Ten Thousand Soul Banner: Deceased, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?

Chapter 1227: Chapter 1223: United We Stand

The three of them stood still, staring intently at the shifting mass of dark clouds.

"Potato, what is that thing?" Dou Dou, hiding behind Shen Siyuan, gently tugged at his sleeve.

"Shh, don’t make a sound," Shen Siyuan whispered.

The cloud did not have a fixed shape; its edges surged and contracted like a living creature. It moved forward without a hint of wind but carried a nauseating stench of decay, pressing down over them like a storm cloud.

Within a few breaths, the already dim sky was completely obscured, not even the few faint green glows could penetrate through, plunging the surroundings into pitch darkness, with only the slithering murmur of the cloud clearly audible in the deathly silence of the wasteland.

"I’m not afraid of you."

Startled, Dou Dou instantly bristled, jumping out from behind Shen Siyuan. She raised her little hand, and a fiery orange flame condensed in front of her.

"Scared the life out of someone, watch me burn you to ashes."

"Don’t be reckless."

Shen Siyuan reached out to hold her small shoulder but kept his gaze fixed on the approaching cloud.

He could clearly sense that there was not a shred of residual soul movement within the cloud, but it concealed countless living creatures’ energy, cold and fierce, feeding on Yin Sha and residual souls, creatures he had never seen in Yangzhou or the Qiongzhou Netherworld—Mud Worms.

Before his words could finish, the cloud pressed down to within ten zhang above their heads.

With a flick of Shen Siyuan’s finger, a sword light shot out through the sky, instantly tearing open a corner of the cloud with the unique radiant glow of the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword.

It was only then that everyone saw the true face of the "cloud."

It was not a cloud at all, but a swarm of countless strange insects gathered together.

These insects were only the size of a grain, completely black-brown, with translucent thin wings on their backs, a ring of fine barbs on their mouthparts, countless tiny legs on their abdomens, sticking together, their bodies intermixed in a squirming mass, forming a cloud that blotted out the sky or dissipating into a pervasive black mist.

The gap torn by sword qi was filled up within moments by the swarming insects, with not a hint of blockage.

"Wow, scared the life out of me," Dou Dou’s scalp tingled, and her short legs swiftly ducked back behind Shen Siyuan.

Shen Siyuan’s gaze turned cold, and his fingertips flicked again, sending a more powerful sword qi sweeping towards the insect swarm.

The power of the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword needed no proof, yet it had little effect now, crashing into the insects like a mud ox into the sea.

Instead, it seemed to provoke them, growing increasingly fierce, fluttering their wings, and fiercely charging towards them.

"So fierce?"

Shen Siyuan furrowed his brows slightly, his thoughts spun, and the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword instantly flew out from his sleeve.

He spurred the sword wind again, countless sharp wind blades shredding forward, grinding the insects in front into powder, yet the debris reformed in the Yin Wind, turning back into new insects in the blink of an eye, not reducing in number, but multiplying.

In merely a blink, the insect swarm surrounded them, not three zhang away, the stench almost choking, the buzz of insect wings echoing in their ears, making their scalps tingle.

Duoduo immediately held the Qiankun Umbrella before her, and as the umbrella turned, a clear halo spread out, forming an impenetrable barrier that sheltered them within.

Numerous insects crashed onto the barrier, producing a dense crackling sound like raindrops on an oil paper umbrella. Despite being shocked off by the barrier, they relentlessly charged forward without a hint of retreat.

"Brother, these things are terrifying."

Duoduo clutched the umbrella handle tightly, her little face tense, as the insect swarm grew denser, the halo on the barrier began to tremble slightly.

Just then, Xiao Yue, who had been silent, suddenly took half a step forward.

The soul-hooking chain spiraling around her quivered subtly, the small Three Pure Ones Bell at its tip moved without wind, emitting a sound clear and gentle.

At the moment the bell sounded, the insects that were crazily hitting the barrier retreated a few feet as if pricked by needles, and dozens of them in the front row exploded in mid-air, turning into a stinking puddle of black water.

Everyone paused, even the frenziedly squirming insect swarm halted for a moment.

Xiao Yue herself hesitated briefly, then a flash of understanding appeared in her eyes.

She raised her hand to grasp the Three Pure Ones Bell at the end of the Soul-hooking Chain, lifted her gaze toward the insect swarm covering the sky, and lightly shook the bell with her fingertips.

Ding~ Ding^

Clear and pure bell sounds rang out one after another, unhurried yet carrying a peculiar rhythm, spreading towards the surroundings, penetrating the hum of the insect swarm, and echoed across the entire wasteland.

This bell sound seemed to be the natural nemesis of these strange insects.

The swarm that originally covered the sky retreated frantically like a tide under the bell sound. The strange insects touched by the bell sound instantly stiffened and then exploded into foul black water without even a chance to regroup.

The insect swarm emitted extremely sharp and piercing screeches, and the insect bodies, originally gathered into clouds, instantly dispersed, trying to flee in all directions. Yet, the bell sound was omnipresent; no matter where they fled, the bell sound dissolved their bodies into pools of black water seeping into the scorched earth.

"Wow, Sister Xiao Yue, you’re amazing." Dou Dou immediately became excited, waving her arms.

Then she opened her mouth and spewed a breath of orange-red flame towards the insect swarm in the sky.

The flame exploded in the air, transforming into a towering wall of fire, sweeping towards the swarm. Dou Dou’s flame was extremely effective against yin souls and evil ghosts, instantly burning them to ashes, but the strange insects that crashed into the fire wall only made a faint sizzling sound.

Then they flew out unharmed, directly rushing towards Dou Dou.

Dou Dou was startled again, quickly hiding behind Shen Siyuan.

Xiao Yue pursed her lips and walked out of the Qiankun Umbrella’s barrier step by step. The continuous clear sound of the bell echoed across the wasteland, and the swarm that originally obscured the sky dissolved rapidly under the bell sound.

The strange insects crazily tried to flee the range of the bell sound, but Shen Siyuan wouldn’t give them the chance.

He flicked his fingertips, and the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword transformed into a wall of five-colored light, encircling the entire wasteland, forming an invisible cage, trapping all the strange insects within the range of the bell sound with no escape.

Duoduo immediately spun the Qiankun Umbrella, its surface radiating a surge in light, turning into countless clear radiant threads that tangled the residual insects trying to burrow, pulling them into the range of the bell sound, allowing the bell sound to shatter and dissolve them.

Dou Dou didn’t idle either. Seeing these strange insects fear the Three Pure Ones Bell, she instantly grew brave again, waving her small hand to weave the flames into a fine fire net, gathering the dispersing insect swarm together, and although the fire couldn’t kill them, it could drive them to Xiao Yue, all the while muttering: "Left pile, right pile, Sister Xiao Yue pushes piles..."

The initially tense atmosphere, because of her involvement, quickly melted away like ice and snow.

The three little ones coordinated seamlessly; in less than half a stick of incense, the swarm that originally filled the sky was thoroughly cleared.

Only pools of foul black water remained on the wasteland, soaking into the charred land.

Only then did Xiao Yue stop shaking the Three Pure Ones Bell.

"Well done." Shen Siyuan smiled, rubbing her head, his eyes full of praise.

He hadn’t expected the Three Pure Ones Bell to be so effective against these strange insects.

Shen Siyuan crouched down, with his fingertips emitting faint beams like small tentacles, touching the residual black water on the ground.

Dou Dou squatted curiously beside him, "Potato, what did this turn into?"

"This should be pollution-infected Blood Evil Insects," Shen Siyuan said.

The reason he knew this naturally came from the Jiuyou Demon Lord’s memory.

"Blood Evil Insects are sinister bugs bred by accumulating the blood evil of soldier souls slain in battle and buried in the earth veins over time. They feed on Yin Sha and residual souls, clustering into clouds and dispersing into mists, impervious to water and fire, and difficult to injure with swords. But after being polluted by the Polluted Energy, they became even more formidable."

Dou Dou, upon hearing this, kicked at the black soil on the ground, then stood up and approached Xiao Yue with a fawning look, "Xiao Yue, Xiao Yue, your bell is really powerful. Can you lend it to me sometime?"

Xiao Yue immediately clutched the Three Pure Ones Bell tightly, stepping back half a step, "Don’t even think about it."

Dou Dou pouted, muttering under her breath: "So stingy."

But as soon as Xiao Yue glared, she immediately hid behind Shen Siyuan.

"Alright, stop messing around, let’s continue forward," Shen Siyuan said, taking the lead to walk forward.

Dou Dou hurriedly followed with her little steps.