Yu Ci was genuinely taken aback. Could this ghost... actually speak?

In the Cultivation World, it was not unusual for ghosts with Taoist cultivation to speak. However, it was important to remember that the ghosts in the Sword Garden were formed from the resentment of sword cultivators buried here before the Five Thunderbolt Tribulations. They were inherently filled with vengeful energy, their divine consciousness chaotic, acting purely on instinct. Even the stronger ghosts he and Di Tianluo had just fought were merely slightly sentient, knowing only basic strategies of attack and retreat.

Yet the one before him had bright, intelligent light in its ghostly eyes, the subtle glow of consciousness. There was not a trace of muddiness, and its red eyes somewhat resembled Brother Hong Qianqiu of the Sect's Mountain Gate. Its speech was clear, and apart from a slight roughness due to years of silence, it was indistinguishable from a living person.

Yu Ci's expression grew serious. Moreover, the name of the Sunken Sword Cave couldn't have been a playful invention of the Old Ghost alone. How many of these "Old Ghosts" with cultivation levels and consciousness were there? Had he really stumbled into a ghost cave?

These doubts flashed through his mind, but Yu Ci quickly refocused. He stared intently at the Old Ghost in front of him, his divine consciousness transforming and sensing. He felt that indeed, many Sword Ghosts had gathered around. The scene was perhaps not as grand as the one he and Di Tianluo had faced, but who knew if there were more behind?

Despite this, he remained composed. He took out the Upper Cave-True Starlight Sensing Divine Thunder Talisman made by the Sect's Mountain Gate and tucked it into his sleeve. On second thought, he decided to switch it for the one he had just made.

There was a reason for this: the Sensing Divine Thunder that Yu Ci had just made was too hasty and the thunder force was external. It could only be sealed off by the power of shattered pills, but the thunder force and pill power were of the same origin but different. They rubbed against each other, only getting stronger with more sealing. If it were to be unleashed, its destructive power would probably be fifty percent stronger than the one from the Sect's Mountain Gate. However, the external seal would gradually weaken, making it far less stable and long-lasting.

If the Sword Ghosts really attacked, he would strike while the iron was hot, blasting a path of life for himself, so as not to keep worrying about accidentally blasting himself away.

Yu Ci had made up his mind, but the "Old Ghost" had taken a stance, with the tip of its ghost sword pointing diagonally upwards, seemingly pointing at something. Yu Ci stared at the dull, dark tip of the sword, and after a while, he finally smiled and said:

"Let's first see your swordplay, and then we can talk about the path through the cave. If it's good, we'll continue downwards; if not, we'll head upwards and leave."

This statement carried a strong air of the martial world. Yu Ci found it both amusing and absurd, secretly wondering if this ghost had been a heroic outlaw in its previous life. Judging by the "Old Ghost's" demeanor, it seemed genuinely interested in exchanging swordsmanship with him.

Intrigue welled up in Yu Ci's heart. He was a man of decisive actions and a profound love for the sword. Observing 'Old Ghost' behaving in an authentic manner and noticing that the surrounding Sword Ghosts didn't seem to have any intention of gathering any further, he cast aside all other thoughts. Holding the newly formed Sword Technique, he returned the sword salute, "I am honored by your generous invitation. I must descend to take a look."

Having clarified his stance, as soon as his words fell, Old Ghost had already stepped forward, attacking with a sword.

Hmm, this was a mundane sword path. Yu Ci was familiar with it, calmly parrying it. The sword points of both parties crisscrossed, the aura pulled, the sword aura pointed at each other, each turning cold. At this moment, those flashy but impractical paths in the mundane sword path were cleanly picked out, leaving only the purest clang of the sword aura.

On the outskirts, Old Ghost's nine-foot figure suddenly became illusory. This was true illusion, also a method of the Cultivation World. It was originally formed by Yin energy, gathered to form, and dissipated to become gas, which was expected. However, the stern sword aura contained within did not diminish at all, and it was invisible and shadowless, seeking a gap to strike.

With a continuous clang, Yu Ci sealed two swords with the Flawless Sword Circle. The instinct of advancing without retreating in swordsmanship sprung up again. In the center of the Dantian Organ, the Seed True Talisman, which had transformed into a half-formed Sword Embryo, was lively and throbbing. Influencing his hand, his wrist naturally twisted, the sword aura expanded outward, the sword energy retracted inward. Under extreme contradiction, his hand seemed to open a deep rift, the suction power surged, and the surrounding Yin ghost cold air was swept away instantly.

Old Ghost didn't expect this move, almost losing control of his Sword Energy, and his figure was revealed in a hurry. Yu Ci's eyes were focused, at this time the Sword Energy was condensed to the extreme, naturally radiating outward, his hand's rift seemed to spew out a cold fog, catalyzed to the extreme, even the fog was not, but turned into a mass of light that had lost its physical state, like an illusion, like the Polar Light Primordial Magnetism, instantly swallowing Old Ghost, the aftermath reached, the surrounding Cliff wall was eroded away half a thickness, not even dust was seen.

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After using a sword, Yu Ci was also slightly startled. This purification technique of turning fog into light, he just realized in battle, but it was natural, without any force. It was obvious that the Cultivation Level was enough, and everything fell into place.

Old Ghost was able to withstand the sword's attack head-on. Reappearing in front of him, his cultivation was obviously not ordinary, but his originally close-to-real figure had become semi-transparent, but his voice was as calm as ever: "The guest has a good sword. If you want to go down and seek opportunities, you can do it now."

"Isn't it for seeking opportunities that guests come to the Sword Garden?" Old Ghost asked back, which made Yu Ci somewhat embarrassed. Perhaps it was before, but now his goal had long been deviated.

However, when Old Ghost said this, he became very curious: "What opportunities are there in your place?"

Old Ghost's tone was somewhat similar to the world's little second shopkeeper. Yu Ci glanced at him, just now he felt that although this ghost's words and deeds were regular, they were a bit rigid and inflexible, not like a master, and now the feeling was clearer.

After a moment of thought, curiosity prevailed. "Regardless of the circumstances, no opportunity should be missed. Please, lead the way...uh, may I ask your name?"

Asking a ghost for its name was indeed strange. What was even stranger was the ghost responded in a matter-of-fact manner, "My surname is Tie, and my name is Lan. You may call me Tie Lan. Please, follow me."

Yu Ci couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. He got up and followed the ghost, Tie Lan, whose figure was gradually becoming solid. He led the way, moving half a step ahead of Yu Ci, walking as a normal person would, which was quite amusing. As for the countless Sword Ghosts lurking unseen around them, they remained motionless.

Tie Lan was not a talkative "ghost". His exchanges with Yu Ci were minimal, mostly answering Yu Ci's inquiries, which made the journey somewhat dull. But perhaps Yu Ci preferred this dullness as he was busy jotting down the route they had taken into his Jade Slip.

According to Tie Lan, they had already crossed a depth of forty miles and were continuing downward. Yu Ci thought of the dead land where the Predestined Geng Metal Qi was gathered and curiously sensed it from afar. He could vaguely feel its oppressive force, but unlike the Fish-Dragon, it did not trigger a counterattack from the Sword aura.

"That is the 'Sword Sacrifice Platform'. Traditionally, it's forbidden to stop there, but it's not a big deal. You can bypass it, others have done so."

"Seven Sword cultivators came down after you."

That must be Ye Ming and his companions from Half Mountain Island. As Yu Ci nodded in understanding, he suddenly felt something strange about Tie Lan's words. Before he could figure it out, Tie Lan unexpectedly took the initiative to ask:

"Huh?"

"I understand the various levels of cultivation, but I can't discern yours," Tie Lan said, revealing his lack of worldly wisdom by asking such a question that could be considered taboo.

"Ah, that's indeed a tricky question," Yu Ci admitted, feeling somewhat taken aback. To define his current cultivation level was difficult. According to the traditional classification, strictly speaking, Yu Ci should still be at the advanced stage of the Spirit Communicator. But in terms of actual combat power, he was far beyond that.

But was he really just a Spirit Communicator? When Yu Ci thought about his Inner Void of the Heart and the ceaseless transformation of Primordial Qi by his Life Death Talisman, he couldn't help but feel that he had indeed achieved the stage of Qi Entry.

The Primordial Root Qi Method was divided into four realms: Void creation, Qi Entry, Inner and Outer Manifestation, and Unity of Heaven and Earth. Apart from the first realm, Yu Ci only had a vague understanding of the others. This was not due to his lack of effort, but because Elder Jie Liang had not anticipated Yu Ci's rapid progress when he imparted the method.

After all, this Primordial Root Qi Method is merely a Primordial Qi Method, utilized for Refining Yin Spirit and purifying Qi. Its function is fulfilled after Void creation and the achievement of mental imagery. The subsequent stages of guiding Qi into the realm, the inner and outer manifestations, and the unity of heaven and earth are merely derivatives of the method, which Yu Ci can choose to practice or not. It is enough to stabilize his foundation.

In today's world, the Path of Alchemy is thriving and is the orthodox way of cultivation. Even Elder Jie Liang, the creator of this Primordial Qi Method, did not intend for Yu Ci to delve deeply into it before the Golden Elixir. He simply waits for his Cultivation Level to reach a certain point, then chooses a Sect Dan formula, and returns to the Path of Alchemy...

"Oh, what has arrived?"

"It is the guest's opportunity." Tie Lan did not receive a clear response to his previous question from Yu Ci, but he was not annoyed and continued to speak methodically.

Yu Ci felt puzzled. He looked around. He and Old Ghost were standing in a relatively open circular area. Here, the space suddenly expanded as if someone had dug through the rock layers to clear a site. The height was about five zhang, and the open ground was about half an acre. However, compared to the rapidly expanding space, the number of surrounding cave tunnels was drastically reduced. The originally extensive cave tunnels were now only...

Apart from the one he and Tie Lan had come from, there were no more!

Yu Ci felt this was not right. He looked carefully again. As his gaze swept over the surrounding rock walls, he was suddenly taken aback. This place was indeed different from the previous areas. The rock walls were engraved with extremely complex patterns. They spread to every corner of this open space, including the ceiling and the ground.

Most of these patterns were strange and bizarre, resembling characters and paintings, occasionally interspersed with images of animals and constellations. Yu Ci looked for a while and suddenly realized:

He looked up and turned around. When his gaze fell back to the direction he had come from, his pupils contracted. The tunnel there had been sealed off without his noticing. In its place, the rock wall, also painted with Rune Patterns, completed the last piece of this Rune Array.

The entire space was completely unified, without a single gap.

Yu Ci slowly turned his head, staring at Tie Lan with a chilling gaze. The Seed True Talisman within his body was restless, "What does this mean?"

"This is the guest's opportunity." Tie Lan's tone remained unchanged. "My master said that a guest who can use the Upper Cave-True Starlight Sensing Divine Thunder at the False Dan stage would have an opportunity here."

The opportunity is coming, Zhou Yi needs to cast a vote for a seat. g

...