Chapter 082
Chapter 82: All Five of You Demoted to Outer Sect Disciples
The moment arrived when Venerable Si Shan spoke up: “My cultivation is not as profound as Venerable Xing Lan’s, but when it comes to the soul master profession, I dare say no one dares claim first place when I claim second!”
Soul masters were exceedingly rare in the cultivation world, and techniques for cultivating soul force were even rarer, akin to the mythical phoenix’s feather.
Venerable Si Shan’s words, though, were not exaggerated. However… he shouldn’t have spoken them in front of Xing Lan.
A glint of mockery flickered in Shi Zi Chu’s slightly slanted peach blossom eyes.
Do not forget, Huan Chu Ling only enjoys staying within her master’s spiritual sense sea.
Her soul force was formidable because at least one-third of it was due to Huan Chu Ling’s influence.
So, as Huan Chu Ling’s original master, could Xing Lan’s soul force be weak?
Trusting in his own power, Xing Lan glanced at Shi Zi Chu and then coldly said, “Let’s test it. If Jiu Jiu is not a soul possession, then all five of you will be demoted to outer sect disciples.”
As for Nan Rong Wen Jin and Venerable Si Shan, he would personally visit the Nan Rong Clan and the Chu Clan!
Xu Zhou Ye and the others froze.
Master… He was fine! As long as they proved that the current Shi Zi Chu was merely a soul-possessed reborn wandering ghost, master would certainly forgive them!
Venerable Si Shan, watching Shi Zi Chu’s bewitching appearance, confidently summoned his magic artifact.
The Heavenly Pivot Star Ring was a beautiful and mysterious object. As spiritual power poured into it, it began to move, and the runes engraved upon it lit up.
Shi Zi Chu’s eyes sparkled, a trace of longing in her gaze.
I want it!
Xue Gu, in sync with Shi Zi Chu’s thoughts, worried that Shi Zi Chu might pick up some broken trinket. With a soft, innocent voice, she hurriedly said, “Master, the spatial storage ring contains better magic artifacts than this one.”
Shi Zi Chu replied, “The magic artifacts in the attic are all at the Heaven rank or higher, but they cannot be taken out.”
With her current strength, revealing too much would only make her a walking target. She had no interest in becoming someone’s pawn.
Xue Gu argued back, “I’ll find a subtle one for master!”
No matter what, this junk wasn’t worthy of master!
Shi Zi Chu sent out a fragment of her spiritual sense to watch Xue Gu rummage through the attic.
After a moment, she was so charmed by Xue Gu’s adorableness that she couldn’t help but laugh.
“Go on!”
With a cold shout from Venerable Si Shan, a streak of soul force shot out from the Heavenly Pivot Star Ring, aimed straight at Shi Zi Chu.
Sensing danger, her spiritual sense immediately erected a thick defense.
Before Venerable Si Shan’s soul force even came close, it was shattered by a sword qi.
Shi Zi Chu’s gaze turned cold.
Is this the test?
Before Shi Zi Chu could even use her soul force, Xing Lan raised his hand, sending a sword flying.
With a crisp “crack,” the Heavenly Pivot Star Ring, which had been protecting Venerable Si Shan, shattered into pieces and fell to the ground.
Venerable Si Shan, struck by the backlash, immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, his face pale.
The overwhelming killing intent in the air caused Nan Rong Wen Jin to shudder, his face tinged with fear.
“Ah!” Sect Master Meng, as if remembering something, chuckled and spoke, “Did I forget to mention that Xing Lan, in his spare time, has also cultivated soul force?”
The watching venerables sat upright in surprise, all turning to look at Sect Master Meng.
Did you forget?
It’s obvious you did it on purpose!
“My son wanted to cultivate soul force, and the cultivation method he used was one written by Xing Lan himself,” Sect Master Meng said slowly.
Looking at the sight of Venerable Si Shan suffering from the backlash, Sect Master Meng seemed to sigh and added, “It seems Venerable Si Shan’s training wasn’t quite thorough.”
Comparing Venerable Si Shan to Venerable Xing Lan?
The venerables couldn’t be bothered to respond.
“The test is a lie, but the real aim was to harm Jiu Jiu’s spiritual sense,” Xing Lan sneered. “Do you really think I’m dead?”
Shi Zi Chu clicked her tongue twice and spoke, “Master, we can’t curse ourselves on such a festive day.”
This Venerable Si Shan really got off lightly.
During this time, she had been learning how to use soul force from the cultivation methods, and now she had the perfect test subject. It was a shame.
Xing Lan cast a cold, slightly resentful glance at Nan Rong Wen Jin. “I wish I didn’t have a blood relative like you.”
Nan Rong Wen Jin flinched under that killing gaze, his lips quivering but too afraid to speak.
How could this be?!
Shi Zi Chu couldn’t possibly be soul possession!!!
No, wait, it’s Nan Rong Jun!
Nan Rong Jun had been charmed by this wandering soul ghost, and to cover his tracks, he had deliberately wounded Venerable Si Shan!
As if he had discovered a weakness in Xing Lan, Nan Rong Wen Jin pointed at Shi Zi Chu and shouted, “Nan Rong Jun, you did this on purpose! You were afraid the test would prove her to be a wandering soul ghost, so you deliberately injured Venerable Si Shan to protect her!”
This accusation immediately snapped the others out of their dazed stupor.
But before they could react, Jun Yue Hua’s cold voice suddenly cut through the tension, “The Jun Clan has an immortal rank magic artifact, known as the Soul Healing Bamboo Sachet.”
All the venerables turned to look at Jun Yue Hua.
They had heard of this artifact. It was one of the Jun Clan’s most treasured items!
Could it be that they were about to witness something extraordinary?
Ye He Qi’s finger curled slightly as he absentmindedly stroked his sleeve, his eyes filled with regret.
Such a grand accomplishment had almost been his, only to be snatched away by Jun Yue Hua.
Shi Zi Chu raised her gaze.
Jun Yue Hua glanced at Shi Zi Chu, then turned to Venerable Xing Lan and said, “All Daoist Shi needs to do is inject a trace of soul force and a drop of blood into the magic artifact, and it will be able to reveal the truth.”
As a member of a prominent family, Venerable Xing Lan understood the significance of the invitation.
Along with his many acts of favoritism, Shi Zi Chu’s importance was now unmistakable.
Venerable Xing Lan lacked nothing, and was hard to approach, but Shi Zi Chu was different.
Having Shi Zi Chu owe him a favor would only bring benefits.
With Jun Yue Hua’s suggestion already laid out, Shi Zi Chu could hardly refuse.
She took the initiative and said to Xing Lan, “Master, I have suddenly come to realize how much controversy my actions have stirred. I am willing to undergo this test to clear my name, only hoping that I won’t cause any more trouble in the future.”
Xing Lan nodded.
This might deviate from Jiu Jiu’s original plan, but Jun Yue Hua was a wise person.
The Soul Healing Bamboo Sachet was indeed a famous soul force magic artifact, and there was no danger of Jiu Jiu being harmed.
Jun Yue Hua took out the magic artifact and, using spiritual power, sent it over while explaining, “The white light means no soul possession, while red light indicates soul possession.”
Shi Zi Chu nodded and then manipulated a strand of soul force to fly into the magic artifact.
As the soul force and a drop of blood entered the magic artifact, it immediately glowed with a soft blue light.
Under the watchful eyes of all present, the blue light turned into…
White light!
Some breathed a sigh of relief, while others were left utterly disappointed.
Shi Zi Chu withdrew her hand and casually enjoyed the sight of their shattered expectations.
Xu Zhou Ye and the others stared, their faces blank.
How could this be!!!
Chu Zhi Rou, eyes fixed on the white light, kept repeating ‘how could this be’ in her mind.
How could Shi Zi Chu not be a soul possession wandering ghost?!
The previous Shi Zi Chu had been foolish and brainless; this had to be the real Shi Zi Chu…
But Chu Zhi Rou wasn’t a fool. Her mind suddenly grasped a terrifying possibility.
Could it be… that the previous Shi Zi Chu was soul possession?
In that moment, a feeling of dread spread through her, so intense it caused goosebumps to rise all over her skin.
She wanted to deny this terrifying thought, but the more she thought about it, the more despair filled her heart.
Suddenly, a string in her mind snapped.
She didn’t know whether it was from excitement or fear, but her eyes—now filled with terror—locked onto Shi Zi Chu.