First Immortal of Destiny

Chapter 164: The Omen of Becoming a Ghostly Trickster

Zhang Taian picked up the discarded green skin and walked up to the city wall.

"Many thanks to Master Shen for lending a hand! This spiritual material left behind by the fierce ghost should rightfully belong to Master Shen," Zhang Taian said.

In addition to the green skin, Zhang Taian also handed over an ancient token.

"This token was forged by the Garrison Command of Tian Shun Kingdom. All masters who contribute to slaying ghosts receive one," he explained.

"Master Shen can refine it and use it to collect the corresponding rewards from the Garrison Command in the future."

"By the way, whether or not to take action is entirely up to Master Shen's willingness. This token does not have any coercive power."

"Master Shen can rest assured!"

Shen Mo put the green skin into his storage bag and casually accepted the Garrison Command token.

With a sweep of his divine sense, he knew that Zhang Taian was not hiding anything.

This token, besides recording identity information and the number of ghosts slain, had no other functions.

The Ancestral River Sect, located in the Chi Yan Kingdom, also had a Garrison Command in the capital.

After passing numerous assessments, they would issue similar identity tokens to cultivators willing to hunt down evil cultivators and collect bounties.

Of course, the Chi Yan Kingdom was vast and rich in resources.

There were five major immortal sects dominating the country, not to mention the countless smaller sects and independent cultivators.

The cultivation resources they could provide were far beyond what Tian Shun Kingdom could compare to.

Not to mention that in the future, Tian Shun Kingdom would become a place infested with evil spirits, and it would be unknown where to collect bounties.

Shen Mo didn't mind, though.

He let a drop of blood seep out from his fingertip and landed on the token.

He then casually refined the token.

With this token, he had the idea of going to the Garrison Command in the city to take a look.

Although all the cultivators in Tian Shun Kingdom had left, they would definitely do their best to gather a large amount of cultivation resources before leaving.

But who knows, there might still be some treasures left in the Garrison Command's treasury.

Shen Mo's gaze shifted and fell on Zhang Taian.

This blood-soaked general had suffered quite a few injuries in the battle against the green-skinned ghost.

But there was no sign of pain or suffering on his face.

When Zhang Taian saw Shen Mo refining the Garrison Command token, a genuine smile appeared on his face.

Perhaps in his heart, even if Shen Mo took the token for the sake of the Garrison Command's bounty, he would still kill more ghosts!

Shen Mo hesitated.

Originally, he intended to go to the city and eliminate the "source" of the ghost general!

But now, Zhang Taian not only showed no signs of being a ghost general, but compared to the "monsters and demons" he had encountered along the way, Zhang Taian was rare in retaining a touch of pure humanity.

This made Shen Mo reluctant to take action against him!

"Never mind! Perhaps Tian Shun Kingdom is just a projection of time."

"If that's the case, even if I kill Zhang Taian, it won't change anything."

"Even if my words and actions have an impact on future generations, who can guarantee that Zhang Taian becoming a ghost general is not because I killed him?"

"However, perhaps I can leave a trick up my sleeve with him."

Immediately, Shen Mo used the excuse of helping Zhang Taian heal to employ some secretive methods.

Using the soul-refining spell of the Soul Refining Banner, he captured a portion of Zhang Taian's soul.

Zhang Taian relied on his military martial arts to reach the peak of the Body Tempering realm, but he was not a Body Tempering cultivator.

Instead, he was like Gu Ming from the Blood Robe Sect, a legend in the martial world.

Shen Mo carefully controlled it, and Zhang Taian didn't notice anything.

Instead, with the help of Shen Mo's pills and spiritual energy, he felt that all his injuries were healed, and his vitality was much stronger than before.

Using the soul-refining spell to capture a portion of the soul.

If we were to replace an ordinary person, they would naturally fall seriously ill and might not even live for another ten years.

But Zhang Taian is different.

He was originally in a state of depleted vitality and nearing the end of his life, with only a few months left. However, his soul power is exceptionally strong.

Under Shen Mo's careful guidance,

Not only is he not affected negatively, but he can actually live for an additional six months.

"General... I really don't know how to express my gratitude to Master Shen. If there is a next life, I will definitely repay Master's kindness by any means necessary!"

Zhang Taian happily demonstrated a set of boxing techniques, then bowed to Shen Mo in gratitude.

Glancing at the newly added marks on the Soul Refining Banner, Shen Mo smiled faintly, saying, "General Zhang is too kind! If that day really comes, please don't hold any grudges against me."

"How could that be? I, your subordinate, would never..."

"Buzz!"

Before Zhang Taian could finish speaking, Shen Mo raised his hand to stop him.

In that instant,

He suddenly felt the severity of the decline in spiritual energy in the world.

Originally, the concentration of spiritual energy within the borders of Tian Shun Kingdom was about thirty percent of that in Chi Yan Kingdom.

Perhaps some places were more concentrated, such as the entrance of the Linjiang Sect, but in general, it was quite balanced.

But now, the spiritual energy had declined to less than ten percent.

Shen Mo was already a Qi Gathering stage cultivator, with high-quality Purple Mansion spiritual energy stored in his Qi Sea Dantian.

In his Qiankun Bag, there were also spirit stones, Qi Consolidating Pills, and other elixirs to restore spiritual power.

This didn't have much of an impact on him.

But for an ordinary Body Tempering stage cultivator, who absorbed and refined spiritual energy, storing it in their organs and meridians,

It would be even more difficult to recover their cultivation.

Without any other supplements, it would probably take several days to fully recover after using a few basic immortal techniques.

Body Tempering stage cultivators who entered the Ghost Country Ruins would always purchase elixirs to restore their spiritual power in advance.

This was to quickly recover their spiritual power for any unexpected situations.

In addition to the decline in spiritual energy, the surging ghost energy became even more intense!

Previously, the faint ghost energy pervading Tian Shun Kingdom was about twenty percent of that within the Ghost Country Ruins. But now, it had instantly surged to fifty percent.

Perhaps mortals like Zhang Taian wouldn't feel it clearly.

It would take a few days for them to notice various abnormal signs.

But for Shen Mo, it was like falling directly from the sky into the water, very obvious and conspicuous.

At the same time, he had a vague realization in his heart.

As long as he could endure this round of drastic changes, he would be able to leave this secret realm and obtain the rewards and opportunities from the Ghost Gate.

The size of the opportunity was closely related to his performance in this drastic change.

This strange yet clear realization

Clearly came from a hint from the Ghost Gate.

"Report!"

"Report!"

"General, there are a large number of starving people in the capital who have turned into evil spirits!"

"The officials have ordered the general to kill any ghosts that approach the city gates or nearby residences."

"General, there are hundreds of starving ghosts, hanging ghosts, and other ghosts gathering in the outskirts of the city, heading towards the capital."

"Report! Report! The Grand Marshal's Mansion has evil spirits devouring people. The king has ordered the general to quickly lead troops to rescue!"

"..."

As Shen Mo expected, immediately after the drastic change in spiritual energy, a large number of news related to ghosts spread to the city walls.

Zhang Taian drank a mouthful of spiritual wine.

Then he quickly wiped and tidied his halberd and armor, his face showing determination.

"Shen Xianshi, the capital has become a dangerous place infested with evil spirits. If you want to leave, you should leave early."

"So as to avoid being trapped when the ghosts gather in the future and unable to escape!"

Shen Mo played with the Commanding Officer's token and calmly said, "Thank you, General Zhang, for your kind intentions. However, I have changed my mind and want to kill more ghosts in order to obtain the cultivation resources from the Commanding Officer's post."

(End of this chapter)