Soul Cleansing of the Forgotten River
The two elite ghosts let out low whimpers, their souls trembling violently, yet they dared not resist in the slightest.
The red silk tightened, and two Dharma Seed were quietly imprinted deep into the soul, transforming all the resentment contained within the ghost's body.
But upon seeing the face of an old friend, tears fell like cold rain.
Upon seeing him, my soul is broken; at midnight, the candle burns itself to ashes.
Goodbye to old friends, the past has turned to ashes;
Three times we met, but our love could not be rekindled; I walked alone across the River of Forgetfulness.
The Ghost Bride chanted "The Soul-Cleansing Song of the Forgotten River," the melody lingering and plaintive, swirling in the wind, flowing with the red silk, and seeping into the depths of the consciousness of wronged souls and hanged ghosts.
The ghostly flames in the two ghosts' eyes shifted from turbid to clear, their obsessions burning away like withered leaves, peeling away inch by inch, each drop of soul tear falling, turning into rising black smoke, shimmering with fragments of shattered memories.
The red silk, sharp as a blade, severed the past. Two ghostly figures trembled and crawled to the music. Their originally ferocious faces gradually lost their resentment and turned into emptiness and relief.
As the music ended, the red silk ribbon tore into pieces, scattering like falling flowers, landing on the spirit and transforming into a red wedding robe.
Two large red soul lamps hung before the foreheads of the wronged souls and the hanged ghosts, their flames flickering and reflecting two lines of light like blood-tears.
Past grievances have turned to ashes; tonight, I hold this lamp, refusing to cross the cycle of reincarnation.
The Ghost Bride looked up at Lin Xu, the pale red in her eyes had turned into warm vermilion, devoid of any Sha Qi, only as clear as still water.
The vengeful spirits and hanged ghosts slowly retreated, standing guard on either side of the Ghost Bride. They no longer resembled fierce ghosts, but rather the spirits holding the ceremony in the underworld's wedding procession.
"Good!" Feeling the yin energy around the Ghost Bride condensed like silk, flowing and coalescing with the two elite ghosts into a whole, faintly showing the rudiments of an array and a domain, Lin Xu gently patted his palm and smiled slightly.
When he created the cultivation technique for the Ghost Bride, he had already incorporated the mysteries of formations into it, connecting the originally scattered yin energy of the ghosts into a resonant circuit, forming a domain-like enhancement.
"Go, gather the ghosts." Lin Xu glanced out the window; it was already noon, and the sun was shining brightly.
But this did not deter the Ghost Bride. She slowly stepped out of the house, her red robe fluttering without wind. Behind her, wronged spirits and hanged ghosts followed with lanterns, and the yin energy wove like silk into an umbrella, blocking out the light of day.
A cold wind swept across the ground, Yan Jingshu took a step forward, instantly covering a distance of over a hundred meters. Her figure was as elusive as a phantom, rushing towards the depths of the mist outside the village.
After lunch, Lin Xu went into seclusion to cultivate and replenish the magical power consumed in condensing the Dharma Seed, until the next morning.
He once again led the supply train into the depths of the fog, heading towards the front-line camp.
This time, in addition to the imperial guards and militia, there was an additional wedding procession at the front of the procession.
A red silk ribbon leads the way, and soul lamps flicker. The Ghost Bride sits regally on an eight-bearer palanquin, with wronged souls and hanged ghosts standing on either side, resembling a ghost wedding procession walking through the mist.
"As expected of a hero of the ghost path, it's only been half a day..." Lin Xu glanced around and saw nearly a hundred Red-Robed Ghosts gathered beside the Ghost Bride's sedan chair.
Unlike elite ghosts who receive the Dharma Seed, these ordinary ghosts only need to touch the soul ash stained with red silk and listen to the lingering melody of the Soul-Cleansing Melody to cleanse their resentment and awaken their intelligence.
As the number of ghosts increased, the yin energy intertwined to form a misty domain that extended with the movement of the group. It quietly absorbed the resentment and scattered souls floating in the air, which were then slowly refined by the domain and nourished the ghosts.
The Ghost Bride sat cross-legged in the sedan chair, her body surging with yin energy that resonated with the hundred ghosts. Whenever a lonely soul approached, a red silk ribbon would wrap around it three times, washing away its resentment and incorporating it into the array.
There are many wandering ghosts in this Spirit Realm, especially with the respawn mechanism here, where a batch of vengeful spirits will appear out of thin air every few days. These are the natural source of soldiers for the ghost army to grow stronger.
And so, right in front of the supply train, a faint Soul-Cleansing Melody drifted in the wind, and every now and then, a lonely soul dressed in red would slowly join the procession.
The Dharma Protector Evil Eye swept through the mist, and the leader, Qiuqiu, occasionally glanced at the Wedding Procession Ghost, its gaze landing on the Ghost Bride, seemingly with envy.
"Are there more ghosts envying the Ghost Bride? Their emotions have become complicated again..." A smile appeared in Lin Xu's eyes. This was a good thing for NPCs. Unchanging emotions made them just machines and tools, with no room for further growth.
These guardians can be seen as an extension of his will; he has higher expectations for them than as mere tools that can be discarded at will.
Having learned from his previous experience, he specifically shortened the detection distance to ensure safety within a hundred meters.
However, this distance does not guarantee absolute safety; in the distance, the fog churns and the faint sounds of inhuman roars can be heard.
The Dharma Protector Evil Eye heard the sound and looked, and saw a tall ghost locust tree.
Several grotesque ghostly figures twisted and contorted beneath the tree's shadow, with dozens of remnant souls hanging from the roots, frantically devouring the resentment.
Sensing the intrusion, the ghost locust tree unleashed its roots like black snakes, whipping them towards the wedding procession.
"Hmph!" A bloodthirsty light flashed in Yan Jingshu's eyes, and her long, black hair, like a waterfall, instantly transformed into hundreds of strands that strangled the attacking roots.
The hair was as sharp as a blade, shredding the roots and splattering blood. The ghostly locust tree let out a mournful wail, and its trunk split open into a huge mouth, spewing out thick resentment.
Yan Jingshu snorted coldly, her red robe fluttering as she thrust out the blood-red hairpin in her hand, transforming it into a streak of blood that pierced into the core of the Ghost Tree.
In an instant, hundreds of vengeful spirits wailed amidst the blood-red light, and the Ghost Tree's body crumbled inch by inch, collapsing with a crash and turning into a pile of black ash.
The remnant souls controlled by the ghosts broke free of their restraints, curling up and trembling in the lingering melody of the Soul-Cleansing Melody. A figure in red quietly enveloped her, transforming into a newly recruited member of the ghost troop, and bowed her head to join the ranks.
A hint of approval flashed in Lin Xu's eyes. This Ghost Locust was as strong as a mid-level professional, and was especially good at group attacks.
Even if a whole squad of supply troops were to arrive, it would be difficult to end the battle in a short time, but the Ghost Bride killed her with a single blow, which shows that her individual strength is no less than that of elite ghosts of the same level.
This is also the mystery of "The Soul-Cleansing Song of the Forgotten River": it can command hundreds of ghosts, Soul Refining into an army, and in turn, gather the power of all souls to nourish itself.
After arriving at the camp safely and handing over the supplies, Lin Xu went to the wounded soldiers' tent as usual, where there were new faces on the sickbeds.
With the wounded soldiers on the empty truck, Lin Xu glanced at the gloomy sky, turned around, and began his journey home.
Just as they approached the border of Peach Tree Village, he halted the troops, frowning as he gazed into the depths of the mist.
A campfire flickered in the thick fog, its dim light casting several indistinct shadows around it.
The shadows were hunched and stiff, their outlines twisted like broken, withered branches, whispering obscure incantations around the fire.
The Dharma Protector Evil Eye suddenly locked onto the strange phenomenon beside the campfire, and strands of resentment appeared in its pupils, converging from all directions and wrapping around the figures.
Lin Xu shouted in a low voice, "It's a wandering Yin cultivator!"
Yin Xiu uses the essence of living people as a guide to gather resentment and refine evil spirits. Occasionally, he will set up an altar in the wilderness of the Spirit Realm to perform rituals.
If the camp can be destroyed in time, the ritual can be interrupted, and several human NPCs who were originally intended as sacrifices can be obtained.
Yan Jingshu suddenly chuckled softly, and the red sedan chair moved forward ten steps silently. The Soul-Cleansing Melody played softly, and the three black figures were immediately choked. The sacrificial fire flickered violently and then exploded into sparks with a "bang" and went out.