202: Chapter 202 Blood Pool Suddenly Appears

Ruan Xiao felt a surge of panic in his heart.

Cold sweat instantly broke out on his palms.

He had fabricated the lie about the Xuanyou Sect primarily to cover up the embarrassment of being toyed with by a Loose Cultivator, never imagining that Fan Lang would look into it so deeply.

Being questioned now, he could only brace himself and continue the lie, though his tone was inevitably a bit weak: "Revered Master, perhaps the Xuanyou Sect has been lacking these spiritual materials for their cultivation lately, or... maybe they are deliberately targeting our Lingxiao Sect to provoke us?"

Fan Lang's gaze suddenly darkened, and the Spiritual Qi around him condensed slightly. An invisible pressure weighed down on Ruan Xiao, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

"Provocation?" He gave a cold laugh, his tone carrying undisguised sarcasm.

"If the Xuanyou Sect truly had that kind of courage, they would have attacked our Lingxiao Sect's mountain gate openly long ago. Why would they hide their heads and show their tails, only daring to act like petty thieves in the shadows?"

Ruan Xiao's heart tightened. He quickly changed the subject: "Revered Master, perhaps it was the work of some arrogant subordinate within the Xuanyou Sect. This also shows how incredibly rampant the Xuanyou Sect is!"

Fan Lang listened and fell into deep thought for a moment.

Previously, the Qingyun Sect had wanted to join forces with them to deal with the Xuanyou Sect, and now the Xuanyou Sect was openly killing a Cultivator Family under the protection of their Sect.

But he still felt it was strange...

In a certain kingdom.

Smoke filled the air; the city had just fallen. Ye Xuan stood atop the dilapidated city wall. Beside him, his lieutenant, Guo Zhengning, said to him, "General Ye, the remnants in the city have been cleared out."

"Mhm," Ye Xuan responded calmly.

He had been campaigning non-stop, conquering another country within a year. He could be said to have lived up to his father's trust, searching for spirit mines within these nations.

"General! This is bad! Something has happened!" Suddenly, a soldier came running over, stumbling and shouting.

Ye Xuan turned quickly and saw the soldier's face was pale, as if he had been greatly frightened.

"What is it?"

The soldier panted heavily: "General! We found a massive Blood Pool in the palace! There are zombies inside!"

Ye Xuan held his sword and descended upon it, arriving at the palace within moments.

In a side hall that had already been cleared, a Blood Pool emitting a bloody stench abruptly appeared. Within it, several hideous Corpse People were roaring.

The surrounding soldiers, having never seen such a sight, were too terrified to approach.

Ye Xuan recalled that while he was attacking this country, a few people from the Xuanyou Sect who controlled Ghosts had appeared, but their strength was inferior to his, and he had slain them.

It seemed the ruler of this country had colluded with the people of the Xuanyou Sect to establish this Blood Pool here.

Without hesitation, Ye Xuan sent his sword flying. The blade churned within the Blood Pool, and in a short while, it had completely slaughtered the roaring Corpse People inside.

Just as the blade was about to fly back, a bone-chilling howl suddenly erupted from the Blood Pool, causing the spiritual power in Ye Xuan's hands to falter.

The surrounding soldiers were also terrified by this howl, their hearts and gall bladders nearly shattering with fear, and they dared not step forward.

Seeing this, Ye Xuan hurriedly recalled his sword: "All of you, retreat!"

But just as he finished speaking, the blood in the pool began to churn violently. Spirals of black Qi gushed out, and a pale, sharp claw suddenly reached out from within.

The sharp claw flew out of the Blood Pool, its entire form entwined with countless Blood-red Chains that seemed to be restraining it, preventing its escape.

Just this claw alone made Ye Xuan feel that things were taking a turn for the worse. He had been nearly invincible in his campaigns over the past few years and had never felt this panicked.

This Ghost Hand was extremely powerful. Though it appeared to be only half the length of Ye Xuan's body, it possessed the power of the Foundation Establishment stage.

It seemed those from the Xuanyou Sect had used some means to suppress it here.

Before Ye Xuan could think further, the arm instantly erupted with powerful might, snapping the iron chains that bound it and lunging toward Ye Xuan in a fierce attack.

Ye Xuan's eyes narrowed, and his spiritual power surged. Spiritual power rose from the surface of his body, and the sword in his hand hummed as it left its scabbard, blocking in front of him.

"Clang!"

The Ghost Hand and the sword collided with a boom. A violent, Yin-cold Force swept through the sword's body. The blue bricks beneath Ye Xuan's feet shattered inch by inch, and his figure was forced back several steps, his webbing between thumb and forefinger feeling slightly numb.

He was horrified; the strength of this Ghost Hand actually far exceeded his own!

The surrounding soldiers had long since turned pale with fright and scrambled out of the hall. In the vast side hall, only Ye Xuan remained alone to face this malevolent entity.

The Ghost Hand suspended in mid-air, black blood dripping from it and corroding the ground with a sizzling sound.

Without pausing, it continued to attack Ye Xuan. Its five fingers formed a claw, and with a shrill whistle, it lunged for Ye Xuan's head once more.

Ye Xuan tapped his foot and leaped, narrowly avoiding the strike. A stone pillar behind him was hit by the wind from the claw and exploded.

But Ye Xuan had no intention of retreating. Over the years, he had slain countless enemy generals and Cultivators. His Heart-Nature had long been tempered as hard as steel. Even facing a bizarre and malevolent entity, he did not shrink back in the slightest.

"Come on! Let me have a satisfying battle!" Ye Xuan shouted. His sword techniques were ruthless as he hacked away continuously, forcing the Ghost Hand back.

The aura around this Ghost Hand was terrifying, but since it was only a single hand, he still had the strength to fight it.

Until the blade pierced into the palm of the Ghost Hand.

"Sizzle!"

The Ghost Hand emitted a piercing sound like tearing steel. Black Yin Mist gushed from the wound, and the Ghost Hand's offensive suddenly stalled.

But before Ye Xuan could press his advantage, the Ghost Hand suddenly expanded, growing to several yards in size and pressing down like it would cover the sky.

Ye Xuan's pupils constricted. Knowing he couldn't take it head-on, he hastily retreated.

While dodging, Ye Xuan noticed a red rune flashing within the Ghost Hand.

Ye Xuan thought of how the Ghost Hand had been bound by Blood-red Chains. Could there be something special about this rune?

He used his spiritual power to activate the blood-colored rune. With the infusion of spiritual power, the rune immediately turned blood-red, and in an instant, several red chains shot out to bind it.

The once-arrogant Ghost Hand was pinned to the ground by the restraint of the Talismanic Incantation, unable to move.

Seeing this, Ye Xuan immediately channeled more spiritual power into the Talismanic Incantation.

It seemed that after he killed those people from the Xuanyou Sect, the Ghost Hand had broken free from the Talismanic Incantation and started attacking once the supply of spiritual power was cut off.

Ye Xuan didn't know the origin of this Ghost Hand, only that it was exceptionally bizarre. Fearing that he wouldn't be able to control the situation alone if this continued, he immediately blew a Bird Whistle to summon a crow.

He informed his father, Ye Jing, of the anomaly he had discovered.

Then, while the Ghost Hand was suppressed, Ye Xuan looked at the churning Blood Pool below and immediately summoned the Poisonous Variant Bee Queen from the Spirit Beast Bag in his sleeve.

Since his father had sent him out to campaign and find Spiritual Veins for the Family, the Poisonous Variant Bees had been entrusted to him.

The Poisonous Variant Bees were extremely sensitive to the smell of blood. Seeing the Blood Pool, they didn't care if it was poisonous or not and swarmed down to feed on it.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the blood in the pool quickly reached the bottom.

The empty Blood Pool was filled with bleached white bones and some strange blood runes, which appeared to be some kind of bizarre Formation.

Seeing this, Ye Xuan's eyes sharpened: "What on earth are these people from the Xuanyou Sect trying to do!"