The Path to Immortality Begins with the Life-Extending Lamp

Chapter 217 Mr. Qishan

"We left in time, otherwise we would really be trapped here!"

Li Qing held the lamp, perched high above the dark clouds, his gaze lingering in a veil of mystery.

As the gaze moved downwards, one could see that on the dark and boundless earth, there stood a series of wooden and terrifying soulless figures. These ghostly figures, with their eerie aura, stiff and unsettling, glanced at each other and wandered aimlessly around the barrier, as if searching for the person who had caused the trouble.

However, the original fighting atmosphere in the arena had completely disappeared, and the Hundred Ghosts Pagoda Restriction had been re-established, as if everything before was just an illusion.

The gathering of ghosts, having lost the object that had drawn them there, began to change. It is unknown which vengeful ghost first overstepped the boundaries and started a fight among the wandering ghosts. In the blink of an eye, the original eerie and tranquil atmosphere was completely shattered.

Wisps of gloomy energy surged into the sky. There, a heart-wrenching ghost and a violently wounded spirit clashed, neither giving way to the other. They unleashed a torrent of soul pressure, turning the entire underworld into a dark prison. Where were the remaining ghosts and spirits that were still wandering? They all revealed their deadly forms and pounced on them.

In the blink of an eye, the usual battles in the underworld were once again being staged.

A hundred curses and resentful auras swirled in all directions, and countless ghostly realms intertwined. In this world where ghosts and spirits are few and far between, the number of ghostly realms that are rarely seen is now more than two dozen!
The gloomy death realm, the headless heart-stealing realm, the blood ghost realm, the water ghost realm... layers of ghost realms overlapped and intertwined. After a dozen or so breaths of collision, a terrifying change suddenly occurred. The entire underworld was slowly covered by that deep and invisible ghost mist, and even the wails and howls of ghosts were shrouded in it, making it difficult to break through.

The darkness, born from the collision of layers of ghosts and curses, was so intense that it moved even the most powerful spirits and deities of the underworld...

Li Qing, perched high above the clouds, never expected that the gathering of a hundred ghosts would unleash such a violent chaos. Dozens or even hundreds of night-roaming and day-roaming ghosts gathered, fighting fiercely to the extreme, turning the entire sky into a solid form. Limbs and severed heads were constantly thrown out by the aftershocks, cruelly falling to the ground.

This is the normal state of the underworld. Countless fierce ghosts that have been reborn from the ashes of past ghosts and gods are like Gu poison. Any fierce ghost that is still qualified to roam in the Qishan Domain is a "Gu King" that has survived. Its ferocity far exceeds that of the ghosts and gods in the same region of Lingnan. When they fight wildly, even the void begins to be distorted by that ghost realm. How can this be ordinary?
Did the collision of numerous demonic realms and curses transform into a celestial calamity of the underworld...?

Feeling the profound terror right before his eyes, Li Qing frowned and involuntarily took several steps back.

When the wandering spirits in the dark sky discovered the black cloud and attacked it, Li Qing simply raised his hand without turning his head. The ghost hand summoning souls was like a black hand from the abyss. With its five fingers spread, it pierced through the fiery black cloud and locked the spirit's throat with one hand.

With the summoning of spirits and the secret power of Yin, a mere flick of the finger bound the ghost, leaving it utterly powerless to resist in Li Qing's hands.

"This place is in great turmoil; it's time to leave!"

Li Qing lifted the ignorant and reckless wandering spirit with one hand, frowned, and suddenly spoke.

The chaos in the Qishan region of the Underworld was even more terrifying than he had imagined. It was a true chaotic mess of ghosts, with no order whatsoever. If he stayed here, who knew what other changes he might encounter? Even if Li Qing were to handle this ghostly calamity, he was not confident that he could resolve it.

As soon as the order was given, before the three owls in the fiery black clouds had returned, a seven-inch-tall puppet suddenly emerged from Li Qing's sleeve.

The Ten Directions Fetal Life-Substitute Puppet quickly climbed onto Li Qing's shoulder using both hands and feet, then turned its head and examined the spirit ghost that Li Qing was holding with its large, obsidian-like eyes.

"Yeah..."

The little doll tiptoed up and barely reached Li Qing's ear, then suddenly began to plead with Li Qing in a babbling voice, while her little hands kept gesturing.

Ok?
"You mean you want to eat the spirits born from the Netherworld?"

Li Qing raised an eyebrow and glanced sideways at the little guy who looked like a puppet.

This is a heretical magical artifact somewhere between a talisman and a ghost, and it is also the culmination of the witchcraft and ghostly arts. Calling it a spirit is a bit too general, and calling it a ghost is not quite accurate either...

"Here!"

Since the little guy made such a request, Li Qing naturally didn't hesitate to grant it. He raised his hand, lifted the spirit ghost, and with a snap, the ghost's neck was broken by Li Qing, its yin energy dissipated, and it was thrown horizontally onto the dark cloud.

The puppet obeyed orders and truly resembled a small person, clasping its hands and bowing repeatedly to Li Qing. However, Li Qing knew that such puppets lacked a complete life soul and intelligence.

In the Great Realm of Heavenly Capital, no Taoist or even ghost or god is willing to allow the spirit behind them to have its own independent consciousness!

As the spirit puppet leaped from Li Qing's shoulder and landed amidst the dark clouds, its tiny figure circled halfway around the spirit ghost, glancing left and right for any potential threats. The next moment, it opened the seemingly obedient and adorable puppet's small mouth, which suddenly stretched open, transforming into a gigantic maw several times larger than itself at an angle that defied common sense. In one gulp, it swallowed the entire spirit ghost whole.

Until now, only those who have seen it know that the Ghostly Puppet, no matter how harmless it may appear, can transform into an unspeakable terror at any moment.

Beneath the adorable puppet exterior lies the eternal body of a demon. "Hahahaha... Good, very good!"

Upon seeing this sign, Li Qing showed no fear whatsoever; instead, he clapped his hands in praise and exclaimed, "Wonderful!"

Qishan Underworld Ghost Boy is increasingly fond of collecting such bizarre objects. Unbeknownst to him, his "ghostly obsession" seems to be slowly twisting and taking shape!
And so, accompanied by Li Qing's rare, heartfelt laughter, the dark clouds drifted away, heading straight into the northern gate of the Netherworld of You Tian Qi Shan.

The calamities and natural disasters that plagued the underworld were no longer on Li Qing's mind...

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In this desolate land, there is no sun or moon. In the darkness and chaos, no one knows how much time has passed. When the fiery red cloud landed in the Northern Region, what came into view was a withered sycamore tree that blocked out the sun.

The White Bone Tree was over a thousand feet tall, with its branches made of white bones and its leaves made of ribs. Standing tall in the north of Qishan, it was truly a gateway that made the evil ghosts and spirits who came and went stop in their tracks!
As soon as the dark clouds descended, a terrifying gaze was cast down from the top of the white bone tree, piercing through the fiery black clouds and looking directly at Li Qing and the others.

The terrifying gaze was far more chilling than when it appeared in Wuxi that day, but Li Qing knew that this was the gaze of the ancestral owl!

The fact that Li Qing was able to cross the Qishan Netherworld Land signifies that he now possesses the strength to dominate this region, and in the near future, he will truly be qualified to be called "King of Qi".

However, this gaze seemed to activate the mechanism of the Ten Directions Substitute Life Puppet. Before the overwhelming pressure could fall, the puppet leaped out of the void and blocked Li Qing's path by two feet. Its small face was filled with murderous intent, and it actually reached out to block the gaze.

But the spirit puppet's supernatural powers seemed to go beyond that. The ancestral owl lurking on the bone tree had not yet withdrawn its sharp eyes when it was surprised to find that its vision had been completely reversed. Looking around, there was nothing else in its field of vision but an old owl on the bone tree!

The substitute puppet, a substitute for the victim, can even change the viewpoint of the person opposite, as if the eyes are blinded by a ghost or the moon is obscured by clouds. By twisting one's perception, one imprisons oneself...

'What a bizarre monster! What is that?'

Even this ancestral owl, who had come back to life eight hundred years ago, had never seen anything so bizarre. It could easily overturn his five senses and six consciousnesses, and could only be a creation above the Yin spirit.

However, Li Qing came here not to assert his power, but to make goodwill with the ancient ancestral owl.

Seeing the puppet like this, Li Qing couldn't help but shake her head and chuckle. She stretched out her fingertips, scooped up the puppet, and casually placed it on her shoulder, immediately bursting into laughter and scolding:

"You're quite protective of your master, but you can't act recklessly now!"

This puppet had just been rewarded by Li Qing with a delicious spirit, and although it possessed complete self-awareness, it seemed to have become more sensitive to the safety of its master.

Li Qing then used his soul to communicate with the ghost puppet, gently ordering it to disperse the Ten Directions Substitute Life Great Divine Power and stop targeting the existence on the White Bone Tree, before looking up at the giant White Bone Tree.

"Ancestor, Youhuangzi from Qishan has come to meet us to keep our appointment from that day."

"Would you like to come and see me?"

As they spoke, Li Qing bowed and greeted the giant white bone tree. He then pulled out a jade bottle from his sleeve. Looking inside, one could see countless plump scaled fish swimming about in the exquisite bottle. The blood of thousands of scaled fish in the present-day underworld was quite a generous gift!

The old monster atop the white-boned phoenix tree could no longer feign politeness. Had the puppet's earlier actions foreshadowed the extraordinary abilities of this new ruler of Qi? If he refused to be treated with respect by this "ruler of Qi," he would be pushing his luck...

The owl flipped over and moved, its wings flapping to transform into a black curtain that blotted out the sky, covering the entire giant tree of white bones. The huge black shadow swam and tumbled, and when it landed in front of Li Qing and the others, the old monster had actually transformed into half of its form.
The figure was about twelve feet tall, with a human-like body, a ferocious bone beak, hands like sharp claws, wings inserted into its ribs, and a fierce wind rising as it walked. The eerie fire unconsciously swirled around its side, making it not much different from the Yin Gods and Ancient Demons of the Heavenly Capital Realm!

"Your Excellency's gift is very generous; this old man will accept it."

Having watched over Yinshan for eight hundred years, all the evil spirits and ghosts of the past in Youtian have been kept out by this giant tree of white bones, which is why there are still remnants of Qishan Domain today. Of course, he dares to accept the generous gift from Lord Qishan with a clear conscience.

What struck him as odd was that this Lord Qishan was not of the Cui clan bloodline, but rather had been born from the union of the ghostly female spirit.

The Cui family of Qishan, who once enjoyed great honors, has now lost their bloodline. The will of Qishan has led to their marriage into another family, which is truly lamentable!
The newly crowned Lord of Qishan and a lingering spirit of the underworld, at this moment, finally sat face to face and began an unprecedented exchange, thus giving birth to the continuation of the Qishan Underworld...

(End of this chapter)