Chapter 433: The Ghost Ming Sect Master, A Hidden Trap p2
…
“Ugh!”
Just the residual force of the attack almost made the Aromatic Chambers below collapse, making Shi Ran’s chest ache, her heart filled with shock.
…This single strike could probably shatter mountains!
Then, a deafening boom, like the ringing of an ancient bell, echoed, making everyone’s hearts tremble.
Many Ghost Ming Sect disciples who had been rushing towards them, hearing the commotion, stumbled and fell to their knees, their faces pale with terror, as if witnessing the end of the world. Those with lower cultivations even coughed up blood, their eardrums ruptured, their minds reeling.
But only the Ghost Ming Sect Master’s face showed a hint of surprise.
Her giant hands, which should have crushed him, were still open.
And between them stood Lin Tianlu, his own hands raised defensively!
“H-How…”
“If we continue fighting here, we might harm those innocent women below.”
A warm and gentle voice suddenly echoed from behind her.
The Ghost Ming Sect Master’s expression changed drastically, and she spun around, striking out with her palm, a fierce force like a gale, sparks of lightning flying.
But this terrifying attack was blocked by a single arm, the fierce wind instantly dissipating, as if the falling snow within a hundred feet had suddenly stilled.
“This battle is over.”
A palm strike landed squarely on the Ghost Ming Sect Master’s chest.
There were no raging winds, no flashing lightning, just a seemingly ordinary palm strike, yet it made the Ghost Ming Sect Master’s eyes widen, a choked gasp escaping her lips, her terrifying aura instantly vanishing, the shadowy figures behind her dissipating like bubbles, swallowed by the falling snow.
“…”
Silence fell upon the scene.
“Uh… no… how…”
But the Ghost Ming Sect Master quickly clutched her chest and stumbled backward, her face filled with pain and disbelief, seemingly unable to comprehend her sudden defeat.
She was about to fight back desperately when her vision suddenly darkened, and she collapsed into the pit she had created earlier, crashing to the ground.
This unbelievable scene even stunned Shi Ran, momentarily speechless.
—The Sect Master… defeated so easily?
That terrifying aura, like that of a god, had vanished in an instant. The once invincible figure from hundreds of years ago had fallen, reduced to a trembling wretch in a pit, no longer the powerful and domineering Ghost Ming Sect Master… not even the gentle and benevolent leader from before.
“Ghost Lord Shi, are there any forbidden areas in the Sect Master’s residence, places where outsiders are not allowed to enter?”
Lin Tianlu landed lightly from the air, smoothing his robes.
“Forbidden… areas…?”
Shi Ran barely managed to come back to her senses, still dazed from the sudden turn of events, and she murmured blankly: “There are no secret places within the sect compound, no forbidden areas… but perhaps… the Sect Master’s private residence.”
“Her private residence?”
Lin Tianlu’s eyes narrowed slightly, lost in thought: “Ghost Lord Shi, perhaps this might sound strange, but your Sect Master… might have already…”
He suddenly stopped, his gaze shifting upwards, a hint of surprise in his eyes.
The jade lotus platform, which had fallen earlier, was now floating in mid-air!
“What… what’s going on?”
Shi Ran murmured in shock and uncertainty.
“It seems the true culprit can’t hold back any longer.” Lin Tianlu glanced sideways coldly: “Although the Ten Flower Ghost Concubine Cauldrons haven’t been completed, this is its last chance. Any more hesitation, and it might never be revived.”
“Sir, what… what are you talking about? I don’t understand!”
Shi Ran’s face was filled with confusion and anxiety.
Had something happened within the Ghost Ming Sect without her knowledge?
Lin Tianlu simply pointed: “Just watch.”
Instantly, the Ghost Ming Sect Master, who had collapsed into the pit, seemed to be trembling as she struggled to her feet, her expression changing, her eyes suddenly gleaming, and she said in a trembling voice: “It’s Mother’s fault, I couldn’t create a perfect body for you, my daughter. Now… take everything I have and live!”
She pressed her hands against her chest as if offering her heart, her Yin energy surging towards the floating lotus platform.
This unbelievable scene shocked Shi Ran even further.
Not just the transfer of Yin energy, but also her words—
“The Sect Master… since when did she have a daughter?!”
“The Sect Master never married?”
“Since I was young, I’ve never seen the Sect Master with any man, nor has she ever married! Although there are thousands of refugees in the prison realm, she has never taken in any girl as her daughter.” Shi Ran’s eyes were filled with shock and disbelief: “But she just now… said ‘daughter’?”
A chill, like a venomous insect, crawled down her spine, making her body tremble.
“Could it be—”
“There it is.”
Lin Tianlu suddenly murmured.
Shi Ran quickly held her breath and watched as the floating lotus platform rapidly absorbed most of the Sect Master’s cultivation in just a few breaths, transforming into a streak of light that shot towards the distance.
The Ghost Ming Sect Master collapsed like a lifeless corpse, her fate uncertain.
“Ghost Lord Shi, forgive me.” Lin Tianlu grabbed Shi Ran’s wrist and, with a flash of movement, chased after the lotus platform.
Although Shi Ran was caught off guard, her Savage Realm cultivation was still quite strong. She quickly steadied herself and saw that the lotus platform had landed on a mountain peak in the back.
“Do you recognize this place?”
“This is… where the Sect Master’s private residence is located.” Shi Ran’s heart sank, her expression turning grim as she had a premonition.
As they spoke, they arrived at the house on the mountain.
But Shi Ran’s heart trembled as she quickly covered her face with her sleeve: “Such a dense Corpse Qi!”
The once beautiful house, nestled against the mountain, was now shrouded in a dark and gloomy aura of death, as if filled with the wails of ghosts and the curses of demons. Just being near it made her heart pound, as if she would be devoured by the Corpse Qi.
“This is truly… troublesome.”
Lin Tianlu’s expression also turned serious as he put his hands behind his back, pondering.
This so-called Corpse Qi wasn’t something he had never seen before. He had encountered the Lord of the Heavenly Sea’s ‘corpse transformation’ on Mount Min, that terrifying aura of death almost staining the sky, it had been truly unforgettable.
And this scene before him—
Although not as earth-shattering, it had clearly been deliberately condensed and contained, not a trace of it leaking out, even continuously contracting and converging.
The culprit behind this, even if their cultivation wasn’t as high as the Lord of the Heavenly Sea, was definitely not an ordinary demon or ghost, their power far surpassing the limitations of this world!
—Boom!
The house, unable to withstand the corrosive power of the Corpse Qi, suddenly collapsed, but it didn’t create any dust or debris.
Because, surrounded by several lotus platforms, lay a woman, seemingly controlling the surrounding Corpse Qi, the entire back mountain silent and still.
“Ghost Lord Shi, now you know the truth.”
Lin Tianlu said in a deep voice: “Your Sect Master isn’t insane or delusional, but rather… possessed by this body.”
Shi Ran bit her lip, her face pale.
During their pursuit, she had already had a suspicion. And now, seeing the “true culprit” with her own eyes, the truth revealed, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of sorrow.
The Ghost Ming Sect, a sect that controlled Corpse Qi and Yin techniques, its leader possessed by a corpse, turned into a mindless puppet, and had even maintained this state for more than a hundred years.
How… ridiculous.
“Now that you understand, Ghost Lord Shi, let’s end this.”
Lin Tianlu stepped forward.
Shi Ran’s eyes widened, and she said hurriedly: “Be careful, Master Lin! This Corpse Qi is far more powerful than mine, even stronger than the Sect Master’s!”
“I know.”
But Lin Tianlu simply replied casually, his steps not slowing down as he approached the woman’s body on the lotus platforms.
Nourished by the Yin energy from the lotus platforms, the previously incomplete body had regenerated, its skin smooth and jade-like.
In an instant, a breathtakingly beautiful and seductive woman was fully revived. Although naked, bathed in the rosy light emanating from the lotus platforms, she looked like a goddess, ethereal and otherworldly.
Then, the woman slowly opened her eyes, her lips parting slightly, and she inhaled all the surrounding Corpse Qi, her body seemingly glowing with a porcelain-like luster.
At the same time, Lin Tianlu arrived before her and smiled faintly.
“Good evening—”
“Ant, you dare show yourself.” The woman’s voice was cold and indifferent, her demeanor like an ancient goddess, aloof and noble.
But the next moment, her expression froze, her body trembling slightly.
Because a emerald green spiritual chain had silently pierced through her chest, instantly wrapping around her soul and pulling it out!
The light in the woman’s eyes vanished, her face blank as she tilted her head slightly, speechless.
Lin Tianlu waved his sleeve, gathering the soul, and pulled it into Mount Taiyi, which had appeared faintly behind him.
“…”
Silence fell upon the ruins, only the cold wind whistling through the mountains, carrying snowflakes.
Shi Ran, as if her soul had also been taken away, stared blankly, momentarily speechless, then murmured: “Sir, that mastermind…”
“Don’t worry, she’s gone.”
“Gone?! ”
Lin Tianlu turned around and smiled frankly: “The Ghost Ming Sect is safe now, Ghost Lord Shi… or rather, perhaps I should call you Sect Master Shi now.”
He chuckled and continued: “I hope you can take this opportunity to reorganize the sect, educate your disciples, and enforce discipline, so they don’t harm innocent people again. And you should also try your best to atone for your recent crimes.
As for what to do with this… body, Sect Master Shi, it’s up to you.”
Saying this, Lin Tianlu turned and left without another word, seemingly uninterested in the details.
“This… this…”
Shi Ran looked at the direction where he had disappeared, then at the ruins and the corpse, her heart filled with a strange mix of emotions: “I was so worried, but it ended… so easily?”
There had been no fierce battle, no schemes or plots, just a flash of a strange chain, and the outcome had been decided.
Only the falling snow and the lingering sorrow and sadness remained.
Shi Ran walked over to the corpse, its body seemingly perfect and flawless, like a celestial being’s.
Even though it had been revived, it was now just an empty shell.
After a long silence, she lowered her head and sighed with a helpless expression:
“Truly… a farce.”
