Chapter 388: Slashing the Exiled Immortal [Monthly Ticket Bonus, Requesting Monthly Tickets, Combined Update]

"Shenxuan Palace, Qingding True Person!"

Si Feng directly ignored Gu Changsheng, turning his gaze to the old Daoist beside him.

A flicker of understanding passed through his eyes:

"You are a guest master of the Shadow Guard?"

"Excellent tactics!"

The Shadow Guard was established by Yu Kingdom to suppress exiled immortals—who could have imagined that one of the seven supreme guest masters of the Shadow Guard was an exiled immortal himself?

Qingding Daoist smiled faintly: "So you're Master Si from Wan Fadian. Old man and Brother Gu met too late, became sworn brothers, and I casually took up the role of guest master—Master Si doesn't hold it against me, I hope?"

Si Feng regarded Qingding Daoist with cold eyes.

Would he believe that?

Clearly, he was colluding with Gu Changsheng to confront Wan Fadian.

"Shenxuan Palace has quite the plan."

"But is that all you've got?"

Si Feng was just about to speak harshly.

His voice cut off abruptly.

The originally thick, dense spiritual energy, nearly solid, suddenly dispersed.

The Duotian Array had stopped!

This sight utterly surprised Si Feng—he stared at Qingding Daoist in disbelief: "What exactly did you do?"

Qingding Daoist smiled faintly:

"Master Si, merely a small trick, nothing more."

In an instant, Si Feng understood, gritting his teeth: "You—you actually possess a treasure that disrupts yin and yang?!"

At that moment,

Gu Changsheng stepped forward one pace:

"Enough. Considering you were once a disciple of my Wenxian Tower, I'll spare you and assign you a fine cell in the Black Prison."

Saying this,

he reached out a massive hand toward Si Feng.

"This—"

A soldier patrolling outside the Zi Jin Palace array widened his eyes.

The golden shield barely three feet from him was slowly fading.

"The array—it's gone!"

His cry quickly drew the attention of Li Rui and Jiang Linxian nearby.

Both turned their heads.

They saw the Duotian Array was indeed on the verge of collapse.

At that moment—

A silver spear fell from the heavens.

CLANG!

Then came a shattering sound like shattered glass—the Duotian Array shattered instantly.

Yuan Dingting's voice rang out across the nine heavens:

"Surrender, and you live!"

The next instant,

Drums pounded urgently in An Nan Town; tens of thousands of soldiers' battle cries nearly shattered Zi Jin Palace.

Li Rui and Jiang Linxian exchanged glances.

Jiang Linxian smiled faintly: "It's Brother Gu."

Li Rui understood.

It seemed the Shadow Guard had done far more behind the scenes than he knew.

Jiang Linxian stepped forward: "Let's go—see if we can find something valuable."

Sounds of clashing weapons, battle cries, wounded groans.

Zi Jin Palace now resembled a hellish realm.

Collapsed palaces, severed limbs, flames spreading through gilded halls.

"Kill!"

Li Rui led his troops into the fray.

Of course,

he had no intention of leading the vanguard; he remained at the rear, cleaning up stragglers.

As for Jiang Linxian, confident in his skill, he had already ventured deep into Zi Jin Palace.

Li Rui moved calmly and steadily.

He diligently hunted down escaped enemies.

Though his soldiers envied their comrades harvesting battle merits up front, they dared not speak out, bound by Li Rui's authority.

Li Rui raised his head.

Beneath the blazing sun, he saw an old man locked in battle with Yuan Dingting.

The man was the Qi Clan's ancestral elder, arrived at Zi Jin Palace.

The two fought fiercely.

Clearly visible: Yuan Dingting was crushing the Qi Clan elder.

The World Martial Rankings were no empty reputation.

Yuan Dingting ranked higher—and his combat power was indeed greater.

Li Rui turned his gaze away.

As the battlefield advanced, he led his men deeper into Zi Jin Palace.

But just as he was about to take a step—

Suddenly!

A dried corpse on the ground suddenly extended a withered hand, gripping Li Rui's ankle with iron force.

It came too suddenly.

Li Rui had barely reacted when he felt a crushing weight.

His entire body was dragged underground.

All his soldiers were stunned.

But before they could rush to aid him, Li Rui vanished—ground smooth, as if nothing had happened.

"Hehehe, your body is mine now!"

Deep underground,

Sheng Daoist, like a dried corpse, clung tightly to Li Rui, attempting to forcibly drain his life force.

Li Rui's expression turned icy.

Golden light blazed around him, encircled by a pair of winged divine dragons.

With the Thick Earth Body, even underground, his movements were unaffected.

CLANG!

The Immortal Knife, Slashing the Dragon, flashed free.

It slashed toward Sheng Daoist's arm.

"A mere mortal weapon? You think it can harm me?"

Sheng Daoist sneered.

Instantly, black mist surged, engulfing the two underground.

Ghostly wails echoed beside Li Rui.

Spirit-Sealing Ghost Technique!

He recognized the origin of this technique at once—it was recorded in the manual Yuan Dingting had given him.

"Break!"

Li Rui's eyebrows shot up like a wrathful golden deity; his overwhelming blood qi manifested his external martial arts to their peak.

Slash again!

Sheng Daoist's expression finally changed.

He had to admit: Li Rui's strength exceeded his expectations.

Previously, he'd only seen Li Rui use the Five Spirit Shield, assuming he excelled in divine arts—never imagining Li Rui's body was so brutally powerful.

Reluctantly,

he released his arm, distancing himself from Li Rui.

His eyes flickered with wariness.

He extended a crimson tongue, licking his lips, his blood-red eyes fixed on Li Rui.

"No wonder I chose you as my vessel."

"You've truly surprised me."

"Good."

"Excellent!"

Sheng Dao Ren's eyes gleamed with greater excitement—the stronger Li Rui's power, the greater his harvest would be after he usurped the body; all of Li Rui's secrets would ultimately become his.

"But let it end here."

In an instant—

Sheng Dao Ren suddenly thrust out his right hand; a thick mass of black qi instantly engulfed his palm, and countless green sparks, humming with malice, converged into the shape of a banner.

Li Rui's expression grew more solemn than ever before.

Thousand-Soul Banner!

Sheng Dao Ren had actually cultivated the Thousand-Soul Banner described in that evil scripture.

If mentioned by another name, it might be more widely known.

It was none other than the infamous Ten-Thousand-Soul Banner among cultivators!

The Thousand-Soul Banner was merely a low-tier version of the Ten-Thousand-Soul Banner, yet its power was still not to be underestimated.

Sheng Dao Ren's laughter grew increasingly arrogant.

He already imagined himself seizing Li Rui's body and ruling the world alone.

"Accept your fate!"

Just as he prepared to raise the Thousand-Soul Banner—

He heard Li Rui slowly utter a single word: "Subdue!"

Sheng Dao Ren's pupils shrank sharply.

Before him appeared a phantom image of an Immortal Palace, descending to crush him from above.

Seeing the phantom Immortal Palace, Sheng Dao Ren suddenly recalled a certain legend.

His mouth gaped open, his eyes filled with nothing but shock.

"How is this possible?"

He tried to move, but crushed beneath the Immortal Palace, he could not even twitch a single finger.

At this moment—

The blade of light, forged from Li Rui's Great Cross-Refining True Intent, descended and severed Sheng Dao Ren's connection to the Thousand-Soul Banner in an instant.

Like a blade slicing across a lake, it severed Sheng Dao Ren's right hand holding the banner.

As the hand fell, the fully formed Thousand-Soul Banner dropped to the side.

Simultaneously—

The Five-Spirit True Qi gathered into the Five-Spirit True Energy Strike, hurtling toward Sheng Dao Ren's skull.

Sheng Dao Ren's pupils finally filled with terror.

He never imagined he would be brought down by a mere ant from the mortal realm.

"No, no, no!"

Sheng Dao Ren screamed in madness within his mind.

But crushed beneath the phantom Immortal Palace, he could not utter a single word.

Finally—

The Five-Spirit True Energy Strike shattered his skull and obliterated his soul.

This time—

There was not the slightest chance of resurrection.

Deprived of spiritual energy, Sheng Dao Ren's headless corpse was instantly crushed into dust by the pressure hundreds of zhang beneath the earth.

Li Rui did not even need to destroy the remains.

"Dead?"

"Yes, dead."

Li Rui feared the exiled immortals might possess some unexpected abilities, so he made sure to erase every last trace.

Only after confirming beyond doubt that Sheng Dao Ren could never return.

There was no help for it—killing an immortal was always clumsy the first time.

The second time should go much better.

At this moment—

He finally turned his gaze to the Thousand-Soul Banner, abandoned by its master and sealed within the rock and soil.

Li Rui's mind filled with the cultivation incantation for the Thousand-Soul Banner.

His eyes brightened.

Though he had no intention of cultivating the Ten-Thousand-Soul Banner, he would not refuse a ready-made Thousand-Soul Banner.

Immediately—

He reached out and seized the banner.

The moment he grasped the Thousand-Soul Banner—

A line of small characters appeared before him: 【Congratulations, Host! You have completed the Primary Plot of "Becoming an Immortal and Founding a Sect"—Obtained a Magic Treasure.】

【Cultivators, your Magic Treasures are your tools, capable of infinite transformations; half your power resides in them. Once, the Spirit Treasure Immortal Lord suppressed the Ten Thousand Realms with three thousand six hundred Immortal Treasures. Congratulations on obtaining your first Magic Treasure—even if it is the Thousand-Soul Banner, a poor beginning.】

【Task completed, Magic Treasure obtained. Reward calculation in progress.】

【Task rating: B.】

【Obtained 30 Achievement Points!】

【Name: Li Rui】

【Age: 15】

【Talent: Martial Bone, Extraordinary Comprehension, Insightful Eyes, Great Dream Immortal Travel, Demon-Slaying Advantage, Dao Seed】

【Cultivation Art: Long Chun Technique, Dragon Soaring Through Nine Heavens Diagram, Dragon-Elephant True Qi Force, Five-Spirit Body Refining Scripture】

【Item: Spirit-Ascending Book】

!

【Achievements: 60/100】

"Brother Li."

Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong saw Li Rui return from the forest beyond the Purple Gold Palace.

Their eyes shone with relief.

"Thank heavens you're unharmed."

Both exhaled in relief.

Li Rui gazed at the battlefield, now nearly calmed, where Yu Kingdom soldiers were clearing the remains.

This battle was unquestionably a great victory.

The Purple Gold Palace had been utterly annihilated.

Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong had ceased fighting and were searching for Li Rui when Ning Zhongtian told them Li Rui had been dragged underground by a mysterious strongman during the battle.

"Brother Li, who was the one who attacked you?"

Nie Siming asked curiously.

Li Rui: "A master of Earth-form true qi. I didn't catch his face clearly—he probably realized the Purple Gold Palace's fate was sealed and didn't want to be hunted by our experts. He tangled with me briefly, then fled."

Upon hearing this—

Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong had no doubts.

They had seen much of the world; there truly were martial experts with such abilities.

Li Rui, of course, would not tell them.

Just now, he had slain an exiled immortal.

Even though that demonic Daoist had been killed once before by Yuan Dingting and was far weaker than his peak, he was still an exiled immortal—far beyond the capability of any primordial martial artist to handle.

He was just unlucky to have crossed paths with him.

At this moment—

Jiang Lin also walked over from afar.

Seeing Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong, he smiled faintly: "Brothers."

The two looked at Jiang Lin and felt a chill.

The three were roughly peers, yet now Jiang Lin had surpassed them by an entire major realm.

During the battle with the Purple Gold Palace, they had dared only to fight on the periphery.

But Jiang Lin? He had charged alone with sword in hand straight into the deepest core.

The gap was visible to the naked eye.

When Jiang Lin learned Li Rui had been dragged underground by a mysterious strongman, he too was startled.

He understood exiled immortals far better than Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong—he knew the one who attacked Li Rui was an exiled immortal.

Li Rui had escaped from an exiled immortal.

His strength was evident.

Even he could not have imagined that Li Rui had directly slain that exiled immortal—and taken the Thousand-Soul Banner.

Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong, seeing Li Rui unharmed, continued leading their men to clear the battlefield.

Only Jiang Lin and Li Rui remained.

Li Rui spoke: "Jiang younger brother, what's the situation inside?"

Jiang Lin understood: Li Rui wanted to know about the exiled immortal who had set up the Duotiandazhen in the Purple Gold Palace.

He didn't hide it.

Using his qi-as-voice technique, he said:

"Brother Li, you've actually met that exiled immortal."

Li Rui raised an eyebrow slightly.

He had met him?

When?

Jiang Lin: "Brother Li, do you remember Qu Chengfeng from the Ask Immortal Tower? He was captured by the Ghost Ming Sect, then returned—but at that time, his soul had already been stolen by the exiled immortal."

Li Rui suddenly understood.

No wonder he'd always felt Qu Chengfeng's behavior had changed so drastically—it wasn't the same man inside; only the skin remained.

Jiang Lin continued: "Brother Gu has sealed that exiled immortal. He should be on his way to the capital now."

Li Rui was secretly startled.

Capturing an exiled immortal alive.

He finally understood why Jiang Lin had said earlier that many in the imperial court had cultivated immortal arts.

Now it seemed clear.

That's how they got the immortal techniques.

Given Gu Changsheng's practiced methods, Li Rui had every reason to believe he was a repeat offender.

The Purple Gold Palace was destroyed; the Eastern Wu rebellion was quelled.

The Wu Kingdom sent envoys to the capital, offering to renew the ancient alliance of Tan City with the Yu Kingdom.

The Holy Emperor was delighted.

He immediately issued an edict: a general amnesty across the realm.

The Yu Kingdom, learning from the mistakes of the previous dynasty, favored strict laws to govern chaos, viewing general amnesties as outside-the-law mercy—so in its thousand-year history, it had granted such amnesties no more than five times.

And it strictly defined who could be pardoned.

Criminals guilty of treason, murder, and other grave offenses were certainly not included.

Outside Annan Town, the sound of gongs and drums erupted in celebration.

Even Li Rui inside the Deputy Commander's residence could hear it.

"General amnesty."

Li Rui smiled and shook his head.

This was good news for the common people—especially those unjustly imprisoned for offending officials—who would weep with joy and kneel on the streets thanking the Emperor's boundless grace.

The streets were peaceful, a golden age.

He pulled his thoughts back.

His gaze fell on the Thousand Souls Banner before him.

Without spiritual power to sustain it, the banner now looked no different from an ordinary white flag.

Li Rui took from a nearby cabinet a yellowed cultivation manual.

He flipped through several pages.

There he found the method to forge the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.

"The Nine Hell Demon Lord slaughtered seventy-two immortal sects, extracted nine thousand cultivators' spiritual souls, and refined them for seven years with the Blood Sea of the Netherworld, finally forging the Ten Thousand Souls Banner."

Without cultivators, the demonic Daoist used martial artists' spiritual souls instead.

Though not as powerful as the original, it was still extraordinary.

Li Rui read it once, and the technique's essence appeared in his mind.

Following the manual, he formed a hand seal and linked his Xianxuan Qi with the Thousand Souls Banner.

The instant his Xianxuan Qi touched the banner,

a thousand voices wailed in his ears, as if he had fallen into the Uninterrupted Hell.

Resentment, fury, despair.

All negative emotions flooded into Li Rui's heart at once,

trying to shatter his spirit.

Li Rui's eyes hardened; he sneered: "You little ghosts think you can move me?"

Instantly—

Xianxuan Qi surged like wildfire, scorching the resentful souls within the banner, as if they were being fried in oil in the underworld.

Screams erupted continuously.

Li Rui spoke slowly: "You were killed by the demonic Daoist. Now, that Daoist has been slain by me—I've avenged you. If you swear to serve me for a hundred years, I will grant you reincarnation."

His voice was quiet, but to the resentful souls, it was divine revelation.

Only a few breaths passed.

The wailing in Li Rui's ears grew faint.

A faint smile touched his lips.

At the same time, the Xianxuan Qi withdrew from the banner.

The cries vanished completely.

The Thousand Souls Banner fell silent.

"Good."

Li Rui nodded in satisfaction.

His first forging went far smoother than he'd expected.

One reason: his spirit was strong enough—if he'd broken under the first assault, he'd have become a slave to the banner, no different from the Yuanhun, merely possessing a body.

Forging the Thousand Souls Banner was inherently perilous.

Countless cultivators had turned into demons during the process.

Another reason: the soul-stealer who forged it was the demonic Daoist—he had, in effect, avenged the innocent dead within the banner, making subjugation far easier.

'So it seems a secondhand Thousand Souls Banner is best?'

Li Rui chuckled at his own thought.

He changed his hand seal again.

Xianxuan Qi wrapped the banner like a forge, refining it.

In seventy-seven days, the banner would become fully his magic treasure.

'Immortal techniques, magic treasures… Old Li is becoming more and more like a true cultivator.'

Outside the capital.

In the woods of the northwest corner.

A pitch-black building, carved with bas-reliefs of Bi'an devouring rings, lay hidden in the mountain—the mountain itself hollowed out, its gate towering over ten zhang tall, cast in bronze, guarded by over a hundred black-armored soldiers.

Black Prison.

In the Yu Kingdom, those two words inspired terror. Ordinarily, criminal justice fell under the Ministry of Justice.

But this prison was an exception.

The inmates it held—former Imperial Preceptor, former top twenty martial evaluators—none were under the Ministry of Justice's authority; all were under the Emperor's direct control.

In the deepest chamber of the Black Prison, a cell roughly five zhang square.

Perhaps because those imprisoned here were of high status, the Emperor granted them a final shred of dignity—so it was not foul or filthy like other dungeons.

A strikingly beautiful, almost otherworldly young man leaned helplessly against the wall, his shoulder blades pierced by iron chains as thick as an arm, their surfaces glowing with talismanic radiance.

At that moment,

faint footsteps echoed through the empty prison.

Soon after,

a young man dressed as a Daoist scholar appeared before the cell.

He opened the cell door.

"Comrade Si, are you satisfied?"

Gu Changsheng smiled warmly at the sealed Si Feng.

Hearing Gu Changsheng's voice, Si Feng slowly opened his eyes, a flicker of hatred and resentment in his gaze.

"Gu Changsheng, don't think you've truly won."

Gu Changsheng only smiled: "Comrade Si, you misunderstand me."

"Actually—"

"If you're willing to reveal your immortal techniques and the method for locating spirit mines, I'll personally see to it that you die comfortably."

Si Feng stared coldly at Gu Changsheng.

So it was about the spirit mines.

He said nothing.

Closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall.

As long as he didn't speak, he wouldn't die; if he spoke, he would surely die.

The Wan Fadian will send more cultivators to descend—then who will ultimately prevail remains to be seen.

Gu Changsheng, your arrogance won't last much longer.

(End of chapter)