Even though he saw the storage bag.

Lin Chang'sheng didn't just rush forward in a fit of excitement to grab it; he stood more than ten feet away, sent his divine sense probing out, and inspected the spot carefully. It seemed like nothing was wrong, but he was still on edge.

A cultivator who's sat down to die—what if he's not truly gone, if a lingering will remains, hiding in those bones, trying to possess someone?

When you're a cultivator, who wants to die?

Even if your body's wrecked, as long as your soul survives, you'll naturally look for a shot at rebirth.

Thinking about this, Lin Chang'sheng immediately let the little white fox on his back down and told it, "Xiaobai, go grab that storage bag!"

"Ying ying ying!"

The little white fox's big eyes took on a disgusted look; its furry paws paddled frantically in protest—it wanted nothing to do with this.

"Useless thing! Ungrateful fox!"

"Starting tomorrow, your rations get cut in half!"

Lin Chang'sheng shot the little white fox a glare, then looked closely at the dead cultivator's skeleton. Suddenly, something clicked. "Was this guy a direct disciple of Liuyun Immortal Sect?"

Because—

On the tattered, weathered robes of the corpse, he saw three clouds embroidered—precisely the emblem of Liuyun Immortal Sect.

Lin Chang'sheng remembered: the outer sect got one cloud, inner sect got two, direct disciples had three. Gao Ziyue's robes had those three cloud markings!

He really hadn't expected that this dead cultivator had been a direct disciple of Liuyun Immortal Sect in life!

"Senior, you've sat down here for eternity; your bones never made it to rest in the earth. So you don't blow up my cave out of spite, I'll cremate you myself and bury you decently. In exchange, I'll take the storage bag. Call it payment for your cremation!"

Lin Chang'sheng thought this through, and from a safe distance, sent a surge of magical power to blow the storage bag to the wall corner, into a crack. The skeleton got hit by the blast, and with a noisy "crack," scattered all over the ground.

Lin Chang'sheng gripped the Immortal Slaying Saber in his left hand, pinched a spell with his right, and shot nine Meteor Fire Rains at the skeleton!

In Lin Chang'sheng's opinion, whatever the danger is, you can burn it clean and be done.

At the same time, he kept wiggling his hips, seeing the Swift Wind Flash experience points climb on his panel.

Boom!

Flames roared to life across the skeleton, and the bones started popping and snapping.

Impatient, Lin Chang'sheng twisted again, stacking a couple more Meteor Fire Rains onto the pile.

In an instant, the bones were engulfed in a raging inferno!

The whole stone chamber lit up in the blaze.

"Crack!"

After burning awhile, Lin Chang'sheng suddenly heard something inside the skeleton split apart—a sharp, startling sound.

"You little shit! How dare you burn my soul-nourishing jade pendant! Ah! Ah! Ah!!"

"I'll kill you!"

Right then, Lin Chang'sheng saw hovering above the scalded remains of the skeleton, a semi-transparent figure in his twenties. The face was handsome, but twisted in agony, screeching out a bloodcurdling wail!

The shrieking echoed throughout the cave, chilling to the bone.

The phantom only had a head and both hands left; everything below the heart was gone. Madness flashed in his eyes as he lunged straight for Lin Chang'sheng.

"What the hell is this...?"

Lin Chang'sheng's heart almost exploded; he activated the Wind God Scroll and shot out of the cave like lightning. On his way out, he tossed a few more Meteor Fire Rains, blasting the spectral figure where it hovered in the flames. The phantom shrieked and convulsed, slowly fading out as the shrieks died away.

"Hm? No more sound—did that remnant soul actually get burned up?"

Standing at the cave entrance, Lin Chang'sheng waited. The shrieking had ended; his eyes flashed. Just seconds ago, the remnant soul had screamed and twisted in the flames—proof that Meteor Fire Rain could hurt it.

He kept that in mind and, ever cautious, crept up to the entrance and tossed a few more fireballs inside.

"Bang!"

The fireballs erupted in the cave.

"Ahhh—junior brother, wait with the fireballs... we're both from the same sect... why must you fry a fellow?"

Just then, a frail voice sounded from inside.

The voice was choppy, weak as hell.

"You're from my sect?"

Lin Chang'sheng kept his guard up at the entrance, fingers pinching a spell.

"A hundred years ago, I was a Liuyun Immortal Sect disciple. My soul's about to fade... If... If you deliver one—one message to Ji Ruyan... I'll let the jade pendant thing go and gift you the storage bag as payment... Deal?"

"A message? You know Elder Ji Ruyan?"

Lin Chang'sheng was startled by that.

Ji Ruyan was a Golden Core Elder of Liuyun Immortal Sect. If this remnant soul knew her, it probably wasn't lying—it really was a disciple from Liuyun Immortal Sect a century ago!

"Elder Ji?"

Upon hearing Lin Chang'sheng's question, the soul inside the cave froze for a second, then said wryly, "Didn't expect it... In a blink, a hundred years and she's reached the Golden Core..."

'So, what does your message say?'

Lin Chang'sheng stayed alert and asked.

"He is born... not for love's sake; in the human world... don't fall for longing... Just tell her that!"

Inside, the remnant soul spoke with bottomless sorrow and melancholy, mumbling, "Tell Ji Ruyan for me—the one who framed Murong Tian was that scumbag Su Changkong!"

"What? Sect Leader Su set you up? The Sect Leader's a stand-up guy—That... That's impossible!"

That bombshell rocked Lin Chang'sheng—it was hard to believe Su Changkong, the Nascent Soul patriarch, leader of Liuyun Immortal Sect, would be so petty? Plotting against people?

"Su Changkong's the Sect Leader now? Ha... haha... Honorable? He's just a rat!"

Murong Tian snorted coldly, saying, "Little brat, let me spell it out—180 years ago, in Liuyun Immortal Sect, me, Su Changkong, Ji Ruyan, and Li Jiantang, we four were the pride of the sect. At the sect's grand tournament, I, Murong Tian, took first!"

"Ji Ruyan was the goddess of the sect back then!"

"I was close to Ji Ruyan. Who'd have thought that Su Changkong, that venomous bastard, secretly loved Ruyan? He wanted to get rid of me—the rival—so he schemed and poisoned me. I barely escaped and hid here, setting an array... But in the end, I still fell!"

"My soul stayed alive in the Soul Nourishing Jade Pendant—then you show up and burn it to bits. Now my soul's about to go!"

"At this point, I don't even blame you. Just deliver my message to Ji Ruyan, fulfill my dying wish. The storage bag has two Foundation Establishment Pills, the pill formula, and a top grade magical artifact—perfect for you! They're all yours! Go ahead and take them!"

The remnant soul Murong Tian was clearly perking up for a last hurrah; his words were full of temptation.

Like he wanted Lin Chang'sheng to hurry in and take the storage bag.

"There are Foundation Establishment Pills?"

Lin Chang'sheng's eyes sparkled when he heard that, his interest kicking in.

"That's right—there are two! I got them back then, but tried for the strongest Dao Foundation instead, hoping to break through without the pills. But in the end, Su Changkong screwed me!"

"Little brother, I'm about to fade away... Just pass... pass on my words... Don't forget..."

Murong Tian's voice grew weaker and weaker, almost inaudible.

"Really faded out?"

Lin Chang'sheng waited, hearing nothing more from the cave, mind racing.

Murong Tian died without forming a foundation yet was the strongest Qi Refining genius of Liuyun Immortal Sect.

Lin Chang'sheng didn't go in; he waited outside for another half-hour, still no sound. So, ever cautiously, he crept up to the entrance, planning to lob a few more fireballs in—just in case Murong Tian's soul needed a little extra slicing.

No way he believed Murong Tian was really gone.

Back in Ji Ruyan's era, this proud disciple's remnant soul had survived a hundred years. If he died that easy, it'd be weird.

"Ying ying ying!"

At that moment, Xiaobai tugs his ear and starts fussing.

Lin Chang'sheng glanced at Xiaobai, and with a flick of his wrist, launched eighteen little fireballs—two full rounds of Meteor Fire Rain crisscrossing into the cave.

Boom boom boom!

Crackle crackle!

Immediately, the burnt stink of a Golden Line Python carcass wafted out of the cave.

"Argh! You little beast! Damn you!"

"AAAHH!!"

Suddenly, inside the cave, a despairing howl erupts—it's Murong Tian!

"Knew you weren't dead!"

Lin Chang'sheng's eyes glittered. He retreated to the entrance, fireballs floating in front of him; right hand gripping the Immortal Slaying Saber for a Yin Soul Slash, left clutching the Myriad Souls Banner!

Inside the cave.

Murong Tian gave no reply, just kept shrieking. Eventually, the shrieks began dying out.

"Playing dead again?"

Lin Chang'sheng's eyes glinted. Left hand, Yin Soul Slash; right, Myriad Souls Banner—he strode forward and fired another Meteor Fire Rain volley into the cave!

Just then—

A jet-black shadow shot from the cave mouth, zooming straight for Lin Chang'sheng!

"Yin Soul Slash!"

Lin Chang'sheng's Immortal Slaying Saber slashed out a Yin Soul Slash—a formless soul blade slicing for the black shadow!

As he used Yin Soul Slash, the little white fox on his back flashed a white light from its mouth and vanished in a blink.

"What! Yin Soul Slash! You're not one of my sect... You're a demon cultivator!"

The black shadow jerked in midair, revealing a face—maybe burnt from earlier, nothing left below the neck—it was Murong Tian! He stared wide-eyed at Lin Chang'sheng, dumbfounded, then, next instant, his face was swarmed by countless Yin Souls!

Countless Yin Souls shrieked as they pounced onto him!

Murong Tian was nowhere to be seen now.

"Myriad Souls Banner!"

Lin Chang'sheng waved and instantly the small triangle banner unleashed a massive vortex, swallowing up Murong Tian and all the Yin Souls!

Still wary, Lin Chang'sheng cast another dozen spells to further refine the Myriad Souls Banner!

"Damn, finally locked 'em inside the Myriad Souls Banner!"

After some extra refining, Lin Chang'sheng finally breathed out.

No soul or ghost, once sealed inside the Myriad Souls Banner, can break the restriction—unless the owner lets it out.

Murong Tian may've once been the strongest Qi Refining genius of Liuyun Immortal Sect, but now his body's gone, soul battered by a century, then burned a few rounds just now, sealed up in the Myriad Souls Banner—he's not kicking up any trouble now.

Lin Chang'sheng walked into the stone chamber.

There he saw the Golden Line Python, crisp on the outside, juicy inside; Murong Tian's bones had burned down to a little pile of ash. The storage bag lay in a corner. Lin Chang'sheng went over and picked it up from the crack.

But he found—it wouldn't open.

"Grinding him to dust was definitely the right move—dodged a life-and-death crisis!"

Lin Chang'sheng muttered to himself, searching the back chamber. Other than the storage bag, there were only some broken fragments of the Soul Nourishing Jade Pendant—nothing else.

"Looks like, to open this storage bag, I'll have to completely destroy Murong Tian inside the Myriad Souls Banner."

Lin Chang'sheng eyed the storage bag, thoughts churning.

"Nobody ever comes here—why not just take the Spirit Storage Pill now and see if I can break through to Qi Refining Seventh Layer?"

Lin Chang'sheng eyed the crispy Golden Line Python on the stone chamber floor, thinking.

If he got hungry, he could roast it up for a snack. If his cultivation broke through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, he'd be able to finish off Murong Tian faster!

Then snatch those Foundation Establishment Pills!

That pill formula!

With that in mind—

Lin Chang'sheng tidied the chamber, carved out a stone platform to sit cross-legged on, and began swallowing the Spirit Storage Pill.

[Cultivation Level: Qi Refining (Sixth Layer 846/32000)]

The pill slipped down his throat, instantly dissolving into a surge of medicinal power, flooding through every limb and bone. At the same time, he watched his panel; the red prompt was flashing, and his cultivation experience points were climbing fast.

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