Chapter 221

212. Chapter 212: Possession

Hearing the method revealed by the residual consciousness in the coin, Li Yi's face instantly darkened.

If they had known this crucial information earlier, they never would have chosen to act at night—they should have waited until daylight. And this Liu Yan actually knew the Stillness Technique; combined with the night's invincible, stealthy yin corpse, this stillness technique was a deadly blow to everyone.

No wonder everyone suffered so much in the earlier clash.

If they didn't act on this intelligence now, they'd all be dead if they kept dragging this out.

Realizing this, Li Yi didn't rush into combat with Liu Yan; instead, he quickly retreated to the rear and used the Guiding Technique to retrieve the hanging spear he'd placed nearby.

It wasn't that he didn't want to use the hanging spear—it was just that holding it for long periods placed a heavy burden on him, requiring constant use of the Guiding Technique. After Li Yi broke through to the Qi-Channeling Realm, he no longer needed the spear's power to deal with walking corpses—he could advance effortlessly on his own.

Holding the hanging spear, Li Yi felt a flicker of confidence rise within him.

With a weapon in hand and the enemy unable to hide her form before him, the only thing he needed to fear now was her Stillness Technique.

But during the time Li Yi had come and gone, all the Spirit-Perception experts who had surrounded and attacked her were now defeated.

Each of them was wounded; some had nearly died. But fortunately, everyone had held their ground at this point, sharing the assault, so there had been no fatalities. Still, the situation hadn't improved—it had grown dire, because very few Spirit-Perception experts remained capable of fighting.

"Sister Lin, fall back—I'll handle her." Li Yi barked, gripping the hanging spear and charging forward again.

Hearing Li Yi's voice, Liu Yue instinctively turned her head—and saw Li Yi already rushing toward her. She immediately said, "Don't be reckless. This thing's power is terrifying. Only by fighting together might we still have a chance to win."

But her words had barely finished.

Liu Yan's cold eyes had already locked onto Li Yi. She sensed a hint of danger from the hanging spear in his hand, but Liu Yan was no mindless walking corpse—her gaze shifted, then fixed on Liu Yue. In her view, killing the others first was better.

She let out an eerie laugh, then vanished from her spot in an instant.

At that moment, Liu Yue's body hair stood on end, her Spirit-Perception screaming a warning.

Danger was behind her!

Liu Yue spun around sharply, clenched her fist, and struck out, trying to force the enemy back.

Boom!

Yet as her punch exploded, it landed solidly on Liu Yan's body—but despite her full power, Liu Yan merely staggered slightly, suffering little damage.

"She didn't even flinch from a direct hit?" Liu Yue was stunned. She felt her fist had left a palm-shaped imprint on the corpse.

But it was only a shallow mark—useless.

Clearly, the residual consciousness in the coin was right: at night, this yin corpse was invulnerable. Even Liu Yue, who mastered fist arts, couldn't defeat her.

After absorbing that blow, Liu Yan's chilling smile returned.

"No good!"

Liu Yue's blood ran cold—she understood the enemy's intent. But it was already too late to retreat.

A cold, mottled hand, like a sharp steel blade, plunged straight into Liu Yue's chest.

This strike could not be dodged. Could not be blocked.

Liu Yue saw her own heart pierced—yet as a Spirit-Perception expert, no matter how high her physical stats, a pierced heart meant certain death.

Boom!

But at that moment, a gunshot rang out.

The shot, partially anticipated, sped through the air and struck Liu Yan's arm.

Even an invincible yin corpse couldn't withstand a specially designed bullet.

The immense force tore a grotesque gash in her arm. Coagulated blood and a thick stench of decay spread through the air. The hand that had been poised to pierce Liu Yue's chest now lacked the momentum—it only tore a gruesome wound across her body, failing to penetrate.

Liu Yue seized the chance and retreated swiftly, her face pale with shock and terror.

Without that shot, she would have been dead.

"That was close," muttered Yuan Mingjin, crouched in a nearby building, his rifle aimed, sweat beading on his forehead.

He had fired that shot.

He'd taken enormous risk—slight misjudgment would have killed Liu Yue. But the worst didn't happen: he'd hit Liu Yan and saved Liu Yue.

"Excellent shot," said Daoist Pete, immediately praising him.

He hadn't expected Tianshang City to have such a skilled sniper. He himself wouldn't have dared that shot. Yet this sniper, with no Spirit-Perception at all, had fired without collateral damage—not just courage, but talent.

"Die."

But at that moment, Li Yi's furious roar rang out—he had arrived, swinging the hanging spear in a blur, leaving no opening for Liu Yan to evade. In an instant, he felt immense resistance from the spear, as if striking stone.

Liu Yan's head took the blow. She shrieked a piercing, unnatural cry—then a phantom figure detached from her body and appeared outside.

But quickly, the figure reentered Liu Yan's body.

Clearly, the vengeful spirit possessing her refused to abandon the yin corpse she'd labored so hard to forge.

Li Yi gave her no chance—he swung the hanging spear again, striking Liu Yan once more. The phantom figure was flung out again, and gray mist now seeped from the spirit's form—evidence of injury.

As soon as this soul wound appeared, the corresponding part of Liu Yan's body began rotting at a visible rate.

"It works?"

Zhang Lei's eyes lit up. He roared, "All of you, hold it down—give Li Yi an opening!"

Everyone's expressions changed, but there was no time to hesitate—if they didn't unite, no one would escape this old district.

Quickly, Li Shaoqing, Daoist Pete, Zhang Lei, Gu Mengping, and others, despite their wounds, gritted their teeth and charged again.

Liu Yan sensed her advantage slipping. Suddenly, she lifted her head, opened her mouth, and emitted a chilling, piercing scream—a sound laced with soul-attacking power. Everyone's heads felt as if kicked hard—they reeled, staggered, collapsed to the ground, nearly unconscious.

Fortunately, the crowd was large, and the attack was dispersed among them. Had anyone taken it full force, they'd have suffered the same soul damage as Zhang Lei—falling into a coma.

Even so, everyone was in agony. Blood trickled from their noses, ears, and eyes. Their gazes dimmed rapidly. They slumped, trembling, utterly drained.

Li Yi was no better.

The scream nearly knocked him out. But he'd taken a Soul-Returning Pill earlier—his soul was stronger than these Spirit-Perception experts. His inner true self sat upon a lotus throne, roaring to resist the assault—but even so, it retreated, worn and feeble.

"Soul damage," Li Yi gritted his teeth, gripping the hanging spear, and roared as he charged again.

His own soul was wounded, and Liu Yan, having taken several blows from the hanging spear, was no better off.

His blood surged violently, coating the hanging spear.

He tried to amplify the spear's power with the martial artist's blood qi and aura.

But this act triggered a hidden ability of the hanging spear—its phantom form now erupted in a chilling ghostly flame, fueled by Li Yi's blood qi.

Hm?

This anomaly surprised Li Yi—but then a memory surfaced: he'd seen ghost soldiers wielding the hanging spear this way before, the spear ignited with ghostfire, its power amplified.

At this moment, Liu Yan's pale face twisted with fear—she clearly feared the ghostfire, and tried to flee.

But then, a series of gunshots rang out.

Zheng Gong and Yuan Mingjin fired together from afar, blocking Liu Yan's escape route.

As Liu Yan dodged the bullets, Li Yi was already upon her.

Swinging the flaming hanging spear, Liu Yan dodged desperately—but still took a hit. The ghostfire touched her, and instantly, the yin corpse ignited, burning fiercely, the flames growing stronger with no sign of fading.

Liu Yan's body melted like wax beneath the ghostfire.

Yet even in this agony, she raised her hand and formed a seal.

Stillness Technique?

Li Yi's face turned pale—he tried to retreat, but it was too late.

His body froze instantly, immobile.

And in the next instant,

Liu Yan's body collapsed to the ground. A phantom figure burst from her corpse and lunged straight for Li Yi.

"No! The vengeful spirit is abandoning her body—it's trying to possess Li Yi!" Everyone gasped in horror.

If it succeeded, they were all finished.

But Li Yi couldn't move—he could only watch helplessly.

Others wanted to help, but couldn't.

The vengeful spirit was a soul-entity—bullets couldn't touch it. Only special methods could counter it.

Normally, Li Yi could repel it with the hanging spear—but now, under the Stillness Technique, like Li Shaoqing before him, he was paralyzed, unable to act.

The vengeful spirit entered Li Yi's body before everyone's eyes.

"It's over—it succeeded."

The crowd fell silent.

Frozen in place, Li Yi felt a cold force forcibly squeezing into his body. His entire body went numb. His consciousness was crushed—just a glance, and he nearly passed out.

Clearly, on the soul level, he was weaker than this vengeful spirit.

After all, this spirit had crossed realms alongside the coin.

If this continued, Li Yi knew his consciousness would vanish—his body would become the spirit's vessel.

"Li Yi."

Though bleeding and wounded, Liu Yue, seeing him possessed, was frantic with panic.