Chapter 81

As soon as the voice sounded, it immediately transformed into a gust of wind and thunder, and the fireballs on the surrounding stone pillars dimmed instantly. The massive echo reverberated through the cave, giving the impression of divine authority.

Wang Lin took a deep breath, clasped his hands in a respectful gesture, and said, "Greetings, Senior Night."

The figure gradually solidified into a middle-aged man in his forties. He was handsome, with eyebrows like a brush stroke, eyes like the stars, and a face as white as jade. He looked at Wang Lin without any expression and said,

"Mu Rong, you may step down."

Mu Rong, who was kneeling on the ground, quickly agreed, stood up, and swiftly flew towards one of the cave entrances, disappearing in a moment.

Night Zizai waved his right hand, and a thin light curtain spread out. He sighed lightly, with a hint of melancholy, and said slowly, "Wang Lin, you are not a disciple of the Corpse Yin Sect, so there's no need to be restrained. My junior brother Wu Yu must have encountered some trouble. Wang Lin, since there is no third person here, you may speak."

Wang Lin straightened his back. He had already thought about this before coming. The matter concerning Wu Yu's disciple could not be hidden from a Core Formation expert like Night Zizai. It was better to tell the truth.

After a brief moment of thought, Wang Lin recounted what he had seen in the ruined jungle.

Night Zizai listened quietly without a word. After Wang Lin finished, he sighed lightly, closed his eyes, and pondered for a moment. He thought to himself, "What Wang Lin said should be true. My junior brother Wu Yu mentioned that his Corpse Puppet was about to advance before he left. The content he just described matches Wu Yu's personality. The Corpse Puppet's betrayal, sigh. Junior brother, the betrayal of a Corpse Puppet is not as easy as you say. A Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment Corpse Puppet is even beyond my ability to defeat.

You asked this Wang Lin to deliver the message, there must be a deeper meaning..." As he thought this, Night Zizai scanned Wang Lin with his divine sense and suddenly let out a light "hmm." From his perspective, the cultivation method Wang Lin practiced was very similar to that of the Corpse Yin Sect, both being of the yin-cold nature. After a brief moment of thought, he understood his junior brother's intention.

Wu Yu was seeking help while also recruiting a disciple for the Corpse Yin Sect. Night Zizai's divine sense swept over Wang Lin and focused on the strange person, Ah Dai. After a long time, he thoroughly understood Wu Yu's thoughts. Ah Dai's constitution was naturally suited for practicing the Corpse Yin Sect's cultivation methods.

Night Zizai retracted his gaze and said slowly, "Wang Lin, this is Ah Dai, who has accompanied my junior brother for several years, right?"

Wang Lin nodded.

Night Zizai took a deep breath and said decisively, "Wang Lin, I observe that your spiritual energy is of a cold nature, which is in harmony with the Corpse Yin Sect. Cultivating here will certainly be more efficient. Are you willing to become a disciple of the Corpse Yin Sect?"

Wang Lin had already speculated on the possible scenarios on his way here. Night Zizai's intention to recruit him was expected, so he said without hesitation, "Disciple is willing."

Night Zizai nodded and said, "Very well. Since you met my junior brother Wu Yu by chance, you will truly become his disciple. From now on, you are a second-generation disciple of the Corpse Yin Sect."

After saying this, he pointed at the strange person, Ah Dai, and said, "I will take Ah Dai with me." Seeing Wang Lin's slight hesitation, he smiled and said, "Ah Dai has a deep bond with my junior brother. I will not harm him. I will personally take him as a disciple."

With that, he waved his right hand, threw a deep blue jade slip, and with a swift movement, grabbed Ah Dai and disappeared in the cave, leaving behind Ah Dai's startled cry.

Wang Lin caught the jade slip and scanned it with his divine sense. His expression immediately became peculiar.

The jade slip contained only some simple spells, with no information about the Corpse Yin Sect's cultivation methods. After a moment of thought, Wang Lin felt relieved. This was a matter of trust, but he was not concerned.

As he was examining it, Mu Rong poked his head out from one of the cave entrances. Upon seeing that Night Zizai had left, he immediately flew to Wang Lin's side. Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly noticed the color of the jade slip in Wang Lin's hand and stepped back a few steps, saying respectfully, "Disciple Mu Rong, greetings to Grandmaster."

Wang Lin was taken aback, looked at the jade slip in his hand, and smiled, "Mu brother, there's no need for such formality. Is the color of the jade slip significant?"

Mu Rong looked enviously at the jade slip in Wang Lin's hand, smiled bitterly, and took out a light blue jade slip from his storage bag, saying, "Grandmaster, earlier you didn't have a jade slip, so it was fine to address you as a peer. Now that you have a jade slip, the Corpse Yin Sect's rules are strict. How can I dare to call you Brother Wang...

Look at the color of the jade slip in my hand. The jade slip is the only identity proof in the Corpse Yin Sect. The Founding Ancestor's jade slip is green, the Grandmaster's is deep blue, the elders' is light blue, and the remaining disciples' are white."

Wang Lin put away the jade slip and was about to speak when the fireballs on the surrounding stone pillars flickered, and several thin wisps of smoke intertwined, forming a wisp of green smoke.

Mu Rong's expression changed, and he made a hand seal, saying, "Receive."

The green smoke immediately swirled and quickly came to Mu Rong's side, entering his forehead and dissipating into dust.

Mu Rong closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and smiled at Wang Lin, "Grandmaster, just now, the Founding Ancestor Night sent a message, arranging a cultivation room for you. Shall I take you there now?"

Wang Lin was quite surprised by the secret techniques of the Corpse Yin Sect, such as the message transmission through smoke. He touched his chin and smiled, nodding.

Mu Rong moved and flew towards one of the cave entrances. Wang Lin rose gracefully and followed.

The two moved quickly through the cave. Along the way, Mu Rong briefly introduced the Corpse Yin Sect, and with the information Wang Lin had gathered from the young man in the formation, he gained a certain understanding of the sect.

The Corpse Yin Sect was one of the four major sects of the demonic path, with over a thousand disciples, all living underground. Each disciple had their own dedicated cultivation room. Except for those who needed to go out for supplies, most were devoted to cultivation.

Actually, calling it a demonic path was somewhat inaccurate. Compared to the overwhelming demonic flames of the Heavenly Dao Sect, the yin-evil of the Huan Yin Sect, and the rampant killing intent of the Wufeng Valley, the Corpse Yin Sect, despite having Corpse Puppets, was more like a group of cultivation fanatics.

Every disciple of the Corpse Yin Sect was fanatically devoted to cultivation. The reason for this phenomenon was a series of cruel systems: those who did not reach the tenth layer of the Qi Condensation stage within ten years, the Foundation Establishment stage within thirty years, or the Core Formation stage within a hundred years would be turned into Corpse Puppets.

This bloody system was like a whip, driving all the disciples of the Corpse Yin Sect to cultivate fanatically.

Every year, several disciples were turned into Corpse Puppets. During each transformation, all the disciples would attend as a warning.

Similarly, every year, some disciples were sent out to find exceptionally talented mortals, using any means necessary to bring them into the sect to replenish the number of lost disciples.

There were disciples who wanted to resist, but before entering the sect, all disciples had a thread of their soul extracted and sealed in a jade slip. The jade slips were of four types: the Founding Ancestor's green jade slip could control all disciples, the Grandmaster's deep blue jade slip had the same effect, and the elders' light blue jade slips.

Under this layered control, no one dared to resist. Mu Rong subtly pointed out that the Corpse Yin Sect was a vast sect, and the Zhao Kingdom was just a branch. He had even seen envoys from a fifth-level country of the Corpse Yin Sect come to inspect, and the envoys' servants were all at the Core Formation stage.

Wang Lin was increasingly shocked. He couldn't help but wonder why Night Zizai hadn't extracted a thread of his soul and sealed it on the jade slip when he gave it to him.

The same question echoed in Night Zizai's body as he returned to the deepest cave underground.

"Why didn't you extract his soul and seal it on the jade slip?" The hoarse voice was like the friction of two iron blocks.

Night Zizai patted Ah Dai's head, sealed his five senses, and turned to sit cross-legged on a black stone bed in the cave. He made a hand seal and touched his forehead, causing his whole body to tremble. A vague figure slowly emerged from his body.

The figure was quite blurry, and its appearance was unclear. After it separated from Night Zizai's body, it floated in the air, especially near Ah Dai. Suddenly, it extended its left hand, about to grab Ah Dai's head.

Night Zizai frowned, made a hand seal, and spat out a blue infant fire. As soon as the infant fire appeared, it transformed into a rainbow, blocking the figure's claw.

"Raksha, Ah Dai is a successor hinted at by my junior brother. You must not harm him!" Night Zizai said coldly.

The figure cackled, floated to one side, and crossed its arms, saying in a shrill voice, "Night Zizai, you and your junior brother are merely furnaces for us. Your junior brother left quickly before Lord Zi's divine sense was formed. It's laughable that he even sought your help, which is like walking into a trap. Night Zizai, now that you know his location, why don't you quickly help Lord Zi devour Wu Yu?"

Night Zizai's face darkened, stared at the figure, and said with a cold laugh, "As long as you haven't completely devoured me, don't expect me to follow your orders. As for that Lord Zi, I will neither help Wu Yu nor him. Whether he can devour my junior brother is up to his ability."

The figure laughed, not caring, and said, "Since you're unwilling, I won't force you. The next batch of fifth-level country divine sense bodies is already prepared. This time, there are ten. You must choose your furnace well. Remember your identity; you are merely an external disciple of the Corpse Yin Sect. And what do you plan to do with this boy named Ah Dai?"

Night Zizai was silent for a moment, sighed, and said, "Four hundred years ago, I joined the Corpse Yin Sect. With my talent, I reached the Core Formation stage in four hundred years. But just then, the Corpse Puppet developed divine sense and began to devour me. This process is long, and it is because of this that I learned about the various secrets of the Corpse Yin Sect."