Immortality and cultivation begin with full comprehension.

Chapter 714 Helping the Lady Slay the Ghost General (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
"Have you felt the changes in the Yin-Yang Harmony Scripture?"

Li Yunjing's voice came out, and his emotions seemed quite calm.

"Hmm! I sense something unusual."

Liu Ruyan's voice sounded extremely languid, as if she didn't want to move for a moment and just wanted to lie there gently.

She was a little tired.

"Yes! The Dao of Yin and Yang is profound and extensive. You should cultivate it well, as it will greatly benefit your future path in the Dao."

Li Yunjing said, "Can you feel the pure Yang energy within your bodies merging with the pure Yin energy?"

The three women looked up at Li Yunjing, somewhat puzzled. Although they had felt the intense pure yang energy during their joint cultivation, they had been slightly distracted by the joy of merging and hadn't fully grasped it.

"Don't worry, next time we will continue our cultivation, and you can gradually experience it."

Seeing the puzzled looks on the three men's faces, Li Yunjing offered an explanation.

"There is a secret technique within the sect that can enhance one's mental state, but it is extremely difficult to cultivate. Over the years, very few people within the sect have succeeded in mastering it."

Li Yunjing said, "I will improve it and integrate it with the unique skills of other sects, and then I will teach it to you."

"Is it really possible?"

Liu Ruyan's heart stirred slightly, but she didn't take the difficulty of cultivation to heart.

"great!"

The same applies to Xing'er and Yue'er. You should know that mental cultivation techniques are extremely precious, far more expensive than ordinary techniques of the same level.

Among many top-tier sects, there are very few specialized spiritual cultivation methods.

"Let's cultivate together and make progress together."

Li Yunjing said with a smile.

A day later, the spiritual energy around the courtyard began to fluctuate again. Compared to the previous time, this fluctuation was not intense, but as time went on, the fluctuation gradually increased.

In the end, it was like a monstrous wave.

The spiritual energy from all directions completely enveloped the three women, making them feel as if they were floating among the clouds, both physically and mentally.

Swaying and drifting, I had no idea where I was.

After a full month, this training program came to an end, because Liu Ruyan, Xing'er, and Yue'er found themselves unable to continue.

Li Yunjing was like a wild beast, tireless.

The benefits of this month-long training were also considerable; Liu Ruyan, Xing'er, and Yue'er made astonishing progress.

The three women's cultivation and mental growth were comparable to the three to five years of independent cultivation they had achieved!
On the contrary, Li Yunjing not only did not feel tired, but his cultivation and mental strength did not increase significantly.

It's not that the "Yin Yang He Dao Jing" is ineffective, but rather that Liu Ruyan, Xing'er, and Yue'er's cultivation levels are too low to achieve yin-yang balance.

After half a month of recuperation, the three women finally stabilized their rapidly increasing cultivation levels. Liu Ruyan looked at her radiant reflection in the bronze mirror and condensed a wisp of pale blue spiritual energy at her fingertips: "At this rate of progress, I'm afraid it won't take more than ten years before I can reach the threshold of the Golden Core realm."

"ten years?"

Li Yunjing leaned against the corridor and chuckled upon hearing this, "Once you truly step into the Golden Core realm, you will understand that the higher the realm, the more precarious each step is."

"The laws of heaven and earth in the 'Youyue Kingdom' are different from those in the Ming Dynasty. The yin energy here is heavier. It is both an opportunity and a trap for you."

"Old Li, something's happened!"

Before he could finish speaking, Fu Chao stumbled in, shouting, "The Nangong family has caused trouble in Xizhou! They're using living people to refine 'Blood Soul Pills,' which have already killed thousands of cultivators!"

Li Yunjing's brows furrowed suddenly.

He remembered the Nangong family, whom he had harmed badly back then, but he never expected them to be so blatant this time.

"Where are the people from the Northern Emperor's faction?"

Li Yunjing asked curiously.

The people of the "Northern Emperor Sect" were filled with rage because their sect leader had died, and their hatred for the demonic path far surpassed that of the "Divine Firmament Dao Sect."

The Shenxiao Dao Sect was naturally happy to have the people of the Beidi Sect exterminate demonic cultivators everywhere.

As for the "Northern Emperor Faction" seizing countless spoils of war?
Want a horse to run fast, but don't want to feed it grass?

There's no such thing as a free lunch!
In the world of cultivation, whoever kills the enemy gets the spoils of war—this is a universal principle, and there is no doubt about it!

"Elder Zhao Han led his men to surround and annihilate them, but they fell into an ambush and even had their natal magic weapon taken away."

Fu Chao wiped the sweat from his brow. "Those bastards even spread the word that they would use a blood sacrifice of ten thousand souls to open the 'Gate of Hell' on the night of the full moon."

"gate of hell?"

Liu Ruyan's expression changed slightly. "Isn't that the legendary passage connecting to the underworld from the 'Netherworld Ghost Sect'?"

"It seems they want to use the Yin energy of the underworld to rebuild the foundation of their sect."

Li Yunjing stood up, walked towards Fu Chao, and turned back to say, "Xing'er, Yue'er, I'll leave the business to you for now. Ruyan, come with me."

"Yes, Brother Yunjing!"

Xing'er and Yue'er nodded. They knew their combat strength was low, and being with Li Yunjing would only be a burden. They were already used to guarding the house.

As for Liu Ruyan, she was equally delighted!
She had long wanted to be alone with Li Yunjing.

Li Yunjing also intended to train Liu Ruyan in battle, improve her strength, and help her break through her cultivation level quickly.

Without the cultivation level of the Golden Core realm, Li Yunjing was truly worried about the three women.

Three days later, at the mass grave outside the city of Xizhou in the "Youyue Kingdom".

On the altar built by the Nangong family using the bones of cultivators, blood-red runes slowly flowed as the moon rose.

Nangong Lie, the current head of the Nangong family, was pushing the last prisoner into the blood pool with a bone staff in hand. The blood leeches swimming in the pool instantly devoured him into bones.

"Soon... soon..."

A crazed light flashed in Nangong Lie's eyes, "As long as the 'Gates of Hell' open, my Nangong family will be able to obtain the power of the underworld and regain our former glory!"

Suddenly, a clear, cold voice rang out in the night sky: "Nangong Lie, you have harmed your fellow practitioners for your own selfish desires. Your crime is unforgivable!"

Nangong Lie suddenly looked up and saw Li Yunjing standing with his hands behind his back in the moonlight, with Liu Ruyan standing beside him.

The two figures, their robes fluttering, appeared as if they were immortals descended to earth.

"Li Yunjing!"

Nangong Lie gritted his teeth, "Back then, you almost wiped out my Nangong family. Today, I will make you pay for your debt in blood!"

"With your heretical and crooked methods?"

Li Yunjing sneered: "If your Nangong family had fled into the 'Endless Mountains,' I wouldn't have been able to find you. But since you're here, I can eliminate you completely!"

"You beast! You killed so many elders of my Nangong family back then, I'll make you die!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Nangong Lie suddenly bit his tongue, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the bone staff.

The blood pool on the altar instantly boiled, and countless blood leeches coalesced into a giant blood python, lunging towards Li Yunjing!

"Ruyan, watch carefully."

Li Yunjing remained calm and composed, forming a hand seal with his right hand, "This is how thunder magic should be used."

With a flick of his fingertip, a thin, hair-like purple lightning bolt shot out.

"Boom!"

The lightning seemed weak, but it exploded the moment it touched the blood python, turning into thousands of lightning snakes that shredded the blood python to pieces!
"My husband has such skill!"

Liu Ruyan watched, completely mesmerized.

This "Lightning Serpent Transformation" technique may seem simple, but it actually requires a deep understanding of lightning magic, which is exactly what she needs to learn right now.

"impossible!"

Nangong Lie retreated in horror, "This is a Blood Demon Python fed with the essence and blood of a thousand cultivators!"

"The frog at the bottom of the well."

Li Yunjing shook his head and turned to Liu Ruyan, "Go and try out your 'Azure Lotus Sword Technique'."

"Yes!"

Liu Ruyan understood and summoned her natal flying sword.

Azure sword light bloomed in the air, transforming into nine azure lotuses that surrounded the altar.

With each lotus flower that blooms, a sharp sword aura shoots out.

"court death!"

Seeing that even a minor cultivator like Liu Ruyan dared to take the initiative, Nangong Lie was furious.

His first thought was to beat Li Yunjing's woman to death and make Li Yunjing pay the price for his contempt.

Before he could even move, he felt the air around him freeze.

An immense pressure pressed down on Nangong Lie, and he could clearly feel his cultivation level decreasing steadily!
It has been reduced all the way down to the peak of the Foundation Establishment realm!
"How could this be?"

Nangong Lie hurriedly swung his bone staff to defend himself, but was forced to retreat repeatedly by the sword energy.

Seeing that he had lost his once-proud cultivation level and was even about to be defeated by a mere woman, he suddenly grinned maliciously: "Since that's the case, let's perish together!"

He plunged the bone staff into his chest, blood gushing out and being absorbed by the altar. The entire altar began to tremble violently, a dark crack appearing in the ground, from which chilling, ghostly energy surged forth!

"not good!"

Li Yunjing's expression changed drastically. "He forcibly opened the Gates of Hell!"

From the crack, countless pale arms stretched out, grasping the ground as they tried to crawl out.

Even more terrifying, a suffocating pressure emanated from the depths of the crack.

Something terrifying is awakening!

Liu Ruyan's face turned pale: "Yun Jing, this is..."

"A ghost general from the underworld."

Li Yunjing said in a deep voice, "He is at least equivalent to the Nascent Soul stage, but he is still within our control. You don't need to worry. Quickly kill Nangong Lie."

"Yes!"

Only then did Liu Ruyan regain her composure and focus all her attention on the heavily wounded enemy before her.

Liu Ruyan's aura was deep and composed, and her cyan flying sword drew an arc of light under the moonlight.

With a bone staff embedded in his chest, blood and foam continuously gushing from the corner of his mouth, Nangong Lie still grinned ferociously: "Little girl, do you think you can kill this old man?"

He suddenly ripped off the blood jade pendant on his chest. The moment the pendant shattered, countless tiny blood worms crawled out from his seven orifices and pounced on Liu Ruyan.

"Azure Lotus Barrier!"

Liu Ruyan's sword technique changed drastically, and the nine green lotuses suddenly closed, trapping the bloodworms inside.

Her fingertips surged with spiritual power, and sharp white light emanated from the edges of the lotus petals, instantly turning the bloodworms into a blood mist.

But at that moment, Nangong Lie's withered hand suddenly grabbed the blade of the flying sword, and despite the green light cutting through his palm, he forcefully stopped the sword's momentum.

"Even if I die, I'll take someone down with me!"

Bloodshot veins spread across Nangong Lie's eyes, and his bones crackled and popped as he was about to detonate his Nascent Soul!
Liu Ruyan's heart tightened, and she was about to draw her sword and retreat when she saw a bolt of lightning shoot out and strike Nangong Lietian's head precisely.

"boom!"

Nangong Lie's body exploded in the lightning, and his limbs and bones mixed with black blood splattered on the altar, but were instantly absorbed by the blood-red runes.

Li Yunjing had appeared beside Liu Ruyan at some point, the lightning arcs at his fingertips still lingering: "To be merciful to the enemy is to be cruel to oneself."

Liu Ruyan blushed slightly and lowered her head, saying, "It was my carelessness."

"Roar……"

A deafening roar came from the crack, and a giant hand covered in black armor suddenly emerged from it, its five fingers like iron claws grabbing at the edge of the altar.

As this hand appeared, the temperature in the entire "mass grave" plummeted, and thick frost formed on the ground. The little devils who were about to crawl out of the cracks were frozen into ice sculptures.

"Just in time!"

Li Yunjing unleashed the "Heavenly Thunder Emperor Seal," and thunder talismans formed a profound array in the air. "Divine Firmament Thunder Technique, suppress!"

A waterfall of purple-gold lightning crashed down on the giant hand, sparks flying from the black armor. The ghost general recoiled in pain, pulling his arm back. A head covered in bone spurs emerged from the crack, its scarlet eyes fixed on Li Yunjing: "A Xuanmen cultivator? How dare you obstruct my Netherworld army?"

"A mere ghost general guarding the town dares to call himself a large army?"

Li Yunjing sneered, and the Samadhi True Fire ignited in his palm. "Today I'll show you that the mortal realm is not a place for you to run wild!"

He leaped into the crevice, flames and lightning intertwining around him to form a fire dragon, which crashed headfirst into the ghost general's head.

The ghost general roared and swung his fist to meet the attack. The moment his black-armored fist collided with the fire dragon, a deafening roar erupted, and the shockwave sent the surrounding bone altar flying several feet away.

"Thunder locks heaven and earth!"

Countless bolts of lightning intertwined above the crack, forming a massive electric grid that not only blocked the outflow of Yin energy but also firmly locked the ghost general's body within the grid.

The ghost general struggled frantically, and the runes on its black armor grew dimmer and dimmer, clearly indicating that it had lost its supply of yin energy and that the armor's defensive capabilities were declining.

"Ruyan, use your Azure Lotus Sword Technique to attack its chest!"

Li Yunjing shouted loudly.

"Yes!"

Liu Ruyan understood, and her cyan flying sword transformed into a streak of light, precisely piercing the gap in the armor on the ghost general's chest.

With a "plop" sound, the flying sword sank half an inch into the ground, and a spurt of black blood gushed out. The ghost general let out a painful roar, and its struggling strength suddenly weakened.

The entry of beings from another world into "Tianlan Star" naturally aroused extreme resentment from the laws of heaven and earth.

Liu Ruyan received Li Yunjing's tutelage and her entire body was covered in third- and fourth-tier magic treasures. These powerful magic treasures were enough to cause even the slightest damage to a demon general at the Nascent Soul stage.

This damage is minimal and not fatal.

However, it has already been perceived by the laws of heaven and earth.

Liu Ruyan rendered meritorious service to "Tianlan Star" in the fight against the extraterrestrial ghosts.

Although insignificant, the laws of "Tianlan Star" are fair and just, and will naturally protect cultivators who safeguard the heavens and earth.

At least Liu Ruyan can be favored by heaven and earth, gaining a little bit of good fortune.

This is why Li Yunjing asked Liu Ruyan to take action.

With the situation under control, Li Yunjing was confident that once Liu Ruyan made her move, this demonic general would be unable to harm her.

"It's now!"

After Liu Ruyan made her move, the "Samadhi True Fire" in Li Yunjing's palm surged, transforming into a pillar of fire that shot straight toward the ghost general's face.

This time, the ghost general, having lost the protection of Yin energy, could no longer resist. Its head sizzled in the flames and quickly turned into a charred mess.

As the ghost general died, the dark crack began to slowly shrink, and the surrounding ghost soldiers also dissipated.

Li Yunjing waved his hand to remove the lightning net, but his brows remained furrowed as he watched the crack gradually close: "Things are probably not that simple."

“These runes are not the Nangong family’s technique; they are more like the Netherworld Ghost Sect’s ‘Yin Gathering Array’.”

Liu Ruyan leaned closer to examine them and suddenly exclaimed, "There seem to be fragments of souls remaining in these runes!"

Li Yunjing placed his hand on the altar and probed the runes with his divine sense. Sure enough, he sensed countless faint soul thoughts, some of which had a familiar aura!

"It seems the Nangong family is just a pawn."

Li Yunjing stood up and looked westward. "The ones who truly want to open the 'Gates of Hell' are the remnants of the 'Netherworld Ghost Sect' hiding in the shadows. They used the Nangong family to refine Blood Soul Pills, probably not just to open the passage, but also to... feed something."

"Again? Just how many evil things does this 'Youyue Kingdom' hide?"

Liu Ruyan frowned deeply.

"You'll find out soon."

Li Yunjing gazed at the gradually brightening dawn on the horizon. "I will inform the 'Northern Emperor Sect' to strengthen the defenses in Xizhou. In addition, we need to investigate who the Nangong family has been in contact with over the years, especially those who understand the 'Netherworld Ghost Sect' formations."

Liu Ruyan sheathed her flying sword and said softly, "I think I heard the words 'blood pool' in Nangong Lie's remnant soul just now."

"Blood Pool..."

Li Yunjing pondered for a moment, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes, "It seems I have to go check out the Nangong family's lair."

They arrived once again at the ancestral home of the Nangong family, which is now the territory of the "Yuanyang Dao Sect".

Li Yunjing naturally couldn't force his way in, so he and Liu Ruyan showed up and took the initiative to pay a visit.

The people of the Yuanyang Dao Sect naturally dared not be negligent, and opened the central gate wide to welcome Vice Sect Leader Li of the Shenxiao Dao Sect with the highest honors.

"Vice Sect Leader Li, may I ask what brings you here today?"

A senior elder of the Yuanyang Dao Sect asked with a smile.

Now that the "Shenxiao Dao Sect" is powerful, the "Yuanyang Dao Sect," which was originally on par with the "Shenxiao Dao Sect," has become cautious when facing Li Yunjing.

"Hahaha! Fellow Daoist Changchunzi, you're too kind!"

Li Yunjing laughed, looked around at the lineup of the "Yuanyang Dao Sect", and said with a smile, "I had no choice but to come here recently because of the Nangong family's affairs!"

"Oh?"

Changchunzi was taken aback and asked, "I would like to hear the details!"

"Before Nangong Lie died, he forcibly opened the Gates of Hell, and I found clues about the 'Blood Pool' in his remnant soul."

Li Yunjing's expression was solemn as he said in a deep voice, "This blood pool is probably hidden somewhere in the ancestral land of the Nangong family."

"Fellow Daoist Li, you may not know this, but after we took over this place, we did indeed discover a strange blood pool in the forbidden area behind the mountain. The pool water boils year-round and never dries up."

Upon hearing this, Changchunzi's expression changed drastically. He hurriedly waved his hand to signal his disciples to step back and lowered his voice.

Before the words were even finished, a loud bang suddenly came from afar, and the entire ground shook violently!
"not good!"

Changchunzi's expression changed drastically, "It's towards the forbidden area!"

Li Yunjing and Liu Ruyan exchanged a glance, and without saying a word, they transformed into streaks of light and headed straight for the back mountain.

From afar, a crimson pillar of light shot into the sky, dyeing half the sky scarlet.

When they arrived, the scene before them was horrifying.

The blood pool, which was originally sealed by the formation, has completely boiled. Countless cultivator corpses float in the pool, and an old man in a black robe is standing by the pool, making strange hand seals.

(End of this chapter)