Savage mountain, the Eight Point hall!
Little Ann stood guard outside the hall quietly. Not only could he guarantee that he would not disturb Li Qingshan, but he could also assist him at any time.
In the simple, barbaric hall, Li Qingshan's scarlet eyes widened, staring at the Myriad Poison Ancestor's soul nascence. Malice rose up from his body, giving off a presence that could subdue everything. His eyes had even become as red as blood, shining with two demonic streaks of light.
The slumbering soul nascence suddenly stirred, filled with pain and reluctance. Although its consciousness had been suppressed by Shen Mengdie, sinking into an unawakened dream, it still resisted instinctively. It was so proud that it refused to submit.
Li Qingshan's expression became sterner and sterner. He raised his eyebrows and let out a deep roar, which echoed through the hall. The figure of the tiger demon vaguely appeared behind him, baring its fangs viciously.
Little Ann was rather worried. A soul nascence was different from a soul. It possessed most of a great cultivator's power, and its cultivation was even higher than Li Qingshan's. Although he had the Clam King of Mirage Sea's assistance, this was still very dangerous. Turning it into a haunt definitely would not be that easy.
However, high risk also meant high reward. Once he succeeded, he would be able to claim the Myriad Poison cult's foundation. That was a blessed land even better than Savage mountain. Coupled with the protective formation, it was priceless.
The Myriad Poison cult's resources would be a huge chunk too. It was impossible for the Myriad Poison Ancestor to carry all of them on him, or once he entered secluded cultivation, the Myriad Poison cult would not be able to operate anymore. He would definitely set up a treasury in the cult. And, there would be a large medicinal garden with who knew how many precious spiritual herbs.
As long as he obtained the Myriad Poison Ancestor's loyalty, he could devour all of the heritage of a large sect that had existed for several millennia. Apart from these external benefits, the Myriad Poison Ancestor himself was the most important.
A great cultivator could increase their strength drastically, which would make their plans in the south even smoother. At crucial moments, he could even order him to self-destruct, and even the Fire Devouring King would be doomed. And, great cultivators were usually skilled in alchemy and artifact forging, so the Myriad Poison Ancestor could even refine poison and gu on top of that.
All of these benefits combined made Li Qingshan choose to gamble.
When the tiger's roar reached the valley, the ten Cave Masters were summoned back. They pricked up their ears to listen, secretly guessing what he was doing.
"The Myriad Poison Ancestor really is difficult to deal with. It's very likely for him to awaken in such an intense confrontation. If that happens, it'll be troublesome."
Li Qingshan frowned. He was in his own territory, and it was unlikely for the Myriad Poison Ancestor to barge into his sea of consciousness again if he made various preparations. However, once the Myriad Poison Ancestor blew up his soul nascence, he would probably be heavily injured, and it was even possible for Savage mountain to collapse, which would severely damage his foundation in the south.
However, there was no turning back. He used his full strength, and the strange light invaded the Myriad Poison Ancestor's soul nascence strand by strand with great difficulty.
As time passed, the Nascent Soul struggled more and more violently. Just as it was about to succeed, the Nascent Soul suddenly opened its eyes and looked at Li Qingshan with incomparable hatred.
Their eyes met!
Li Qingshan thought to himself, "Not good." The thing he was most worried about had happened.
The Nascent Soul's eyes suddenly became misty.
The key to doing evil for the sake of the tiger was the pair of tiger eyes. Even though the slumbering enemy put up less of a resistance, they were unable to make eye contact. In this dangerous moment, it instead pushed the power of the innate ability to the limit.
The surroundings twisted and changed, going from the pitch-black belly of the mountain to a gloomy forest. Miasma gathered in the air, such that even the scenery slightly further away became blurry.
"Why did I fall under a tree? No, I have to hurry back. It's far too dangerous here," a shaman young man said in a panic.
A young shaman said in a panic. Although his face was smeared with paint, he seemed to resemble the Myriad Poison Ancestor when he was young.
When he tried to find a large tree to climb up, the wind began to rise in the forest.
"Why is there wind here?" The young man gazed in the direction of the wind.
The thick miasma that had not dispersed for millennia suddenly surged and dispersed, like subjects welcoming the arrival of their king. Two specks of scarlet light vaguely appeared.
Awooo! There was a vicious tiger's roar, and the entire forest shook. The fierce wind became even more violent, completely dispersing the miasma and revealing a vicious tiger. Its fur was scarlet like fire, shining with glossy light in the darkness. It was covered in bright, black patterns, and the character for "king" was written on its forehead.
The tiger saw the young man and walked over slowly. The young man wanted to flee, but he became feeble from fright. The tiger pounced at him gently and pressed him under its front paw, lowering its head and staring at him.
A foul smell assaulted his face. The young man looked back in fright. The scarlet eyes were forever engraved in his soul.
Li Qingshan jerked awake and looked at his hands. They had not turned into tiger claws. "What was that all about earlier? Was I dreaming again?"
He dreamed that he had turned into a vicious tiger, roaming through the dense forests of the Mist province before hunting.
"Hmm?"
Li Qingshan discovered that the Myriad Poison Ancestor's soul nascent soul had already been dyed by the strange light. It stared at Li Qingshan with its eyes wide open, but there was no resentment or hatred anymore. There was only obedience from the bottom of its heart.
"Was that the Myriad Poison Ancestor's dream earlier? Looks like it was a terrifying nightmare too. He was alarmed by me and woke up from the dream, but then he was affected by the tiger demon's innate ability and pulled back into the dream. My consciousness entered his sea of consciousness with it … "
Li Qingshan guessed. In the end, he could not help but sigh, "It's all because of that crazy woman in the end!"
He had personally witnessed the Clam King of Mirage Sea's power. Clearly, it was not that easy to break free from her nightmare, and the tiger demon's innate ability still seemed to have abilities that he had yet to uncover.
He subconsciously rubbed his eyes. Apart from turning his soul into a haunt, would it be effective in deterring the enemy if he used it in regular battles?
There was no need for the enemy to directly submit to him. All he needed to do was deter them. Even if it was for a split second, it could be the difference between life and death.
"This nightmare sure has brought me quite a lot of benefits!"
At this moment, the Myriad Poison Ancestor's soul nascent soul suddenly let out a baby-like cry and flew high into the air. It shone with rings of green light, illuminating the entire hall.
Li Qingshan gazed over. The Myriad Poison Ancestor's soul nascent soul rapidly grew up, actually turning back into the Myriad Poison Ancestor in the end. When the green light dispersed, it landed before Li Qingshan again and directly knelt down. It was filled with shame and regret.
"Great king, please forgive this old man for his great disrespect!"
Seeing how his mortal enemy had become like this, Li Qingshan could not help but be taken aback. The corner of his lips curled into a smile, but he refused to believe it completely, afraid that it was a trap.
As a result, he straightened himself out and coughed gently. "Old bastard, do you know your crimes?"
"I do, I do!" The Myriad Poison Ancestor bowed his head repeatedly.
"What crimes? Tell me." Some of the doubt in Li Qingshan's eyes vanished. Great cultivators had their own pride. It was basically impossible for them to do something like that.
"First, I shouldn't have launched a sneak attack on Savage mountain while the great king was away, much less resent the great king over the deaths of my disciples. Afterwards, the great king wanted to kill me, so I should have stood still and allowed the great king to kill me. Then I tried to flee, which added to my crimes. I can't even bear it even if I die! I only hope the great king can allow me to make up for my crimes with merit. With how wise and valiant the great king is, you'll definitely unite the nine provinces in the future. I'm willing to follow your lead … "
The Myriad Poison Ancestor said a great deal of flattery again. Clearly, the Myriad Poison cult possessed a legacy like that, which even made Li Qingshan feel embarrassed. He barked, "Shut up!"
"Yes." The Myriad Poison Ancestor immediately shut up. He was extremely obedient.
Li Qingshan could not help but laugh aloud. He had finally come to an end with this battle, and he had benefited greatly from it.
His laughter echoed through the surroundings before gradually dying down, turning into a long sigh again.
Seeing a powerful opponent who had fought him to the death reduced to such a state was an extremely delightful matter, but it also made him feel rather sorrowful. The path of cultivation was so cruel. Once he failed, he might end up begging for death.
There was no point in taking revenge anymore. After confirming that the Myriad Poison Ancestor had already submitted to the tiger demon's ability, he said, "You can rise!"
Li Qingshan then asked about the Myriad Poison Ancestor's current state. The Myriad Poison Ancestor truly was a knowledgeable great cultivator after all, immediately giving him an explanation.
Throughout history, a few great cultivators would become ghost cultivators after their bodies were destroyed, unable to find a suitable body with their soul nascence. As a result, they would become ghost cultivators, and their strength would be equivalent to Ghost Kings.
Of course, ghosts were not immortal. In particular, ghost cultivators in the world of the living might even have a shorter lifespan than when they were humans. Once their time was up, their souls would disperse if they did not return to the six paths of saṃsāra.
"Then how much lifespan do you have left?" Li Qingshan asked in a hurry. He had managed to recruit the strongest lackey after so much difficulty, so he had better not kick the bucket in just a few years.
"I've already cultivated for nine hundred and fifty-seven years. Originally, I only had a few centuries left in my lifespan, but now that I've become a ghost cultivator, that might not necessarily be the case. If I continue doing things like before, my lifespan will decrease by over a hundred years. If I cultivate in a land of extreme yin, my lifespan will increase by quite a lot, and if I have a method for ghost cultivators, my lifespan will increase even further. If I stay in the Hungry Ghost realm, I might even be able to live for another few thousand or even ten thousand years. "
"A few centuries is enough."
Li Qingshan waved his hand and took out the sumeru ring he had stolen from the Myriad Poison Ancestor with a flip of his hand. With a gentle flick of his thumb, it landed in the Myriad Poison Ancestor's hand.
Although Ru Xin had searched through it, she had mainly taken away the medicinal ingredients for the scripture on poison. She had not touched anything else, including the arcane treasure, the jade throne. If he returned it to the Myriad Poison Ancestor now, his strength would not suffer too much.
The Myriad Poison Ancestor bowed in thanks and put the sumeru ring back on his finger.
"With that, how much of your strength will you be able to recover?" Li Qingshan asked.
"Sixty percent."
"Only sixty percent?" Li Qingshan was surprised. This was slightly more than he had imagined.
"Suddenly becoming a ghost cultivator requires some time to adapt. By then, it should be seventy percent. The cult treasure was destroyed, or I could increase it by another ten percent. If I have a good method for ghost cultivators, I might be able to recover to eighty percent or even ninety percent."
The Myriad Poison Ancestor stood with his hands by his sides and said politely, like a loyal, old butler.
"A method for ghost cultivators." Li Qingshan sank into his thoughts. He only knew that the Umbral Yin sect should possess powerful methods for ghost cultivators, but he was a disciple of the Chan Monastery of Deva-Nāga right now. Coupled with the fact that he was an elder of the Sword Collection palace, he was basically an enemy of the Umbral Yin sect.
"I just happen to know a decent method for ghost cultivators. It can recover his strength to a hundred percent, or even higher." Little Ann walked in from outside.
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