A Compendium of One Hundred Demons: My Path to Immortality in a World of Demons and Monsters

The blood-red arrows hummed on the bowstring, and countless ghostly faces struggled and howled within them, their chilling aura of death causing the surrounding vegetation to wither instantly.

The old ghost with golden eyes was ashen-faced. This arrow had clearly consumed a lot of his life essence, but his eyes were flashing with a ferocious pleasure.

"Boy, it's an honor for you to die under the Thousand Ghosts Heart-Eating Arrow!"

The arrow has not been released, but the momentum has already arrived.

Xu Yuan felt his hair stand on end, and his mind was filled with a frantic warning from his Yin energy perception system!

He couldn't catch or dodge that arrow; if it hit him, he would surely die!

Just as the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost finished gathering his strength and was about to let go—

"Buzz—!"

A low buzzing sound came from the depths of the valley without warning.

The sound wasn't loud, but it carried a peculiar rhythm, as if it could penetrate directly into one's soul.

The old ghost with golden eyes froze abruptly as he was about to release the string!

His pale golden pupils contracted sharply, and for the first time, a look of terror appeared on his face—not at Xu Yuan, but at the source of the buzzing sound!

"This...this is impossible...you're still alive?!"

Before the old ghost with golden eyes could finish speaking, a jet-black streak of light shot out from the depths of the valley, moving so fast that it was difficult to see with the naked eye.

This stream of light was not a physical entity, but rather a pure form of energy, carrying an aura of ancient majesty.

The old ghost with golden eyes tried to dodge, but it seemed as if he was nailed to the spot by some invisible force and could not move.

"No---!"

The jet-black light arrived in an instant, piercing through the chest of the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost.

Strangely, there was no blood or wounds, but his aura weakened at a visible rate.

The Thousand Ghosts Devouring Heart Arrow, which contained a large amount of his essence and blood, disintegrated on its own before it was even fired, turning into black smoke and slowly dissipating.

The old ghost with golden eyes staggered backward, and the longbow in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter.

He looked down at his chest, where there were no external injuries, but his soul felt as if it were being burned by flames.

"The Soul-Sealing Curse...it's the Soul-Sealing Curse..." The old ghost with golden eyes rasped, his eyes filled with resentment and fear. "You really didn't die...you've been waiting for me all along..."

He abruptly looked up at the direction from which the streak of light had come: "Xu Changming! Now that you're here, why don't you dare show yourself?!"

Xu Changming?

Xu Yuan's heart trembled violently.

Isn't that the old village chief's son's name? He was the leader of the group that went up the mountain twenty years ago. Is he still alive?

There was no response from deep within the valley, only the rustling of the wind through the treetops.

The old ghost with golden eyes gave a bitter laugh: "Good...good...Back then, when I ambushed Envoy Wang Zhenyao, you, a mere mountain dweller, managed to escape, only to be pushed into a cave by Lieutenant Li. I thought you were dead, but I never expected...I really never expected..."

He suddenly turned to look at Xu Yuan, a mad glint in his eyes: "Kid, you think you've won? No, you know nothing! What lies deep within this back mountain is far more terrifying than you imagine! Xu Changming hasn't shown himself because he—"

The words came to an abrupt halt.

Another streak of dark light shot out, this time striking the old ghost with golden eyes directly between his eyebrows.

The old ghost with golden eyes convulsed violently, his eyes rolled back, and the yin energy around him dissipated like a tide.

Within three breaths, he collapsed to the ground, his breath weak, clearly on the verge of death.

However, Xu Yuan could sense that the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost was not completely dead; his soul had been severely damaged and he had fallen into a deep coma.

The mysterious aura lingered in the valley for a moment, seemingly observing something, but it did not make a move against Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan vaguely sensed through his Yin Qi perception that it was a familiar aura—very faint, yet somewhat similar to the mark left in Li Ergou's house, but even purer.

A moment later, the aura slowly receded and disappeared into the depths of the valley.

Everything returned to silence.

Xu Yuan stood there, his mind racing.

Xu Changming is still alive? Was he the one who attacked just now? Then why didn't he show himself? And why did he save me?

Is Li Ergou's disappearance related to Xu Changming? That familiar feeling in that aura...

A flood of questions surged into Xu Yuan's mind, but this was clearly not the time for him to delve into them.

Xu Yuan walked to the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost's side and slowly squatted down.

Although the old ghost was seriously injured and unconscious, he was still a powerful expert in the Condensation Realm. Now, he was severely injured by the Soul Sealing Curse. Although his soul was damaged, he still had a breath left.

We can't let him die like this!

A resolute glint flashed in Xu Yuan's eyes. He then flipped the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost over, hoisted him onto his shoulder, and retreated out of the valley.

After he could no longer sense that aura, Xu Yuan reached out and placed his hand on the forehead of the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost.

The Ghost Compendium was activated at full power, and a chilling aura invaded the other's consciousness through his palm.

Refining a Qi Condensation Realm cougar is undoubtedly extremely risky for Xu Yuan now, but he has to do it—the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost knows too many secrets, especially about the mission twenty years ago, and even the truth about the depths of the back mountain.

"Using the soul as a guide, transforming yin into yin... refine!"

Xu Yuan gritted his teeth and merged his own divine soul power with the power of the Ghostly Encyclopedia, forcibly injecting it into the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost's sea of ​​consciousness.

The Golden-Eyed Old Ghost, still unconscious, convulsed violently, but was unable to resist, as the Soul-Sealing Curse had destroyed all his spiritual defenses.

The entire refining process lasted a full fifteen minutes.

When Xu Yuan withdrew his hand, his face had turned as pale as paper, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

The cost of refining the Condensation Realm Ghost was far greater than he had anticipated, almost draining all of his divine soul power.

But it worked!

As the old ghost with golden eyes slowly opened his eyes, his pale golden pupils had lost their luster, becoming empty and numb.

On his forehead, a black mark exactly the same as the one on the Scroll of the Ghostly Beings slowly appeared, only lighter in color.

[Successfully crafted: High-level Ghostly Servant (Fragment) x1]

【Manipulation of Henchmen: 1/9】

[Note: This ghost's soul is severely damaged, its memories are incomplete, and its strength is only 30% of what it was in life.]

As the information flooded his mind, Xu Yuan slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

Tonight's battle was full of twists and turns and extremely dangerous. His Blood Refining Realm strength was undoubtedly inadequate in a battle of this level.

However, fortune favors the bold. Now that the Golden-Eyed Old Ghost has been refined into a servant, although his condition is "crippled," he is still comparable to an ordinary martial artist at the ninth level of Blood Refinement.

"My lord!" The old ghost with golden eyes—now he should be called the servant with golden eyes—said mechanically, his voice as still as a deep well.

"Tell me, what happened twenty years ago?" Xu Yuan said in a deep voice.

The golden-eyed servant's eyes remained vacant, but he began to recall intermittently: "Twenty years ago, the Demon Suppression Division of the Prefecture sent Commander Wang with two newly-entered Nascent Soul Demon Suppression Envoys and twelve Blood Refining Realm Demon Suppression Guards to Qingyang County to carry out a mission..."

"What are the mission details?"

"On the surface, they came to reinforce an ancient seal, but in reality, they are searching for the entrance to the 'Netherworld'..."