Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

Time quickly passed to mid-December, and Cao Xiong rode alone out of Guobei County, heading towards the vicinity of the ancient tomb.

Since the eradication of the plague corpses, Guobei County has suddenly become peaceful, but Cao Xiong has a vague feeling that this is more like the calm before the storm.

When Cao Xiong arrived at the small river near the ancient tomb, it was already evening.

This time, he arrived earlier than Nie Xiaoqian.

Cao Xiong waited for more than an hour, but Nie Xiaoqian still did not appear.

Just as he was wondering what was going on, he felt a burning sensation between his ribs.

He quickly took out the jade pendant that Nie Xiaoqian had given him before.

Several red threads were visible intertwined on the jade pendant.

"Bang!"

The jade pendant shattered in his hand, and a beam of red light flew out from the broken pieces.

"Could it be that Nie Xiaoqian is in danger?"

Cao Xiong reacted quickly, immediately using his mastered "Leaf-Picking Step" to chase after the red light.

The red light was moving faster and faster, and it was extremely unstable during flight, showing a faint tendency to dissipate.

Cao Xiong followed the red light over a mountain.

The red light finally gave way, shattering into fragments and disappearing before his eyes.

Cao Xiong stopped and released his divine sense to perceive his surroundings, but found nothing unusual.

He could only continue searching in the direction the red light had disappeared.

"Come under my banner!"

Finally, Cao Xiong heard a sound coming from ahead.

He climbed up the giant tree and looked down, where he saw a monk dressed in a black robe holding a yellow banner.

The yellow banner was surrounded by eerie energy, and hideous, evil faces kept appearing on it.

Opposite the monk, a woman lay on the ground, protected by a transparent light shield.

A bronze bowl was placed above the woman, emitting a radiant light, around which scriptures flowed.

Cao Xiong looked closely and realized that the woman was indeed Nie Xiaoqian.

"The sea of ​​suffering has run dry."

Cao Xiong leaped down from the giant tree and decisively made his move.

"Hmph, you treacherous rat..."

The monk looked up at Cao Xiong and chanted two incantations. Immediately, two streams of yin energy surged out from the yellow banner and rushed towards Cao Xiong.

The longsword trembled, subtly revealing a hint of excitement.

Cao Xiong swung his long sword and slashed at the two streams of yin energy.

"Ah~"

The yin energy vanished instantly, and a hoarse scream came from inside.

[Defeat two mid-stage Spirit Awakening Realm Yin Spirits, Shards +0.2]

The monk held a banner in his right hand and flicked out a string of beads with his left.

The bead landed directly above Cao Xiong, emitting a dazzling golden light and forming an inverted bowl shape, trapping Cao Xiong in place.

Amitabha Buddha~

The monk chanted a Buddhist prayer, and the corners of his mouth turned up in a smile.

"It seems that you have been bewitched by this female ghost. However, you are fortunate to have met this humble monk."

"After I collect this female ghost into the Hundred Ghosts Banner for salvation, I will send you to ascend to the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss."

The monk waved the Hundred Ghosts Banner in his hand, and immediately, dozens of streams of yin energy flew out from the banner.

When Nie Xiaoqian saw Cao Xiong trapped, a hint of self-reproach appeared in her eyes.

She controlled the jade pendant to shatter, intending to have Cao Xiong come to her aid and join forces to kill the evil monk.

Unexpectedly, this indirectly harmed Cao Xiong.

This evil monk was far weaker than her, yet he used Buddhist artifacts specifically designed to subdue ghosts, leaving her helpless.

On the other side, Cao Xiong showed no panic. He spread his legs slightly apart, parallel to his shoulders, and threw a punch forcefully.

The fist struck the golden light, creating ripples.

He had some guesses about the defensive capabilities of this light shield.

Internal energy surged continuously from his dantian, "Sword Drawing Technique!"

A black, eerie light flashed across the blade of the Evil-Smelling Blade, tearing a gash in the light barrier.

Cao Xiong seized the opportunity and rammed into the spot where the light shield had been torn open, unleashing the power of the [Copper Skin and Iron Bones] attribute.

The opening in the light shield, cleaved by the longsword, suddenly enlarged after being struck by Cao Xiong.

The beaded pendant above trembled, "bang bang bang~".

The eighteen Buddhist beads exploded one after another, and the protective aura dissipated.

The monk looked at the destroyed ritual implements with some heartache, "Stubborn and deluded, you have committed grave sins."

The monk held the Hundred Ghosts Banner in both hands, and an overwhelming aura of yin energy surged out from the banner, forming a dark cloud.

"Give me back my life!"

"I'm so wronged!"

……

Countless cries and curses emanated from the dark clouds.

Cao Xiong felt as if thousands of wronged souls were crying out to him in his ears.

My mind was instantly thrown into turmoil, and an indescribable sense of hostility arose within me.

However, this feeling only lasted for a moment before disappearing, and the mind returned to clarity.

Cao Xiong knew that this was because he possessed the attribute "Stable Mind" which allowed him to break through Yin Yun's mental attack.

It's hard to imagine how many evil spirits the monks kept in their banners of a hundred demons.

"The Vajra Challenges the Moon"

Cao Xiongfei leaped forward, getting close to the monk, thrusting upwards with the tip of his knife, then spun the knife back to strike.

The monk quickly slid backward to avoid Cao Xiong's deadly attack.

Cao Xiong kept moving, his gaze fixed on the monk.

The dark clouds formed by the spirits emerging from the Hundred Demon Banner surged continuously.

Finally, a giant hand emerged from the dark clouds and slapped towards Cao Xiong.

"What an evil aura!"

Cao Xiong dared not be careless and immediately stopped, looking at the palm formed by the Yin spirit that was falling down.

"Thousand Thoughts Slash"

Cao Xiong kept swinging his longsword, the sword shadows overlapping, his attack speed extremely fast.

Each blade shadow radiated golden light, accompanied by chanting of Buddhist hymns, and in the blink of an eye, it formed an impenetrable wall of blades.

The palm collided with the wall of blades, and the two forces were constantly consumed until they eventually dissipated together.

[Defeat fifteen mid-stage Spirit Awakening Realm Yin Souls, Shards +1.5]

Although this move is not a secret technique, it is a powerful killing move in the "Maha Saber Technique," and its consumption of internal energy is even greater than that of the "Drawing Sword Technique."

Cao Xiong knelt on the ground, his expression pained, his right hand touching his chest.

"My benefactor, turn back before it's too late!"

Taking advantage of the opportunity, the evil monk came up behind Cao Xiong and stretched out a palm to strike Cao Xiong's back.

"Bang!"

Cao Xiong, who had been looking pained, suddenly composed himself, turned around, pulled out a short flintlock pistol, loaded it, and lit it in one smooth motion.

The evil monk showed a hint of surprise on his face.

The lead bullet struck the evil monk's outstretched palm, interrupting his spellcasting.

"Sword Drawing Technique~"

Cao Xiong casually tossed the short musket aside and unleashed his secret technique.

The two were very close. The evil monk's palm was pierced by a lead bullet, and his spiritual energy was in disarray. He had no choice but to take the blow head-on.

The long sword landed on the evil monk's shoulder, severing one of his arms.

"A treacherous villain!"

The evil monk untied his robe and blocked Cao Xiong's second slash.

The black kasaya was clearly a remarkable magical artifact, and Cao Xiong's charged attack was unable to destroy it.

Cao Xiong was not discouraged. He refused to believe that the black cassock could withstand one strike, let alone ten.

The Evil-Smelling Longsword seemed to sense that it had been provoked, and its blade trembled continuously.

A cold, evil, and bloody aura emanated from the blade.

Cao Xiong slashed at the black cassock seven or eight times.

The black robe ultimately couldn't hold on any longer, losing its spiritual power and falling to the ground.

Looking again at the evil monk, his figure had already appeared a hundred meters away.

Perhaps because of the distance, the bronze bowl covering Nie Xiaoqian swayed precariously.