Han Li’s mind mulled over this matter as he flew through the tunnel.
But suddenly, his expression stirred and his attention turned to his front. A flicker of green light flashed in front of him and was flying in his direction. He instantly waved his sleeve in response, releasing a mist of azure in front of him. The green light was captured by the mist and dragged in front of him, revealing a gleaming sword that had a red jade slip attached to it.
Han Li pursed his lips and raised his hand, taking the slip into his hand before tossing the sword back into the air. The green sword let out a ring, circling in the air before flying through Yin winds without a trace.
Han Li ignored it and instead sank his spiritual sense into the jade slip.
“They’ve found traces of the Umbra Yin Horse!” A short moment later, Han Li withdrew from the jade slip with a smile. Then with a flip of his hand, he summoned a white formation plate.
He tapped it and in a flash of azure light, it became as glossy as a mirror. Four differently colored lights appeared on different places of the plate.
He looked at the positions of the light and immediately put it away before flying forward at greater speed.
Half a day later, Han Li arrived at a four-way intersection, finding Cultivator Yuan and Old Man Fu meditating there. The Dark Violet Pearl was floating motionlessly above the old man’s head.
After Han Li arrived, he asked, “Fellow Daoist Yuan, you’ve found it?”
“That’s right,” Cultivator Yuan chuckled and his face wore a trace of excitement, “The Umbra Yin Horse is in this passageway, but it is extremely cunning. I wasn’t able to capture it, and could only block the way out and wait for you all to arrive.”
“Good,” Han Li nodded with a smile, “So long as we know of its whereabouts, it will only be a matter of time.”
Old Man Fu happily said, “Junior Martial Sister Chang and Fellow Daoist Bai are still quite far away. Let’s wait. When we’re all present, the capture will be easier.”
When Han Li heard this, he felt relieved and also took a seat.
Several hours later, the black-robed woman and Bai Yaoyi rushed over. After they heard the news, they were also overjoyed. With several simple spell formations placed down at the passage entrance, they promptly set off inside.
Not long after, a dark light suddenly flashed from the ground underneath, followed by the emergence of three pitch-black dried corpses.
The chests of the corpses were all hollow and their bodies lacked any flesh, but their eyes shined with a chilling green light as they stared in the direction of Han Li’s party without the slightest emotion.
Chapter 984: Corpse Wolf
The party of cultivator moved east down the passage, and looked through all the caverns they encountered. In order to be careful, three of them would search while two of them would remain behind and guard the tunnel, preventing the Umbra Yin Horse from escaping.
Not long after, the party arrived where Cultivator Yuan discovered the horse, an unremarkable small cavern. This time, the black-robed woman and Bai Yaoyi were guarding the tunnel as the others went inside.
When they entered, they discovered something strange. Not only were the Yin winds extremely weak, but they even felt comfortably warm. There was also some soft sand and a pile of rare warm jade in the corner. There was also a faint fragrance lingering in the air that resembled a mix of sandalwood and medicine. Upon closer inspection, they also found imprints on the ground that resembled that of a horse hoof but several times smaller.
“This is truly it...the Umbra Yin Horse!” With the hoofprints and the fragrance, Old Man Fu rubbed his hands together in excitement.
With a trace of red light shining from his face, Cultivator Yuan said, “Since Brother Fu said this, it must be true. Let’s pursue it, the passage forward isn’t very wide. Although there may be further forks in the tunnel, so long as we slowly track it, we’ll eventually force it to appear.”
Old Man Fu nodded, “Yes, that’s reasonable. We’ll...” Suddenly, he was interrupted by the sounds of an explosion, and the earth beneath them became unsteady as the cave quaked with ferocious roars.
In the three’s alarm, their bodies glowed as they shot off in the direction of the noise.
In the blink of an eye, they trailed back the way they came. The two women were looking ahead of them with shock as the thunderous footsteps shook the ground, each step more brutal as if the source was growing closer. An astonishing roar then sounded out.
The five cultivators all exchanged a glance and each took out their magic treasures, awaiting what was to come with readied stances.
Although the black Yin winds prevented them from seeing very far, blue light flashed from Han Li’s eyes, allowing him to view the ghost that was three hundred meters away. He couldn’t help but gasp cold air at the sight.
It was a huge wolf that was covered in green fur. It was ten meters tall with a head the size of a small building, and huge crimson eyes. Its four claws were as sharp as blades, cutting into the ground with each step.
But what was most alarming to Han Li was the green corpse flames that would spew out from its mouth each time it opened. Whenever the green flames touched the ice walls, it would leave deep and uneven grooves glowing with green light.
“A Corpse Wolf?” The name suddenly lit up in Han Li’s mind, but a common Corpse Wolf should only be a common ghost; even larger Corpse Wolves shouldn’t be this gigantic. The sheer size of this monster was far beyond the scope that was recorded and possessed a cripplingly intimidating aura.
Just as he was about to warn the other four, his eyes suddenly caught sight of something burrowed in the huge wolf's head.
“That’s... the Umbra Yin Horse!”
“What does Brother Han mean?” Astounded, Old Man Fu turned to look at Han Li.
“The formidable ghost ahead of us and the horse are together,” Han Li briefly replied.
“The Umbra Yin Horse?” The others revealed joy when they heard this.
They could faintly see the giant wolf through the Yin winds then. Although they couldn’t grasp its true form, the magnitude of the monster caused their hearts to tremble, and the joy on their faces quickly vanished.
The black-robed woman sullenly flicked her fingers, releasing over ten spheres of white light. The spheres didn’t strike the huge wolf but flew upward instead, and burst high in the air. Dazzling white light lit the tunnel and allowed them to see the wolf’s sinister form.
Their faces unconsciously changed. Given their vast experience, they could all tell how formidable this enemy was. But in that instance, they also saw something white lying down on the wolf’s head. Although it was half submerged in fur, it appeared to be a white horse head with green eyes.
“Everyone, be careful. We cannot allow the Umbra Yin Horse to escape. This Corpse Wolf should be a variant beast. Although it will prove troublesome, it should be an easy task for the five of us to slay it. Fellow Daoist Bai, you are in charge of capturing the Umbra Yin Horse!” With that said, Old Man Fu slapped his storage pouch and released chains that shined with black light. It flew forward and wrapped around the giant wolf like a snake.
The others were quick to take action as well: The black-robed woman released three scarlet flying swords; Cultivator Yuan took out a jade pendant, producing several winged scorpions; and Han Li spat out several flying swords that swept forward in a wave of light.
During this time, Bai Yaoyi flipped her hand and summoned a translucent net. In a glimmer of ice, the net transformed into white mist, and enveloped the Umbra Yin Horse on the wolf’s head.
Although this was the first time they had acted together, the sheer amount of power their treasures displayed was overwhelming.
The Umbra Yin Horse quickly reacted. As soon as it saw the incoming attacks, it lept off the wolf’s head to conceal itself once more.
As for the corpse wolf, a glint flashed from its eyes, and its howls came to a halt. It gaped its mout
h, releasing an unfathomable stream of dark green inferno to meet the oncoming magic treasures.
For a time, the flames had restrained the treasures and prevented any of them from coming any closer to the corpse. It was too late for the winged scorpions to dodge, and they were turned into ash after just a moment. The white net released to capture the Umbra Yin Horse was also restrained by the green flames.
When Bai Yaoyi saw this, she let out a cold snort. As the North Night Palace was a place of eternal snow, all of her techniques and treasures were ice-attributed, and she held these flames in utter contempt.
Before any of the others had taken further action, Bai Yaoyi held her hands in an incantation gesture and the light around her body flared, releasing a wave of white Qi. The gorgeous, glittering light made her appear like a goddess of ice afloat in a blizzard. As temperatures suddenly plummeted, the black-robed woman and Cultivator Yuan couldn’t help but tremble.
The huge wolf seemed to sense that matters had turned for the worse and took a deep breath before spitting out even greater flames.
At nearly the same time, Bai Yaoyi spat out a crystalline fan, circling once around her before dropping into her hand, empowering the cold light surrounding her. Then with a wave, the air shrieked as the glacial winds swept forth, carrying countless shards of penetrating ice.
Green and white power clashed, drowning out the magic treasures in the flare of their collision. The explosions that resulted caused the cave to tremble.
The Corpse Wolf’s flames were truly formidable, capable of evenly contending against its natural nemesis. When Bai Yaoyi saw this, her face flushed red with rage. She waved her fan once more and rose winds of even greater power.
As the battle unfolded, the others didn’t simply remain idle.
The old man promptly pointed at the chains he had summoned. With a bang, black flames coiled across them and they blurred, transforming into several tens of indistinguishable copies, instantly forming a huge net above the wolf.
As for the black-robed woman, she muttered a spell and released three red flying dagger. They shook before merging together into a single three-meter-long sword and cleaved forward in a swordstreak.
Cultivator Yuan withdrew the jade pendant in his hand and replaced it with a blue gourd. It spat out a dense purple mist that slowly spread towards the wolf.
Having seen the others employ their great abilities, Han Li raised his brow and casually shook his sleeve. A red line flashed out before fading away from sight.
With so many attacks suppressing it, the huge wolf wasn’t able to endure. The black flaming chains and red swordstreak gradually pushed back its corpse flames, making way for the dense purple mist to arrive.
Although it wasn’t very intelligent, it could feel that danger was approaching. Its body flickered with green light, and its figure suddenly shrunk as the fur on its back turned erect. Then with a roar, a dense barrage of green light launched from its coat, enveloping the five present.
The cultivators had anticipated this, but none of them dared to underestimate the attack and had employed their own abilities to block it. In that moment of delay, the wolf turned tail and fled, leaving the cultivators in shock.
Chapter 985: Ghostfiend Threads
As the Corpse Wolf moved to escape, a crimson light flashed near its side to reveal a red needle. It flickered and pierced through the green flames protecting the wolf’s body in a crimson line, cutting through with incredible sharpness.
In the huge wolf’s alarm, it attempted to turn its head and avoid the attack, but the needle had already pierced through its neck. A deafening painful howl followed, and the black Qi that gathered around it’s legs disappeared into the nearby Yin winds. When the group saw this, they rejoiced.
“Pursue it!” Someone yelled. The party then began to glow, intending to quickly fly after it.
However, a cry sounded out from a pouch at Han Li’s waist. Although it was soft, Han Li’s expression vastly changed and he flicked his hand, shooting several azure swordstreaks at an area over thirty meters away. As the attack drew closer, a dark light shined from the ground to reveal several jet-black figures. One of them had easily repelled the swordstreaks with a flick of their finger.
Afterwards, Yin winds began to erupt with great strength and the three figures were partially concealed. These three were the same dried corpses that had appeared at the intersection that the cultivators had passed. It was unknown what they conspired or how they evaded the spell formations that had been placed, but they managed to tail them with profound concealment.
Just as Han Li and company were about to give chase, one of the dried corpses had revealed a trace of its aura in a moment of carelessness, allowing Han Li’s Weeping Soul Beast to detect it. These dried corpses were entirely shriveled, and were of differing heights. Han Li even recalled having seen one before, as he had struck it with lightning and turned it to dust.
While Han Li betrayed shock from his face, the others all let out a cry of alarm.
“How can that decayed corpse move?” The black-robed woman shouted out in astonishment, “When I discovered it, it was without life.”
Bai Yaoyi was also particularly surprised as she had discovered one alongside Han Li as well.
“You recognize these ghosts? We can’t deal with them now; we must first give chase to the Umbra Yin Horse. Fellow Daoist Han and Junior Martial Sister Chang, deal with these ghosts for the time being. The rest of us will chase after the horse. If it conceals itself once more, it will be difficult to find again.” Although Old Man Fu was greatly alarmed by the appearance of these three mysterious ghosts, he obviously prioritized the capture of the Umbra Yin Horse. From his point of view, Han Li and his Junior Martial Sister shouldn’t have a problem dealing with these three strange refined corpses, neither would his three have any problem with the Corpse Wolf. None of the other party members had raised an objection as well.
After the black-clothed woman curtly agreed and Han Li nodded, Old Man Fu and the others flew in the direction of the Corpse Wolf without further hesitation.
Han Li then put away his flying needle, and stood beside the black-robed woman, both of them coldly glaring at the dried corpses. Although Ghost Dao techniques were abnormally sly by nature, he found it incomprehensible that one of them was able to survive a strike from Divine Devilbane Lightning. Nevertheless, he still maintained a calm appearance, despite the increased vigilance in his heart.
As for the black-robed woman, she was an elder of the Nine Serenities Sect and possessed much understanding of both devilish and ghost techniques. Not daring to underestimate these corpses either, she had her giant red sword revolve above her in a display of dazzling glamour, protecting her rather than attacking.
The three corpses facing them were the first to move. The taller of the lot took two large steps forward and opened its mouth to spit out a grey thread towards the woman.
“You’re courting death!” She snorted with a sullen appearance. With a flick of her sleeve, over ten fireballs shot out in succession. Soon after, she pointed to the huge sword above her head and it sliced through the air, releasing a crimson swordstreak. She believed that this unremarkable thread was simply condensed corpse flames and that fire techniques should be able to restrain it.
But then, the thread passed through both the fireballs and the red swordstreak without resistance, thoroughly absorbing their entire being with just a touch, and continued to rush forward without any sign of slowing down.
The black-robed woman swept her sleeve in alarm and produced a small green shield in front of her. It glowed with light and massively expanded. At nearly the same time, the huge sword above her head chopped down towards the grey thread.
The black-robed woman believed that since the thread was able to absorb attacks of spiritual power, physical treasures should be able to block it.
As predicted, the grey thread stopped upon being struck with the huge sword.
The beautiful woman
rejoiced and thought to activate the sword’s abilities, but then the grey thread suddenly blurred and multiplied into a hundred copies of itself, quickly moving to restrain the huge sword. Afterwards, a strange dark light glowed from the threads, fusing together with the sword’s red light, slowly overwhelming it and turning it black as if it were being corrupted. The woman also felt her mental connection to the sword grow dull.
Her heart sank and she slapped her storage pouch without another thought, summoning a dharmic wheel [1] into her hand.
But before she could use it to free her sword, thunder rang out, followed by a bolt of dazzling lightning. The golden bolt struck the grey threads in rumbling wrath and freed the large red sword.
“Many thanks, Brother Han!” The woman hurriedly uttered before forming a hand gesture and recalling her sword into her sleeve after splitting into three red streaks.
With her weapon freed, Han Li didn’t pay any further attention. Rather, he was staring at the air with a tight frown. The grey threads he had scattered apart condensed back into its original form after only a short delay. As for the other two dried corpses, they hadn’t yet taken any action.
When the black-robed woman saw this, her expression turned unsightly, but she continued to look at the grey thread in the air.
“This isn’t ordinary corpse Qi, but that of a Baleful Corpse Qi. Could this be a Ghostfiend Thread?” She cried out with a deeply pale complexion.
“Baleful Corpse Qi?” Han Li found the name familiar and after a moment of thought, he recalled it being mentioned in the Great Development Treasure Scriptures [2].
His expression wavered for a time. This was a grand ability of the Ghost Dao that few cultivators ever could witnessed.
As the name implied, Baleful Corpse Qi was originally corpse Qi, but fused with the lingering resentment of a fresh death — what was otherwise known as baleful Qi.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 533