The scarred Man led the way, with Huo Yuhao and Ghost following on his left and right. The three of them passed through several narrow streets, and the further they went, the more remote it became.
The surrounding buildings became increasingly dilapidated, and there were fewer and fewer pedestrians on the road.
Finally, the scarred Man stopped in front of a courtyard.
"I... it's here."
His voice trembled slightly as he reached out and pointed ahead. Huo Yuhao raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the courtyard in front of him.
The walls of the courtyard were not very high, built from dark gray stone bricks, and they looked quite old.
The gate consisted of two heavy wooden doors without any carvings or decorations, appearing simple and gloomy.
What was most striking was that the roof of the building inside the courtyard was black.
That kind of black was not the ordinary black of roof tiles, but a deep, somewhat oppressive pitch-black that didn't reveal a hint of luster even in the sunlight.
Huo Yuhao's brows furrowed slightly; this place didn't seem right.
Ghost stood beside Huo Yuhao, his gaze sweeping around the courtyard before looking at the scarred Man.
"Is this the territory of your Holy Spirit Cult?"
The Scarred Man nodded hurriedly.
"Y-yes."
"If this is the Holy Spirit Cult, isn't it a bit too shabby?"
"And..."
He paused, his tone filled with a hint of disdain.
"With a place this small, how many people could it possibly hold?"
Cold sweat oozed from the Scarred Man's forehead, and he hurriedly explained.
"Th-this is not the headquarters of the Holy Spirit Cult, just a branch."
"The scale of a branch is naturally smaller, so..."
"So what?"
Ghost's voice remained icy. Although it was only a branch, in Ghost's view, the number of people shouldn't be small.
The Scarred Man swallowed his saliva and continued.
"So... there aren't many people stationed here usually."
"The strongest person stationed here is an Elder."
Huo Yuhao's brows twitched slightly upon hearing the word "Elder."
"An Elder?"
He asked.
"What is their Rank?"
The Scarred Man cautiously glanced at Huo Yuhao. The image of his four companions turning into ice shards flashed through his mind instantly.
He knew clearly that lying in front of this youth was meaningless.
The Scarred Man's Adam's apple bobbed, and he answered honestly.
"Seven... Seven-Ring Soul Sage."
Huo Yuhao nodded and continued to ask.
"Are there any Soul Engineers in this branch?"
The Scarred Man shook his head.
"N-no."
"Most of us in the Holy Spirit Cult are traditional Spirit Masters."
After hearing this, Huo Yuhao had a general idea.
Judging from the information provided by the Scarred Man, the strength of this Holy Spirit Cult branch was not very high.
There was only one Seven-Ring Soul Sage stationed there, and the Rank of the others shouldn't be too high.
Huo Yuhao and Ghost exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with mutual understanding.
Ghost chuckled and said.
"Although I am only at the Sixth Rank, the opponent is merely a Seven-Ring Soul Sage."
His tone carried a hint of confidence.
"It's nothing to worry about."
Huo Yuhao nodded, but remained cautious in his heart.
Although the opponent was only at the Seven-Ring level, they were still a Spirit Saint, and their Spirit was unknown. If they had any strange abilities, it was necessary to be careful.
"We still need to be cautious."
Huo Yuhao said.
"In case the opponent's Spirit has any special characteristics."
Ghost nodded.
"You're right."
Their gazes fell simultaneously on the Scarred Man. The Scarred Man shivered all over under those two gazes, his legs going weak.
"You, go open the door."
Ghost said, his tone unquestionable.
The Scarred Man dared not refuse; he nodded hurriedly and walked toward the courtyard gate.
He walked to the door, took a deep breath, and raised his hand to knock rhythmically on the door.
A moment later, the courtyard gate creaked open, revealing a crack.
A young face poked out from the crack.
It was a young man wearing a black robe and a bamboo hat, which covered most of his face.
Just at this moment, Ghost's figure moved like a gray bolt of lightning, instantly rushing in front of the young man.
His palm struck out violently, chopping precisely onto the back of the young man's neck.
Bang—!
A muffled sound.
The young man didn't even have time to make a sound before his eyes rolled back, and he slumped directly to the ground.
Ghost reached out to support his body and placed him gently on the ground without making much noise.
Ghost pulled a fist-sized, transparent, spherical Spirit Tool from his bosom. The sphere emitted a faint, eerie light, and its surface was engraved with complex Spirit Tool formation patterns.
"This person's hands are not stained with blood."
Ghost explained, waving the sphere over the young man. The sphere's light remained steady and did not change.
"This Spirit Tool is called the 'Bloodlight Pearl'."
Ghost looked at Huo Yuhao and continued.
"If someone's hands are stained with blood, the Bloodlight Pearl will emit a red light."
"The more people killed, the brighter the light."
"This thing can only be used by members like us whose Spirits lean towards the evil type; it is used for sensing and judging whether the other person deserves to be killed."
Huo Yuhao nodded; he now had a better understanding of the methods of the Holy Spirit Execution Department.
Using evil Spirits to sense slaughter... fighting evil with evil, it really wasn't just talk.
"Let's go."
Ghost put away the Bloodlight Pearl and stood up.
The Scarred Man stood to the side, looking at the young man lying on the ground, then at Ghost and Huo Yuhao, his lips trembling, not daring to say a word.
These two people... were truly terrifying.
The Scarred Man took a deep breath, pushed open the courtyard gate, and led the two inside.
After entering the courtyard, Huo Yuhao discovered that the space inside was much larger than it appeared from the outside.
The courtyard was surrounded by various tall plants with dense branches and leaves that blocked out the sky, obscuring the view of the heavens completely.
Sunlight could only filter through the gaps in the branches and leaves, casting fragmented spots of light, making the entire courtyard appear dark and oppressive.
Several bluestone paths wound and intertwined, leading in different directions.
And in the deepest part of the courtyard stood a building with a black dome.
The building was entirely pitch-black, with no windows, and only a tightly shut iron door, looking like a giant tomb.
The Scarred Man led the two along the bluestone path, walking quickly toward the black-domed building.
He walked very hurriedly, his steps somewhat stumbling, clearly wanting to get these two malevolent stars to their destination as quickly as possible and then escape.
However, just as the three of them reached the halfway point, a dozen white figures darted out from the bushes by the side of the road.
"Who goes there?!"
Those dozen or so men in white robes had cold expressions, gripping short blades that glinted with a cold light.
Seeing Huo Yuhao and Ghost behind the Scarred Man, their expressions instantly became alert, and just as they were about to shout a warning.
A sharp light flashed in Huo Yuhao's eyes.
Mental Shock!
The brains of those dozen men in white felt as if they had been heavily struck by a hammer; their vision went black, and they instantly lost consciousness, slumping softly to the ground.
The short blades in their hands fell to the ground with a clatter, making a crisp sound.
The entire process took no more than one breath's time.
The Scarred Man stood to the side, cold sweat streaming down his forehead.
He swallowed his saliva, his heart filled with terror.
These two guys... entering their branch, isn't it a bit too easy?
A deep sense of despair welled up in the Scarred Man's heart.
This branch of the Holy Spirit Cult... it seems it's done for.
Just at this moment, a low voice came from the direction of the black-domed building.
"Who dares to invade my Holy Spirit Cult?!"
The voice carried a hint of majesty and a hint of anger.
Huo Yuhao and Ghost looked up simultaneously, glancing toward the direction the voice came from.
They saw the iron door of the black-domed building open with a "boom," and a white figure walked out from inside.
It was a tall man wearing a white robe and a black hood, revealing only a pair of icy eyes.
His body emitted powerful Spirit Power fluctuations.
And behind him, two people also dressed in white emitted equally strong Aura, making it look like these three were the experts of this Holy Spirit Cult branch.
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A/N:
5 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
1 Review = 1 Bonus Chapter
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.