Chapter 15: The Fearsome King of Ghosts

The appearance of the Soul-Devouring Hand cast a shadow over the sky, swirling with ominous clouds, heralding an impending storm and suffused with oppression.

Without warning, the Soul-Devouring Hand struck toward the golden divine dragon. Faced with its looming threat, Ye Yijian felt immense pressure; his fingers moved in a guiding gesture, summoning the Dragon Abyss Sword Spirit to defend him. Yet the golden dragon trembled violently, as if frightened by the Soul-Devouring Hand, and in the next instant, it shrank into a small dragon and fled back onto the Dragon Abyss Sword.

This scene left the disciples below, who had eagerly anticipated the Dragon Abyss Sword Spirit’s display of divine power, utterly stunned. Was this truly the ancient divine dragon? It behaved more like a timid tortoise.

In fact, it was even less than a tortoise—at least a tortoise would poke its head out to observe danger, but the dragon simply feigned sleep, suppressing its presence so completely it seemed to vanish.

Ye Yijian, furious at this betrayal, spat a mouthful of blood on the spot.

“Hahaha!” Watching Ye Yijian cough blood, the Ghost King burst into laughter. “Ye Yijian, even your Dragon Abyss Sword Spirit refuses to aid you now. Let’s see how you resist me this time!”

“If you kneel and beg for mercy, I might show kindness and spare your life!”

Ye Yijian’s face darkened at these words. As the current leader of Maoshan, if he were to kneel before the Ghost King and submit, how could he face the ancestors of Maoshan, how could he answer to the elders secluded on the mountain? Not only would his dignity be lost, he would forever hang his head in shame before his disciples.

He retorted coldly, “Ghost King, don’t be so pleased with yourself. Even without the Dragon Abyss Sword, I can still defeat you!”

“Haha! Without the help of the Dragon Abyss Sword, you stand no chance against me. Boasting comes at a price!” The Ghost King sneered, her hands forming intricate seals. Guided by her gestures, the Soul-Devouring Hand pressed down toward Ye Yijian.

As the great hand descended, its dark shadow enveloped all the Maoshan disciples below. Though it did not physically touch them, the aura it radiated chilled their bones. Such terrifying power—after years of cultivation, they had never witnessed its like.

The hand pressed down like a mountain, forcing their heads low; even a glance threatened to have their souls sucked away by the ghostly runes etched onto its palm.

They had always believed their leader could defeat the Ghost King, but now, faced with this horror, they had to admit the Ghost King’s power. Perhaps only the secluded grandmasters in the mountain’s depths could match her.

Ye Yijian himself was filled with dread. He realized he alone truly wasn’t a match for the Ghost King. His gaze flickered toward the group of elder Taoists standing at the mountain gate and he cursed coldly, “What are you waiting for? Are you just here to watch the show? Do you want to see your leader die so you can take his place?”

The elder Taoists blushed in embarrassment and quickly replied, “You jest, Master—we wouldn’t dare.”

“Then hurry and lend your strength to help me fend off the Soul-Devouring Hand!”

With Ye Yijian’s stern command, the elder Taoists soared into the air, joining him. Together, they unleashed powerful spells to resist the approaching Soul-Devouring Hand.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In an instant, a dozen powerful spells shot forth, striking the Soul-Devouring Hand and causing ripples to spread across the sky.

Yet countless ghostly faces appeared upon the hand’s surface, easily dissolving all the spells.

Seeing this, one elder Taoist exclaimed, “Master, this won’t work! Our spells are too weak to withstand the Soul-Devouring Hand!”

“Hahaha!” The Ghost King laughed coldly, “Stop wasting your efforts. None of you can resist my Soul-Devouring Hand. If you wish to survive, submit to me and I will spare you.”

“Ghost King, don’t dream of making us submit,” Ye Yijian replied with icy determination.

“Then do not blame me for being ruthless!” The Ghost King’s voice grew colder. The power of the Soul-Devouring Hand intensified, breaking through the defenses of Ye Yijian and his allies and pressing down.

As the Soul-Devouring Hand descended, a tremendous force surged forth. Under its impact, a Taoist of lower cultivation could not help but spit blood, his vitality rapidly fading.

“Don’t lose formation! Focus your power—we can break the Soul-Devouring Hand!” Ye Yijian cried.

The elder Taoists gathered their strength once more, weaving their spells together. This time, their powers united into a river of magical force, crashing against the Soul-Devouring Hand.

Buzz!

The space vibrated violently, as if waves surged across the heavens. The Soul-Devouring Hand shuddered under the onslaught, encountering great resistance. In response, countless ghostly faces howled forth, attaching themselves to the river of magic, intent on devouring it piece by piece.

The Maoshan disciples below felt their scalps crawl. The number of ghost faces was overwhelming, densely packed and impossible to count. Their resentment filled the sky, like black clouds pressing down.

“What should we do, Master? If this continues, our power will soon be exhausted. Once our magic runs dry, we’ll have no hope of survival!” one elder Taoist cried anxiously, watching the magical river being devoured bit by bit.

Ye Yijian’s expression was grave. He frowned and said, “I never expected the Soul-Devouring Hand to be so domineering, able to consume our magical power.”

“But this is the perfect time for the Taiyi Sword Array!”

Upon hearing Ye Yijian mention the Taiyi Sword Array, the elder Taoists nodded. “Yes, let’s form the Taiyi Grand Array.”

Without delay, Ye Yijian and the elder Taoists shifted from defense to offense, conjuring the Taiyi Sword Array.

Immediately, a sword formation appeared overhead, eight long swords forming its banners, resembling the yin-yang Eight Trigrams.

The sword array radiated righteous energy; under its influence, the ghost faces screamed in terror, clearly afraid of the Taiyi Sword Array.

“A mere formation dares to block my Soul-Devouring Hand? Break it!” The Ghost King’s eyes flashed coldly, her jade hand moved, and countless ghost faces, like moths to a flame, rushed toward the Taiyi Sword Array.

Yet as they approached, they disintegrated before ever touching the array!

Seeing this, Ye Yijian burst out laughing. “Hahaha! Ghost King, stop dreaming. You cannot break the Taiyi Sword Array. Surrender now, and perhaps I’ll show mercy to you and your ghost realm!”

The Ghost King sneered, “Are you so confident the Taiyi Sword Array can defeat me? Look again.”

“What? How can this be?” Ye Yijian’s laughter abruptly ended. The Taiyi Sword Array was now shrouded in a wisp of ghostly aura, which suddenly transformed into a massive ghost face and swallowed the array whole.

“What’s happening?” Not only was Ye Yijian shocked, the elder Taoists were equally incredulous. Moments ago, they had seen all the ghost faces destroyed. How could there still be one left?