Chapter 53: The Fall of the Northeast Immortals, the Celestial Master Chants

Three days later.

Early morning.

"Wuwuwuwuwu, I am so miserable—!!!"

Beside the waterfall, a deafening wail pierced the clouds. Eerie, pitch-black miasma churned turbulently, and outside of it stood Xue Fan, weeping profusely while frantically waving the soul-recruiting banner in his hands.

Within the fog-like black miasma, numerous cold, malevolent gazes flickered incessantly. Figures of all sizes darted and weaved through the shadows, accompanied by a cacophony of shrieks, creating a terrifying realm of ghosts.

As this spectral domain continuously expanded, pitch-black silhouettes from the surrounding mountain forests were steadily drawn in, merging into the mass. Judging by their forms, they were unexpectedly the souls of various wild animals from the mountains.

And understandably so. If one were to ask which spirits and roaming ghosts were most numerous in this world, it certainly wouldn't be humans. After all, many animals also possessed considerable spirituality; when they died and their true spirits dissipated, the three corpses within them would remain behind.

"Roar—"

"Squeak squeak—"

"Hiss—"

Instantly, all sorts of cries echoed continuously beside the water. Following the traction of the soul-recruiting banner in Xue Fan's grip, they swarmed and tightly surrounded another figure.

At this very moment, Tu Junfang sat cross-legged in the center, his eyes tightly closed. Wisps of ghostly qi floated up from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, while a pitch-black figure identical to him hovered right above his head.

"Wuwuwuwuwu, I can't pull it! Why won't this soul budge—?!"

Glancing at that dark and robust figure, Xue Fan swung the banner with all his might to guide it, yet no matter how hard he exerted himself, the target remained completely unmoving, causing him to wail even louder.

Right at that moment...

Swish—

Another towering, blood-red figure with four arms and a height of nearly three meters charged into the black miasma. Raising a hand, it struck out with a palm directly toward Tu Junfang's physical body, causing him to instantly snap his eyes open.

Swoosh!

Bang, bang!

The next instant, Tu Junfang's physical body sprang to its feet, raising its thick arms to catch Xiao Zizai's palm strike head-on...

Whoosh—

A violent wave of residual Qi violently rippled outward, sending dust billowing into the air!

Yet it was evident that even after his bodily refinement, Tu Junfang still could not match Xiao Zizai in pure physical strength. Thus, after taking the blow, a torrential flood of grayish-black sludge surged out from his entire body, rushing straight toward his opponent!

Swish, swash, rumble—

Ever since his three corpses were condensed into Three Corpse Pills, Tu Junfang no longer had a fixed form whenever he summoned them out. All their transformations followed his will, which could be considered a form of upgrading...

Right now, under his control, the Qi of the Three Corpse Pills attacked Xiao Zizai while simultaneously splitting into two streams to wrap around his own physical body and soul. They formed a thin, membrane-like barrier on the surface of both, which provided defense while further amplifying his power!

Seeing him unleash his full strength at last, another slender, graceful figure stepped leisurely into the scene. The moment he heard those footsteps, alarm bells instantly blared wildly within Tu Junfang's heart...

It was just like an animal encountering its natural predator!

Without the slightest hesitation, after controlling the Qi of the Three Corpse Pills to entangle Xiao Zizai, he prepared to integrate his physical body and soul to deal with Xue Fan on the other side. However, the exact moment his physical body moved and his spiritual soul attempted to take flight, a sweet, mesmerizing voice sounded right beside his ear.

"Brother Tu, I've only just arrived. Don't be in such a hurry to leave~"

"!!!"

In a fraction of a second, Tu Junfang's physical body and soul simultaneously stagnated and violently shuddered. He felt a strange power directly breach the defense of the three corpses, invading both his flesh and his soul.

Immediately following this, the Qi of the Three Corpse Pills around him churned out of control and dissipated in the blink of an eye. His spiritual soul returned to his physical body, leaving him frozen in place.

At that moment...

Tu Junfang regretted it.

"Tch, I shouldn't have let her join in!"

Right now, he felt his thoughts churning and his desires running wild. If not for the fact that his spiritually refined mind was sufficiently resilient, he would have likely lost control long ago.

Facts proved that he had still been too hasty. Xia He's abilities were by no means something he could challenge at his current stage, and he had stumbled flat on his face.

However, very soon...

"Duo'duo, go give your Uncle Tu a hand."

Xia Ye, standing to the side, smiled slightly and patted Chen Duo's head. Chen Duo immediately nodded.

Feeling the pain Tu Junfang was enduring at the moment, she raised her hand and released a swath of orange-yellow light mist. The tiny "Netetan-Vaidurya" particles began to "work" the moment they entered the range of the black miasma, not only calming Tu Junfang down, but also soothing all the spirits within the ghost realm and abruptly halting their wails.

Whoosh—

Thus, the spar concluded. Xue Fan stopped crying and summoned all the spirits back into his banner, Xia He withdrew her power, and Xiao Zizai resumed his normal form.

It was worth mentioning that because Xiao Zizai's transformations always caused his clothes to burst, which was terribly inconvenient, Xia Ye had simply refined a set of magical artifact clothing for him. Not only could it change according to his physical form and switch styles at will, but it also provided a tremendous amplification effect and even possessed the characteristic of "growing through bathing in blood," just like him.

Of course, he hadn't played favorites. Having been free for these past three days, he had similarly refined growth-type magical artifacts suited for Chen Duo, Xia He, and Tu Junfang as well. After all, as the ancient saying goes:

"The nature of a gentleman is no different from others; he is simply good at borrowing external things."

"If a worker wishes to do his work well, he must first sharpen his tools."

A moment later...

"All right, let's eat. Once we're done eating, it's time for us to move out."

Seeing that everyone had retrieved their True Qi and finished adjusting their breathing, Xia Ye immediately called out. Taking Duo'duo's small hand, he took the lead and walked back inside.

He had already notified everyone that they would be taking a long trip today. An old friend of his was about to encounter the biggest trouble of his life, and he needed to go lend a hand...

...

...

Meanwhile.

Dragon Tiger Mountain, Celestial Master Mansion.

In the training courtyard, a group of disciples was conducting their morning practice under the guidance of Senior Priest Rong Shan, each diligently working on their cultivation.

Not far away, beneath the eaves, an old man with white hair and a white beard, possessing an ethereal and transcendent bearing, sat upright. He nodded gently, his gaze fixed on those disciples.

"Daoist Tian-Tong" Zhang Zhiwei, commonly known as the "Old Celestial Master," was the current Celestial Master of the Mansion, the helmsman and leader of the Daoist sect, and the pinnacle of the world. The "One" in *Under One Person* referred precisely to this man—he was the undisputed number one in the world.

Yet obviously, he wasn't as solemn and serious as most people imagined. After watching for a while, feeling that everything was in order and growing bored, he picked up his smartphone and opened *QQ Landlords*.

However...

"Hm?"

Just as the Old Celestial Master finished a hand of cards, his brow suddenly twitched, and a thought arose in his mind. He raised his gaze, looking outward into the distance, his eyes falling directly toward the northeast.

"Master, what is it?"

Zhang Lingyu, who was tending to the tea nearby, immediately asked upon seeing this. The Old Celestial Master did not answer right away, continuing to sense the fluctuations.

Soon...

"Lingyu, after morning practice concludes, you and your senior brother are to head down the mountain and make a trip to the northeast. The 'Tribulation of Return' is about to begin, and I'm afraid an immortal being is going to depart..."

"In past instances like this, it always causes quite a bit of impact on the surrounding area. The Company won't be able to handle this matter and will sooner or later come asking for help. We might as well take the initiative and go ahead. In a moment, I will draw an incantation talisman; take it with you to quell the disaster and tribulation..."

Hearing his master's instructions, Zhang Lingyu immediately understood the situation and bowed in acknowledgment:

"Yes, Master!"