Ghostly wailing and shrieking immediately erupted. Terror appeared on the faces of the living souls, but once the golden net enveloped them, the bloodred glow surrounding their bodies gradually faded, and their expressions slowly grew peaceful. The golden light of the Buddhist path possessed the power to deliver souls to salvation. Even if it could not release them all at once, it could at least soothe them for now.
Soon the golden net suddenly pulled backward, its edges drawing tightly together into a pouch. The living souls, like fish caught in a net, were all hauled toward Xu Ziqing!
Xu Ziqing spread his hand. The golden net instantly darted into the begging bowl, and with a closing motion of his two fingers, he gathered it inside.
All the ghost qi in the sky vanished in one sweep, leaving the refined-looking old man staring in utter panic.
His greatest ability had been defeated, and there was nothing he could do!
Xu Ziqing sighed and was about to eliminate him.
But the old man activated another talisman, summoning all the demonized martial artists who had been fighting the plants below. They rose to float around him like an army of puppets.
Their eyes then turned bloodred as they charged toward Xu Ziqing once more!
Xu Ziqing showed no more mercy. The living souls were safe now, and he had no cause to hesitate.
He immediately raised his palm. Several blood vines emerged from it, writhing savagely as they shot out for dozens of zhang and bound the demonized martial artists so tightly that they could not move. The refined-looking old man was seized by the thickest vine, and a leaf bud at its tip stabbed straight into his chest, draining all his blood.
The mature Bloodthirsty Demon Vine was still fiercer than before. In the blink of an eye, it had already gone out and returned.
Everyone who had been in midair, including the old man, had become a desiccated corpse.
Xu Ziqing beckoned, drawing Rongjin back into his body. A small, round pearl now lay in his palm.
The pearl held a mixed and impure aura. Its foundation was immortal cultivation, but a thin layer of demonic qi clung to its surface. It was the refined-looking old man’s Golden Core.
After considering it briefly, Xu Ziqing crushed it.
Struggles between cultivators were common. If an enemy captured a Golden Core or Nascent Soul, they could absorb it themselves or exchange it for other goods, treating it as a resource.
But whether a cultivator followed the immortal or demonic path, they had fought against heaven for their lives. After death, the Golden Core was the only remaining proof that they had been cultivators.
Xu Ziqing followed the Dao of life’s and death’s cycle of reincarnation and had compassion for living beings. He was unwilling to treat another cultivator’s Golden Core as a commodity for trade.
So be it. Resources and wealth could all be obtained through experience and adventure. Why deny the dead their peace?
Every Wu’ao Sect attacker had now been killed, and the oppressive atmosphere around the manor cleared.
Xu Ziqing formed a hand seal. The great plants gathered the bodies strewn across the ground and deposited them together in a large pit. Then every plant reverted to a seed and was recalled by Xu Ziqing.
He could now command myriad plants as freely as his own limbs. His dantian contained an abundant, seemingly endless supply of true essence and could accommodate still more secondary and subordinate woods. The true marvels of the Great Art of Myriad Woods Heart-Planting would only gradually begin to reveal themselves after reaching Golden Core.
Yun Tiangang had remained standing in front of Yun Family Manor throughout the battle. A faint light flickered in his eyes as he watched, but he had not intervened.
Xu Ziqing walked over with a small smile. “I’ve kept you waiting, Senior Brother.”
Yun Tiangang gave a slight nod. “Your cultivation is quite good now.”
Xu Ziqing smiled. “It’s thanks to Senior Brother’s guidance in the past.”
They exchanged a few words, but Xu Ziqing’s expression became faintly hesitant.
During the fight, he had used the Qingyun Needle and the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine and released a considerable amount of his cultivation method’s aura. He wondered whether his senior brother might have recovered more memories because of it.
Yun Tiangang understood him well enough not to wait for the question. “I have recalled the embryonic form of my inner world.”
Xu Ziqing felt a little relieved. His suspicion had been correct: his senior brother’s memories were like drops of water, gradually accumulating.
Yun Tiangang already had a grasp of matters relating to his cultivation, so naturally those memories returned more quickly.
Neither said anything further. Yun Family Manor had suffered this calamity largely because of Yun Tiangang, and those inside must have been driven to the brink to raise the protective barrier.
Now that the threat from the Wu’ao Sect had been resolved, they ought to enter the manor quickly and reassure everyone.
Xu Ziqing had personally refined the protective jade pendant and could easily undo its barrier. With a point of his finger, he broke the shield.
The two then walked inside.
They had only gone a few steps when they heard approaching footsteps and came face-to-face with someone.
Earlier, when the Wu’ao Sect suddenly attacked, the people of Yun Family Manor had been caught unprepared. But under Yun Zhenhai’s orders, they organized themselves methodically and prepared to defend their home.
Yun Zhenshan said, “I heard the Wu’ao Sect was suppressed a few days ago. Could Nephew Tiangang have done something in Xuantian City?”
Yun Zhenhai frowned. “I’m more concerned that Tiangang’s upright nature may have involved him in other complications.”
The brothers discussed the matter but could reach no definite conclusion.
They set their speculations aside, for resisting the enemy was more urgent.
Yet the Wu’ao Sect had arrived with a hundred men, more than all the martial artists in Yun Family Manor combined. The manor had only a handful of Xiantian experts, all of them in seclusion. How could they resist? At that critical moment, Yun Tianheng finally emerged from seclusion and, somehow, activated a protective jade pendant. It sheltered the entire manor, preventing the attackers from breaking through.
Yun Zhenhai and his brother exchanged astonished looks. Later, remembering Xu Ziqing, who had suddenly appeared more than ten years earlier, many possibilities began to circle in their minds.
For the moment, however, they could not bring themselves to ask.
The enemy was simply too numerous. Under repeated violent impacts, the strange protective barrier soon began to totter.
Clutching the jade pendant, Yun Tianheng strained to maintain it. But his strength was insufficient; his face gradually paled, and he approached exhaustion.
Yun Zhenhai and the others tried to calm the people inside while worrying terribly about Yun Tianheng, afraid something might happen to him. Yet if Yun Tianheng stopped, the shield would break, the attackers would storm the manor, and everyone in Yun Family Manor might be killed!
Later, the family remained hidden under the barrier, and the frustrated attackers could bear it no longer. They continued striking the shield and even began setting fires!
Yun Zhenhai and the others were furious, but with their strength so inferior to the enemy’s, they could only endure the torment.
They resolved that when the shield could no longer hold, they would all charge out together. Even if every person in the manor died that day, they would take several enemies with them!
But after another short while, the barrier suddenly stopped trembling.
Yun Tianheng was startled. He did not dare stop channeling spiritual power into the pendant.
Yun Zhenhai asked, “Tianheng, has something happened?”
Yun Tianheng drew a deep breath. “It seems someone has come to help us…”
Yun Zhenshan asked urgently, “Tianheng, can you see what’s happening outside?”
Yun Tianheng thought for a moment and nodded. “I might be able to try.”
Because he cultivated a wood-attribute method as well, he could merge his spiritual power with the barrier and look outside through it.
He did not know why he had suddenly gained this ability, but he understood it might be connected to his cultivation method. Even if he could not explain it, he could employ it without making a mistake.
Soon he diverted a little of his strength, barely attaching it to the shield. Then he could clearly see what was happening outside.
He immediately exclaimed, “It’s Cousin Tiangang and Master! They’ve come!”
Although he had not formally become Xu Ziqing’s disciple, he privately addressed him as “Master.”
Yun Zhenhai and Yun Zhenshan were both startled.
They had returned so quickly?
Then they saw Yun Tianheng’s expression changing again and again and pressed him for an explanation.
Watching the battle outside, Yun Tianheng was visibly shocked and bewildered. He was still young and had little ability to conceal his feelings, so he quickly recounted everything: Yun Tiangang’s extraordinary sword intent, Xu Ziqing’s battle against the refined-looking old man, and the demonization of the numerous martial artists.
Even the brothers Yun Zhenhai and Yun Zhenshan felt dizzy hearing such astonishing things.
As for the other people of Yun Family Manor, the more they listened, the more horrified they became.
As lord of the manor, Yun Zhenhai was already widely experienced. Yet now he could only sigh. “Just who is Apothecary Xu…?”
Hearing what his own son had done also stirred a faint premonition deep in his heart.
That Apothecary Xu and his beloved son probably shared a relationship far from ordinary.
The phenomena Yun Tianheng described, and the incredible techniques wielded by Apothecary Xu, were all unheard-of and terrifying!
For a time, everyone was overwhelmed by surging emotions and could not decide what to think.
Yun Tianheng expended even more spiritual power, but fortunately, the battle outside did not last long. Before much time passed, all the attackers had been destroyed.
Yun Zhenhai first sighed in relief, then became nervous.
At that moment, someone dispelled the protective barrier. Yun Tianheng put away the jade pendant, drew a deep breath, and hurried outside first to welcome the returning men.
He met Xu Ziqing and Yun Tiangang coming toward him.
Xu Ziqing looked up and saw Yun Tianheng abruptly stop. The youth regarded him with an exceedingly complicated expression.
Xu Ziqing smiled. “You haven’t been idle, Tianheng. Your cultivation is fairly good now.”
Yun Tianheng paused, then bowed respectfully. “Greetings, Senior Xu. Greetings, Cousin Tiangang.”
Xu Ziqing looked him over, and his impression of him was favorable.
After ten years of cultivation, Yun Tianheng had clearly worked hard. He had already broken through to the fourth level of Qi Refining. The wood qi within him was quite pure, showing that he had polished his cultivation foundation with considerable care.
When Yun Family Manor was in danger, Yun Tianheng had brought out his protective treasure and spent his own strength to activate it. If he overtaxed himself and damaged his foundation, his realm might even fall. Yet despite knowing that, he had held on to the end. He clearly understood gratitude and duty and possessed an open, generous heart.
He was a promising young man, enough to make Xu Ziqing seriously consider accepting him as a disciple.
I’ll watch him a little longer. If he remains this steadfast, I might as well settle the matter. Once Senior Brother recovers his memories, I’ll report it to him and then ask Tianheng whether he wishes to become my disciple.
Yun Tianheng had just witnessed Xu Ziqing’s formidable display and dared be even less discourteous. From the cultivation method he practiced, he had begun to guess the truth, and his heart was full of delight.
But he dared not display too much of it. After composing himself, he led the two men farther inside. Perhaps because he had begun cultivating, when he looked at Yun Tiangang again, he clearly sensed that although his cousin still seemed to possess no martial power at all, the danger emanating from him was as deep as an abyss. Yun Tianheng felt nothing but profound caution toward him.
Before long, the two arrived in the manor proper and met the assembled Yun family in the main hall.
All the direct descendants, along with some particularly outstanding younger members of the branch families, had been gathered there since the attack. Outside, guards stood at every few paces, securing the place tightly.
Seeing Yun Tianheng bring the visitors inside, the gathered family members seemed to understand what had happened. Relief appeared on many faces.
Yun Zhenhai and his wife had waited anxiously for a long time. In particular, the manor lord’s wife, Meng Qingxiao, caught sight of her beloved son and immediately hurried over, seizing Yun Tiangang’s arm. “My child! Are you unharmed?”
Although Yun Tiangang had recovered part of his memories, he did not pull away.
Yun Zhenhai asked as well, “Apothecary Xu, what exactly happened?”