Chapter 48: Yin Ghost Formation, Complete!
“Yin ghosts are born of filth and disorder, they feed on yin substances, hide within the Yin Ghost Flag, and with proper cultivation, their strength can grow day by day, in turn nourishing the Yin Flag.”
This was the information Ji Yuan had obtained from the inheritance back then.
As for the yin substances and the Bone-Corroding Flowers he had obtained from Black Mist Island for raising yin ghosts, they had all been separately stored in the Ghost Island Master’s storage pouch.
Just like now, he took out a small vial of Crest Blood from the storage pouch, poured it into a basin he had prepared in advance, and then took out the Yin Ghost Flag.
Two yin ghosts shot out from inside and immediately lunged toward the basin.
The two clumps of black shadows instantly made licking noises without pause.
As they consumed the blood, the black mist around them grew even denser.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan couldn’t help but feel a little regretful.
Originally, he had four yin ghosts, but he had killed two of them.
However, upon reconsideration, if all four had stayed together, their growth would have been slower.
Just like the previous Ghost Island Master—after cultivating for so long, all four yin ghosts were still only at the fourth layer of Qi Refining.
If he focused on raising just two, they might have already reached the fifth layer of Qi Refining.
‘After raising them for another half a month, these two yin ghosts should be able to reach the fifth layer of Qi Refining. But by then, the yin substances left behind by the Ghost Island Master would probably be nearly exhausted. I’ll have to find a new way to acquire more.’
Ji Yuan had to think about where to find new yin substances.
No matter. He would think about it after breaking through.
The pressing matter now was to first modify this Yin Ghost Formation.
He slowly closed his eyes and recalled the information in his mind regarding the Yin Ghost Flag.
After a while, Ji Yuan released the Yin Ghost Formation in the Comprehension Room.
He didn’t expand it too much, letting it occupy only about half the room.
To that end, he had even pasted several first-grade talismans on the walls to isolate any spiritual fluctuations.
The black formation patterns appeared, and Ji Yuan walked around observing them.
According to the descriptions in the formation books he had read before, ordinary formations were usually engraved with dedicated spirit stone slots.
When it was time to use them, one could place spirit stones into these slots, and the formation would automatically be activated.
However, this Yin Ghost Formation had no spirit stone slots. Even in the inherited memories, there was no mention of any slots.
Otherwise, the Ghost Island Master wouldn’t have left it in such a flawed state.
Since that was the case, Ji Yuan decided to add several spirit stone slots inside the Yin Ghost Flag.
But where should he place them?
Rubbing his chin, Ji Yuan frowned in deep thought while continuously walking through the formation, trying to select each node.
Yet every time he chose one, he followed the formation patterns to trace it through and found that there were always dead ends.
A dead end meant that spiritual power couldn’t travel through the patterns to every part of the formation, which would cause problems when activating it.
After much careful consideration, Ji Yuan couldn’t find a solution and had to stop for the time being, planning to check the books again and meditate for a while.
Nowadays, Ji Yuan rarely relied on absorbing the scattered spiritual energy from the world.
Especially now that the 【Pigsty】 had been upgraded to level two, producing ten spirit stones per day.
On top of that, after he learned to inscribe intermediate talismans, his reliance on external energy sources had decreased even further.
Most of the time, he would first take a Qi-Gathering Pill and then use spirit stones for cultivation.
He still ate Spiritual Eggs as well, but the eggshells had already been repurposed to feed the Spiritual Pigs or the Semi-Spiritual Fish.
Immortal Ji had long passed the age of gnawing on eggshells.
The next morning.
Wu Yan came knocking on Ji Yuan’s courtyard gate, personally delivering a generous gift.
Ji Yuan estimated that if converted to spirit stones, it would be worth seventy or eighty pieces.
The gift was substantial, so Ji Yuan declined it.
Wu Yan, remembering Wu Wenbin’s instructions, didn’t insist since showing the proper attitude was enough.
Seeing that Ji Yuan refused the gift, he didn’t press further and left after exchanging a few polite words.
Throughout the visit, he showed no displeasure, instead keeping a smiling, welcoming demeanor.
From him, Ji Yuan saw the shadow of Wu Wenbin.
A spitting image of a smiling tiger.
After closing the door, Ji Yuan continued his cultivation. However, just a day later, someone knocked on his gate again—this time it was Lin Hu.
Seeing the fish basket on his back, Ji Yuan guessed he had just returned from selling fish at the Fish Market.
“Brother Ji.”
Lin Hu called out, looking somewhat troubled.
“What is it?”
Ji Yuan naturally assumed Lin Hu had run into some trouble again and had come to ask for help. If it was borrowing spirit stones, that was still manageable, but if it was something else, Ji Yuan would have to consider it carefully.
“I just heard some news while selling fish at Zengtou Market. Not sure if it’s true or not.”
“What news?”
“I heard someone say that Uncle Lu was killed—killed while out fishing on his boat.”
“Uncle Lu?” Ji Yuan subconsciously froze.
Lin Hu quickly added, “Lu Wan’s father, Lu Song.”
Back when Lu Song’s family hadn’t moved away, they had also lived near the lakeside and had some acquaintance with Lin Youwei, though they hadn’t been particularly close to Ji Yuan’s family.
“What?”
This news truly surprised Ji Yuan.
He had thought the Wu family wouldn’t go that far, but unexpectedly, they had done just that.
“What about Lu Wan?”
“I don’t know.”
Lin Hu shook his head.
Admittedly, this news did shock Ji Yuan, so after Lin Hu left, he made a point to visit Zengtou Market.
Sure enough, he heard many people discussing it.
After all, the conflict between Lu Wan and the Wu family had already been a popular topic among many.
Now that it had escalated to murder, and the victim was a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator, it attracted even more attention.
Ji Yuan thought it over and went to the Lu family’s old home, only to find the gates still tightly shut.
After asking the neighbors, he learned that Lu Wan’s family had moved away before the New Year.
As for where they had moved to, Ji Yuan didn’t know, so he had no choice but to return home.
A few days later, he heard another piece of news.
It was said that the Qin family had taken Lu Wan under their protection and publicly declared that the matter with the Wu family was over. If it escalated any further, the Qin family would intervene.
And so, this long-dragged grudge was forcibly brought to an end.
At least for the time being.
Ji Yuan suspected that the Qin and Wu families, two major clans in Zengtou Market, had likely reached some sort of agreement behind the scenes.
Half a month later, Ji Yuan received a visit from Lu Wan, dressed in mourning attire, who had come to deliver the payment for the Blood Essence.
Seeing her again, her eyes had lost their former vitality, replaced by a deathly stillness—like a deep, bottomless well, void of any spirit.
Ji Yuan declined several times, but seeing her resolve, he eventually accepted it.
Just as she was about to leave, Ji Yuan hesitated before softly saying, “Sister Lu, the Qin family… isn’t trustworthy either.”
Upon hearing this, a flicker of change appeared in Lu Wan’s eyes.
But it was quickly hidden.
“I know. Don’t worry.”
“Alright.”
With that, Ji Yuan said no more.
Since Lu Wan had responded that way, she must have her own plans.
“Ji Yuan, you’re planning to join the Water Dragon Sect too, aren’t you?”
Ji Yuan smiled, “Who in Zengtou Market doesn’t want to join the Water Dragon Sect?”
“Good, then we… we…” Lu Wan took a deep breath and finally said, “See you at the Water Dragon Sect.”
Although Ji Yuan didn’t quite understand what she meant, he still nodded and replied:
“Alright.”
And so, two full months passed.
With the support of the 【Comprehension Room】, Ji Yuan finally succeeded in improving the flawed Yin Ghost Formation.
With five spirit stone slots and powered by five spirit stones—
The Yin Ghost Formation was complete!