Divine Root Bone

On the battlefield of Shou'an Village, a cold wind howled and black mist surged.

Zhang Yang stood in the center of the courtyard, his clothes covered in dust. He had just endured several rounds of fierce attacks, and most of his spiritual energy had been depleted.

The senior disciple opposite him, corrupted by evil power, had cloudy, lifeless eyes, devoid of any cultivator's clarity. His body was shrouded in thick black mist, his movements stiff yet ferocious, relentlessly attacking and suppressing Zhang Yang's rhythm.

The puppet girl hid under the eaves, silently drawing upon the power of Yin to assist and restrain him. However, her senior brother was like a killing puppet without pain or mind. With the support of Yin power, his combat strength surged, and the situation on the field had completely turned against him.

Zhang Yang, with his Foundation Establishment Level 2 cultivation, struggled to subdue the cultivator controlled by evil forces, but was unable to completely suppress him in a short time. Moreover, this cultivator was also a senior brother within the sect, putting him at a disadvantage and causing the battle to reach a dangerous stalemate.

Just as the fierce fighting raged in Shou'an Village, shrouded in malevolent energy, five figures slowly broke through the forest mist on a mountain path several hundred meters outside the village, heading towards the village.

These are five independent cultivators from the Southern Region. They are all solitary cultivators who had no prior connection with each other. However, upon hearing that Blackstone Mountain had opened a martial arts trial, they coincidentally formed a temporary group.

The five people's purpose for this trip was very simple: to go to Black Stone Mountain, seize opportunities through martial arts competitions, and earn cultivation resources such as spirit stones, pills, and magic weapons to pave the way for their own cultivation.

This hastily assembled group of cultivators consisted of three men and two women, all of whom were at the level of Qi Refining Eighth Level to Qi Refining Peak. They were all seasoned cultivators from the Southern Region with solid foundations and extensive combat experience.

The five of them sped along the road, and when they approached the vicinity of Shou'an Village, they all suddenly frowned.

A chilling, turbid, and violent aura of malevolence emanated from the village ahead, penetrating the trees and spreading across the fields, carrying a profound sense of death and eeriness that was far beyond what ordinary demons or miasma could match.

"Something's not right. This village is filled with resentment and evil spirits. It's likely hiding something malevolent."

A female cultivator in blue robes with a cold expression spoke in a deep voice, paused, and quietly circulated her spiritual energy around her, fully on guard.

The other four also focused their minds and used their spiritual power to investigate the strange phenomena in the village ahead.

They had no intention of delaying their journey; they only wanted to get to Black Stone Mountain as soon as possible to participate in the martial arts competition and seize the treasure. However, the intense and sinister aura was too abnormal and hinted at a deadly danger, which made them wary.

The five exchanged glances and decided to step forward and investigate.

As the group hurried closer to Shou'an Village, the sounds of fierce fighting and the booming of colliding spiritual energies from the courtyards instantly reached their ears.

Through the cracks in the dilapidated courtyard wall, the five people could clearly see the battle taking place inside the courtyard.

Two figures were fiercely fighting in the arena. One of them was dressed in white, with a neat and upright posture. His clothing was in the proper style, which was the sect uniform of the Qingyun Sect in the Southern Region. He had a pure and upright temperament, and his spiritual power was pure and abundant. He was obviously a legitimate sect cultivator.

The five people did not know Zhang Yang, but they recognized the sect logo of Qingyun Sect at a glance.

The other person fighting the Qingyun Sect disciple was dressed in a tattered cultivator's robe, with cloudy and dull eyes, a face as black as a corpse, and layers of black mist surrounding him. His aura was sinister and twisted, and he had no consciousness of a living cultivator. He was clearly completely controlled by strange evil power and had become a killing puppet.

"So you're a disciple of the Qingyun Sect. No wonder your aura is so pure."

"This person is completely possessed by evil spirits; he's no longer a normal person."

"It seems the source of the eerie atmosphere in Shou'an Village lies here!"

The five of them instantly grasped the situation and understood.

When disciples of orthodox sects face off against puppet cultivators controlled by sinister power, the difference in skill and the distinction between right and wrong become immediately apparent.

Seeing that the Qingyun Sect disciples had exhausted their spiritual energy and were already at a disadvantage, and could be severely injured by the puppet cultivators at any time, the five rogue cultivators from the Southern Region did not hesitate at all.

"Let's lend a helping hand and rid the evil spirits of them!"

The leading male cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining gave a low shout, and the five of them instantly moved in unison, five streams of spiritual energy breaking through the air and rushing into the battlefield from outside the courtyard.

Five streams of pure Qi Refining Peak and Late Stage Qi Refining spiritual power erupted simultaneously, instantly blocking all of the puppet senior brother's evasion and attack routes.

The fierce spells and condensed palm strikes pressed down layer by layer, not attacking Zhang Yang, but all enveloping the senior disciple who was being controlled by evil spirits.

The sudden intervention of five cultivators instantly broke the stalemate.

The puppet senior brother, who had been suppressing Zhang Yang, was suddenly surrounded and attacked by the five people. His stiff body retreated repeatedly, and the black mist on his body was constantly washed away and shattered by the pure spiritual power.

The puppet girl, hidden in the shadows of the eaves, froze the moment she saw five unfamiliar cultivators burst in, her eyes instantly filled with extreme surprise and vigilance.

She thought she had the battle under control and that once she wore Zhang Yang down, the matter would be over. She never expected that five unfamiliar cultivators from the Southern Region would suddenly appear.

All five were high-level Qi Refining cultivators. Although they were nothing to a Foundation Establishment Level 5 cultivator under their control, their combined strength was not to be underestimated. Moreover, Zhang Yang was also there, instantly turning the tide of the entire situation.

At the same time, deep within the desolate graveyard behind Shou'an Village, the core of the entire Yin and evil power hidden underground instantly sensed the aura of the five outside cultivators.

Sensing the intrusion of a powerful figure, the primordial Yin energy, which had been subtly restless and preparing to unleash its Yin power to strengthen the puppet once more, suddenly withdrew all its aura. Like a frightened beast, it silently retreated into the depths of the graveyard, completely concealing itself and no longer daring to leak out even a trace of its malevolent energy.

The external situation changed abruptly, reinforcements arrived unexpectedly, and the evil source lay dormant and did not emerge.

The puppet girl in the shadows had a deep look in her eyes. She suppressed all her unusual movements, slowly retreated, and completely disappeared into the shadow of the dilapidated wooden house behind her. She held her breath and remained motionless, silently lurking in the shadows, quietly observing the changes in the situation on the field, waiting for an opportunity to act.

The initially perilous and disadvantageous battle situation was completely reversed with the arrival of five rogue cultivators from the Southern Region!

The six powerful auras converged and completely reversed the situation on the field.

Zhang Yang, with his powerful spiritual energy at the second level of Foundation Establishment, sat in the center, while five rogue cultivators from the Southern Region occupied the five directions, all possessing solid cultivation levels ranging from the late stage to the peak of Qi Refining. The spiritual energy of the six intertwined to form an airtight cage, tightly locking in the senior brother of the Qingyun Sect who had been completely corrupted by Yin and evil.

The puppet senior brother, who had been rampaging and killing with every move, suddenly stopped attacking.

Previously, relying on the power of evil, he felt no pain and was fearless, forcing Zhang Yang to retreat step by step. But now, facing the combined attack of six people, with fierce spells and condensed palm strikes from all directions, his stiff body trembled continuously, and the black mist wrapped around his body was broken apart layer by layer and collapsed section by section.

Under the fierce encirclement and suppression, the puppet senior brother, who was at the fifth level of Foundation Establishment and was corrupted by evil energy, was losing more and more power. His movements were becoming increasingly sluggish, and his evil energy was on the verge of collapse. He had completely fallen into a disadvantageous position and was being suppressed. He was only a moment away from being captured.

But just as the battle was about to be decided—

In the dilapidated streets and alleys deep within Shou'an Village, three figures slowly stepped out with an extremely eerie, twisted, and stiff gait.

Its footsteps were light and airy, untouched by dust, devoid of any sign of life, and its entire body was shrouded in a faint, dark gray aura of malevolence, deathly still, cold, and chilling.

It was Xiao Cui, who had already died tragically, and the two evil thugs who had been killed earlier!

The three had already perished, but at this moment, the puppet girl in the shadows stirred up the primordial yin energy beneath the graveyard, forcibly binding their remains with evil power, causing them to resurrect as corpses, and completely transforming them into yin and evil puppets without any mind, only knowing how to fight!

In the shadows beneath the eaves, the puppet girl's eyes gleamed with a chilling light, and wisps of black silk thread floated subtly between her fingertips, exuding an eerie aura.

It was she who secretly guided and manipulated the three zombie puppets, sending them straight to the chaotic battlefield!

In the blink of an eye, three dark figures suddenly sprang up and entered the battle, turning the battle that was about to end into chaos once again!

The two zombie villains already possessed the foundation of the third level of Qi Refining. After turning into zombies, they shed the pain of their physical bodies, their brute strength surged, their skin became thick and tough, and their moves became fierce and vicious. They abandoned all defense and only cared about launching a crazy attack. Their fists and palms were wrapped in cold death energy as they ruthlessly pounced on the nearest few rogue cultivators from the Southern Region.

What's most unsettling is Xiao Cui, who has absolutely no cultivation.

She was originally an ordinary mortal girl, powerless in life, but after being possessed by evil spirits and resurrected from the dead, she completely lost her mind, feeling no pain and fearing death.

Her movements were bizarre and cunning, without using spiritual power or magic, relying solely on the most primal and ferocious fighting instincts. Once she got close to someone, she would instantly wrap her arms tightly around their waist, clench her limbs tightly, raise her head sharply, and open her mouth to bite and gnaw wildly. Her methods were extremely ferocious and terrifying, completely disrupting everyone's rhythm of attack and defense.

Zhang Yang witnessed this scene with his own eyes, and his whole body trembled. His pupils shrank sharply, and an extreme chill rushed from the soles of his feet to the top of his head!

He clearly remembered that Xiao Cui died tragically on the spot, her body cold; the two villains who committed the evil deeds had already been killed by Lin Wanqing and Su Qingyao, and there was no possibility of them surviving!

But at this moment, the dead, who should have been laid to rest, have all come back to life, turning into sinister puppets and fighting on the battlefield once again!

An overwhelming sense of eeriness and gloom enveloped Zhang Yang's mind. A chill ran down his spine, cold sweat instantly soaked through his clothes, and every hair on his body stood on end. He was filled with endless shock and horror.

The battlefield situation has changed dramatically once again!

The overwhelming advantage of six against one instantly turned into Zhang Yang and five rogue cultivators from the Southern Region facing off against his Foundation Establishment Level 5 senior brother, who was controlled by evil power, plus three corpse-turned puppets!

The puppet girl, hidden in the shadows, watched the battle turn into a chaotic, stalemate, and defeat. A sinister and cold smile slowly curved her beautiful face, her eyes filled with indifference and mockery as if she controlled everything.

Just as the battlefield was engulfed in a new round of fierce fighting and chaos, the tightly closed doors of houses throughout Shou'an Village were slowly pushed open one after another.

Previously, the entire village was shrouded in a sinister maze, and everyone's consciousness was invaded by sinister threads, causing them to fall into a deep sleep and coma.

However, Zhang Yang was the only one who noticed the abnormality earlier. He used his spiritual power in advance to disperse the evil threads that were binding the twelve inner disciples, Lin Wanqing, and Su Qingyao, helping everyone break free from the maze's confinement ahead of time.

At this moment, everyone gradually woke up from their drowsiness.

The lingering sense of being invaded by evil forces and having their minds manipulated left them in a daze and a chill. Recalling the perilous situation where they were trapped in the maze and had no awareness of what was happening, everyone felt a shiver of fear.

The sounds of intense spiritual energy collisions and fierce battles filled the air, instantly bringing everyone back to their senses. They stepped out of their rooms and looked towards the chaotic battlefield in the courtyard.

All twelve inner disciples of the Qingyun Sect awoke. Their cultivation levels varied, ranging from the fifth to the seventh level of Qi Refining. Each of them had a solid foundation and quick reflexes.

At the forefront of the crowd, Lin Wanqing and Su Qingyao stood tall and graceful, their expressions stern and their eyes sharp, immediately discerning the perilous situation on the field.

"Rush to Zhang Yang's aid! Eliminate the evil spirits!"

With a low shout, the twelve inner disciples moved in unison, unleashing their spiritual power, which flashed with various colors, and rushed into the battlefield. Lin Wanqing and Su Qingyao followed closely behind, their figures as light as butterflies, instantly joining the melee.

In an instant, the balance of power shifted again!

With the sudden addition of fourteen fresh troops, their momentum surged, and a dense mass of spiritual energy instantly covered the entire courtyard.

The twelve inner disciples worked together, each pair cooperating, their spells flying and their palm strikes fierce, tightly restraining the two zombie villains and the frantically attacking Xiao Cui, while using the orthodox spiritual power of the sect to continuously cleanse and suppress the evil power on the three.

Lin Wanqing and Su Qingyao possessed superb cultivation and agile movements, moving freely throughout the battlefield, constantly resolving the puppets' bizarre attacks and stabilizing the overall battle situation.

The chaotic fighting was gradually brought under control, and the out-of-control battlefield was once again forcibly suppressed and brought under control.

Seeing that all his men had returned to their positions and the battle situation had completely stabilized, Zhang Yang's eyes flashed with a sharp light as he seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

He stopped fighting, and his right hand quietly brought together the five fingers and twisted them lightly. The pure Foundation Establishment spiritual power around him instantly gathered in his palm, condensed and not released, restraining all its power, and transformed into a solid, heavy, and unadorned condensed energy.

The energy was extremely condensed, silent and without any booming sound, yet it contained the powerful spiritual energy and deadly explosive force of a second-level Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Taking advantage of the moment when the disciple who was controlled by evil power was surrounded and restrained by the crowd, his old power had just dissipated and his new power had not yet been generated, and his body was stiff, Zhang Yang moved swiftly and instantly closed in on his back.

With a flick of his wrist, he gathered all the concentrated spiritual energy into his palm blade and slammed it down with unparalleled precision and immense power into the back of his senior brother's neck!

"Bang!"

A dull thud of flesh colliding rang out.

This puppet senior brother, who was at the fifth level of Foundation Establishment and was controlled by evil forces, was already surrounded and suppressed by six people. His evil power was disordered and his mind was collapsing. When he was hit by this extremely precise and powerful blow to his vital points, his body trembled violently, the turbid black light in his eyes dimmed instantly, his stiff body went limp, and he completely lost consciousness and fainted.

Just as he was falling, the five rogue cultivators from the Southern Region exerted their power simultaneously, their sharp spiritual energy instantly binding his limbs and sealing his meridians, with several chains of spiritual energy firmly binding his body.

With a heavy thud, the troublemaking senior disciple was completely suppressed on the ground, unable to move, and was captured and subdued by the crowd!

Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, twelve inner disciples, together with Lin Wanqing and Su Qingyao, used their numerical advantage and pure sect spiritual power to suppress and press forward step by step.

The evil power of the two zombie villains' bodies was constantly being worn down and dispersed, and their stiff movements became increasingly sluggish; while Xiao Cui, who had been relentlessly entangled and frantically biting at him, was also restrained by several spiritual forces, her limbs locked and pinned to the ground, unable to move an inch.

So far!

All the puppets on the field that were being controlled by evil forces were suppressed and subdued!