Karmic Retribution Comes Late; The Thought of Slaughter and Sacrifice of Souls

In a quiet courtyard.

A gentle breeze rustles through the woods, the shadows of the leaves dancing in the breeze.

Yan Chen remained calm, his Qi calm and collected. The emerald flames, like crystal-clear nectar, gathered at his fontanelle and returned to his mind, instantly concealing the strange phenomenon.

After a few breaths.

He slowly opened his eyes, and a flash of emerald light disappeared.

His gaze moved upwards, landing on the charred corpse. He remained silent for a moment, then shook his head inwardly.

"I intended to capture him alive for Melting Gold Valley, but I overlooked the purity of Qi after reaching the third level of Qi Refining. I was too rough and accidentally killed him... That's really not good!"

Ever since that day when he cleverly used his "natal fire" to stir up Zhao Dengke's deep thoughts and managed to obtain the "Houtu Chengguang Cauldron".

Yan Chen then locked himself in a quiet room, constantly refining that strand of Earth Qi.

In the end, hard work pays off.

With his immense perseverance and extraordinary wisdom, he finally broke through the barrier of "cooking the internal organs" in the early morning and late afternoon, achieving internal and external harmony, breaking through the limits of the body's energy, and directly advancing to the third level of Qi Refining, reaching the middle stage of Qi Refining!

And after understanding the causes and effects from all sides and knowing the current situation.

They arrived here before Zeng Deyan could make a move, to resolve this minor but significant problem.

"Before my breakthrough, I might have called you 'Brother Dao', but now that I've reached the third level of Qi Refining, I'm sorry, you can only be a 'lower cultivator'."

Gathering his thoughts, Yan Chen turned to look around.

Before he could speak, several thuds were heard as Zhao Qingyun, Huang Zaiyuan, and several others knelt on the ground, trembling all over.

He spoke incoherently, like beans spilling from a bamboo tube, desperately trying to detach himself from the matter at hand.

That's not surprising.

The strength that Yan Chen just displayed was truly terrifying.

Although Zhao and Huang were not skilled in cultivation, they were not stupid.

Zeng Deyan's usual imposing demeanor had deeply impressed them; even a change in his gaze or tone would make them tremble with fear and dare not utter a word.

Over the years, Zeng Deyan has been a mountain weighing on their hearts, which can block out the wind and rain, but also block out the sun and dampen their spirits.

But now, this mountain has collapsed right before their eyes!

Like a stray dog ​​on the street, it was wiped out by someone's hand!

So relaxed, so carefree.

How could this not cause them to have a mental breakdown?

Therefore, by the end, Yan Chen had not yet made any statement.

The two men turned on each other, revealing all the crimes the other had committed over the decades by colluding with heretics.

As Yan Chen listened to these events, one by one, he smiled wryly and said:

"Please do not be impatient, gentlemen. Today's 'ritual' is not very lively. Therefore, I have already sent a letter to invite a few stewards from the valley to come. You can tell them about it then."

As they spoke, Li Xuanyi had recovered from his confusion and realized that he had just escaped death. A wave of fear flashed in his eyes.

He immediately bowed deeply to Yan Chen and loudly expressed his gratitude.

Yan Chen turned slightly to the side, accepting the courtesy, and waited for him to stand up, about to say something.

Suddenly, a wisp of mist seemed to rise slowly from the charred corpse, as if it were trying to escape.

With a flick of his sleeve, Yan Chen unleashed a burst of true energy, striking first despite being behind. In the blink of an eye, the misty object was already in his grasp.

"This is... a Yuanling?"

Sister Zhu mentioned in her words that when a cultivator is killed, it can only be considered as the death of the "physical body". Once the "primordial spirit" escapes, as long as the time is right, there is still a chance to possess another body and be reborn.

Of course, possessing another's body comes at a great cost and has many inconveniences and limitations, making it a very poor strategy, so we will not discuss it for now.

"You little thief! Just you wait! One of the chief elders of my Qing Sheng Sect will be here soon, and he will make sure you die a horrible death!"

Zeng Deyan's "Primordial Spirit" appeared as mist, vaguely revealing a human figure, which was shouting loudly at the moment.

Yan Chen lowered his eyelids, a golden light swirling in his eyes that lingered for a long time.

Finally, he spoke slowly, his tone calm:

"Unfortunately, the elder you mentioned is probably too busy to attend to you right now."

……

……

Outside the stilted buildings of the Qing Sheng Sect, a scene of utter devastation unfolded.

After a fierce battle, Guo Shoujie still had a smiling expression, and his appearance remained unchanged.

Despite being at the same level of Qi Refining, he was suppressing the three opponents with ease, clearly holding back his strength.

Lu Mao leaned against the rock wall, looking disheveled, his internal energy fluctuating violently.

The Earthly Dao he cultivated was Yang Earth, and his true energy was stable and reliable, so he did not show much weakness.

In contrast, Qu Ying and Yan Mo, both practitioners of the Bing Fire Dao, were deathly pale and had weak breaths, clearly indicating that they had overexerted their true energy.

"The Jade Sleeve Sect prides itself on being a righteous sect and has always looked down on us heretics. They thought we had some real skills, but now it seems we are nothing more than a silver-plated spearhead, all show and no substance."

Guo Shoujie squinted, his gaze sweeping over Yan Mo for a moment before he grinned.

"Of course, for me, as long as it looks good, that's enough!"

Yan Mo, his lips stained with blood, looked at Qu Ying and called out:

"Senior Brother Qu, what should we do...?"

Qu Ying gritted her teeth and said in a deep voice:

"You and I, as mortals, have embarked on the path of cultivation, which inherently goes against the established rules and regulations. Therefore, for the past ten years or so, you and I have exhausted our energy and endured hardship, all for the sake of..."

"Isn't it just that one day, you will grasp the Great Dao, break free from constraints, return to freedom, and after a hundred years, you will become a clan and leave a legacy for your descendants?"

"Now that the opportunity to escape is right in front of me, I am truly unwilling to accept defeat!"

Lü Mao said in a deep voice:

"As long as Zeng Deyan lives, Lü's inner conflict will never be resolved; he will always feel like he has a fishbone stuck in his throat, and it is impossible for him to give up willingly!"

The three exchanged a glance and immediately braced themselves to work together!

Just then, a clear voice, as if from beyond the heavens, entered everyone's ears.

"My good disciple, have you had enough fun?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a figure in black robes landed lightly in front of everyone.

"Qi Refinement... Mid-stage!?"

Lu Mao shuddered, swallowed hard, and felt his body stiffen, not daring to breathe.

The other two weren't much better off than him.

The suppression that upward revisions exert on downward revisions is enormous!

"Master, that beautiful woman is dead, but I've discovered another stunning beauty, truly a feast for the eyes!"

Guo Shoujie stated frankly.

The middle-aged man in black robes glanced at the three of them, chuckled, and with a flick of his sleeve, a thick cloud of black mist enveloped them.

In an instant, the three of them, their eyes glazed over and blank, moved toward him like zombies.

Meanwhile, three other wisps of white mist escaped from the fontanelles of the three people and were caught in his hand.

At the same time, he took out an object with his other hand, which was a black cloth banner. As he gently shook it, the surface of the banner showed mottled patterns, and the three "primordial spirits" were immediately absorbed into it.

After doing all this, the middle-aged man in the black robe nodded in satisfaction and put the cloth banner back into his sleeve.

He then grabbed his disciple's shoulder, and with the three of them, disappeared from the spot in the blink of an eye.

Another flat mountainside.

The two settled down.

Looking at the three men who seemed like walking corpses, Guo Shoujie immediately put on a miserable expression and said:

"Master, you used the Thousand Souls Curtain again to refine the primordial spirits of these three people?"

The middle-aged man in black robes chuckled and said:

"My good disciple, these three are all at the second level of Qi Refining and have inherited the Daoist lineage. Such talents should be included in my Thousand Soul Pavilion."

"As for the physical body, it can be refined into a 'corpse puppet,' making the best use of its resources, and dying in peace!"

Guo Shoujie swallowed hard, not daring to say anything more, and could only change the subject:

"Master, things have changed. What about Zeng Deyan's side... should we still get involved?"

The middle-aged man in black robes said calmly:

"That fellow was incompetent; he didn't bring the person back, but instead attracted disciples from the Jade Sleeve Sect. He probably got caught off guard and there's no need to worry about him."

"The Qing Sheng Sect has hundreds or even thousands of branch altars, so it doesn't need another branch altar master who is at the second level of Qi Refining."

"Moreover, our arrival here has nothing to do with Zeng Deyan; we have another important mission!"

"It's related to several late-stage Qi Refining cultivators who have reached the 'Advanced Cultivation' stage!"

After saying that, his gaze fell on Guo Shoujie.

The latter immediately understood, and patted his chest, saying:

"Your disciple has no desire to serve any 'upper-level cultivator' or share your burdens. The reason I patted my chest and made this guarantee is simply because I am under your tyrannical power, so I..."

Snapped!

Before he could finish speaking, Guo Shoujie was slapped hard across the face, spun around three times, and saw stars.

"The sect urgently needs three hundred 'Blood Yang Fiends'. A senior brother who has completed Qi cultivation has calculated that they are found to be lurking within a radius of about a hundred miles around this place."

"By whatever means necessary, gather them all within three months. Otherwise, you might as well come and have some tea at my Thousand Souls Pavilion!"

Having said that, the middle-aged man in black robes snorted coldly and turned to leave.

Guo Shoujie muttered to himself, "This is terrible." After pondering for a while, he raised his hand and released a paper crane, letting it fly away into the distance.

He then straightened his robes and headed towards the Jade Sleeve Sect.

……