Mortal: Supreme Being of the Ghost Path

Meanwhile, in the Blood Ice Forest, a cold wind howled.

Qin Han and the man in black robes reached a brief consensus and are now walking side by side, talking back and forth.

However, rather than engaging in eloquent conversation, it was more like Qin Han was asking questions while the man in black robes kept answering.

The two continued their journey through the Blood Ice Forest, chatting at a leisurely pace:

"It seems you are not familiar with the path of ghosts. Since you have some free time, I might as well explain it to you."

"Fellow Daoist, you are mistaken. People say that the Ghost Path is a heretical and evil path, not worthy of respect. Little do they know that in ancient times, the Ghost Path was an extremely profound path! The reputation of Ghost Path cultivators was enough to make cultivators of the same level tremble with fear."

"Oh? What do you mean?"

Upon hearing this, Qin Han immediately became interested.

"If we're only talking about ghost cultivators themselves, killing cultivators of the same level is a piece of cake. Even if the opponent is one or two minor realms higher, they're still more than capable. The reason is simply that you never know whether you're facing one enemy or a thousand troops!"

"A massive army?"

"good."

As the man in black robes spoke, he suddenly felt the surrounding chill intensify once he entered the Blood Ice Forest. He then raised the ancient, tower-shaped treasure in his hand. The black bead at the top of the tower trembled slightly, and the dark blue aura became even more solid.

He then continued, "The essence of ghost cultivation lies in the word 'driving.' Driving away ghosts, corpses, souls, and spirits—as long as one's divine sense is strong enough, one can command thousands of ghosts to do one's bidding."

"Fellow Daoist, you can imagine this: when you face a ghost cultivator, you think that the other party is all alone, but the next moment, he just makes a hand seal, and countless ferocious ghosts appear behind him. There may even be a few powerful ghosts that are on par with you."

At this point, he let out a low chuckle, a laugh tinged with a hint of wistfulness.

"It's a pity that nowadays, a ghost cultivator who can simultaneously command over a hundred powerful ghosts is already considered a top expert in the ghost path."

"Unfortunately, the lineage has been broken, the cultivation techniques are incomplete, and the methods for cultivating divine sense are almost entirely lost. Let alone recreating the glory of ancient times, even establishing a foothold in this world of cultivation is as difficult as ascending to heaven."

Qin Han pondered for a moment, then nodded thoughtfully. But then, as if remembering something, he suddenly asked, "I remember you mentioned 'special physique' earlier. What's that all about? Is there any explanation?"

Upon hearing this, the man in the black robe slowed his pace, seemingly equally interested in the topic.

"It is said that in ancient times, a powerful figure in the ghost path discovered that ghost cultivators in their soul form have advantages such as ignoring the limitations of the physical body and not being troubled by lifespan, but their drawbacks are also obvious."

"For example, one cannot cast many spells that require spiritual power, cannot use certain magical artifacts that require blood and qi to activate, and cannot walk freely in places with abundant yang energy like a living person."

He paused slightly as he spoke, his tone now filled with longing.

"Therefore, a powerful being devoted all his efforts to creating a profound technique. Once mastered, the soul can condense into a special form that exists between the tangible and the intangible. It possesses both the yin and yang of the soul and the stability of the physical body. Not only can it unleash the vast majority of spells, but it can also greatly enhance the coverage of divine sense, directly eliminating the drawback of searching for a physical body to possess."

Upon hearing these words, Qin Han was suddenly struck by a jolt. Wasn't this exactly what he had been dreaming of?

Although he has now possessed a physical body, that body ultimately belongs to someone else, and its use is limited in many ways.

If one can truly cultivate this special physique, one can break free from the shackles of the physical body and truly roam the world as a ghost cultivator.

"Has this profound skill been passed down to the present day?"

Thinking of this, Qin Han quickly pressed for details, but remained outwardly calm, though his gaze was sharper than before.

The man in black robes shook his head and sighed.

"There are some fragments, but the complete cultivation method has probably been lost to the torrent of history. My Ghost King Sect's library only contains a few pages of fragments, which can barely give us a glimpse, but ultimately we cannot truly cultivate it."

Upon hearing this, Qin Han felt a slight weight in his heart, a sense of regret, but he did not show it on his face.

"By the way, what exactly does this 'exorcising ghosts and commanding corpses' you mentioned earlier do? Is it also like the demonic path, obtained through blood sacrifice?"

The man in black robes chuckled softly after hearing this.

"Fellow Daoist has asked the right question. Where do ghosts and spirits in this world come from? There are only three ways."

"Firstly, after a person dies, their resentment and malevolent energy transform into vengeful spirits, such as those in the Ghostly Land. We powerful ghost cultivators can use secret methods to subdue them, refine them, and use them for our own purposes."

"Secondly, after killing a cultivator, their soul and primordial spirit are forcibly extracted and refined into ghost messengers. The higher the cultivator's cultivation level, the stronger the ghost messenger will be."

He paused again, his tone suddenly turning colder.

Thirdly, the soul is refined by living people.

A few words, written lightly, yet revealing a disdain for life.

Qin Han was not surprised when he heard this.

The practice of refining the souls of living people is, in the eyes of most cultivators, an absolutely heinous act that cannot be tolerated by Heaven.

However, ghost cultivators are not tolerated in the cultivation world, so it is not surprising that they would do such a thing.

If this method can enhance his strength, then Qin Han wouldn't mind trying it out himself!

"Of course," the man in black robes changed his tone, his voice returning to its previous calmness, "Although my Ghost King Sect is not bound by trivialities, it does not indiscriminately kill innocent people. Most of the ghost messengers in the sect are collected from battlefields, ancient battlefields, mass graves and other places, and some are also ghost messengers who voluntarily became after the elders of the sect passed away, to protect the sect."

Qin Han grunted in response, showing no interest in whether the other party was indiscriminately killing innocent people, and instead quickly began to calculate in his mind.

If what this person said is true, then the path of the ghosts is far more profound than he imagined.

Exorcising ghosts and controlling corpses, special physique, spiritual cultivation... each of these things held immense appeal for him.

"If I have the chance in the future, I must go to the outer sea." Qin Han secretly made up his mind.

Those ghost sects that migrated to the outer seas have probably formed their own systems by now, and may very well be hiding some extraordinary inheritances.

If there's a chance to sneak in and find out something, perhaps we can gain some insights.

But that's a story for another time.

Qin Han pondered for a moment, then suddenly thought of something and changed the subject, asking:

"Fellow Daoist, I have a question to ask you."

The man in the black robe turned his head to look at him, and a pair of sinister eyes could be vaguely seen under the hood.

"Fellow Daoist, please speak."

Qin Han said unhurriedly, "Years ago, I accidentally came across a demonic flame called 'Asura Sacred Flame' in an ancient, incomplete book. It is said that this flame is incredibly powerful and can incinerate everything. I wonder if you have ever heard of it?"

The man in the black robe paused slightly, his brows furrowing as if he were trying to recall something.

After a moment, he spoke slowly, his tone somewhat solemn: "The Asura Sacred Flame... I seem to have some recollection of it."

He then organized his thoughts and said in a low voice, "It is said that this fire, along with the 'Netherworld Ghost Fire' and the 'Mysterious Netherworld True Fire,' is known as one of the three sacred fires of the Ghost Path. If one can master one of them, one will not only be invincible throughout the realm, but at least have few rivals."

Upon hearing this, Qin Han's eyes flickered slightly, and he feigned eagerness as he pressed for an answer: "Where is this fire now?!"

The man in black robes glanced at Qin Han, shook his head helplessly, and sighed softly, "Fellow Daoist, you'd better not covet it. This kind of fire probably doesn't exist in our realm."