The Path to Immortality Begins with the Life-Extending Lamp

Chapter 81 Soul flags, rain and monsters are rampant

"Oh? I wonder why you are so obsequious at first and then so deferential, sir?"

"But I am a genuine Taoist Qi practitioner, and I have no interest in these ghost-suppressing artifacts from the underworld."

Li Qing held the Southern Dipper Longevity Lamp in his hand, looked at the old man holding the flag, and shook his head with a light laugh.

The exquisite paper paper demon, with her slender figure and a strange expression on her face, was lightly veiled behind Li Qing's shoulder. Five paper paper demons stood in front of her, their cold eyes fixed on the old Taoist priest from the Li family.

The old Daoist's attack didn't seem as strong as Li Qing had imagined. Although it was far more terrifying than that of an ordinary Qi Refining Realm cultivator, it was still within Li Qing's acceptable range.

He now has enough thoughts, and he can react and his primordial energy keep up with that old man. In fact, there is no qualitative difference between him and an ordinary Purple Mansion cultivator.

Aside from the Ghost Mother, the quality of his Profound Yin Qi is already comparable to the Foundation Establishment level, and he has yet to unleash the Myriad Soul Banner!

More importantly, this paper army was truly powerful enough that the Li family's Purple Mansion would find it difficult to break through the blockade in a short time.

But Li Qing's words made the old man of the Li family curse inwardly.

What do you mean by being defiant at first and then obsequious? If you weren't afraid of making too much noise and attracting too much attention, would you really think I couldn't handle a little rascal like you?
You claim to be a Taoist orthodox sect? Which of those rampaging, ghostly corpse guards surrounding you looks like something a true Taoist could raise?
However, since things had already come to this point, Old Master Li did not want to cause any further trouble and let this kid spread the news about the Three Generations Mu Temple, so he readily agreed.

"Yes, yes, young friend, you are a true disciple of the Daoist sect, protected by altar soldiers."

"But the most precious thing in this underworld is the warding artifact, among which top-tier warding artifacts with five hundred or even a thousand restrictions have often appeared."

"I see that the magic lamp in your hand, young friend, is made of excellent materials, but unfortunately, it only has about forty magical restrictions, placing it at the low-grade level. Its foundation is truly too weak. Are you really not interested in that high-grade protective artifact?"

Li Jiadao kindly advised the naive young Taoist, saying that one truly doesn't know the value of money until one is in charge of the household. If it weren't for not wanting to cause trouble, would this secret chamber be so easily entered by a mere Qi Refining cultivator who had only recently joined the fray?
Let's keep him in suspense until I seize the treasure inside...

"A top-grade talisman? Old man, are you trying to fool me? There's nothing in this empty ancestral temple."

"Are you sure you don't intend to lure Li in and then kill him?"

Li Qing asked in return with a half-smile.

Who knows what dangers lie within this unopened secret chamber? This old man is cunning; he's trying to trick Li Qing into going to scout ahead for him. He's really dreaming.

"That's not up to you! Either you come with me, or if you ruin my plans, don't even think about leaving Pengguo unscathed."

The old man snorted coldly and then held up three more fingers:

"I only want 70%, and you can keep 30% of the profits!"

"All you have to do is shut your mouth from now until you leave Penghai Yinfu, okay?"

This time, Li Jiadao's threat was blatant. As he spoke, he poured his magic power into the Gale Banner, and the powerful wind magic created a huge shockwave in the underground palace.

However, at this moment, as Linglong Changzhu's gloomy ghost realm spread out, the enormous wave of energy, before even touching this dark ghost realm, seemed to have hit a quagmire, unable to advance an inch, and instead the wave of energy flowed back in all directions.

But Li Qing did not relax in the slightest. The solid walls and totems of the Mu Temple Underworld were like a huge prison, preventing the rampaging spirits from completely escaping underground. The ghosts were even more firmly locked inside the stone gate, unable to escape directly...

Seeing the old man's fierce intent rising, Li Qing flipped his palm and put the Southern Dipper Life-Extending Lamp into his mustard seed pouch as a sign of retreat. In any case, the Life-Extending Lamp did not yet have the foundation to fight against the Purple Mansion.

"Then, please go first, sir!"

Li Qing pointed with his hand toward the hidden door whose mechanism had just been opened, inviting the old Taoist priest from the Li family to do it himself.

At the same time, the ghostly realm shrank to a radius of several feet, and Li Qing and many of the rampant soldiers hid within it as the gloom floated, thus distancing themselves from the stone door and showing their sincerity in a very sensible manner.

The old Taoist priest from the Li family remained relentless, coldly gazing at the gloomy area and letting out a sneer.

"Young friend, could you please tone down that blatant murderous intent?"

"Hehehehe, this old man would never dare to entrust his back to you with this jar of rampant poison."

"Come closer, the left side is for me, the right side is for you."

The young man in the robe stared at the old Taoist with a chilling gaze, making the old Taoist feel a chill run down his spine. With six monstrous ghosts lurking behind him, how could he possibly feel at ease?
Old Master Li's face hardened, and he forced Li Qing to walk to his side, insisting that they enter the room side by side, one on the left and one on the right.

Although he wasn't afraid of this junior, he still had to be wary of him launching a surprise attack from behind.

Li Qing's brows twitched, and he impatiently approached, coldly snorting, "There was no murderous intent; it's just that this humble Taoist has cultivated a Yin-attribute pupil technique!"

The young man was surrounded by wisps of haze, the dark mist seemingly materializing. Seven figures loomed in the mist and rain. Li Laodao looked into the young man's cold eyes and, seeing that it was indeed so, was somewhat satisfied with the answer.

"Hmph, that's best."

Old Li was quite wealthy. He wore a purple-gold crown and a brocade robe, held the Wind-Riding Treasure Banner in his hand, and pointed his left hand in the air. His agile magic power seemed to take shape, transforming into a large magical hand that fumbled and pressed the mechanism behind the huge stone statue. With a [click], he opened the mechanism in front of the stone door.

Behind the first hidden door that had already been opened by Li Laodao, the two dragon-suppressing stone walls rose up again, revealing the extremely dark inner chamber behind them.

The old Taoist flicked his finger, and his magical power, once released from his body, immediately transformed into rays of light that filled the air and illuminated the inner room.

It was a square inner chamber about ten feet long, slightly narrower on the left and right, about two feet in diameter, hidden between the underground palace and the side chamber on the right.

Although it seems quite large, it is simply not on the same level as the underground palace and main temple, which are hundreds of feet high.

On the stone walls on both sides, there were still some extinguished lamps left. Li Laodao used his magic power again, and twelve flames emerged, immediately relighting the many oil lamps. In an instant, the furnishings of the entire inner room were fully revealed.

Was the completely sealed interior unaffected by seawater and time?
The two looked at the long, narrow inner chamber at the same time. The originally dark and enclosed stone chamber was divided into three steps from the outside to the inside by three not-so-high steps.

At the very end of the highest level, there was a wooden couch with a small table on each side, upon which were placed strange and unusual items: a bronze mirror, a silver hairpin, and silk cloth.

On the second level, there was a two-inch incense burner and a jade table, as well as four stone statues in the shape of ladies. On the third level, where Li Qing and the other person were, there were simple landscape totems carved on the walls, and four potted plants that had long since dried up and decayed on the ground...

The old Taoist priest's face suddenly darkened.

This inner room was so different from what he had imagined. How could it be so simple? This was the dark room of the main hall of the Mu Temple. Did the ghosts and gods live such a frugal life?

However, there are two valuable items on it: a bronze mirror and a silver hairpin, which can make up for it somewhat!

Old Li's pupils darted around, and just as he was about to have a wicked thought, a scorching aura suddenly surged up from his side. He saw that the young man had somehow moved several feet backward in mid-air, and the fifty-two Fire Stars in the Stones exploded with a bang, instantly covering half of the inner room.

"How brave!"

The old man was already wary of Li Qing, and when he saw him make a move, his eyes widened in fury. He was adorned with precious light and wielded a fierce wind-wielding banner, which he then threw at Li Qing.

Rumble…

The Five Paper Demons emerged halfway out of the Cloud and Rain Ghost Realm and directly engaged in battle with Old Li.

Bathed in the damp rain, the armored beast's scales seemed to come alive, gleaming with an oily sheen. Its arm armor withstood the attack of the precious banner with a single strike. The flying beast opened its maw, unleashing another gust of yin wind that swept towards the old Taoist. The three-headed flying beast's right hand stiffly extended, like a pale, lifeless corpse. A chilling aura immediately crept up its arm; it seemed intent on tearing the old Taoist's internal organs out alive.

"roll!"

The old man's anger flared up, and with a flick of his left finger, he pointed at the crown. In an instant, the purple-gold crown and the robe were surrounded by purple and blue energies, which were similar to Li Qing's Heavenly Mansion Profound Origin Energy.

The moment the three pale, monstrous hands touched the purple and blue energies, the energies trembled violently and exploded. At the same time, the three monstrous hands quickly retracted.

"What a formidable band of treacherous ghosts! Could they all be made from human skin, ghost skin, and corpse skin?"

"Tsk tsk tsk, such a massacre, are you from the Yin Register White Bone Path?"

Old Li stared at the hidden door to the inner room, which was blocked by a ghostly aura, as if they wanted to trap him here to die.

"This time it was my mistake; it was just a side room. You and I can each have one of those bronze mirrors and silver hairpins. How about we consider it a gesture of friendship?"

The old man gazed at the overflowing dark haze, his expression shifting several times, and his tone changing accordingly.

I should have crippled that little Taoist priest in the main hall. Now he has the advantage of the location and has completely blocked my way out!

However, the old man was answered by hundreds of strands of myriad souls condensed into arrowheads. Two black arrows, each over ten feet long, suddenly shot out from the black mist, startling the old man so much that he hurriedly waved his treasure flag, creating a wind barrier to counter the two attacks.

"I was deeply indebted to Pei Jiu and Brother Guan for saving my life, and I was prepared to die for them. But I never expected to encounter you here. Elder of the Li family, right? Hmph!"

"I'm afraid your grandson is already on his way, waiting for you."

"If we can just trap you to death, then the Li family will cease to exist in the future of Peng Kingdom!"

A cold laugh rang out, and the young man, holding a banner, slowly emerged from the gloomy clouds, his cold gray pupils staring at the old Taoist priest with the gaze of someone looking at a dead man.

"How dare you! Pei Jiushi has received great favors from my Li family..."

"Hmph! You little thief, who are you trying to scare? Pei Jiu was only able to enter this underworld because of my sudden suggestion. Do you think he has the brains for that?"

Old Li chuckled, thinking to himself that this Taoist's tricks were far too naive.

He had no idea about this black ship route. The Li family was protecting the ship, which would bring immense benefits to the Pei family of the East Sea. The relationship between the two families was not something an outsider like him could sow discord between.

"Is that so? Then you can stay here and wait to die. It won't be long before we see the outcome."

But then he saw Li Qing's lips curl slightly, and with a flash, he slowly retreated back into the dark and ghostly realm. His self-satisfied and cold smile was etched into Li Laodao's mind.

This made Old Li's heart pound. Could it really be so?
Then suddenly, a "click" was heard, and the scoundrel actually started to activate the mechanisms outside the underground palace, trying to seal the secret chamber.

Damn it, is he really trying to trap me to death?

Is it that piper? Only a sinister person could have such meticulous thoughts. Is he targeting the entire Li family of Pengguo?

Two cultivators from the Eastern Sea Purple Mansion have moved into the Li family manor. This Qi Refining White Bone Daoist is trying to curry favor with the Plain-Clothed Daoist. They're colluding with each other—deserving of death…

A ruthless and treacherous plan, designed to wipe out his entire family, slowly began to take shape in Li Laodao's mind, and it truly chilled him to the bone.

"After all these years, you still haven't had enough to eat? You two beasts!"

Old Li's face was sinister. He pointed to the purple-gold crown on his head, and the purple and green auras drooped down. He bravely resisted the gloomy clouds and rain, and raised the Gangfeng Treasure Banner, directly throwing it at the gloomy ghost realm, suppressing the rampant soldiers within.

He himself went directly to the inside of the door and locked all the mechanisms inside the secret room. It seemed that with such mechanisms and locks, the inside always had higher authority than the outside!

However, as soon as the old Taoist moved, strands of souls shot out from the ghost realm. The precious flag was tightly bound by the armored beast, and the old Taoist, having lost his magic weapon, had no choice but to quickly roll away.

After the purple and cyan energies blocked the Myriad Souls Banner, streaks of dark blue fire rushed towards them and exploded violently.

Rumble…

The repeated sneak attacks caught the old man off guard, and he was blasted over the head by Nanming Huoyao, leaving him covered in soot and charcoal marks on his robe. The fire in the stones made the place even more eerie!

"A very nice flag."

Li Qingtian's Xuan Yuan Qi swirled around him, and he was not afraid of the Gang Qi on the treasure flag. He grabbed the flag and instantly connected with You Tian, ​​offering it up as a sacrifice.

In the blink of an eye, the magic weapon that Old Li used most readily was no longer connected, which made his face so gloomy that it was almost dripping with water.

That guy never left. The mechanism outside must be his crooked soldiers operating it. This guy has never left the Ghost Realm from beginning to end. Does he want to kill me?
Old Li realized that Pei Jiu and the Li family were just a pretext. This young man was trying to provoke him, to make him approach the Cloud and Rain Ghost Realm and trigger the mechanism by the door to prevent the door from closing from the outside.

Then use this to launch a sneak attack!
"What a fine Taoist priest! He truly embodies the spirit of Lingnan."

As the old man chuckled, he flipped his right hand, and another high-grade magic sword appeared in his palm. Someone of his rank, who had been rampant for two hundred years, naturally had no shortage of magic weapons. If it really came down to a fight, would he really let a mere Qi Refining Realm cultivator peck out his eyes?

"Whether you truly know Pei Jiu and Daoist, or you are merely pretending to know them, it won't be long before they come here to meet me."

"You'd better back out now..."

Before the old Taoist could finish his threatening words, the gloomy clouds suddenly expanded. Taking advantage of this expansion, Jia Chang flashed to the very edge of the Cloud Rain Domain and charged wildly, directly clashing with the old Taoist's magic sword. The three walking corpses also attacked simultaneously.

The Banner of Ten Thousand Souls shook once more, and streaks of black lines, like arrows, pierced through the air currents.

In this chaotic battle, wisps of dark rain and mist swept through the small, secret chamber, and powerful shockwaves exploded outwards, turning the trickling rain into streams of water, while sparks from the stones flew in all directions...

The old Taoist priest cleaved through the armored madman with a single sword strike, the precious light repelling the flying madman. He then turned and spat out a three-foot-long wind blade, severing one of the flying madman's paper bat wings. After once again summoning his azure and purple energies to block the numerous soul threads, the old man swept his sword light across the still-resilient flying madman.

But the moment after he had just destroyed the paper worm, Old Li suddenly felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. It turned out that a hundred soul threads had somehow passed through the flying worm's body and then pierced through Old Li's abdomen.

“I wanted to leave, but you wouldn’t let me go.”

"Then let this humble Taoist priest escort you on your way!"

With the resounding of the Soul-Capturing Bell, the Cloud and Rain Ghost Realm expanded once more. Fei Chang, severely injured, lay motionless on the ground, while the other four groups of demon soldiers swarmed forward.

As Li Laodao endured the excruciating pain of his soul and flesh being torn apart, he pulled out the hundred soul threads that had pierced his abdomen. He felt as if his internal organs had been ripped out.

The Soul-Ten Thousand Silks of the White Bone Path are extremely insidious, affecting the internal organs and tearing at the soul!

And with a burst of light, the armored madman, being the most tyrannical, crashed into the old Taoist's massive light and began to contend with it.

As the lewd whispers of ghosts rose again, the Linglong Mad Master finally made her move. A flash of blood appeared, and a claw mark fell out of thin air, causing the rain in the secret chamber to pour down and slowly gather into a trickle.

The old Taoist suddenly felt an itch on his back, but upon closer inspection, he saw that a large patch of skin on his back, wet with the rain, had suddenly swelled up, pale and seemingly ready to be torn off at any moment...

A century-old cultivator, a master of unorthodox methods, had never witnessed the rampant demons and ghosts consecrated by hordes of corpses and ghosts. How could he have imagined that a mere Qi Refining cultivator would scheme against him so brazenly?
Unfortunately, it's too late!
(End of this chapter)