Chapter 307: Peak of Spirit Spine Mountain

No one expected that after three days of silence, Wang Shu would break through to the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm at this very moment.

His cultivation base had taken a massive leap forward.

For a prodigy of the Inheritor level, it is very difficult to reverse-slay a Wu Xiu at the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm while only at the third heaven. The gap between having condensed a Dao Lotus and not is immense.

However, once an Inheritor also condenses a Dao Lotus, their combat power becomes that of a top-tier expert within the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm. As their cultivation base continues to improve, they may even be able to reverse-slay Wu Xiu at the fifth heaven in the future.

Just as the onlookers felt that Yang Qingxi would have her Dao Heart manifestation shattered and be directly suppressed by Wang Shu,

"Whoosh!"

Thick black mist billowed out from Yang Qingxi's body, releasing a bone-chilling icy energy.

A formidable Yin Ghost Commander appeared within the black mist, clad in armor and holding a halberd, with a ram's head and flaming eyes, standing forty zhang tall like a towering humanoid mountain.

Its halberd stood like a pillar, colliding with Wang Shu's palm force.

"Boom!"

The violent impact surged outward.

At this moment, the peak of Spirit Spine Mountain was shrouded in black mist, and the ground was covered in a thick layer of black ice.

Yang Qingxi staggered backward, blood spilling from the corner of her mouth beneath her veil, injured by Wang Shu's palm force. Yet, her eyes grew bright and confident; the power of the Ghost Banner was even greater than she had estimated.

After the Ghost Banner appeared at the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival, many of the older generation recognized its origin, seeing that the departed spirit sealed within was by no means just a simple Ghost General.

The amount of combat power one could unleash depended entirely on the strength of the Wu Xiu's magic power.

With Yang Qingxi's magic power at the peak of the second heaven of the Dao Seed realm, the departed spirit within the Ghost Banner transformed into a Yin Ghost Commander forty zhang tall, its strength reaching the level of the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm.

Of course, the Yin Ghost Commander's intelligence, combat techniques, and reaction speed were all inferior to a true fourth-heaven Dao Seed realm Wu Xiu; in a real fight, there was still a gap in combat power.

After the clash, Wang Shu retreated and quickly steadied himself: "Truly an extraordinary defensive battle treasure! If it were in my hands, I would immediately possess the combat power to enter the 'Book of Sixty Years'."

"Yang Qingxi, offer this item up, and you and I can join forces to deal with Li Youyi; I can let bygones be bygones. At that time, the Blood Handprint Magic Armor will be yours!"

Yang Qingxi held a silver longsword, her figure flickering in and out of the black mist: "Facing you, who has stepped into the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm, I have no chance of winning. This is indeed a good idea!"

Wang Shu knew very well that there were no unbreakable allies in this world, only shared interests and the ability to read the situation.

Thus, he smiled: "I knew you were a smart person. Li Youyi's ancestral field is already ruined, and his future potential is limited, while I am like the rising sun, improving every day. Being my ally is the wise choice."

Yang Qingxi held the Ghost Banner and walked toward him.

Suddenly.

"Awoo!"

"Whoosh!"

The Yin Ghost Commander spat out Duling Cold Fire; the flames poured out like a waterfall, devoid of heat, yet they burned the rocks until they melted, and the silver-leaf pines at the cliff's edge were instantly reduced to ashes.

Wang Shu had been on guard, not fully trusting Yang Qingxi, and used his movement technique to dodge by a hair's breadth.

The corner of his robe and a strand of his hair caught fire, which he quickly extinguished.

"Yang Qingxi, I misjudged your relationship. It seems you and Li Youyi are truly in love; for his sake, you actually chose a dead end. Do you think this Yin Ghost Commander alone can stop me?"

Wang Shu has extremely high comprehension; not only did he successfully cultivate the major technique "Golden Armor Mountain-Moving Art," but he also mastered the first level of the minor movement technique "Suspended Thread Wandering Shadow Art," granting him strange, elusive movement and incredible speed.

He swayed left and right, his movements unpredictable, dodging the war-halberd swung by the Yin Ghost Commander to catch up to the rapidly retreating Yang Qingxi.

His arms turned golden, his skin resembling golden armor.

He slashed down with a palm-blade, the force causing the air to vibrate and explode.

"Whoosh!"

Yang Qingxi had nowhere to hide; she unleashed the Ten Absolutes Sword Art to defend herself, layers of sword shadows appearing before her.

A slender, graceful figure flashed out from behind her.

That figure also held a fifth-grade Hundred-Character Artifact silver longsword and possessed the exact same figure and appearance as Yang Qingxi, but her face lacked a trace of blood, her skin a ghastly, chilling white.

It was Yang Qingchan!

The two joined forces, one on the left and one on the right, thousands of scriptures flying from their two silver swords to force Wang Shu back once again.

Yang Qingchan’s body was thick with Yin Qi, her long hair disheveled: "I think Wang Shu’s proposal is actually quite good. The things Li Youyi carries are more attractive and easier to deal with."

Yang Qingxi, facing Wang Shu at the second heaven of the Dao Seed realm, was fighting for her life with every clash, her injuries worsening: "If we offer the Ghost Flag to Wang Shu, the next moment, he will plant the Six Desires Talisman in us, turning us into playthings on his bed. But with you, me, and the Yin Ghost Commander, we can absolutely put up a fight against him. We only need to wait for Li Youyi to arrive after saving the others; by outnumbering him, our chances of victory remain high."

"You seem to trust that Li Youyi very much?" Yang Qingchan said.

Yang Qingxi found it difficult to describe that feeling.

During the fierce battle with Hua Yuzi, Li Youyi had once said, "As long as you still have a breath left, I will definitely take you away with me." Given the critical situation at the time, for Li Youyi to actually keep his word was truly not easy.

When she woke up in the Evergreen Temple and the first person she saw was Li Youyi, she felt a deep, unique emotion in her heart.

Having experienced such an event, how could she not trust Li Youyi?

The battle erupted once more.

The departed spirit within Yang Qingchan had a very high cultivation base, but limited by her fragile physical body, her combat power was extremely restricted; joining forces with Yang Qingxi, they could only barely hold Wang Shu at bay.

A group of young disciples fled down the mountain one after another.

Only Sikong Jingyuan and Sikong Yanlun stood on a distant cliff, their eyes glowing with burning excitement.

Sikong Jingyuan stared fixedly at the Ghost Flag in Yang Qingxi’s hand: "The legendary Du Ling Cold Fire! This Ghost Flag must definitely come from that ghost city deep within the Realm of the Dead. Could the departed spirit sealed inside be a Ghost Marquis or a Ghost Lord?"

In the Realm of the Dead, the strength of departed spirits of the soul type is divided into: Fierce Soul, Ghost General, Yin Ghost Commander, Ghost Marquis/Ghost Lord, and Ghost King.

A Yin Ghost Commander is equivalent to a human Dao Seed realm Wu Xiu or Spirit Intent Master.

A Ghost Marquis is equivalent to a Longevity realm Wu Xiu.

A Ghost Lord is equivalent to a Great Longevity who has lived for hundreds of years.

Even within the Longevity realm, the gap in strength is immense.

When Sikong Jingyuan and Sikong Yanlun were training in the Realm of the Dead, they heard that deep within the realm, there was a boundless ghost city named "Dongxu Ghost City," where an existence above the Ghost King ruled over everything.

Its influence reached the million-mile-radius world of the Realm of the Dead, as well as the six living realms dotted within this world, including the Lingxiao Living Realm.

Sikong Yanlun’s gaze, however, fell upon Yang Qingxi and Yang Qingchan, and he laughed: "These two little sixes are like rouge-colored wild horses; they have a hateful spirit that makes one want to conquer them, and their figures and beauty are top-tier. I like them."

Sikong Jingyuan said: "Then it’s settled; the people go to you, the flag goes to me."

"It’s hard to say what level of departed spirit is sealed in that flag! If you pick wrong, don't regret it," Sikong Yanlun laughed loudly.

"Boom!"

To the east of the Fourth Divine Son’s Mansion, thunder rumbled, lightning flashed, and the mountain shook.

Li Youyi used a box of Thunder-Method Profound Ice to break the protective array of the Divine Son’s Mansion, and holding the Huang Long Sword, he walked directly in through a gap in the wall.

He was swift, and soon found Qi Xiao and Tuoba Butuo locked to the stone wall in Wang Shu’s cultivation room.

The two had once been high-spirited, both possessing Pure Immortal Bodies.

One was the number one of the young generation of the Qi family, the other a prodigy of the level of a successor to the Northern Territory Tuoba clan.

By planting the Dao with a dragon seed, they originally had a bright future.

But now, they had been tortured beyond recognition; their blood was consumed by Wang Shu daily, their bodies withered and gaunt, looking like two hunched old men with disheveled hair.

Each was missing an arm, their bodies pierced by chains.

On the stone wall behind them, there was an array for each. Once they tried to break free and escape, or if someone came to rescue them, the arrays would activate.

Li Youyi was a three-star Spirit Intent Master, his mental power stronger than the array-maker, and he quickly found the array eyes of the two arrays.

"Swish!"

The Huang Long Sword stabbed out, breaking the array on the stone wall behind Qi Xiao.

He then swung twice, cutting the chains locked on Qi Xiao, and held him—now reduced to a bag of bones—who weighed only sixty or seventy pounds.

Li Youyi felt guilty and incredibly distressed, blaming himself so much he wanted to punch himself twice.

If not for him, how could Qi Xiao have fallen into the hands of the Twin Rice Sect and ended up in such a state?

"Ca... careful..."

Qi Xiao warned weakly.

He didn't need to warn him; Li Youyi had long since released his Heaven and Earth Divine Scripture, his perception extremely sharp, and he had sensed the rapidly approaching cold, Yin aura above his head, only pretending not to know.

Wang Zhi dropped from the roof, his hands forming claw prints, revealing a mouth of snow-white teeth, imagining the scene of his claw piercing Li Youyi’s skull.

"Swish!"

Li Youyi calculated the timing and angle with extreme precision, his body suddenly rising, the Huang Long Sword stabbing upward.

The sword radiance was sharp, the light emitted transforming into a bright pillar of swords.

"Not good! My Qi-restraining concealment actually didn't fool him."

Shock appeared in Wang Zhi’s eyes; he felt as if he had actively collided with the sword tip.

With nowhere to hide, he could only mobilize all his strength into his palm, his five fingers grabbing toward the Huang Long Sword.

His cultivation base was countless times higher than Li Youyi’s, and every strand of his magic power was like iron-cloth divine gauze. No scriptures appeared on the body of the Huang Long Sword, clearly its grade was limited; in his view, he could seize it with his bare hands.

The moment they touched, Wang Zhi regretted it!

His formidable magic power, which he was so proud of, was instantly broken by the Huang Long Sword as if it were paper; his five fingers were severed by the sword edge, blood spraying everywhere.

The departed spirit within Wang Zhi felt pain, let out a miserable cry, and with his toes touching the ground, he retreated rapidly into the distance.

He glanced at his palm with five severed fingers, then looked at the Huang Long Sword with extreme dread. He said: "This sword of yours is strange! With the strength of my magic power, I could block a third-grade Hundred-Character Artifact with my bare hands."

Li Youyi’s sword just now was intended to pierce Wang Zhi’s skull. But Wang Zhi’s cultivation was too high, his reaction as fast as lightning; in such a dangerous situation, he only lost five fingers.

Such cultivation and speed made Li Youyi’s heart sink to the bottom, feeling immense pressure.

This was the strength of the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm!

How to fight?

Absolutely no chance of winning.

Last time, facing Wang Zhi, it was thanks to the power Tang Wanzhou left in the Divine Snow Sword that he escaped with his life.

Li Youyi put Qi Xiao into a pre-prepared insect bag, forcing himself to calm down quickly.

The stronger the enemy, the more one must remain calm.

He moved step by step toward Tuoba Butuo and said: "I am curious, when Wang Zhi was alive, he only had the cultivation of the first heaven of the Dao Seed realm, and his physical strength was limited. Now that you are fused with his body, why can you rival a fourth-heaven powerhouse?"

"Because before I was refined into a soul seed by that Hall Master of the Heavenly Principle Hall, my cultivation was far higher than the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm; the physical body limited my strength. Otherwise, I could crush you to death with one finger."

Wang Zhi’s aura was extremely strong; he was secretly refining the Huang Long Sword’s sword Qi that had invaded his body, while also stalling for time.

Li Youyi said again: "Then are you alive or dead now?"

"Neither alive nor dead! If Wang Shu lives, I live. If Wang Shu dies, I die immediately. The Twin Rice Sect knows very well that they cannot make us powerful departed spirits truly submit, so they use this method, handing soul seeds to Divine Sons, Divine Daughters, Elders, and Great Disciples to cultivate. They control our life and death through the souls of the twins," Wang Zhi said.

Li Youyi knew very well that Yang Qingxi was no match for Wang Shu and dared not delay any longer.

He arrived beside Tuoba Butuo, seized the opportunity, and stabbed his sword toward the array node on the stone wall.

The array was broken!

Wang Zhi had long seen through Li Youyi’s purpose and was waiting for this very moment when he rescued the people.

"Swish!"

He struck out a white bone claw print from a distance.

Then, Wang Zhi’s figure moved like a ghost, rushing toward Li Youyi.

Li Youyi had long been prepared, spiritual light surging from his body, bright and burning.

The light and shadow of the Fusang Divine Tree rose behind him, blocking the white bone claw print. The branches and leaves of the divine tree light and shadow crashed through the roof, golden-red radiance shining on the peak of Lingji Mountain.

"Whoosh!"

Then, dense blood mist surged from the Blood Handprint Magic Armor.

More than nine hundred scriptures were branded onto Li Youyi’s entire body.

His mental state reached its peak; he stared fixedly at Wang Zhi, raised his sword, and charged.

He used his mental power to resist Wang Zhi’s soul attacks and the Huang Long Sword to clash head-on with the opponent’s formidable magic power energy.

Li Youyi was beaten back several times, but he always kept Tuoba Butuo behind him, not giving Wang Zhi a chance to get close.

In the blink of an eye, the two exchanged dozens of blows before suddenly separating.

Wang Zhi fought with great frustration; he could clearly unleash the combat power of the fourth heaven of the Dao Seed realm, but he was restrained by the Huang Long Sword, suppressed by the Golden Crow flames within the Fusang Divine Tree’s light and shadow, and his left hand had been severely injured in the first round.

When he unleashed soul power attacks, Li Youyi happened to have strong mental power and could resist them.

Now, he could only exert five or six percent of his full combat power.

"Why is your combat power not that strong?" Li Youyi questioned, feeling confused in his heart.