198: Chapter 198

Suddenly, about a hundred small spherical projections stopped, and numerous cracks appeared on them.

With a crisp cracking sound, they shattered into countless fragments, and all the Puppets planted inside the Heavenly Demon Fox Clan were eradicated.

"Impossible. With the Heavenly Demon Saintess's abilities, how could she capture them all at once?"

"Could that snake demon have done it? No, his Cultivation is not even as good as the Saintess's. With my Emperor Realm Cultivation, even if the Heavenly Demon Emperor himself took action, it would not be so easy to dispel."

"Unless they have grasped the mysteries of the Shennong Materia Medica Sutra."

The Nine Nether Ghost Emperor was furious, but there was nothing he could do; the Ghost Clan spies previously lurking in the Heavenly Demon Fox Clan had already been completely cleared out.

Now that the Fox Demons controlled by the Soul-Seizing Technique were all ineffective, finding the territory of the Heavenly Demon Fox Clan was as difficult as ascending to heaven.

"This damned Zhou Tian Star Array actually fell into the hands of the Heavenly Demon Fox Clan. That bastard Gui Jianchou."

Following his failure with the Heavenly Demon Fox Clan, the Nine Nether Ghost Emperor turned to strengthening his infiltration of the Dragon Clan. After the Ghost Festival, he would personally go to the Demon Realm to discuss this matter with the Flame Demon Ruler.

Far away on Dreamscape Mountain, Yan Ding received news that the Demon and Ghost Clans had paused their attack on Dragon City. Furious, he slammed his table into powder.

Although the Demon and Ghost Clans explained to Yan Ding why the operation was cancelled, they had indeed scammed him out of a large quantity of Medicinal Pills.

Three days later, the Ghost Festival arrived.

Ghost Emperor City was draped in white cloth strips everywhere; the streets were filled with white lanterns, and all kinds of supplies were white.

Early in the morning, a large number of Ghost Clan members appeared on the streets wearing white clothes, looking like a large-scale funeral procession. They poured into the Soul Hall square from all directions.

For these Ghost Clan members, today was a joyous day. It was the only day of the year they would wear white; at other times, they primarily wore black.

Xiao Bai got up very early, while Feng Yun was still sleeping. These past three days had been very disciplined; logically speaking, he should be able to recover to his original state today.

He did not dare to act rashly, but according to previous habits, he had to have a few rounds in the morning.

Previously, the Little Cute Girl System said it would take effect after three days, so to be safe, he definitely had to wait until after 72 hours to try again.

Today is the Ghost Festival, so he also disguised himself as a filial son; only by wearing mourning clothes could he blend into the massive crowd.

"Yuner, hurry up and get up, stop sleeping. Those Little Devils are all attending a funeral procession, let's go take a look too."

"Come, I've prepared a set of mourning clothes for you."

Feng Yun opened her drowsy eyes. They had rarely gone out during these past three days, and much of the intelligence had been relayed by Gui Jianchou.

"What is this? Isn't this for dead people to wear?"

Xiao Bai explained, "They are the Ghost Clan; we must respect the customs and habits of other races. For them, these are items of celebration."

Knock, knock, knock! A crisp knocking sound slowly rang out.

"Bai... Brother Qiang, it's time to set off."

"Wait a moment, I'll be ready soon."

Xiao Bai hurriedly urged Feng Yun, "Hurry up and put on the clothes; don't forget your identity when we go out later."

"You are called A Zhen, I am A Qiang, and the old ghost is called A Kun. Make sure not to slip up."

"We are household names in the Ghost Clan and have high popularity. Yesterday, when I was strolling on the street, a few little ghost children were using our names while playing games."

Feng Yun nodded, "If you keep your hands disciplined, naturally we won't be exposed. Once we leave this room, don't go picking at things randomly."

Xiao Bai looked carefully at his middle finger, "As long as it's past twelve o'clock tonight, I will never have to use this thing again."

"The two Kun powerhouses will definitely return to their Peak."

"A Kun, come in."

Gui Jianchou brought two sets of clothes, "Oh, you've already changed; I was overthinking it."

Xiao Bai patted the wrinkles on his clothes.

"Let's hurry up; a large number of Ghost Clan members have gathered on the streets. If we go too late, we won't have a good spot."

Gui Jianchou led the way, "We'll take a shortcut; I've already reserved a good spot."

Xiao Bai was a bit curious and asked Gui Jianchou, "Shouldn't the Ghost Festival be about waiting for relatives in the mortal world to burn paper money? Why haven't you received anything?"

"At the very least, large amounts of Netherworld currency shouldn't be missing, right?"

Gui Jianchou shook his head, "We are the Ghost Clan. Strictly speaking, we are a race that practices Ghost Cultivation, which is similar in nature to those who practice Demonic or Demon Cultivation."

"What you mentioned just now belongs to the lonely ghosts and wild spirits of the Netherworld; they are completely different from us."

Xiao Bai became more confused as he listened, but later Gui Jianchou explained it in more detail, answering Xiao Bai's confusion.

After all, the vast majority of races indeed conflate the Ghost Clan with the underworld Netherworld.

In fact, they practice Ghost Cultivation and are not true lonely ghosts or wild spirits; it is a Cultivation system uniquely created by the ancestors of the Ghost Clan.

As long as one practices this Cultivation Technique, they will enter a state of suspended animation for a period of time. After waking up, their own Soul will be actively Sealed, and they will devour the Souls of other races to improve their Cultivation.

Chapter 263: Ghost Festival Sacrificial Activity

Most Ghost Clan members have black skin; some who are dark gray have only recently stepped into Ghost Cultivation.

Over time, they will naturally gradually turn black, while other relatively rare colors belong to very special varieties.

When entering the Nai River for training, those not completely corroded by the black liquid all practice dark-type Cultivation Techniques.

This includes the Ghost Shadow Technique, the Devouring Technique, and black liquid attacks like those of Gui Jianchou.

To avoid exposure, Xiao Bai even deliberately turned his whole body pitch black, and his shiny head looked just like a marinated egg.

Taking the shortcut, they quickly arrived at the square outside the Soul Hall. A large number of Ghost Clan members had already gathered; many of them had gotten up in the middle of the night to line up.

The three huge fire basins on the stone are lit punctually at six o'clock every morning and extinguished punctually around seven o'clock in the evening; they are only kept on all day during special festivals.

Using this method, they act as the sun deep underground.

At the beginning, Xiao Bai was very unaccustomed to it, but after these few days, he felt it was okay. Those three huge fire basins were truly bright and could completely illuminate the entire Ghost Emperor City.

"Oh my, A Kun, you've finally arrived! Those three spots have been reserved for a long time. Even though others offered high prices during this period, I didn't sell them. Doing business is about integrity, so I kept them for you."

"Many thanks, Brother Niu!"

No matter where it is, there are damn scalpers. Gui Jianchou decisively paid extra money; he did not want to make things so troublesome.

On the large square, there were ten rows of seats in the front, totaling about five hundred, all sold by scalpers at high prices to the wealthy of the Ghost Clan.

Gui Jianchou bought them at a high price because he did not want Xiao Bai and Feng Yun to be squeezed in the back; the view here was quite good.

Xiao Bai and Feng Yun sat in the third row. Behind them were some short-statured Ghost Clan members; the two of them were a head taller, severely blocking their view.

"Hey, you pair of dogs in front, you're so tall, hurry up and get to the back. You're blocking us."

Xiao Bai stood up directly, rolled up his sleeves to reveal his solid muscles, and his arms had fierce tattoos.

"Do you want to fight? You short mules, can't you bring a ladder over to watch?"

With a slight stomp of his foot, he repelled those troublemakers from just now.

Gui Jianchou shook his head at Xiao Bai, "Brother Qiang, calm down. Don't lower yourself to their level."

"Today is a good day; we should prioritize harmony."

Facing opponents much stronger than themselves, those chirping Little Devils could only swallow their anger.

The first and second rows were specially prepared for the Ghost Clan dignitaries.

Directly in front of the square stood a magnificent sacrificial hall; it was the Holy Land of the Ghost Clan, known as the Soul Hall.

Successive Ghost Emperors would choose to Cultivate in seclusion inside; this was the place where the Souls of the entire Ghost Clan were most concentrated, and many powerful Soul entities were imprisoned inside.

Rumble!

Ten high platform pillars slowly rose at the entrance of the Soul Hall, and nine black shadows slowly floated above the pillars.

They were the nine Elders of the Ghost Clan, all at the Level 9 Ghost King level. Among them, the Shadow had the highest Cultivation, reaching the Peak of Level 9.

Amidst the cheers of the crowd, two black Dragons circled in the air, having been transformed from the Black Shadow and Black Liquid respectively.

Surrounded by the two Dragons, the Nine Nether Ghost Emperor slowly descended onto the highest platform in the middle, where a black Dragon throne stood, highlighting the supreme status of the Ghost Emperor.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!"

All the Ghost Clan members on the scene began to kowtow, their voices resounding throughout the entire city.

The Nine Nether Ghost Emperor was very pleased, "Everyone rise."

Then he glanced at the Shadow, signaling for the activity to begin.

Xiao Bai stared at the Nine Nether Ghost Emperor the entire time. He could not see his specific figure; he estimated his height to be over two meters, and his lower body was ethereal black smoke, with no legs visible.

A terrifying white mask obscured his true appearance.

His arms were very strange, flickering in and out of existence; one side was black smoke, and the other was black liquid.

The two transformed Dragons from earlier dove into his arms and disappeared.

"How mysterious. I must not let him discover me; I killed the White Bone Ghost Mother, so there is deep hatred between us."

The Shadow began to cast spells from the high platform. He threw out a black command flag that flew towards the great cauldron, and with a bang, flames shot up into the sky.

This was a type of black flame, said to be a flame specifically for burning Souls, and it could also quickly melt corpses.

At the Shadow's command, the Ghost Clan High Priest led his Disciples to begin dancing around the great cauldron, wearing terrifying masks on their faces.

This feeling was a bit like a shaman; Xiao Bai was very curious about what would be used for the sacrifice next.

The sound of bells ringing and chanting incantations echoed at the scene. At least tens of thousands of Ghost Clan members had gathered on the huge square, all wearing mourning clothes and white attire.

This was their faith. Suddenly, they knelt on the ground together with the High Priest to pray.

Feng Yun glanced at Xiao Bai; they could communicate through eye contact, and after being together for so long, their tacit understanding was very high.

"Should we make a move?"

"Are you crazy? Nine Level 9 Ghost Kings, plus an Emperor Realm expert; aren't we just courting death?"

To avoid exposure, Gui Jianchou could only kneel on the ground and pretend to pray.

He did not require Xiao Bai and Feng Yun to do the same, but he saw their eyes rolling constantly and their mouths muttering, without making a single sound throughout the entire process.