350: The Four Heavenly Venerables of the Soul Palace

Venerable Donghua's gaze swept over the bodies of Eighth Heavenly Venerable and Ninth Celestial on the ground, which, though devoid of their souls, still contained immense power of qi and blood.

The physical body of a Dou Zun Expert is a rare treasure in itself; whether used to refine high-grade puppets, as a catalyst for certain special elixirs, or as a bargaining chip in transactions with powerful entities, it holds considerable value.

With a flick of his sleeve, the two Heavenly Venerable corpses were stored in his storage ring. Perhaps in the future, encountering those old monsters who need physical bodies for rebirth, these could be exchanged for something good.

Then, his eyes fell upon the two ancient-looking rings on their fingers, subtly emanating spatial fluctuations and soul-blocking auras—high-grade storage rings.

Venerable Donghua grabbed them through the air, and the two storage rings flew into his hand.

The soul protection enchantments on them were quite intricate; if their owners were alive, forcibly breaking them would be no easy task. But now that their owners' souls were annihilated, these rootless enchantments were like paper windows before Venerable Donghua's vast, sea-like First Revolution Dou Zun Peak Soul Power, easily pierced.

With a barely audible soft 'hiss', the last soul imprint on the storage rings was completely erased.

Venerable Donghua's Soul Power probed inside them.

Even with his extensive knowledge, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

The wealth of these Eighth and Ninth Celestials was indeed astonishing!

The internal space of the storage rings was vast, with mountains of gold coins emitting dazzling light, and various rare metals and high-grade medicinal ingredients, seldom seen elsewhere, neatly categorized. Their sheer quantity and high quality were enough to make any first-rate power envious.

There were also many bottles and jars containing the Hall of Souls' unique yin-cold elixirs used to nourish souls. Although Venerable Donghua himself had no use for them, the energy contained within them was undeniably real.

However, what most caught his attention were several items quietly suspended in the center of the storage ring's space.

A skull emitting a strange black glow, seemingly a powerful soul attack treasure.

A black banner inscribed with countless ghostly figures, exuding an ominous aura, clearly an evil artifact that had devoured countless living souls. There were also several dark-colored scrolls, made of an unknown material.

Venerable Donghua's Soul Power focused on those scrolls.

One of them, completely black, with the ancient characters for "Soul Devouring Nether Palm" on its cover, automatically flew into his hand.

As he unrolled the scroll, a cold and sinister aura assaulted him.

The opening clearly stated: Earth Rank High Tier Dou Technique!

Venerable Donghua quickly skimmed through it. This "Soul Devouring Nether Palm" was indeed profound and incredibly powerful, but the more he read, the more his brow furrowed.

The cultivation method for this Dou Technique was extremely sinister; it didn't rely on gradual progress through one's own Dou Qi, but rather required devouring and refining a large number of soul bodies to condense Nether Death Qi!

The palm power cultivated not only possessed immense destructive force but could also directly corrode and devour the opponent's soul!

The end of the scroll even mentioned that if one could master the first three realms, with three palm imprints superimposed, its power could briefly rival a Heaven Rank Dou Skill!

"Cultivating skills with souls, increasing power by devouring souls. As expected of the Hall of Souls' methods."

Venerable Donghua snorted coldly.

Although he disdained such evil practices that went against heavenly principles, some of the techniques for utilizing Soul Power contained within it could be referenced.

As for cultivating it?

He disdained to use such cruel methods to enhance his strength.

However, the scroll itself was a significant gain, whether for research or trade.

He inventoried the items in the storage ring, putting the valuable ones into his own storage ring, and temporarily sealing away the sinister items.

At this moment, Mu Qingxian's complexion had regained some color with the help of the elixir. Although the poison was not yet cleared, she could move freely.

She looked at Venerable Donghua and thanked him solemnly once again.

"Senior, shall we depart for Sound Valley now? This junior will certainly do her utmost to repay senior's kindness."

She glanced at the Sect Master of the Five Poisons Sect, who was respectfully waiting beside them, with a complicated expression.

Although this person was once an accomplice, his defection at the last moment could be considered a meritorious deed. How to deal with him still depended on senior's wishes.

Venerable Donghua nodded and said to the Sect Master of the Five Poisons Sect.

"You come along too."

He needed someone to handle miscellaneous tasks, and the Sect Master of the Five Poisons Sect seemed to be sensible for now.

"Yes! I will obey the Venerable's decree!"

The Sect Master of the Five Poisons Sect was overjoyed and quickly bowed in response.

Venerable Donghua then casually struck Su Ning, who was spatially confined, with a seal, completely sealing her Dou Qi, and tossed her to the Sect Master of the Five Poisons Sect like a chicken.

"Keep a close watch."

"Senior, rest assured!"

The Sect Master of the Five Poisons Sect quickly took her, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes. He had no goodwill towards this traitor who had caused today's situation.

Only then did Venerable Donghua say to Mu Qingxian.

"Valley Master Mu, please lead the way."

Mu Qingxian, suppressing her injuries, waved her jade hand, and a gentle sound wave Dou Qi enveloped the group, transforming into a streak of light, and swiftly sped towards the direction of Sound Valley.

At the same time, countless miles away from the Illusion Sound Platform, deep within a gloomy mountain range perpetually shrouded in gray mist, a majestic, pitch-black grand palace was hidden.

In a secret chamber deep within the palace, space suddenly twisted, and a disheveled figure, whose aura was extremely weak, stumbled out. It was Seventh Heavenly Venerable, Xu Jinchuan, who had barely escaped with his life by burning his essence blood at any cost!

"Pfft!"

As soon as he appeared, Xu Jinchuan could no longer suppress the injuries within his body, and another mouthful of dark red blood spewed out, even mixed with fragments of internal organs.

His face was as pale as paper, his aura chaotic. His cultivation, originally at the Nine-Star Dou Zun Peak, had now fallen to the level of a newly entered Nine-Star. Without decades of arduous cultivation, it would likely be difficult to recover.

He forced himself to sit cross-legged, took out an elixir emanating a strong bloody scent, and consumed it, slightly stabilizing his injuries. His eyes were filled with the fear of having escaped death and overwhelming hatred!

"Venerable Donghua, Sound Valley, if this grudge is not avenged, I, Xu Jinchuan, swear I am not human!"

He gritted his teeth, his voice hoarse like a malevolent spirit.

After a brief period of adjustment, Xu Jinchuan dared not delay. He struggled to get up and contacted the Hall of Souls headquarters through the communication array in the secret chamber.

Such a major defeat—two Heavenly Venerables fallen, one severely injured, the target Valley Master of Sound Valley not captured, and a mysterious powerful enemy appearing out of nowhere—he had to report it immediately.

The array light flickered, and after a moment, a blurry phantom, shrouded in deeper darkness, appeared on the array's light screen.

Although his face could not be seen, the vast and terrifying pressure, like an abyss, made the severely injured Xu Jinchuan's soul tremble, even across the endless space.

This was the Fourth Heavenly Venerable of the Hall of Souls!

A formidable existence whose strength far surpassed his, having long stepped into the realm of a high-grade Transcendent Dou Zun!

"Old Seven?"

The blurry phantom emitted a low voice, carrying a hint of displeasure.

"What troubles you? Weren't you with Old Eight and Old Nine to deal with that Heavenly Sound Spirit Body from Sound Valley?"

Xu Jinchuan dared not conceal anything, enduring the humiliation, and reported everything that had happened at the Illusion Sound Platform in its entirety: including Venerable Donghua's disguise, his revealed First Revolution Dou Zun Peak cultivation, the Five Poisons Sect's defection, the capture of Eighth Heavenly Venerable and Ninth Celestial, and his own narrow escape by burning his essence blood.

After he finished speaking, the secret chamber fell into a dead silence.

The blurry phantom showed no reaction, but Xu Jinchuan could feel that the surrounding air seemed to have solidified, and an invisible pressure almost suffocated him.

After a long while, the Fourth Heavenly Venerable's voice, devoid of discernible emotion, slowly sounded, yet it carried a coldness that chilled Xu Jinchuan to the bone.

"Three against one, and the opponent was even afflicted with the Soul-Corroding Miasma. The result? Old Eight and Old Nine were lost, and you came back like a stray dog to report?"

"Xu Jinchuan, you three brothers are truly useless."