"Enough!"
A thunderous voice suddenly echoed across the ruined streets.
The next instant, brilliant lightning descended from the heavens.
BOOM!
Several Ghostly Specters were struck simultaneously.
Their semi-corporeal bodies convulsed violently before rapidly dissolving beneath the terrifying lightning.
"Damn it!"
A figure descended from the sky.
He wore dark-blue Dharma robes embroidered with the insignia of the Mingyuan Division.
Several other figures followed behind him.
The middle-aged man glanced across the battlefield before his expression became solemn.
"Some of these Ghostly Specters were already beginning to transform."
"At this rate, they would soon become Vengeful Souls."
The surrounding Mingyuan cultivators immediately understood the severity of the situation.
They had arrived just in time.
Although they might not possess the ability to completely seal the enormous tear beneath Qinshan County...
They could at least prevent the Ghostly Specters from continuously devouring the living.
One of the Ghostly Specters suddenly lunged toward a fleeing commoner.
Before it could reach its target...
Whoosh!
Countless talismanic spells appeared in the sky.
Brilliant flames condensed above the street before raining downward like a meteor shower.
BOOM!
The Ghostly Specter was engulfed by the flames.
Its distorted body struggled violently before rapidly shrinking.
Within several breaths...
It was reduced to a pile of black ash.
Another Ghostly Specter attempted to attack from the side.
A Mingyuan cultivator immediately raised his hand.
Several golden talismans shot outward.
The talismans transformed into chains of light that instantly wrapped around the Ghostly Specter.
"Seal!"
The chains tightened.
The Ghostly Specter's movements became sluggish before its body was completely suppressed.
The leader looked around at his subordinates.
"Don't waste your Qi."
"These Ghostly Specters are only the beginning."
"The real danger is beneath us."
Several Mingyuan cultivators immediately nodded.
They understood exactly what their leader meant.
Their mission wasn't simply to destroy ghosts.
They needed to stabilize the situation until they could determine what had happened beneath Qinshan County.
The leader stepped toward the enormous tear.
His expression gradually became solemn.
He took several formation flags from his storage pouch.
With a wave of his hand...
Whoosh!
The flags shot outward.
One.
Two.
Five.
Ten.
Twenty.
Each flag flew toward a different position surrounding the enormous tear.
The leader's hands rapidly formed seals.
His lips moved as ancient incantations flowed from his mouth.
The surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi began responding.
Faint spiritual light appeared around each formation flag.
The flags began connecting with one another through invisible threads of energy.
The leader suddenly shouted.
"Connect!"
BOOM!
The entire formation instantly activated.
Countless lines of spiritual light intertwined around the tear before gradually forming a massive dome.
The translucent barrier settled several metres above the enormous crack in the earth.
For the first time since the disaster began...
The Ghostly Specters emerging from the tear seemed to encounter an invisible obstruction.
The leader slowly exhaled.
"Good."
"At least this will buy us some time."
He stared at the tear beneath the dome.
His expression remained solemn.
Something about the situation bothered him.
A Feng Shui tear of this magnitude shouldn't have produced only these relatively weak Ghostly Specters.
Normally...
Such a disturbance would eventually give birth to at least one Vengeful Soul.
And a Vengeful Soul was an entirely different existence.
Even Xuan Gang martial artists could be threatened by one.
Yet...
There wasn't a single sign of one.
The leader narrowed his eyes.
"Strange."
"Could someone have already suppressed it?"
He carefully swept his Spiritual Sense across the surroundings.
Nothing.
No hidden expert.
No obvious traces of a powerful battle.
Perhaps...
Someone had already dealt with the strongest entity before the Mingyuan Division arrived.
Or perhaps...
Something else was preventing it from appearing.
He didn't dare make a conclusion.
Behind him...
The County Constable finally allowed himself to breathe.
He had been fighting continuously for far too long.
Seeing the Mingyuan insignia on their Dharma robes, a trace of relief finally appeared within his exhausted eyes.
"Finally..."
"The professionals have arrived."
The Mingyuan Division.
Within the Demon Suppression Division, it was a special branch dedicated specifically to supernatural disasters.
Ghostly Specters.
Vengeful Souls.
Feng Shui disturbances.
Strange spiritual phenomena.
These were the situations they were trained to handle.
Unlike the ordinary divisions of the Demon Suppression Division, the Mingyuan Division had relatively few members.
There was a reason for that.
Their missions were dangerous.
Their cultivation requirements were considerably higher.
And their training involved techniques that ordinary Demon Suppression Division members rarely needed.
Consequently...
The Mingyuan Division was rarely dispatched.
Only situations involving genuine ghostly phenomena were enough to mobilize them.
The County Constable looked at the leader.
"Senior..."
The man turned slightly.
"Speak."
The County Constable immediately reported everything that had happened.
After the County Constable finished explaining everything that had happened, Senior Li slowly stroked his beard.
His gaze remained fixed upon the enormous tear beneath the Inner City.
"So that's how it happened."
The County Constable respectfully nodded.
Senior Li was silent for several breaths before finally speaking.
"From this moment onward, Qinshan County is considered a Ghostly Domain."
The County Constable's expression changed slightly.
"A Ghostly Domain?"
"Yes."
Senior Li nodded.
"We will take over from here."
"The Yamen has already suffered enough losses. There's no reason for you to continue risking your men's lives."
Hearing this, the County Constable couldn't help sighing.
He understood exactly what those words meant.
Qinshan County...
Would no longer be inhabitable for some time.
Even if the Ghostly Specters were eventually suppressed, the enormous tear beneath the Inner City would remain a source of danger.
Ordinary civilians couldn't possibly be allowed to return.
He immediately cupped his fists and bowed.
"Then I'll leave everything to the seniors."
Senior Li nodded.
"Go."
The County Constable didn't hesitate.
He immediately turned around and began searching for surviving Yamen officers.
Some had already fled.
Others were injured and hiding among the ruins.
As long as they were still alive, he intended to bring them out.
Senior Li quietly watched his departing figure.
One of the younger Mingyuan cultivators walked over.
"Senior Li."
He lowered his voice.
"Do you think the tear was opened intentionally?"
Senior Li's eyes remained fixed upon the enormous crack.
"I don't know."
The younger cultivator frowned.
"Shouldn't we investigate?"
Senior Li shook his head.
"That's not our mission."
He glanced toward the dome formation hovering above the tear.
"We were sent here for damage control."
"Prevent the Ghostly Specters from spreading."
"Stabilize the situation."
"Everything beyond that..."
"Will be handled by the people above us."
The younger cultivator hesitated.
"But if someone intentionally opened it..."
Senior Li calmly interrupted.
"Then someone else will investigate."
He turned around.
"We've already done what we came here to do."
The younger cultivator nodded silently.
The Mingyuan Division had dealt with countless supernatural disasters.
They knew better than most when to investigate...
And when not to.
Some mysteries were not meant to be touched by people of their cultivation.
For now, Qinshan County was no longer their problem.
Their task was simply to prevent the Ghostly Domain from expanding.
As the Mingyuan cultivators continued stabilizing the surrounding area, the surviving Yamen officers gradually gathered together.
The evacuation of Qinshan County was already underway.
The once prosperous county town...
Had become a forbidden land.
Meanwhile, far away from the disaster...
Morning finally arrived.
The caravan slowly emerged from the forest.
The first rays of sunlight illuminated the horizon as a distant city gradually appeared beyond the trees.
Someone suddenly shouted.
"There's a city!"
The exhausted refugees immediately raised their heads.
Their faces lit up.
"We made it!"
"We're finally out!"
Several people nearly cried from relief.
The journey through the forest had been terrifying.
They had been forced to travel at night while constantly worrying about fierce beasts.
Even during the day, nobody dared wander too far from the caravan.
The slightest rustling in the bushes was enough to make people reach for their weapons.
Now...
They had finally reached a populated settlement.
The atmosphere within the caravan immediately became lighter.
Lou Feng quietly followed behind the others.
His expression was considerably calmer.
Several hours earlier, he had already received a message from Lin Sheng.
His master had arrived at Dongtai Prefecture City.
Lou Feng looked toward the distant city.
If that was the case...
There was no reason for him to remain here.
He needed to continue the journey.
The caravan soon approached the city gates.
After confirming their identities, the guards allowed them to enter.
Lou Feng quietly followed the crowd.
His eyes swept across the unfamiliar streets.
The city was considerably larger than Qinshan County.
The buildings were more imposing.
The number of martial artists was also noticeably higher.
Yet before he could observe much more...
His gaze suddenly stopped.
Several people were walking through the street ahead.
Their robes carried the familiar insignia of the Mingyuan Division.
Lou Feng immediately recognised them.
He had seen the same insignia during the Qinshan County disaster.
One of the figures suddenly turned his head.
It was the County Constable.
Lou Feng immediately stepped forward and cupped his fists.
"Senior."
The County Constable looked at him for a moment.
His eyes widened slightly.
"Lou Feng?"
Lou Feng nodded.
"It's this junior."
The County Constable's expression became somewhat surprised.
He had not expected to encounter the young blacksmith here.
Then he remembered something.
He immediately turned toward the Mingyuan cultivators beside him.
"Senior Li."
"This is Lou Feng."
"He is an artisan from Qinshan County who assisted our Yamen with most of the silver weapons used during the Ghostly Domain incident."
Senior Li looked toward Lou Feng.
His gaze briefly swept across his body.
Lou Feng immediately felt a faint pressure.
It disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared.
Senior Li nodded slightly.
"Not bad."
The County Constable smiled.
"His craftsmanship is quite good."
"Originally, I intended to recommend him to the Demon Suppression Division."
"But everything happened too quickly."
"I never had the opportunity."
Lou Feng's eyes flickered slightly.
The Demon Suppression Division.
That name immediately reminded him of the recommendation he had previously considered.
The County Constable looked at him.
"If you're still interested..."
"You can visit the nearest Demon Suppression Division branch."
"I'll send a recommendation letter with you."
Lou Feng immediately cupped his fists.
"Thank you, Senior."
The County Constable nodded.
"You helped the Yamen during a dangerous situation."
"You deserve the opportunity."
Senior Li didn't say anything further.
He simply glanced once more at Lou Feng before turning toward the road ahead.
"Let's go."
The Mingyuan cultivators continued onward.
Lou Feng watched them disappear into the distance.
His gaze gradually became thoughtful. Perhaps this was an opportunity worth considering.
More importantly...
His master was already waiting for him in Dongtai Prefecture City.
Lou Feng tightened his grip around the spear strapped to his back.