the barren mountain in the northern outskirts. He had arrived at the small courtyard in the temporary palace where that beautiful concubine lived.
Divine perception reached everywhere, no distance beyond its grasp!
It really worked! This is an authority inherent to the Divine Kingdom Domain!
Although it's much more cumbersome than a true grand teleportation art, at my current stage, it's nothing short of a godly technique!
A surge of delighted surprise swept through Li Ling.
He had already noticed this phenomenon while investigating the Divine Kingdom Domain last time, but he had never expected his experiment to succeed so easily.
The Demonic Path seems to have studied the Great Lin River God quite extensively. They possess a resonance gained through long years of offerings and sacrifices.
The Immortal Sects have always opposed them. When the Unusual Events Bureau slays demons and eradicates fiends throughout the land, its main focus is also suppressing illicit worship and cutting away the deity's authority.
Now, though, perhaps I can gain a few benefits before anyone notices...
After all, I come from the common people, and I've been judged to have no aptitude for immortal cultivation. Revealing this would have far-reaching consequences.
That doesn't mean I absolutely have to guard this secret to the death, but I need at least some ability to protect myself before I can gain the right to decide my own fate.
With these thoughts in mind, Li Ling entered the courtyard along a familiar route, a trace of killing intent gradually emerging.
Indeed, he had come today to slay demons and eradicate fiends.
Because he often roamed about at night investigating secrets, and also had access to the Unusual Events Bureau's files and related intelligence, Li Ling had learned that the Demonic Path's plans were entering a critical stage.
Recently, he had again confirmed the whereabouts of Lin Rouniang and the old Foundation Establishment woman. Once he verified that both were active around Sourcewater Township, he decided to dispose of this beautiful concubine and cut off future trouble at its root.
Otherwise, his father-in-law, the Mystic Xin King, might also fall into entirely unnecessary danger.
Yet just as Li Ling passed through the wall, he suddenly smelled the familiar scent of incense, candles, and paper offerings.
This is...
I only just left the Divine Kingdom Domain. Why am I...
Li Ling suddenly realized something. He catalyzed his incense essence, then reached out mentally to the Divine Kingdom Domain.
Although he did not use the statue this time, Li Ling had long since memorized the sensation of entering it. Moreover, the beautiful concubine frequently prayed here to contact the Demonic Path figures behind her. He soon located the Great Lin River God's divine kingdom domain within the void and returned to the world inside.
When he viewed the room through the Divine Kingdom Domain, everything had changed.
The room, where the lamps had been extinguished and only the courtyard lights outside remained, became brilliantly illuminated. The beautiful concubine appeared as a faint, insubstantial figure whose overall form was fairly clear; even her face could vaguely be made out.
This was the projection of her mental body within the Divine Kingdom Domain. From it, he could tell that her connection to this place was already extremely deep.
Li Ling's gaze sharpened. Unexpectedly, he caught other scents besides that of incense and fire prayer power.
Someone has been here. Lin Rouniang and that old Foundation Establishment woman from the Ghost Soul Sect who stays by her side-and not long ago!
Li Ling approached the bed and examined the woman's condition. He discovered that her mental body was giving off a steady rhythm, as though she were dreaming.
The scents of Lin Rouniang and the old Foundation Establishment woman disappeared here. They had entered the dream.
At this point, Li Ling could easily kill the beautiful concubine with a single sword strike in reality. But doing so would also disperse the dream spirits Lin Rouniang and the old woman had sent into her body, merely repeating what had happened when he dealt with that Demonic Path cultivator before.
Li Ling's understanding of dreams was far beyond what it had been a short while ago, and a bold thought sprang to mind.
Capture their dream spirits alive, take control of the mental power within, and turn them into a Nightmare-Binding Anchor!
The Ghost Soul Secret Manual recorded sinister arts that used other people's remnant souls and thoughts. These were far more effective than blood essence, Dharma Power, or birth dates and times.
This was mental power, a part of the soul itself!
Destroying a dream spirit would, at most, wake its owner from a nightmare.
But if he could capture one, he would hold far more initiative...
As for whether someone might capture him instead, Li Ling never even considered it. The ability to perform soul projection gave him precisely that much confidence.
Without hesitation, Li Ling split off a strand of mental power and entered the beautiful concubine's dream.
In the blink of an eye, he found himself inside a magnificent palace.
It seemed to be an ancient building in the style of another continent, constructed from enormous black mountain rocks, rugged yet stately.
There was nothing elaborate above. As soon as he looked up, he sensed three figures, one seated and two standing, discussing something there.
The seated figure was Lin Rouniang. She had changed into a solemn, majestic robe dominated by gold and red, and wore an enormous crown upon her head. She exuded a mysterious and imposing dignity.
Her lovely face was concealed behind a scarlet veil that seemed woven from silk, making it impossible to perceive. Yet even from seventy or eighty feet away, Li Ling could smell her perfectly clearly. It was unmistakably her scent.
Curiosity stirred in Li Ling. Why is she dressed like this?
Previously, to keep watch over the Demonic Path, Li Ling had gone to Sourcewater Township to check on Lin Rouniang every few days, leaving her somewhat mentally frayed.
Yet throughout that time, he had never seen Lin Rouniang dressed this way.
He had to admit that Lin Rouniang's looks naturally tended toward soft beauty-more alluring than imposing. After she changed into this outfit, her entire bearing became utterly different.
However, this robe was clearly not meant for everyday wear. The more Li Ling examined it, the more familiar it seemed.
Suddenly, Li Ling's mind jolted, and he remembered the robe worn by the Great Lin River God.
It was not that their cuts were identical, but that both used gold and red as their primary colors and shared the same solemn, majestic style and boundless dignity.
These were the same type of divine ceremonial robes and crowns commonly seen in sculptures and paintings. The statue merely wore the male version, while Lin Rouniang wore the female version.
She clearly looks like a female Great Lin River God. Could it be...
Something occurred to Li Ling, stirring his thoughts.
"Who's there?"
Clad in divine robes and crown, Lin Rouniang immediately sensed something and looked over. The entire hall seemed to brighten beneath her gaze.
Beneath the massive pillars and before the steps, figures with indistinct faces appeared one after another.
Translucent vengeful spirits also floated through the air. Along with white frost that spread like smoke, a bone-piercing chill swept outward in every direction.