Chapter 771: Holy Spirit Qi?

【Little Lu Ran?】

【Huh?】 Lu Ran paused mid-motion, the gourd in hand.

【How's it going over there?】 A woman's concerned voice echoed in his mind.

【It's done. Nothing happened.】

【Good. I found those two Nuo Sha disciples—they're still kneeling, trembling.】 Deng Yu Xiang glanced at the shivering man and sneered inwardly.

She continued telepathically: 【Return to the first battlefield and collect the soul.】

【I've already seen him.】 Lu Ran, who had been gazing at the sea of clouds, spotted a human soul soaring upward.

It was the Prisoned Demon disciple.

He's floating toward the sky?

Lu Ran's heart stirred. Human believers' souls were meant to return to their deity's embrace.

So if this soul drifted uncontrollably upward, that meant

There was a god in the sky?

Or perhaps the deity's true statue still stood on earth, and the path back lay above?

«Shhh~»

Lu Ran's figure flickered, stepping atop a layer of wind, standing midair beside the Prisoned Demon believer.

«You! N-no, don't come closer, aaaaaah!! »

The man screamed in terror, powerless, his form collapsing and dissolving into Lu Ran's pupils.

This was a believer of Jiang Jing's soul.

For Lu Ran, it was pure nourishment!

Previously, Lu Ran had never activated a deity statue.

But he knew that to activate a demonic statue, he needed two thousand Mist Realm demonic souls.

By proportional conversion:

Meaning, after this battle, Lu Ran had enough to activate the Prisoned Demon statue and the Nuo Sha statue.

But Lu Ran's activation slots were limited—he wasn't ready to activate either yet.

Hmm. Hold onto them for now.

Strengthen the foundation; they'll come in handy later.

Meanwhile, in the snow forest, away from the Nuo Sha shadows, beside a large tree:

Gao Shan Jun staggered forward, dragging the nearly exhausted Nuo Sha female disciple, then collapsed with a «plop» at Deng Yu Xiang's feet.

Deng Yu Xiang's expression darkened.

This scene struck her deeply.

Before today, Deng Yu Xiang had viewed Jiang Jing cultivators as lofty, powerful beings, each with pride and dignity!

Yet now, she saw a spineless coward.

Hmm. Then again, it made sense.

In the mortal realm, demons invaded monthly; facing such dire threats, humanity had united as never before.

People rarely drew blades against each other.

But now was different!

These two Nuo Sha disciples' lives truly rested in her hands.

Today, she had truly broken her vow—killed her own kind.

Of course, Deng Yu Xiang was no saint; she felt no regret.

Facing ruthless villains bent on killing her, she would strike back with maximum force!

«Please, my lord, show mercy, » Gao Shan Jun stammered, head bowed lower.

He was still Jiang Jing; his Nuo Sha shadow would linger for a while longer.

The female Nuo Sha disciple, however, lay collapsed, her body frail beyond measure.

Her Nuo Sha shadow still danced in the forest of the first battlefield—given her condition, it would vanish soon.

«Shhh~»

Deng Yu Xiang glanced aside; with faint energy ripples, Lu Ran appeared silently.

«Injured? » Lu Ran stepped forward, black flames igniting in his palm.

In just a few steps, Lu Ran's violent aura visibly faded.

Deng Yu Xiang's sharp gaze softened slightly.

She shook her head gently: «No. »

Lu Ran still gripped her arm and «transferred» the black fire into her.

Deng Yu Xiang smiled, warmth spreading through her body.

She pulled a handful of Divine Power Pearls from her pocket and handed them to Lu Ran: «After the battle, only Yemo's robe was torn a few times—the Water Armor is intact. »

«Oh. » Lu Ran nodded.

The Prisoned Demon sect excelled in defense and control, but their output was weak.

«Let me ask? » Deng Yu Xiang pressed the Divine Power Pearls into Lu Ran's hand.

«Alright. » Lu Ran took them, counted—eight in total.

The lowest was River-grade; one was even Jiang-grade!

They glowed translucent, swirling with faint luminescence, dreamlike and ethereal.

They were roughly the size of a quail's egg.

Lu Ran suddenly remembered something and telepathed: 【Wait—I'll search the old man's corpse.】

He vanished, returning seconds later—his heart pounding with shock.

Deng Yu Xiang radiated an utterly terrifying aura!

Lu Ran glanced quietly—she was staring down at the kneeling man, eyes icy with contempt.

Deep-seated disdain made her unbearably haughty.

This Jiang Jing cultivator truly disgusted her.

«We had no grudge against you. Why kill us? » Her voice turned glacial.

Gao Shan Jun turned ashen, as if plunged into ice.

Even Lu Ran shivered involuntarily.

He'd thought his own malice was severe enough.

But this—this was the Great Nightmare.

Terrifying.

Gao Shan Jun stammered: «W-we—»

Deng Yu Xiang spoke again: «If you lie even once—»

«No, no! » Gao Shan Jun shook his head frantically. «The rules here are like this. »

«Rules? »

«If you see newcomers who aren't from your sect, you'll likely attack. »

Deng Yu Xiang's voice grew colder: «Why? »

Gao Shan Jun trembled: «Holy Spirit Qi falls from the sky—limited resources.

More people means more competition.

You two are heavenly talents, young yet sent here—you'll rise far.

If we don't eliminate you early, when we fight over Holy Spirit Qi, it'll be us who die. »

Holy Spirit Qi?

Deng Yu Xiang pondered—it must be what Lu Ran called «Primordial Qi. »

She asked: «We're human. We can't cultivate Holy Spirit Qi. Why fight for it? »

Gao Shan Jun looked startled but dared not raise his head: «Before arriving in the Holy Spirit Mountain Realm, our deity gave us a divine message: collect Holy Spirit Qi. »

Deng Yu Xiang frowned slightly, glancing at Lu Ran with a questioning look.

Without needing words, Lu Ran understood her thought.

He shook his head gently: 【Master Xiang Yang never told me this.】

Deng Yu Xiang: «. »

What does that mean?

Other deities gave clear orders to their followers—why did Master Xiang Yang say nothing?

Does he not care about Holy Spirit Qi?

That doesn't make sense.

After all, it's the foundation of a deity.

Gao Shan Jun continued obsequiously: «My lords, we don't know how to return home.

But we believe—if we gather enough Holy Spirit Qi and please our deity, we might return to the mortal realm.

After all, that's the only mission we were given. »

«Hmph. » Lu Ran sneered.

Go back?

Your divine master couldn't care less about you.

When you die, your soul will return automatically.

Wait!

Lu Ran suddenly realized that anyone within this realm, if they stayed long enough, would inevitably carry some extra source qi in their soul.

Also known as sacred spirit qi.

If that's the case, could I better cultivate the divine statues within the garden?

After all, the true material for cultivating divine statues isn't human souls—it's that tiny trace of "sacred spirit qi" carried within them!

Deng Yu Xiang fell silent for a long while before asking: "Nuo Sha and Qiu Mo aren't from the same sect—why are you mixed together?"

Gao Shan Jun bowed his head: "There are many factions within the Sacred Spirit Mountain Realm; we have no choice but to band together to survive.

Sometimes, even fellow disciples kill each other."

"Many factions?" Deng Yu Xiang frowned. "Divine sects rarely open their divine ruins. Where do so many people come from in this realm?"

Gao Shan Jun answered honestly: "Most people didn't enter the Sacred Spirit Mountain Realm by challenging divine ruins."

"Oh?"

"I was chosen by the divine master and sent directly in during my pilgrimage."

"Mmm…" The Nuo Sha disciple groaned softly and fainted completely.

It seems she's run out of energy.

To recover, she'd need quiet rest for several days—but in this perilous world, exhaustion and unconsciousness might as well be death.

Deng Yu Xiang ignored the female bandit and continued: "Tell me about your faction."

Gao Shan Jun, seeing his companion collapse, felt as if he were seeing his own fate.

His divine power and physical strength were draining rapidly; his speech quickened: "Our stronghold has over forty men."

The chieftain is a Yu Fu believer named Luo Tiantu.

He's likely at the Sea Realm, but no one knows his exact cultivation level.

Within the stronghold, there are three major factions: Yu Fu, Qiu Mo, and Nuo Sha disciples—originally roughly equal in number.

Deng Yu Xiang interrupted: "How strong is your stronghold within the Sacred Spirit Mountain Realm?"

Gao Shan Jun replied immediately: "From what I know, it's mid-to-lower tier. My lord, I—"

Deng Yu Xiang's expression darkened: "What?"

Gao Shan Jun swallowed hard, his trembling hand reaching for his waist: "I have a divine weapon here—could I offer it to you? Please spare my life?"

Deng Yu Xiang's gaze grew even more disdainful: "You want to give me your divine weapon?"

Gao Shan Jun pulled out an exquisite dagger and offered it with both hands: "It—it doesn't even belong to me."

Deng Yu Xiang sneered: "Ha, like how you killed us and stole from others?"

"I'm sorry, my lord…" Gao Shan Jun kept pleading.

Deng Yu Xiang glanced at Lu Ran, who gave a slight nod.

Lu Ran had long sensed this man possessed a divine weapon.

But according to the Crimson Light Blade's hint, this weapon had no spirit.

Its base attributes had indeed crossed into the divine weapon tier, but its spirit had sealed itself off, seemingly refusing all contact with the outside.

So that's how it was.

【If you can't take it anymore, just act.】Lu Ran felt her anger.

For someone who killed, robbed, betrayed comrades, and sold his master for mercy, Lu Ran would never keep him in the team.

Lu Ran continued sending thoughts: 【Don't worry—I still have two souls. We don't lack sources of information.】

In fact, even if this man died, Lu Ran could still make him speak.

"Hmm." Deng Yu Xiang kicked Gao Shan Jun's hand with her boot; the dagger flew high.

She caught it and casually swung it downward.

"Sss!"

The sharp dagger pierced straight into the man's occiput.

After this, Deng Yu Xiang stood still, silent for a long while.

It was only her second day in the Sacred Spirit Mountain Realm.

And this world was pushing her, forcing her to change.

She finally understood why the rare few who returned to the mortal world refused to speak of anything here.

"Great Nightmare."

"Hm?" Deng Yu Xiang looked up at Lu Ran.

He handed her the Fiery Phoenix Pattern Gourd.

Lu Ran smiled: "I just toasted to my past self."

Deng Yu Xiang bit her lip, gazing at the young man's concerned eyes and that familiar, gentle smile.

Slowly, she reached out and took the Fiery Phoenix Pattern Gourd.

Good—some things never change.

"Gulps, gulps"

(End of Chapter)