Chapter Ten: Decisive Battle Against Ghostly Immortals

In the forest, a fierce battle between good and evil is at a stalemate. Zhang Aoxue, relying on the power of the divine sword in her hands, has temporarily protected the three individuals. However, eliminating these entities is not a realistic expectation. At this moment, Lin Yunfeng has suffered severe damage to his true essence and is incapacitated. Even Lu Yun's "Fierce Fire Heavenly Gang Sword Technique" is not very effective against these ghostly entities. Now, the only hope lies in Zhang Aoxue, as everyone understands that these eerie creatures are not afraid of her but fear the divine sword in her hands. The current situation depends on how long Zhang Aoxue can hold on.

Lu Yun gently supports Lin Yunfeng, pressing lightly on his back. The "YiTian Fa Jue" true essence instantly enters his body to aid in recovery. Lin Yunfeng, with a pale face, reassures Lu Yun that he's fine and instructs him to be vigilant while suggesting that seeking help may be necessary in their current crisis.

In the forest, the black mist surrounding them is intensifying, slowly closing in on Zhang Aoxue and the others. The ghostly immortal and nine ghost entities form a circle, trapping Zhang Aoxue, Lu Yun, and Lin Yunfeng. The ten streams of black ghostly energy converge into a black gas shield, suppressing the purple light emitted by Zhang Aoxue's sword. Under this pressure, Zhang Aoxue's sword lowers, and the purple light dims. Lu Yun, observing the situation, contemplates a solution.

Zhang Aoxue, unleashing a burst of powerful true essence, manages to break through the black gas shield momentarily, forcing the ghostly entities to retreat. A column of purple light shoots up into the sky, dispersing the black ghostly energy and creating a powerful force that resonates throughout the surroundings.

The ghostly immortal roars, and green malevolent eyes emit countless green energy rays attacking Zhang Aoxue. Although Zhang Aoxue successfully repels the attacks with her sword, each encounter consumes a significant amount of her true essence. Lu Yun, protecting Lin Yunfeng, notices the situation and decides to lend support by infusing ghostly energy into the sword, causing the ghost entities to retreat in fear.

Zhang Aoxue, with her eyes gleaming, raises her hands, and a powerful aura envelops her. A phoenix, several zhang in size, appears behind her, emitting a clear and melodious sound that echoes through the forest. She performs her ultimate technique, "Phoenix Dance in the Nine Heavens," creating a spectacular scene with the sword radiating a dazzling purple light. The powerful sword energy breaks through the sky, reaching far and wide.

Lin Yunfeng, having recovered partially, opens his eyes and watches Zhang Aoxue with amazement. Lu Yun, similarly astonished, realizes the formidable strength of Zhang Aoxue, the outstanding disciple of Yi Yuan. Lin Yunfeng, seizing the opportunity, suggests using the Yin-Yang Escape technique to seek help. He urges Lu Yun to take care of himself and assures him that he will return with reinforcements.

In the meantime, the forest is filled with an increasingly dense black mist, and the ghostly entities surround Zhang Aoxue and Lu Yun. Zhang Aoxue's sword, emitting a brilliant purple light, faces the combined onslaught of the entities. Lu Yun, with his sword skills enhanced by ghostly energy, attacks the ghost entities while Lin Yunfeng prepares to use the Yin-Yang Escape technique to seek assistance.

Back at Yi Yuan, the four heads of the academies sense a powerful sword energy emanating from the direction of the Yin Soul Forest. They express concern about a potential crisis, and suddenly, Lin Yunfeng appears before them, explaining the dire situation with Zhang Aoxue and Lu Yun surrounded by ghostly entities. The heads rush to the scene, fearing the worst.

In the forest, Zhang Aoxue's sword unleashes a surge of purple light, creating a formidable display against the ghost entities. Lin Yun returns to Yi Yuan, explaining the situation and seeking assistance from his masters. The heads of the academies realize the severity of the situation, especially if the seal on the underground ghost spring has been compromised. They worry about the absence of the "Sky-Shifting Ruler" and the difficulty of resealing the area without it.

At this moment, Lin Yun reappears, bringing with him the heads of the academies. Zhang Aoxue continues her intense battle, and Lu Yun deploys a unique mind wave attack to repel the ghost entities. The forest becomes a battleground as Zhang Aoxue's formidable "Phoenix Dance in the Nine Heavens" technique overwhelms the ghostly entities, and Lin Yun exhibits his hidden strength with precise mind wave control.

The situation is critical, and everyone is giving their all to confront the ghostly entities.

With an astonishingly fast speed and an immensely powerful force, he instantly pierced through the seven layers of protective ghost aura of three ghostly figures, severely injuring them. However, these ghostly figures were not easy to deal with. Although he hit their entities, they were originally composed of gathered ghostly energy and lacked a true physical form. Thus, it was extremely difficult for ordinary people to destroy them.

Ignoring the situation, after hitting three ghostly figures, Luyun immediately released five waves of psychic waves. Each psychic wave had the same frequency, silently attacking and instantly hitting five other ghostly figures. The invisible and shapeless psychic waves were incredibly strange, representing a mental attack that couldn't be evaded. Luyun's smile deepened upon hitting his targets once again, severely damaging the five ghostly figures. At this moment, he was acutely aware of everything in the entire forest through his mental waves, including the situations of Zhang Aoxue and the ghost spirit.

Just as Luyun was about to launch a third attack, intending to increase the frequency of the psychic waves to kill several more ghostly figures and alleviate Zhang Aoxue's pressure, he suddenly sensed two extremely powerful auras approaching from a distance. This surprised him, realizing that experts from Yiyuan were coming to rescue them. Luyun sighed lightly and immediately retracted the psychic waves. A green light flashed around his body, and protective true energy appeared, firmly shielding him.

After retracting the psychic waves, two figures appeared out of thin air above the forest—Master Jingyue and True Person Ziyang. They stood silently, observing the situation below. At this moment, Zhang Aoxue's divine sword emitted a brilliant purple light. Due to the injuries sustained by the ghostly figures, her pressure had significantly decreased, allowing her to confront the ghost spirit. She exerted all her strength, and a burst of green light enveloped her entire body. The phoenix in the air emitted a deafening cry, sweeping through the surroundings with a burst of green light. The purple dragon also roared into the sky, transforming into a ball of purple light that rotated around the ghost spirit, gradually narrowing the encirclement. When the shining black vortex of the ghost spirit encountered the rotating purple light, a sizzling sound echoed as if water and fire were meeting, conflicting and mutually canceling each other out.

The ghost spirit, now a black energy mass, rapidly moved at a frequency of 8,600 times per instant within the purple light, swiftly dodging the attacks from the purple light. For a while, Zhang Aoxue found it challenging to deal with it. Since she started attacking, her consumption had been astonishing. Fortunately, the divine sword in her hand seemed to be in sync with her spiritual essence, minimizing the expenditure of true energy and benefiting her greatly.

Meanwhile, two more figures appeared above the forest—True Person Qianyuan and True Person Xuanyin. The four individuals in the air looked down at the ghost spirit, their eyes filled with astonishment. Each had a different expression regarding Zhang Aoxue's purple divine sword.

Master Jingyue showed a hint of joy on her face. Although she didn't know how her most outstanding disciple obtained the divine sword, the fact that she possessed it would undoubtedly be beneficial for her future cultivation. Judging by the power of the divine sword, it was likely at least a celestial weapon, perhaps even a top-tier divine weapon.

The other three showed a trace of concern in their eyes, seemingly worried about their own disciples. Zhang Aoxue was already exceptionally talented, and now, with the help of this divine sword, it seemed impossible for their disciples to catch up with her. The position of the number one in Yiyuan seemed destined to be hers, making the three sect masters quite anxious.

True Person Xuan Yin spoke, "It seems that the seal from back then has been broken, but fortunately, the Five Elements Strange Array has not been destroyed. Now, we need to find a way to destroy that ghost spirit and seal the passage. This ghost spirit is not an ordinary ghost; it is extremely difficult to destroy. Without a divine weapon, it's impossible. Fortunately, with Aoxue's sword, we have a good chance."

True Person Ziyang added, "Aoxue seems to have consumed quite a bit of true energy. Let's go down and prevent it from affecting the cultivation of both of them." Master Jingyue agreed, "Right, let's go down. It will also give her a chance to rest." Saying this, a green sword light instantly enveloped the entire forest, indicating her profound cultivation level. At the same time, three green sword lights also erupted with the same momentum and descended.

Master Jingyue rushed towards Zhang Aoxue, whispering, "Aoxue, take a break. I'll handle this ghost spirit." Saying this, a green light instantly covered the ghost spirit, and Master Jingyue took over Zhang Aoxue's position, allowing her to rest. True Person Ziyang also approached Luyun and said, "Luyun, you've consumed a considerable amount of true energy. Let me handle them; you take a break." As for True Person Qianyuan and True Person Xuan Yin, they directly attacked the remaining ghostly figures. Their ruthless sword lights filled every corner, leaving the ghostly figures with nowhere to hide.

Zhang Aoxue gently descended, standing next to Luyun. The two exchanged a glance, both revealing a hint of joy. Luyun smiled lightly, "Senior Sister, your cultivation is truly profound. Today, Junior Brother finally witnessed it. I deeply admire you; I am sincerely convinced! I hope Senior Sister can guide me more in the future." After saying this, he smiled gracefully, his handsome face exuding immense charm.

Zhang Aoxue gave him a slight glance and then averted her gaze. Watching the four sect masters personally taking action, Zhang Aoxue calmly said, "You're not bad either. Coming here for just a year and achieving such cultivation, you will probably become the number one in Yiyuan in the future."

Luyun smiled faintly, looking at her beautiful face, and softly said, "This time, the three senior brothers and master were able to come. I believe it's Yun Feng's credit. I wonder how he's doing now; he's probably lying in bed resting. Encountering such a formidable ghost creature this time, it seems things are not simple. Besides exterminating this ghost spirit and ghostly figures, the most important thing is to find a way to seal that cold pond. Otherwise, there might be more ghost creatures coming out in the future, posing a threat to the mortal realm."

Zhang Aoxue spoke in a slightly lowered voice, "Since Master has arrived, I believe they have a way to handle this situation. You should take this opportunity to recover your true energy as soon as possible. Additionally, it's rare to see Master and the three senior brothers take action, so you should seize the chance to observe and learn from their experience." After finishing her words, she focused her gaze on the ongoing battle in the field, watching attentively.

At this moment, the most intense battle in the field was between Master Jingyue and the ghost spirit. The ghost spirit feared nothing except for the divine sword in Zhang Aoxue's hand. Now that Zhang Aoxue had left, it seemed to fear nothing at all. Though the ghost spirit recognized Master Jingyue's profound cultivation, it showed no concern. It instantly erupted with a powerful black light, filling the entire forest with an overwhelming force that made Master Jingyue and the others in the battle struggle to breathe, expressing great astonishment. The ghost spirit's body flickered, creating seven ghostly shadows, making it impossible for anyone to distinguish its true form.

Master Jingyue's expression changed, thinking to herself, "Indeed, it's the most formidable ghost creature in the Ghost Realm. It's incredibly tough and hard to deal with. I can't let it go like this, or I'll lose face." With a sudden burst of green light, Master Jingyue's body emitted a radiant glow. The long sword in her hand flowed with light, unleashing an unparalleled aura that swept through the heavens. Following that, seven figures appeared around Master Jingyue. Each figure instantly launched eighteen sword strikes, fiercely attacking the ghost spirit.

On the other side, True Person Xuanyin had already killed two ghostly figures, and True Person Qianyuan had also killed two. True Person Ziyang was about to finish off the second one. Obviously, it was easy for the three experts to deal with the ghostly figures. In the entire Yiyuan, there were only four of them, along with True Person Xuan Yu—five top experts. Over the many years, apart from Feng Yuanyang sixty years ago, the most outstanding disciples were Zhang Aoxue and Li Hongfei. The rest of the disciples, in terms of the cultivation world, were considered ordinary. Considering that Yiyuan had been established for over a thousand years, having only five top experts was quite challenging. This was also the reason why they had always been at the bottom among the Six Courts!

In the forest, the clash of sword lights and ghostly shadows resounded continuously. The battle between righteousness and evil was intense. After half an hour, the three experts, True Person Xuanyin, True Person Qianyuan, and True Person Ziyang, had already destroyed all the ghostly figures and other ghost creatures. Now, only Master Jingyue and the ghost spirit remained. True Person Qianyuan looked at Master Jingyue's rapidly moving figure and said with a slight worry, "This ghost spirit is not like ordinary ghostly figures. It's not something ordinary people can kill. It's the strongest ghost creature in the Ghost Realm. I think we need to join forces and have a chance to suppress it. What do you two disciples think?"

True Person Xuanyin frowned slightly, "Today, seeing this legendary ghost spirit, I realized it's even stronger than the legends. With my sister's cultivation, not only can she not restrain it, but she's gradually falling behind. It's truly remarkable. We need to be cautious. I think we should strike together to eliminate this ghost spirit."

True Person Ziyang hesitated, "Taking action is not a problem, but my sister's personality... you know her. I'm afraid she won't be happy if we do that."

True Person Xuanyin snorted, "Now is not the time for jokes. Considering how powerful that thing is, she probably understands better than us. Haven't you noticed that she has already unleashed the eleventh move of the 'Twelve Heavenly Arts'? If it weren't for facing a formidable opponent, why would she fight so desperately? Let's go." After that, a green light flashed, and True Person Xuanyin appeared above the ghost spirit. A blue-black sword over her head emitted a brilliant light, illuminating the entire forest. With the supreme Daoist technique, she instantly descended, slashing down toward the ghost spirit.

True Person Qianyuan and True Person Ziyang exchanged a glance and also soared into the air. In mid-air, two vigorous sword lights, one red and one green, enveloped the entire forest, trapping the ghost spirit in layers of sword lights. True Person Qianyuan and True Person Ziyang, one on the left and one on the right, along with Master Jingyue and True Person Xuanyin, formed a square formation, surrounding the ghost spirit with four powerful sword lights. It was a rare sight for the four top experts of Yiyuan to take action simultaneously.

Suddenly, the atmosphere changed, and all the surrounding airflow gathered towards the four people. A multicolored gas cluster formed around them, enveloping the four along with the ghost spirit. This prevented Zhang Aoxue and Luyun on the ground from seeing what was happening inside. All they could see was the multicolored gas cluster with countless flashes of light, creating a beautiful and mesmerizing scene. Inside, the brightness fluctuated, and the lighting was dim, making it impossible for Zhang Aoxue and Luyun to infer

 what was happening.

Then, a loud noise erupted. The multicolored gas cluster around them disappeared instantly, revealing a black light pillar that shot up into the sky. The four figures were pushed back several steps with expressions of astonishment on their faces. The ghost spirit, under the combined attack of the four top experts, had been significantly weakened, but it managed to force them back. Even after taking heavy damage, the ghost spirit was not easy to deal with. It suddenly disappeared from sight, causing Master Jingyue, True Person Xuanyin, True Person Qianyuan, and True Person Ziyang to lose track of it.

True Person Xuanyin's expression changed, "Be careful. This creature is formidable and unpredictable. It's not something an ordinary person can kill. Now our only hope is for the four of us to join forces again, trap it, and then let Aoxue deliver a full-strength blow. The only thing that can restrain this ghost spirit is Aoxue's divine sword. We must use that sword to destroy the ghost spirit."

Master Jingyue's face was slightly pale, "It seems that's the only way. I never thought that even with the four top experts of Yiyuan joining forces, we still can't kill this ghost spirit. It's truly incredible."

True Person Xuanyin glanced at the three disciples, "If killing this ghost spirit were so easy, it wouldn't be called a 'ghost spirit.' If it were that simple, it wouldn't be worthy of the title 'spirit.' Now, let's not waste time. Let's get ready to start." After speaking, she exchanged a glance with the others, and the four of them instantly rose into the air, standing in four different directions, preparing to force the ghost spirit to reveal itself and then surround and attack it.

On the ground, Zhang Aoxue tightly gripped the divine sword in her hand, focusing all her attention on the airspace, ready to unleash a full-strength attack at any moment. Meanwhile, Luyun closed his eyes, and the waves of mental energy within his body vibrated at an extremely low frequency, secretly detecting the whereabouts of the hidden ghost spirit.

He could have used the Daoist technique "Heavenly Eye," or the Buddhist technique "Great Asura Eye," or even the demonic technique "Desire Demon Eye" to find the location of the ghost spirit. Unfortunately, at this moment, he dared not use those techniques. He could only rely on his most miraculous mental energy waves, adjusting the frequency to an extremely low level to avoid detection by the high-level cultivators present.