Gateway of Immortality-Chapter 369: Ghost Hunt

The eerie sounds of roars and wails echoed right beside them.

The group moved silently through the valley, occasionally looking up. A gust of yin wind howled over the mountain, where ghostly figures loomed in the shadows. They suppressed the fluctuations of their protective artifacts with all their might, unable to use their evading methods and forced to proceed on foot.

A river of blood flowed from the depths of the mountain, its waters tainted by blood miasma, turning them a deep crimson.

There was bound to be a toxin far deadlier than the blood miasma lurking in the river. Walking along its banks, they stepped cautiously over jagged rocks, fearful of alerting any ghostly creatures. Each movement was careful and deliberate as they trudged forward with difficulty.

"If we enter through the mountain’s depths, there's a hidden passage leading to an exit directly across from the ghost nest. Ghostly creatures occasionally wander into the passage, but most of them are solitary and weak. If we encounter any, we must eliminate them swiftly—don’t give them a chance to summon reinforcements."

Standing at the entrance to the mountain passage, Kong Xin surveyed the area for a moment before waving his hand and stepping inside first.

The others quickly followed.

Inside, the blood miasma thinned slightly but remained dense. Fortunately, none of them were ordinary people—their keen eyesight allowed them to barely discern the path ahead.

As they ventured deeper, the passage grew narrower. The jagged stone walls on either side left barely any room to step. Without Kong Xin’s orders, no one dared to use movement arts to hasten their pace, making the trek increasingly arduous.

Just as impatience began to set in, a fork appeared in the path ahead.

"This way!"

Kong Xin, seemingly very familiar with the terrain, changed direction without hesitation.

The group filed in one after another, breathing a sigh of relief upon seeing the new path. This passage had no underground river. Though winding and uneven, it was far easier to navigate than the previous route.

Kong Xin led the way, with the elder and his disciples in the middle. Qin Sang and Wandering Man took up the rear.

This was a deliberate choice. Not only did they work together with the most synergy, but staying at the back also provided a buffer in case danger arose ahead.

At first, wary of ambushes, they proceeded cautiously, treating every shadow as a potential threat.

However, as time passed, they neared the midpoint of the passage according to Kong Xin, yet they had only encountered a few low-level ghostly creatures, which were easily dispatched.

Gradually, their confidence grew, and they quickened their pace.

Kong Xin transmitted his voice to the group, "Ahead lies the deepest part of the mountain—a cavern. The cavern is vast; I was never able to determine its full extent. There are likely many ghostly creatures dwelling inside. Fortunately, we only need to skirt along the edges. Not far from there, we’ll find another hidden passage leading out."

Before he finished speaking, the path ahead suddenly vanished into nothingness. Upon closer inspection, they realized that the hidden passage ended at a sheer cliff.

A dense blood miasma shrouded the depths below, obscuring its true extent. Just as Kong Xin had described—it was a cavern.

"Follow me!"

Kong Xin stepped onto a protruding rock on the cliffside and gracefully descended. The others were quick to follow.

Before long, they landed on solid ground. After confirming that their surroundings were undisturbed, they continued along the cliff wall.

"Be careful!"

Kong Xin suddenly halted, his voice low and urgent. He grasped the Crimson Core in one hand and pointed forward with the other. A pagoda-shaped artifact with nine levels transformed into a streak of light and shot ahead.

The blood miasma churned violently. The pagoda, initially the size of a palm, expanded to the height of a person and hovered steadily in the air. A soft, luminous glow cascaded from it, firmly trapping an evil spirit below.

This ghostly creature had two horns on its head and a grotesque visage.

Though the pagoda suppressed it, the evil spirit thrashed violently, opening its mouth in a silent roar. Fortunately, the artifact contained its cries, preventing them from alarming any other ghostly creatures.

Even with his artifact, Kong Xin struggled to subdue it. This evil spirit’s strength was only slightly weaker than that of a Foundation Building cultivator, making it the most formidable foe they had encountered since entering Endless Valley.

Swish!

A flash of white light streaked through the air.

The light came from a needle-thin artifact, as fine as an ox’s hair.

Seemingly unremarkable, the artifact pierced through the evil spirit's body with ease. Working in tandem with Kong Xin’s pagoda, it delivered a fatal blow. The spirit perished instantly, its body dissolving into a mass of blood mist that merged with the surrounding miasma. The glowing needle flickered and returned to the palm of a woman clad in red.

Kong Xin retrieved his pagoda and cupped his hands toward her. "Thank you for your timely assistance, Daoist."

The red-clad woman dismissed his gratitude. "Even without me, you could have handled that wretch with ease. I simply didn’t want to waste time. If such a powerful ghostly creature is lurking here, then this passage isn’t as safe as you claimed. You’d best lead the way quickly before any other surprises arise."

Her expression carried a hint of mockery—she was clearly displeased with Kong Xin’s previous downplaying of the dangers.

Kong Xin remained composed as he spoke, "Rest assured, Daoist. I’ve been here several times, and the strongest evil spirit I’ve encountered was no more than this. There won’t be any—"

As if to contradict him, before he could finish speaking, Wandering Man, who had been bringing up the rear, suddenly changed expression. He whipped his head around, staring intently behind them and let out a low warning, "There’s another one!"

Qin Sang reacted instantly. He trusted that Wandering Man would never sound an alarm without cause. The moment he received the warning, he swung his right palm without hesitation, sending a burst of golden light shooting into the blood miasma.

Swish!

The Spirit-Binding Rope shot forward and coiled tightly around an evil spirit.

This evil spirit was roughly as strong as the one before. However, since Qin Sang had been concealing his cultivation and hadn’t exerted his full strength, the Spirit-Binding Rope failed to suppress it completely.

Fortunately, Wandering Man had already made his move. His flying sword slashed through the evil spirit, killing it instantly.

Qin Sang, on the other hand, didn’t even spare the slain spirit a glance. Instead, another streak of black light shot from his palm. This time, it was a perfectly square black stone, which descended with the force of lightning and smashed violently into the other side.

Only when the Black Dragon Stone struck its target did the others notice a surge of blood mist escaping from beneath it, merging into the blood miasma.

The evil spirit hidden there had been crushed to death before it even had the chance to reveal itself.

Upon entering Endless Valley, Qin Sang had prepared the Black Dragon Stone and Spirit-Binding Rope, both taken from Liang Yan, in advance.

The ghostly creatures of Endless Valley were all resistant to toxins, making the Sky Poison Veil ineffective. The Yin-Yang Luopan had little offensive capability, whereas Liang Yan’s two artifacts proved to be far more practical.

Seeing Qin Sang wield two top-grade artifacts in quick succession, both displaying remarkable power, the others looked at him with subtle wariness, a hint of apprehension in their gazes.

Just then, deep within the blood miasma, waves of energy suddenly rippled out. Several indistinct figures darted toward them.

The commotion had attracted more evil spirits.

This time, more than a dozen emerged, varying in strength. Fortunately, the strongest among them were no greater than the three they had already faced, still within the group’s capacity to handle.

Everyone unleashed their techniques, cutting down the evil spirits one after another. Yet, not a single one of them dared to relax—this was not a place they could afford to linger. If they triggered a chain reaction, the number of evil spirits drawn to them would only continue to grow.

Kong Xin immediately picked up the pace. The others followed closely behind, fighting as they retreated. At last, a narrow cave entrance, just wide enough for one person to pass through, appeared on the stone wall ahead.