96: Pure Yang Pearl

After walking out of the Ten Thousand Corpse Cave, Zhang Daobai took out a Body Cleansing Talisman and slapped it onto his body.

Although he hadn't participated in the battle, he always felt as if his body was tainted with corpse poison and Evil Qi.

After cleaning himself up, Zhang Daobai prepared to head straight back, so he pulled out his spirit boat.

"Let's go, we'll head back and turn in the mission first."

Zhang Daobai glanced in the direction of the Yinyue Mountain Range before leaping onto the spirit boat.

Once Lin Luoxue had also boarded, Zhang Daobai started the spirit boat and flew toward Thousand Star Lake.

Before they had flown far, Zhang Daobai found a desolate valley and poured out the corpse nurturing liquid.

As the corpse nurturing liquid was poured out, it immediately emitted a large amount of corpse poison and Evil Qi, corroding and rotting all the surrounding trees and spreading rapidly.

However, Zhang Daobai didn't care; since this place was so close to the Yinyue Mountain Range, it was considered the territory of evil Cultivators, so he didn't mind polluting it.

After emptying the corpse nurturing liquid, Zhang Daobai continued flying toward Thousand Star Lake.

But not long after, he encountered two groups of people in the middle of a fierce fight.

Oh, no! It wasn't exactly a fierce fight; it was more like one group was hunting down the other.

From the billows of black smoke emanating from the pursuers, Zhang Daobai could tell at a glance that they were definitely evil Cultivators.

As for the group being pursued, they all wore uniform clothing and were likely from a certain Sect.

Soon, the group being hunted noticed Zhang Daobai's spirit boat in the distance and hurriedly shouted, "Fellow Daoist, please help! Help us slay these evil Cultivators! We are Disciples of the Fentian Sect, and we will surely reward you handsomely afterward!"

At the same time he spoke, the evil Cultivators pursuing them also noticed the spirit boat.

However, when they saw it was just a small spirit boat, they immediately felt at ease.

After all, how high could the cultivation and status of a Cultivator who traveled in such a small spirit boat be?

With the strength of their two Golden Core Stage evil Cultivators, they could easily handle such a minor issue.

Thinking of this, the group of evil Cultivators continued their pursuit of the Fentian Sect Disciples.

As for Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue, they didn't plan to bother with them for the time being; since they were evil Cultivators, they didn't need to keep their identities secret, so it didn't matter if they were seen.

Zhang Daobai looked at the strength of both sides and also didn't plan to intervene for now.

Because the evil Cultivators had two Golden Core Stage evil Cultivators, while the Fentian Sect only had one Golden Core Stage Cultivator.

Without exposing Ghost Shadow, helping them would mean letting Lin Luoxue take a risk.

Zhang Daobai didn't want her to take risks, so he didn't plan to act for the time being.

Helping them was a favor, while not helping was his duty; Zhang Daobai felt no psychological burden.

Seeing that the person in the distant spirit boat had no intention of acting and even seemed to want to turn around,

the people from the Fentian Sect grew anxious, because if the fight continued like this, only death awaited them.

And they had no idea when their reinforcements would arrive.

Seeing this, the sole Golden Core Elder among the Fentian Sect group hurriedly shouted, "Fellow Daoist, wait!"

"If you help us escape this danger, we are willing to give you three hundred thousand Spirit Stones as a reward!"

Three hundred thousand Spirit Stones!

If it were before, Zhang Daobai might have agreed, but since he had raided the Green Wood Stream Zhang Family, he no longer had a great need for such an amount of Spirit Stones.

"Haha! No one can save you!"

The evil Cultivators on the opposite side laughed triumphantly upon seeing this.

"Obediently enter my soul refining bag!"

An evil Cultivator held a cloth bag with black patterns on a white background and tried to capture a Fentian Sect Disciple.

Seeing that the spirit boat still showed no movement, the struggling Fentian Sect Elder could only use his final bargaining chip.

"Plus a pure yang pearl!"

pure yang pearl!

On the spirit boat, Zhang Daobai stopped his movements upon hearing this, his heart instantly stirred.

The pure yang pearl was a treasure born from Pure Yang Fire; it had effects such as restraining Evil Qi, nurturing the Soul, and increasing fire attribute affinity, making it a priceless treasure.

If he had the pure yang pearl, Zhang Daobai wouldn't need to use evil dispelling talismans when facing Evil Qi anymore.

Furthermore, the pure yang pearl was an auxiliary treasure that helped with Alchemy, making it extremely practical.

"Do you have the confidence to block one Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator?"

Zhang Daobai thought of this and then turned to ask Lin Luoxue.

"Yes!"

Lin Luoxue responded confidently, her eyes filled with Battle Intent.

"Still unwilling?"

Looking at the motionless spirit boat, a hint of despair flashed in the eyes of the Fentian Sect Elder.

Looking at the Disciples behind him, the Fentian Sect Elder decided to make a desperate choice.

His spiritual energy suddenly surged, and his eyes were filled with madness as he looked at the two Golden Core Stage evil Cultivators in front of him.

"Not good! This old man wants to self-detonate!"

A Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator turned pale with fright and shouted a warning.

The other evil Cultivators' expressions changed one after another; if they were caught in the self-detonation of a Golden Core Stage Cultivator, they would be heavily injured if not dead.

Just then, a golden Sword Qi suddenly descended from the sky, landing on one of the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivators.

Even though this Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator had already mounted a defense, a hideous bloody gash was still carved into him.

"Who is it!"

The ambushed Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator looked angrily in the direction the Sword Qi had come from.

He saw Lin Luoxue, dressed in white and surrounded by Golden Thunder, flying over from the distance.

Seeing reinforcements arrive, the Fentian Sect Elder stopped his desperate move and hurriedly swung the battle halberd in his hand, launching a sneak attack on the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator who was looking at Lin Luoxue.

"Old dog! You want to sneak attack me too!"

The Fentian Sect's Cultivation Technique was full of Pure Yang Breath, which made evil Cultivators very sensitive, and he instantly noticed the Fentian Sect Elder's actions.

Seeing that the newcomer was only a Late Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator, the two Golden Core Stage evil Cultivators' eyes flashed with a hint of contempt.

Meanwhile, the eyes of the Fentian Sect Disciples were also filled with disappointment.

"Little girl! You came here yourself, don't blame me!"

A Purple Mansion Stage Perfection evil Cultivator rushed toward Lin Luoxue with a lewd smile, holding a black rope in his hand.

Lin Luoxue remained silent, her eyes filled with cold killing intent.

"Golden Sword Evil-Breaking Slash!"

In an instant, a flash of Golden Thunder appeared, transforming into a golden Sword Qi.

"Evil-Warding Golden Thunder!"

Looking at the golden Sword Qi before him, which carried a majestic aura like a natural enemy, the evil Cultivator holding the rope suddenly felt like a mouse seeing a cat.

"dragon binding rope! Go!"

Looking at the golden Sword Qi close at hand, the evil Cultivator holding the rope could only brace himself and throw the rope in his hand.

After the black rope left his hand, it instantly transformed into a flood dragon made of black Qi.

The moment the dragon binding rope collided with the golden Sword Qi, the rope, which could trap Purple Mansion Stage Cultivators, was instantly sliced apart.

Seeing his beloved treasure cut in two, the evil Cultivator didn't even have time to feel distressed before he felt a sharp pain in his chest.

Looking down, the tip of a sword had pierced through his heart, and the Evil-Warding Golden Thunder lingering on the blade was frantically destroying his body.

"Ugh..."

He wanted to say something, but found he didn't even have the strength to speak.

As the longsword was pulled out of his chest, his life was rapidly drained away.

After pulling out her spirit sword, Lin Luoxue waved her hand and stored the evil Cultivator's corpse into her storage ring.

Then, she set her sights on the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator who had just been wounded by a sword strike.

As she fixed her gaze on that Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator, he also focused his gaze on her.

"Evil-Warding Golden Thunder, little girl, you have some tricks! But if you want to target me, you're still a bit too green!"

The Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator sneered contemptuously upon seeing this.

It was true that Evil-Warding Golden Thunder had a restraining effect on them as evil Cultivators and could deal more damage.

But there was a huge gap in Realm between Lin Luoxue and him; he didn't believe she could leap across a major Realm to strike upward.

"Little girl! Today, this old man will teach you a lesson! I'll let you know the meaning of hierarchy!"

Having said that, his figure blurred like a phantom as he rushed toward Lin Luoxue.

"Golden Thunder Illuminates the World!"

Lin Luoxue pointed her sword directly at the sky, and in an instant, the sky was filled with Golden Thunder, causing all the evil Cultivators present to tremble and feel an inexplicable panic.

"Haha! Ghost Shadow Soul Devour!"

A cold, sinister laugh rang out, and the phantom the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator had transformed into rapidly expanded.

It turned into a terrifying Ghost Shadow dozens of meters high, opening its abyss-like black mouth to bite toward Lin Luoxue.

"Fall!"

Facing the massive Ghost Shadow, Lin Luoxue didn't panic at all and decisively swung down the sword in her hand at the Ghost Shadow.

"Boom!"

In an instant, a deafening thunderclap rang out, and the Golden Thunder in the sky condensed into a thunder dragon, diving toward the Ghost Shadow.

The dazzling golden light caused both groups of people in the distance to subconsciously avert their eyes.

The dazzling Golden Thunder dragon accurately struck the massive Ghost Shadow, instantly turning into a giant lightning net that enveloped the phantom.

Thunder was naturally a restraint for dark and evil things, let alone Evil-Warding Golden Thunder.

Enveloped by the lightning net, the Ghost Shadow let out a painful shriek, and the black Qi on its body was rapidly obliterated by the Golden Thunder.

Feeling the pressure from the Evil-Warding Golden Thunder, a look of gravity flashed in the eyes of the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator within the Ghost Shadow.

"Ghost Shadow Soul-Screeching Sound!"

The next second, a piercing shriek emitted from the Ghost Shadow's mouth, forming a physical sound wave that rushed toward Lin Luoxue.

Seeing this, Lin Luoxue hurriedly tried to use her movement technique to dodge, but the speed of the sound was still a step faster than her.

"Pfft!"

The piercing shriek caused Lin Luoxue's vision to go dark for a moment, and her brain was instantly filled with a strong, sharp pain.

Her chest also felt tight, and she opened her mouth to spit out a mouthful of blood.

The Ghost Shadow Soul-Screeching Sound was a Soul attack; although Lin Luoxue also cultivated the Star Contemplation Diagram, she still couldn't be immune to this attack.

"Haha! Die!"

Seeing Lin Luoxue's Divine Soul shaken, the Golden Core Stage Cultivator within the Ghost Shadow quickly solidified the Ghost Shadow's body, forcibly breaking through the lightning net's restraint and rushing toward Lin Luoxue.

Just when he thought he could end Lin Luoxue's life in one stroke,

suddenly, he seemed to see something flicker before his eyes; in an instant, the Ghost Shadow body protecting him was split open, and a deep wound that reached the bone appeared on his own body.

"What the hell is that!?"

After feeling the sharp pain from his chest, he quickly stopped, looked down at his chest, and then hurriedly looked around.

Soon, he saw a man appear out of nowhere not far from Lin Luoxue.

Zhang Daobai gave him a cold look before taking out a soul nurturing pill and feeding it to Lin Luoxue.

The soul nurturing fruit tree he had obtained in the Sunset Mountain Range had already flowered and borne fruit once after being transplanted into the spirit taming space.

Using those soul nurturing fruits, Zhang Daobai had found someone to refine a batch of soul nurturing pills.

After taking the soul nurturing pill, Lin Luoxue quickly recovered. Her eyes were full of apology as she looked at Zhang Daobai and said, "I'm sorry, I let you down."

"That was an area-of-effect Soul attack; it's not your fault," Zhang Daobai shook his head and comforted her.

"I want to continue."

Lin Luoxue wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, her gaze fixed firmly on the Ghost Shadow in the distance.

"Alright."

Zhang Daobai didn't say much more and left the area directly.

In the distance, the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator within the Ghost Shadow cast a cautious glance at the spot where Zhang Daobai had vanished, instantly understanding Lin Luoxue's intentions.

"Wanting revenge? Ridiculous!"

After sneering at Lin Luoxue, the Ghost Shadow opened its massive mouth again, preparing to let out a shriek.

"Golden Thunder Pierces the Clouds!"

Seeing this, Lin Luoxue suddenly raised her hand and struck with her sword, condensing a golden sword shadow that shot towards the Ghost Shadow's gaping maw.

The golden sword shadow arrived in an instant, piercing through the Ghost Shadow's mouth. This caused the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator inside to suffer a backlash, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

She had learned this move from Zhang Daobai; it was the same one he had used back then to kill the Blazing Fire Rampage Bear.

She heard it was called... Deep Throat? It felt a bit strange.

On the other side, after leaving Lin Luoxue, Zhang Daobai arrived at another part of the battlefield.

Relying on the suppression of the Evil-Warding Golden Thunder against evil Cultivators, Zhang Daobai killed three Purple Mansion Stage evil Cultivators in a row, greatly reducing the pressure on the Fentian Sect Disciples.

Seeing the situation slowly begin to reverse, the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator fighting the Fentian Sect Elder grew anxious.

"You old ghost! What are you doing? Hurry up and come help!"

He shouted while looking back, only to be shocked to find that the 'old ghost' he was calling for seemed to have truly become a dead ghost.

On the distant battlefield, Lin Luoxue had condensed hundreds of golden sword shadows, which were now raining down upon the Ghost Shadow like a torrential downpour.

Each of these sword shadows contained Golden Thunder Sword Intent and Geng Metal Sword Intent. They ignored armor and defenses, instantly turning the massive Ghost Shadow into a sieve.

"How is this possible! Two types of Sword Intent!"

The Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator, his body pierced by over a dozen golden sword shadows, looked at Lin Luoxue with eyes full of disbelief.

For an ordinary Sword Cultivator, comprehending even a single type of Sword Intent was an extremely difficult task.

What he never expected was that Lin Luoxue, at such a young age, had actually comprehended two.

Especially that Geng Metal Sword Intent; it treated his defenses as if they were nothing, instantly piercing through both the Ghost Shadow and his physical body.

"Detonate!"

Lin Luoxue ignored his shock and calmly uttered a single word.

As her voice fell, the golden sword shadows embedded in the Ghost Shadow and the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator exploded simultaneously.

The two types of Sword Intent condensed within the sword shadows began to frantically destroy everything in their vicinity.

Under the rampaging destruction of the Sword Intent, the Ghost Shadow was sliced into fragments, turning into a cloud of black mist that completely dissipated.

The Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator within the Ghost Shadow was now riddled with over a dozen bloody holes, drenched in blood, his aura weakened to the absolute limit.

"Slay!"

Lin Luoxue didn't give the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator a chance to say any last words, immediately driving her Sword Intent to strike him with all her might.

Seeing this from a distance, the other Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator was filled with appalling shock.

He hadn't expected that an Early Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator could actually be slain by a little girl at the Late Purple Mansion Stage.

At this moment, he really wanted to grab that dead ghost by the collar and ask him: Do you even know how to play? Getting killed by someone two minor Realms below you?

However, he soon had no more questions, because after Lin Luoxue collected the dead ghost's body, she raised her sword and charged toward him.

When the Evil-Warding Golden Thunder and Geng Metal Sword Intent intertwined and struck his body, he understood everything.

With Lin Luoxue's help, the Fentian Sect Elder soon used his halberd to pierce the chest of the last Golden Core Stage evil Cultivator, ending his life.

Without the suppression of the Golden Core Stage evil Cultivators, the remaining evil Cultivators were quickly rounded up and wiped out.

After the battle ended, Zhang Daobai unceremoniously collected the corpses of the evil Cultivators he had killed.

The surrounding Fentian Sect Disciples saw this but did not step forward to stop him.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoists, for your assistance. If not for you, we might have been completely wiped out this time."

After the Fentian Sect Elder took a Medicinal Pill to stabilize his injuries, he flew over to thank Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue.

"No need for thanks; it was your sincerity that moved me," Zhang Daobai said to him with a smile.

"Sincerity?"

The Fentian Sect Elder's eye corner twitched slightly upon hearing this. If he hadn't offered such a high price, these two would probably be dozens of miles away by now.

However, the Fentian Sect Elder held no resentment; after all, he was indeed the one asking for help.

Furthermore, the strength shown by Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue earned his respect.

In time, the future of these two would definitely be brilliant.

Soon, the Fentian Sect Elder took out a storage ring and produced the reward he had promised Zhang Daobai.

"This is the thank-you gift I promised you two beforehand. I hope you Fellow Daoists will accept it."

Although Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue bore no obvious Sect or Family emblems,

The Fentian Sect Elder could see the temperament of a Sect Disciple in Lin Luoxue—and a high-status one at that.

Therefore, he guessed that Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue likely came from some major Sect.

It was precisely for this reason that he didn't even consider the idea of going back on his word.

Looking at the storage ring in the Fentian Sect Elder's hand, a flash of disappointment crossed Zhang Daobai's eyes.

Originally, he had planned that if the Fentian Sect Elder tried to renege, he could use that as an excuse to kill them all and achieve a 'winner takes all' outcome.

But now that the Fentian Sect Elder had honestly handed over the reward, he had no reason to make a move.

*Sigh, you're making it hard for me to find an excuse to strike.*

Zhang Daobai sighed inwardly as he took the storage ring and checked its contents.

The pure yang pearl was a fiery red bead, looking similar to a pearl, with flame-like patterns on its surface.

Zhang Daobai took out the pure yang pearl and placed it in his palm; he immediately felt a warmth spread through his body, as if he were sunbathing.

"This pure yang pearl is indeed quite unique."

As Zhang Daobai spoke, he discreetly sized up the Fentian Sect Elder opposite him.

Seeing that the man still didn't show any signs of abnormality, he could only regretfully put the pure yang pearl away.

Soon, Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue left the area. Watching them go, the Fentian Sect Elder couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Elder, are we just going to let them leave like that?"

Just then, a Fentian Sect Disciple approached the Elder and asked with some confusion.

A cold light flashed in the Fentian Sect Elder's eyes upon hearing this, and he turned to ask, "Otherwise, what did you want to do?"

The Disciple didn't notice the change in the Elder's expression and continued on his own, "They are so powerful, why didn't we keep them to travel with us? We would be much safer that way."

Hearing this, the Fentian Sect Elder was stunned, clearly not expecting him to say that.

"And what reason would you have to make them stay?"

Though surprised by the suggestion, the Fentian Sect Elder still retorted irritably.

"Give them more benefits?" Thinking of that, he yelled, "Get lost!"

"Alright!"

On the other side, Zhang Daobai stood on the deck of the spirit boat, playing with the storage ring in his hand.

"What? Are you waiting for them to chase after us?"

Lin Luoxue leaned against the cabin doorframe, looking at Zhang Daobai with a smile.

After spending so much time together, Lin Luoxue was naturally familiar with Zhang Daobai's black-bellied personality and could roughly guess his thoughts.

"Sigh, what a pity," Zhang Daobai shook his head in disappointment.

*Why is it that none of them are falling for it?*

First the Chen Family of Ten Thousand Peach Mountain, and now this group from the Fentian Sect—none of them follow the tropes.

Looking at Zhang Daobai's expression, Lin Luoxue couldn't help but chuckle. Others feared Robber Cultivators, but Zhang Daobai actually looked forward to them.

The journey back to Thousand Star Lake was relatively smooth, and they didn't encounter any more danger.

However, just as they were about to reach Thousand Star Lake, Zhang Daobai's spirit boat was surrounded by several Robber Cultivators who suddenly appeared.

Looking at these Robber Cultivators, the corners of Zhang Daobai's mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly.

Lin Luoxue glanced at Zhang Daobai with a smile in her eyes before instantly looking at the surrounding Robber Cultivators with murderous intent.

"Hand over your contribution points and we'll let you leave safely. Otherwise, don't blame us for being ruthless!"

Among the five Robber Cultivators, the leader pointed a spirit sword at Zhang Daobai and threatened him.

Under normal circumstances, they didn't want to kill people. After all, if they let these people go, they would continue to take missions and earn more contribution points.

That way, they could harvest them again, maybe even two or three more times.

This was what they called 'harvesting leeks'!

But while they wanted to harvest leeks, Zhang Daobai wanted to pull them up by the roots.

As a practitioner of the 'Stealthy Way,' one must never let any enemy go, not even a potential one.

These five Robber Cultivators were all at the Purple Mansion Stage, but their cultivation was at Purple Mansion Perfection. Each of them carried a thick Evil Qi, clearly indicating they were not new to this.

"Ghost Shadow."

For the safety of the spirit boat, Zhang Daobai chose to let Ghost Shadow take action directly.

Seeing Zhang Daobai's calm confidence, the surrounding Robber Cultivators suddenly had an ominous premonition.

Before they could say anything else, a pitch-black claw instantly pierced through their Dantians.

Their Dantians shattered and their cultivation dissipated; soon, these five were tossed onto the spirit boat by Ghost Shadow.

Zhang Daobai then took out a dagger and began to interrogate them with practiced ease.