527: Chenjia Village

Murong Gu attempted to activate the special ability of the Divine Illumination Seamless Record—Soul Search!! His Divine Soul power formed a massive net that draped over these lost souls, and countless fragmented memory images flooded into his mind—

This was an ordinary village named "Chen Family Village," where the villagers worked at sunrise and rested at sunset, living a life of peaceful seclusion.

One late night a hundred years ago, a group of black-clad Cultivators broke into the village. Armed with Demonic Weapons, they herded the villagers into the ancestral hall at the edge of the village, using a bizarre ritual to forcibly extract their essence blood and Divine Soul power.

The villagers fought back desperately, but they were no match for the Cultivators. Ultimately, the entire clan was slaughtered, and their souls were imprisoned in this forest by demonic arts. Day after day, they were eroded by resentment and yin-cold energy, transforming into the Malevolent Ghosts they were today.

Over countless years, the souls were eroded by resentment and yin-cold energy, gradually losing their original consciousness until only instinctive resentment remained, turning them into immortal Malevolent Ghosts.

Murong Gu's heart sank as he instantly understood the cause and effect.

The immortality of the villagers was not their own characteristic, but rather stemmed from that demonic ritual that imprisoned them.

If he could not break the ritual and disperse their resentment, Murong Gu feared he would never be able to truly escape them; he would only have his True Essence drained by the endless stream of souls and eventually die here.

Murong Gu slowly sheathed the flowing cloud sword and circulated the Divine Illumination Seamless Record, transforming his Divine Soul power into countless fine threads that cautiously reached out toward the surrounding souls.

This time, he did not launch an attack, but instead attempted to soothe their resentment and feel their obsessions.

"I know your pain," Murong Gu's voice was gentle yet firm, wrapped in Divine Soul power as it reached the ears of every soul. "You were innocently persecuted. I will help you find the killers, break the ritual, and allow you to rest in peace and enter Reincarnation."

As his voice fell, the movements of the surrounding souls stiffened slightly. A trace of confusion seemed to flash in their hollow eyes, and the aura of poisonous resentment faded a little.

The child's soul stopped its attack, holding the female soul's head and standing blankly in place;

The old Clan Chief's soul leaned on his staff, his figure trembling slightly as if he were remembering something;

The hunter's soul lowered the hunting knife in his hand, the anger in his eyes gradually replaced by sorrow.

Murong Gu felt a surge of joy, knowing he had found the right direction.

Although these souls were eroded by resentment, a sliver of Mortal consciousness still remained. As long as he could resolve their hatred and break the demonic ritual imprisoning them, he could free them from their current plight.

He took a deep breath and looked into the depths of the mist. There, surely, lay the core of the demonic ritual and the key to breaking everything.

The female soul trapped in the "Yin-Locking Array" gradually quieted her shrieks. Her hollow eyes looked toward Murong Gu, and a faint murmur came from her Sea of Consciousness. It was no longer a frantic "Give me back my child," but a pleading "Save... save my child..."

Murong Gu's heart stirred, and he gave the woman a firm answer: "Rest assured, I will definitely rescue your child!"

...Following the guidance in the souls' memories, Murong Gu pushed aside a patch of bushes entwined with black mist and discovered a withered well half-hidden by weeds. The mouth of the well was over ten feet in diameter, the brickwork mottled and cracked, covered in dark green moss. Dark red marks remained on the edge of the well, looking like bloodstains that had dried for many years.

"There are strong Divine Soul fluctuations below. Is the ritual beneath the withered well?" Murong Gu's gaze narrowed. He cautiously extended his Divine Soul power toward the bottom of the well, but it was blocked by a thick barrier of demonic power. He could only vaguely perceive the surging, majestic blood energy and the auras of nine Cultivators of varying strengths below.

He lightly leaped onto the well's edge and tapped the brickwork with his fingertips condensed with True Essence. A dull sound echoed back, clearly indicating there was another world beneath the well.

Without the slightest hesitation, Murong Gu flipped and leaped into the withered well. His body fell rapidly through the darkness, the wind howling in his ears. After about several breaths, his feet landed steadily on a cold, hard surface.

This was a massive underground karst cave. Countless stalactites hung from the ceiling, their tips dripping water that smelled of blood, which hit the ground with a crisp sound.

A flat area had been cleared in the center of the cave. The ground was covered in dense, blood-colored patterns that eventually converged into a blood pool about five feet square. Dark red liquid swirled in the pool, emitting a nauseating stench of blood. Countless tiny black threads rose from the blood pool, piercing through the cave ceiling and reaching the Ghost Crying Forest above. It was these threads that continuously extracted the resentment and Divine Soul power of the souls.

Mounds of supplies were piled around the blood pool. On the left were crates of Spirit Crystals, and on the right were dry rations, fresh water, and warm clothing. There were even over a hundred jars of sealed strong liquor, clearly replenished year-round.

Leaning in a corner of the cave were eight black-clad Cultivators. The Black Wind Flowers on their lapels looked even more eerie under the reflection of the blood-light. All eight were at the Golden Core Peak stage, their bodies surrounded by a faint demonic power.

"Damn it, staying in this gods-forsaken place is driving me crazy." A tall, thin Cultivator kicked a crate of Spirit Crystals by his feet, his face full of complaints. "It's been nearly a hundred years. Guarding this damn blood pool every day—Cultivation is fast, but the boredom is unbearable."

"Isn't that the truth?" a round-faced Cultivator beside him chimed in. "The world outside is so lively. I heard the female Disciples of Falling Snow Pavilion are each as beautiful as flowers, yet we're stuck here, unable to even see the shadow of a woman." He rubbed his hands together, a lecherous glint flashing in his eyes. "If only there were some entertainment."

The others nodded one after another, their tones filled with impatience.

Just then, an old and majestic voice came from behind the blood pool: "What are you shouting for? It has only been a hundred years, and you've already lost your patience?"

The eight Cultivators instantly fell silent and quickly stood straight. The complaints on their faces vanished, replaced by awe.

An old man in black robes slowly walked out from behind the blood pool. His face was sinister, his hair gray yet he looked vigorous, and his eyes were cloudy yet pierced with a sharp, cold light. He was surrounded by a thick demonic power, his aura as majestic as a mountain. He was none other than an Elder of the Black Wind Stockade, the Nascent Soul Late Stage Cultivator Zhao Yao.

In his hand, he held a staff carved with skull patterns. With every step he took, the blood-colored patterns on the ground glowed faintly.

"Elder." The eight Cultivators bowed in unison, not daring to be the least bit negligent. The tall, thin Cultivator spoke up nervously: "The Disciples know their mistake. It's just that after guarding here for so long, it's inevitable to feel somewhat irritable."

Zhao Yao snorted coldly, tapping his staff lightly on the ground as a wave of demonic power spread out: "Irritable? Do you know that my Black Wind Stockade has spent a full two thousand years on today's layout!" He raised his hand and waved, and a yellowed ancient scroll flew out from his sleeve. The scroll unfurled to reveal a blood-colored map marked with nine red dots, connected to each other by blood-red lines, forming a ferocious blood skull pattern. The location of Chen Family Village was exactly where the left eye socket of the blood skull was.