85: Chapter 85 A Token as Proof, Secretly Entering the Underground Palace

Gui Li was a ready-made Elder of the Yinkui Sect, and with the command token of ten thousand ghosts—the sacred object of the Yinkui Sect—in hand, along with Su Waner's soul-calming ancient lamp to mask their aura, they could use this as proof.

By disguising themselves as members of the Yinkui Sect coming to "assist" or "monitor" the ritual, they might be able to infiltrate the underground palace, get close to the core, investigate the situation, and find an opportunity to sabotage it.

This was a risky move, but it was also the most viable method to get close to the truth and rescue the Sect Master. They needed to fully utilize Gui Li's knowledge and the authority of the command token of ten thousand ghosts.

"Gui Li, how much do you know about that underground palace within the Sect, and the Dark Hall's Deputy Hall Master?" Lin Ye asked in a deep voice.

Gui Li pondered for a moment and replied: "Master, I previously only heard Zhao Kun vaguely mention that there is an 'Ancient Demon-Suppressing Palace' left behind from ancient times within the Sect. Its location is extremely secretive and seems to be related to the Sword Tomb. As for the Dark Hall's Deputy Hall Master, Immortal Master Youquan, I have only heard his name. I know he is at the Golden Core Early Stage, but he keeps to himself and rarely appears in public. If he truly is the inside man for our Sect, then he must be the one leading this ritual."

An Ancient Demon-Suppressing Palace? Related to the Sword Tomb? Lin Ye's heart stirred. No wonder the command token of ten thousand ghosts could sense it and display images; perhaps it was related to the properties or the Seal of the palace itself.

"If I hold the 'command token of ten thousand ghosts', can I pose as a special envoy from the Yinkui Sect?" Lin Ye asked.

Gui Li looked at the pitch-black token, a trace of awe flashing in his eyes: "This token is a sacred object of the Demonic Lord; seeing the token is like seeing the Demonic Lord. Within the Sect, aside from the Sect Master and a few reclusive Grand Elders, no one would dare to question the identity of the token bearer. With this token, Master, if you claim to be an envoy of the Demonic Lord or a special envoy of the Sect, no one should dare to stop you. However... you must be careful with your words and actions, lest you reveal your true colors. The hierarchy within the Yinkui Sect is strict, and the aura of their Cultivation Technique is unique."

"That is not difficult." Lin Ye's thoughts stirred, and he channeled a wisp of the Great Sun Golden Flame's Origin aura from the yan jun token, carefully injecting it into the "command token of ten thousand ghosts".

The token vibrated slightly, and the dark gold patterns on its surface shimmered with light. It unexpectedly emitted a strange fluctuation that blended the extreme Yang with the extreme Yin, the majestic with the evil, completely masking and transforming Lin Ye's original aura, making it obscure, cold, and unfathomable.

He also had Su Waner use the special method of the soul-calming ancient lamp to restrain her aura as much as possible, disguising her as an attendant or maid. Gui Li, meanwhile, resumed the demeanor of a Yinkui Sect Elder.

"Let's go. Gui Li, you lead the way and act according to circumstances. Senior Sister Su, stay close to me; if the situation turns bad, activate the ancient lamp immediately to protect yourself and escape." Lin Ye instructed.

"Understood." The two replied.

The three no longer delayed and quickly returned along the original route (the Demon Hunting Path). Lin Ye's cultivation had broken through to the Qi Refining Ninth Stage, making him much faster. Carrying the two, it took less than a day to pass through the outer perimeter of the Ancient Demon Battlefield and return to a relatively safe area.

Lin Ye took out the "command token of ten thousand ghosts" and attempted to use it as a guide to sense the location of that "Demon-Suppressing Palace". The token indeed provided a faint direction, roughly in the direction of the Sword Tomb behind the Lingyun Sword Sect, but deeper underground.

They bypassed the front of the Sect and quietly infiltrated from the steep back mountain. Relying on Lin Ye's familiarity with the terrain and Gui Li's reconnaissance ability, they avoided several patrol posts and arrived near the entrance of the Sword Tomb.

"The token's sensing suggests the entrance to the underground palace seems to be somewhere inside the Sword Tomb." Lin Ye looked at the slightly hot token in his hand, then looked at the Formation at the entrance of the Sword Tomb.

"The Sword Tomb has a Guardian Spirit; how are we to enter?" Su Waner worried.

"Let's try this." Lin Ye once again activated the "command token of ten thousand ghosts", while simultaneously communicating with the Sword Tomb's Formation using his own "Lingyun Sword Intent" seed.

He was betting that since this underground palace was related to the Sword Tomb, perhaps the "command token of ten thousand ghosts", as an object that had once been suppressed or associated with it, coupled with his own Sword Intent, might have a special resonance.

Sure enough, the Sword Tomb's entrance Formation fluctuated slightly; it did not repel them, but instead opened a gap, even more smoothly than before. It seemed that the aura of the "command token of ten thousand ghosts" was defaulted by the Formation as "already Purified" or "the holder is harmless"?

The three flashed inside.

Inside the Sword Tomb, the ten thousand swords remained as they were, but that invisible gaze (the Guardian Spirit) did not seem to appear; perhaps it was in slumber, or perhaps it was being held back by the events in the underground palace.

Following the token's guidance, they did not head toward the core of the Sword Tomb, but instead traveled along a secluded, dust-covered side path toward the depths of the Sword Tomb. This side path seemed to have been abandoned long ago, and at its end was a seemingly ordinary rock wall covered in sword marks.

"This is the place." Lin Ye could feel that the token's sensing reached its peak here. He stepped forward and gently pressed the "command token of ten thousand ghosts" into an inconspicuous indentation in the center of the rock wall.

Hum!

The rock wall rippled like water, then recessed inward, revealing a downward, spiraling stone staircase passage that exuded a cold and ancient aura.

The walls on both sides of the passage were covered with dark gold runes similar to those on the "command token of ten thousand ghosts", only much dimmer.

"Let's go." Lin Ye stepped in first. Gui Li followed closely, and Su Waner brought up the rear, holding the lamp.

The stone steps wound downward, bottomless. The air was filled with dense Yin Qi, Evil Qi, and a faint, unsettling scent of sandalwood (which seemed to be some kind of evil ritual incense). The further down they went, the stronger that evil feeling became.

After descending about a thousand steps, a huge arched gate made entirely of black boulders appeared in front of them. The arch was tightly closed, and the two ancient Seal script characters for "Demon-Suppressing" were carved on the lintel, but the writing was covered by dark red stains, appearing eerie and ominous.

In front of the arch stood two guards in black robes, their faces hidden under hoods, their auras cold, both at the Foundation Establishment Early Stage.

When they saw the three people walking down the steps, especially when they felt the pure Yinkui Sect Cultivation Technique on Gui Li and the pitch-black token in Lin Ye's hand that radiated a heart-palpitating aura, they were visibly stunned, then bowed and saluted.

"Greetings, Special Envoy! Greetings, Elder Gui Li!" The guards' voices were dry.

"Hmph." Gui Li snorted coldly, putting on the airs of an Elder. "How is the ritual progressing? Where is Deputy Hall Master Youquan?"

"Reporting to Elder, the ritual has reached a critical stage. Hall Master Youquan is presiding at the core of the underground palace and cannot be disturbed." One guard said cautiously, though his gaze could not help but glance at the token in Lin Ye's hand, his eyes flashing with suspicion and awe.

"Insolent!" Gui Li shouted sternly. "The sacred object of the Demonic Lord is here; seeing the token is like seeing the Demonic Lord! I have come under the decree of the Demonic Lord to supervise the progress of the ritual and ensure nothing goes wrong! Do you dare to stop me?!"

The two guards trembled and exchanged a look, evidently frightened by the "sacred object of the Demonic Lord" and the "decree of the Demonic Lord". They were of low status, knowing only that this ritual was led by Hall Master Youquan and authorized by higher-ups, but they were unclear about the specific details. Seeing the legendary sacred object and an Elder of their own Sect, they dared not block them any further.

"We wouldn't dare! Please, Special Envoy, Elder!" The two guards hurriedly pushed open the heavy arched gate.

Behind the arch was an even wider corridor, with phosphor stones embedded in the walls on both sides, emitting a ghastly green light that bathed the passage in a sinister glow. At the end of the corridor, faint, obscure chanting and powerful energy fluctuations could be heard.

The three walked quickly through the corridor and arrived in a huge circular underground palace that seemed to have been formed by hollowing out the belly of the mountain.

The underground palace was dozens of zhang high, surrounded by eight black stone pillars carved with hideous ghosts, with eerie green flames burning at the tops of the pillars.

On the floor of the palace was drawn a huge, complex, and eerie Formation outlined in fresh blood. In the center of the Formation was the tall altar!

On the altar, Master Lingxiao lay quietly with his eyes closed, his body wrapped in countless dark red runic chains.

Above the altar, that eerie dark purple bead slowly rotated, continuously extracting the golden aura (True Essence, Divine Soul?) from Master Lingxiao's body, and striking darker runes into him one after another.

Around the altar, eight black-robed Cultivators with obscure auras sat in a circle, their hands forming Seals, chanting ancient and evil incantations while maintaining the operation of the Formation.

Their cultivation was shockingly all at the Foundation Establishment Stage! One of them, whose aura was the deepest and vaguely carried the pressure of a Golden Core, was none other than the Dark Hall's Deputy Hall Master, Immortal Master Youquan!

And directly in front of the altar stood three more people. One was the Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator from the Yinkui Sect whom they had seen before (Gui Li's superior?), and the other two were wearing the robes of Lingyun Sword Sect Elders, but Lin Ye did not recognize them; they were clearly also infiltrated inside men, both at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

At this moment, everyone's attention was focused on the altar and the ritual, and they did not immediately notice the arrival of Lin Ye and the other two.

Lin Ye swept his gaze across the scene, his heart stern. The opponent's strength was extremely formidable: one Golden Core, eleven Foundation Establishment! There was absolutely no chance of winning in a direct confrontation.

Suppressing the killing intent and anxiety in his heart, he held the "command token of ten thousand ghosts" and strode toward the altar with Gui Li and Su Waner, simultaneously using his spiritual power to carry his voice throughout the underground palace:

"Special Envoy of the Demonic Lord, here to monitor the ritual with the sacred object! Youquan, why has the ritual not been completed yet?"

The voice echoed in the underground palace, carrying the unique majesty and evil of the "command token of ten thousand ghosts".

The chanting came to an abrupt halt.

Everyone, including Immortal Master Youquan, turned their heads in astonishment to look at the three people who had suddenly appeared.

When they saw the pitch-black token in Lin Ye's hand and felt the supreme demonic might radiating from it, which made even their Cultivation Technique tremble, all the Yinkui Sect Cultivators, including Immortal Master Youquan, had eyes that erupted with unbelievable shock and fanaticism!

"The command token of ten thousand ghosts?! The sacred object has appeared?!" The Yinkui Sect Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator exclaimed involuntarily.

Immortal Master Youquan, however, had a gaze as sharp as a knife, staring fixedly at Lin Ye, then glancing at Gui Li, and finally landing on the token. His voice was hoarse and cold:

"Who are you, Your Excellency? Where did you obtain the sacred object? Why have I never received any decree from the Demonic Lord that a special envoy was coming?"