Chapter 96: Reversing the Celestial Dipper, Plundering the Yin God's Soul Power!

"Clatter~" Before the mountain cat could figure out what was happening with the yellow almanac, another sound came from behind.

It saw the statue of East Lake Elder suddenly shake violently and snap its eyes open.

In the mountain cat's yellow-green pupils, a phantom figure walked out of that statue.

"Meow~" The mountain cat had been raised by the Mountain God, was born with divine strangeness, could see East Lake Elder's phantom, and felt a certain familiarity toward it.

East Lake Elder glanced at the soundly sleeping Zhao Xing, then glanced at the mountain cat, and afterward took his crescent moon blade and walked through the door.

"Meow?" The mountain cat walked to the door, peered outside through the crack, and very much wanted to go out and seek out that dangerous feeling.

But then it recalled Zhao Xing's instructions, leapt back onto the table, and silently kept watch at Zhao Xing's side.

Zhao Xing had originally been wide awake, but after lying there for a while, he suddenly fell asleep and entered a dream.

In the dream, the sunlight was bright and warm as spring, and in the distance a golden light shone down.

Zhao Xing immediately saw a blessed land: there celestial cranes danced, auspicious clouds filled the sky, and even more, fairies with fluttering sleeves and colored ribbons around them flickered in and out of view among the clouds.

He himself, however, lived in a shabby courtyard, his clothes barely covering his body, his food never enough to fill his stomach; looking down, he found his hair disheveled and filthy, his face covered in wrinkles, as if he were on the verge of old age, about to reach the end of his life.

"Sigh, a sickly body, the great limit drawing near, pitiful, truly pitiful." The old Daoist kept shaking his head.

"Who—who's speaking?" Zhao Xing raised his head to look.

At this moment, an old man wearing a purple Daoist robe, holding a horsetail whisk, with a face full of benevolence, came treading on auspicious clouds and landed before Zhao Xing's courtyard gate.

"I am the Righteous God of Xuantian. Your illness has entered the marrow, the great limit draws near, you have not long to live."

"Immortal~ I beg the immortal to save me." Zhao Xing, as if struck with awe, bowed his head to the ground in worship.

The old Daoist revealed a faint smile: "This god observes the suffering of the mortal world. Meeting you is fated. Very well, I shall save you."

Then the old Daoist waved his horsetail whisk, and a streak of golden light fell upon Zhao Xing; his body visibly grew younger.

The wrinkles vanished, his hair turned from white to black, his legs and feet became nimble, and his whole body brimmed with strength.

"Many thanks, immortal, many thanks, immortal!" Zhao Xing, as if struck with awe, kept crying out aloud.

"Unfortunately, this god can only resolve your momentary troubles, free you from illness and pain, and return you to youth. You remain a common mortal; in a few years you still cannot escape death."

"Immortal, I don't want to die, I don't want to die!" Zhao Xing hurriedly shouted, "Since the immortal has taken pity on me, I beg the immortal to give me another streak of golden light like just now."

"If you wish to completely escape this fate, you must cultivate immortal arts, receive the infusion of magic power…"

"I beg the immortal to give me another one."

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"Only by entering the immortal gate and stepping onto the immortal Dao can you…"

"I beg the immortal to give me another one."

"Long life and enduring vision, free from illness and disaster, otherwise…"

"I beg the immortal to give me another one."

"…" The purple-robed old Daoist grew somewhat angry. What was wrong with this mortal? Why did he keep shouting for another one, as if this god's soul power cost nothing?

But Zhao Xing paid no heed, only endlessly repeating that one sentence, as if possessed.

Seeing this, the purple-robed old Daoist had no choice but to strike out another streak of golden light onto Zhao Xing.

Zhao Xing was overjoyed: "Many thanks, immortal, you truly are a good immortal! I feel much better now."

The purple-robed old Daoist continued: "If you were to enter my Righteous God of Xuantian's sect, it could deliver you from the sea of mortal suffering. Are you willing to take me as your master?"

Zhao Xing said blankly: "Will you give me another one? Immortal, I suffer so…"

"You wretch! Have you no end to this?!" The purple-robed old Daoist flew into a rage. "So greedy as you are, how could you ever seek the great Dao?"

Zhao Xing seemed thoroughly frightened and said not a word.

The purple-robed old Daoist's expression softened slightly: "All people have greedy hearts. Considering you are fated with this god, step outside your courtyard gate and let me observe your root bones, and I shall perform a benevolent art upon you."

Zhao Xing said: "My legs and feet aren't nimble. Immortal, just perform the art right outside the courtyard gate."

The purple-robed old Daoist suppressed the anger in his heart, still wearing a face full of benevolence: "If that is so, then invite this god inside."

"Immortal, please…"

The purple-robed old Daoist was just about to lift his foot.

But he heard Zhao Xing's words suddenly shift: "Please, immortal, just stand outside the gate and cast that golden light from before. My humble home is too filthy; I fear it would defile the immortal's honored self."

"…"

At this moment, the purple-robed old Daoist finally realized what was happening. The smile vanished from his face; the surrounding golden light was gone, replaced by a stretch of red light, and his gaze turned cold as he stared at Zhao Xing.

"Interesting. A mere mortal like you can actually remain unaffected by this seat's magic. This dream…"

"Hmph!" Zhao Xing snorted coldly, no longer pretending. The tattered clothes on his body suddenly emitted a streak of mysterious golden light.

"Hum~" The dream shattered, cracks appearing like glass, and along with it the purple-robed Daoist was pulverized.

"Whoosh~" The ever-burning lamp lit up once more.

Zhao Xing woke up.

"Meow?" The mountain cat leapt onto Zhao Xing's shoulder and nuzzled him with its head.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me." Zhao Xing stroked the mountain cat's little head.

He turned his head to glance at East Lake Elder's statue, then glanced outside the Yuan Gate, his eyes narrowing slightly.

He hadn't expected that the people of the Xuantian Sect would really make a move.

"A yin soul entering a dream first confirms the location. At this moment, every clerk on the list should have been bewitched."

"I just don't know how many took the bait and opened the door, or said 'please come in.'" Zhao Xing pondered in his heart.

When the Xuantian Sect makes a move, the evil god always goes first.

That is the move called 【Yin Soul Entering Dream】, which bewitches first.

But the house where Zhao Xing resides is under protection—that is, the rule set down when the Great Ancestor established the Dao: a place with an owner, do not enter unless invited.

The yin soul cannot enter and can only linger outside the door. If this evil god wishes to use soul arts to influence Zhao Xing, he can only perform a 'benevolent art.'

Because only a righteous spell can enter the dwelling and affect Zhao Xing inside.

The moment he entered the dream, the sixth-tier soul armor instantly woke Zhao Xing and granted him absolute autonomy over the dream.

Therefore he was not tempted at all; the various illusions in the dream—such as old age, sickness, frailty—were all actively cooperated with by Zhao Xing.

"What this Yin God did was essentially use the purest soul force to nourish me. If I had been beguiled into opening the door, or said 'please come in,' it could take it back."

"But it sent out two streams of soul force, and both were absorbed by me—truly plundered. It's probably going to fly into a rage out of shame." Zhao Xing thought to himself.

He glanced at the panel record.

【You plundered the 'Soul Force' of the seventh-rank Yin God 'Blood Spirit Venerable.' Your Life Soul has advanced to Ninth Rank, early period.】

【You plundered the 'Soul Force' of the seventh-rank Yin God 'Blood Spirit Venerable.' Your Life Soul has advanced to Ninth Rank, middle period.】

【Life Soul: Ninth Rank, middle period】

Seeing the new attributes on the panel, Zhao Xing couldn't help but laugh: "Shearing the sheep succeeded!"

Generally speaking, the Life Soul's rank lags behind.

Because there is no specialized method of soul cultivation, one can only grow the Seven Po through gathering Yuan and practicing spells.

Only when the Seven Po feed back the Life Soul will the Life Soul's rank slowly rise.

The Qi Dynasty does not cultivate fate; such professions and spells were all cut down by the Grand Ancestor.

Of course, Zhao Xing's Life Soul is only at Ninth Rank, middle period now, so it can't be called 'cultivating fate' yet. It's just that his soul force is stronger, his resistance to soul-type spells like 【Yin Wind】 is higher, and it will also boost the power of his own spells or secret techniques that involve the Life Soul.

For example, the Sleep Bug spell and Dream Storage spell will be more powerful than before.

"Thanks to Blood Spirit, my dear brother, for the soul force—much too kind of you."

Even without relying on the soul armor, Zhao Xing had a certain confidence in using the Dream Storage spell to shear the Yin God during the 【Yin Soul Enters Dream】 phase. With the sixth-tier soul armor, it was even easier.

One must know that the Nightmare Sect is the true master of soul cultivation; compared to the Nightmare Sect, the Xuantian Sect is far behind in soul cultivation and dream manipulation.

"The Xuantian Sect uses Yin Soul Enters Dream to pinpoint the location; next comes people to take action." Zhao Xing looked toward the door, "Hope Old Chen comes through."

"I am a righteous god of the Xuantian Sect. Chen Shijie, you were born under a cursed fate—your parents died under your ill luck, you were driven from home by your kin, reduced to fighting beggars for scraps. All this is because your Fate Palace shows signs of ruin; when the Fate Palace is ruined, the Life Soul decays early. Moreover, your fate carries a baleful aura. If you cannot cultivate fate and change your fortune, you will surely suffer misfortune as you grow older."

"If you can worship me, I can help you change your fate. Why don't you kneel and worship the god at once!"

In a dilapidated temple, Chen Shijie stood before a deity statue, holding a broken bowl in his hand, with half a blood-stained steamed bun inside.

He was only the size of a seven- or eight-year-old child at this moment, but his face looked like that of a thirty- or forty-year-old—utterly bizarre.

This was because the Yin God could not fully reconstruct the dream that Chen Shijie feared.

Compared to Zhao Xing, Chen Shijie's dream was more realistic, and the autonomy was not in his hands—the Yin God held the initiative.

Because he had no soul armor to protect him, nor had he practiced the "Great Dream Spring and Autumn" like Zhao Xing.

"Worship a god?!" Chen Shijie's eyes struggled, and he muttered to himself: "I joined the army at thirteen. Because my root bone was too poor, I had to train until late at night every day in the army, and even so, the next day the squad leader would still punish me for slow progress."

"I was mocked and bullied by my comrades. Every late night I prayed that my aptitude might be just a little better—just that little bit. But it wasn't until I was fifteen that I reached Gathering Yuan, First Order. Did the gods ever hear my prayer?"

"I followed my commander into the Great Wasteland Mountain, accidentally fell into a barbarian trap, was at death's door, and in the end it was the Marquis who found me. Did the gods ever hear my cry?"

"You…" Blood Spirit Venerable was stunned for a moment; he felt the dream being shaken by some kind of will within Chen Shijie.

"I reached Gathering Yuan at fifteen, trained day and night, threw myself into every battle without regard for my life, and only reached Gathering Yuan, Fourth Order by the age of twenty. I don't know how much blood I shed, how many wounds I took, and finally earned enough military merit to change my cultivation aptitude."

"After three more years of effort, I finally passed the examination for the position of Military Agricultural Officer… all of that I fought for myself."

With every sentence Chen Shijie spoke, he took a step forward.

With every step he took, he grew three cun taller.

The purple-robed Daoist said nothing, quietly watching Chen Shijie.

The latter walked step by step until he stood before him; by now Chen Shijie had fully returned to his normal form.

He looked at the purple-robed Daoist and smiled: "You should know that a Military Agricultural Officer can also petition the gods to cast spells. Do you know how many times I have petitioned the gods in these ten years as a Military Agricultural Officer?"

Blood Spirit Venerable asked calmly: "How many times?"

Chen Shijie glanced at the blood-stained steamed bun in the bowl, smiled faintly: "In ten years of following the Marquis into the wilderness to pacify the barbarians, there were four times when I was in a nine-death-one-life situation."

"Even so, I, this official, have never once petitioned a god of this dynasty!"

Chen Shijie looked coldly at Blood Spirit Venerable, slowly crushed the bun and bowl in his hand, and blew the dust toward Blood Spirit Venerable: "Let alone you?"

The dust swirled, transforming into a gust of Yin wind that enveloped Blood Spirit Venerable.

The latter shook his head. Before his form shattered, he said with regret: "Chen Shijie, with a mind like yours, you truly should have joined my Xuantian Sect. It doesn't matter—after I take you away, I will personally take you as my disciple, and never treat you as a disposable pawn…"

"Hmph, you heretical fiend, and you dare speak such nonsense!" Chen Shijie snorted coldly. The phantom completely shattered; he stood on the hillside, the reflected illusion in his eyes vanishing as clarity returned.

The wind blew through the night of Anping Town.

It was now the hour of Hai; the vast majority of residents had already gone to sleep.

Yet in several mansions not far from the ruins site, rockeries and underground chambers suddenly opened one after another.

"Swoosh swoosh swoosh~"

One figure after another appeared, leaping nimbly like cats out of the mansions, heading toward the ruins site.

Their attire was identical to the 'demon men' attire from the Martial Department examination.

Even if there were clerks or officials who had not yet left, seeing this scene, they would assume it was an arrangement by the government office.

They rushed swiftly into the ruins site. The officials patrolling the outer perimeter acted as if they hadn't seen them at all, as if this group were air, letting them enter freely.

In fact, they truly had not seen these people's existence, because of the 【Yin Soul Enters Dream】—everyone had been affected to varying degrees.

Led by a few ringleaders, this group split into small squads and headed toward their destinations.

Chen Deshun and Wu Mei received the mission to abduct Zhao Xing and Li Chengfeng.

The two Hall Masters—Chen Deshun was responsible for Li Chengfeng, while Wu Mei was responsible for capturing Zhao Xing.

Falcon Hawk, meanwhile, led seven men with vigorous qi and blood, heading straight for Chen Shijie's location.

Wu Mei advanced quickly; she knew the window for action was limited—Blood Spirit Venerable had only given them three quarters of an hour.

If they had not completed the mission by the third quarter of the hour of Hai, they had to retreat.

After that, every extra quarter-hour increased the chance of being discovered.

If it exceeded three quarter-hours, death was certain.

"Years of lurking, all for these three quarter-hours!"

"Once I've snatched someone, retreat immediately. The Honored One will cover me, and there's also an eighth-rank late-stage cultivator whose time is almost up to cover my rear."

"Zhao Xing, Zhao Xing… my precious baby, wait for mother to come love you~"

Wu Mei licked her lips, a bewitching crimson flash passing through her eyes.

At the fenced courtyard, Zhao Xing used his Bright Eyes to examine the wooden statue of Earl East Lake and found nothing supernatural about it—in other words, Earl East Lake's divine sense had left.

"But the Yin Soul Dream Entry phase has already passed, so it doesn't matter whether Earl East Lake is guarding or not." Zhao Xing was very clear on the procedure; the Xuantian Sect would absolutely not launch a second one.

It wasn't that they couldn't—it was that they didn't dare.

If they launched a second one, they'd have no strength left to run. This was an abduction mission, not a suicide attack.

"Why can't I hear a single sound?" Zhao Xing pinched the pendant at his ear—a treasure obtained from the Grand Dream Academy, the Wind Crystal Earring.

It allowed Zhao Xing to use the flow of breezes in space to detect sounds from farther away.

Zhao Xing hadn't cultivated any hearing-type spells, but with the Wind Crystal Earring, he could still hear sounds from very far away.

Yet now there wasn't a single sound, and he suspected Old Chen had already wrapped things up.

But when he sensed the ley lines, he found the Fire Prison Underground Palace hadn't disappeared.

"Could the Xuantian Sect have retreated? Impossible. These lunatics love to go all-in—once they've started, they absolutely won't retreat, unless the allotted time is exceeded. Besides, some of them simply won't retreat; they have to be sent off for the Great Zhou to hunt down, causing destruction before death to draw attention."

"So quiet, I wonder how Young Master Zong is doing. He should be waiting at the entrance like I told him." He thought to himself.

Zhao Xing looked around, and suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye.

Speak of the devil—it was actually Zong Zong Shichang!

He was covered in blood, even his face, and it was impossible to tell whether it was his own or someone else's. He looked utterly terrified.

"Zhao Xing, Zhao Xing, quickly let me in, someone's chasing me!" Zong Zong Shichang shouted.

Zhao Xing examined him with Bright Eyes and Five Elements Observation, and found nothing abnormal.

He closed his eyes, then opened them again.

Although Bright Eyes and Five Elements Observation hadn't spotted anything, his Earth Soul had sensed something. Especially now that his Fate Soul had truly entered the ranked realm and reached a higher tier, his Dream Storage Art was stronger.

One open and close of the eyes completed the convergence sensing of dream entry, Fate Soul, and Earth Soul.

"'You are your mother's Zong Zong Shichang, trying to fool a fool here.'" Zhao Xing sneered inwardly.

Even without the Fate Soul's sensing, he would have found it strange.

The moment he thought of Zong Zong Shichang, Zong Zong Shichang appeared?

How could there be such a coincidence.

"Brother Zong, don't come toward the door—I've sealed that shut. Actually, I opened a door over by the fence."

"Right, right, right, it's the fence three meters to the left, covered by vines. I'll come open the door for you right now…"

Hearing Zhao Xing say this.

Wu Mei was immediately delighted. After lurking for so many years, her Xuantian Phantom Art hadn't deteriorated at all—it was still this powerful, deceiving this boy in an instant.

The moment she came over, she sensed the room was blessed, which meant 【Yin Soul Dream Entry】 hadn't tricked open this boy's door.

If it had succeeded, she, as a carrier bearing the Honored One's blood, could have gone in directly. Because she had agreed to let Blood Spirit Honored One in… she could also go in.

Unfortunately it hadn't, so she could only think of another method. Who would have thought a single deception would succeed!

"Good, good, many thanks." Wu Mei, unable to contain her joy, immediately followed Zhao Xing's instructions and stood before the fence three meters beside the courtyard gate, then fumbled as she said: "Zhao Xing, quickly let me in… eh?"

Wu Mei's face suddenly changed drastically. She felt the ground beneath her feet surge violently, and a wild force erupted from below.

"Boom!"

The earth exploded violently, and Wu Mei was sent flying uncontrollably, slamming hard into the distant broken walls and ruins, crushing countless stones and beams.

"Cough… cough…" Wu Mei clutched her chest and crawled out of the rubble. She looked at her lower limbs—her two legs had been blasted into a bloody mess.

Her right leg in particular had been blown open to the bone.

Wu Mei felt heart-piercing pain; her skull had been blasted half-dazed.

She couldn't help but ask three questions in a row:

What was that just now? How did he see through it? What happened?