CHAPTER 371: CHAPTER 356: GHOST CULTIVATOR CROSSING THE TRIBULATION [SUBSCRIBE REQUEST]

Rumble rumble!

Thunder light illuminates the sky.

Once again, it’s a stormy day with a torrential downpour.

For cultivators who are active year-round in the Black Cloud Swamp, they have long been accustomed to such stormy rainy days with rolling thunder.

At times like this, most cultivators will try to avoid flying into the sky to prevent attracting thunder strikes.

As for the flying demon beasts that reside in the swamp waters, they’re even less likely to take to the skies. If these big creatures dare to rise into the air, the chances of attracting lightning are much greater than for cultivators.

Some experienced cultivators even seize such opportunities to ride magical treasure ships in and out of water areas to hunt and kill those demon beasts hiding in their nests avoiding thunder.

But for someone like Zhouyang, who grew up in a desert oasis with little rain and thunder, this heavy rainfall and stormy weather is something he finds quite unsettling.

He’s not particularly afraid of the celestial thunder in the sky. In fact, some Purple Mansion Stage cultivators deliberately fly into the sky during such weather to attract thunderbolts, using special magical artifacts to collect the power of heavenly thunder for artifact refinement.

He was more worried about Xu Song, his ghost servant.

At this time, it’s been more than two months since he and his Dao companion, Xiao Ying, arrived at the Black Cloud Swamp.

More than two months ago, after arriving at the Black Cloud Swamp, they quickly found the "Three Yin Absolute Land" sealed by Xu Song centuries ago, with his guidance.

Fortunately, since not too much time had passed, the sealing array was still effective.

Also, due to always being sealed, the thick Yin Qi that had accumulated inside this "Three Yin Absolute Land" was extremely suitable for Xu Song to form his ghost pill.

According to Xu Song’s original estimation, he would need at least a year of cultivation to accumulate enough magical power to form the ghost pill.

However, thanks to the abundant Yin Qi in this "Three Yin Absolute Land," the time required was greatly reduced. It would take roughly only three to five months to succeed.

This should have been a great thing, but now seeing this thundering scene, Zhouyang had a layer of hidden worry.

It’s known that heavenly thunder breaks evil. As a ghost cultivator, Xu Song, once he condenses the ghost pill, would have a bolt of celestial thunder descend to test him.

In this kind of environment in the Black Cloud Swamp, if on the day of Xu Song’s core formation, it’s also such a stormy day with rolling thunder, there’s a significant possibility that in addition to the test thunderbolt descending from the Heavenly Dao, other thunderbolts might also strike.

If that really occurs, Xu Song’s originally almost guaranteed core formation plan will have countless variables added.

Zhouyang certainly does not want such a thing to happen.

"The celestial thunder test from Heaven cannot be interfered with or resisted by others."

"However, there’s nothing wrong if I lend a hand against the thunderstorms attracted by the Yin Qi!"

A flash of gloom crossed his eyes, and with a move of his body, he sank into the water.

That "Three Yin Absolute Land" is located in an underwater cave over a hundred feet deep. Zhouyang and Xiao Ying had been living in a temporary cave mansion outside the underwater cave, built with a water avoidance array these past days.

Because both of them wore "Spirit Rhinoceros Jade Pendants" with automatic water avoidance effects, it saved them a lot of effort when moving in and out of the water. (There’s a bug here, the Spirit Rhinoceros Jade Pendant has communication and positioning functions. When writing about Zhouyang returning to Immortal Sun City, it could actually use the pendant to communicate and locate Xiao Ying’s position. I forgot this at the time, and it’s hard to change now. Please don’t mind!)

When Zhouyang entered the temporary underwater cave mansion, he saw Xiao Ying absorbing the Wood Essence Qi from the demon core of a tree demon he had slain, cultivating divine techniques.

The "Qinghua Calamity Crossing Scripture" that Xiao Ying practices allows for the cultivation of two divine techniques, "Qinghua Tribulation Crossing Immortal Light" and "Cyan Splendor Tribulation Needle," after reaching the Purple Mansion Stage.

"Qinghua Tribulation Crossing Immortal Light" is a healing divine technique. Once mastered, its healing effects are stronger than many Tier Four Spirit Pills, and it can also expel all poisons, cross calamities, and ward off disasters, with incredibly powerful functions.

While "Cyan Splendor Tribulation Needle" can be used to treat illnesses, cure some stubborn diseases, and also possesses considerable attack power, often yielding unexpected effects.

Xiao Ying was currently absorbing the Wood Essence Qi from the tree demon’s demon core, cultivating the "Qinghua Tribulation Crossing Immortal Light" divine technique, in order to quickly master this ability.

Without disturbing his Dao companion’s cultivation, after glancing at Xiao Ying’s situation, Zhouyang sat cross-legged on the other side, quietly comprehending the second advanced sword array from the "Great Derivation Sword Technique"—the Twelve Celestial Swords Array.

The "Great Derivation Sword Technique" consists of five advanced sword arrays: the Ten Directions Extinction Sword Array, the Twelve Celestial Swords Array, the Eight Desolates and Six Harmonies Sword Array, the Nine Heavens Returning Essence Sword Array, and the Nine-Nine Returning to One Sword Array.

All five advanced sword arrays can be practiced by Purple Mansion Stage cultivators.

However, Zhouyang believes that unless he deliberately delays his Golden Core formation to focus on researching these sword arrays for over a hundred years, it would be impossible to master them all within the Purple Mansion Stage cultivation.

But he wouldn’t do such a counterproductive thing.

Magical cultivation is the foundation of a cultivator; everything else, whether divine power spells, sword techniques, or refining and talisman making arts, are secondary.

There’s nothing wrong with splitting some time to study these secondary things without hindering cultivation, but it would be improper to abandon cultivation to specifically study secondary things.

Zhouyang would certainly not do such a thing.

He was currently studying the "Twelve Celestial Swords Array" because he had already mastered the "Ten Directions Extinction Sword Array," and the current environment was unsuitable for meditation cultivation.

In this quiet manner, more than half a month passed, and Xu Song, who had been in seclusion condensing his core in the "Three Yin Absolute Land," finally had some movement.

Woosh woosh woosh!

On this day, Zhouyang was contemplating the usage of the sword array when he suddenly heard the sound of the wind.

Instantly, he was stunned.

He must remember that he was now deep in the subaqueous environment, where would the wind sound come from in such a place?

However, as soon as this thought emerged, his expression changed and he suddenly understood something.

His eyes flashed with golden-red light, immediately using the "Separation Fire Golden Eye" divine technique to look at the underwater cave not far away.

In the view of the "Separation Fire Golden Eye," Zhouyang saw clusters of Yin Qi forming a Yin wind emerging from the underwater cave, blowing in all directions.

Wherever the Yin wind passed, whether it was fish and shrimp in the water or water plants, as long as they were blown by the Yin wind, they immediately died and withered.

This was the wind of death!

Any creature without magical protection that was blown by this Yin wind would have its life harvested.

Watching this scene, Zhouyang couldn’t help but mutter to himself, "Yin wind clearing, it seems Xu Song’s Core Formation has started, I hope everything goes smoothly!"

In the cultivation realm, cultivators forming a core have the Core Formation celestial phenomenon, and ghost cultivators naturally have their special celestial phenomenon.

The Yin wind Zhouyang just saw was a kind of celestial phenomenon triggered by a ghost cultivator during core formation.

Any life erased by that Yin wind would have its life force and soul absorbed by the ghost cultivator who was forming their core, used as resources for the core formation.

Fortunately, Xu Song’s core formation location was in the Black Cloud Swamp, a place desolate of human presence. If it were in one of those mortal city agglomerations, just now this Yin wind would have harvested the souls of the entire city’s inhabitants in a mere few dozen breaths.

In the demon dao, ghost demon dao cultivators sometimes sneak near mortal cities existing in the lands of Yin and evil to increase the core formation success rate.

They then use the death wind triggered by the core formation celestial phenomenon to harvest and sacrifice an entire city of mortals to pave their core formation path.

It’s said that if there are a million mortals as sacrifices, the core formation success rate for ghost demon dao cultivators can increase by at least fifty percent!

However, ghost demon dao cultivators daring to sacrifice a million mortals haven’t appeared for many years.

In the cultivation realm, the pursuit and elimination of such insane demonic cultivators are relentless, with Nascent Soul Stage cultivators personally involved in the chase.

With countless bloody examples of demon dao predecessors before them, even the most daring ghost demon dao cultivators nowadays dare not do such heaven-defying and shameful acts.

The anomaly of the Yin wind clearing did not last long before it ceased, Zhouyang, being close, could clearly feel an eerie, evil power brewing and coming forth in the underwater cave.

Possessing the "Qianyang Treasure Body," he naturally repelled such eerie, evil power, seen as he had to step out from the temporary cave and retreat to the outside water domain.

Similarly, practicing the life-brimming cultivation technique "Qinghua Calamity Crossing Scripture," Xiao Ying instinctively abhorred the death-eerie power of ghost dao cultivators, so she quickly followed Zhouyang to the domain above the water.

"Zhou Lang, if others knew about you keeping ghost servants, it might bring great troubles!"

Above the water domain, Xiao Ying followed Zhouyang standing upon the flying ship, a pair of beautiful eyes filled with worry as she softly sighed looking at her Dao companion beside her.

Ever since she learned about Zhouyang keeping Xu Song, this ghost servant, she had felt displeased.

The three major branches of demon dao: Blood Demon Dao, Ghost Demon Dao, and Corpse Demon Dao, each more wicked than the next.

Blood Demon Dao cultivators, although they practice blood cultivation, are, after all, still human, still living.

But Ghost Demon Dao cultivators, especially ghost cultivators like Xu Song, are no longer alive.

Moreover, ghost cultivators manipulate souls and ghosts, refining magical artifacts with the souls of creatures, devouring souls to increase their cultivation, is something orthodox cultivators who generally believe in reincarnation detest the most.

For cultivators, if death is inevitable, they at least have the possibility of retaining a trace of True Spirit for reincarnation.

But if they die at the hands of ghost cultivators and ghost dao cultivators, there’s no possibility of reincarnation.

Under such circumstances, how could cultivators not detest ghost cultivators?

If Xiao Ying weren’t deeply in love with Zhouyang, trusting him, she would’ve long advised him to clear the portal upon learning of Xu Song’s existence.

Instead of waiting till now, witnessing the slaughter caused by the "Yin wind clearing" anomaly, before finally speaking out with advice.

"Ying’Er believe in me, I promise you, if Xu Song dares to kill an innocent person in the future, I’ll personally step in and kill him!"

Zhouyang reached out to embrace his Dao companion tightly, lowered his head to kiss Xiao Ying’s smooth and fair forehead as he softly made a promise.

He naturally understood his Dao companion’s concerns, but to him, a living Xu Song held such immeasurable value that he simply couldn’t easily abandon the ghost servant.

Furthermore, even the esteemed Nascent Soul Stage Zhenren like Master Cyan Yang would retain the repair of such a demon artifact as the "Ghost Luo Banner," he too didn’t feel keeping a ghost servant was immoral.

He was not keeping ghost servants for killing, merely wanted to utilize the ghost servant’s profound knowledge and life experience for himself!