Chapter 209: 200. Advance

200. Chapter 200: Advance

With the codename Exorcism Operation underway.

Violent combat echoed throughout the old district—gunfire erupted, cultivators unleashed their power, flashes of light streaked across the sky, and of course, death and sacrifice were never absent.

"What kind of monster is this? A Spiritual Perception realm cultivator? What nonsense."

BOOM!

As a concrete wall shattered, a cultivator was instantly flung backward, spitting blood, his face twisted in agony; his eyes burned red as he tried to rise again, but in the next instant, two ghostlike figures appeared before him—and in a flash, the cultivator was slain.

Yet as soon as he died, his corpse was snatched up by a withered corpse and dragged swiftly into the darkness.

Not long after.

A pale-faced figure with a sunken skull and eerie demeanor emerged among the walking corpses; what was horrifying was that when this corpse swung its fist, it unleashed a punch force—clearly, the malevolent spirit possessing the body had inherited part of the deceased's former abilities.

The pale-faced, sunken-skull corpse now grinned strangely, then charged straight toward the nearest cultivator nearby.

Soon after.

Bloodstained odors began to spread across every corner of the old district; casualties mounted steadily; weaker squads could no longer advance and were forced to retreat, for continuing forward meant confronting Spiritual Perception-level corpses—utterly hopeless opponents.

Only squads with Spiritual Perception experts could still press forward.

Among them, Li Shaoqing's team, deputy head of the Cultivator Association, advanced with the greatest speed: five members, all Spiritual Perception experts, each wielding a technique; together, they crushed the corpses like dry grass before a storm.

But Yang Yilong's team was no weaker—also five Spiritual Perception experts, they had already reached the heart of the old district within an hour.

Yet the deeper they pushed, the greater the resistance became, for no other squads were there to share the pressure; a single squad now faced dangers far greater than before.

"We're surrounded."

Yang Yilong halted, his eyes gleaming as he scanned the surroundings.

The surrounding buildings stood pitch-black, but in his vision, each window held a grotesque figure; through spiritual sense, he judged these corpses to be powerful—many at Spiritual Perception level. Yet Spiritual Perception-level corpses were inferior to Spiritual Perception cultivators, for the malevolent spirits inhabiting them were inherently flawed; thus, he felt no fear.

A fierce battle was inevitable.

Thinking this, Yang Yilong activated his Guiding Technique; energy coalesced along his arm, and a sharp sword materialized in the night.

Perhaps angered by his actions, or perhaps because their living aura was too strong.

Suddenly, all the grotesque figures inside the buildings surged out simultaneously, charging straight for Yang Yilong's squad.

"Kill!"

Yang Yilong's eyes snapped open, his sword blazed bright, and he advanced—not retreating—into the grotesque corpses; with a single sweep, several corpses were cleaved in half, their possessing spirits obliterated along with them.

His Guiding Technique was unique—truly a scourge to these corpses.

This scene was monitored by the helicopter above.

"Yang Yilong is no ordinary man—he can clear an entire district alone. Releasing him from the Investigation Bureau was correct. But this man is suspected of killing an investigator; his record is tainted. He cannot receive the Golden Academy slot unless he's the first to locate and kill the source of the corpses. Then I'll say nothing."

"Li Shaoqing's team is advancing quickly too. If this operation ends successfully, his current merits will almost certainly secure him a place in the Golden Academy as a Cross-Domain Practitioner."

"Daoist Pete's team is also progressing smoothly—he'll make it into the Golden Academy too. But who will claim the final slot? Gu Mengping? He's one of our external operations officers and participated in this mission, but he failed last time hunting the spider monster. Unless he eliminates the corpse source this time, I'm betting on Li Yi."

"Li Yi is good—I also favor him. Though he joined the Investigation Bureau recently, his achievements are substantial. If he performs well this time, I believe he can enter the Golden Academy."

Facing the live broadcast.

Senior officials of the Investigation Bureau gathered in the conference room, debating continuously.

In mere words, the Cross-Domain Practitioner slots were nearly decided—only the final slot remained uncertain: perhaps Gu Mengping, perhaps Li Yi, perhaps someone else would rise unexpectedly.

But absent unforeseen developments, three had the strongest chances: Yang Yilong, Gu Mengping, Li Yi.

Yet now.

Li Yi's squad was locked in a desperate battle.

While advancing steadily, they had accidentally entered a perilous building—its corridors swarmed with corpses, so numerous they threatened to drown them; the only saving grace was that most of these corpses were weak—if they'd been strong, the squad would have been annihilated in one strike.

"CRASH!"

Lin Yue unleashed a punch, sending corpses flying—but eerie ghostly figures circled nearby, emitting strange wails.

Yet in the next instant, a phantom spear swept through, clearing away all the spirits instantly, denying them any chance to possess and attack.

"Don't get bogged down in this building—break out!"

Li Yi ordered, spear in hand, leading the way; he dared not expend too much blood qi, fearing he'd be powerless against Yang Yilong later, so he merely swung his hanging-soul spear, forcing a path open.

Everyone followed him out of the building into the open.

But the corpses pursued relentlessly, surging from all directions, granting them no moment to breathe.

"Don't flee—break formation and we'll suffer heavy losses. Stand and fight here. Kill them all. Lin Jie, hold off the Spiritual Perception-level withered corpses; the rest are ours." Li Yi's pupils glowed sharply; he scanned left and right and made his decision instantly.

Backing against a wall, they met the charging corpses head-on.

"Alright. If you can't hold, say the word." Lin Yue nodded, reducing her attack frequency and focusing solely on the stronger withered corpses.

Li Yi faced little pressure—his hanging-soul spear was too potent. With each swing, the malevolent spirits inside the corpses were ripped out, their ethereal forms shattering instantly, killing them outright; without spirits to possess them, the corpses collapsed lifelessly.

Zheng Gong and Yuan Mingjin sweated profusely, their sniper rifles firing nonstop—each shot killed one, sometimes multiple corpses.

"Watch out!"

Fang Hang and Cheng Siping activated their Gazing Technique—two spirits lunged from behind a wall, aiming to ambush Zheng Gong and Yuan Mingjin—but were forcibly repelled by their own Gazing Technique.

After their attack failed, the spirits immediately suffered Earth's energy contamination, writhing in agony, unable to attack further.

With their complementary efforts, the squad stabilized, suffering no casualties.

Yet the number of corpses wasn't endless.

After enduring the fiercest wave of attacks, pressure eased significantly; Li Yi and Lin Yue cooperated to slay three Spiritual Perception-level withered corpses.

After nearly half an hour of brutal combat.

The surrounding corpses were nearly all eliminated.

"How many of these damned things are there? I feel there are more than the spider monsters before!" Yuan Mingjin was nearly collapsed, his arm numb and lifeless.

Using the Superb Series sniper rifles demanded immense recoil.

He was only a Spirit Medium—he lacked the physical strength to ignore the recoil.

"At least we've cleared these few buildings." Zheng Gong wiped sweat from his brow; during the battle, he'd narrowly escaped death several times—had it not been for Li Yi and his teammates, he might already have been possessed.

"Our pressure is high because the squads on either side have fallen behind—so all nearby corpses converged here." Fang Hang frowned.

Lin Yue looked up: "Zhao Lingfu's team has gone silent."

"We can't push further—we need to rest." Li Yi said. "I'm hungry. Zheng Gong, call the helicopter to drop some food. We'll deal with other issues later."

He was in his Blood Burning phase—even doing nothing, his body consumed immense energy, his blood qi surging uncontrollably.

Yet now, he channeled all this qi into his acupoints without using it.

"Alright, I'll call." Zheng Gong nodded, immediately pulling out his radio to report their position and request supplies.

Soon after.

A helicopter flew overhead and dropped a package.

Inside were vials of Golden Nutrient Liquid.

These were free—every squad received them, not just theirs.

Li Yi took one without hesitation and drank it.

After several vials, his hunger subsided—but his skin still glowed red, heat radiating outward, making him seem like a blazing furnace, as if his entire body burned.

"Li Yi, your body seems abnormal." Zheng Gong frowned.

"Don't worry. I'm circulating blood qi—it benefits my body, temporarily boosting my strength, but it drains me badly. I get hungry easily." Li Yi explained.

"I see." Zheng Gong nodded, and asked no further.

The group rested for half an hour, regaining their strength, then resumed movement.

"Li Yi, I suggest we check Zhao Lingfu's assigned zone. His team may have run into trouble." Lin Yue suddenly said.

"Agreed. Let's go. We can't advance much further anyway. I want to know why the squads on either side haven't kept pace." Li Yi nodded.

Immediately, they retreated slightly, then entered the zone assigned to another squad.

Soon after.

They found Zhao Lingfu's team on a street.

But their situation was grim.

The street was stained with blood, littered with corpses, thick with the stench of decay.

Zhao Lingfu sat slumped beside the road, smoking, his expression grim.

The arrival of Lin Yue and the others surprised him.

"Zhao Lingfu, I thought you were dead. I didn't hear any fighting from your side, and the number of corpses nearby was unusually high—I guessed your squad wasn't progressing well." Lin Yue walked over, frowning.

"We encountered a few Spiritual Perception-level withered corpses. Took heavy losses—two dead, two seriously wounded. I had the wounded evacuated by helicopter. Now I'm alone, so progress slowed." Zhao Lingfu flicked his cigarette away, then slowly stood up.

"Looks like I won't get a Cross-Domain Practitioner slot. But I should still get a Strange Artifact Cultivation Room, right? Still, I'm curious—how did your ragtag squad get ahead of me?"

He studied Li Yi and his team, surprised.

Two Spirit Mediums were in the squad—snipers, yes—but surviving this long proved the team had enough strength to protect them; otherwise, they'd be dead.

Could Lin Yue really be that strong?

No, not possible.

The problem must lie with Li Yi.

Zhao Lingfu narrowed his eyes at Li Yi—in his vision, Li Yi's entire body glowed red, a crimson light shooting straight into the sky, astonishingly divine; even from afar, heat radiated from him like a blazing furnace.

No Spiritual Perception cultivator could achieve this.

"Zhao Lingfu, since your team is stalled here, why not temporarily join ours?" Li Yi stepped forward and extended the invitation.

"Join your squad?"

Zhao Lingfu smiled. "Normally, no problem. But now? I know about your feud with Yang Yilong—he'll definitely seek revenge tonight. Sticking with you might get me targeted by him later. I don't want to get dragged into your quarrel."

"So you're afraid of Yang Yi too," Li Yi said.

Zhao Lingfu said: "I'm not afraid of him—I just can't beat him. I don't want to fight someone I can't defeat over some ridiculous reason and lose my life for nothing."

Lin Yue now spoke: "Zhao Lingfu, you know very well that with your abilities, you can't enter the Golden Academy or become a Cross-Borderer. Better to be an investor—invest in Li Yi. This is an opportunity for you."

"Invest in Li Yi?" Zhao Lingfu's expression shifted slightly.

Lin Yue was right.

He truly had no capacity to advance further, to enter the Golden Academy. But this Li Yi had some competitiveness—he was an external operations officer for the Investigation Bureau and could claim one of their slots.

But now wasn't a good time to invest in Li Yi. With Yang Yi around, Li Yi might not even survive tonight.

Yet isn't investment precisely about value peaking when it's most needed?

"Let me think about it before I give you an answer," Zhao Lingfu said, pulling out another cigarette and lighting it.

Lin Yue said: "Then you'd better think fast."

Zhao Lingfu chuckled: "See? You're impatient again."

He glanced at Li Yi: "I have no problem investing in you—but one thing at a time. If you want me to help you fight Yang Yi today, that's a separate deal. I don't plan to invest in you today and die today."

"Is that what you call investing?" Lin Yue frowned.

"If I don't interfere in your matter with Yang Yi, just forget what I just said," Zhao Lingfu said.

Li Yi now said: "I won't ask you to fight Yang Yi—I'll handle him myself. If you must act, I only ask you to distract the other Spiritual Sense experts in Yang Yi's team. In return, I'll share the Guidance Technique with you."

"Oh?"

Zhao Lingfu was surprised—Li Yi actually had confidence in facing Yang Yi.

"Interesting."

He laughed: "I'd like to see how you handle Yang Yi. If you truly eliminate him, I'll invest in you unconditionally—and risk everything I have on you. I'll even serve you with my life."

No Spiritual Sense expert in Tianchang City has yet killed Yang Yi—not even Li Shaoqing of the Cultivation Association could manage it.

Li Yi is only at the Inspiration Realm. If he could kill Yang Yi while crossing a full realm, Zhao Lingfu would be utterly awed.

And such a person would surely enter the Golden Academy and become a Cross-Borderer. Serving him wouldn't be a bad bet.

But Zhao Lingfu thought it impossible, so he had no qualms about making empty promises.

"Fine, it's settled," Li Yi said at once.

Zhao Lingfu was taken aback.

Could this Li Yi truly create a miracle?

He wasn't the only one surprised—Lin Yue was too. She didn't believe Li Yi could defeat Yang Yi, but having such conviction was good. She had no intention of crushing his spirit.

"What a madman."

Zhao Lingfu stood up with a smile: "Then let's keep moving. If you want to compete for slots, you must start now—other teams won't wait for you."