A mortal cultivating immortality can nurture spirit beasts.

Chapter 174 Collecting Ghosts

Lin He appeared on a desolate little hill. A graceful figure appeared in front of him, which was Zi Ling. In addition, there was an old man in gray.

Upon seeing Lin He, Zi Ling giggled and said, "Brother Lin, what a coincidence! We've been teleported to the same place."

Upon seeing Lin He, the gray-robed elder immediately greeted him respectfully, "This junior, Ge Li from Tiantai Island, greets senior!"

Lin He simply nodded, looking completely unconcerned. Ge Li, seeing this, still smiled and didn't seem angry at all.

Zi Ling, not daring to be presumptuous, quickly said, "Zi Ling of the Miaoyin Sect greets Fellow Daoist Ge!"

"Fellow Daoist Ge?" Lin He looked at Zi Ling, thinking to himself that this girl's mind really works fast.

Generally, Foundation Establishment cultivators should address Core Formation cultivators as "senior," but Zi Ling calls Lin He "Brother Lin." If she were to call Ge Li "senior," wouldn't Ge Li's seniority be higher than that of Lin He, a Nascent Soul cultivator?

Ge Li was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized what was happening, and his gaze toward Zi Ling changed completely.

The fact that a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator could address a Nascent Soul cultivator in such a way suggests that their relationship is not ordinary.

He quickly and warmly replied, "So you are Fairy Ziling from the Wonderful Sound Sect! I've long admired your name!"

Seeing this, Zi Ling's lips curled up. A cultivator in the early stage of Core Formation was so enthusiastic towards her, obviously because of Lin He's influence.

This first trial, the Land of Ghostly Vengeance, is not easy for ordinary Core Formation stage cultivators. Ge Li originally wanted to find someone to team up with, but now that he saw Lin He, he couldn't help but want to cling to his coattails.

But Lin He's attitude was lukewarm, so he didn't dare to speak rashly. Instead, he looked at Zi Ling and said, "Fairy Zi Ling, may I accompany you?"

Zi Ling was taken aback upon hearing this, but then she realized what was happening. She immediately looked at Lin He, knowing that she had agreed to follow his instructions, and dared not agree rashly.

Lin He glanced at Ge Li and nodded, "Alright, for Zi Ling's sake, Fellow Daoist Ge, you can follow behind us. But remember, don't act recklessly, otherwise—"

Without the slightest hesitation, Ge Li nodded quickly and said, "Don't worry, senior, I know what to do."

After saying this, he respectfully expressed his gratitude to Zi Ling, which made Zi Ling's lips curl up and her heart throb with joy. Although she knew it was all because of Lin He, she still couldn't help but feel happy, and even the way she looked at Lin He changed slightly.

As Lin He walked, he pondered. He had deliberately planted spiritual energy marks on Zi Ling and Xin Ruyin before, so that he could sense their location as long as they weren't too far away.

Now that Zi Ling was right beside him, Lin He sensed the spiritual energy mark on Xin Ruyin's body and said, "Let's go, let's meet up with Ruyin first, and then explore this haunted place together."

Zi Ling and Zi Ran had no objections, and Ge Li dared not speak recklessly. He silently followed behind. The three of them walked out of the place. Ahead, everything was shrouded in a gray mist, with gusts of cold wind blowing through the mist. There were also ghostly wails and screams that seriously interfered with their divine senses.

Lin He frowned, then took out a small banner, the very same Soul Gathering Banner that hadn't been used in a long time.

This Soul Gathering Banner was obtained from the Xu family patriarch. Lin He rarely used it against enemies, but used the large number of Yin Souls on it to refine eighteen Pill Corpses.

After that one use, not only were the Yin spirits inside the black alms bowl exhausted, but the number of Yin spirits on the Soul Gathering Banner also decreased significantly, as there were no more Yin spirits to refine the eighteen pill corpses.

Lin He already had more than eighteen corpses of Core Formation stage cultivators in his hands. He had been planning to refine them again, and he needed a large number of Yin Souls. There was no better place to collect Yin Souls than the Ghostly Vengeance Land.

The number of spirits here is not only large, but their quality is also extremely high. There are quite a few spirits with cultivation levels above the Core Formation stage. After all, most of those who come to this Void Heaven Palace to challenge are Core Formation stage cultivators. It is extremely rare for someone like Zi Ling, who is at the late Foundation Establishment stage, to dare to come and challenge.

These Core Formation stage cultivators perished here for various reasons. Their primordial spirits and essences slowly transformed into vengeful ghosts in this place. Moreover, they could use the magical treasures they possessed in life or plunder the magical treasures of other cultivators who came here. Furthermore, they could use the dense Yin energy of this place to cultivate, thus becoming stronger and stronger, making them extremely difficult to deal with.

These are a huge disaster for those who want to pass through, but for Lin He, this is a treasure trove, a treasure trove where he can collect Yin souls at will. After all, he would never do something like slaughtering millions of mortals or low-level cultivators to refine corpses.

Lin He called out, and Zi Ling obediently stood beside him, completely following his orders, which greatly pleased Lin He.

The Soul-Gathering Banner floated above his head, and under the activation of his magic, it immediately emitted a powerful suction force, absorbing all the yin energy in the surrounding mist. After the yin energy disappeared, even the ghostly wailing stopped.

Lin He nodded. With less yin energy and ghostly wails, his divine sense could detect a wider range.

With Lin He's Soul-Gathering Banner clearing the way, Ge Li and Zi Ling found things much easier.

Wherever the three of them passed, the yin energy seemed to be purified and disappeared.

Seeing this, Zi Ling smiled and said, "Brother Lin has done a great thing. The difficulty for cultivators who come to challenge the level has been greatly reduced. They should all thank you."

"Your skill is exceptional, and I admire you greatly."

Ge Li quickly seized the opportunity to flatter him, praising him endlessly, while Lin He simply smiled and remained silent.

The three hadn't gone far when they encountered a group of Yaksha demons. These Yaksha were only at the Foundation Establishment stage, but there were twenty or thirty of them, which would be difficult for an ordinary early Core Formation cultivator to deal with.

Seeing this, Ge Li quickly released a small red umbrella to protect himself. Remembering Lin He's words, he did not attack.

Zi Ling naturally wouldn't do something so foolish; she simply released four round magical artifacts to protect herself and made no other moves.

Seeing that the two were so cooperative, Lin He nodded in satisfaction. He then pointed at the Soul Gathering Banner, and the next moment the banner emitted a jet-black yin energy, generating a yin wind. This yin wind was so strong that it immediately swept up the twenty or thirty yaksha little ghosts. They had no power to resist and were taken into the banner. Soon, the yin energy in the vicinity disappeared completely, as if it had never happened.

Ge Li and Zi Ling showed no surprise at all. It would be surprising if a Nascent Soul cultivator couldn't even handle these dozens of Yaksha brats.

The yin energy in the area was quickly swept away. Just as Lin He was about to leave, he discovered a skeleton at his feet. Ge Li's expression changed, as if he recognized something. Lin He, however, picked up the fire-repelling robe, tidied it up after turning it over, and put it into his storage bag.

Ge Li hesitated for a moment, but ultimately chose to continue following Lin He.

The three quickly found Xin Ruyin. Not far ahead, a woman in blue was controlling an infant carp beast and two broadsword warrior puppets, fighting against a group of ghosts.