My cold seems to be getting worse — I've been coughing all day, so hard that my consciousness is starting to blur. At least I don't have a fever. I need some petting and comfort, please!
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The two groups converged, held a brief discussion, and decided to press forward.
Shen Yi led the way at the front, clearly unhappy about the role. Flanking him were two disciples from Carefree Sect, one male and one female. The rest spread out behind them in a fan formation, ready to engage at a moment's notice.
Before long, two violet evil spirits drifted toward them from ahead. These purple spirits were far more malevolent than the red ones — their killing intent was denser, their forms more solid, and their features far more defined.
They had even grown tentacle-like appendages that vaguely resembled five-fingered hands. The ghostly energy surrounding them was bone-chilling.
"They're here!" Shen Yi barked, secretly channeling his True Yuan.
"You take one, we take one," Yu Qing said casually. The disciples of Ghost King Valley and Carefree Sect all tensed, splitting to either side to engage a spirit each.
Piercing wails echoed through the air, cutting straight to the depths of the soul and sending chills through every limb.
In the span of a heartbeat, the two groups clashed with the purple evil spirits.
The Ghost King Valley disciples unleashed various yin-heavy martial techniques, coordinating with one another as they fought their spirit.
The Carefree Sect did the same, though their techniques were considerably more pleasing to the eye rather than the macabre style of the Ghost King Valley.
Yang Kai hung back on the sidelines, only occasionally throwing out a token strike or two to keep up appearances. He wanted to gauge just how powerful these purple spirits really were.
After a short while, he had his answer.
The purple spirits were significantly harder to deal with than the red ones. The seven or eight Ghost King Valley disciples fought together in a group, maintaining the upper hand but refusing to press recklessly — instead wearing down the spirit's strength bit by steady bit.
A single spirit like this — if three attacked at once, Yang Kai figured even the Ghost King Valley group would be overwhelmed.
After a protracted battle, both sides eventually killed their respective spirits. The spiritual essence left behind was incredibly dense. Representatives from each group stepped forward with Spirit-Cleansing Bottles to collect the essence, faces beaming.
Their first collaboration had yielded promising results, and both Ghost King Valley and Carefree Sect were quite satisfied.
"Let's keep going!" Yu Qing said with a faint smile, jerking his chin toward Shen Yi.
Shen Yi raised no further complaints, continuing to lead the way with the other two Carefree Sect disciples.
They pushed forward, slaying spirit after spirit. By midday, each side had collected five or six clusters of essence. The spirits kept appearing in pairs, ensuring neither group came up empty.
The atmosphere was almost cordial — a picture of seamless cooperation.
But Yang Kai keenly noticed that Leng Shan remained on high alert around the Carefree Sect members, never letting her guard down even in the heat of battle.
After yet another successful kill of two spirits, the Ghost King Valley disciple in charge of collecting essence stepped forward — only for a woman from the Carefree Sect to suddenly dart out from their ranks with a light giggle. She thrust out her hand and directly absorbed the clump of spirit essence into her own body.
Then she drifted back to the Carefree Sect's side as if nothing had happened, her pretty face glowing with smug satisfaction. The male disciple beside her planted a kiss on her lips and praised, "Baby, you've got some nerve."
"Hehe, I just want you to grow stronger," the woman said in a coy, syrupy voice.
"Yu Qing!" Shen Yi couldn't help but roar at the sight. "What is the meaning of this?"
Yu Qing chuckled lightly. "What do you mean?"
"That essence was ours! How dare you snatch it right in front of us?" Shen Yi's face turned cold as ice, and the Ghost King Valley disciples all wore expressions of outrage.
"Shen Yi, why so formal? Carefree Sect and Ghost King Valley — we're practically one family. And now we're cooperating in good faith. We should be helping each other. Us collecting the essence is the same as you collecting it," Yu Qing replied without a shred of concern, his tone breezy.
"Then allow me to ask — if you kill a spirit, can we also collect the essence?" Shen Yi asked darkly, fixing him with a frigid stare.
"Sure, if you've got the ability. No problem at all, ha ha!" Yu Qing said with a light laugh. "Don't get angry over a little clump of essence. Compared to the Yellow Spring Pool, your Ghost King Valley needs this more, doesn't it? Relax — once this matter is settled, I guarantee the Yellow Spring Pool will be open to you for a full month. I, Yu Qing, keep my word!"
At the mention of the Yellow Spring Pool, Shen Yi's brow creased. He stewed for a long moment before giving a cold snort. "We'll see about that."
He had no desire to keep arguing. The Ghost King Valley disciples had virtually no resistance when it came to the Yellow Spring Pool. If Carefree Sect weren't so strong, Ghost King Valley would have stormed them long ago.
The two groups resumed their advance, but the earlier incident had clearly shattered the harmonious atmosphere.
Yang Kai sidled up to Leng Shan and asked quietly, "Why did that woman just absorb the essence directly into her body? I didn't think she cultivated any technique that counteracts evil spirits."
It was precisely because she'd absorbed it directly that the Ghost King Valley disciple hadn't had time to collect it — using a Spirit-Cleansing Bottle to gather essence required a bit of time.
"That was a Charm Slave…" Leng Shan replied softly. "They can bear all manner of harm on behalf of Carefree Sect's male disciples. Don't underestimate these people. The men of Carefree Sect use special techniques to condition their Charm Slaves, making them utterly devoted. Even if they were told to die, the Charm Slaves wouldn't so much as frown."
"Really that impressive?" Yang Kai exclaimed. Carefree Sect certainly had their methods — they'd conditioned these women to surrender both body and soul completely.
"Mm. A Charm Slave absorbing essence directly will definitely suffer some damage, but she doesn't care, and neither do the Carefree Sect men. One's willing to hit, the other's willing to take it — that's all there is to it. Besides, every man in Carefree Sect has more than one Charm Slave. If one dies, she dies. They won't lose sleep over it."