288: You have connections? Then you deserve to die even more!

Boom— As if speaking with the authority of the heavens, the moment the words fell, the static sea of pitch-black fog instantly boiled!

Hundreds of millions of Yin Soldiers emitted sharp, ear-piercing ghost howls in unison, and boundless ghost Qi surged into the sky, transforming into a deathly dark cloud that blotted out the sun and sky!

Like a black flood breaking through a dam, or a plague of locusts sweeping across the world, they roared and surged toward the mountain gates of the Luo Huang Immortal Sect, which had lost the protection of its grand formation!

"No!!"

"Help me!!"

"Devil Head! I will fight you to the death!!"

Despairing cries, shrill screams, and angry roars instantly resounded throughout the Luo Huang Immortal Sect.

The Disciples of the Immortal Sect hastily formed formations, and various colorful Spells and treasure lights lit up, but before that boundless, endless tide of ghosts, they were like candle flames in a storm, extinguished with a single breath.

Wherever the Yin Soldiers passed, all life vanished, vegetation withered, and palaces collapsed.

Living souls, screaming in terror and struggling constantly, were forcibly torn from their Physical Bodies, wailing as they were swept into that dark golden banner, becoming a new part of the ghost tide.

Watching the Disciples under his command fall like wheat being harvested, and seeing the familiar, picturesque immortal scenery rapidly turn into a ghost Realm, Chu Guhong's eyes turned blood-red, his heart filled with shock and rage.

"Devil Head! You Devil Head!!"

Chu Guhong wanted to rush down to rescue them, but a figure had already silently blocked his path.

It was a middle-aged man with a burly build and a face as cold and hard as iron. He was clad in profound black heavy armor and held a door-sized ghost-head saber wrapped in dense Blood Fiend Qi.

Just by standing there, the terrifying Spiritual Pressure belonging to the Late Golden Core Stage pressed down on Chu Guhong like a mountain, making him unable to breathe and causing the mana he had just raised to almost collapse.

It was none other than the Banner Spirit commander—Mu Han!

Chu Guhong's pupils shrank to pinpoints, and the last shred of luck in his heart was completely shattered.

Late Golden Core Stage! It really was the Late Golden Core Stage!

However, Mu Han had no intention of wasting words; he didn't even spare Chu Guhong a second glance as he casually swung the ghost-head saber in his hand.

A pitch-black blade beam, condensed to the extreme and seemingly capable of slicing through the Void Realm, tore through the air and slashed horizontally with lightning speed!

Feeling the monstrous ferocity upon it, Chu Guhong was terrified out of his wits.

He used all his strength to summon his Lifebound Treasure, a vermilion-gold Phoenix Feather Sword, while simultaneously retreating rapidly, layers upon layers of red phoenix phantom shields appearing around his body.

Clang— The Phoenix Feather Sword collided with the pitch-black blade beam, emitting a harsh metallic clashing sound.

Immediately, the sword wailed, its spiritual light suddenly dimming, and it was violently knocked flying!

The red phoenix phantom shields on Chu Guhong's body were even more easily slashed through layer by layer, as if they were made of paper!

The remaining Saber Qi grazed Chu Guhong's chest. Even though he had dodged with all his might, his protective spiritual light was still torn apart, leaving a wound that was deep enough to see the bone, wrapped in chilling Death Qi!

"Pfft—" Chu Guhong spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with bits of internal organs, his aura becoming increasingly withered.

His Realm was already a notch lower, and having been severely injured by an inexplicable secret technique, his strength was less than fifty percent. Before Mu Han, he couldn't even withstand a single strike!

Mu Han, however, did not let up. He took a step forward, his saber momentum continuous and unending.

Every strike was as heavy as a mountain, treacherous and tricky, carrying a coldness that froze the Divine Soul and a sharpness that tore through everything.

Chu Guhong gritted his teeth and resisted desperately, finding himself in constant danger. His Lifebound Treasure was continuously damaged in the process, and several more gruesome wounds were added to his body, blood almost dyeing his tattered robes red.

After only a dozen exchanges, Chu Guhong was already at the end of his rope.

Once again shattered by Mu Han's saber, his last bit of protective mana dispersed. Chu Guhong staggered back, fell to one knee, and could only barely support his body with the Phoenix Feather Sword.

He gasped for air, his eyes filled with unwillingness and despair.

"Am I really going to die so inexplicably?"

Watching Mu Han raise the ghost-head saber again, the scent of death rushed toward him.

"Wait!!" Chu Guhong shouted with his last ounce of strength.

However, Mu Han's movements did not pause in the slightest, and the ghost-head saber continued to descend.

Chu Guhong's eyes split with rage as he shouted again, his speed of speech as fast as popping beans.

"I am a member of the Chu Family of the Thirty-Six Blessed Lands!"

"Behind the Chu Family is one of the Seven Grotto-Heavens, the 'Zixiao Grotto-Heaven'! If you kill me, the Chu Family and the Zixiao Grotto-Heaven will definitely not let this rest!!"

He wasn't entirely lying; he was indeed a member of the Chu Family, one of the Thirty-Six Blessed Lands.

But he was a member of a side branch of the Chu Family that couldn't be any further removed.

Because his branch could not receive support from the Family, he had to choose to leave the Chu Family, join the "Luo Huang Immortal Sect," and then use the banner to pull the tiger's skin, walking step by step to where he was now.

So, if you were to say he had no relationship with the Chu Family, that wouldn't be entirely true.

But the idea that the Chu Family wouldn't let it rest if he were killed was a joke!!

Let alone the Zixiao Grotto-Heaven, one of the Seven Grotto-Heavens.

But now was not the time to worry about that; he had to intimidate the person in front of him first.

And the facts were just as he had expected.

As his voice fell, he could clearly see that Mu Han's downward chopping motion suddenly showed an extremely subtle stiffness.

Even the surging ghost tide below seemed to have experienced a momentary stagnation.

There's a chance! A surge of wild joy, a sense of escaping from a desperate situation, suddenly rose in Chu Guhong's heart!

When out in the world, one really does have to rely on one's background.

Even if you are the Soul Devouring Demonic Sect, you have to weigh the consequences of offending the other side, right?

However, this trace of wild joy had not yet spread.

The ghost tide below, which had been stagnant, suddenly became even more violent and ferocious.

They churned like waves, the black crests rising one higher than the last, completely swallowing the last of the Luo Huang Immortal Sect Disciples and Elders who were putting up a desperate resistance!

Along with their desperate wails, they were quickly drowned out by the ghost howls.

And before Chu Guhong's eyes, the ghost-head saber, which had paused slightly, not only did not retract but instead slashed down with even greater speed!

The Blood Fiend Qi on the blade boiled, reflecting Mu Han's cold, waveless eyes.

"The Master has spoken!" Mu Han's voice rang out for the first time, low and hoarse, carrying a trace of faint mockery, "You have a background... then you deserve to die even more!"

"No—"

Pfft!

The blade light flashed, and a head filled with astonishment and fear instantly soared into the sky.

Chu Guhong's remaining consciousness only saw his headless body slowly fall, and then he saw countless dark golden chains reaching out from the Void Realm, mercilessly piercing through his Physical Body and his soul that was about to dissipate.

Following that was an irresistible pulling force... And then, boundless darkness!

...

Inside the bronze chariot. Lu Ming looked through the beaded curtain, quietly overlooking the Luo Huang Immortal Sect below, which was rapidly being swallowed by the ghost tide and turning into a land of deathly silence.

The battle started quickly and ended even faster. This time, he hadn't even personally taken action; the Banner Spirit under his command had already swept everything away like a hot knife through butter.

"Has the gap in strength already become this large!" Lu Ming whispered to himself.

Thinking back to the difficulty of facing Shen Yuan in the beginning, and looking at the current overwhelming force, he couldn't help but shake his head.

If Shen Yuan were resurrected now, he probably wouldn't even be able to last a few moves under his command.

This rapid expansion of power even made him feel a trace of unreality.

Lu Ming suddenly had a realization: if he was already like this, then how powerful must the true Nascent Soul Grotto-Heaven be?

Huh~ I dare not even imagine.

As for the Luo Huang Immortal Sect Disciples below who were eventually swallowed while screaming and struggling, Lu Ming didn't care in the least.

He was not bloodthirsty, but he was definitely not a soft-hearted person either. Since he had chosen to cut weeds and eliminate the roots, he would leave none behind. They could only blame themselves for following the wrong person!

Besides, these were all done by his subordinates, what did it have to do with Lu Ming?

However, he still felt that he couldn't indulge his subordinates in acting recklessly.

"Hmm, I'll have to criticize Mu Han and the others later. Their movements were too rough; it wouldn't be good if they scared the flowers and plants. Let this be an exception!"

As for these newly collected souls...

"For care and condolences, I'll leave that to Ji Ruge to handle; he is good at this."

As for him? Of course, it's to go and inspect the harvest of this trip!