Chapter Ninety-Nine: Brought to Justice

"Brother Yi, excellent work."

Seeing that Yi An was unharmed, Yan Chixia finally let out a breath of relief, though what filled his heart even more was admiration.

If he were to ask himself honestly, had their positions been reversed and he himself been the one ambushed just now, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

Yi An's expression was gloomy. He had thoroughly learned today how treacherous and cunning such evil beings could be. If not for the astonishing defenses of the Myriad Dragon Armor, he could already foresee what would have happened next.

This also sounded an alarm in his heart. From now on, whenever he dealt with demons and spirits, he would have to remain on guard with all his strength. A moment's negligence could easily allow such creatures to scheme against him and place his life in danger.

The Myriad Dragon Armor was indeed formidable, but after all it was only an external object. He could not entrust his safety wholly to a lifeless thing.

In a flash, Yan Chixia's longsword drew without warning, carrying the chill of the autumn wind. A streak of cold brilliance flashed, followed by a clear hum, like an eager cry.

In that instant, the female ghost instinctively fled backward in terror, her delicate face filled with panic.

"Beast! Accept your doom!"

The moment Yan Chixia's words fell, the force in his hand surged to its limit. In a single instant, the longsword, like a star in the night sky, plunged into the ghost's graceful form.

As the sword struck, the female ghost felt a violent pain erupt within her, piercing her soul as though ten thousand searing blades were tearing through her heart. A crushing agony quickly swept through her entire being.

Even her soul dimmed by several degrees, growing weaker by the moment, as though it might scatter into smoke at any time.

Between her brows, a crystal-white pearl could be faintly seen.

That was her inner core, the place where all her vital essence was gathered.

Demon spirits differed from human cultivators. They had no dantian, but they did possess an inner core that absorbed their essence.

Whether a demon core or a ghost core, such things were treasures to an alchemist. If added to the furnace, they could not only increase the success rate of refinement, but also, with the support of the core's essence, enhance the efficacy of the pills themselves.

As though fully aware that her end was near, the female ghost bared her sharp claws again and took on a posture of attack.

Seeing Yan Chixia adopt a defensive stance and prepare to launch another assault, the ghost retreated like lightning. In the blink of an eye, her figure had already withdrawn dozens of yards.

"Hmph, trying to run?"

"As if I'd let you!"

Yan Chixia snorted coldly and suddenly drove power through his feet, pursuing her even faster. There was no elaborate technique, only a contest of endurance and bodily strength under the urging of true essence.

The female ghost was clearly no longer as ferocious as before. After suffering such a severe injury, even in soul form with its natural advantages, she could distinctly feel her strength failing her. Even when she exerted every last bit of her ability, it was still of no use.

Before long, Yan Chixia had caught up.

She was right before him.

With a flash of his longsword, sword light swept out, sword energy raging in all directions. Though it did not pierce the female ghost, the scattering blade wind still carved across her back.

A muffled sound followed.

Had the female ghost been at the peak of her power, such a casual strike would have meant little.

But the present was no longer the past. In her declining state, even the most casual blow could very well take her life.

The pain of her soul being torn apart made her entire body tremble uncontrollably.

"Haha, I'll let you live one more day. For now, come stay inside this daoist priest's robe. It will count as a rare honor in a ghost's life."

"No other ghost gets such treatment."

The female ghost very much wanted to cry out in reply that he was utterly shameless, but the tearing pain in her soul left her unable to utter a single word.

She could only lie there weakly and allow Yan Chixia to do as he pleased.

Watching this dark-hearted, black-bearded brute, Yi An could not help feeling a strange sense of unreality.

Was this really the Yan Chixia he knew?

He seemed like a completely different person, utterly unlike the one from before.

Could it be that he had a split personality, appearing one way when facing demons and another after encountering them?

Fortunately, Xuan Yangzi had not seen this scene. Otherwise, he would surely have sighed and said, I must have taken in a fake disciple.

Otherwise, if he had known Yan Chixia possessed such a dark side, why would he ever have suggested that Yi An help him more often?

"Brother Yi, truly, after searching high and low with no result, to have it come to us so easily is beyond expectation. It seems this fellow is merely an ordinary mountain specter, with no great backing." Yan Chixia reined in the ghost, and was immediately satisfied.

"Perhaps I worried too much. Still, a little caution never hurts."

"Only, we still have not found the specter's lair." Yi An frowned, feeling that something was not quite right.

What happened to the thousand-year-old tree demon?

Wasn't this all a little too simple?

He thought about it for a long time, yet still could not make sense of it. But then again, this was not the world he knew in the first place; some differences were only natural.

He had simply been too deeply influenced by the things in his memories. It seemed that from now on, he would have to rely more on reality, with everything else taking a secondary role.

"Haha, as long as we catch the true culprit, that's enough. As for her lair, I'm afraid we won't have any chance to pry it out of her." Yan Chixia gave a dry laugh. The specter had been wounded far too severely by him; at this point even breathing was difficult, and it would likely not be long before she scattered into nothing.

If he had known earlier, he should have held back and played with her a little longer.

Alas, this specter was simply too fragile.

Just one casual strike had nearly slain her.

He kept this specter for other use, so it was not yet time to put her to death.

Yi An glanced at the sky. It was still early; they had only been out for two hours.

Soon, the two of them returned to the Orchid Temple.

At the sight of them, Magistrate Wang hurriedly came forward at once, asking, "Daoist master, has there been any progress regarding my son?"

Yan Chixia nodded, found a place to sit down, but did not speak for a long while.

This almost drove Magistrate Wang mad. He quickly put on a mournful face and said, "Daoist master, please stop teasing me. You are truly killing me with anxiety."

Only then did Yan Chixia let out a deep sigh and say, with grave sincerity, "There has indeed been some progress in this matter. However, it is far more serious than I had imagined, and I am afraid I am powerless to resolve it. Sir, you should seek help elsewhere."

"If we are delayed even a little longer, the consequences will be unthinkable."

"Ah, as for the exact details, there is no need for you to ask further."

"I have my own difficulties."

"That is all I can tell you."

Hearing Yan Chixia's words, Magistrate Wang was instantly dumbfounded.

"This..."