50: Chapter 49 Suppression

After the Taixuan Sect's order was passed down, the entire Ling Province boiled over like a pot of scalding water.

The major clans, city garrisons, and all the various powers within Ling Province—none of them dared to be negligent this time.

In the past, they would only begin a suppression after an incident occurred, chasing after the evil Cultivators' heels and coming up empty eight times out of ten.

This time was different. They switched to a carpet-style investigation, searching from east to west and south to north. Any place that could hide a person—mountain forests, caves, market districts, abandoned villages—was thoroughly sifted through.

As long as a trace of evil energy was detected, they would surround it first and ask questions later.

Evil Cultivators were like rats crossing the street in the cultivation world; they usually hid and fled at the first opportunity.

But this time, within the borders of Ling Province, every rat hole was turned upside down. Those evil Cultivators who had been hiding for years were exposed overnight.

Many evil Cultivators met with disaster immediately. The number of those killed on the spot was beyond count, and those captured were led away in long chains.

On the escort road outside Xuanqi City, a disheveled Cultivator was bound by Spirit-Locking Chains; it was the evil Cultivator Old Ghost Zhou.

Now, Old Ghost Zhou did indeed practice evil arts, but he had always only refined ownerless bones from the wilderness and drifting remnant Souls; he never took the initiative to kill people.

Among evil Cultivators, he was considered to have some principles. Because of this, he managed to keep his life and wasn't killed on the spot, but was instead escorted to Xuanqi City to await trial.

But at this moment, he was full of pent-up anger and couldn't help but start cursing:

"That damned Yin Ghost Sect! I don't even know where they crawled out from!

Of all the people to provoke, they just had to mess with the Taixuan Sect!

Now look at this—the whole of Ling Province is hunting evil Cultivators, and I've become collateral damage!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a Disciple from the clan escorting him lashed him hard with a whip. The tip of the whip carried spiritual power, tearing his skin and flesh open.

"Shut up! Who told you that you could speak?"

Old Ghost Zhou let out a scream of pain and didn't dare utter another word. He could only be dragged along toward Xuanqi City. What awaited him was the Xuanqi City dungeon, and there was no telling how long he would be imprisoned.

In just a few short days, the evil Cultivators within the borders of Ling Province were almost completely wiped out.

During this purge, even the most deeply hidden strongholds of the Yin Ghost Sect were dragged out one after another.

However, after storming inside, they found only small fries. The highest cultivation level among them was only the Void Tempering Realm. Not a single truly core figure was seen.

With the Gu Family, Wang Clan, and Li Clan joining forces, these low-level Disciples were simply unable to withstand a single blow. Several strongholds were completely overrun and uprooted in an instant.

The groups searched the strongholds and found a large number of evil Cultivator Magical Artifacts: Soul-Restraining Plaques, Soul-Attracting Incense, Yin-Bone Blades, and the like were all present.

Besides these, the ground was littered with shattered pieces of Formation Plates. Cold, obscure patterns were carved onto the fragments, making it clear at a glance that these were no ordinary Formations.

All the news quickly reached Core Elder Mu Xuan's ears.

He personally made a trip to inspect several of the strongholds.

Standing amidst the ruins, he pieced together the fragments of the Formation Plates. The more he looked, the tighter his brow furrowed.

These strongholds were not isolated; their positions corresponded to each other, perfectly situated at the nodes of several major ley lines in Ling Province. Pieced together, it was clearly a giant array with an extremely wide coverage.

It was just that the core Formation Plates had been taken away long ago, leaving only scraps behind.

Mu Xuan squatted on the ground, flipping over a fragment, and whispered to himself, "Is this... extracting energy from the ley lines?"

Looking at the ruins everywhere, the coldness in his eyes grew deeper.

It seemed the Yin Ghost Sect was plotting something significant.

On the other side,

At the border of Ling Province, Soul-Burial Mountain.

This mountain was located at the junction of Ling Province and Xuan Province. It was shrouded in black mist year-round, filled with twisted ancient trees and jagged rocks. The earthly energy was bone-chillingly cold, making it a forbidden land that even Loose Cultivators and Yao Beasts were unwilling to set foot in.

In the deepest part of the mountain range, a great hall built of pitch-black Yin Wood was hidden in the black mist. A hideous ghost head was carved onto the roof, and blood-colored runes were etched into the doorframe, exuding a heart-palpitating sense of eeriness and terror.

There were no lamps inside the hall; only eerie green ghost fires burned on the four walls, making the hall flicker with light and shadow.

Seated on the high throne in the center was a figure draped in a blood-red robe. His face was hidden in the shadows, save for a pair of eyes as crimson as blood, cold as a blade—it was the general overseer of the Yin Ghost Sect in Ling Province, Protector Xuesha.

Not far below him, a battered, nearly transparent remnant Soul was shivering. The Soul body was covered in cracks and could dissipate at any moment.

This was Gui Liao, whose body had been disintegrated by Feng Wuya earlier.

Protector Xuesha stared at him for a long time before suddenly slamming a hand onto the armrest.

"Useless! Truly useless!"

"I let you preside over Ling Province to set up the Yin-Gathering Grand Array and extract the ley line Yin Qi for the Sect. This was the Sect's top priority!

But look at you—just to refine that wretched Ten Thousand Soul Banner of yours, you actually provoked someone from the Taixuan Sect!

Now the Taixuan Sect is conducting a massive manhunt in Ling Province, and all the overt strongholds my Yin Ghost Sect established over many years have been destroyed.

If you hadn't sent word to me immediately after clashing with the Taixuan Sect, allowing this Protector to take precautions in advance—"

"—and move the core Formation Plates along with all the high-level experts,"

"The Yin Ghost Sect's century-long plan would have been ruined because of you."

Gui Liao's remnant Soul trembled violently in fear. With a thud, he knelt on the ground, kowtowing desperately for mercy.

"Protector, have mercy! Protector, spare me!

I was momentarily confused and blinded by greed. I beg the Protector to consider my many years of service to the Sect and to you. Spare me this once!"

Protector Xuesha looked down at him with cold eyes, his tone bone-chilling: "Spare you? You've delayed the Sect's grand plan; even several of your lives wouldn't be enough to compensate!"

"If it weren't for the fact that we need people right now, I would have crushed this remnant Soul of yours with a single palm strike long ago!"

Upon hearing this, Gui Liao's heart finally relaxed slightly.

His life was saved, at least.

But when he looked at his battered Soul body that could dissipate at any time, the heart he had just let down sank to the bottom again.

Once a Cultivator's Physical Body was destroyed, leaving only a remnant Soul, wanting to reconstruct a Physical Body was as difficult as ascending to heaven.

One would need a top-tier powerhouse to take action and expend a massive amount of Heaven And Earth Treasures to forge a Physical Body that perfectly matched the Soul.

If one were to perform a random Possession or forge an inferior body, the result would be a mismatch between Soul and body, and one's path to the Dao would be completely ruined.

He quickly looked up, his voice filled with flattery and pleading:

"Lord Protector is truly brilliant. If not for your early decision, the consequences for our Sect would be unthinkable.

It is just that I am now only a remnant Soul without a Physical Body; I cannot even move."

"I beg the Protector to show mercy and show me a way forward."

Protector Xuesha glanced at him coldly, his tone indifferent:

"You know the difficulty of reconstructing a Physical Body better than anyone. This Protector does not have such heaven-defying abilities."

Gui Liao's heart went cold, but he still didn't give up, kowtowing repeatedly:

"Lord Sect Leader! Lord Sect Leader has heaven-defying cultivation; he must have a way! I beg the Protector to be kind and help me plead with the Lord Sect Leader. I am willing to be a slave forever and serve you like a dog or a horse!"

Hearing this, Protector Xuesha immediately sneered, his tone full of mockery and cold anger:

"Hmph, after doing such a stupid thing and nearly ruining the Sect's grand plan, you still have the face to go and beg the Sect Leader? Pure wishful thinking."

Gui Liao's face instantly turned ashen, and his Soul body teetered.

Xuesha flicked his finger, and a black light descended. A Saint Transformation Realm Puppet, pitch-black and covered in Yin runes, stood quietly in the hall.

"Forget about a top-quality Physical Body."

Protector Xuesha's voice was icy. "I happen to have a Puppet here whose cultivation in life was equivalent to yours.

Though you will no longer be able to Cultivate or Breakthrough, at least your life can be preserved."

Looking at that cold Puppet, Gui Liao felt thousands of regrets, but he also understood that this was his only chance at survival.

He hurriedly bowed to give thanks:

"I... thank the Protector for the mercy of not killing me! I am willing!"

As the words fell, Gui Liao's remnant Soul turned into a streak of eerie light and suddenly surged into the Puppet's body.

Buzz.

Crimson ghost fire ignited in the Puppet's eye sockets. Its body slowly stood up and then knelt on one knee.

"I, Gui Liao, from now on, am at the Protector's disposal!"