Slaying Ghosts, Refining Qi

Slaying Ghosts, Refining Qi Daoist Yizhen had only just left when Daoist Yiding had already officially taken over as Hall Master, concurrently serving as First Seat of the Discipline Hall. Everyone Zhou Wuji was familiar with in the Lower Court had left as well, indirectly severing his channels of information. Since Shangxing's cultivation was poor, he was put in charge of the daily chores—fetching everyday necessities such as firewood and rice—which meant he often had to go to Bixing Hall to get things. Clever and quick-witted with a smooth tongue, Shangxing was good with people, and over these past few days he had already grown familiar with the people there, so the news reached Zhou Wuji through what these people said. Zhou Wuji didn't mind this. Would Zhihe ever back anyone but his own people—let alone someone like Yiping? With Yiding's cultivation and seniority, only he could become Hall Master. The only trouble was that Yiding had taken a dislike to him, so the matter of Yang Tieying's ordination and register conferral would likely keep getting put off. Fortunately, there was no hurry. Even if Yang Tieying learned a few spells, they wouldn't be of much use to him right now; what he needed was to cultivate properly and lay a solid foundation. Once Yang Tieying formed his spirit aperture, he would be able to activate talismans and magic implements. Zhou Wuji went to Tianji Hall and found someone to restore the twisted Seven Stars Sword to its original shape, which cost him five hundred taels of silver. Fortunately, the blade's material was of fine quality—though it had deformed, it hadn't broken. After being reforged and polished anew, it was still a fine sword. This fine sword he bestowed upon Yang Tieying, as a gift from a master to his disciple. With the Seven Stars Sword, plus a few talismans such as the Golden Light Incantation, Yang Tieying would be enough to handle the first layer of the Myriad Ghosts Cavern. Yang Tieying, upon receiving the sword, had no idea that it had been twisted and nearly ruined. He only knew that this was a formidable dharma sword left behind by his master's own master. Before, his master had kept the sword on him at all times, even placing it beside his pillow when he slept. Now his master had actually passed such a precious dharma sword on to him, and he was both deeply moved and overjoyed. Yang Tieying knelt and bowed his head on the spot. Kneeling on the ground, he received the Seven Stars Sword with both hands, his tiger-like eyes brimming with hot tears of excitement and joy. "Master, your kindness is heavy as a mountain. This disciple—this disciple could never repay it, even with his life!" Zhou Wuji almost wanted to laugh, but to laugh now would be too inappropriate. He gave a dry cough. "We are master and disciple; there's no need for such formal words between us. If you cultivate well and conduct yourself well, that will be the greatest repayment to me." Yang Tieying knocked his head three times with a resounding thud and said loudly, "This disciple will forever keep Master's teachings in his heart!" Looking at this honest disciple, Zhou Wuji grew a little worried again. It wasn't mere politeness that he didn't seek repayment, yet a disciple repaying his master was also only proper. But now it seemed Yang Tieying was still a bit too naive. He was afraid he could hardly count on this disciple; he only hoped that in the future the boy wouldn't cause him any trouble... Zhou Wuji had Yang Tieying take Shangxing along and use the yin fiend qi on the first layer to temper themselves well. The several fully-formed yin spirits on the first layer had all been cleared out, so Yang Tieying and Shangxing wouldn't run into much danger here. Only after settling the two boys did Zhou Wuji head into the second layer. Recently the Lower Court had been busy with all manner of affairs, and it had probably been a long time since anyone had come down to the second layer to clear out yin spirits. The terrain of the second-layer cavern was even more complex, with winding, uneven paths, and the rock walls on both sides were jagged with countless protruding stones. The heavy earthly fiend qi made the second layer seem like the depths of winter, and as it circulated, the earthly fiend qi seeped silently and imperceptibly into flesh and blood. Many runes were also carved upon the rock walls, but as the walls weathered and flaked away under the erosion of the baleful qi, many of the runes were left broken and incomplete, no longer able to gather spirit qi. Throughout the entire second-layer cavern, the power of the rune array had grown broken and incomplete. And precisely because of this, the earthly fiend qi here had grown ever more intense. Even with Zhou Wuji's level of cultivation, he felt a bone-piercing cold. He gently exhaled, and through the Six Yang Dharma Eyes he could watch the white vapor he breathed out being swiftly swallowed by the earthly fiend qi. He had to rouse the power of his qi and blood to fend off the all-pervading invasion of the earthly fiend qi. The White Rainbow Sword possessed the power of pure yang, but he needed to resonate with the sword's aura before he could draw on that pure yang power. Still, though the earthly fiend qi on the second layer was intense, the life force that a living person naturally radiated spread swiftly outward all the same. This had one advantage: the Lower Court could not observe the second layer through the rune array. It was precisely because Zhou Wuji had discovered this that he didn't bother to conceal his own aura, and even actively released the power of his qi and blood. The vigorous qi and blood of a martial artist, in a second layer thick with yin fiend qi, shone as dazzlingly as a flame. Very soon, clusters of crimson ghost shadows came pouncing over. Before the shadows even arrived, their unique yin-spirit aura had already struck him in the face. With the Six Yang Dharma Eyes without and the Heart Mirror within, Zhou Wuji saw the true nature of this swarm of ghost shadows with perfect clarity. They were all of the seventh-rank baleful ghost level, their might bolstered by three parts within the yin fiend qi. Unlike the baleful ghosts subdued by cultivators, these had bred within the cavern's yin qi, and they merely plundered the aura of all living things by instinct. They would also fight and kill one another, relying on devouring other yin spirits to strengthen themselves without end. A pack of seventh-rank baleful ghosts all stood at roughly the same level, none able to overcome the others, and only for that reason could they gather into one swarm. Zhou Wuji thought of the first seventh-rank baleful ghost he had ever killed. It had been listless and spiritless, yet it had directly promoted him to the eighth-rank Qi Ingestion. That had been last September—only nine months ago, less than a year. Thinking of these things, he couldn't help but feel a touch of emotion. The seventh-rank baleful ghosts before him had no definite form, yet they all exuded a kind of frenzied, savage ferocity. There were nineteen baleful ghosts in all, and any one of them was far stronger than the first one he had killed. Any seventh-rank cultivator, faced with such a number of baleful ghosts in a place like the cavern, could only steer clear of their attacks. But Zhou Wuji felt these baleful ghosts were too weak, of little value to him. The Lower Court's Heart Inquest Mirror couldn't see the second layer, so he needn't worry about anything. He thought for a moment, then drew his sword three inches from its sheath. Stimulated by his true qi, a length of the water-like blade released a brilliant arc of sword-light that lit up the many ferocious baleful ghosts pouncing toward him. Within that brilliant divine light, the baleful ghosts instantly fell apart, evaporating into hundreds upon hundreds of streams of black smoke. When the sword-light's divine glow faded away, the whole swarm had vanished into nothing as well. With a chime, the three drawn inches of the blade slipped back into its sheath. Yet the pure yang qi released by the brilliant arc of sword-light did not disperse; instead, it left a scorching sword-mark several zhang long hanging in the empty air. The yin fiend qi was cold, and precisely because of that, this sword-mark stood out all the more—just as a burning torch flung onto ice and snow would leave an obvious scorch. Zhou Wuji was very satisfied with this result. He hadn't roused the White Rainbow Sword's Pojun Rune; he had merely used his true qi to release the blade's pure yang nature, and yet he could easily suppress seventh-rank baleful ghosts. Greedy for money though Zhiyuan was, he had told no lie about this White Rainbow Sword. It truly did harbor the pure yang nature within; Zhou Wuji need only resonate his aura with the blade to stir its pure yang nature, strengthening his spirit and body and suppressing all manner of yin spirits and impurities. A sword of such a level truly deserved to be called a treasure sword. Though the price of fifty thousand taels of silver was steep, it was still value for money... On the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment, the whole swarm of baleful ghosts were each worth a little over three taels, and could be converted into primordial profound qi. Zhou Wuji converted the highest among them—a baleful ghost worth three taels six qian—and as the golden light of the primordial profound qi descended, his total true qi rose by a little over ten points. He had long been prepared for this; as his cultivation climbed higher and higher, ordinary ghost creatures held little value for him anymore. He converted a few more baleful ghosts, and his total true qi rose by thirty points, after which it could rise no further. Zhou Wuji fed the rest of the baleful ghosts to the Five Yin Pouch. Though it wasn't enough to raise the pouch's quality, it was still a way of making use of waste. Having dealt with these baleful ghosts, he had spent less than five percent of his true qi; through a short session of breath regulation, Zhou Wuji would recover before long. As he continued deeper, Zhou Wuji came upon scattered baleful ghosts, among which were more than a few formidable ones approaching the sixth rank, yet none could withstand the White Rainbow Sword's radiance. The second layer was vast, and Zhou Wuji spent over two hours making a full circuit of it, without meeting a single sixth-rank ghost soldier. Clearly, the Lower Court was still quite diligent in this regard, regularly sweeping the first and second layers clean. Zhou Wuji reached the entrance to the third layer—a huge black pit plunging downward, like an evil ghost gaping its mouth wide, waiting for someone to deliver themselves to it. On the rock walls to the left and right of the entrance, the stone had peeled away layer by layer, and not a trace of runes could be seen anymore. The yin fiend qi was simply too fierce; even the rock that bore the runes would be corroded, so naturally these runes could not endure. Had it been a few days ago, Zhou Wuji might have had to weigh the risks, but now his Yin Thunder technique was perfected, and he had the White Rainbow Sword besides. Even meeting a fourth-rank ghost marshal, he would dare to give battle. The cavern's environment was peculiar; no matter how high the level of the yin spirits bred within, they ultimately possessed little intelligence, let alone any inheritance. But what he cultivated was the Arctic Sect's supreme secret art, which specialized in countering yin spirits and evil entities—if he still couldn't best fourth- or fifth-rank ghost creatures, he would have cultivated in vain. The earthly fiend qi on the third layer had already taken on the form of black vapor, as if it were something substantial. The Six Yang Dharma Eyes were greatly restricted here as well, and with the complex terrain, Zhou Wuji's field of view was only about ten zhang or so. Shortly after Zhou Wuji entered the third layer, he saw that the dense yin fiend qi had seeped into the stone walls, dyeing them pitch black. Touching one lightly with his hand, he found the wall hard and icy cold, just like a great block of black ice. He could sense that the yin fiend qi here already held a greater share of earthly fiend qi. Old Dragon Island, too, had earthly fiend qi spilling everywhere; the difference was that the earthly fiend qi on Old Dragon Island blazed like fire, while the earthly fiend qi here was abnormally cold and dark. The Myriad Ghosts Cavern was only a few dozen li from Old Dragon Island, yet the two kinds of earthly fiend qi were utterly different, and he didn't know whether there was some connection between them. If the earthly fiend qi on Old Dragon Island never dispersed, then Old Dragon Island, too, would in time become a ghost island. And for Yunyang City, so close at hand, that would be an enormous trouble. Just as Zhou Wuji was pondering the relationship between the two kinds of earthly fiend qi, a pitch-black ghost soldier charged out of the black vapor. It was mainly because Zhou Wuji's qi and blood were boiling like fire, which held an enormous attraction for ghost creatures. The ghost soldier stood about a zhang tall, with a pair of red eyes. It had not condensed into any weapon, and its body was dark black, gleaming with a metallic luster, looking exceptionally solid. This was very like the ghost soldiers Zhou Wuji had seen before; it was only that ghost soldiers controlled by others seemed more nimble, whereas the one before him was extremely clumsy and direct. Zhou Wuji simply drew his sword and slashed. Before the pouncing ghost soldier could even react, its body was already severed cleanly in two. The ghost soldier's spirit was cut away, and its broken body swiftly melted into black smoke and scattered. On the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment, there was now one more ghost soldier, worth four taels one qian. Zhou Wuji couldn't help but rejoice—primordial profound qi of four taels or more was still useful to him. If he could slay a hundred or so ghost soldiers, breaking his true qi through three thousand wouldn't be difficult at all. And if there were a fifth-rank ghost general, that would be even better...