The Deadly Chain Blade

Upon arriving at the Xuanhui Sect, the Cui family had already sent over Yan Yun’s identity information.

But this identity information seemed utterly ordinary, offering no useful clues connecting her to Ghost Soul Old Ancestor.

More crucially, based on Xuanhui Holy Mother’s previous perception, the individual carried a Divine Venerable power originating from the Ghost Soul Old Ancestor, an aura even more terrifying than the Old Ancestor’s own.

Concurrently, the Divine Venerable Old Ancestors from the other two major powers, the True Dragon Gate and Black Wind Mountain, also arrived at the Cui family.

The Old Ancestors of the four major powers were currently discussing the matters of Ghost Soul Valley.

“The Ghost Soul Old Ancestor has emerged?”

“Impossible, we dealt him a severe blow back then; I believe he shouldn’t be able to stir up trouble again so soon.”

A middle-aged man, clad in golden brocade robes, spoke with a frown.

“Indeed, could there be a mistake?”

Another burly old man, cloaked in black robes, echoed the doubt.

At present, they truly lacked concrete evidence to link these events to the Ghost Soul Old Ancestor.

However, Xuanhui Holy Mother’s next words left both men speechless.

“If it isn’t the Ghost Soul Valley, then the deaths of my disciple and grand-disciple can only mean that your two families are secretly orchestrating this.”

“After all, if my Xuanhui Sect and the Cui family were to fight to the death, your two families would stand to gain the most.”

These words immediately put them in an awkward position.

Unbeknownst to Xuanhui Holy Mother, the Old Ancestor of Black Wind Mountain, upon hearing this, displayed a subtle flicker of unease.

“Holy Mother, such words should not be uttered lightly.”

“We merely raised a question; please do not falsely accuse innocent people,” the Old Ancestor of True Dragon Gate quickly retorted.

Xuanhui Holy Mother promptly rolled her eyes.

“My suspicions are not unfounded.”

“Regardless of whether it is him or not, I believe our four families should exercise caution during this period.”

“You should know that the Ghost Soul Valley cultivates the Demonic Dao’s Soul Refining Grand Art, which relies on devouring the souls of powerful cultivators to enhance their cultivation.”

“A hundred years ago, he was on the verge of breaking through to the Great Perfection Divine Venerable Realm.”

“Now, a century later, once his injuries have healed, he will undoubtedly be at the precipice of his breakthrough.”

“If it truly is him, then the Divine Soul Realm cultivators of our four major powers must be extremely careful; do not venture out unnecessarily in the near future,” Xuanhui Holy Mother warned.

The Old Ancestors of the other three families nodded in agreement.

They also pledged to search together for the Ghost Soul Old Ancestor’s hiding place, vowing to utterly annihilate him once found, denying him any chance of resurgence.

With most of the personnel found and materials temporarily sufficient, Wen Meng and the others would not need to venture out for a few days.

However, Yan Yun would certainly not be idle during this time.

Many tasks still required her personal attention.

This was a matter that needed swift resolution.

Yesterday, she had stopped by Qianjin Pavilion in Qinghe City to inquire, confirming that their branch certainly did not possess such a precious treasure.

Throughout the entire Xiang Country, the only place likely to sell such an item was the Qianjin Pavilion headquarters, located in the Xiang Country’s Royal Capital.

If even the Xiang Country’s Qianjin Pavilion headquarters lacked it, her only recourse would be the Dao Alliance.

Compared to Jiang Country, Xiang Country was truly underdeveloped, not just by a small margin.

Precisely because of this backwardness, with various cultivation forces establishing their own domains, Yan Yun had chosen to develop within the Dao Alliance.

Here, without clear regulations, it was far simpler to secretly build strength than within the Righteous Dao Alliance.

This time, Yan Yun did not bring Xiao Leng with her.

The primary reason was that her destination was the Royal Capital of Xiang Country, a place teeming with people and complex intrigues.

Xiao Leng, possessing the Heavenly Fox bloodline, would undoubtedly attract many individuals with ulterior motives.

After giving some instructions to Wen Meng and the others, she departed.

The Royal Capital of Xiang Country was situated at such a distance that even with Yan Yun flying at full speed, a round trip would take two to three days.

The journey was anything but peaceful, as she frequently encountered groups of cultivators who engaged in highway robbery.

These groups would secretly lay ambushes along the roads, attacking passing cultivators.

Their cultivation levels were generally poor; Spirit Transformation Realm cultivators were rare among them.

Encountering Yan Yun, therefore, was simply their misfortune, as she had no intention of sparing those who ambushed and murdered for treasure.

Within the Dao Alliance, killing for treasure was largely unregulated, provided one did not provoke forces beyond their capability.

Indeed, even cultivators from certain factions would engage in such activities.

Such practices were, however, forbidden in the Righteous Dao Alliance, at least overtly.

Beyond highway robbery and plunder, conflicts between various factions were also incredibly brutal.

Yan Yun encountered several such incidents along her journey.

Yet, she was not one to meddle in others’ affairs; as long as they did not provoke her, she would pay them no mind.

However, trouble often finds those who do not seek it.

On the evening of the second day, Yan Yun passed through a town.

With nightfall approaching and a human settlement in sight, she naturally preferred not to spend the night in the depths of an old mountain forest.

Thus, she entered the town.

This small town housed few cultivators; the strongest among them was merely at the Spirit Transformation Realm, with a few at the Cavern Heaven Realm and dozens at the Spirit Gathering Realm.

The town likely had a population of two to three thousand.

Yan Yun simply found an inn and settled in.

However, around midnight, uninvited guests arrived outside the town.

These were a dozen or so black-robed cultivators, led by a Great Perfection Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator, accompanied by three other Spirit Transformation Realm cultivators, while the rest were all at the Cavern Heaven Realm.

To approach a town stealthily in the dead of night, concealing their identities, certainly boded ill.

“Senior Brother Xu, this town will do.”

“The higher-ups are pressing hard, saying the Old Ancestor is about to break through, and we need to collect more living souls, preferably from cultivators.”

“However, with the four major powers watching closely these days, we can only start with these insignificant minor factions for now.”

The leading Great Perfection Spirit Transformation cultivator nodded.

“Very well.”

“We’ll start with the cultivators.”

“You few Spirit Transformation cultivators, go deal with the town’s sole Spirit Transformation cultivator and the Cavern Heaven Realm cultivators.”

“You others, go handle the Spirit Gathering Realm cultivators.”

“As for the mortals, kill them all if you can; even mosquito legs, though small, are still meat.”

Once the dozen or so individuals had finalized their plan, they immediately sprang into action.

They had undoubtedly scouted the town’s details during the day, knowing the locations of the more capable cultivators.

The cultivation techniques of these individuals were incredibly strange, capable of evading the divine sense perception of ordinary cultivators.

None of the town’s cultivators, save for Yan Yun, who happened to be passing through, detected their presence.

“Hmm? Who is it, lurking so suspiciously in the middle of the night?”

Yan Yun instantly opened her eyes, then pushed open her window to peer outside.

Upon looking, she saw numerous dark figures flying towards various points within the town.

Initially, Yan Yun assumed it was a factional skirmish.

However, what transpired next caused her to frown.

A shrill scream suddenly pierced the night sky, shattering the town’s tranquility.

Immediately afterward, a series of screams erupted, compelling Yan Yun to investigate.

What she saw was a Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator, wielding an ominous chain scythe, ripping a transparent soul body from within a Cavern Heaven Realm cultivator.

“Help, help! Who are you people? I have no grievances with you, so why are you attacking me?”

The cultivator’s soul struggled, crying out for aid.

“This, Old Ancestor, is this Soul Capturing Art?” Yan Yun asked after a glance.

Yan Lingyun nodded.

“It’s a technique of that sort, more or less.”

“To stealthily attack cultivators in a town in the dead of night, this must be some Demonic Dao faction within the Dao Alliance secretly collecting souls for cultivation.”

“The people of this town are likely doomed.”

Indeed, no sooner had Yan Lingyun spoken than Yan Yun witnessed these individuals sparing no one, not even the common folk.

Ordinary people who emerged to investigate the commotion were instantly assailed by the black-robed figures.

Mortals were utterly defenseless, their souls instantly snatched away.

Screams echoed incessantly, and the other capable cultivators in the town immediately put up a resistance.

A Spirit Transformation Realm elder was seen soaring into the sky from a nearby courtyard.

“Who are you, and why do you attack this old man?”

This elder, a Great Perfection Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator and the strongest in the town, barely managed to evade the black-robed assailant’s first strike.

“Old fool, stop resisting!”

“Hand over your soul obediently, and you might avoid some suffering,” the black-robed cultivator opposite him sneered chillingly.

With a few chilling sounds, several ominous wraiths flew out from within the black robes.

These wraiths, bound by black chains, were all the souls of early Spirit Transformation Realm cultivators.

“Seize this old man’s soul for me,” the black-robed cultivator commanded.

The bound cultivator spirits let out hideous wails, compelled to lunge towards the elder.

“Ghost Control Art? Are you from the Ghost Soul Valley?”

The elder, possessing some knowledge, recognized their origin at a glance.

However, he could not escape, for many people remained in the courtyard below.

These were his descendants; if he fled, his entire family would likely perish at the hands of these villains.

“You have some discernment.”

“If I were you, I would have run immediately, old man.”

“Hand over your soul.”

Yan Yun had already witnessed the commotion, but she was now pondering a question: should she leave directly, or intervene to resolve this trouble?

“Old Ancestor, if it were you, encountering such a situation, would you intervene?” Yan Yun inquired.

Upon hearing this, Yan Lingyun chuckled.

“I have always done as I pleased, following my heart.”

“When I encounter something displeasing, I might meddle, but then again, I might not.”

Yan Yun gave a cold laugh after listening.

“Understood.”

“I have already seen something displeasing.”

Not far from Yan Yun, a family of three was seen frantically rushing out of a house, attempting to flee the town.

However, since the Ghost Soul Valley cultivators were carrying out such an act, they would certainly not allow anyone to leave.

Black-robed figures were guarding all entrances and exits of the town.

“Haha, trying to run?”

“Tonight, none of you shall escape,” a black-robed figure cackled, swinging his chain scythe towards the family of three.

Just as the family of three was about to meet a violent end, a streak of purple light suddenly tore through the night sky, instantly severing the chain in his hand.

This happened so abruptly that the Ghost Soul Valley disciple couldn’t even react.

“Who, who is it?!”

Upon realizing his artifact was destroyed, the Ghost Soul Valley disciple erupted in fury.

As he questioned, a chilling laugh echoed in his ear, a laugh that instinctively sent a shiver down the Ghost Soul Valley disciple’s spine.

“Hehehe… it’s me.”

“Do you have a problem with that?”