Chapter 1340: Holy Fire

The ghostly mist was incredibly thick, resembling a turbid river encircling the blood-red altar. Countless vengeful spirits and evil ghosts filled the surroundings, emanating intense malevolence. They all revealed their true forms: grotesque, incomplete, and struggling helplessly in the 'river', crying out in pain as they were swept towards the blood-red altar. This sight brought to mind the legendary Yellow Springs. As the ghostly beings neared the altar, they were assimilated by the ancient blood-red prohibition, turning into nothingness and becoming part of the altar. As countless ghostly beings were devoured by the blood-red altar, its crimson glow intensified.

Above the altar, a blood-red cloud emerged, emitting a strong sanguineous aura, its crimson light shooting straight into the sky. Booming... The blood cloud violently churned, cold winds howled, and the void itself trembled. Its momentum was in no way inferior to the five-colored immortal winds in the inner hall. A strange fluctuation permeated the void above the altar, as if something was brewing.

Old Demon Ye and Jade Bone floated in mid-air, their figures seeming frail and precarious. Countless evil spirits surrounded them, filled with hatred, yet unable to approach. Old Demon Ye looked up, his gaze piercing through the blood cloud towards the top of the altar, his eyes burning with fervor, uninterested in Jade Bone's words. Jade Bone also fell silent; neither of them paid any mind to Qin Sang. From the palms of both Jade Bone and Old Demon Ye, strands of blood-red threads extended, drifting in the ghostly mist. Another period of time passed.

Old Demon Ye occasionally glanced at the altar, licked his lips, and asked in a hoarse voice, "How many more vengeful spirits do we need to devour to break the seal? Our opponents are growing in number, and the Soul Infant Grand Array, which controls myriad souls, is nearing its limit. It won't hold them for much longer. If they break free and destroy too many Blood Infant Crystals, it will jeopardize our grand plan."The Nascent Souls integrated with crystal balls were what Old Demon Ye referred to as Blood Infant Crystals. The Nascent Souls that had transformed into Blood Infant Crystals had long lost their sentience, becoming ferocious Blood Infants, controlled by them to form the Soul Infant Grand Array.

"If only we had foreseen this day, we wouldn't have acted as we did!" Jade Bone snorted coldly, "If you had opened the seal for me earlier and gathered enough vengeful spirits outside, we wouldn't have had to cause such a commotion..." Midway through speaking, Jade Bone suddenly paused, turning to look in Qin Sang's direction and letting out a soft "咦?" "Sacred Flame?" His tone held a mix of surprise and delight. Old Demon Ye was puzzled and looked at Jade Bone.

Within the ghostly mist, clumps of red blood clouds drifted around Daoist Zhendao and the others, with numerous ghostly figures. Countless vengeful spirits and ghostly beings surrounded them, their eyes crimson, emanating palpable malevolence. They seemed controlled, incredibly sinister and frenzied, attacking everyone.

Noticing the streak of light heading directly towards them, Daoist Zhendao's face initially showed vigilance, but after recognizing the light, it immediately turned to surprise and delight, "Fellow Daoist Qin!" Whoosh! Sword qi, like a bolt of silk, pierced through the ghostly mist a step ahead of Qin Sang, striking a blood cloud. The blood cloud was pierced by the sword qi and immediately burst apart. Moments later, the scattered blood cloud re-formed into a single mass, restoring itself completely. That seemingly powerful sword strike had failed to harm the blood cloud in the slightest.

Qin Sang, following closely, suddenly stopped, his expression grave as he looked at the blood cloud. "Fellow Daoist Qin, be careful! Do not let the blood clouds get close to you. These are soul-refining evil substances; they can defile the physical body and true essence. If they invade your body, the consequences will be unimaginable!" Daoist Zhendao warned loudly. As Daoist Zhendao spoke, two blood clouds changed their target and lunged towards Qin Sang. Qin Sang retracted his Ebony Sword, frowned at the blood clouds, and with a flash, a dark figure appeared in his place: the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet. The Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet was a construct and should be immune to these evil substances. Qin Sang was eager to understand the situation and worried about Qing Jun and Bai's safety, so he no longer concealed the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet.

The next moment, the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet punched towards the blood cloud! Runes shimmered all over the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet, revealing the faint outline of its puppet marks and a layer of faint green light. The moment it struck, a mass of black light shot out from its body, transforming into a fist shadow that violently shattered the blood cloud into fragments. The shattered blood cloud drifted towards the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet. Qin Sang ordered the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet not to dodge. As he expected, the blood cloud fragments merely adhered to its surface upon contact, unable to infiltrate it in the slightest. Seeing this, Qin Sang's expression eased. He commanded the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet to lead the way, while he followed behind it on his sword. As the man and puppet forcefully advanced, the surrounding blood clouds and ghostly beings surged madly towards them. The Ebony Sword slashed down ghostly beings, while the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet dispersed the blood clouds. The man and puppet, with clear division of labor, rushed forward.

Seeing this, Daoist Zhendao quickly motioned for everyone to provide support. Boom! A dark figure suddenly burst out from a blood cloud, appearing before them. Upon meeting its gaze, filled with intense killing intent, even with Daoist Zhendao's cultivation, his heart involuntarily tightened. Glancing at the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet, Daoist Zhendao realized it was Qin Sang's puppet. Suppressing his surprise, he activated his whisk, repeatedly casting out streaks of white light to help alleviate Qin Sang's pressure.

Whoosh! Qin Sang seized the opportunity to break through the encirclement, nodded a greeting to everyone, and then instinctively joined the battle, fighting alongside them against the enemy. The Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet fought alongside Qin Sang. The others couldn't help but cast glances at the Nascent Soul Talisman Puppet from time to time, their expressions varied, but without exception, their eyes were filled with shock. Qin Sang's current renown even showed a tendency to surpass that of veteran powerhouses. Considering he had only reached the Nascent Soul stage a few decades ago, achieving such a feat was already astonishing. Who would have thought that only twenty years after the great battle, he would somehow produce a Nascent Soul-level puppet? Observing the puppet's performance, it seemed slightly stronger than an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. How could the crowd not be shocked?

Daoist Zhendao, considering Qin Sang's relationship with Qing Jun, found it surprising yet plausible, so he didn't ask further and got straight to the point, "Fellow Daoist Qin, did you just come from the inner hall?" Qin Sang nodded, "Indeed! I entered a secret realm, but unexpectedly, the ancient prohibitions within it could block my talisman sword's perception. When I saw the message, I rushed here immediately, but you were all nowhere to be seen... What exactly happened?" "Fellow Daoist Qin, there's no need to worry. When we separated, I saw Fellow Daoist Leng and Fellow Daoist Jing Yu together, so they should be safe." Daoist Zhendao knew what Qin Sang was truly concerned about. He first stabilized his emotions, then began to explain what had transpired. "Everyone entered the inner hall to search but never found any trace of Old Demon Ye. The anomalies in the inner hall became increasingly violent, and the power of the ancient prohibitions in the secret realm was daunting. With the appearance of the five-colored immortal winds, the inner hall grew even more dangerous, so we considered retreating to observe the situation first. It was then that the blood-red altar shot out a heaven-piercing crimson light, exposing Old Demon Ye's whereabouts. We then returned to the outer hall, intending to capture Old Demon Ye first, as he might know the cause of the Ziwei Palace's anomalies. Apart from Fellow Daoist Qin, Feather King, and Fellow Daoist Lu, most of the other top experts had already arrived..."