Before entering Baiqi, Mingqi had already taken a quick look at the terrain. It was undeniably excellent. Baiqi's mountainous terrain stretched endlessly, crisscrossed by white stone ridges that formed a gourd shape. The peculiar white stones at the top seemed to tilt slightly inward, with the entrance situated right at the mouth of the gourd. Thus, the entire Baiqi region resembled a giant gourd.
Surrounding this gourd-shaped landscape were terraced mountains, creating a natural barrier for Baiqi. If defensive formations and illusion arrays were deployed on this terrain, intrusion would be virtually impossible.
The group cautiously explored forward. This place was once known as a deadly place, and no one dared to enter. Consequently, there were no signs of human activity anywhere, and no one knew what might suddenly appear. Furthermore, they hadn't seen a single living creature throughout their journey, which added a sense of danger to the area.
Since arriving at Baiqi Mountain, Ming Qi had put the Supreme Diagram away. With the exception of Jiang Ling, everyone else advanced cautiously on foot. Even Yue Dongqing, who had been training within the Northern God Stele, was pulled out for some training.
Among the group, Ming Qi and Xing Yun had spent considerable time within the Star Region. Their awareness and perception of danger, as well as their ability to respond to adversities, were far superior to the others. Ming Qi's actions served as a way to train everyone's resilience. After all, realm is only one part of strength, not the whole.
The group walked in a relatively dispersed pattern, with Lu Ji and Ye Yuancheng on the left, Da Hei and Chang Kong on the right, Yue Dongqing and Xing Yun protected in the center, and Ming Qi, the strongest, walking alone in front.
The light in Baiqi Mountain was dim, as if it were the eve of a violent storm.
After walking for a while, Ming Qi faintly heard a strange sound coming from the front. At first, it sounded like a slightly strong wind, but then it gradually became like the roar of the ocean. Just as Ming Qi finally determined the source of the sound, its source had already appeared in front of the group.
"It's indeed a ghost."
Ming Qi looked up at the dark, dense cloud that was rapidly approaching like fog. A glint of light flashed in his hand, and the Great Five Elements Fan was already quietly grasped.
Now everyone could clearly see that the dark cloud ahead, covering an area of a thousand meters, was none other than a swarm of ghosts!
Ghosts are originally formless and intangible, but they can also absorb the power of heaven and earth to slowly cultivate and grow stronger. The stronger the ghost, the thicker the cloud. When the ghost's power reaches a certain level, it can condense into a physical form. This condensed form is identical to the ghost's original form, but its combat effectiveness is multiplied. This is the true strength of ghosts.
Several people stopped, spreading out but not far apart, so they could keep in touch with each other.
Ghosts are rare and require a long time to develop. Therefore, most cultivators, even the most powerful and skilled, have never truly encountered one, or even seen what one actually looks like.
Most cultivators' talk of ghosts is just hearsay.
Ming Qi had never seen a real ghost before, but he had heard many stories about them. Now, it seemed that most of those stories were untrue.
The ghosts were incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, everyone could hear the humming sounds of swords and spears echoing from the black cloud. It made their blood boil, but the cold murderous intent that followed was instantly felt as if a chill rose rapidly from the ground.
"Ghosts are formless and intangible. Even if they condense into a physical form, it's merely an illusion. Be careful."
Ming Qi gave a simple warning before charging into the air. With a flick of his Five Elements Fan, he unleashed a dazzling flurry of magical spells. Immediately, the dazzling Five Elements magical powers rained down upon the ghost army like a blazing display of fireworks.
The Five Elements magical powers instantly ripped countless holes through the dark cloud. It was unknown how many ghosts Ming Qi had slain with this single blow.
However, compared to the entire ghost army, this number was a mere drop in the bucket. Furthermore, Ming Qi was concerned that ghosts were still pouring in from afar, joining the army.
At this moment, the others also joined in the battle against the surging ghosts. Lu Ji and Ye Yuancheng, both powerful warriors at the Martial Emperor level, were no match for these ordinary ghosts, and both were able to spare some strength to look after the weaker Yue Dongqing. As for Dahei, perhaps because they were both demon beasts, Changkong took good care of him. Together, the two of them were able to defeat most ghosts of varying levels. As for Xingyun, Ming Qi didn't have to worry about her at all.
Instantly, the Baiqi Mountains, which had been silent for who knows how many ages, suddenly erupted in turmoil.
At this moment, from afar, everyone saw the ghost army's formation suddenly split apart. Before anyone could understand what was happening, a team of tall knights, all clad in black helmets and armor, burst forth from the ghost army like the wind, swiftly approaching them.
"Everyone be careful! These are powerful souls!"
Even before the ghostly black cavalrymen approached, Ming Qi could already sense their powerful aura. This small group of less than twenty black-armored cavalrymen each possessed combat prowess comparable to that of a Martial Emperor cultivator!
"Oh my god! So many Martial Emperor masters!"
Lu Ji exclaimed in astonishment. Even though he had lived a long life, he had never witnessed anything like this. Especially since the movements of these dozen or so Martial Emperors were so seamless, it showed they were once elite warriors who roamed the battlefield. They lacked the arrogance and solitary nature of ordinary cultivators. Such enemies were the most terrifying.
The black-armored cavalrymen approached the group at lightning speed, immediately reining in their ghostly warhorses and standing side by side. Ming Qi and the others could see the flickering soul fire within their jet-black armor and robes.
At this point, they all stopped attacking and slowly approached.
Ming Qi opened the Supreme Divine Map. If the black-armored cavalry launched an attack, he would send everyone into the Divine Map's space. He believed that with the Divine Map's speed and concealment, they could easily evade the ghost army.
The black-armored cavalry did not attack, but waited quietly. Soon, a dark shadow appeared in the distance from the ghost army. It suddenly appeared in front of the black-armored cavalry, swaying, and then transformed into a pale young man.
The young man glanced at everyone, then smiled softly and said, "Welcome to Tiansai Baiqi..."