Mortal: Fairy Song Yu has issued you a task.

Everyone instantly became alert, and the lights of their magical artifacts and treasures shone brightly.

Lu Luo stepped forward, shielding the group behind him, and asked in a deep voice, "Who are you?"

The woman in palace attire floated above the altar, and upon hearing this, she sighed softly, "I am Song Lingyi."

Upon hearing this, both Peak Master Song and Song Yu's expressions changed. This was indeed the name of the first Peak Master of the Song family.

A glint flashed in Lü Luo's eyes, but his tone remained unchanged: "Senior Song has been gone for thousands of years. How has a wisp of his soul survived until now?"

Song Lingyi's illusory figure remained calm, her voice carrying the ethereal quality of time: "I was trapped here for nearly a hundred years, knowing there was no hope of escape. Even ants cling to life, let alone cultivators like us. Therefore, I abandoned the chance of reincarnation and turned to the Ghost Path. However, my cultivation level also dropped to the mid-stage of Core Formation as a result."

"Not only is the spiritual energy here scarce, but there is also no yin energy at all. In order to survive, I had no choice but to actively enter this formation and use the mysterious yin energy within the formation to keep my soul from dissipating. However, due to the formation's constraints, I can neither escape nor advance in my cultivation. I can only rely on my ghostly lifespan to endure until now. I was only awakened and met by sensing the aura of my bloodline descendant."

Lu Luo: "Senior, do you want us to help you escape this formation?"

Song Lingyi: "That's right. Now that I've shown myself, I'll tell you the truth. Under this array's core, besides the nearly one hundred low-level ghosts spawned by the array, there are also more than ten ghost cultivators in a similar situation to me, trapped here. The strongest of them has already reached the peak of the Core Formation stage and can be called a Ghost King. Fortunately, we are all usually in slumber."

Lu Luo and Peak Master Song exchanged a glance, both seeing the solemnity and doubt in each other's eyes.

After a moment's thought, Lü Luo said, "Since he is an ancestor of the Song family, we juniors will do our best to help. However, this matter is of great importance, so we need to make some preparations and act with caution."

"Alright. Once you are all ready, approach the magic array. I will be able to sense you." After Song Lingyi finished speaking, her figure gradually faded and finally disappeared from the altar.

Without further delay, Lü Luo led the group back quickly to the stone tower cave above. There was still some time before the passage closed.

"Uncle-Master, what should we do now?" Peak Master Song asked Lu Luo.

Lu Luo's gaze swept over everyone, finally landing on Lin Jingchu: "Can this formation be forcibly activated from the outside? If it cannot be activated, everything is just empty talk."

Song Yu pondered, "We can force it open, but the commotion will be considerable and will surely awaken all the ghosts below. Moreover... once the formation is activated, it's uncertain whether it can close again."

Lin Jingchu nodded as he recalled the layout of the magic array and the runes on the six stone pillars.

Upon hearing this, Song Fengzhu's heart sank even further. This meant that activating the magic array was tantamount to facing those numerous ghosts head-on.

Lu Luo remained calm, stroking his short beard. He suddenly asked, "How many people are needed to activate this formation? Could you open a crack first, allowing me to use my divine sense to investigate its true nature?"

Lin Jingchu estimated, "Six people need to operate the stone pillars simultaneously, and another person needs to activate the magic array in the center. Opening a crack first is achievable."

Lu Luo's gaze swept over everyone present. Peak Master Song, Song Yu, Lin Jingchu, and three other Foundation Establishment female disciples from White Phoenix Peak, a total of six people.

"Seven people... I am not familiar with formations."

Lin Jingchu: "This disciple possesses a supernatural ability, which allows me to create an avatar to preside over the formation."

Lu Luo nodded: "That's feasible. Don't worry, with me here, those ghosts won't be able to harm you."

[Task Discovered]

【Mission Name: Rescue the Ancestor in the Netherworld】

[Posted by: Lü Luo (Favorability Rating: Approved)]

[Mission Description: Assist in activating the ancient Netherworld Array to rescue the trapped soul of Song Lingyi, the ancestor of the Song family.]

[Quest Reward: One Lu Luo Ancient Treasure]

Everyone waited in place until the underground passage closed on its own. Then, Lin Jingchu manipulated the stone tower formation again to reopen it.

The group filed in and returned to the underground stone hall.

The magic circle flashed, and Song Lingyi's illusory image reappeared. She looked at the crowd, a hint of excitement in her eyes.

Without a word, Lin Jingchu immediately made a hand seal, and an identical clone of himself stepped out and stood at the core of the magic array in the center of the hall.

Lu Luo stood with his hands behind his back at the edge of the magic circle, and a jade ruler-shaped magic weapon emitting a hazy blue light silently appeared beside him.

Peak Master Song, Song Yu, and the other three female disciples each chose a stone pillar and stood there.

"Activate the formation!" Lin Jingchu shouted, his hand seals shifting as he channeled his magic power into the stone pillar in front of him.

Song Fengzhu and the others dared not be negligent, and simultaneously poured their magical power into the stone pillars in front of them.

"Buzz—"

The six stone pillars trembled slightly, and the ancient, mottled runes on their surfaces lit up with a faint glow. The massive magic array on the ground responded in kind, with countless spiritual lines flowing around it. The light at the central altar flickered, emitting a low hum, and a suppressed wave spread out.

Seeing this, Lin Jingchu's clone pressed his hands against the core of the array, focusing all his efforts on guiding and coordinating the array power flowing in from all six directions. A faint "crackling" sound emanated from the ground at the center of the altar, and a hair-thin crack slowly opened up!

In an instant, a chilling, piercing aura of Yin energy surged out from the crevice.

Even though Lin Jingchu had already activated his spiritual light to protect himself, he still felt a chill all over his body when this cold wind blew, and his soul seemed to be frozen.

Lu Luo closed his eyes slightly, condensed his powerful divine sense from the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm into a wisp, and boldly ventured into the narrow crevice against the yin wind.

This was an extremely risky move. If Song Lingyi's words were false, or if the formation contained other dangers, this wisp of divine consciousness would be damaged, and Lu Luo's main body would also be injured. But he remained calm and showed no hesitation.

A moment later, Lü Luo opened his eyes and said in a deep voice, "The situation is basically true! The ghosts below have been alerted and are converging on the array's core! Activate the array immediately!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jingchu's clone changed his hand seals again, let out a low shout, and activated his full power!

"Snap—!"

With an even clearer cracking sound, a deep hole about half a zhang wide was completely opened in the center of the magic array beneath their feet.

An even more violent gust of cold wind howled out as if it had found an outlet, mixed with mournful, sharp, and faint ghostly wails that sent chills down one's spine.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Song Lingyi's illusory figure rapidly drifted out with the yin wind and arrived at Song Peak Master's side in the blink of an eye.

"Ancestor, please take refuge in this gourd for now!" Peak Master Song raised his hand and offered up a jade gourd.

A suction force emanated from the gourd's mouth, giving Song Lingyi little time to react before drawing her illusory image inside. While this was a precautionary measure, it was also the safest approach.

[Task Completed]

[Quest Reward: Ancient Treasure - Azure Rainbow Rope]

【Dragon-Binding Rope: Forged from ice-silkworm silk mixed with the sinews of a dragon, it is pale blue in color with hidden dragon patterns. It can stretch and contract at will, and is as swift as lightning. Once it binds an enemy, it can not only restrict their movement but also suppress and seal the flow of spiritual energy within their body.】

"Retreat!" Lu Luo shouted, but instead of retreating, he took half a step forward, facing the cave entrance that was spewing out yin energy and ghostly howls. The spiritual pressure of the Nascent Soul stage around him was no longer concealed and was released with a bang.

This spiritual pressure, like a mighty, invisible tide, pressed down hard on the cave entrance, intimidating and delaying the ghosts that were about to rush out.

Lin Jingchu instantly dispelled his clone, and without hesitation, he and Song Yu and the others transformed into streaks of light and flew towards the passage at the entrance of the stone hall!

Just as they stepped into the passage—

"roar--!"

Several ghostly figures of various shapes, exuding a strong sense of yin energy and resentment, rushed out of the cave entrance one after another!

A dark figure stood at the forefront, nearly ten feet tall, with a blue face and fangs, a single horn on its head, and a dense, almost tangible, black ghostly aura surrounding it. Its imposing presence had reached the peak of the Core Formation stage! It was none other than the Ghost King that Song Lingyi had mentioned!

The Ghost King's scarlet, ferocious eyes instantly locked onto Lu Luo, who was blocking the cave entrance. Extremely wary of the Nascent Soul aura, it dared not approach. However, it let out a sharp hiss, urging the numerous low-level ghosts surging forth from behind it to pounce.

Those low-level ghosts, lacking intelligence, were driven by the Ghost King's pressure. Although they were also afraid of Lu Luo's spiritual pressure, they still let out piercing screams and swarmed towards Lu Luo.

Meanwhile, more and more distorted ghosts or ferocious-looking ghost cultivators continued to pour out of the cave.

……

Several figures rushed out of the hidden cave entrance on the island one after another.

Lin Jingchu hovered in mid-air atop the azure winged boat, looking around with a slightly gloomy expression. The once desolate island was now shrouded in a thick, dark gray aura, and the sky was as dark as dusk.

A chilling wind howled, whipping up sand, stones, and withered grass, casting a gloomy and desolate atmosphere. Lin Jingchu turned to look back, and at the cave entrance, the eerie energy continued to gush out like a fountain.

A streak of light, azure blue, shot out from the cave entrance and instantly appeared before the group; it was Lü Luo.

Although the low-level ghosts attacked him fearlessly under the Ghost King's orders, they clearly failed to cause him any trouble.

At this moment, at the cave entrance, several Core Formation stage ghost cultivators, including the Ghost King, mingled among a large number of ghostly figures. Their cold gazes pierced through the Yin energy, sweeping over the people in the air, and then they whistled and scattered in all directions of the island, as if they wanted to escape from this place.

"We can't stay here any longer, leave quickly!" Lu Luo said very quickly.

Just as everyone was activating their flying magical artifacts, preparing to evacuate—

Another anomaly has occurred!

The howling winds on the island suddenly changed direction. No longer swirling erratically, they seemed to be drawn together by some invisible force, converging towards the sky above the island.

Lin Jingchu suddenly looked up and, through the gloomy aura, saw that dark clouds had gathered overhead.

The clouds churned and surged, and at their center, a massive vortex was forming. Within the vortex, faint black lightning could be seen flashing, like the cold, single eye of a giant beast slowly opening.

"It's ghostly mist from the Netherworld! Quickly land and grab onto something to hold you steady, then activate your protective magic artifacts!" Lin Jingchu reacted instantly, sharply reminding them, "Once it takes shape, your magical power and divine sense will be sealed, and you won't even be able to open your storage bag!"

Without hesitation, he put away the Azure Wing Boat and plummeted into the forest below like a meteorite.

At the same time, Lin Jingchu took out the Dragon Scale Sword from his storage bag with his right hand, and a purple light flashed from the mouth of the spirit beast bag at his waist. A cloud of insects buzzed out, including the queen ant, which quickly hid under his clothes.

Just as he landed on a sparse branch—

Lin Jingchu felt his body sink, the flowing magic power vanished instantly, and his originally outward-radiating divine sense was forcibly suppressed back into his body, making him seem like a mortal who had never cultivated before.

He could only watch helplessly as he was tossed and turned in the air by the raging, eerie wind.

In his dizzying perspective, he glimpsed others being swept away by the cold wind and falling down the gentle slope of the mountain forest.

Those ghosts, whether low-level vengeful spirits or Core Formation ghost cultivators, were like lambs seized by an invisible hand. Along with the overwhelming Yin energy, they were helplessly thrown into the center of the vortex, which resembled a gaping abyss. They were instantly blasted into pure Yin energy upon being hit by the black electric net.