Chapter 348: Gathering of Evil Spirits

Chapter 348: Gathering of Evil Spirits

February 15th, 2025

"No one has ever dared to question me within the Youmeng Pavilion!" Hongye's voice was icy, and as she spoke, she made her move. Her long sword struck out like a ghostly apparition, filled with a chilling sword aura and a terrifying killing intent.

This was the epitome of assassination!

As the master of the Youmeng Pavilion, Hongye's assassination skills were unparalleled.

She rarely took action.

But every time she did, she succeeded in her mission.

Among her achievements, her most remarkable feat was when she, at the Daogong Stage Second Realm, secretly assassinated a powerful cultivator at the Daogong Stage Seventh Realm.

Despite the five-level difference in cultivation, Hongye's attack was lethal, and she managed to escape unscathed.

However, this attack had no effect on the cultivator before her. With a casual wave of his palm, a terrifying force filled the entire hall.

The overwhelming pressure made it difficult for Hongye to even breathe.

"Boom!"

The sword light shattered.

Hongye's body was sent flying.

Just then, Yu Feng extended his right hand, intending to subdue Hongye completely.

But at that very moment, Hongye crushed a talisman, and a mysterious wave of energy burst forth, instantly enveloping her entire body, and she disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Damn it... She got away!"

Yu Feng's expression darkened, and his aura shifted, transforming his appearance within a short time.

This person was none other than Shen Shan.

When the Youmeng Pavilion was investigating the Xingchen Imperial Court, Shen Shan had already become aware of this matter.

Or, to be more precise, the three branches of the Youmeng Pavilion within the Xingchen Imperial Court had already been infiltrated by the forces of evil spirits.

Therefore, under such circumstances, it was impossible for the Youmeng Pavilion's attempts to investigate the Xingchen Imperial Court to go unnoticed by Shen Shan's watchful eyes.

After killing the true Youmeng Pavilion elder, Yu Feng, Shen Shan devoured him, gaining access to his memories. Following this lead, Shen Shan arrived at the Youmeng Pavilion to uncover who had instructed them to act in such a manner.

Unfortunately, despite Shen Shan's meticulous calculations, he never expected Hongye to be so cautious.

Nor did he anticipate that she possessed such a powerful life-saving trump card that even his direct intervention failed to detain her.

Hongye's escape was now an undeniable fact.

Shen Shan's divine consciousness expanded, quickly covering the entire Youmeng Pavilion.

Since Hongye had fled, he could only turn his attention to the other members of the Youmeng Pavilion.

"Your deadloyal 'Hongye' was sent to investigate the unusual activities in the Xingchen Imperial Court!"

"Your deadloyal 'Gu Wu' led the Tian Wu Zong's powerful cultivators to resist the demons, and the battle was fierce!"

"Your deadloyal 'Gu Wu' broke through during the fight, and his cultivation reached the Daogong Stage Fourth Realm!"

"Your deadloyal 'Gu Yi', following Gu Yang's orders, secretly led the Anwei's powerful cultivators to the Xingchen Imperial Court to track their movements!"

"Your deadloyal 'Gu Yi' was attacked by evil spirits 1136 times!"

"Your deadloyal 'Gu Yi' was attacked by evil spirits 2369 times!"

"Your deadloyal 'Gu Yi' used his trump card to slay a powerful evil spirit and led the Anwei cultivators to retreat from the Xingchen Imperial Court!"

"Your deadloyal 'Hongye' was attacked by a mysterious powerful cultivator and used her trump card to abandon the entire Youmeng Pavilion and escape!"

"Your deadloyal..."

...

In Zhenyao Immortal City, Gu Qingfeng's expression grew increasingly somber as he read the messages on the information panel.

He had already concluded that something was amiss in the Xingchen Imperial Court.

Indeed, the frequency of Gu Yi's encounters with evil spirits was alarmingly high.

In the past, evil spirits usually acted alone, and even when they attacked, it was only once or twice.

But now, Gu Yi, while in the Xingchen Imperial Court, had faced attacks from evil spirits in the hundreds.

This frequency was something Gu Qingfeng had only witnessed among a few individuals, like Gu Xiu.

The difference was that Gu Xiu had encountered demons, while Gu Yi was facing evil spirits.

This single fact was enough to prove that the Xingchen Imperial Court was likely overrun by evil spirits.

Otherwise, such a situation would never have occurred.

"The unusual activities in the Xingchen Imperial Court have also caught the attention of the imperial court, indicating the remarkable development of the Jin Yi Wei and Anwei forces over the years!"

"However, despite Gu Yi's current cultivation at the Daogong Stage Sixth Realm, he was forced to leave the Xingchen Imperial Court due to the pressure from evil spirits. The evil spirits there are not as simple as they seem..."

Gu Qingfeng lightly tapped the armrest, his eyes shifting slightly.

As for Hongye being attacked within the Youmeng Pavilion, combined with the situation Gu Yi faced earlier, it was understandable.

If the Xingchen Imperial Court had indeed become a gathering place for evil spirits, the Youmeng Pavilion's investigation would undoubtedly attract their attention.

Note:

Evil spirits are adept at misleading and manipulating people's minds.

This is a fact that Gu Qingfeng has experienced firsthand.

In a certain sense, evil spirits and strange phenomena belong to the same category, possessing immense power in the spiritual realm. Sometimes, what one sees with their own eyes may not be real.

The recent turmoil in the Xingchen Imperial Court is not good news.

However—

This matter is not something Gu Qingfeng can interfere with for now.

He must guard Zhenyao Immortal City.

Currently, the Demon Clan is wreaking havoc.

In terms of severity, it is not much different from the evil spirits.

Gu Qingfeng believes that if he were to leave Zhenyao Immortal City, the Demon Clan would likely learn of it, and a Demon Emperor-level expert might return to cause trouble.

Moving forward, Gu Qingfeng will stay in Zhenyao Immortal City and personally oversee the battlefield.

Under the Trick God Flag, the Trick God indiscriminately slaughters countless demons, and its strength steadily increases.

Gu Qingfeng even suspects that if the Trick God continues its slaughter, it might directly achieve the level of a Great Emperor.

However—

Gu Qingfeng also understands that even if the Trick God can achieve the Great Emperor level, it is not something that can be accomplished by slaughtering a mere few hundred million demons.

After all, up until now, the Trick God has slain no less than tens of millions of demons, but as of yet, it has only reached the level of the First Heaven of the Holy Realm.

This shows that killing ordinary demons may not be of much use to the Trick God at its current level.

Only when the number of demons reaches a certain level can it trigger a transformation.

Nevertheless, Gu Qingfeng is not in a hurry.

After all, according to the intelligence he has gathered about the Demon Clan, they are currently invading numerous worlds, and their numbers have already reached a staggering level.

This is evident from the fact that the Demon Clan is invading Zhenyao Immortal City in waves, disregarding casualties.

The death and injury of a few demons are insignificant to the powerful members of the Demon Clan.

Currently, with the Trick God overseeing the battlefield, the Demon Clan is finding it difficult to cause much trouble.

If it weren't for the concern that the Trick God might go out of control without his suppression, Gu Qingfeng wouldn't have to worry too much.

But the situation is different now.

The stronger the Trick God becomes, the more likely it is to encounter problems.

This mysterious and strange treasure with an unknown origin has never been taken lightly by Gu Qingfeng.

...

Three days later.

The latest chapter is now available!

Someone enters Zhenyao Immortal City and meets with Gu Qingfeng.

"Subordinate Hongye, paying respects to the Honorable One!"

"You may rise."

Gu Qingfeng looks at the person before him, clad in red, with a beautiful face as if untouched by the passage of time, leaving no trace of age on her pretty face.

However, there is a difference.

After many years of not seeing each other, Hongye seems to have become colder than before, giving off an air of keeping others at a distance.

But in front of Gu Qingfeng, Hongye remains respectful.

"Honorable One, I have investigated the news of the Xingchen Imperial Court. There has been some progress. Later, a mysterious powerful being took over a position in Youmeng Pavilion and mixed with the subordinate. Eventually, I discovered them.

Based on the power displayed by that person, it seems to be related to the evil spirits!"

"So, the subordinate has reason to suspect that the Xingchen Imperial Court might have some connection with the evil spirits in secret.

Unfortunately, with Youmeng Pavilion encountering trouble, the subordinate cannot gather more information!"

Hongye's face turns red with shame.

She feels that she has let Gu Qingfeng down.

After working hard to establish Youmeng Pavilion for many years, it was finally time to serve Gu Qingfeng, but as soon as she appeared, the other party discovered her hideout and almost wiped out the entire Youmeng Pavilion.

Regarding this, Hongye feels embarrassed.

Gu Qingfeng says, "I already know about the Xingchen Imperial Court. This time, they have secretly colluded with the evil spirits. Your Youmeng Pavilion ultimately has too shallow a foundation, and it's impossible for them to remain undetected.

Since Youmeng Pavilion is destroyed, you can stay by my side from now on!"

"Yes!"

Hongye's heart fills with joy, and a captivating smile appears on her face, as if a glacier has melted.

In her opinion, even if Youmeng Pavilion is destroyed, it's not something worth regretting if she can stay by Gu Qingfeng's side.

In the following days, Zhenyao Immortal City seems to have regained its former peace.

Only the battlefield remains fiercely contested, but with the Trick God overseeing it and the numerous ancient weapons from the Tai Gu era, the Demon Clan cannot stir up any trouble.

It is worth mentioning that the ancient world Gu Qingfeng entered previously, the Divine Martial Empire, obtained a batch of ancient weapons from it, greatly increasing the number of defensive weapons in Zhenyao Immortal City.

In the chaotic void, a multitude of Star-Killing Cannons, numbering over twenty, stand ready.

With such an array of cannons, even the presence of a Saint would be no match, and they could easily decimate an entire army.

Moreover, with Gu Qingfeng's presence in Zhenyao Immortal City, not a single Demon Lord, who rivals the Saints in power, dares to set foot within its walls.

This makes it much easier for the Zhenmo Army.

At the same time, Hongye, having followed Gu Qingfeng, gains battlefield experience.

As the former pavilion master of Youmeng Pavilion, Hongye's cultivation, though only at the second level of the Dao Palace Realm, possesses an assassination sword technique that is virtually flawless, reaching the point of transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary.

Especially on the battlefield, where many powerful cultivators struggle to maintain absolute focus and vigilance, Hongye's skills shine.

This provides Hongye with ample room for maneuver.

Under her relentless assassination attempts, even a ninth-level Dao Palace Realm Demon bleeds.

Consequently, the Demon side is enraged.

Numerous Half-Saint Realm Demons attempt to strike, aiming to kill Hongye.

However, with a single attack, regardless of success or failure, they immediately retreat, showing no signs of hesitation or delay.

This leaves no opportunity for other Half-Saint Demons to kill Hongye.

Simultaneously, Gu Qingfeng also imparts a portion of the Ancient God-King Scripture to Hongye.

Although Gu Qingfeng has not cultivated this Imperial Scripture to its peak, he has reached the perfect level in the Dao Palace Realm.

Thus, passing on the Dao Palace Realm cultivation method to Hongye is not an issue.

Upon learning that the Ancient God-King Scripture is an Imperial Scripture, Hongye's astonishment is evident.

However, as a Deadloyal, Hongye's loyalty to Gu Qingfeng is absolute.

Therefore, after receiving the Ancient God-King Scripture from Gu Qingfeng, Hongye's strength rises to a new level.

While it is true that Imperial Scriptures are challenging to cultivate, for Hongye, a Dao Palace Realm cultivator, it merely means transferring her existing cultivation to the Ancient God-King Scripture.

This process, though tedious, is still far better than starting from scratch.

Additionally, as a Deadloyal, Hongye's talent is not lacking.

With Gu Qingfeng's guidance and the abundance of spiritual elixirs and pills, cultivating the Ancient God-King Scripture is not particularly difficult.

After Hongye cultivates the Ancient God-King Scripture, although she doesn't break through in terms of realm, her strength has indeed risen to a new level.

---

"Your Majesty, the Xingchen Imperial Court is undoubtedly colluding with evil spirits," the Deadloyal Commander reported in the study of the Divine Martial Empire. His eyes, filled with deep-seated apprehension, spoke volumes.

"So, the powerful ones in the Xingchen Imperial Court have already reached the level of lower-tier calamities, and I even sensed the aura of a mid-tier calamity!"

"Fortunately, I retreated in time; otherwise, the Dark Guards might have all perished there!"

Gu Yang's expression remained indifferent. "So, the Xingchen Imperial Court has indeed colluded with evil spirits?"

"Yes!"

Gu Yi nodded slightly. "Based on the current intelligence, the Xingchen Imperial Court seems to have reached an agreement with the evil spirits. The latter aids the former in slaughtering cities and offering sacrifices of countless lives. But what conditions did the evil spirits offer to make the Xingchen Imperial Court willing to join hands with them?"

"The conditions... I fear are related to our Divine Martial Empire!"

Upon hearing this, Gu Yang couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. Enemies often know each other best.

As the Xingchen Imperial Court was once the Divine Martial Empire's greatest enemy, Gu Yang was well-informed about Lu Zhen.

Although they had never met, it didn't hinder his understanding of Lu Zhen.

"Lu Zhen is extremely cautious and acts arbitrarily. With our Divine Martial Empire having the Emperor as its pillar, the Xingchen Imperial Court naturally feels threatened. Only the Demon invasion has hindered our empire's progress.

Otherwise, I would have already sent troops to the Xingchen Imperial Court to settle old scores."

"Lu Zhen is clearly aware of this, so he takes the risk of collaborating with evil spirits, hoping to find a glimmer of hope."

"Unfortunately, Lu Zhen, as the Human Emperor, has ultimately taken the wrong path!"

"Once the news of the Xingchen Imperial Court's collusion with evil spirits spreads, I fear other forces will unite to uproot the Xingchen Imperial Court without waiting for our Divine Martial Empire to make a move."

As Gu Yang spoke, a chill appeared in his eyes.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end