Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension

Seeing the expert's gaze towards this direction and sensing the increasingly oppressive aura, the woman veiled in gauze couldn't help but tremble, a trace of fear surfacing in her deep black pupils.

In an instant, a thick black fog arose from her body, swallowing the area several meters around her. Within the fog, ghostly figures tumultuously writhed and struggled.

Whooo—

A chorus of ghostly wails and wolf howls emanated from the fog, echoing endlessly in the dilapidated temple.

At the first sound of the ghostly howling, Captain Jiang felt as if countless nails were being hammered into his brain, stirring relentlessly, causing him a splitting headache, dizziness, and darkness before his eyes, as he teetered on the verge of fainting.

The other Red Dragon Knights fared even worse; after just a few breaths, they dropped their weapons and rolled on the ground, clutching their heads in agony.

Bang, bang, bang!

As soon as the ghostly howling started, countless grey-haired rats immediately fell limp to the ground, bleeding from their orifices and dying. Soon, their heads began to explode one by one, brains splattering, a bloody blur.

Squeak, squeak!

The Black-haired Demon Rat, exceedingly clever, took advantage of the chaos caused by the ghost howls. With a powerful push off the ground, it transformed into a black streak and vanished into the night, fleeing at high speed into the wilderness.

Who said that demon beasts were all brainless and foolish? The Black-haired Demon Rat, having successfully grown into a Second Order demon beast in the heart of the Human Clan's territory, was not defined by strength or weakness, but rather by its timidity and cunning, possessing top-notch survival skills.

Once Zhao Sheng revealed his power, it immediately realized that tonight it had offended someone it shouldn't have, seizing the moment of the Ghost Cultivator's aggression to make its escape.

Hmph!

Zhao Sheng quietly watched the expanding ghost fog and suddenly let out a cold snort.

In the blink of an eye, the Karmic Fire Red Lotus in the sky bloomed with a brilliant radiance, and in that moment, countless sparks erupted from the lotus like a shower of meteoric fire, swiftly enveloping the space within a hundred meters.

Struck by innumerable sparks, the ghost fog let out a dreadful scream, rapidly burning away and drastically reducing in size. One could see how quickly the yin ghosts were ignited by the Karmic Fire, struggling as they turned to wisps of black smoke.

Karmic Fire was the natural nemesis of ghostly creatures and yin demons—this female Ghost Cultivator was truly unlucky to have encountered Zhao Sheng.

"Humph, you still wish to flee!"

Zhao Sheng's gaze sharpened, and with a mere thought, the Karmic Fire Red Lotus suddenly shot out several large flames shaped like lotus flowers.

These flaming lotus flowers scattered in all directions, quickly sealing off the entire ruined temple. Then they emitted thousands of beams of light, interconnected and weaving together to form an impregnable net of fire.

"Exalted one, have mercy!"

In a corner of the temple, a ghostly figure suddenly appeared before the light net, and on its face emerged a visage both alluring and wretched, pleading with Zhao Sheng in a tearful voice.

Zhao Sheng had no intent of mercy or pity; with a flip of his hand, he produced a dark and glossy altar.

"Seal!"

As soon as he spoke, the fire net dramatically shrank a thousandfold, trapping the female Ghost Cultivator inside.

Sizzle!

The Ghost Cultivator attempted to resist, but upon contacting the fire net, her ghost body burned with a sizzling sound, black smoke rising from her form.

"Exalted one, I know of a great...Mmmph!"

Before she finished speaking, the fire net, along with the Ghost Cultivator, transformed into a streak of fire and shot into the Sealing Ghost Altar in the blink of an eye.

After affixing two Sealing Talismans to the altar mouth, Zhao Sheng casually stowed the altar away, then turned his head to look outside the temple.

At this moment, on a barren patch of ground more than a dozen meters from the temple door, a black and a white streak of light darted around at a speed invisible to the naked eye, chasing each other in circles and colliding frequently.

With each collision, powerful Devil Qi burst forth, overturning vast swathes of earth and creating numerous pits that rapidly multiplied. The ground within the vicinity was thoroughly ruined by the aftermath of the two Demon Rats' Devil Qi.

The scene of the two Demon Rats fighting and chasing each other was peculiar, with little noise beyond the soft thuds of earth scattering and hitting the ground.

The black streak repeatedly tried to escape, only to be constantly caught by the white streak and prevented from getting away.

When Zhao Sheng's attention shifted in this direction, his Divine Sense expanded, instantly covering the entire battlefield.

Suddenly, the black streak paused and revealed its true form—a petite Black-haired Demon Rat.

Now, the Second Order demon beast was drenched in blood, with torn flesh all over, looking exceptionally miserable.

It filled with fear, abruptly laid down and repeatedly kowtowed to Zhao Sheng, making pitiful squeaks that carried clear sounds of lament and supplication.

Swish!

A white streak arrived from afar, settling on Zhao Sheng's shoulder before transforming back into a large snow-white rat.

At this moment, the large white rat, Da Bai, had ten silver-white sharp claws fitted on its forepaws, the tips dripping with fresh blood.

Squeak, squeak, squeak!

Da Bai licked its beloved Spirit Claws while squeaking to report its achievements to its master.

Zhao Sheng casually fed it a Demon Essence Pill and praised Da Bai a few words.

Then he turned his gaze to the Black-haired Demon Rat and coldly decreed, "Vile beast, I came specifically for you today. Submit to me, and I will spare your life. If you remain obstinately defiant...humph!"

Squeak, squeak!

The Black-haired Demon Rat, worshipped for a hundred years and dwelling in the temple for over two centuries, had long understood human speech.

After hearing Zhao Sheng, it hesitated only a moment before sensing a dense intent to kill emanating from the frightening human.

It shuddered violently and immediately ran to Zhao Sheng's feet, lying down and exposing its belly in a gesture of submission.

Zhao Sheng's stern face softened slightly as he concentrated his Divine Sense into a thread, shooting like lightning into the Demon Rat's head, and with a mere thought, evolved several spiritual Prohibitions.