302: Chapter 302 Beast Owl Breakthrough!

Deep in the Land of Ghostly Grievances, above a depression, the Yin wind roared, and the ghostly aura surged into the sky.

A Ghost King with a cultivation level at the peak of the Late Core Formation Stage, holding a strange green bead, led over a dozen Late Foundation Establishment Stage ghosts, having already formed an encirclement around Lu Qiu and his group.

Dark golden Soul fire burned fiercely in the Ghost King's hollow eye sockets. Its cold, violent, and intelligent gaze locked onto Lu Qiu. The ghostly green bead in its hand flickered, emitting ripples of unsettling, strange fluctuations.

Fairy Ziling's pretty face turned slightly pale, and she subconsciously moved closer to Lu Qiu. Facing this Formation, even with Senior Lu by her side, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. The dozen Foundation Establishment Stage ghosts were not enough to fear, but that Ghost King put immense pressure on her, especially that green bead of unknown effect, which added more variables.

Lu Qiu's expression remained calm, even carrying a hint of scrutiny.

His gaze swept over the green bead in the Ghost King's hand, a flash of understanding crossed his eyes, and then he shook his head slightly, as if regretting something.

"Using a Yin Soul Bead to forcibly condense and control the stray Yin Souls and ghosts here to enhance your own strength—the idea is not bad. Unfortunately, it is ultimately an external object, and this bead itself... is refined too crudely." Lu Qiu spoke indifferently. His voice was not loud, but it clearly pierced through the wailing wind and ghostly howls, entering the Ghost King's "ears."

Upon hearing this, the dark golden Soul fire in the Ghost King's eye sockets shrank suddenly, and then violently erupted with an even more intense light, revealing its inner shock and rage!

It clearly understood Lu Qiu's words and was called out on the origins and flaws of the Magic Treasure in its hand!

To a Ghost King that thought highly of itself and had gained intelligence, this was the greatest provocation and contempt!

"Hiss—roar!!" The Ghost King emitted an even sharper, murderous hiss, and its left hand suddenly raised the ghostly green bead high!

The bead's light shone brightly, and a strange suction force erupted. The dozen Late Foundation Establishment Stage ghosts nearby immediately let out painful wails, but they did not resist. Instead, their Soul bodies blurred, and wisps of pure black Yin Qi were forcibly extracted from their bodies and flowed into the green bead!

The Ghost King's own aura, after receiving the infusion of this Yin Qi, actually climbed a notch further. Its ghostly aura became more solid, and the large ghostly blade in its hand also emitted a "buzzing" vibration, black light flickering at the blade's edge, as if it wanted to tear the Void Realm apart!

It was sacrificing its subordinates to forcibly increase its combat power!

At the same time, the large ghostly blade in its right hand was already raised, aimed at Lu Qiu, ready to strike!

However, Lu Qiu's movements were faster.

Just as the Ghost King raised the green bead high to absorb the Yin Qi, Lu Qiu's thoughts flickered, and a point of emerald light shot out from his sleeve!

The light was only the size of a grain of rice at first, but its speed was incredibly fast, like green lightning, ignoring spatial distance, and instantly appeared before the Ghost King's glabella! Only then did the light stretch out, revealing its true form.

It was a small arrow, about three inches long, emerald green throughout as if carved from the finest jade, yet with a faint metallic luster flowing over it, and its surface covered in dense, mysterious golden thunder patterns!

No, more accurately, it was a miniature Flying Sword!

Once this sword appeared, a supreme, righteous, and grand aura of thunder, as if it could cleanse all evil and filth in the world, erupted!

Although what coiled around the sword body was not the legendary golden evil-warding divine thunder, but a deeper, more restrained, and even somewhat sinister pitch-black electric arc, the absolute restraint and destructive aura it contained against Yin Souls and ghosts were second to none!

It was exactly the short sword Magic Treasure obtained from the relics of Master Xuan Gu, refined primarily with "Gold Thunder Bamboo"!

It was just that this sword had been refined for many years by an old ghost like Master Xuan Gu using a unique Demonic Technique, causing the nature of the evil-warding divine thunder contained within it to undergo a certain mutation, turning the color pitch-black, but its power increased rather than decreased, adding a bit more strangeness and dominance to its lethality against ghosts and Yin Souls!

"Go." Lu Qiu uttered a single word from his lips.

The next moment, at the tip of the emerald short sword, a pitch-black electric arc, as thin as a hair but condensed to the extreme and emitting a destructive aura, suddenly lit up!

With a barely audible "crack," the black electric arc detached from the sword tip and, like a teleportation, struck directly onto the ghostly green bead held high by the Ghost King!

"Snap!"

A crisp sound, as if glass was shattering!

The bead, which appeared extraordinary and was absorbing Yin Qi, was unexpectedly fragile in the face of the black evil-warding divine thunder!

The bead's surface was instantly covered in spiderweb-like cracks, and the ghostly green light flowing inside suddenly dimmed and became chaotic!

"Awoo!"

The Ghost King let out a howl full of pain and shock. Its mind was connected to the green bead; with the Magic Treasure damaged, its Soul body also suffered a violent impact!

What was even more terrifying was that after the black evil-warding divine thunder shattered the green bead, its momentum did not diminish. Following the connection between it and the bead, with a "sizzle," it spread like a maggot on a tarsal bone onto the skeletal hand bone that held the bead!

"Sss sss sss!"

The pitch-black lightning jumped and exploded on the Ghost King's bone hand!

The skeletal hand bone, which had been tempered by Yin Qi for thousands of years and was harder than refined steel, in the face of the black divine thunder, was like snow encountering the scorching sun, rapidly becoming charred, shattering, and turning into fly ash! The terrifying thunder power surged back along the bones and Meridians, wreaking havoc on its Soul body!

"No—!" The Ghost King let out a scream of extreme misery. The dark golden Soul fire in its eye sockets swayed violently, as if it would extinguish at any moment!

The solid ghostly aura around its body dispersed by more than half in an instant, its aura declined sharply, and that monstrous ferocity belonging to the Ghost King vanished without a trace under this single blow! Replacing it was boundless fear and despair!

It could clearly feel that the power contained in the black lightning was the absolute nemesis of Yin Souls and ghosts like it!

Just a trace of the aftermath caused its Soul body to be damaged, making it impossible to resist!

Lu Qiu severely wounded the Ghost King with one move but did not continue to pursue.

He flicked his finger, and the emerald short sword emitted a clear sword hum, turning into a green light and flying back into his sleeve.

His gaze fell on the Beast Owl beside him, which was already unable to restrain itself and kept emitting low, excited hisses.

"Owl, it's yours." Lu Qiu said calmly.

"Roar!"

The Beast Owl let out an earth-shaking, excited roar, its huge body transforming into a gray-black gale again, rushing directly at the severely wounded and panicked Ghost King!

For it, this Ghost King with condensed Soul Power and pure Yin evil was simply a supreme delicacy!

Seeing the Beast Owl pounce, the Ghost King showed extreme terror in its eyes. It wanted to escape, but with its Soul body damaged, its speed was greatly reduced.

It wanted to resist, but its greatest reliance, the green bead, was destroyed. Facing the Beast Owl that naturally restrained it, it couldn't muster much fighting spirit.

The Beast Owl pounced close, its huge claws slapping down again. This time, the Ghost King couldn't even block and was directly slapped to the ground.

Immediately, the Beast Owl opened its blood-red mouth, aimed at the Ghost King's head, and its terrifying devouring power erupted with full force!

"No—!"

The Ghost King let out a final desperate wail, and its entire solid Soul body, along with the two clusters of dark golden Soul fire, was forcibly pulled out from the skeleton body, turning into a thick black air current, and swallowed by the Beast Owl in one gulp!

The skeletal body and broken armor that lost the Soul fire scattered all over the ground with a clatter and were quickly eroded and assimilated by the surrounding ghost mist.

As for the dozen Foundation Establishment Stage ghosts around that had fallen into chaos due to the destruction of the green bead and the death of the Ghost King, the Beast Owl did not let them go either. After a few gulps, it swallowed them clean.

In the depression, silence returned, only the Beast Owl's satisfied low growls after devouring, and the majestic Yin evil aura on its body becoming more and more solid, almost ready to burst out.

Fairy Ziling watched this scene, already numb. From Lu Qiu drawing his sword, to the Ghost King being severely wounded, to the Beast Owl devouring it, everything happened in the blink of an eye.

That Ghost King, which made her heart tremble with fear, was so vulnerable in front of Senior Lu. That pitch-black lightning... what kind of terrifying power was it?

Time passed slowly as the Beast Owl hunted and devoured tirelessly.

Lu Qiu took Ziling and followed behind the Beast Owl, leisurely, deep into the Land of Ghostly Grievances.

With this tireless and efficient "cleaner," their speed of progress was extremely fast, and they were extremely safe.

Over the next few days, a terrifying scene occurred in the depths of the Land of Ghostly Grievances that made all Cultivators who accidentally broke into this area Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering and unforgettable for a lifetime.

A gray-black monster with a hideous appearance and an indescribably fierce aura shuttled wantonly in the thick ghost mist, like the most brilliant hunter, precisely finding strong ghosts hidden one by one.

Whether it was an Early Stage Core Formation fierce Soul or a Middle Stage Core Formation ghost yaksha, in front of this monster, they had no power to resist. Often in one encounter, they were pounced on, torn apart, and swallowed alive!

The satisfied hisses and terrible chewing sounds made by the monster when devouring ghosts, and the shrill, desperate wails of the ghosts before they died, intertwined into a terrifying movement of death, echoing in the ghost mist.

Many Core Formation Cultivators who were exploring cautiously and fighting bitterly with ghosts caught a glimpse of this scene from afar, all of them scared out of their wits, their faces pale!

They had never seen such a terrifying creature, actually treating those powerful ghosts that gave them headaches as snacks to hunt and eat!

"What... what is that thing?"

"Run! Stay away from there!"

"Could it be a new King of Ghosts born in the Land of Ghostly Grievances?"

"Impossible! What kind of Ghost King would devour its own kind so crazily?"

Terrified whispers passed among the surviving Cultivators. Everyone kept a respectful distance from the gray-black monster, desperately staying away from the area where it was active, for fear of becoming the next target to be devoured.

For a time, the direction where the Beast Owl was located actually became a "dead zone" in the Land of Ghostly Grievances that people talked about with fear.

Lu Qiu didn't care about these at all.

He took Ziling and followed behind the Beast Owl, as if strolling in a leisurely courtyard.

During these few days, under his guidance, relying on its keen perception of Yin Qi and Soul Power, the Beast Owl ferreted out five powerful ghosts with Late Core Formation Stage strength, worthy of being called "Ghost Kings"!

In addition, the various ghosts it devoured that were comparable to Early and Middle Stage Core Formation Cultivators numbered nearly a hundred!

Ziling watched, dumbfounded.

These powerful ghosts that were enough to make Core Formation Cultivators fearful and form a terrifying ghost army in the outside world, in front of Lu Qiu, seemed to have become lambs carefully raised, waiting to be slaughtered, being dragged out one by one to become food for the monster named "Owl."

This absolute strength gap and crushing made her have a more intuitive understanding of the terror of Nascent Soul Cultivators.

This day, deep in an underground cave where Yin Qi gathered, the Beast Owl once again pounced on and devoured a Ghost King good at hiding and sneak attacks.

After swallowing this Ghost King, the Beast Owl did not immediately look for the next target as usual, but let out a low hiss mixed with pain and excitement. Its huge body suddenly crawled on the ground and began to tremble violently!

The thick gray-black Yin evil aura all over its body began to roll and boil uncontrollably, sometimes expanding, sometimes contracting, as if something was about to break out of its body!

A terrifying pressure, far exceeding before and suffocating, mixed with chaotic, violent, and longing aura, continued to rise from it!

The crimson light spots in its pitch-black hollows were as bright as two blood moons at this moment, flickering uncertainly.

Lu Qiu's gaze focused, his Divine Sense carefully sweeping over the Beast Owl, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

"Finally... is it starting?" He muttered to himself.

Ziling also sensed the rapidly changing and unstable terrifying aura on the Beast Owl, and her heart tightened: "Senior, what is it..."

"It has devoured enough Soul Power and Yin evil, and it is going to start impacting the Nascent Soul Realm." Lu Qiu said calmly, "The Yin Qi here is rich, which is a good place for a Breakthrough, but I'm afraid the commotion will not be small."

After speaking, he flipped his wrist, and dozens of small Formation Flags emitting faint starlight and several Formation Plates appeared in his hand. It was the set of "Nine Nether Universe Array" Formation tools gifted by Xin Ruyin!

Although this Formation was mainly used to trap and kill enemies, it was more than enough to set up a temporary protective Formation to isolate internal and external aura and prying eyes.

Lu Qiu flicked his fingers repeatedly, and each Formation Flag turned into streaks of light, accurately sinking into the rock walls and ground around the cave. The Formation Plate floated in the air, and under his spell, it emitted a hazy starlight, connecting with the Formation Flags.

Soon, a faint, almost transparent light film containing complex spatial fluctuations slowly opened with the Beast Owl as the center, covering an area of a hundred zhang.

Inside the light film, the scene was faint, but all auras, sounds, and energy fluctuations were firmly locked and could not leak out at all.

"Wait here." Lu Qiu said to Ziling, then sat cross-legged at the edge of the Formation, his gaze fixed on the Beast Owl in the Formation that kept trembling and whose aura was becoming increasingly terrifying.

Ziling nodded quickly and sat down not far behind Lu Qiu, watching intently.

The Breakthrough of a Nascent Soul level Yao Beast was a rare opportunity. Although it was dangerous, it might be beneficial to her vision and future Dao path.

Inside the Formation, the Beast Owl's body trembled more and more violently. The vast Yin evil and Soul Power accumulated in its body, after reaching a certain critical point, finally began the most crazy impact and transformation!

"Roar—!"

A painful roar that seemed to come from the depths of the Soul erupted!

The gray-black Yin evil aura around the Beast Owl suddenly shrank inward, as if trying to compress its entire body into a point!

The next instant, it exploded violently! Like a black storm, it raged inside the Formation's light film!

Its fur began to fall off in large patches, revealing the flesh and bones that were constantly squirming and reorganizing, making a tooth-aching "crack" sound.

The pair of wide fleshy wings also kept breaking and growing, becoming thicker and the bone spurs sharper.

Chaotic, violent, painful, longing... all kinds of extreme emotions and energy collided crazily in its body.

Its consciousness seemed to be struggling in boundless pain and chaos, and it was climbing towards a higher level.

Time passed second by second. The energy storm inside the Formation became more and more violent. Even separated by the light film of the "Nine Nether Universe Array," Ziling could feel the palpitating oppression.

Lu Qiu always remained calm, but his eyes were fixed on every change of the Beast Owl, and he constantly injected mana into the Formation to stabilize this barrier.

Two days later.

The terrifying energy storm in the Formation that had lasted for two days suddenly stagnated, and then collapsed toward the Beast Owl in the center with an even crazier posture!

"Buzz—!"

A strange buzzing sound, as if from the depths of the Void Realm, rang out.

All Yin evil, Soul Power, and violent auras were completely restrained at this moment and merged into the Beast Owl's body.

Death-like silence lasted for a few breaths.

The next moment—

"Boom!"

A vast, majestic, terrifying aura full of endless cold, fierceness, yet with an unspeakable condensation and majesty, like an ancient Vicious Beast waking up, erupted from the location of the Beast Owl!

The Formation light film vibrated violently, and even fine cracks appeared!

A flash of brilliance appeared in Lu Qiu's eyes, and he quickly increased the input of mana to stabilize the Formation.

Inside the light film, the dust and residual energy gradually dissipated.

A brand-new figure, more towering, more hideous, and emitting an aura that made the Soul tremble, slowly stood up.

The Beast Owl had successfully advanced—to the Nascent Soul Realm!