This was truly “speak of Jian Chou, and Jian Chou arrives”—it was as if there was some mystical connection, coming far too quickly!

Zuoliu had already been on the line between life and death, so how could he have expected to suddenly turn misfortune into fortune?

His eyes widened, feeling like he had gained a life for nothing. When he looked up to see Jian Chou standing majestically in the void, he secretly thought—still, it’s Senior Sister! Joining Yashan was too awesome—in critical moments and storms, there’s always someone to protect you!

But Sima Languan’s feelings were not so pleasant.

Before this voice appeared, he had no knowledge of the opponent’s approach; after this voice appeared, he couldn’t move even slightly from beginning to end, completely under the opponent’s pressure, not to mention that hand genuinely gripping his head!

They had fought each other in the past.

How could Sima Languan not recognize who the owner of this voice was?

It’s just that in the past, not being able to beat her was one thing, but now the gap was like a chasm, even greater than before.

Sima Languan didn’t dare move forcefully.

He couldn’t turn back to look at Jian Chou, his beautiful eyes staring tightly at Zuoliu who was close at hand and had just recovered from his shock. In the end, he slowly withdrew his hand.

“It’s been a long time since we parted at the Tripod Competition. I didn’t expect Fairy Jian Chou’s cultivation to reach even higher levels. Truly admirable.”

“You flatter me.”

Jian Chou wasn’t as calm inside as she appeared on the surface. Racing all the way from the mortuary by the Yellow Springs, she really hadn’t had half a moment to catch her breath. Halfway through, she only felt the entire Extreme Domain shaking, witnessing the various changes in the Extreme Domain’s seventy-two cities, fearing that she had been trapped in the mortuary situation for too long and missed the opportunity.

At this moment, stopping halfway was only to rescue Zuoliu.

She hadn’t even reacted yet, but many Jiushijiu Zhou cultivators nearby saw her and cried out in surprise, not to mention those ghost cultivators from the Extreme Domain who shouted “the plague god has come,” wanting to fight but not daring to, showing both hatred and fear.

Sima Languan had witnessed her various swift and decisive actions before. He originally thought he would perish under her hand in the next moment, but after counting one breath, two breaths, and still not waiting for her to act, his mind raced and he understood: “You’re in a hurry and don’t want to waste time killing me.”

Jian Chou narrowed her eyes slightly: “Correct.”

Sima Languan immediately raised his eyebrows with interest: “I heard that dead-face Zhang Tang has secretly defected to you?”

Jian Chou said lightly: “More or less.”

A strange color flashed in Sima Languan’s eyes as he asked again: “I also heard that even Li Han has become your inside agent?”

Jian Chou smiled: “Your information is quite well-informed.”

The entire battlefield was in chaos. The Extreme Domain’s strength wasn’t originally poor, but using divide-and-conquer tactics to delay time in the battles at Ghost Gate Pass and Mao City had instead weakened their own power. Moreover, the current Jiushijiu Zhou had no internal strife or conspiracies—regardless of internal matters, they all united against the enemy, their strength already surpassing the Extreme Domain.

In battles throughout history, surprise victories and winning with fewer numbers were rare.

Most battles already had their results before the fighting even began.

Just like the battle before them.

Sima Languan was someone who saw things very clearly. Now he actually relaxed, his voice revealing several degrees of frank magnanimity: “Then does Fairy Jian Chou think my defection could still be accepted?”

What???

Zuoliu himself was already an anomaly who went against conventional thinking, but listening to these two go back and forth for seven or eight sentences with no beginning or end, unable to distinguish friend from foe, he was completely confused. Before he could figure it out, he heard the word “defection” from the mouth of the ghost cultivator who had just wanted to take his life, nearly dropping his jaw in shock!

Do you ghost cultivators of the Extreme Domain have no integrity at all?!

But when Jian Chou heard this, she showed no surprise at all. Instead, she had a look of understanding as if “it should have been this way all along.” Her tense, slightly bent fingers relaxed and withdrew, but she said: “I think it’s acceptable.”

Sima Languan could finally move, turning to face her.

The genuine ghost Jian Chou.

It’s just that compared to when she mistakenly fell into the Extreme Domain years ago, lost all her cultivation, and had to be cautious and tense at every step in the Tripod Competition, having restored her identity as Yashan’s senior sister, even appearing on this turbulent battlefield and being in a hurry to reach Bafang City, she still had a composure and magnanimity carved into her bones.

Just looking at this demeanor, how could she not be worthy of being a Lord of Hell?

With a turn of thought, Sima Languan said it was a pity, thinking to himself that he no longer had the strength or opportunity to skin Jian Chou’s beautiful hide to make a lantern, and could only sigh deeply: “This time I’ve come to be defeated, but defecting first might not be a bad thing. It seems I should be the third?”

The third?

Jian Chou’s eyebrow moved slightly. Before she could answer, she heard an alarmed cry from the battle formation: “Careful! Extreme Domain reinforcements have arrived!”

Both sides’ formations immediately stirred.

At this time when both Jiushijiu Zhou and the Extreme Domain had exhausted their strength and revealed all their trump cards, a team of ghost cultivators was actually racing toward them from the direction Jian Chou had come from!

Each had cultivation above the Golden Body realm—elite among elites!

At a glance, there were over a hundred!

Such a surprise force appearing at this time, if used properly, could cause some unpredictable changes in the battle situation!

Those on the Jiushijiu Zhou side felt their hearts sink upon seeing this.

Those on the Extreme Domain side were greatly invigorated upon seeing this, as if injected with adrenaline. Even their fighting became several degrees more fierce as they shouted: “Reinforcements have arrived! Reinforcements have arrived!”

“Kill—”

The imposing manner of these hundred-plus elite ghost cultivators racing through mid-air was terrifying! Accompanied by this absolutely decisive “kill,” it was truly chilling!

However, what no one expected was that their attack direction was completely wrong!

Those hundred or so terrifying spiritual lights didn’t fall toward the ready and waiting Jiushijiu Zhou side, but instead plunged straight into the Extreme Domain ghost cultivators’ formation at the edge without any turning!

“Rumble…”

The spiritual light entered the formation, immediately overturning countless ghost cultivators, exploding until dust and sand from the ruins below rose everywhere, like a blunt knife scraping past, instantly tearing a bleeding gap in the edge of the Extreme Domain ghost soldiers’ formation!

Jiushijiu Zhou was dumbfounded.

The Extreme Domain ghost cultivators from top to bottom were all stunned!

It was truly like flooding the Dragon King’s temple—family not recognizing family, and they actually started fighting among themselves. In this sudden moment, the psychological gap was enormous. How could they be prepared in time?

They were all caught completely off guard!

At this time, these ghost cultivators from Fengdu City, cultivated with full effort by the ten great ghost clans over the past several hundred years, all shouted in unison:

“Submit to our Great Lord Jian Chou and live!”

“Submit to our Great Lord Jian Chou and live!”

“Submit to our Great Lord Jian Chou and live!”

The momentum was magnificent, shaking the clouds in the sky, making hearts and souls chill!

…

After all this commotion, they had actually defected!

The Extreme Domain side finally understood, and were simply furious. Most ghost cultivators didn’t hesitate to attack them fiercely.

But there were also some who, after seeing Jian Chou’s arrival, began to waver.

The gazes of those on the Jiushijiu Zhou side all fell on Jian Chou. Only now did they realize that these hundred elite ghost cultivators weren’t Extreme Domain reinforcements, but rather assistance for Jiushijiu Zhou following Jian Chou’s orders!

How did she manage to do this?

Such questions immediately surfaced in everyone’s minds.

However, Jian Chou herself remained unmoved, not even showing any intention of explaining. She only thought in her heart that this damned title “Great Lord Jian Chou” was something these fence-sitting ghost cultivators had come up with from who knows where, but it was only a fleeting thought.

Seeing that these ghost cultivators were obedient, she withdrew her gaze.

Sima Languan’s way of looking at her was already completely different.

Jian Chou then continued with the words that had been interrupted and not spoken earlier, answering his previous question, only saying: “You’re not the first, and you won’t be the last.”

As her words fell, she activated her palm power, actually pushing Zuoliu back into the Yashan formation.

At this time, Xie Buchen’s figure in the distance came into her view.

A formation disc inlaid with spirit stones and mysterious jade flew from his hand, falling into some ruins below. Light flashed chaotically beneath the piled ruins.

Then came a thunderous roar, clouds moved in all directions, and earthly yin energy ran rampant!

The earthly yin energy hurricane that had appeared before Ghost Gate Pass appeared on the battlefield once again, meaning another watchtower had been destroyed in one stroke!

With her keen perception, she naturally noticed at a glance the change in the magical artifact tightly gripped in his hand. Her gaze across the void lingered briefly on that ink ruler, only vaguely remembering that this ruler’s appearance was extremely similar to the one she had glimpsed during her spiritual wandering at the entrance of the secret cave where the Nine-Headed Bird dwelt during the Tripod Competition years ago.

But there was no time to think deeply about it now.

Having resolved Zuoliu’s immediate crisis and brought these hundred ghost cultivators who had submitted to her to the battlefield, Jian Chou had no desire to linger here. As she rose into the air, she directly flicked her finger toward Xie Buchen’s direction!

“Thud!”

An object shot from her fingertip like lightning, instantly reaching Xie Buchen’s face. He slightly turned his head, raised his hand to catch it, and his slender two fingers had already caught this object between them. When he looked, it was actually a blood-red ghost head token.

Before he could ponder the origin of this object, the hundred elite ghost cultivators who had earlier burst into the battlefield and caught the Extreme Domain off guard saw the token enter his hand. They all came toward him and bowed before him: “We follow Great Lord Jian Chou’s order and await your commands!”

Xie Buchen was immediately slightly stunned, looking toward where this ghost head token had come from.

Jian Chou was no longer in her original position.

When the token left her hand, she had already wielded her sword to penetrate deep into the enemy formation, killing one person every ten steps, entering as if into an uninhabited realm. She actually forced her way through the encirclement with her own power alone, heading toward the dark depths where the battle situation was unknown—toward Bafang City!

Though her spiritual consciousness was profound, she couldn’t reach the existence in those dark depths in any case, much less know what Fu Chaosheng’s current situation was.

The only thing she could confirm was that thread of weak spiritual connection—

The Ghost Axe!

She didn’t know by what method Lord Qin Guang was refining it, but during these eighty-plus years, the perception between her and the Ghost Axe had gradually weakened. The blood-recognition mark from long ago had been worn away layer by layer until it completely disappeared. But on the journey rushing toward Bafang City, exhausting all her spiritual consciousness to sense, she had finally found that weak thread!

Even if it seemed precarious, she should try with all her might!

The Yixiantian sword passed and people fell. Jian Chou simply couldn’t remember whose face had flashed before her eyes or which ghost clan they came from. She only killed in a straight line, cutting through like slicing melons and chopping vegetables, with no rival!

Though several Lords of Hell wanted to stop her, they all had opponents before them. How could they break free?

Before long, that magnificent and imposing Extreme Domain battle formation had already been torn in half by Jian Chou down the middle, and she had penetrated to the end.

However, a figure from the side also emerged from the darkness into Jian Chou’s view, causing her scalp to explode and forcing her to stop abruptly!

Zhong Lanling!

His hair loose and tied with a band, wearing robes and bare feet, holding a qin and standing, like a wanderer fallen to the jianghu. He looked toward her through the crowd with eyes that seemed both intimate and strange, his face full of bewilderment and confusion.

Everything around him was moving—whether the ruins of cities beneath his feet, the ghost soldiers beside him raising swords, or the magical techniques and soul power running wild across this battlefield…

Only he was still.

As if unmoved by all this worldly chaos, and as if just a lifeless statue, he smiled at her with an extremely natural confusion!

With just this smile, qin music suddenly arose!

Like water flowing down from high mountains, yet not falling to flat ground, but sprinkling in the high sky, blown by wind into misty clouds…

It was natural music, and also extraordinary music.

Casually plucking the strings, his fingers like refined bamboo, flowing like clouds and water to the extreme.

When Jian Chou heard the sound, her heart immediately tightened, actually feeling sudden pain. She forcibly turned her gaze to the surroundings, and saw that under this continuous qin music, figures appeared from void to reality, layer upon layer, on the battlefield.

One, two, three, four—individuals, tens, hundreds, thousands!

With flowing robes, distinguished bearing, flying spirits! A thousand cultivators standing proud! Beautiful like a dream one could only imagine in the depths of night…

They were the thousand cultivator soul puppets she had wanted to encounter when entering the mortuary, but ultimately hadn’t been able to meet!

The Yixiantian in her hand suddenly became so heavy it was difficult to lift.

Standing on this battlefield, in this qin music, a trace of sorrow in Jian Chou’s heart spread like thick ink, instantly transforming into towering flames of rage!

Even though she and Zhong Lanling had once had decent conversations and she didn’t feel he had evil intentions, in this situation, how could she remain calm and rational?

Moreover, she really didn’t want the Yashan cultivators behind her to see this heartbreaking scene again.

The pain of a thousand, how could it compare to the pain of one!

Having become Yashan’s senior sister, she should bear responsibility.

Turning her hand to raise her sword, Jian Chou’s face was covered with frost as she forced back all the reluctance and hesitation in her heart, about to first slay these evil spirits before her eyes!

But just as her sword edge rose, a small hand reached out from the side, pressing down on the back of her hand.

In her bewilderment, she looked back.

It should have been Jiang He, the eighth disciple under Fudao Shanren, who had appeared beside her without any summons. No one had seen clearly how he appeared—what they could see clearly was only the childish face that seemed immersed in sorrowful desolation!

“Senior Sister Jian Chou, no need to act.”

He smiled at Jian Chou, then withdrew his hand, standing in the astonished and shocked gazes from all directions. He neither explained how he had appeared nor glanced at the countless ghost soldiers attacking from the surroundings, only sighing.

“Fellow Daoist Chaosheng may be in danger. Senior Sister, go with peace of mind. I’m here.”