"The physical body of the Ling Tian Three Corpses... simply take it..."
The members of the Immortal Suppression Department had arrived with menacing momentum, yet Zhen Wu's single statement caused the expression on every face to change instantly!
Based solely on the strength they had displayed so far, the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems had already surpassed any hidden faction the department had dealt with during their hundred-plus years of cooperation.
Furthermore...
The Ling Tian Three Corpses were right inside the Mountain.
How many Spirit Stones was the Immortal Suppression Department actually paying them?
Why should they risk their lives for this?
"Demonic lies meant to deceive the masses!"
From amidst the Sea of Blood, a black-robed cultivator rose into the air.
His voice echoed throughout the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems, filled with uncontrollable rage.
"The Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems is already heavily besieged! You have nowhere to run!
We have numerous factions of the Immortal Suppression Department present here, along with vast reinforcements from the Imperial Dynasty.
The mighty experts of the major powers are waiting outside, fully armed and ready to strike!"
"The Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems has committed heinous sins for many years, bringing calamity upon the world.
Do you intend to request a path of survival merely to destabilize the morale of my Immortal Suppression Department?"
"Delusional!"
As his voice faded, his flying sword shot forward, aiming straight for Phantasm Ghost!
Qi Wunian!
Inside the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems, every member of the Immortal Suppression Department raised their head.
This man was the leader of the few Void Refinement cultivators present, hailing from the Qi Clan of the Imperial Capital.
He had unleashed ten-tenths of his power in this strike.
Even though Phantasm Ghost had reached the Half-Step Integration Realm, Qi Wunian initiated the battle without a shred of fear.
Instantly, war erupted across the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems.
...
"Impressive."
At this moment, Li Dalong was positioned deep within the Sea of Blood of the Mountain.
The boundless Sea of Blood he manifested behind him bore a striking resemblance to the native Sea of Blood of the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems.
In the clouds above, numerous Purple-Robed Elders of the sect flew past.
They glanced at him, but sensing a body filled with death aura, they merely glossed over him, assuming he was part of the scenery.
Li Dalong stood atop a Nascent Soul realm "Stitched Corpse" that resembled a grotesque Chimera.
He raised his head, gazing at the battlefield where Qi Wunian had already merged into the Void Refinement Space with Phantasm Ghost, and narrowed his eyes.
"Phantasm Ghost's words were half-true and half-false.
No one would truly care about her relationship with the Grand Tower, yet that speech nearly allowed her to escape safely."
"And then there is Qi Wunian—he is a True Hero."
Inside that Void Refinement Space, Qi Wunian summoned a Dharma Treasure—an ancient bell.
Even though Phantasm Ghost possessed one body with eight forms and utilized multiple Laws, whenever the azure ancient bell rang, Qi Wunian remained impervious to all techniques.
Every time a Phantasm Ghost approached, it would freeze momentarily.
Qi Wunian's Void Refinement Space and his associated techniques were extraordinary; with a mere clench of his hand, he could violently twist the space within his line of sight.
"If Qi Wunian had not spoken up, I fear our army's morale would have inevitably collapsed."
Li Dalong remained expressionless as he sensed his surrounding allies.
The members of the major factions had indeed taken action following Qi Wunian's words, but Li Dalong still shook his head.
"Phantasm Ghost is still one step ahead.
Although Qi Wunian initiated the hostilities, Phantasm Ghost has successfully stripped us of the resolve to fight to the death.
Instead, for the sake of those Three Corpses atop the mountain, we will now be constantly wary of one another."
"The best plan for now is to regroup with Yaozu first..."
The words had barely left his lips when Li Dalong's eyebrows twitched slightly.
He felt a sudden moment of disorientation, and in the next instant, he had already been pulled into a Void Refinement Space.
This Void Refinement Space was enclosed by walls on all sides.
The walls were plastered with human faces and ghostly hands, and a gaping, bloody maw was already lunging out from the wall on the right.
Just as he was about to react, Li Dalong's expression changed drastically.
His body surged like blood water, and his veins shifted along with it, causing his Spiritual power to stagnate—he was unable to move!
That gaping, bloody maw belonged to a meatball no larger than a fist.
The meatball chewed for a moment before spitting out a slime-covered silver coffin, the chains still wrapped tightly around it.
"He was at the Void Refinement Realm, after all. Was it really that easy?"
The ground—composed of flesh and blood—squirmed, and a figure gradually emerged within the space.
The man was shirtless, revealing a muscular, well-built physique.
The meatball, having just devoured Li Dalong, bounced its way over to the burly man's side.
The man spoke, "What a fine treasure. You are truly worthy of being a corpse I have spent twenty thousand years refining."
As the meatball rubbed affectionately against Xue Ning's calf, Xue Ning let out a loud laugh.
"To think they dare invade our Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems with just this much?
My 'Rule of Blood Water' can control human blood and feed upon it, while your 'Rule of Flesh Mire' can devour human flesh and convert it into vitality for us.
We are a perfect match."
"With the two of us together, we are practically invincible under the heavens! Who is to say we cannot become the Fifth Titan!"
As he spoke, Xue Ning wore an expression of arrogance.
He was aware of the Immortal Suppression Department, but the world remained ignorant of one fact: ever since the Four Great Titans ascended to power tens of thousands of years ago, the highest standing rule of the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems was to never expose their true strength.
Looking at it now, this was not only to guard against the greedy Grand Tower, but also to guard against this self-important "livestock."
"Let's go. Let's see who else is courting death..."
As Xue Ning's voice faded, he prepared to step out of the Void Refinement Space.
Suddenly, he halted in his tracks and lowered his head in astonishment.
Clank, clank!
The sound of chains.
Without him realizing it, chains had entangled his feet!
The silver coffin behind him slowly opened.
Blood water spilled out from within, spreading all the way to his feet, and a hand reached out from the coffin.
An aura of extreme terror emanated from those chains, causing Xue Ning's voice to tremble!
"S-Spirit... Spirit Treasure?!!"
A treasure surpassing the level of a Dharma Treasure.
Such an item was something only the True God of their Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems possessed!
A grim and eerie voice resonated from the coffin.
"You have a good eye, though your skills are rather lacking. Was my Sea of Blood tasty?"
Xue Ning lowered his head.
He saw the meatball beside him frantically regurgitating the flesh and blood it had just consumed.
The soul of the meatball was trembling violently!
"What it ate just now... was a fake body?!!"
Xue Ning gulped, feeling the ghost aura behind him growing denser and more oppressive by the second.
The Immortal Suppression Department, the cultivators of the Imperial Court—aren't they supposed to be upright and righteous?
Why... is he even more eerie than I am?