Chapter 1178: Disaster Arises

The leading Daoist was slightly older; he stepped forward a few paces and smiled slightly: "Greetings, everyone. This poor Daoist is Xuanxingzi. My junior brother and I are passing through this place; I wonder if we might rest here for a while?"

"We are also just passing through. Please feel free, Daoist masters," Tianxin said with a slight smile.

"Many thanks." The few Daoists bowed politely and then sat down.

After the group sat down and closed their eyes to rest for a moment, Xuanxingzi opened his eyes and smiled: "We are from Qingsong Temple on Wuyin Mountain. May I ask who you all are?"

"Shu City, Seven Star Sect," Bamu replied indifferently. "Where are you Daoist masters headed?"

"Where are you all headed?" one Daoist glanced at Bamu.

"Cloud Void Realm." Bamu did not hide it and stated his destination directly.

"I see, then everyone's destination is the same. I hear that even when the gate to the Cloud Void Realm is wide open, there are rare treasures appearing inside. Are you all going there to get a share of the spoils?" another Daoist said.

Aside from the older Xuanxingzi, the remaining two Daoists had fierce and menacing expressions.

That one sentence from the Daoist caused the atmosphere at the scene to turn tense instantly.

"We have our own business to attend to by going there; that has nothing to do with you, does it?" Bamu said coldly.

"Heh heh, we are ascetics," Xuanxingzi stood up with a chuckle. "We don't place too much importance on worldly possessions, but if there are fewer people, we can divide more things, can't we?"

Chen Yu felt a jolt in his heart. As Xuanxingzi's voice fell, a murderous aura surged from the three Daoists. In that instant, their momentum changed abruptly, becoming cruel and ferocious.

"Attack." Tianxin's reaction was not slow; at her command, the Seven Star Sect members quickly drew their swords and struck.

The two sides immediately engaged in a chaotic fight.

In terms of numbers, Xuanxingzi and his group did not have the advantage, but this fellow gestured with his right hand, and a massive banner appeared in his hand. As it unfurled in the wind, the banner suddenly changed color.

On the blood-red giant banner, the head of a demon was vividly depicted. He waved it in the wind and thrust the banner heavily into the ground.

For a time, sinister winds raged all around, and countless black mists rose up from the surroundings.

"It's a Soul Summoning Banner! Everyone be careful, these are two evil Daoists." Tianxin grabbed with her right hand, and a long whip appeared in her hand. She flicked her right wrist, and nine flashes of lightning surged from the whip.

Crack, crack, crack! Electric arcs shot in all directions. A ray of light shielded Chen Yu and Sanwei within it, while the rest of the people rushed forward to deal with the Soul Summoning Banner.

The three Daoists stood beneath the banner, their hands pressed together in prayer, constantly changing their hand seals.

And that massive Soul Summoning Banner stood right there, with countless sinister winds surging out in all directions.

The Soul Summoning Banner is an item refined post-natally; no one knows how many lonely ghosts and wild spirits have been summoned into it. Once this banner appears, it is bound to seize human souls—it is extremely vicious.

The Seven Star Sect group had ten people; in an instant, two fell to the ground, their souls stripped away by the Soul Summoning Banner to become a part of it.

Tianxin and Bamu had slightly higher cultivation; the two held their life-bound Dharma Artifacts, struggling to cope with this Soul Summoning Banner.

They had no problem protecting themselves, but the disciples of the Seven Star Sect were likely to suffer heavy losses.

Chen Yu shook his head slightly; the law of the Dharma Cultivator world is just like this: the weak are prey to the strong.

But the people of the Seven Star Sect were decent after all. Since he had encountered this, he might as well help.

Seeing another disciple fall to the ground with their soul about to leave their body, Chen Yu pointed slightly with his right hand. A streak of Sword Light, invisible to the naked eye, suddenly shot from his fingertip, and then the trail of light struck the Soul Summoning Banner.

The Daoist, who was grinning ferociously and about to summon away all the souls, suddenly felt his spirit shaken. He looked up in disbelief.

The moment he looked up, he saw that Soul Summoning Banner, which he had refined with countless heart's blood, snap and break with a 'crack!'

With his life-bound Dharma Artifact destroyed, he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood and then collapsed onto the ground with a thud.

His two junior brothers behind him also fell to the ground simultaneously, both suffering heavy injuries.

That sky-filling black mist roared out in that instant, scattering in all directions.

The Soul Summoning Banner was destroyed, and the countless lonely ghosts and wild spirits within the banner took this opportunity to scramble and flee in all directions.

No one wanted to be manipulated in the banner and become a Puppet, and now, this was their last chance to escape.

The sky-filling black mist vanished in an instant; the once-arrogant Soul Summoning Banner had now turned into a pile of rags.

The three Daoists sat on the ground, their faces pale, spitting blood; their previously arrogant appearance had long since vanished.

"Evil Daoists." Tianxin stepped forward and stared coldly at the three Daoists: "Refining a Soul Summoning Banner is a great taboo for a Cultivator. People like you, who practice demonic paths, should be executed by all."

Xuanxingzi slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, then looked up, a smile forming on his face: "Friends, we are all fellow practitioners; let's talk this over properly."

"Heh, now we are fellow practitioners? When you were using the Soul Summoning Banner to absorb the souls of my disciples just now, why didn't you say we were fellow practitioners?" Tianxin said coldly.

"We Dharma Cultivators are inherently governed by the law of the jungle. This time, everyone's goal is the Cloud Void Realm. If we have a few less people, we can have fewer enemies. Why not do it?"

Xuanxingzi showed no signs of fear. He smiled: "Besides, our strengths are comparable. We can travel together; if we join forces, our strength will be even greater. What do you say?"

"We don't need allies," Bamu sneered.

"Little brother, you can't say it like that. Everyone needs allies," Xuanxingzi said. "Only in this way can we obtain more. You must know that we are not the only ones eyeing the Cloud Void Realm this time."

"On the way here, we already took care of a few. One more ally means one more hope," Xuanxingzi smiled.

"You killed others on the road too?" Tianxin stared coldly at the group and asked.

"Yes, on this journey, how many people are eyeing the treasures of the Cloud Void Realm? If we don't kill a few in advance, what will we do when everyone is competing with us for treasures later?" the few Daoists said with an expression of taking it for granted.

"Slaughtering the innocent. Bamu, finish them." Tianxin turned around and stopped looking at the three Daoists.

"Don't! We can talk about this nicely; we can become allies!" The group panicked instantly.

"There's no chance. You treat human life like grass; keeping you by our side is like keeping a few wolves here. We won't do such a foolish thing." Bamu sneered, then made a cutting motion with his hand.

*Puff, puff, puff*—three soft sounds. A line of blood appeared on the necks of all three men. Their eyes widened, and they fell straight to the ground, then breathed their last.

The two disciples whose souls had been seized were buried on the spot. By this time, it was late, and the two corpses were cremated.

The disciples of the sect all stood before the fire, everyone silent, performing a certain memorial ritual.