Ascension Day

In the Willow Forest, Xu Ying focused his Divine Sense and opened his Celestial Eye, immediately seeing the true faces of the Wuchang Ghosts!

Many of those Wuchang Ghosts were not, in fact, true Wuchang Ghosts at all!

Under the gaze of his Celestial Eye, the true and fake Wuchang Ghosts were easy to distinguish. The main difference lay in their Divine Souls.

The Wuchang are Underworld Ghost Gods, a peculiar type of Underworld creature that also possesses a Flesh Body. Their formation is complex: they are beings created from the lingering resentment of Soul Spirits that have died in the Underworld, which then attaches to stiffened, dead flesh in places of extreme Yin. They also possess a divine Nature, and people in the Mortal World worship them as Divine Spirits.

Looking with the Celestial Eye, one could see that a true Wuchang Ghost's Divine Soul was scattered and unformed within its body—a clump here, a clump there.

But mixed in among the Wuchang Ghosts was another kind of "Impermanence."

Their Flesh Bodies had been altered by an Inconstancy Mask. Their original forms were human skeletons, stretched and grown into a new shape. Traces of where they joined were still visible at the edges of their faces. 'Those must be the marks left by countless fleshy tendrils growing from the Inconstancy Mask, burrowing into their faces and merging with their muscles!'

More critically, their Divine Souls were human.

They were all human!

Nuo Masters wearing Inconstancy Masks!

Yuan Weiyang had also noticed something. "There are masked Nuo Masters mixed in with the Wuchang Ghosts," she whispered. "It's half real, half fake!"

Xu Ying's heart stirred. 'Yuan Weiyang must also possess an extremely unique Magic Skill for using Divine Sense, one that allows her to see through illusions.'

Uncle Xiao said in a grave voice, "Young Master, these people are mixed in with the Underworld Ghost Gods. It's very strange. They don't look like they're up to any good. It would be best for us to leave."

Yuan Weiyang shook her head. "We've discovered them performing Qi Collection here. I'm afraid we won't be able to leave, even if we wanted to, let alone return to the Mortal World."

As they spoke, a number of Wuchang Ghosts had already gathered around them. They drifted about, their feet never touching the ground, appearing no different from the others. But in truth, they were Nuo Masters wearing Inconstancy Masks!

Yuan Qi was completely baffled. "Why can't we leave just because we found out they're performing Qi Collection?" he asked. "A moment ago, those Ghost Dolls were collecting my Qi, and I was almost drained to death."

Xu Ying quickened his pace, trying to slip through before they were surrounded. If they fought these fake Wuchang Ghosts and alerted the real ones, he feared even the true Wuchang Ghosts would join in hunting them down!

"They're operating in such secrecy, so of course they don't want to be found out," he said, lowering his voice. "Now that we've stumbled upon them, they'll want to silence us to prevent future trouble."

Yuan Qi cried out, "Humans are so wicked!"

Suddenly, one of the Wuchang Ghosts pointed its Funeral Pole forward. The pole hissed, and the white cloth strips wrapped around it shot out, whistling as they expanded and coiled toward Xu Ying and his companions!

It was a coarse linen, woven from some unknown, rotten material, and it radiated a sinister, ghostly aura. One glance was enough to tell this was no ordinary Magical Treasure!

The coarse linen strips whipped about like tentacles. With a SWISH, one burrowed into Yuan Qi's body, latched onto his soul, and began to pull!

Yuan Qi's Physique was immense, and his Qi and Blood were hundreds, even thousands of times greater than that of a normal demon. If it came to a fight, his Techniques possessed earth-shattering power. Yet, against that coarse linen strip, no matter how much strength he used, he couldn't stop it in the slightest!

Just as Yuan Qi's soul was about to be pulled from his body, Uncle Xiao lunged forward. Surging with Primordial Qi, he grabbed at the coarse strip and roared, "Insolence!"

Yuan Qi was touched. 'The old man in green always seems so cold, but he's warm-hearted underneath. He really does care about me.'

The coarse linen strip was made of a special material that specifically targeted the soul; a body of flesh and blood simply couldn't grasp it. Even though Uncle Xiao was a Grand Nuo who had opened five Grotto Heavens in his Yellow Court Secret Treasury, he struggled to get a firm grip on it.

With a furious roar, the old man pushed his Cultivation to its absolute limit and finally managed to grab the strip. He was shocked. 'What kind of Nuo Master's Magical Treasure is this? It's incredibly difficult to counter!'

Suddenly, with another SWISH, a second Wuchang Ghost drifted over. It pointed its Funeral Pole, and more coarse linen strips flew out, sinking into Uncle Xiao's body with a SHH SHH sound. They latched onto his soul and began to pull it out!

Uncle Xiao laughed in fury. "Juniors, you underestimate a Grand Nuo! You think you can bind my soul and make me surrender so easily? Let go!"

Yuan Qi cheered, "That's the way, Uncle Xiao!"

SHH! SHH! SHH!

One after another, the Wuchang Ghosts brandished their Funeral Poles. In an instant, the air was filled with coarse linen strips. Yuan Qi looked over frantically and saw that Uncle Xiao's face, hands, body, and legs were all pierced by the strips, which had bound the old man's soul so tightly it was completely sealed!

Yuan Qi jumped in fright as he saw Uncle Xiao's soul being dragged out of his body!

'The old man talks tough, but his soul seems even weaker than mine,' Yuan Qi thought.

He had taken a Ten Thousand Spirits Pill, so although a Wuchang Ghost had bound his soul, it was so strong that the ghost couldn't pull it out immediately.

Nuo Masters rarely focused on the Divine Soul in their Cultivation. Although Uncle Xiao was a Grand Nuo from the Yuan Family who had opened five Grotto Heavens and inherited their Nuo Techniques and Nuo Arts, his soul was not particularly strong. As it was being dragged from his body, a chill filled his heart. 'I've really fallen into their trap this time...'

Just then, Sword Qi flashed. Beams of Sword Aura, as nimble as slithering snakes, zipped through the air with a WHOOSH, striking at all the Wuchang Ghosts at once!

It was Yuan Weiyang. Her Mastery of Swordsmanship was in no way inferior to Xu Ying's. She, too, had comprehended Sword Intent outside the Water Gate Temple. However, the Sword Intent and Swordsmanship she had grasped were slightly different from Xu Ying's; her style placed a greater emphasis on adaptability and change.

The moment she struck, her Sword Qi assaulted all of her enemies, making each one feel as if they were individually facing the full force of her attack—and that if they failed to block it, they would be killed.