Chapter 57 Battle Against Three Nascent Soul Stage Experts
Xiao Ming pulled You Li, pushing his speed to the limit, like two beams of faint light tearing through the gray sky, speeding toward the entrance of the Secret Realm.
However, that terrifying intent from the Upper Realm behind him was like a sword hanging over his head; the cold sensation of being watched followed him like a shadow, making his Soul tremble.
He had no doubt that once locked onto by it, he would surely be doomed to eternal damnation!
Approaching the distorted light curtain at the exit of the Secret Realm, You Li did not hesitate, turning into a beam of purple light and instantly merging into the soul-containing jade.
Xiao Ming took a deep breath, suppressing the trepidation in his heart caused by that terrifying intent. He adjusted his Qi, then stepped into the distorted light curtain.
...
The scene shifted. Outside the entrance of the Secret Realm, Xiao Ming had intended to return directly to his Sect, but three figures suddenly appeared before him. Judging by their attire, the newcomers were Cultivators from the three major Sects: the Hundred Ghost Cave, the Yin Sha Sect, and the White Bone Temple.
The one from the Hundred Ghost Cave was an old woman wearing a black robe with intricate ghost patterns, holding a bone banner. Yin Qi swirled around her, and the faint sound of wailing ghosts could be heard. Her cultivation had reached the Late Nascent Soul Stage! Outsiders all called her "Gui Po."
The one from the Yin Sha Sect was a burly man with red hair, a sturdy physique, and a ferocious face. Evil Qi condensed into substance around him, and he carried a giant blade as wide as a door panel on his back. His Evil Qi soared to the heavens, and his cultivation was also at the Late Nascent Soul Stage! He was known as "Chi Sha."
The strongest among them was the one from the White Bone Temple! Unlike the other Cultivators in his Sect, he did not look like a skeleton; instead, he resembled a dried corpse draped in human skin. Two clusters of faint blue Soul fire flickered in his eye sockets, he wore a pallid Dharma robe, and he fingered a string of prayer beads made from tiny skulls. His aura was obscure and cold, having already reached the Peak Nascent Soul Stage! He was the Grand Elder of the White Bone Temple — "Gu You."
These three were the leaders sent by the three major Sects to meet the Disciples exploring the Secret Realm. According to past practices, although this Secret Realm had risks, the casualty rate for the Disciples who entered was at most thirty to fifty percent. However, this time, the Soul tablets of the Disciples who entered the Secret Realm were mostly shattered. How could they not take this seriously? At this moment, the expressions of the three Elders were extremely grim.
They had been monitoring the light curtain at the entrance of the Secret Realm and discovered that the fluctuations coming from within this time were exceptionally violent. It would dim at times, and at other times, it would erupt with a heart-palpitating purple halo. There was even an indescribable, terrifying pressure faintly seeping out, making even those with their cultivation feel heart-trembling fear.
"Something is wrong! Something major must have happened inside this Secret Realm!" Chi Sha's voice was muffled and carried anxiety.
Leaning on her bone banner, Gui Po said sinisterly, "I just tried to contact Elder Ying and the others using a secret technique, only to find that their Soul tablets had already shattered! There must be something strange going on in this Secret Realm!"
The Soul fire in Gu You's eye sockets flickered, and his voice was dry, like bones rubbing together: "I observed the Disciples' Soul tablets, and most have already shattered... The remaining two or three are just a bunch of useless trash. There is likely a heaven-shaking incident within the Secret Realm this time."
Just as the three were in doubt and uncertainty, the entrance light curtain rippled, and a figure slowly emerged — it was none other than Xiao Ming!
As soon as he appeared, three powerful senses instantly locked onto him like invisible hands!
"Hm? Someone has come out!"
"It's a new face! Not a Disciple of our three Sects!"
"Golden Core... No, that's a Nascent Soul, Early Nascent Soul stage? How could a Nascent Soul Cultivator enter this Secret Realm?"
The three Elders' gazes were like lightning, instantly focusing on Xiao Ming, filled with scrutiny, doubt, and disbelief! The Secret Realm had changed, so why was he the only one to come out? No... something is very wrong! There must be a great secret on this boy, or he obtained an Opportunity within the Secret Realm!
Gu You's figure flickered like a ghost, and he was the first to block Xiao Ming's path. He forced an ugly smile onto his shriveled face, but his voice was cold: "Young friend, wait a moment!"
Gui Po and Chi Sha also moved almost simultaneously, forming a triangular formation to surround Xiao Ming, their auras pressing down.
Seeing three Nascent Soul Cultivators blocking his path, Xiao Ming couldn't help but sneer inwardly after seeing their attire. However, on the surface, he showed just the right amount of "panic" and "vigilance." He took a step back, bowed slightly, and said, "Three Seniors... what is the meaning of this?"
Chi Sha had the most explosive temper and shouted directly, "Brat! Stop playing dumb! What happened inside the Secret Realm? Why are you the only one who came out? Where are my Yin Sha Sect Disciples?"
Gui Po also chimed in sinisterly, "Have you seen the Disciples of my Hundred Ghost Cave? If you tell the truth, perhaps I can leave your corpse intact today!" The killing intent in her words was undisguised.
Gu You was relatively "gentle," but his eyes were inscrutable. He said indifferently, "Young friend, the Secret Realm has undergone changes, and you must have been frightened. As long as you hand over everything you saw and heard in the Secret Realm, as well as... the items you obtained, I can make the decision to spare your life. It is even possible to induct you into my White Bone Temple!" His words seemed like an offer, but in reality, he wanted to capture Xiao Ming without bloodshed and monopolize the Opportunity he might possess.
Xiao Ming calculated quickly. These three old guys—two at the Late Nascent Soul Stage and one at the Peak Nascent Soul Stage—were indeed troublesome. Especially that Gu You, who gave him a rather dangerous feeling. A direct fight was definitely not the best strategy, but escaping easily seemed unlikely as well.
He forced a look of "bitterness" and "lingering fear" onto his face, trembling slightly as he spoke: "Three... three Seniors, please understand. This Junior is merely a Loose Cultivator who was lucky enough to enter the Secret Realm. But... but for some reason, a terrifying ghost tide suddenly erupted inside. Countless powerful ghosts suddenly awoke and killed everyone they saw! This Junior's cultivation is low, so I hid the whole way. I barely managed to escape to the vicinity of the exit, and just happened to see the light curtain fluctuating, so I desperately rushed out... As for the Disciples of your esteemed Sects... while fleeing for my life, it seems... it seems I did see quite a few, but they were all submerged by the ghost tide..." His words were half-truth and half-lie, blaming the Secret Realm's anomalies on a "ghost tide."
"A ghost tide?" The Soul fire in Gu You's eyes flickered; he clearly didn't fully believe him. "What kind of ghost tide could cause the elite Disciples of my three Sects to be almost completely wiped out? Young friend, do you even believe these words yourself?"
Chi Sha was already impatient and sneered, "Why waste words with him! Capture him and search his Soul, and we will know everything!" After saying this, he took a sudden step forward. The pressure of the Late Nascent Soul Stage erupted, pressing down on Xiao Ming like a mountain. At the same time, a giant palm condensed from thick Evil Qi reached directly for Xiao Ming's neck!
"Hmph!" Xiao Ming snorted coldly. Although his cultivation was only at the Early Nascent Soul stage, his true combat power and exquisite control over power and Cultivation Technique were by no means inferior to those of the Middle or even Late Nascent Soul Stage. He reacted extremely quickly! Under his feet, he once again executed the Magic Light Escape combined with the Heavenly Demon Phantom Body. His figure was like a ghost, leaving an afterimage in place, easily dodging the palm!
"Eh? Such fast movement techniques!" Chi Sha was stunned, clearly not expecting a Cultivator who had just stepped into the Nascent Soul Stage to have such swift reactions and movement techniques.
"This boy is indeed strange! Let's attack together and take him down first!" Gui Po shrieked, shaking the bone banner in her hand. Suddenly, Yin winds howled, and several incredibly solid phantom images of fierce ghosts roared and lunged at Xiao Ming. These fierce ghosts were actually all at the Nascent Soul Stage!
Gu You did not continue to watch either. With a flick of his finger, three fist-sized skulls burning with faint blue Soul fire emitted shrill shrieks and shot toward Xiao Ming in a triangular formation. Wherever the skulls passed, the air seemed to freeze!
Facing the siege of three Nascent Soul Stage powerhouses, Xiao Ming's eyes sharpened. He no longer hid anything and attacked with full force.
"Boom!"
The aura of the Early Nascent Soul stage erupted without reservation! Pure and majestic Devilish Qi soared into the sky. Although his Realm was still lower than his opponents, the quality and power of that Devilish Qi were not in the slightest inferior to the Late Nascent Soul Stage!
Xiao Ming let out a long whistle, executing the Heavenly Demon Phantom Body, instantly splitting into several incredibly solid phantoms to meet the fierce ghosts and skulls. At the same time, his true body pounced directly at the relatively weaker Chi Sha!
"Great Nirvana Soul Palm!"
He struck out with a palm, and the aura of nirvana and nothingness permeated the air. Where the palm wind passed, even light seemed to be swallowed! Feeling the terror of this palm, Chi Sha's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly held his giant blade horizontally in front of him, his Evil Qi surging wildly!
"Bang!"
Palm and blade collided, emitting a dull, thunderous sound! Chi Sha felt a strange power transmit through the giant blade, shaking his Divine Soul into a painful trance!
"What a strange and terrifying palm technique! It's actually a Soul attack!" Chi Sha was both shocked and furious.
On the other side, although Xiao Ming's phantoms were torn apart by the fierce ghosts and skulls, they bought him precious time. His figure was like lightning, weaving back and forth under the siege of the three. He combined the Magic Light Escape and the Heavenly Demon Phantom Body to the limit, not forgetting to secretly trigger the Demon Heart Stir to interfere with their minds. His figure was sometimes as elusive as a ghost, sometimes filled with countless phantoms, and he was actually fighting the three Nascent Soul Stage powerhouses to a standstill for a time!
Xiao Ming also used this Opportunity to thoroughly adapt to and control the power he had newly broken through to the Nascent Soul Stage! Every one of his palm strikes contained the terrifying power of nirvana that destroyed the Soul, making Gui Po and Gu You quite wary, and they dared not press him too hard. Especially Gu You, who felt that Xiao Ming's Cultivation Technique was extremely suppressive to him.
But after all, it was one against three, and there was still a gap in Realm. Gu You had the highest cultivation and the most bizarre methods; those faint blue Soul fire skulls could not only freeze the Soul but also self-destruct to produce a powerful Soul shockwave. The Nascent Soul fierce ghosts controlled by Gui Po were fearless of death and constantly harassed him. Although Chi Sha had suffered a small loss just now, his attacks were wide open, his Evil Qi was majestic, and the frontal pressure was immense.
Soon, Xiao Ming began to fall into a disadvantage. His protective Devilish Qi fluctuated violently, and he added several wounds to his body. Although they were not serious, long-term defense would inevitably lead to mistakes!
"Brat, let's see how much longer you can hold on!" Chi Sha laughed wildly, his attacks becoming increasingly violent.
And the Soul fire in Gu You's eyes was cold as he secretly gathered power, preparing to unleash a killing move.
Xiao Ming's eyes turned cold, knowing he couldn't drag this out any longer. Just as his intent was about to communicate with the soul-containing jade, intending to call the little ghost girl You Li to step in and solve it.
"Hum!"
A bone-chilling, yet supreme and majestic Soul Transformation Stage pressure instantly enveloped the entire battlefield!
A brilliant ice-blue flash came from far away in the sky, its speed reaching the limit! Before the person arrived, an incredibly condensed ice-blue Devilish Qi had already torn through the sky, carrying a bone-piercing chill, and precisely slashed toward Gu You, who was just about to unleash a major move on Xiao Ming!