Guiding the Spiritual Qi Storm Again

Fellow Daoists are not just friends who discuss Dao, but rather they are companions on the great path of life.

Zhang Xuezhou clearly hoped that Ren Anran could stay with him for a long time, until the end of their lives.

Compared to Ren Anran's life condition, nothing else mattered to him.

The benefits of high-speed flight are immeasurable. The Mottled-Robed Mandarin Fish Woman had only traveled three miles from the cold pool when Zhang Xuezhou returned to the Xieluosi River Holy Land.

"Zhu Jiuyin isn't here?"

Zhang Xuezhou was somewhat surprised to find no trace of Zhu Jiuyin at the Xieluosi River Holy Land, unsure where the old dragon had gone.

But it's a good thing that Zhu Jiuyin isn't at the Xieluosi River Holy Land, since Zhang Xuezhou didn't come here for any good reason.

Entering the secret realm through the passage that emerged from Zhu Jiuyin's physical body, countless dead souls rushed towards them.

This Sacred Land contains the mindless souls of those who died from the Spirit Gathering Banner, and is filled with uncontrollable subterranean fire. The lake is covered with the venom of the Water Dragon King, and has been transformed into a high mountain by the Primordial Chaos Limitless mobilized by the Earth Dragon King and Zhang Xuezhou. In reality, it has become a forbidden area that no living person should enter.

Breaking through the Primordial Chaos Limitless to extract a surge of Spiritual Qi energy might be one of the few ways to utilize it.

"Hey!"

The tunnel was winding and twisting, and Zhang Xuezhou couldn't fly at high speed while turning. He would inevitably encounter these dead spirits when he entered and exited.

As he exhaled and spoke, Zhang Xuezhou's body emitted bursts of light, pushing the dead souls away.

"These dead souls seem somewhat similar, like objects from the Emperor's banner," Ren Anran asked.

"It definitely came out from the large banner that Donghua was holding!"

"That must be the Emperor's Spirit Gathering Banner!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded, Ren Anran immediately beamed with joy.

"What use are these dead souls?"

"These dead souls were nurtured by the Emperor for a thousand years, and their value is quite extraordinary. Donghua probably didn't know how to use the Spirit Gathering Banner, which is why he poured out all of these dead souls!"

Ren Anran murmured something, and her cloud-like form drifted toward a dead soul. The crazed dead soul instantly became submissive.

"These undead spirits will tear apart any unfamiliar creatures they encounter when they go berserk," Ren Anran said. "But once they are tamed, they can attach themselves to the bodies of living beings normally, thus turning ordinary people into powerful and fearless soldiers!"

"After this thing is tamed, will it have any negative effects on living beings?" Zhang Xuezhou asked curiously.

"You might feel weak when you retreat. If you've been through a fierce battle and can't handle it, you might even experience symptoms like vomiting," Ren Anran said.

"Then wouldn't that mean there are no side effects!"

Zhang Xuezhou was surprised, never expecting that Donghua, who had calmly used the Spirit Gathering Banner and controlled Zhu Jiuyin with 'Bai', actually didn't know how to properly use the Spirit Gathering Banner.

"We can take one of the bottles to collect these dead souls, and then we just need to nurture them with the Spiritual Qi released by the Spirit Jade, and they won't be so agitated!"

"Feasible!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded.

Zhu Jiuyin secret realm is difficult, finding some bottles and jars is no problem at all. After all, Zou Bugui and Zhang Xuezhou have refined a large number of pills, and the containers for these pills are all quite good.

"If we can trigger the Spiritual Qi storm you mentioned, they should also benefit greatly, perhaps even manifesting ethereal, ghostly forms!"

"Then I'm really looking forward to it!"

Zhang Xuezhou had previously felt that his luck was extremely volatile, and that he was prone to failing at everything he did. However, Ren Anran's arrival had brought him great gains, and even the troubles that Donghua had overlooked could be considered an fortuitous opportunity.

Through Ren Anran's judgment, Zhang Xuezhou also realized that Donghua was not as omniscient and omnipotent as he had thought. The other party had adapted to the identity of the Emperor, but when it came to using the Emperor's past abilities, he was only half-baked.

He felt a sense of relief for a moment, as the pressure of seeing Donghua easily capture Zhu Jiuyin lessened considerably.

"Watch out for ground fires!"

Zhu Jiuyin's scorching body solidified the tunnel he had drilled, and even after traversing this passage to enter the secret realm, it was still necessary to traverse the tunnel again.

Without the Dragon Body of Zhu Jiuyin to suppress the earth fire, the flames of the earth fire pillar continued to rise and grow stronger, and the temperature of the flames also increased.

If one is not familiar with the terrain beneath the pillars of earthfire, traversing through such flames is quite difficult; even a powerful cultivator would find himself in a sorry state.

Zhang Xuezhou gave a reminder, and Ren Anran's body shrank back.

Amidst the scorching flames, the back of a secret realm, seemingly shifting like stars, emerges, along with an almost inverted sky. Geomagnetic Primal Light occasionally displays various dazzling colors, like the aurora borealis bringing ever-changing hues.

Ren Anran was momentarily stunned when she first saw this scene.

The ancients were right: perilous places often possess breathtaking beauty!

With a gasp of surprise, Ren Anran gazed at the upside-down back of the secret realm, clearly indicating that they had arrived at their destination.

This is the location where Zhang Xuezhou mastered the Divine Ability Grain Avoidance Instruction. While it granted Zhang Xuezhou this fortuitous opportunity, it also brought enormous risks. At this moment, Zhang Xuezhou is extremely cautious, constantly surveying the site and comparing the possible contrasts between the location and the intensity of Spiritual Qi energy, and determining which area is suitable for Ren Anran to use.

"Don't move here. I'm going to the array's core to release Acupoint-Fixing Technique," Zhang Xuezhou said. "Right now, it's difficult to gather the array artifacts from the other two secret realms, and unlike before, it hasn't accumulated for a hundred years. The intensity of the Spiritual Qi energy storm I'm drawing might only be one-third of what it used to be, or even weaker. It might even trigger changes in the array, causing the Spiritual Qi guiding the Law Power to concentrate and surge here. If it's the former, float forward a bit; if it's the latter, retreat a bit. Make sure you don't stray too far from this boulder, lest you be swept into the subterranean fire by the storm!"

"Good!"

Zhang Xuezhou's choice was rather moderate; he even found a huge rock to act as a barrier, which meant he had a way to advance or retreat, but it was also the safest approach.

"Can you withstand the burst of Spiritual Qi yourself?" Ren Anran asked.

"It's somewhat of a coincidence; my body desperately needs a surge of Spiritual Qi, so a more intense burst would be more beneficial for me!"

Zhang Xuezhou smiled.

Stepping between life and death comes at a price. After his body was resurrected, it had no support. To restore his body to its original state, he would need either Spiritual Qi or the help of elixirs.

Even his physical body, which had reached the level of a saint, was destroyed. Not only was his Lesser Heaven and Earth Bag Zhang Xuezhou on him, but it was also highly likely that it had been destroyed as well. Zhang Xuezhou himself was already lacking in elixirs.

Zhang Xuezhou, by using the new emperor's influence to achieve Unity of Celestial Person and Heaven, was targeted by a giant snake. At this point, he didn't even dare to recite the Vast Righteous Qi Chapter.

For Zhang Xuezhou, Spiritual Qi was one of the few ways he could recover.

His words weren't meant to comfort Ren Anran; they reflected his current situation.

After exchanging final instructions with each other, Zhang Xuezhou leaped into the air.

The Geomagnetic Primal Light rippled across his body. In the past, he needed the protection of three Sacred Land lords to travel, but now he could easily follow the same path.

With the array artifact, Liuli, in hand, Zhang Xuezhou stepped into the center of the three secret array eyes.

While chanting incantations, he released the Acupoint-Fixing Technique he hadn't used for many years, sealing the area once again.

In an instant, ripples from the Geomagnetic Primal Light spread out, cutting off the Spiritual Qi energy that was driving the Primordial Chaos Limitless, and the energy surged outward through this array eye.

As Zhang Xuezhou guessed, the absence of the other two array artifacts, coupled with the fact that the control period for this array was only twenty years, resulted in a much smaller Spiritual Qi storm this time.

A surge of Spiritual Qi energy has its advantages, just as a normal burst of energy has its own benefits.

In this environment, both Zhang Xuezhou and Ren Anran can absorb the spiritual energy gradually, without being overwhelmed by the overwhelming Spiritual Qi that their bodies cannot withstand.

Zhang Xuezhou greeted Ren Anran. One of them recovered his body, while the other used the Great Wilderness Creation Scripture to draw upon Spiritual Qi to forge his Yang Corporeal Soul Body.

A torrent of Spiritual Qi surged forth, but Zhang Xuezhou did not adjust his position to stop it as he had done before.

When his Law Power and Demon Power had mostly recovered, Zhang Xuezhou quickly realized that something was amiss.