Chapter 83 - 80: Spirit Master Advancement

WHOOSH!

Immediately after, an extremely terrifying aura surged from the depths of the Yuling Sect toward the main peak where everyone was gathered. The entire world seemed enveloped in an immense, oppressive might.

The Second Elder of the Ling Family’s expression changed drastically. "Let’s go!" he shouted.

Without hesitation, the Second Elder retreated violently toward the outskirts of the Yuling Sect. The other six followed suit, retreating rapidly until they quickly vanished from everyone’s sight.

WHOOSH!

The terrifying aura then retracted, and the entire Yuling Sect returned to a state of tranquility.

The people of the Yuling Sect were utterly shocked. They wondered, "Is that a hidden expert of our Yuling Sect?" To directly scare off seven Tongyou Realm experts was unbelievable!

Hidden in the shadows, a white-haired elder remarked, "This Southern Wilderness Jade Spirit Sect indeed has a powerful trump card!"

"I wonder what kind of ability it is. From the looks of it, this person can only strike once or twice and cannot travel far," another elder said.

"Having the chance to strike once or twice is already lethal enough. In any case, we must not act against the Yuling Sect lightly," the white-haired elder concluded.

The other groups lurking in the dark shared the same sentiment. Some factions housed ancient figures with formidable strength, but these old monsters would likely pass away after making just one or two moves. The Yuling Sect probably fell into this exact category.

SWISH!

Right at that moment, under everyone’s watchful eyes, another figure descended into the Yuling Sect. It was an elder dressed in white, with flowing, long white hair. Despite the heavy wrinkles on his face, he still appeared incredibly ethereal and brimming with vigor.

Seeing this, the expressions of the Yuling Sect crowd changed once again. They had just scared off seven Tongyou Realm experts, yet someone else still dared to intrude?

"I am Chu Yiming, Honored Guest Spirit Master of the royal family. I am here to invite the Yuling Sect to attend the Great Xia Dynasty’s Spirit Master Banquet!" the ethereal elder declared. As he spoke, the crowd watched an invitation card flutter through the air toward the Yuling Sect Master.

"Spirit Master Banquet?" The elders and disciples of the Yuling Sect were puzzled. At the same time, they secretly breathed a sigh of relief. This ethereal elder wasn’t here to attack their Yuling Sect; he was merely delivering an invitation.

"The Spirit Master Banquet is hosted by the royal family, inviting qualified Spirit Masters or Spirit Master geniuses from across the entire Great Xia Dynasty, along with the dynasty’s powerful factions," a knowledgeable elder of the Yuling Sect explained. "Firstly, it serves as a gathering for Spirit Masters. Secondly, it provides major factions with the opportunity to meet, recruit, and collaborate with them."

"A gathering of Spirit Masters, and a chance to recruit them!" Hearing this, the people of the Yuling Sect were astonished.

Spirit Masters were exceedingly rare throughout the entire Great Xia Dynasty. In their entire Southern Wilderness, only one First-Grade Spirit Master had recently emerged: Elder Asura. The moment he appeared, even the Cloud Void Sect tried to snatch him away. One could only imagine how precious Spirit Masters truly were.

The Spirit Master Banquet would see the top Spirit Masters of the Great Xia Dynasty participating, meeting, and clashing. Just imagining such a scene was awe-inspiring. Furthermore, the attending factions would have the chance to recruit Spirit Masters on the spot—an opportunity countless powers would surely vie for.

In the past, no faction in their Southern Wilderness had ever been known to receive such an opportunity. For them to secure a spot this time was exceptionally rare and incredibly hard to come by.

A look of surprise appeared on the face of the Yuling Sect Master. She accepted the invitation and expressed her gratitude. "Thank you, Elder Chu. The Yuling Sect will definitely attend the banquet!"

"Farewell!" The ethereal elder rose into the air and departed from the Yuling Sect.

"Chu Yiming, a Third-Grade Spirit Master!" someone hidden in the shadows gasped in a low voice.

While those in the Yuling Sect might not have known who Chu Yiming was, the hidden observers knew all too well. Chu Yiming was a Third-Grade Spirit Master! How strong was a Third-Grade Spirit Master? That was equivalent to an expert at the Ninth Level of Tongyou Realm! Coupled with a Spirit Master’s assassination capabilities, they were practically invincible within the Tongyou Realm.

"To think that Honored Guest Spirit Master of the royal family, Chu Yiming, came in person!" another elder remarked.

"Who wouldn’t be tempted by the great treasure on Mo Qianqian? Even Spirit Masters are no exception. Chu Yiming coming here personally is probably not just as simple as delivering an invitation to the Yuling Sect," yet another elder chimed in.

The white-haired elder nodded. "If the Yuling Sect didn’t have that powerful trump card, he probably wouldn’t have just handed over an invitation."

"The heavy treasure on Mo Qianqian would tempt any Spirit Master. Furthermore, the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source appeared in the Southern Wilderness. Even though it has vanished, the allure of a Spiritual Source to a Spirit Master is greater than to anyone else. Thus, it’s not surprising that Chu Yiming made a personal appearance."

Several elders nodded in agreement.

"For the Spirit Master Banquet, a faction’s helmsman or elder can bring two juniors. Based on current intel regarding the Yuling Sect, the Yuling Sect Master is their only Tongyou Realm expert, so she will inevitably be the one to go. I wonder if she will bring Shi Muyao along?"

"If she doesn’t, and someone sneaks into the Yuling Sect, Shi Muyao might be in danger. The Yuling Sect’s trump card cannot be activated so easily. But if she is brought along, can the Yuling Sect Master protect her before they reach the Imperial City?"

"That depends on the Yuling Sect Master’s decision!"

"I heard the Yuling Sect also has a Spirit Master as an Honored Guest Elder. Since all Spirit Masters can participate in the banquet, he should be going too, right? I wonder if we can recruit him to our Lie Family when the time comes?"

The group of people conversed secretly among themselves.

Clearly, this group consisted of Tongyou Realm experts from the Lie Family. Shortly after, they quietly departed from the Yuling Sect’s territory. The other hidden groups scattered across the area, each harboring their own schemes, also left one by one.

Meanwhile, news that the Yuling Sect possessed a terrifying trump card and had received an invitation to the Spirit Master Banquet began to spread far and wide. From now on, probably no one would dare to rashly target the Yuling Sect—especially minor factions and Loose Cultivators.

Several days later, inside the dark red rocky island within the first spatial layer of the Ninefold Coffin.

HISS!

Mo Qianqian, who had been enduring constant agony while desperately refining the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source, suddenly exuded a powerful aura. This was the aura of a breakthrough in his physical body. Originally, he had been primarily relying on his abilities as a Spirit Master to refine the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source. However, the overflowing energy from the Spiritual Source had a tremendous impact on his flesh, causing his Physical Body Realm to break through first. He advanced from the First Layer of the Second Realm to the Second Layer.

Yet, this was still far from completely refining the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source. It took another full twenty days before Mo Qianqian finally succeeded in thoroughly refining it.

WHOOSH!

At the exact moment Mo Qianqian successfully refined the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source, a formidable aura burst forth from his body. His Physical Body Realm broke through once again, advancing from the Second Layer of the Second Realm to the Third Layer.

Simultaneously, a massive Spirit fluctuation surged outward from him. His Spirit Master grade soared directly from First-Grade to Second-Grade. And it didn’t stop there; his momentum continued until it reached the peak of the Second-Grade, stopping just a hair’s breadth away from advancing to the Third-Grade.

Only then did the agonized grimace of enduring pain fade from Mo Qianqian’s face, leaving him looking thoroughly reinvigorated.

"My Spirit Master Realm has broken through! From now on, I am a Second-Grade Spirit Master!" Mo Qianqian was thrilled. Becoming a Second-Grade Spirit Master meant a massive elevation in both strength and status! Moreover, he was at the absolute peak of the Second-Grade. In terms of combat prowess, he felt he could now easily slay opponents at the Early-stage Realm of Communication with Ghosts.

Most importantly, having successfully refined the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source, his Spirit Body would now possess its elemental attributes! Thanks to the Spiritual Source, his physical body had also broken through two layers over these past twenty-plus days. Mo Qianqian was confident that with his current physical strength alone, he could fight against those at the first or second level of the Tongyou Realm.

He thought to himself, "It won’t be long before I can slaughter my way into the Ling Family!" A sharp glint flashed through his eyes.

"To think he actually succeeded in refining the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source. He truly lives up to being the one chosen by the Ninefold Coffin!" Within Mo Qianqian’s shadow, the mysterious woman sighed softly to herself before vanishing without a trace.

Mo Qianqian didn’t notice her. Having calmed down, he began to assess his situation. "It took over twenty days to refine the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source. Those people outside must be going crazy looking for me by now.

"It’s about time I changed my identity and went for a stroll."

With a mere thought, Mo Qianqian was once again enveloped in a spectral light as an inexplicable force pulled at him. His vision blurred, and he was instantly extracted from the Ninefold Coffin, reappearing in the middle of a forest.

Subsequently, Mo Qianqian donned the Black Iron Mask he had prepared beforehand and headed in the direction of Luocheng. His goal was to find the person capable of crafting a flawlessly realistic Human Skin Mask.