Mingzhu paused, then said with a wry smile, "How would this old Taoist know? Fellow Daoist Xiao, you should carefully consider whether to go in or not."
She glared at him, annoyed. He was quick to shirk responsibility; what an irresponsible person.
Head held high, chest out, and with long strides, Xiao Wenbing took the lead and entered the small stone house that exuded a gloomy atmosphere.
The entrance to the stone house was a dark passage. Although there was no light inside, it did not pose a challenge to these immortals.
Given the formidable reputation of the solitary god, they dared not devise any lighting equipment or spells. Instead, relying on their immense power, they sent out their divine senses, instantly gaining a clear understanding of the terrain inside.
The passage began to twist and turn ten meters from the entrance, and guided by their divine senses, the group successfully navigated several turns.
"Aww..."
A terrifying voice rang out beside them, and suddenly a hanging ghost appeared above the heads of the three women in the center of the group, spitting blood and flicking its long tongue.
Xiao Wenbing and the others were all taken aback. No matter how they guessed, they never expected to encounter a spirit or ghost here.
The three women reacted differently.
Zhang Yaqi waved her hand, and multicolored light rose from her body, rippling outwards in circles, which was quite beautiful.
Kairis immediately and directly entered Zhang Yaqi's protective circle. Under the protection of the Five Elements Power, he was in an invincible position. A small paper doll floated on his chest. The special substitute of the Heavenly Fox lineage had been tightly held in his hand before entering the cave.
At this moment, the substitute floated about, its eeriness no less than that of the rootless ghost.
As for Feng Baiyi, the calmest of the three, she appeared much more formidable.
With a flick of his finger, a bolt of lightning shot out instantly, and the hanged ghost appeared. Before the ghostly wailing process was even halfway complete, it was blasted apart by this heavenly lightning, its soul scattered into countless energy fragments that vanished into the world.
The Serpent Supreme and others behind her shuddered. What a powerful woman!
A muffled, thunderous voice rang out from ahead: "What kind of monster dares to destroy my guide?"
"A guide?" Xiao Wenbing asked in great surprise, "Senior Mingzhu, could this hanged ghost be a guide under the command of the Lonely God?"
Mingzhu hesitated for a moment, then smiled wryly and said, "Very likely, because I just saw that hanged ghost seem to be about to speak."
Everyone's gazes involuntarily drifted towards Feng Baiyi's direction, intentionally or unintentionally. This person's move was indeed too fast, not even giving the other person a chance to explain.
Feng Baiyi's cold gaze swept around, and everyone who met her eyes turned their heads away at the same time. Even if some people were secretly complaining, they absolutely dared not say it out loud.
"We juniors came to pay our respects to you, senior, but we didn't expect your guide to be so rare that we accidentally injured him. Please forgive us, senior." Xiao Wenbing shook his head. Since the fight had already happened, he had no choice but to apologize.
"Hahaha." The loud, unrestrained laughter was deafening, echoing in the pitch-black cave and making one dizzy.
Xiao Wenbing and the others' expressions changed slightly. If it were just laughter, no matter how loud it was, these supreme immortals wouldn't take it seriously. However, the laughter was mixed with a powerful divine force, which was something that immortals at this level couldn't withstand.
Mingzhu and Kairis were in the worst condition, their bodies trembling slightly, and they were about to give up.
While the Food King and the others might not be as skilled as Mingzhu and the other two in terms of cultivation, they had at least comprehended the power of the gods, and their bodies shone with light, barely managing to withstand the impact of the sound waves.
The calmest among them were, of course, Xiao Wenbing and his two companions.
Although the power of this voice was remarkable, it was still quite a distance from the immense power of the Treasure God and the former Divine Tree Ancestor, so it didn't have much impact on the three of them.
A hint of annoyance flashed in Zhang Yaqi's eyes. For someone with her usually quiet nature to have such an expression meant that she was quite dissatisfied with this person.
The colorful halo, which had been contracted to avoid misunderstandings, suddenly expanded, enveloping everyone inside.
Above the aperture, several colors alternated and swirled, forming a solid barrier that protected everything.
All impacts were shut out.
The person who was laughing was clearly unaware of the changes in the cave, and continued to make that annoying, cawing sound.
"Let's go." Xiao Wenbing waved his hand, a cold smile appearing on his lips, and said softly.
The group followed behind Xiao Wenbing, concealing their auras, and filed forward.
After navigating a dark and winding passage, they finally saw a glimmer of light appear on the other side.
Nodding slightly to Zhang Yaqi, the group flashed out of the cave.
After leaving the gloomy, dark passage, the world suddenly brightened up before their eyes.
What a beautiful and colorful landscape, what a wonderful farmland, and what a pleasant and warm atmosphere.
Here, the first thing everyone feels is peace, a peace that can quell any delusions in anyone's heart.
The laughter abruptly stopped. The moment Xiao Wenbing rushed out of the cave, the owner of the voice seemed to have already noticed and stopped his heart-stirring laughter.
Xiao Wenbing and the others looked up, but what they saw left them speechless and utterly incredulous.
Before them stood an equally tall, formless immortal, who smiled broadly at them. After everyone had left the passage, he clapped and said, "Not bad, not bad. Fifteen people were able to withstand the Soul-Seizing Sound. Truly impressive."
Everyone looked at his strange body with surprise on their faces.
"Are you a ghost immortal?" Xiao Wenbing asked curiously.
“Indeed, fellow immortal, you have excellent eyesight,” the ghost immortal laughed loudly.
Xiao Wenbing gave a wry smile. "If we still can't guess after seeing your body, then we are truly ignorant."
Ghost immortals are also a type of immortal, but this lineage of immortals is extremely rare, and very few of them actually become immortals.
Humans, demons, and spirits can cultivate immortality by constantly absorbing the primordial energy of heaven and earth. If someone goes astray in the process of cultivation or suffers disintegration, the only feasible way is to condense a nascent soul and a spirit, live on in a state of nothingness, and eventually cultivate into an immortal.
However, without a physical body as a foundation, cultivating solely through the nascent soul and spirit greatly increases both the danger and difficulty. The higher the cultivation level, the more severe this situation becomes. The final tribulation of the Ghost Immortal can be described as a life-or-death struggle, with virtually no precedents of success.
Therefore, when a ghost immortal obtains powerful magic, the vast majority of them will seek a suitable body as a vessel, and eventually possess and be reborn.
However, the person standing before Xiao Wenbing and the others today was not a ghost immortal who had been reborn after possessing another body, but a real, pure ghost immortal who lacked a physical body.
Bowing respectfully to the ghost immortal, Xiao Wenbing asked, "How should I address you, senior?" At the same time, he wondered to himself, "Isn't this old guy afraid of death? He's already cultivated to this level, yet he still hasn't tried to possess another body and be reborn."
"Haha, little guy, my name is Ghost Emperor, the king of ghosts, remember that."
"Yes." Xiao Wenbing bowed slightly, amused inwardly. However, judging from this man's demeanor, he really did have the air of an emperor.
"You lot are quite good." The Ghost Emperor repeated, "To be able to withstand the Soul-Seizing Sound at the Immortal Realm, your future is limitless."
Xiao Wenbing's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "Senior, were you perhaps testing us just now?"
The Ghost Emperor proudly raised his head and said, "That's right, this place was personally arranged by the Lonely God. If one doesn't have some ability, how can one be qualified to enter?"
Hearing his high regard for the lonely god he had never met, Xiao Wenbing and the others became even more serious.
"Oh, right." The Ghost King slapped his forehead and asked, "What are you juniors doing here?" He paused and said, "Don't tell me you're here to pay your respects to the Master. The Master doesn't have any juniors like you as friends."
Xiao Wenbing chuckled, his opinion of him improving considerably. Such a genuine person was rare, let alone someone who was a ghost immortal.
"Senior Ghost Emperor, we have come here to request the purchase of two treasures."
The Ghost King laughed loudly, "I have many treasures here. What do you want? I'll give you one."
"Give it to me?"
"Not bad, I'm in a good mood today, and your words suit my taste, so I'll give you one." The Ghost Emperor said casually.
Xiao Wenbing and the others' eyes lit up at the same time, and they began to value this ghost immortal even more.
The group exchanged glances, all knowing that this person was no ordinary individual.
These treasures should rightfully belong to the lonely god, but judging from how easily this ghost immortal gave them away, his status is definitely not just that of a divine messenger.
"May I ask how to address the Lonely God, senior?"
"That senile old man is my own father." "You...your father?"
Volume 22, Chapter 36: The Ghost Emperor (Part 2)
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The pedestrians' expressions immediately became extremely strange; no matter how they guessed, they never expected this answer.
The Ghost King was actually the son of the Lonely God, and judging from his attitude, he didn't seem to care much about his father. However, they also understood why this person was so arrogant, utterly disregarding the gods' treasures.
Xiao Wenbing was quite envious. This Ghost Emperor was really lucky to have such a good father.
If I had such a powerful backer, wouldn't I be just as arrogant and domineering, looking down on everyone else?
The Ghost King waved his hand impatiently and said, "Hey, what do you want? Just say it. I'm in a good mood right now, so I'll give it to you."
Suddenly, a cold voice came: "What if you're in a bad mood?"
Xiao Wenbing quickly gave Feng Baiyi a wink, but saw a faint smile on her lips, as if she had other plans. A thought struck him; he knew she wouldn't speak without reason, so he stopped trying to stop her.
The Ghost King opened his eyes wide and said, "If I'm in a bad mood, I'll steal all your treasures and then kick you all out."
"ah."
Food King and Mingzhu and the others frowned simultaneously, and they immediately understood why the legendary Lonely God would break his promise.
It seems that someone came here in the past, just when this Ghost King was in a bad mood, which led to that series of world-famous events. However, if it weren't for that, probably no one would know that this lonely god possesses such great supernatural powers.
Seeing the astonished expressions on Xiao Wenbing's and the others' faces, the Ghost Emperor immediately said, "Don't worry, I'm in a good mood right now, so I'll give you whatever you want."
"Really?" Xiao Wenbing's eyes lit up.
"Of course, I, the Ghost Emperor, keep my word and never lie." The Ghost Emperor laughed loudly, his voice carrying far and wide, and even echoing faintly in the valley.
“Alright, I want both water and fire spirits,” Xiao Wenbing said, enunciating each word clearly.
The Ghost King's maniacal laughter stopped abruptly, and his brows furrowed tightly.
"What? You're not willing anymore?" Xiao Wenbing said with a teasing smile.
The Ghost King was furious and said, "Nonsense! It's not that I'm unwilling, but that I cannot give you these two things."
Xiao Wenbing spread his hands and laughed, "It seems there's no difference between not being able to give it to us and refusing to give it to us."
The Ghost King's eyes shrank smaller and smaller, and anyone could tell that he was extremely unhappy.
The King of Food turned slightly to the side and gave a wink to Queenie, the Great Serpent Sovereign, and the others. Everyone became secretly on guard. If this person's mood soured and he tried to plunder their magical treasures, that would be extremely bad.
To everyone's surprise, the Ghost King did not break his promise. He frowned and explained, "To tell you the truth, these two spirits, water and fire, were brought back from outside by my old man a hundred years ago. When he brought them home, he said that they were spiritual objects of heaven and earth, not treasures. They are just staying in my house and have the right to leave at any time."
Zhang Yaqi's eyes suddenly lit up, and she asked, "Senior Ghost Emperor, are you saying that the Water and Fire Spirits stayed in your home voluntarily?"
"Not bad." The Ghost King's expression immediately brightened. "The little girl is so good; she understood what I meant right away." He turned to look at Xiao Wenbing and said, "You're no good; you're too stupid."