As a major organization among evil classes, the Nihility Sect (Southern Faction) had informants and connections across every industry. Given the unique capabilities of their class, if their members had died at the hands of the authorities, there was no way they wouldn't have discovered it.
Meanwhile, the Pure Yang Sect Master had been unearthed from an ancient tomb in Jiangnan Province. Jianghuai Province bordered Jiangnan Province, so the unprovoked deaths of Illusionists in both regions made it hard for Zhang Yuanqing not to suspect that ancient cultivator.
*The Taiyi Sect's Night Walkers haven't been attacked, but the Nihility Sect's Illusionists are being targeted instead? Heh, dog eat dog... No, evil classes deserve to die, but at least they're constrained by Morality Points. By comparison, the Pure Yang Sect Master is far more dangerous...*
Zhang Yuanqing broke off the sacrificial ritual and dialed Elder Gao Feng's number.
“Elder Gao Feng, I've received intelligence that Illusionists from the Nihility Sect's Southern Faction have been mysteriously disappearing lately, and it doesn't appear to be the work of the authorities. I suspect it's the Pure Yang Sect Master. You're in charge of capturing him—have you found any clues recently?”
Upon hearing this, Elder Gao Feng's tone grew heavy. “Not a single clue. *Sigh*, I'm just an Earth Monster, not a Scout skilled in tracking. The First Elder is practically tripping me up on purpose.”
Pausing for a moment, he continued, “I do have a few leads here, though. Ever since the ancient tomb incident, several cases with unknown causes of death have occurred in Jiangnan Province. A while back, there were reports of ghostly occurrences at Yongcheng Port. An official Water Ghost went missing while carrying out a mission on the seabed. Afterward, the Yongcheng Branch organized a recovery team to search underwater and found a decaying corpse along with signs of a struggle, but our colleague was never found. I suspect that's related to the Pure Yang Sect Master.”
“Devouring the astral bodies of official walkers to grasp the current state and organizational layout of Spirit Realm Walkers?” Zhang Yuanqing voiced his conjecture.
“Indeed, which means the bizarre disappearances of the Southern Faction's Illusionists are most likely connected to him as well,” Elder Gao Feng sighed.
As an Earth Monster, he possessed defenses rare in the world and formidable combat strength, but tracking, political maneuvering, and scheming were not his forte.
It was well known that Earth Monsters were generally honest, reserved, and gentle in nature.
Scheming against others was work meant for Water Ghosts, Wood Demons, and Scouts.
“Don't worry, Elder Gao Feng, I will help you as much as I can,” Zhang Yuanqing said, seizing the chance to build rapport. “To tell you the truth, that Empress also desperately wants to eliminate the Pure Yang Sect Master. She said: ‘If my master does not die, I can neither eat nor sleep in peace.’”
Elder Gao Feng hadn't taken him too seriously at first. After all, Yuanshi Tianzun's level was low, and he hadn't demonstrated any exceptional talent for scheming or manhunts in the past.
However, hearing that Empress Sandao cared deeply about the matter, he immediately took it seriously. “I almost forgot—you can contact that ancient Day Wanderer. Yuanshi, if you have any ideas or plans, remember to let me know.”
“No problem!” Having gained the attention of the Hangcheng Branch's top leader, Zhang Yuanqing cheerfully hung up.
Next, he sent a reply to Kou Beiyue, detailing the matter of the Pure Yang Sect Master.
Kou Beiyue was most likely asking on behalf of Good Minister Chooses His Master to Slay. If he could use this connection to convey the threat of the Pure Yang Sect Master to the Nihility Sect, it would be a fine strategy.
When dealing with the Pure Yang Sect Master, even evil classes could serve as friends.
With the bizarre techniques and methods of Illusionists, they might obtain clues more easily than the authorities. When the time came, he could gather intelligence through Good Minister Chooses His Master to Slay and pass it on to Elder Gao Feng.
The head of Hangcheng would then owe him an enormous favor.
*Ding!*
Kou Beiyue's phone rang on the table. He didn't check it right away, instead raising his glass to drink with Human Blood Bun.
“He replied, he replied...”
Little Fatty hastily nudged his boss, motioning for him to check the message at once.
Kou Beiyue set down his glass, picked up his phone, unlocked it with his fingerprint, and after reading it, slapped his thigh hard.
“Holy crap! Sounds badass. An ancient cultivator?”
Then he went back to eating skewers and drinking.
Little Fatty, on the other hand, gripped the phone tightly, reading the message over and over, a chill spreading through his heart.
*An ancient cultivator who practices both Illusionist and Night Walker arts... An ancient cultivator unbound by Morality Points... Growing by devouring the spiritual power of Night Walkers and Illusionists...*
The more he read, the colder the sweat on his back became.
*Terrifying. An entity like this is simply too terrifying. But why would an ancient cultivator appear in reality? According to our sect's internal records, ancient cultivators all died out long ago...*
A being unbound by Morality Points who practiced the arts of both peak classes—Night Walker and Illusionist—was a living nightmare for Spirit Realm Walkers.
*Yuanshi Tianzun actually told the boss such critical intelligence. No, he didn't tell the boss; he told me.* Little Fatty sprang to his feet.
“We don't have many jobs right now, so there's no need to work yourself to death. Sit down, sit down,” Kou Beiyue urged his subordinate, waving him back to his seat. “Keep drinking. Today, the three of us are going to swear the Oath of the Peach Garden!”
The alcohol had clearly gone to his head.
*Sigh, the boss doesn't realize the gravity of the situation at all. Ignorance really is bliss...* How could Little Fatty drink now? His round face was fraught with gravity and unease. “Boss, I have urgent business and need to head back.”
Ignoring Kou Beiyue's attempts to keep him, he hopped onto the electric scooter parked by the curb and sped away in a cloud of dust.
The message stated that the Pure Yang Sect Master had not yet fully recovered, and the Illusionists who had gone missing recently were all Level 1 and Level 2, with none at Level 3. They had to nip this threat in the bud before he regained his strength.
***
Fujia Bay.
Zhang Yuanqing focused on the parchment scroll. After verifying that the materials were all in order, he placed the parchment over them, channeled lunar energy into it, and muttered incantations:
“Empress, Empress, come out quick; Empress, Empress, come out quick...”
Amidst his meaningless muttering, the parchment rapidly drained the spiritual essence from the materials. The circular talisman array drawn upon it peeled off the surface, swiftly rising into the air and freezing into place a dozen or so meters up.
The next instant, the circular array collapsed inward, transforming into a circular passage.
A few breaths later, a majestic, boundless golden light surged out of the dark, collapsing passage.
*Holy crap, her ladyship's aura has grown several times stronger—it feels even more terrifying than Heavenly King Demonic Eye's!* A suffocating pressure blanketed the sky as the aura of a high-tier Dominator descended upon the mortal realm. Standing directly beneath it, Zhang Yuanqing took the brunt of the force; his knees buckled, and he nearly fell to his knees in worship.
He threw himself across the table, not daring to move a muscle.
Suddenly, just as the golden light neared the passage's exit, it was blocked by an invisible barrier.
Meeting resistance, the golden light rebounded and collided with the incoming torrent of light, erupting into a blinding radiance. The entire circular passage turned into a miniature sun.
Right then, Zhang Yuanqing received a notification from the Spirit Realm:
[Ding! You are forcibly opening an entrance to the Spirit Realm. Please cease immediately, or you will be penalized.]
Evidently, the attempt to forcibly open a passage between the Spirit Realm and reality had been thwarted by the Spirit Realm, with that barrier having been created by it.
“Hmph!”
A cold, clear snort echoed from within the passage.
Immediately after, a sharp cracking sound rang through the void. The invisible barrier beneath the golden light became covered in fissures.
Then, the barrier shattered with a thunderous crash, and a beam of golden light plunged downward, lodging into the ground with a resounding thud. It was none other than the Demon-Subduing Pestle.
In the hands of its true master, this item was an entirely different beast compared to when it was held by a useless owner.
With the passage opened, golden light flooded downward in all directions. The grass and vegetation in the courtyard instantly burned to ash. Reacting swiftly, Zhang Yuanqing had already rolled away before the passage cracked open.
As the golden light settled, Zhang Yuanqing looked eagerly toward the passage, waiting for the Ghost Mirror to drop.
At the same time, he called out, “Empress, how should we deal with that wretched master of yours? He's as slippery as an eel. Those useless official folks aren't anywhere near as brilliant as you, Empress; they can't catch him at all.”
The old crone's cool, magnetic voice drifted from the passage: “We will speak in detail the next time you enter the Spirit Realm. All right, go down. Work diligently in the mortal realm hereafter, and do not bring shame upon your master.”
“Huh? Empress, what do you mean? Who are you talking to?” Zhang Yuanqing was completely bewildered.
Just then, a reluctant voice came from inside the passage: “Master, please... please reconsider...”
“The passage is about to close. Are you going yourself, or shall Master kick you down?” The old crone's voice was cold and ruthless, far less gentle than when she spoke with Yuanshi Tianzun.
*Wait... that's the voice of a spirit body. No way...* An incredible thought flashed across Zhang Yuanqing's mind.
The next second, a figure clad in a red skirt floated down, accompanied by a thick, billowing yin energy.
As she descended, the passage could no longer maintain itself, shrinking rapidly before vanishing entirely.
The Spirit Realm's notification tone also faded, issuing no further warnings.
Sitting by the round table, Zhang Yuanqing stared dumbfounded at the descending woman. She wore a Ming dynasty horse-face skirt, her upper garment tailored snugly and embroidered with exquisite dragons and phoenixes, accentuating her full, voluptuous chest.
Her features were strikingly beautiful, yet excessively pale. Her eye sockets were ink-black, while her irises were crimson, laced with faint threads of scarlet light—both eerie and breathtaking.
*Commandery Princess Yinyao?!*
Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself, *Empress, I only asked you to fetch the Ghost Mirror to help suppress my inner demons. I didn't ask you to deliver your disciple to me!*
Commandery Princess Yinyao's eerie, beautiful eyes looked over from afar. She let out a soft huff and turned her head away.
*Quite the tsundere, isn't she...* A strange sensation welled up in Zhang Yuanqing's heart.
Once upon a time, this princess had frightened him so badly he nearly wet himself. Now, though she remained formidable with an aura of at least Level 5, Zhang Yuanqing no longer felt fear.
In just a month, he was no longer the ant of the Transcendent stage he had once been.
At that moment, Little Green Tea and Queen rushed out from the villa. The former cried out:
“Brother Yuanshi, what happened just now? Li Chunfeng was so terrified he collapsed onto the floor!”
Behind them, Li Chunfeng held his gun with his arms hanging low, on high alert as if facing a mortal enemy.
When the three saw Commandery Princess Yinyao standing in the courtyard, they froze in their tracks, their faces filled with wariness and fear.
On the other side, Fu Qingyang brought Lingjun gliding down with the wind, landing in the courtyard. Both looked grim. Next door, they had sensed the aura of a high-tier Dominator as well as the presence of the Spirit Realm.
Believing a major disaster had struck, they had rushed over in haste.
Sensing that the auras of the Dominator and the Spirit Realm had dissipated, Lingjun relaxed, slipping back into his casual, flippant demeanor. Looking Commandery Princess Yinyao up and down, he clicked his tongue in admiration:
“What a gorgeous babe! Huh, a high-intelligence yin corpse? Yuanshi Tianzun, have you finally walked down the path of a corpse drover? What was that just now? I thought I felt the presence of a Dominator and the Spirit Realm. What kind of mess are you stirring up this time?”
Regardless of whether the first half of that statement was genuine, Fu Qingyang—as Guan Ya's younger cousin and Zhang Yuanqing's prospective brother-in-law—did not appreciate the comment. His sharp brows knit slightly as he cast an inquiring look at Zhang Yuanqing.
***
Wuhen Hotel.
Little Fatty hurried back without even stopping to greet Xiao Yuan. Taking the elevator straight to the second floor, he swiped into his room.
He then retrieved a high-tech helmet from his inventory, put it on, and lay flat on the bed.
This item had been bestowed upon him by the First Elder of the Nihility Sect's Southern Faction after his advancement to Saint. Wearing it allowed him to enter the dreamscape world constructed by the First Elder.
As a promising newly appointed Protector, he held the privilege of reporting directly to the First Elder.
High-level meetings among Illusionists were conducted entirely within illusions and dreams.
This was also why they were the hardest to apprehend. When it came to being elusive and unpredictable, Illusionists ranked first among the three evil classes.
After passing through a bizarre, hazy void, his consciousness materialized inside a grand hall.
Sixteen thick stone pillars supported the vaulted ceiling. A crimson carpet stretched from the entrance all the way to a golden throne at the far end.
Seated upon the throne was a six-meter-tall figure draped in a cloak. Beneath the cloak churned a twisting, flickering mass of dark light.
It symbolized the foulest and most chaotic emotions in the mortal world.
“Good Minister Chooses His Master to Slay pays his respects to the First Elder!”
Little Fatty knelt prostrate on the ground, feeling that the First Elder's aura was unfathomably deep, like standing at the edge of an abyss. He didn't even have the courage to lift his head.
“What is the matter?”
The figure on the golden throne spoke slowly. The voice was indistinguishable by gender or age—sounding as though the voices of countless men, women, young, and old were speaking in unison.
“I have uncovered the reason behind the mysterious disappearances of our sect's Illusionists,” Little Fatty said. “The matter is of grave importance, and your subordinate felt it must be reported to you in person.”
Chapter 386