"Who is it, ahhh, give me back my stuff!"
Just as success was within reach, their treasure was intercepted mid-way. Everyone was filled with shock and fury.
At the same time, they were fully alert. Clearly, their actions had been discovered after all.
The leading black-robed cultivator's body surged with spiritual energy, and his Level 7 power enveloped and spread.
Because of the evil nature of the techniques he cultivated, his entire body was covered in dense, bloody light.
And the black-robed cultivators behind him also all made their moves. Waves of spiritual energy spread out, the weakest surprisingly being at Level 5.
The convergence of vast spiritual power created an almost indescribably low atmospheric pressure in this area.
Compared to their own terrifying spiritual pressure, the Onmyoji from R-nation summoned contract formations one after another.
One by one, grotesque and ferocious Shikigami were summoned.
After they had fully arrayed their formations, they were dumbfounded, because within their perception range, there was no sign of an enemy.
"That was... the Ghost Gate just now. Big trouble..."
At this moment, the Onmyoji's bodies trembled, and terrifying Yin Qi figures broke free.
As soon as they appeared, they fled in all directions, without even exchanging glances.
These were, of course, the renegade ghost generals from the Underworld. That gate just now—these cultivators might not have understood it, but they couldn't possibly be unaware of it.
If the "bone" key were still in their hands, they would have fought no matter what, gambling for a chance to advance to Ghost King.
But this bunch of useless fools lost the item as soon as they arrived. They couldn't defeat the deeply rooted Underworld. If they didn't run now, they would truly be waiting for death.
"Too late to leave now!" Just as the ghost generals were about to scatter and flee, a cold voice echoed in the silent night.
Two figures, one black and one white, appeared out of thin air.
Xie Bi'an's eyes were filled with mockery. He raised an arm, and the pitch-black Soul-Hooking Chain actually extended directly from the very end of the ghost generals' escape path.
In the blink of an eye, it interwoven to form a sealed cage. Clearly, this was an ambush set up in advance.
"Xie Bi'an, we have hundreds of years of acquaintance with you. Why must you be so aggressive?"
"Our defection from the Underworld is wrong, but we have ultimately not harmed anyone. If you let us go today, we guarantee we will never harm the mortal world!"
All the fleeing ghost generals stopped in their tracks. It wasn't that they didn't want to leave, but that they simply couldn't break through the cage formed by the Soul-Hooking Chain.
Their faces looked as if they had eaten a dead rat, and their eyes were filled with apprehension.
Although only two had appeared, who knew how many more ghost generals would be summoned in secret, or when they would arrive.
So, there was no hope of winning. They could only try to negotiate.
Unfortunately, Xie Bi'an would not nod his head, especially when he had the upper hand.
He sneered, "Your defection from the Underworld is unforgivable. And you still dare to use cunning words to threaten me? Stay here today!"
"Old Fan, bring the Book of Life and Death!"
Xie Bi'an let out a long howl, then pinched his brow. From within, he pulled out an jade-like writing brush.
The brush itself was as black as ink, with only a touch of cinnabar at the tip. As soon as it appeared, it made the ghost generals' scalps tingle with fright.
However, before they could be overwhelmed by fear, they saw Fan Wujiu beside him, who conjured a square blue book.
On the book's cover, characters written with strong, vigorous strokes spelled out — "Book of Life and Death."
The ghost generals could no longer remain calm and cursed furiously, "Judge's Brush, Book of Life and Death? Xie Bi'an, are you mad?"
"How dare you bring this item into the mortal world!"
This was not surprising for them to be shocked and angry. The so-called Judge determined life and death, and it relied on these two magical treasures.
Among them, the "Book of Life and Death" recorded names, and the Judge's Brush "severed lives." These two items were treasures of the Underworld, containing immense rules within one realm.
The treasures themselves were not at fault. It was just that the mortal world could not tolerate even a Ghost King. If such "treasures" appeared in the mortal world, they might suffer a backlash from the world's very essence.
At that time, the Underworld would face great trouble. They considered their own sins not light, but nowhere near this level.
Xie Bi'an smiled faintly, "That has nothing to do with you!"
He naturally knew that the mortal world could not tolerate these treasures, so what he brought was merely a "projection" formed from a wisp of the original essence.
Its power was far inferior to the main body, so it naturally wouldn't cause a backlash from the world's rules.
He naturally wouldn't reveal any of this. Even if it was just a wisp of the original essence, that was enough to utterly annihilate these ghost generals.
Therefore, many ghost generals came, but they did not show themselves, mainly to hold the line.
And after understanding the Book of Life and Death and the Judge's Brush, Xie Bi'an's situation here was basically clear.
...
On the other side, sensing the ghost generals fleeing, the black-robed evil cultivators and the Onmyoji from R-nation were somewhat dumbfounded.
One had to know that these were all combat forces. Now that they had all left, it undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to their vitality.
Seeing the ghost generals being stopped, they instinctively moved to rescue them.
However, before they could even take a step, a rosy-lipped, white-toothed little doll appeared out of thin air, blocking their path.
"Hehe, you're not allowed to interfere with what's happening over there!" The one who arrived was none other than Yao Yao.
She had been ambushing all this time. At the crucial moment, taking advantage of the Ghost Gate's convenience, she directly stole the bad guys' item.
Because the Ghost Realm was separated from the mortal world, the "bone"'s effect was severed, and the threat was resolved.
Xie Bi'an volunteered to stop the ghost generals. These evil cultivators and Onmyoji were naturally left for her.
Yao Yao scanned these people's cultivation levels. None of them were beyond her control. She immediately grinned.
"Presumptuous!" "How dare you!"
These cultivators, seeing the little doll suddenly appear and daring to block them without knowing her limits, were instantly filled with rage.
They were about to strike, but in the next instant, their pupils suddenly widened.
They saw a terrifying spiritual pressure suddenly erupt from the little doll's body.
"Nine... ninth-rank?"
This aura swept over them. They were not fools, especially since their own power was vastly inferior to hers. It was not difficult to discern her cultivation rank.
And precisely because they had guessed it, their earlier anger was immediately extinguished.
One must know that a ninth-rank master was absolutely invincible in an era where human emperors were rarely seen. Trying to overwhelm her with numbers would be futile.
The transformation at this stage was too terrifying!
It was precisely because of this that they found it hard to believe that a little doll, who had just been weaned, was a ninth-rank master.
In normal times, no one would believe it.
However, Yao Yao was destined not to explain so much to them.
Because in the next instant, terrifying bolts of lightning were drawn down by her, striking directly.
Under the terrifying might, the faint hope in these cultivators' hearts completely vanished.
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