Loyal Heart Roaming the Skies

Chapter 28: From the depths of the Nine Netherworlds

In Xiaolin Town, only Jiang Wang was able to help on the way back to the central palace after Zhao Rucheng and Du Yehu lost their fighting power and Linghe was carrying Zhao Rucheng. Fortunately, he had experience dealing with these wandering souls, and his Purple Qi Sword became more proficient in this continuous battle.

There was no need to worry about physical strength. Since returning from Tangshe Town, he had been practicing his pulse and had accumulated more than seventy Dao Yuan. Although he used one less before the rotation of the Dao, each Dao Yuan could provide him with enough feedback in critical moments to withstand the pressure of such intense battles. In fact, these Dao Yuan were his trump card for the four of them to break into the Xun Palace, but he did not expect Zhao Rucheng to suddenly encounter danger, and Du Yehu was so decisive.

"I said, don't all of you look so sad." After a while, Zhao Rucheng couldn't help but speak again, "It's just excessive loss of blood and energy. There are ways to remedy it."

"What method?" Du Yehu hadn't spoken yet, but Linghe was already excited, shaking Zhao Rucheng's hand back and forth, "You tell us!"

While clearing the wandering souls, Jiang Wang couldn't help but glance at him, wanting to give him two swords. This guy had a solution but didn't say it, he had been hiding it.

"Hey hey hey, you're making my handsome head dizzy." It was not easy for Zhao Rucheng to calm down his 'temporary mount' and continued, "I happen to know that someone bought a Solidifying Element Pill at a high price from the Yun Kingdom a few days ago and wants to resell it. This pill has a miraculous effect on nourishing blood and stabilizing foundations. Some aristocratic children even take a Solidifying Element Pill before opening their pulse, so that their true spirits will be more agile after opening their pulse! Not to mention Du Yehu's situation of excessive loss of blood and energy."

"I just don't know..." He even raised the corners of his mouth, "if some people are willing to buy it."

Du Yehu paused for a moment before saying, "I don't have any money."

"You can borrow from me. The industry rule is nine out of thirteen returned," Zhao Rucheng said with a smile.

"Usury is fine, Brother Hu likes usury." Du Yehu seemed to be laughing honestly.

"Okay, okay." Jiang Wang had a black line on his forehead. Everyone in Fenglin City knew that Du Yehu was notorious for not repaying his debts. According to Du Yehu, since those usurers were not good people, he could cheat them out of some wine money. If he had not come from the Dao Institute, he would have been thrown into the moat long ago.

"Xiaowu, who is that person? How much money will it take to buy it?"

Jiang Wang had already secretly decided to find a way to raise enough money no matter how much that person asked for.

"The person who bought the Solidifying Element Pill is actually surnamed Zhao. Isn't that a coincidence?" Zhao Rucheng sighed dramatically, "What's even more coincidental is that he's actually someone from my mansion. This is too much of a coincidence!"

Jiang Wang took a deep breath and warned himself that Lao Wu was seriously injured and could easily be killed. This controlled his impulse to hit someone.

This guy had been talking in circles for a long time, just to say that there was a Solidifying Element Pill in his house that could make up for Du Yehu's loss. With just this sentence, he had whetted the appetite of several brothers for half an incense stick's time.Even Linghe, who was usually calm and collected, felt a toothache.

But with this guarantee, everyone felt much more at ease. They had already returned to the central palace.

Li Jianqiu and Zhao Lang were already waiting there, discussing something with Wang Changxiang. There were also some other senior brothers present, but their condition was not very good. Wei Yan had gone to support the Duigong position, which was the only position that had not been breached.

"Junior Brother Jiang did well," Li Jianqiu greeted him casually.

Wang Changxiang also nodded at him.

"I'm ashamed, it was all thanks to my wild tiger brother and Ru Cheng's outburst," Jiang Wang said with a bitter smile.

In front of the main force, he had made the right decision. The most important thing at this stage was to help them successfully open their meridians. The reason why Linghe was not mentioned was because Du Ye and Zhao Rucheng were more convincing.

Linghe didn't mind at all.

"When Wei Yan comes back, we'll go straight into the central palace," Wang Changxiang said. "This time, everyone fought bravely and performed admirably. Maple City won't forget your contributions, and the Taoist Institute won't forget your achievements."

"Exactly!" Wei Yan had already emerged from the thick fog, followed by three Taoist disciples. Two other disciples had not appeared, indicating that they had unfortunately fallen.

The fierce battle was not limited to the Xungong position. Apart from Wei Yan and Li Jianqiu, who had almost solved the problem of the Resentful Ghosts without any damage, the other teams had suffered casualties. Eleven people had died, with a mortality rate of nearly half! Even those who survived were almost all injured. Even Zhao Lang had almost had his intestines ripped open, leaving a grim wound on his abdomen.

If it weren't for Wang Changxiang's timely command at the central palace, this mission might not have been successful.

Wei Yan said solemnly, "If we can return from this battle, I will be the first to recommend you for credit."

"The danger of this battle was beyond my expectations. But now that Maple City's fighting strength is weak, only you can handle it," he bent down and bowed, "I thank you on behalf of the souls of the dead in Xiao Lin Town and the people of Maple City for shedding your blood!"

"You're too kind, General Wei," Li Jianqiu said.

Everyone turned to the side, unwilling to accept this courtesy.

"What are you talking about, General Wei? You're from Maple City, aren't we also from here?" Du Ye was dissatisfied, "Don't talk about empty courtesy here, time is of the essence!"

Even in such a weakened state, this guy was still so heroic.

Wei Yan gave him a deep look, turned his knife and said, "This junior brother is right. Follow me and charge! Let's see who is the monster that is tormenting our fellow villagers here!"

The eight palaces had been breached, and the fog wall at the central palace had lost its foundation and silently collapsed, no longer blocking their way. However, the thick fog still had not dissipated, obscuring their vision.

Wei Yan led the way, with Li Jianqiu and Wang Changxiang protecting him on either side. Although Zhao Lang was injured, his overall combat power was still intact, so he guarded the rear. The group proceeded cautiously towards the central palace.At this point, there was no need to say much about the danger of Xiaolin Town. Having experienced the danger of killing vengeful ghosts in the other eight palaces, everyone had some idea of the ferocity of the central palace.

Those demons who did evil in Xiaolin Town, if they had any plans, would surely be in this central location.

This group of people could be said to represent the hope of the young generation of Fenglin City. If they all died here, the entire Fenglin City Dao Academy would be in dire straits.

But no one said they wanted to retreat. Although the road ahead was certainly dangerous and terrifying, this was their hometown!

They were born here, grew up here, learned here, and were willing to die here.

Apart from Zhao Rucheng and Du Yehu, three other disciples of the Dao Academy had also lost their combat effectiveness. In such a dangerous place as Xiaolin Town, it was naturally impossible to leave them behind. Therefore, Linghe still carried Zhao Rucheng on his back and moved forward in the team, while Huang Azhan, as Du Yehu's old drinking buddy, also protected him on the side.

Unlike the almost exhausted Du Yehu, Huang Azhan was full of energy. In the previous battle, he was one of the few who was unscathed, indicating that he still had some strength and was not just all talk.

The team was advancing, and Huang Azhan suddenly stopped in his tracks. He took a deep sniff and said, "I smell a fragrance."

The team paused with him.

He continued, "It's the rouge of a woman... no, it's body fragrance."

Everyone looked at him.

He added, "It's a beautiful woman."

Du Yehu said irritably, "Do you have a dog's nose?"

"Ah! A beautiful female ghost!" Zhao Rucheng suddenly became excited. "I knew it! Du Laohu, you owe me a romantic encounter!"

No one paid attention to these two jokers, because they had already arrived at the center of Xiaolin Town and saw the huge, moving vortex.

Apart from that, there was nothing else in the central palace.

The red-dressed woman, the white-haired old man, and the black-robed cultivator seemed to have never appeared.

Not only did they not exist, but there was no one, no livestock, not even a brick or a tile. Apart from the endless thick fog, there was only this strange, lonely vortex.

"Why is the government office here gone? What kind of thing is this vortex?" No one could answer this question. Only Wang Changxiang widened his eyes in inexplicable horror!

"Do you know, Brother Wang?" Wei Yan held his knife in readiness and asked in a low voice.

But his question was soon answered.

Because from the depths of the darkness at the center of the vortex, a black object slowly emerged.

Seeing black in the darkness was a very awkward description, but that was exactly how it was.

That black object in the darkness, however, was like the center of the darkness and could let everyone see its appearance. As it rose slowly in the vortex, its entire form gradually appeared before everyone.

It was a stone archway, not particularly grand in style, with only three rooms, four pillars, and seven floors. If you ignored its black texture and the scene of its appearance, it was no different from the archways people saw in their daily lives.

But the plaque in the middle of the archway had already revealed its extraordinary nature.On top were three characters written. No one present recognized the font, but everyone understood its meaning at first glance.

——Ghost! Gate! Seal!