Chapter 126 Ancient Road Ambush, Poisonous Soul Transforms into Spirit (Part 1)
The morning mist of the Great Liang capital had not yet dissipated. On the bluestone street before the palace gates, the new emperor, Su Chen, wore a slightly oversized dragon robe. Surrounded by Yang Huaner and other veteran officials, he bowed deeply toward the qinglan boat in the distance.
The seven-year-old child's features still held a trace of childishness, yet he tried his best to keep a serious face, his voice crisp and clear: "Aunt, Mr. Lin, you must take care on your journey to Tianyan City! When I grow up, I will personally go to the Qingyun Sect to thank you all for your kindness!"
Su Qingyuan stood at the ship's railing, looking down at her nephew. Her eyes grew warm, and she raised a hand to wave. Her voice was slightly choked but remained firm: "Chen'er, listen well to Grand Preceptor Yang's words and protect Great Liang. I will definitely come back to see you soon."
Lin Yue stood by her side, his fingers clutching the sect-protecting jade talisman gifted by Liu Qingyan. His gaze swept over the kneeling commoners and veteran officials below, his heart filled with a myriad of emotions.
In the past three days, the remnants of Great Liang's chaos had been entirely cleared. Su Mingyu and the rebels had been executed, the Xuanyue Sect's influence in the capital had been uprooted, and the new emperor had ascended the throne. Everything was waiting to be rebuilt, and their journey had only just begun.
The spiritual patterns of the qinglan boat lit up with a pale green spiritual light under Ling Wei's activation. The vessel slowly rose into the air and sped off toward the national border.
Inside the cabin, Liu Qingyan leaned against a soft couch. A silk handkerchief soaked in medicinal liquid was wrapped around the shoulder of her plain white Daoist robe, and her face was as pale as paper. The struggle with the Xuanyue Sect's Golden Core Elder, Mo Chen, three days ago had ended in his death, but it had also allowed the Xuantian Soul-Eroding Poison to invade her heart's Meridians. Her Golden Core True Essence was mostly depleted, and at this moment, even maintaining a basic spiritual energy shield was a struggle.
“Revered Master, you need quiet rest for your injuries.” Lin Yue walked in carrying a bowl of freshly brewed spiritual spring medicinal porridge. A strand of gentle Star-Moon spiritual energy condensed on his fingertip as he lightly probed her pulse point. “I added the ice flame ice heart grass cultivated by A He to this porridge. It can alleviate the lingering effects of the soul-eroding poison. Please drink some while it's hot.”
Liu Qingyan raised her eyes, a hint of exhaustion flashing through them, yet she remained steady: “I’m afraid I won't be of much help on this trip to Tianyan City. The Xuanyue Sect won't give up; they will surely send people to intercept us. You must protect everyone, especially Qingyuan and the others. Do not be careless.” Her palm moved slightly, and a lustrous white heart-protecting jade talisman landed in Lin Yue's hand. “This is a life-saving talisman I obtained in my early years. It can block a Golden Core Grade attack once in a crisis. Keep it well.”
Lin Yue gripped the jade talisman and nodded solemnly: “Rest assured, Revered Master. I will protect the qinglan boat and reach Tianyan City safely.”
After another two days of rest and recovery, the qinglan boat had sailed out of Great Liang's borders and entered a dangerous area known as the 'Broken Soul Ancient Road.' This place was filled with high mountains, dense forests, and pervasive miasma. It was a notorious site for ambushes in the cultivation world; eight or nine out of ten passing Cultivators would encounter bandits or enemy ambushes.
Ling Wei had prepared in advance, laying down triple concealment arrays on the hull. The qinglan boat shuttled through the clouds, almost undetectable. But just as the vessel passed a steep mountain pass, three masses of ink-black poisonous mist suddenly shot out from the shadows of the cliffs on both sides, clinging to the hull like maggots on a bone. The mist was not the usual murky green but a deep black with an eerie purple glow. The moment it touched the spiritual patterns, it made a 'sizzling' corrosive sound. Fine cracks spread at a speed visible to the naked eye. A thick, foul stench mixed with the scent of rotting bones seeped into the cabin through the gaps. Several low-level Disciples collapsed and convulsed on the spot after inhaling it, black blood overflowing from their noses and mouths.
“Not good! It's the Xuanyue Sect's ghost bone spirit-eroding poison!” Ling Wei's voice carried alarm. The hundred treasure exquisite disk in her hand spun rapidly as seven gemstones simultaneously erupted with brilliant spiritual light, attempting to repair the spiritual patterns. However, the poisonous mist contained a bizarre power that burned spiritual energy. The newly repaired patterns were dissolved by the purple-black poisonous fire in the blink of an eye, and even the gemstones on the disk's surface began to be covered in a layer of grey decay.
Lin Yue's figure blurred as he appeared at the bow, his gaze suddenly sharpening. Three figures were hovering in mid-air. The leader wore an ink-purple Daoist robe embroidered with skeletal poisonous vine patterns. His face was as withered as a corpse, his eye sockets deep, and his exposed eyeballs were a murky dark green. He was Yin Kuizi, a Personal Disciple of the Xuanyue Sect Revered Master and a poison Cultivator at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage Peak. He held a bronze ancient lamp in his hand, its body carved with a map of a hundred ghosts devouring souls. The wick burned with a ghostly green poisonous fire. This was the ten-thousand-poison soul-devouring lamp—rumored to be refined from the living souls of ninety-nine Cultivators, it could generate the ghost bone spirit-eroding poison that devoured spiritual energy.
Standing beside Yin Kuizi were two Cultivators also dressed in ink-purple Daoist robes, his Junior Brothers, the Blood-Thorn Twin Evils. On the left, Blood Evil held a pair of poisoned bone blades, their edges dripping with dark red venom and emitting a heart-chilling cold light. On the right, Thorn Fiend had three black leather sachets hanging from his waist, their openings revealing wriggling poisonous Gu. These were the Heart-Rotting Gu Sachets, a secret creation of the Xuanyue Sect. The three were surrounded by a faint purple-black poisonous mist, forming a semi-transparent poison domain that even distorted the surrounding air from corrosion.
“Lin Yue, you brat! You killed a Golden Core Elder of my Xuanyue Sect. Today, I'll let you taste the pain of a myriad of souls devouring your heart!” Yin Kuizi's voice sounded like a broken gong scraping, sinister and hair-raising. With a flick of his finger, the ghostly green fire of the ten-thousand-poison soul-devouring lamp flared up. The hundred ghost patterns on the lamp seemed to come alive, letting out shrill shrieks as dozens of poisonous souls wrapped in purple-black poisonous fire rushed out from the lamp, transforming into hideous ghost claws that lunged at the qinglan boat.
Even more sinisterly, he had already laid a 'Poison Fire Entrapment Domain' on both sides of the mountain pass. Bluish-purple poisonous fire suddenly surged from the ground, weaving into a net with the poisonous mist in the sky, completely blocking the qinglan boat's retreat. This poisonous fire drew from the characteristics of the Demon Flame Sect's Azure Sun Demon Fire; it would not be extinguished by water and could conduct through spiritual energy, burning the Meridians once it touched them.
Su Qingyuan stood by the side of the boat with her sword, the Green Fire Sword Intent of the crimson flame skyfall sword surging as she attempted to resist the poisonous souls with her heaven-burning sword domain.
However, the ghost bone spirit-eroding poison specifically countered spiritual energy. As soon as the Azure Fire Sword Domain touched the poisonous souls, it fluctuated violently. The originally scorching green fire was suppressed by the purple-black poisonous fire until it grew dim. The moment the poisonous souls penetrated the sword domain, Su Qingyuan felt a bone-chillingly cold force surge into her Meridians through the sword. Her tiger's mouth instantly split open, and blood dripped down the sword hilt. Her arm even began to tremble uncontrollably.
“Qingyuan, get back!” Luo Ningshuang quickly threw out several jade bottles, the anti-poison pills inside emitting a lustrous white spiritual light. But the pills melted the moment they touched the poisonous mist, dissipating into a wisp of black smoke. She herself inhaled a bit of the mist, and the spiritual energy within her Dantian began to burn chaotically. Her face turned as pale as paper, and the Pill Fire at her fingertips shook violently: “This poison can burn spiritual energy; ordinary pills are completely useless!”
Ling Wei gritted her teeth and activated the array patterns, attempting to set up a Three-Ring Spirit Gathering Array to block the poisonous mist. However, the power of the Poison Fire Entrapment Domain far exceeded her expectations. The array patterns were torn apart by the purple-black poisonous fire as soon as they formed. The poisonous fire backlashed along the patterns, and she stumbled back. Her shoulder was grazed by the poisonous fire, immediately breaking out in a string of black blisters and emitting a scorched smell. Even the star patterns on her array-patterned combat gear dimmed significantly.
The spiritual patterns of the qinglan boat completely shattered, and the poisonous mist poured in like a tide. Three low-level Disciples didn't have time to dodge and were struck by the poisonous souls. Their bodies instantly turned purple-black, their Meridians snapped, and they died on the spot.
Inside the cabin, Liu Qingyan sensed the disturbance and struggled to get up to help. But as soon as she moved, the Xuantian Soul-Eroding Poison in her heart's Meridians was triggered by the ghost bone spirit-eroding poison. A tearing pain caused her to spray out a large mouthful of blood, staining the silk handkerchief in front of her. She could only lean back powerlessly against the soft couch, her eyes full of anxiety and frustration.
She could feel that Yin Kuizi's cultivation had reached the Peak of the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, only one step away from the Golden Core. Moreover, his poison techniques were far more sinister than Mo Chen's. This was clearly a pre-planned ambush by the Xuanyue Sect.
“Elder Liu Qingyan, your injuries haven't healed yet, so just wait for death!” Yin Kuizi sensed the movement in the cabin and let out a cackling laugh. “This is an enhanced version of the ghost bone spirit-eroding poison I specially prepared for you. When your Xuantian Soul-Eroding Poison meets it, it will only accelerate the rotting of your heart's Meridians. In less than half an incense stick's time, you will become nourishment for the poisonous souls!”
He urged with his fingertips again, and the poisonous fire of the ten-thousand-poison soul-devouring lamp grew even stronger. Several thick poisonous souls condensed into poisonous dragons, carrying the purple-black poisonous fire as they crashed into the hull of the qinglan boat.
At this critical moment, a gold-red spiritual light erupted around Lin Yue. His Star-Moon Dao Body operated at full capacity, and the Myriad-Jin Dao Power and Star-Moon spiritual energy within his body intertwined to form an indestructible protective spiritual light. His Divine Sense suddenly plunged into the Hongmeng Space deep within his Sea of Consciousness. After previously devouring the core of the mystic heaven soul-eroding pearl, the spiritual energy concentration in the space had reached 20 points. The newly unlocked [Poison Soul Purification] function was now floating on the spatial barrier, emitting a faint grey light.