Cultivation starts from devouring the Dao fruits

The next day, Huo Canghai entrusted the management of the Market of Little Yuan Mountain to Zhao Yu and set off with Xiahou Zhenyu to hunt demonic beasts in the Canglong Mountain Range.

The headquarters of the Dan Ling Sect Enforcement Team of Little Yuan Mountain.

"Zongcheng pays his respects to Uncle-Master Zhao!"

A tall and handsome middle-aged cultivator reverently performed a salutation before Zhao Yu. This man was the Deputy Captain of the Enforcement Team of the Dan Ling Sect of Little Yuan Mountain, possessing the Great Perfection of Qi Cultivation and was in charge of handling various mundane affairs.

Zhao Yu said indifferently, "I will be managing the Market of Little Yuan Mountain in Brother Huo's stead for a few days! All regulations remain unchanged, if there is any urgent matter, come seek me in the cave mansion!"

Zhao Yu got along well with Huo Canghai, and his current visit to the Market of Little Yuan Mountain was solely for the purpose of cultivation, not wanting to involve himself with other trifles.

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Zongcheng said, "Uncle-Master Zhao, there is a perplexing situation. In one of the Thirteen Cities of Mortals—Yuan Ye City—there seems to be an Evil Spirit lurking. Brother Fang Yu led a team to handle the matter and has not returned for two days. I suspect that there is a Foundation Establishment Ghost Creature behind this, and I implore Uncle-Master to intervene."

Fang Yu was the Captain of the Enforcement Team of the Dan Ling Sect of Little Yuan Mountain, with the Great Perfection of Qi Cultivation. Ordinary Ghost Creatures were no match for him, and his two-day absence signified that likely something had gone wrong.

"Understood!"

Zhao Yu asked for the case file to study it in detail, and, having clarified the full picture of events, he then mounted his Magic Artifact and turned into an Escape Light, flying towards Yuan Ye City.

The Wuyi Alley of Yuan Ye City was once an area inhabited by the privileged, but it was now deserted, with only the gate of the Liu Mansion open, which looked extraordinarily eerie.

"That is where the source of the Evil Spirit lies!"

Zhao Yu looked towards the Liu Mansion, channeled energy into his eyes, and immediately saw the invisible-to-the-naked-eye dark ghostly qi permeating the Liu Mansion, which clearly hinted at the presence of an Evil Ghost.

With a slight smile, Zhao Yu looked at the White Ghost Emperor by his side and said, "But what Evil Ghost could be stronger than a Ghost under the king of a hundred ghosts?"

The White Ghost Emperor was a Low-grade Ghost, king of a hundred ghosts! With the aid of Zhao Yu's Dao Fruit, it had awakened five talents. Moreover, with its Second-Order Mid-grade Cultivation Level, even a common Second-Order High-grade Evil Ghost might not be its match.

Zhao Yu strode towards the Liu Mansion.

The White Ghost Emperor closely followed him.

"Are the two immortals here to slay demons and exorcise spirits? I am Liu, steward of the Liu Mansion..."

Upon seeing Zhao Yu and his companion, a tall, pale-faced middle-aged man—wearing a glint of joy in his eyes, accompanied by four servants—stepped forward proactively to greet them.

"Go!"

Zhao Yu immediately launched a Low-Grade Spiritual Tool Magic Sword toward the steward Liu and the four servants.

With a twist of sword light, the steward Liu and his five men were bifurcated, cut in two.

An Evil Ghost, standing six feet tall with features seven parts similar to steward Liu's, suddenly crawled out from his body and lunged at Zhao Yu.

Evil Ghosts also appeared from the bodies of the four servants, each one charging at Zhao Yu.

Those Evil Ghosts had been hiding within human bodies, and even talismans that ward off evil would not trigger automatically. Only when the ghosts moved to attack and released ghostly qi could the talismans detect them. By that time, cultivators would have already been taken by surprise by the ghosts.

However, the White Ghost Emperor was the king of a hundred ghosts. As soon as steward Liu and his companions got close, it warned Zhao Yu, prompting him to strike first.

"Pathetic ghost creatures, break for me!"

Zhao Yu let out a fierce shout, wielding his magic sword that burst forth with earthy yellow light, slicing through the bodies of the five evil ghosts.

Wherever the magic sword passed, it left five gaping holes in the bodies of the evil ghosts. Dark ghostly qi gushed out from the holes, and with a miserable scream, the ghosts dissipated into the wind, leaving behind only five evil ghost relics.

Zhao Yu strode towards the Liu Mansion, slaying evil ghosts along the way and penetrating deeper inside.

In a room deep within the Liu Mansion, a tall but extremely gaunt, and rather ugly, middle-aged cultivator suddenly opened his eyes, revealing a trace of joy: "Huo Canghai has finally taken the bait!"

That ugly middle-aged cultivator, shrouded in black qi, turned into a stream of pitch-black escape light and flew towards the outside, spotting Zhao Yu, who was slaying evil ghosts with his magic sword.

Seeing Zhao Yu, the ugly middle-aged cultivator paused slightly and asked, "Who are you?"

"Dan Ling Sect's Zhao Yu! If you are the source of the evil spirit here, then prepare to die!"

A cold glint flashed in Zhao Yu's eyes as he suddenly unleashed the terrifying aura of the fourth level of Foundation Establishment, his magic sword radiating earthy yellow spiritual light as it shot towards the ugly middle-aged cultivator.

"Foundation Establishment level four!! Well done! I was planning to make Huo Canghai the main spirit for my Blood Banner of a Hundred Ghosts, but you're even more qualified to be the chief spirit for my banner!"

The ugly middle-aged cultivator's eyes lit up with excitement rather than fear, as he promptly summoned a five-foot-long, blood-red banner adorned with two human faces.

The Blood Banner of a Hundred Ghosts soared in the wind, surrounded by a halo of blood, transforming into a towering, ghostly blood banner. Evil ghosts with ferocious and pained expressions flew out from the banner.

One of the faces on the Blood Banner of a Hundred Ghosts separated and took shape. It was none other than Fang Yu, who had attained Great Perfection of Qi Training.

As the evil ghosts flew into the body of the evil ghost that Fang Yu had turned into, his aura climbed steadily, and he advanced to become a second-order, medium-grade evil ghost.

The ghost that Fang Yu had transformed into stretched out its claws and grabbed Zhao Yu's magic sword; the ghost's pitch-black qi surged forth from its claws, intertwining with the spiritual light of the sword, canceling each other out.

Another face detached from the Blood Banner of a Hundred Ghosts, transforming into an eight-foot-tall evil ghost. More evil ghosts flew into its body, similarly causing its aura to surge and reaching the second-order, medium-grade.

The ferocious evil ghost leaped from the ground, lunging directly at Zhao Yu.

Zhao Yu sighed lightly and said, "My ability in magical combat is still too weak! White Ghost Emperor, make your move, kill them!"

The White Ghost Emperor, who quietly stood beside Zhao Yu wearing a mask and resembling his servant, cracked a wide grin. Dark ghost qi churned around him, and with a single leap, he appeared in front of the eight-foot evil ghost, reaching out with his claw.

The evil ghost stretched out its claws toward the White Ghost Emperor as well.

As their claws met, ghost qi roiled. The White Ghost Emperor, with his pure and potent ghost qi, instantly overwhelmed the evil ghost. His mouth split open abruptly, biting down and swallowing the evil ghost in one gulp.

"What kind of monster is this?"

The middle-aged cultivator's face changed drastically in an instant, with a flash of fear in his eyes. The Blood Banner of a Hundred Ghosts in his hand was his strongest spiritual artifact.

He was confident that with the banner in hand, even a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator would not be his match, but now it had been easily countered by the White Ghost Emperor, naturally filling him with terror.

As the White Ghost Emperor approached, the middle-aged cultivator's eyes showed a tinge of pain as he immediately produced an Evil-Suppressing Talisman.

The moment the Evil-Suppressing Talisman flew out, rays of purifying light shone forth, and the power of evil suppression permeated the surroundings. The evil ghost that Fang Yu had become, with a ferocious face, retreated to one side while holding Zhao Yu's magic sword, emitting smoke as it was truly being purified.