It wasn't even a person...

Watching the fist wrapped in Pure Yang Qi strike again, Lu Jiuyuan felt an extreme grievance in his heart. Helpless, he had no choice but to abandon the Physical Body he had finally managed to possess, transform back into a ghostly state, and flee in a panic.

Whoosh—

A blurry dark shadow flew out from City Lord’s body, moving incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, it rushed to the main hall entrance and sped away into the distance. Before leaving, it didn't forget to leave a harsh threat:

“Dao Child of Tai Xuan, This Daozi has remembered you. When This Daozi returns healed from his injuries, I will make you repay today’s grudge a hundredfold!”

At this moment, it had already fled a thousand zhang away, its mind filled with the triumph and joy of escaping with its life.

However, just then, Lu Jiuyuan felt a chill down his spine, an unprecedented terror enveloped his entire body… In just an instant, a dazzling golden sword light cut through the Void Realm, arriving later but striking first, directly piercing its soul body.

“No… ah!!!”

Amidst the mournful screams, Lu Jiuyuan, in his ghostly state, was shredded inch by inch by this terrifying sword light, exploding into a sky full of black ink, dissipating in mid-air.

Slap!

A storage bracelet, overflowing with Yin Qi, fell to the ground and bounced a few times.

“It seems you won’t be coming back…”

After confirming that Lu Jiuyuan, the Left Protector of the Nether River Sect, had completely perished, Qi Yuan slowly put away the Profound Heaven Sword in his hand and nonchalantly stepped forward to retrieve the bracelet.

No matter what, this old ghost was a Peak Soul Transformation ghost Cultivator, so he should have many good things on him, naturally worth a thorough search.

The Ghost Dao, though insidious, cunning, and exceptionally malicious, also had obvious drawbacks.

Afraid of light, afraid of fire, afraid of Yang Sha Qi—in short, it had too many weaknesses. Unless one was already dead, no Cultivator with a promising future would choose this path.

As the Left Protector of the Nether River Sect, Lu Jiuyuan only completely transformed into a Ghostly Creature after dying once, beginning his path of Possession for eternal life.

As the saying goes, unless it's a Ghost Emperor or Ghost Monarch who has overcome most of the Ghost Dao's drawbacks, other Ghostly Creatures would be fortunate to encounter a Nascent Soul Cultivator with an Innate Pure Yang Dao Physique.

This was also the reason Qi Yuan dared to brazenly barge into the City Lord's Mansion.

If it were a direct confrontation, even Emperor Xia himself wouldn't dare touch a single hair of the Dao Child of Tai Xuan. If it were a sneaky approach, the current fate of a certain Left Protector of the Nether River Sect is right here... As the array master died and his Dao dissipated, the Myriad Fiend Yin Extinction Array collapsed on its own. The vast Yin Qi receded like a tide, and the scene inside the City Lord's Mansion changed again, quickly returning to its original state.

As soon as Qi Yuan turned around, he saw Li Mingwang scurrying over, loudly complimenting him:

“I knew it, how could that old ghost Lu be a match for you, Dao Child? Even the Nether River Sect Master wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“Dao Child’s might shakes the world, his literary and martial virtues are unmatched. My admiration for you, little brother, is like a surging river, endless…”

“Stop!”

Qi Yuan waved his hand in disgust, stopping his flattery. “You should go find Zhang Caiqiang quickly. If he's not dead, he's probably still locked up.”

“Oh right, Senior Brother Zhang hasn’t been found yet, he didn’t really kick the bucket, did he?”

Li Mingwang immediately wilted, then turned to rush out. “Dao Child, you wait here. I’ll bring Senior Brother Zhang’s ashes to see you right away!”

Qi Yuan: “…”

As the Yin Qi dissipated, everyone who had been unconscious in the hall gradually woke up, looking around in confusion. Upon seeing the two skeletons lying on the ground, they were immediately startled.

At this moment, Qi Yuan, standing in the hall, expressionlessly glanced at them and slowly said:

“Lu Jiuyuan, the Left Protector of the Nether River Sect, possessed City Lord An Lingxiu’s Physical Body and secretly, in the identity of the City Lord, plundered the blood essence of passing Cultivators to Cultivate his ghostly evil arts.”

“The City Lord’s wife, who possessed a Pure Yin Physique, was also harmed by Lu Jiuyuan, used as a vessel to nurture ghostly servants. If he had succeeded, Puzhou City would likely have become a ghost domain in no time.”

“Unfortunately, there are no secrets that can be kept forever. Two Inner Sect Disciples from our Taixuan Holy Land, after discovering clues, resolutely decided to infiltrate the City Lord’s Mansion as house servants to investigate the truth. As a result, one of them accidentally lost his guard and was captured.”

“Since This Daozi happened to be near this city, upon receiving a plea for help from a fellow Disciple, I immediately came to rescue him. Unexpectedly, a mere small trick was enough to expose this impostor.”

“Later, this fellow still tried to resist and was slain on the spot by This Daozi. Now that the demonic fiend has been executed, all of you may leave as you wish.”

“What?!”

“City Lord An was actually a hidden demonic fiend from the Nether River Sect?!”

Upon hearing the full story, everyone present was utterly horrified.

No one doubted the truth of these words, because with Qi Yuan’s status, no one could stop him from getting what he wanted, so there was no need to lie.

They never expected that they were merely invited by the host to accompany guests, only to become entangled in a shocking major case.

Even more incredible was that although the Nether River Sect wasn't a top-tier force, it was still considered first-rate. The identity of its Left Protector was second only to the Sect Master and Vice Sect Master, at least at the Soul Transformation Realm, and very likely even Void Refining. Yet, he was easily slain by a Nascent Soul Realm Dao Child of Tai Xuan—such a thing was simply unheard of!

“Father!”

“Mother!”

Just as everyone was reeling from the news, An Cailan stumbled and rushed to the two skeletons, tears streaming down her face as she cried incessantly.

Seeing this, Bai Xirou, whose mother had died long ago and who had almost lost her father recently, immediately felt a surge of sympathy and pity. She quickly stepped forward to gently console her.

Suddenly, a joyful shout came from outside the door:

“Dao Child, Senior Brother Zhang isn’t dead. I rescued him from the cellar.”

Qi Yuan turned his head and saw Li Mingwang helping a limping Zhang Caiqiang walk in.

Zhang Caiqiang looked much thinner than the last time he appeared, with dark circles under his eyes and sunken cheeks. He was panting after just a few steps, looking utterly weak.

“How did he end up like this?”

Looking at the usually optimistic Zhang Caiqiang, who now had a look of utter despair, Qi Yuan couldn't help but ask.

As the Dao Child, he had to care about the mental and physical state of his subordinates.

“Sigh, don’t even mention it. When I went in to find him, Senior Brother Zhang had already hung his belt from the cellar beam. If I hadn’t stopped him with all my might, he would have hanged himself by now.”

Li Mingwang sighed. “He wouldn’t tell me anything.”

Qi Yuan grew even more curious and couldn't help but turn his gaze to Zhang Caiqiang. “Junior Brother Zhang, were you bewitched by a ghost?”

“I was so foolish, truly…” Zhang Caiqiang shook his head blankly, muttering, “Why couldn’t I just stick to honestly carrying night soil? Why did I have to provoke the City Lord’s wife…”

“What exactly happened to you?” Qi Yuan frowned. “Don’t be so cryptic.”

“Don’t ask.” Zhang Caiqiang slightly raised his head, a glimmer of tears in his eyes. “My essence is almost sucked dry by a ghost.”

Li Mingwang curled his lip in disdain. “Come on, buddy, you’re a dignified Golden Core Cultivator. Your essence will recover on its own in a couple of days. Do you really need to worry about this?”

Thinking of something, Li Mingwang gave a lewd smile. “I remember the ghostly servant possessing the City Lord’s wife was a female ghost, right… Could it be that you’re just playing coy after getting a good deal?”

Halfway through, he noticed that Zhang Caiqiang had no triumphant look on his face; instead, he looked a bit green. Li Mingwang was immediately shocked, and his gaze towards the other was filled with pity. “Could it be… a male ghost?”

If that were true, then Senior Brother Zhang was truly pitiful!

But Zhang Caiqiang shook his head again, his voice trembling as he said, “No, it’s not even a ghost transformed from a human… I was so foolish, truly…”

Hearing this, Qi Yuan wanted to comfort him but didn't know how to speak, only wanting to give him a '6'.