Legend of the Great Sage

tion—the Umbral Yin Formation of Gathering Ghosts—of the Umbral Yin sect with his full strength.
Chilly winds spouted out from the black abyss, swallowing the sky full of stars and the lone moon.
The whistling resembled the howls of a huge ghost.

Immediately, the region within fifty kilometers of them became a ghost domain.

“Sure enough, it’s connected to you, but I’m not interested.”

Xiao An shook her head gently.
If it was not the Sword Collection palace, then it was the Umbral Yin sect.
Only these two great sects of the Green province possessed the capability and would want something like that to happen.
As for the truth behind everything and who the murderer was, none of it mattered anymore.
All she had to do was kill all the suspects.
The murderer would definitely be amongst them!

“Hehe, are you aware that the Hungry Ghost realm forbids your existence? The Hungry Ghost realm wants you to die regardless of the cost, even if they have to devour this world.
I’d advise you to just offer up your head obediently and assist my Umbral Yin sect in becoming the master of this world.
Your mother will thank you for your sacrifice too.”

The sect master spread his arms, and the chilly winds flooded the surroundings, forming a black swirl over the abyss.
Everything in the surroundings twisted, including the edge and cliffs around the abyss.
It seemed like a huge mouth, squirming about and ready to swallow everything.

Xiao An’s clothes ruffled about, also being drawn towards the swirl, but she did not put up any resistance.
“Oh, so there’s a reason like that? Coincidentally, I’ve come for the Hungry Ghost realm too.”

With the progress of her cultivation, the demand that the Path of White Bone and Great Beauty had for resources grew greater and greater as well.
Perhaps there would be a day when it would become so great that even butchering all the mortals in the nine provinces would not be enough.
She was reluctant to kill indiscriminately, while collecting śarīra only offered temporary relief.
However, the Umbral Yin sect’s Gate of Hungry Ghosts was very suitable for this.
Destroying the Umbral Yin sect would just be something she did in the process of gaining control over it.

However, she never imagined she would dismantle the sect master’s scheme in the process.
Logically speaking, roping her in went without saying given the talent and strength she had demonstrated.
There was Li Qingshan on her side as well.
If it were not for the fact that the Hungry Ghost realm was offering up a startlingly large reward, the master of the Umbral Yin sect who was extremely skilled at avoiding disasters would never take a risk like this.

As it seemed, she had another group of natural enemies apart from buddhism, all of which were extremely terrifying.
However, obtaining such great power would always come at a certain price.

“Hehe, then you don’t have to worry.
I’ll send you to the Hungry Ghost realm very soon!” The sect master smiled sinisterly.

“That won’t be necessary.
You’re already dead,” said Xiao An.

“What madness are you on about!?” The sect master was completely unconvinced.
He opened his hand subconsciously, only to see a golden gash on there.
The holy, buddhist light prevented it from closing, except it was only a single slash, which was nowhere near enough to threaten his life.
He closed his hand forcefully and shattered the light.

Suddenly, he felt intense pain from his palm.
Ever since he had refined himself into a half-ghost, half-corpse existence, it had been a very long time since he last experienced this sensation, but very soon, the intense pain turned into a kind of numbness, spreading throughout his entire body and reaching deep into his soul.

“What! What’s going on? What did you do?”

The sensation of death filled him.
As a ghost cultivator, he should not have feared death.
Following death, he would convert himself into a Ghost King before entering the Hungry Ghost realm, and he would still be able to exist for a very long time.
However, he experienced a primitive, instinctive fear, so he used all of his cultivation to fend it off desperately.

At this moment, a wisp of pale-white fire surged out from the wound.
The sect master widened his eyes in fright, dying just like a regular mortal, swallowed by the Samādhi Flames of White Bone.

Xiao An gazed at the Buddha Slaying sword in her hand.
“If I use the Buddha Slaying sword like this, it does become more powerful, but the effect will be delayed?”