Chapter 129: The Birthday Banquet
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I barely managed to dodge, but in the very next instant, the Soul-Eating Bird’s talons clamped around my body and slammed me hard against the ground. Its sharp beak, shimmering with an eerie light, stabbed toward my forehead.
I was horrified. I had never imagined that the Soul-Eating Bird would possess nearly fifty percent immunity to soul-power attacks. The strike I had been certain would finish it had merely inflicted a minor injury.
And now, if that beak pierced me, my soul would surely be scattered beyond recovery.
Suddenly, a scene appeared in my mind: the old Taoist priest from the Supreme Spirit-Sandalwood Temple writing the character “Tao.”
A flash of insight struck me.
In an instant, the character Tao appeared out of thin air and imprinted itself upon the Soul-Eating Bird.
The bird let out a shrill cry. A force as immense as a mountain suppressed its body and sent it flying.
I pursued it like a parasite clinging to bone. My spiritual power formed a talisman, which transformed into a Burning-Soul Formation and struck the Soul-Eating Bird.
Immediately afterward, black lightning surged from my palms. I pressed them against the bird’s head.
“Crackle…”
The Soul-Eating Bird struggled one last time before collapsing dead.
My soul body twisted violently, nearly dispersing altogether.
“Hiss…”
Damn it, I must have been insane. I had actually used Palm Thunder through my soul body and almost killed myself in the process.
“Nearly immune to soul-power attacks?”
I examined the Soul-Eating Bird. It was enormous, its entire body covered in a layer of black, horn-like armor. Only its rear was unprotected. That must be its weak point.
If I encountered one again, I would know how to deal with it. That had been far too close.
My soul body was somewhat weakened. Being seized by the bird’s two talons had inflicted considerable damage.
Just then, the Soul-Eating Bird vanished, and I suddenly discovered a pile of high-grade nether crystals, along with a black talisman.
I was overjoyed. The last time, I had obtained a Netherworld Thunderstorm Talisman. Its power had been astonishing, and it had even saved my life.
“Netherworld Invisibility Talisman. Conceals the user’s form for three hours and may be reused repeatedly during that period.”
The information about the talisman filled me with delight. This was no small surprise.
After savoring my excitement for a while, I composed myself and continued forward.
I was growing more and more eager to see what lay ahead. Although this place was dangerous, it was a path of trials and would not truly take my life. The rewards, however, were entirely real.
I fought my way onward and crossed the barren wasteland.
Before me now stretched an endless swamp.
Drifting above it were groups upon groups of ferocious ghosts and vengeful ghosts.
That was right. The weakest beings here were ferocious ghosts, and there were countless vengeful ghosts as well. At a rough estimate, there were several hundred in total.
“Looks like I can only wear them down little by little.”
If I charged in recklessly, I would die an even more miserable death than I had the first time.
I began trying to lure the ghosts out, one or two at a time. That was something I was still confident I could manage.
As long as no more than two vengeful ghosts came at once, I could deal with them.
Whoosh!
Another vengeful ghost died by my hand, and my soul grew slightly stronger.
After that ghost dissipated, two high-grade nether crystals unexpectedly appeared.
I was just beginning to rejoice when a sudden change occurred.
A black shadow shot out of the swamp like lightning. A huge, blood-red maw lunged toward me.
Fortunately, I remained highly alert at all times. The instant the shadow burst forth, I sensed it. I activated the Netherworld Ghost Step, and my figure flashed aside, narrowly avoiding the attack.
It was a gigantic beast resembling a crocodile. Its back was covered in spikes that glimmered with black light, and its eyes shone with savage cruelty. The sinister, evil aura radiating from its body kept my mind taut with tension.
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I quickly obtained information about the beast. It was called a Shadow-Devouring Crocodile, an exceptionally wicked creature said to exist only in Hell.
My gaze swept rapidly over the Shadow-Devouring Crocodile. If I was not mistaken, like the Soul-Eating Bird, it possessed a powerful immunity to attacks based on yin energy.
Yet nothing born beneath Heaven could be perfect. Like the Soul-Eating Bird, it must have a weak point.
The crocodile was covered from head to tail in thick armor and sharp spikes. Its weak point was most likely its abdomen.
Just then, the Shadow-Devouring Crocodile attacked me again. I dodged while searching for an opportunity.
After several exchanges, I had gained no advantage over it, but it had been unable to do anything to me either.
However, some ferocious ghosts and vengeful ghosts in the distance had already noticed the disturbance and were moving toward us.
I cursed inwardly, but I continued staring at the Shadow-Devouring Crocodile without daring to move, afraid of exposing an opening.
Yet if this stalemate continued, I would soon be driven into a desperate situation.
My only option was to lure it into exposing its weak point.
At that moment, I gritted my teeth. My soul body formed an afterimage and deliberately lunged toward the Shadow-Devouring Crocodile, though I kept myself slightly above it.
The Shadow-Devouring Crocodile fell for it. It sprang upward like lightning, its body rising vertically as it opened its enormous jaws and bit toward me.
My chance!
I suddenly stopped, bent backward a full one hundred and eighty degrees, and thrust the soul blade condensed in my hand toward the crocodile’s abdomen. The blade carried a shrill sound like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts.
Pfft!
The soul blade pierced its flesh without the slightest resistance. Terrifying soul power churned within its body.
The Shadow-Devouring Crocodile let out a furious, anguished roar. Even under such a lethal attack, it violently jerked its head and clamped its jaws around one of my feet.
A burst of excruciating pain shot through me. The crocodile tore one of my feet clean off.
“Damn you!”
I flew into a rage and recklessly stirred the soul blade within its body.
Yet strangely, the Shadow-Devouring Crocodile possessed astonishing vitality. Even in such a state, it still refused to die. As its body plunged into the swamp, it fled wildly toward the depths.
My soul blade remained lodged in its body, and I refused to release it. The crocodile dragged me into the vast tide of yin spirits, where countless evil ghosts and vengeful ghosts swarmed over like wolves that had caught the scent of blood.
“Damn it. If I’m going to die, I’m taking you with me.”
Knowing escape was impossible, I merged my soul body directly into the soul blade. Hardening my heart, I detonated myself.
Boom!
My consciousness went black, as though I had been dragged into an abyss.
Then my body began trembling violently, and I suddenly opened my eyes.
I was still sitting cross-legged among the gravestones on the back mountain. My entire body was drenched in cold sweat, and my head throbbed as though it had been torn apart.
“Damn, that hurt.”
Clutching my head, I sucked in a sharp breath.
The sensation of detonating my soul body was so terrifying that I did not dare recall it. It had been even more horrifying than the first time a horde of vengeful ghosts had torn me apart.
“This path of trials is far too difficult. With my current strength, there’s no way I could cross that swamp. There are countless vengeful ghosts above and that terrifying Shadow-Devouring Crocodile below. I couldn’t get through it even after a hundred attempts.”
As I recalled the scene, I thought bitterly.
Just then, I discovered a pile of high-grade nether crystals and a black talisman beside me.
As before, the rewards obtained within the trial had been brought out with me.
I counted them. There were no fewer than thirty high-grade nether crystals, while the black talisman was priceless.
I put everything away and descended the mountain.
…
The eightieth birthday of the old master of the Ling family was a major event in the highest circles of the nation.
The Ling family kept a low profile and never sought publicity, but that did not mean they lacked strength.
Every wealthy and powerful clan in the capital knew that the Ling family was not to be provoked.
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On Old Master Ling’s eightieth birthday, guests naturally filled the entire residence. Everyone who came belonged to a first-rate family or faction. Those of a lower standing would have been too embarrassed to show their faces.
Old Master Ling, his face glowing with health, had just finished receiving a guest. His expression was somewhat grave.
“Father, why did Old Master Shang come here?”
The refined, middle-aged man with a neatly trimmed short beard was Ling Xinyue’s father, Ling Chengzhou.
Old Master Ling tapped his cane against the floor but said nothing.
At that moment, I was bare-chested, drawing water from the ancient well in the courtyard of the quadrangle residence to rinse myself.
The water was ice-cold. Pouring it over my body felt indescribably refreshing.
Just then, the door was pushed open.
I turned my head and saw Ling Xinyue enter in a qipao and high heels.
“Though this is your house, since you let me live here, could you at least show some respect for my privacy?”
I frowned.
“This is the residence of both of us.”
Ling Xinyue glanced over my bare upper body without showing the slightest trace of surprise.
“Hah, both of us? Fine, then come sleep with me tonight.”
I spoke mockingly.
“All right.”
Ling Xinyue agreed.
Huh?
I stared at her. What had she just said?
“My grandfather’s eightieth birthday is today. You remember, don’t you?” Ling Xinyue asked.
“I remember. Isn’t that why I’m bathing and changing?”
I replied.
Ling Xinyue said nothing more and sat down on the stone chair.
I went inside, changed my clothes, and came back out.
My outfit was simple: casual trousers, a black undershirt, and a casual blazer. Wearing that to my fiancée’s grandfather’s birthday banquet was clearly somewhat shabby.
Ling Xinyue did not comment. She simply drove me to the Ling family’s old residence.
There were several checkpoints along the road leading to the Ling family estate, and security was extremely tight.
By the time we arrived, the residence was already packed with guests. Inside and outside the old compound stood distinguished figures from the upper echelons, all dressed in luxury and carrying themselves with extraordinary poise.
The moment we entered, pair after pair of eyes turned toward us.
When they saw what I looked like, quite a few people let out quiet gasps.
The scars on my face had faded, but they could still be recognized at a glance. No matter how carefully I restrained my aura, I still carried at least a trace of ferocity and wickedness.
Ling Xinyue held my arm, her bearing cold and aloof.
“It’s rather strange. I actually think they make quite a good pair,” a young woman whispered to her companion.
“Exactly. I feel the same way. One is like a fairy, while the other looks like some country bumpkin. And yet, how does that bumpkin have such a distinctive charm?”
“Country bumpkin? Haven’t you heard the rumors about the three great socialites competing for a husband? What kind of country bumpkin could win the favor of all three at once? I didn’t quite believe it before, but after seeing Qin Feng, I feel that nothing is impossible.”
“By the way, have Shangguan Qingwu and Xie Yanran arrived?”
“Yes. I saw both of them earlier.”
“I wonder if there’ll be a good show.”
“And the capital’s number-one young master, Shang Wuwei, has come too. Young Master Shang is hopelessly devoted to Ling Xinyue. How could he possibly tolerate someone taking her away? I have a feeling this is going to be quite a spectacle.”
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