Chapter 275: Chapter 274: The 5 Masters from Shide Prefecture Are Gathered
Meanwhile, the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting was being besieged by five Guardian Star Officials.
At his peak, these five demons wouldn’t have been able to withstand a single blow from him. Even while injured, he could still triumph over opponents of their level of Dao Practice.
However, these five demons had somehow mixed a pure, unyielding True Qi into their Demon Power, raising their combat strength by one or two tiers.
The Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting was very familiar with this type of True Qi. It was precisely the Taoist Inner Breath True Qi used by the Inner Sect Disciples of Daluo Palace. He had once witnessed the defeated remnants of his Forgotten Soul Hall being crushed and slaughtered by Daluo Palace disciples with the same level of cultivation.
That was why he had grown curious about Daluo Palace. And, as it happened, he had just found his Harmony Mage. So he came to Daluo Palace to investigate, planning to lie low, recover his strength, and ultimately usurp their position and take the palace for himself.
Who would have thought his plans would go up in flames on the very first day?
At this moment, with all his experience, how could the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting not know that this private room for a Registered Disciple was an incredibly tempting trap?
"Damn it!"
"To think that after a lifetime of hunting geese, I’d be pecked in the eye by one today!"
The Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting was seething with rage, but he realized there was nothing he could do. Forget the Daluo Palace Master; he couldn’t even break through the encirclement of these five Guardian Star Officials, to say nothing of the flying woman over there.
When Gu Zhao saw Liu Jin cough up blood from rage, his gaze shifted back to the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting.
Previously, when he was hiding inside Liu Jin’s body and suppressing his aura, he was difficult to detect. But now that he was casting techniques and fighting, the Five Thunders Order in Gu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness naturally began to tremble with excitement.
’Evil Qi! So much Evil Qi!’
Gu Zhao formed the Celestial Thunder Seal, and Five-Colored Thunderclouds began to gather above Daluo Palace. Within moments, thick, dark clouds obscured the moonlight. The silver glow of the moon vanished from the palace’s glazed tiles and the Jade Water Lake, replaced by a five-colored radiance.
"RUMBLE..."
A low rumble echoed from within the Five-Colored Thunderclouds. The Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting suddenly felt the oppressive might of heaven and earth. He couldn’t help but look up, and his expression changed drastically.
"Wait!" the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting shouted at Gu Zhao. "Daluo Palace Master, hold on! We can talk about this!"
Gu Zhao nodded. "Alright!"
As the word left his lips, so too did a Five-Colored Thunderbolt as thick as a water bucket.
"BOOM!"
The five colors of the Celestial Thunder flashed and merged into one, lighting up all of Cuiluo Mountain. For an instant, it was as if it were broad daylight—a dazzlingly bright, sunny day.
The Thunderbolt reached the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting’s head in a flash, instantly shattering his protective barrier of black qi. The seemingly substantial Yin Qi didn’t even resist for a fraction of a second, melting away like ice in the Thunderbolt’s brilliant light.
Then, the terrifying light of the thunderbolt enveloped the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting, directly dissolving his Ghost Body. Only a wisp of his remnant soul managed to escape in the nick of time, slipping into the body of Liu Jin, who had just been coughing up blood from rage.
The very next moment, another Thunderbolt descended from the sky and struck Liu Jin directly. Then, under the Thunderbolt’s baptism, Liu Jin’s entire body was reduced to ash.
Feeling the lingering aura of the Thunderbolt in the air, the Guardian Star Officials swallowed nervously, their hearts pounding in silent shock.
This was especially true for Huang Yuan. He had once attacked Daluo Palace alongside the Black Bear King. Back then, Gu Zhao was weaker than him; Taoist Yan Song and Taoist Yi Hong hadn’t even let Gu Zhao make a move.
But now, looking at the Five-Colored Thunderclouds in the sky and thinking back on that last Thunderbolt, Huang Yuan was certain that Gu Zhao’s Dao Practice must have already surpassed a thousand years, perhaps even reaching two thousand.
’Terrifyingly powerful!’ Huang Yuan found it incredible, wondering how Gu Zhao could possibly advance his cultivation so quickly.
Everyone looked at Gu Zhao with reverence, but he remained expressionless. He didn’t spare a single glance for Liu Jin, who had been turned to ash. Instead, his eyes roamed, continuing to scan the ruins.
The reason was simple: the Five Thunders Order hadn’t absorbed any Evil Qi.
’A remnant soul flees into Liu Jin’s body, only to be reduced to ash along with him. What a clever scheme, what a performance,’ Gu Zhao mused, strolling into the dormitory ruins with a smile playing at the corners of his eyes.
Zhuo Qingyan followed beside Gu Zhao. Seeing his expression, she immediately recalled the Cyan Robed Ghost they had encountered while paying respects to her parents. She stopped Li Qingshuang, who was also about to step forward. "That old ghost isn’t dead yet."
"Huh?" Li Qingshuang stopped in her tracks and looked at Zhuo Qingyan in confusion. "But Gu Zhao clearly blasted him until not even a speck remained, didn’t he?"
Although Li Qingshuang greatly respected Zhuo Qingyan, her own cultivation was higher. In this regard, she was more inclined to trust her own eyes and senses.
Zhuo Qingyan shook her head. "He fooled us, but he couldn’t fool Brother Gu."
Li Qingshuang looked toward Gu Zhao. He scanned the area for a long moment before two beams of cyan light suddenly shot from his eyes. The beams widened as they traveled, blanketing the ground of the ruins.
It was a pity Li Qingshuang had never been on Blue Star; otherwise, the word "flashlight" would have immediately sprung to her lips.
The people of Daluo Palace, however, all exclaimed in unison, "Taiyi Divine Light!"
That was right. This was Taoist Yan Ling’s unique secret technique, the Taiyi Divine Light, which he had taught to Gu Zhao.
The next moment, Gu Zhao withdrew the Divine Light and sent a blast of Palm Thunder striking a shattered Copper Pot in the ruins.
"AHH!"
A piercing scream rang out as a ghostly figure materialized and charged at Gu Zhao, trying to take him down with it.
However, a golden light suddenly flared up around Gu Zhao. The moment the black shadow hit the surface of the light, it was blasted back and completely dissipated into the air.
Gu Zhao nodded, feeling waves of Evil Qi pouring into the Five Thunders Order in his Sea of Consciousness. He turned and smiled. "He’s really dead this time. That completes the set of five masters from Shide Prefecture."
Zhuo Qingyan and Li Qingshuang both smiled.
Gu Zhao focused on his Sea of Consciousness, sensing the three full Thunder Seeds now orbiting his Five Thunders Order. He also felt the Thunder Power that flowed out from the Order, simultaneously nourishing his body and aiding his cultivation.
’The speed of forming Thunder Seeds hasn’t changed,’ he thought. ’But the Five Thunders Order only aids cultivation by improving my aptitude from within and supplementing Spiritual Qi from without. It accelerates the process, but when it’s actually time to advance to the next realm, I still have to rely on myself.’
At this thought, Gu Zhao breathed a sigh of relief. ’Thankfully, my Mental Realm is exceptionally stable. I haven’t hit a bottleneck yet.’
Gu Zhao: (•̀⌄•́)
Hearing Gu Zhao declare that the Master of the Hall of Soul Forgetting was dead, the others finally gathered around.
Gu Zhao gave an order, "It’s the middle of the night. Everyone go back and rest. We can clean this up tomorrow morning. There’s no rush."
"Yes, sir!" Huang Yuan bowed and sent away some of the Outer Disciples and Firework Taoists who had intended to stay and work. Only then did he leave with He Feng and the others.
Zhuo Qingyan glanced from Gu Zhao to Li Qingshuang, smiled faintly, and then pulled the Silk Embroideress and Bai Ke away. Bi Yingying and Chen Zhi shot the pair a look before also departing, whispering to each other as they went.
Gu Zhao scratched his cheek, then sidled up to Li Qingshuang with a grin. "Shall we go back and continue?"
